Road connecting Tohoqua to new Turnpike interchange could open in summer 2028
The Cross Prairie Parkway Connector Project will connect the road, which currently ends on the east side of Tohoqua, to the new Turnpike interchange over a bridge over the C-31 Canal. Nolte Road is being extended to the west of Old Canoe Creek, where the full diamond interchange is being built. (Graphics/Osceola County)
Relief is coming for St. Cloud motorists who currently need Neptune Road and Old Canoe Creek Road to get to Florida’s Turnpike.
Just hang on for about another two years.
Osceola County leaders held the ceremonial groundbreaking for the start of the Cross Prairie Parkway Connector Project, which would connect the road, which currently ends on the east side of the Tohoqua development, to the new Turnpike interchange over a bridge over the C-31 Canal. Nolte Road is being extended to the west of Old Canoe Creek, where the full diamond interchange is being built.
County officials said that, with the work beginning this year, work will be completed in the summer of 2028. That road would provide drivers, especially those from Tohoqua and Kindred, with a way to get to the Turnpike without ever getting on Neptune or Old Canoe Creek, as well as an arterial road to reach the proposed 320-acre, county-owned NeoCity South development. AdventHealth has already agreed to purchase land at the site and build a healthcare campus that would eventually include a hospital with 80-200 beds.
The project is slated to cost about $48 million, with the Florida Department of Transportation supplying a $6 million grant to defray the county’s costs.
The project includes supplying the road with new bicycle lanes, a sidewalk and multi-use recreational path, a new traffic signal at Nolte Road, drainage improvements and stormwater ponds, street lighting, landscaping and irrigation, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), and water, reclaimed water, and sewer utility improvements.
“The Cross Prairie Parkway Connector has been a priority for the Board because this connection is about more than adding another road to our network. It is about connecting our community, giving residents another way to get where they need to go, alleviating congestion, and helping reduce commute times,” said County Commissioner Cheryl Grieb, whose District 4 includes the Cross Prairie Parkway extension. “This project is a great example of what we can accomplish when local and state partners work together. It will improve mobility and safety, provide better access for our first responders, and help prepare this area for the growth and development that is coming. We are making the investments our community needs today while preparing for the future.”
