Event to be held in Geldbart Auditorium within Selby Library
On Tuesday, Aug. 19, from 5 to 7 p.m., staff of District One of the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) — which includes Sarasota County — will host a public meeting on the department’s plans to resurface, restore and rehabilitate State Road 683/U.S. 301 from U.S. 41 to south of 10th Street, FDOT has announced.
The program will be conducted in the Jack J. Geldbart Auditorium of Selby Public Library, which stands near Five Points in downtown Sarasota (1331 First St.).
Plans call for the milling and resurfacing of the existing roadway, along with the installation of improvements that will comply with the standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a news release says. The project also will encompass “upgrades to pavement markings and signage, pedestrian signals, and detectors at signalized intersections,” the release notes.
Further, the City of Sarasota has requested the addition of a new midblock crossing — with a pedestrian hybrid beacon — to be installed at South Payne Parkway, the release notes.
The Federal Highway Administration explains, “Nearly 74 percent of pedestrian fatalities occur at non-intersection locations, and vehicle speeds are often a major contributing factor. As a safety strategy to address this pedestrian crash risk, the [pedestrian hybrid beacon] PHB is an intermediate option between a flashing beacon and a full pedestrian signal because it assigns right of way and provides positive stop control. It also allows motorists to proceed once the pedestrian has cleared their side of the travel lane(s), reducing vehicle delay.”
PHBs are in place at Legacy Trail crossings in Sarasota County.
FDOT adds in the release, “These proposed improvements will enhance roadway quality, condition and safety for multimodal travel” along U.S. 301.
The length of the project area is 1.07 miles, its FDOT webpage notes.
FDOT’s Five Year Work Program for District One for Fiscal Years 2026 through 2030 shows that the U.S. 301 initiative is planned to begin in the 2026 fiscal year, which started on July 1. (The state’s fiscal year is different from those of local governments in Florida; the latter start on Oct. 1.) The total amount budgeted for the project is $9,574,694, a Work Program chart shows.
A separate chart says that the advertisement for bids for the undertaking is planned to be issued on Feb. 20, 2026, with the bids to be opened on March 25, 2026.
“For stakeholder convenience,” the release continues, FDOT will provide three ways to participate in the public meeting:
- In-person — in the Jack J. Geldbart Auditorium (first floor) of Selby Public Library (34236). No registration is necessary, the release says, and free parking will be available in the library parking lot, near the main entrance. A two-hour limit is imposed on the spaces, the release points out.
- Virtual — Tuesday, Aug. 19, from 5 to 7 p.m. Please register in advance at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4383044123493195355.
The narrated presentation will run continuously, the release notes, with project exhibit boards, a project handout and the project comment form available to view or download.
- Online —https://www.swflroads.com/project/451017-1. “All meeting materials and the video presentation will be available on the project website,” the release adds.
Every participant, regardless of the platform, will receive the same information, the release explains, “and all comments received will be given equal weight.”
The public may provide comments through one of four ways, the release adds:
- Online at the project website (https://www.swflroads.com/project/451017-1).
- During the in-person public meeting.
- Through the virtual meeting webpage.
- By contacting FDOT Project Manager Richard Howard at richard.howard@dot.state.fl.us; by mail at FDOT District One, Attn: Richard Howard, P.O. Box 1249, Bartow, FL 33831-1249; or by calling 863-519-2374.
“FDOT is sending notices to all property owners and tenants within at least 300 feet of either side of the proposed project and to elected and appointed officials, businesses, and interested parties so all have the opportunity to comment,” the release points out. “While comments about the project are accepted at any time, please provide your comments by Thursday, August 28, 2025, to be included in the public meeting record,” the release says.