County staff alerting residents of affected areas
Sarasota County staff has sent out postcards to Siesta Key residents, alerting them to the upcoming resurfacing projects that are expected to begin in June, The Sarasota News Leader has learned.
County Communications Department staff also sent out a press release on May 28, noting that the initiative will include “milling and paving, pavement stripping, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ramp modifications, curb repairs, roadway base repairs and school zone sign improvements.”
The County One Week Look Ahead report for May 27 through June 2 said that as of May 24, message boards would be installed at the intersections of Siesta Drive and Higel Avenue, and Midnight Pass Road and Beach Road, to advise the public to the coming projects. That report added that concrete work was expected to start in early June, “with pavement resurfacing starting [in] late June. Anticipated completion of this project is January 2025.”
One of the mobile signs noted that the work would get underway on June 3, a Siesta resident told the News Leader.
As the News Leader has reported, the County Commission on April 9 voted to award the $11.4-million contract to Ajax Paving Industries of North Venice. The total lane-mile count will be 34.72, as noted in a county staff memo that was part of the April 9 agenda packet. That memo further pointed out that staff expected — as of that time — that the initiative would be substantially completed by the end of November, “weather permitting.” However, the memo also indicated that work would be underway before the end of April.
The funding for the resurfacing project will come out of gas tax revenue that the county receives and the county’s Traffic Fund in the Surtax 3 Program, a voter-approved initiative that generates revenue from an additional penny of sales tax.
The May 28 county news release said that the work will take place from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, “excluding weekends and holidays.”
Moreover, the release noted, “Motorists may experience lane closures and should seek alternate routes whenever possible. Emergency vehicles will have unrestricted access at all times. Pedestrians and motorists should use caution while traveling through the area and expect minor delays.”
The release added, “Door hangers with details about construction will be placed at residences in advance of individual street resurfacing. For more information, please visit scgov.net or call 311.”