Residents, city leaders, and FDOT representatives met on the evening of Thursday, Feb. 6, at Winter Park Events Center to further discuss planned safety measures for the stretch of S.R. 426 between Park and Lakemont avenues.
The meeting focused on new project designs based on 19 solutions, presented to the community in October of 2023, that include a mix of speed management and pedestrian safety measures. The list was the result of a resident-led effort, dubbed the Winter Park Road Crisis Campaign, to raise awareness of the increasing number of reckless driving accidents along Osceola, Brewer, and Aloma avenues. The safety additions will be installed during an FDOT street resurfacing and the City of Winter Park has committed $1.8 million to support the project, which is currently estimated at $12 million.
FDOT Design Project Manager Martina Paradysz told the32789 that, while the project is currently in the design phase, public feedback is still being considered and changes are not out of the question. One possible change centers on a cost-saving measure that replaces brick-paved designs with asphalt.
Raised intersections act as speed tables with the center area roughly 4 inches above street level. Brick designs were originally planned for Chase and Ollie avenues, Cortland Avenue, Trismen Terrace, Shephard Avenue and Sylvan Drive, and Phelps Avenue. However, city commission in July approved substituting brick for less expensive asphalt, and supported reallocating the savings to help fund a traffic signal at Cortland Avenue that was requested by Crisis Campaign members. FDOT traffic surveys did not support the inclusion of the signal and the city would have been responsible for the $800,000 cost.
Pushback from residents opposing the traffic signal have led the city to reconsider its position. A resolution reversing approval of the signal will be brought before commissioners at their February 12 meeting, which may open the door to bringing back the bricks. City Manager Randy Knight said that any changes to the plan would need to come before city commission for review.
Representatives from American Structurepoint, Inc. also attended the February 6 meeting. The Tampa-based civil engineering firm is working with FDOT on the S.R. 426 project and Vice President Nick Harrison told the32789 that construction is expected to start late in the spring of 2026. Another community meeting will be scheduled later this year as the design phase ends, and members of the construction team will be present to answer questions. Harrison added that most of the work will be done at night to minimize inconvenience, and the project will be completed in phases with advanced notice provided once partial road closures and alternate neighborhood entrances are worked out. No construction timeline beyond the expected start was given.
Updates and designs can be accessed on the FDOT project site. The next city commission meeting is schedule for Wednesday, Feb. 12.
