FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Lauren Hames 407-246-3106

MERCY DRIVE CORRIDOR
IMPROVEMENTS RIBBON-CUTTING

ORLANDO, Fla. (June 18, 2004) – Mayor Buddy Dyer, City Commissioner Daisy Lynum and Orange County Commissioner Homer Hartage Tuesday, June 22, 2004 at 10 a.m. will cut the ribbon on the Mercy Drive Corridor improvements project at the intersection of Mercy Drive and Kalwit Lane in Orlando.

In 1998, City Commissioner Daisy Lynum, County Commissioner Homer Hartage and former County Commissioner Mable Butler conducted a site visit with residents of the Mercy Drive corridor and city and county staff to examine the existing conditions along the roadway. They found open swales, no sidewalks, inadequate pedestrian crosswalks and heavy commercial truck traffic. Discussions with residents about road improvements continued for the next four years and the project design plan evolved, based on input from residents, from a base-level road improvements project to a multi-modal neighborhood transportation enhancement project.

Scope of the work included:


· Closing drainage ditches
· Improving aesthetics and landscaping
· Improving street lighting
· Improving pedestrian crossings
· Implementing speed control
· Limiting truck traffic
· Connecting sidewalks
· Providing transit shelters
· Providing bicycle lanes


The project took just over one year to complete with a budget of $5,565,000. The contractor is JCB Construction and project partners are the City of Orlando, Orange County, Orlando Utilities Commission and the Florida Department of Transportation.

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