Manatee County commissioners signed a land-use agreement Tuesday allowing FDOT contractor Sema Construction to use county-owned land on the north side of the Cortez Bridge as a staging site for the next four years. The property, where the Seafood Shack once stood, will hold equipment, materials, office trailers and crane access as crews work to replace the aging drawbridge with a 65-foot fixed-span bridge. The county issued a right of entry back in June and extended it through October while the long-term agreement was negotiated.
The revised plan reduces the county’s property footprint, and Sema will build the county’s ferry boat parking and remove a house at 4327 127th Street West at its own cost. County staff say staging on that land keeps construction traffic out of the constrained right-of-way near the bridge.
Not everyone is satisfied with how it came together. The Concerned Citizens for Cortez Coalition objected to the process and potential access impacts, while Karen Bell of Tide Tables said the community will have to deal with some discomfort for a little while. With four years of construction ahead, the question many in Cortez are asking is how the county will communicate as the work unfolds. What would you want to hear from the county as this project moves forward?
