Osprey Ave. Bridge - Closure Starts Mon., Aug. 1    Following morning rush hour, on Monday, August 1st at 10 a.m., Osprey Ave. from the Hudson Bayou bridge to Hillview St. will be closed to traffic as it becomes a necessary construction site for Phase I of the Lift Station 87 infrastructure improvement project.

Please note:  Local traffic will be allowed between Hillview and Bahia Vista -- but no thru traffic.

We hosted a public meeting earlier this week to explain the detour route and gather feedback.  Neighborhood cut through traffic is a concern for us all.  Traffic enforcement will be stepped up in the area to monitor speed, stop sign compliance, and cut through traffic.  To help with traffic calming, several speed tables will be installed in adjacent neighborhoods.  Also, well in advance of the road closure, electronic message signs have been placed in the area alerting drivers about the pending detour. 

We plan to host a follow up meeting in the fall to hear from residents about what they're experiencing with traffic and what modifications, if any, need to be made. 


While Osprey Ave. is planned to be closed for 12 months, we're cautiously optimistic the contractor will successfully install a new water main and microtunnel under the bayou sooner --  and the road can reopen sooner.

We have a website dedicated specifically to the Lift Station 87 project:  www.LiftStation87.com  Please visit that site for updates.  Also, there's a specific phone line to contact a team member regarding questions and/or concerns:  941-356-8071.

We appreciate your patience as we make a necessary upgrade to a major portion of the City's infrastructure which transports approximately one-third of the community's wastewater. 

The Vue - Topping Out Ceremony   This week, Mayor Willie Shaw, Deputy City Manager Marlon Brown and I attended the topping out ceremony for the Westin hotel and the Vue project. A topping out ceremony is significant for a construction project because it commemorates that workers have finished building upward and will now focus on the interior.  And, in this case, that means the construction tower crane at U.S. 41 and Gulfstream will be removed very soon.

On any given day, 400 trades people have been working on site.  And, that's how many attended the topping out ceremony -- what an impressive sight in terms of jobs.

Since Kast Construction started work on the project on July 3, 2014,  approximately 2,000 workers have been on site logging about 720,000 hours.  We're told by the time the project is finished, 1 million labor hours will have been earned and paid.

The development consists of 141 residential units and 255 hotel rooms.  The project director expects the Westin hotel to open in February or March 2017.      

The following is the current show schedule through 2016. For more information visit www.VanWezel.org