Overview
Summer 2008: Public Hearings Set for New Timeframe
Please click here to view exhibits from the Viable Alternatives Workshops. 
The continuing finalization of federal and other documentation for the Project Development and Environment (PD&E) Study for the Wekiva Parkway has led to the formal public hearings now being set for summer 2008. The Expressway Authority and the Florida Department of Transportation are jointly studying the 25-mile highway authorized by the 2004 Wekiva Parkway & Protection Act.
The PD&E Study Team has been working to finalize the study documentation, including meeting requirements pertaining to potential historic sites. Team members also over the past several months have been meeting with local government and state agency representatives to get their input to help form and refine alignment and interchange recommendations. Likewise, study team members have met with numerous community stakeholders and received valuable feedback that also was evaluated in working toward the recommendations.
The latest project maps were revised based on public and agency input, as well as the latest engineering and cost analyses. The Expressway Authority Board on Oct. 24 approved moving forward with the latest alignment and interchange alternatives to be reviewed at formal public hearings.
The Expressway Authority and FDOT are charged with finding a balance between the often conflicting interests of the public, the environment and engineering analysis. The intent is to minimize impacts to homes, businesses and the environment, while also developing a transportation facility that meets the regionÂ’s growing transportation needs.
The Wekiva Parkway is believed to be critical to accommodate intensifying growth and inter-county travel between Lake, Seminole and Orange counties. The project would relieve congestion on US Highway 441, State Road 46 and local roads, and complete the beltway on the west side of metropolitan Orlando.
The roadway would begin at the planned SR 429/SR 414 (Maitland Boulevard Extension) interchange at US 441 in Apopka, go north and then east along the current SR 46 alignment and connect to Interstate 4 near Sanford. The project also includes the SR 46 Bypass, which would begin at US 441 and SR 46 near Mount Dora and connect to the parkway at a systems interchange in northwest Orange County.
The Expressway Authority is responsible for the portion of the project in Orange County, which would be tolled. The FDOT is overseeing development of the Lake and Seminole County portions of the roadway.
The various recommendations are being formulated into a preferred alternative or alternatives that will be presented at the formal public hearings in Lake, Orange and Seminole counties. Advance notification of the hearings will be provided.
Subsequently the preferred alternative will need to be approved by the Expressway Authority, FDOT, Seminole County Expressway Authority, Orange and Lake County officials, the Cities of Mount Dora and Apopka and other local, state and federal entities.
The PD&E study, which began in January 2005, is expected to finish with an approved alternative in summer 2008.
The following summarizes some recent local government activity pertaining to the PD&E Study:
June 5: The Lake County Board of County Commissioners received an update presentation on the Lake County portions of the project including the alignment and access alternatives in the eastern part of the county.
June 1: The Wekiva River Basin Commission received an update presentation on the project, with particular focus on the east Lake County and Seminole County project areas.
May 15: The Mount Dora City Council received an update presentation on the proposed widening of SR 46 east of US 441 and alternatives for modifying the US 441/SR 46 interchange. The City Council subsequently issued a statement on June 11 that they preferred interchange Alternative 1 featuring a grade separation between the two highways and a southbound US 441 flyover to go east on SR 46.
May 8: The Seminole County Expressway Authority received an update on the Seminole County portion of the project including the alignment alternatives for connecting to Interstate 4 at SR 417.
March 6: Orange County Commissioners approved their staff's recommendation for the Wekiva Parkway interchange in Orange County to be located at Kelly Park Road.
February 7: The Apopka City Council approved a proposed route for the Wekiva Parkway within their city limits, thereby allowing the Expressway Authority to begin advance right-of-way acquisition along that segment. The vote was requested since the alignment in this area would have to connect to the northwest end of the planned extension of State Road 429/414 (John Land Apopka Expressway), and there would be little room for shifting the proposed parkway.
Also in February, comparative impact assessments, construction and right-of-way cost estimates, and engineering analysis were discussed during meetings of the Environmental Advisory Committee and Project Advisory Group. Several members of the public attended the advisory committee meetings. The study team also continues to coordinate with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the Federal Highway Administration and other agencies.
The activities of the PD&E Study address recommendations outlined in the Final Report of the Wekiva River Basin Coordinating Committee and set forth in the Wekiva Parkway and Protection Act. The Coordinating Committee's March 2004 report followed two years of intensive community input. Details of the Coordinating Committee recommendations and other Wekiva information are available on the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council website at
www.ecfrpc.org
.
The Parkway and Protection Act authorizes the development of the Wekiva Parkway while protecting the Wekiva River System through land conservation measures, control of land uses, habitat preservation, and the protection of spring and groundwater recharge areas.
On Dec. 19, 2006, Gov. Jeb Bush and the Florida Cabinet approved the purchase of the 1,580-acre Neighborhood Lakes parcel as a part of the Wekiva-Ocala Greenway Florida Forever project. The environmentally-sensitive land spanning Orange and Lake counties is the second to be acquired out of four properties identified for protection in the Wekiva Parkway and Protection Act signed into law by Governor Bush in 2004.
The Expressway Authority, Florida Department of Environmental Protection's Division of State Lands, the St. Johns River Water Management District and Orange and Lake Counties participated in that acquisition.
In 2005, the State placed a conservation easement over the 1,553-acre New Garden Coal property, now known as the Wekiva Mitigation Bank, to help build the parkway while protecting springs, rivers and black bear habitat from future development.
Please click here to view
Proposed Conservation Land Acquisitions for the Wekiva Parkway.
Coordinating Committee recommendations also included establishing The Wekiva River Basin Commission, which is monitoring and ensuring the implementation of state, regional and local efforts consistent with the Parkway and Protection Act requirements and the Committee recommendations.
The 18-member Commission is charged with reporting annually to the Governor, the Florida Legislature and the Department of Community Affairs on implementation progress and recommendations for funding assistance to local governments. For information on Commission activities and public meetings, log onto the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council's Web site.
To access the latest SR 429 Update with information on the Wekiva Parkway & SR 46 Bypass, please follow the link below:
Please click here to view a Project Chronology.
Please click here for the Wekiva Parkway Comment Form.