City Manager's Annual Report 2017 | A Year In Review | Page 26

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CROSSTOWN
When the City of Port St. Lucie celebrated the
groundbreaking for the Crosstown Parkway
Extension Project in May 2017, Mayor Gregory
Oravec described the project as “a multi-
generational relay race” that was decades
in the making. The City Council and current
project team are honored to have been
entrusted with the anchor leg.
“We will be running as hard as we can to
the finish line,” Oravec said at the ceremony
attended by federal, state, county and city
officials, who have all played a role in making
Port St. Lucie’s third bridge crossing of the
North Fork of the St. Lucie River a reality. “The
Crosstown Bridge will make our lives better,
we will be safer, our travel will be easier, our
economy will grow and we will even have
new places to play.”
The year 2017 brought an end to various legal
challenges --all in which the City prevailed
-- that had forced delays to construction.
The year also brought official permits from
state and federal agencies, allowing work
to begin. The launch of construction on the
final phase of the Crosstown Parkway and
its bridge will further prosperity and touch
residents’ and visitors’ lives in multiple ways.
QUALITY OF LIFE
The Crosstown Parkway Extension Project
will provide a new bridge crossing over the
North Fork of the St. Lucie River, connecting
the existing Crosstown Parkway from Manth
Lane to U.S. 1. at Village Green Drive. The six-
lane divided highway and bridge will serve
as a multi-modal transportation alternative
to include accommodations for automobile,
bicycle, pedestrian and public transit. And,
it will improve public safety and emergency
response times and provide an additional
evacuation route in emergencies.
TRANSPARENCY & COMMUNITY
ENGAGEMENT
The City strove to include the public, and
especially nearby residents, throughout
the planning and construction process. In
July 2017, the project’s Earth Cam went
live, giving the public a bird’s-eye view of
the bridge-building activity in real time. A
count-down clock tells visitors how much
construction time is left, down to the second!
Throughout all phases of the construction of
Crosstown Parkway, the City and contractor
held multiple public information meetings,
listening residents’ input. See all of this and
more at www.crosstownextension.com
The entire City was invited to celebrate the
groundbreaking in May, where hundreds
attended, and thousands more watched the
video broadcast on Facebook. Finally, the City
and Contractor teamed up to hold a job fair
in the Spring of 2017 to recruit local workers
for the project.
PORT ST. LUCIE’S FUTURE
The Crosstown Parkway Extension will benefit
residents, motorists and businesses alike.
Once open, traffic will begin to utilize the new
route, bringing more projected traffic from
Interstate 95 to eastern Port St. Lucie and
U.S. 1.
Upon completion in Fall 2019, it will relieve
traffic congestion on the busy Port St. Lucie
and Prima Vista Boulevard bridges. It will
provide new recreational opportunities, such
as a canoe launch and overlooks. In the past,
what may have taken 45 minutes to deliver
goods to I-95 might now only take about 15
minutes.
CUSTOMER SERVICE
The Crosstown team has staff dedicated to
working with the public to address issues in
a very timely manner. The public is welcome
to call the project hotline, 772-871-5176, to
speak directly with a project representative.
FINANCIAL HEALTH
The original construction estimate for this
bridge project was $121 million. However, the
City partnered with Florida Department of
Transportation and performed an extensive
“value engineering” review, which reduced
the estimated cost to $101 million. As a result,
the project received the 2013 American
Association of State and Transportation
Officials National Value Engineering Award,
Most Value Added for pre-construction
engineering $100M or greater. The project
was also recognized by Florida TaxWatch
2013 Prudential - Davis Productivity Award for
innovative and cost saving initiatives. In the
end, the City was pleased to receive Design/
Build bids for the project less than anticipated.
The final construction contact for this final leg
of Crosstown Parkway is $87,595,000.
ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP
The City has taken extraordinary steps to
mitigate and offset the environmental impacts
of this project, beyond what was required
under permits. These steps included: Giving
110 acres of desired land in the St. Lucie basin
to the state to expand the Savannas Preserve
State Park in conservation; working with St.
Lucie County to complete the Platts Creek
Water Quality and wetland restoration site;
constructing a multi-use trail off Midway Road;
replacing and improving the Evans Creek
Canoe Launch and expanding and improving
the Savannas Preserve State Park Education
Center off Walton Road.