- May 9, 2024
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The downtown portion of Granada Boulevard will undergo roughly nine months of construction to add a median and move power lines underground, among other alterations.
BY MATT MENCARINI | STAFF WRITER
In an effort to make downtown more pedestrian friendly, Granada Boulevard will have its lanes narrowed, streets resurfaced, aerial utilities dug underground and new medians installed, throughout the next nine months.
The work will be done in two phases, the first including the medians, lanes and resurfacing, by the Florida Department of Transportation. After, the city will move the power lines underground.
Median construction could begin in December, according to Shawn Finley, city engineer, but officials are pushing for a start date in early January, to avoid holiday traffic. Most of the work will also be done at night.
“There are nice restaurants and bars there,” said Ormond Beach MainStreet Executive Director Julia Truilo. “At night, people park on one side of the street or the other, and it’s like taking your life in your hands, really, to cross the street to get back to your car.
So zebra crossings will be painted and sidewalk bump-outs will be built, protecting end parking spots along the street.
Median installation and street resurfacing is projected to cost $573,000 and be paid for through grants. Median landscaping will cost the city $250,000.
Granada's makeover is projected to be a long project, but local shop owners don't seem to mind.
Jerry Papi, owner of A Little Place for Hair, at 26 W. Granada Blvd., said he’s not concerned about the construction having a negative impact on his business — as long as the street doesn’t lose any parking.
Finley said the median work will result in fewer than 10 parking spaces being removed.
Undergrounding utilities
A $1.4 million agreement with Florida Power & Light and AT&T to move underground aerial utilities along the downtown Community Redevelopment Area was approved at the Nov. 7 Ormond Beach City Commission meeting.
Construction limits include Granada Boulevard, from U.S. 1 to Beach Street; Corbin Avenue, from Washington Street to Beach Street; and New Britain Avenue, from Washington Street to Beach Street.
The approval also covered peripheral costs from Brighthouse, Sunesys and Level 3.
“It’s aesthetic, obviously, but it also improves reliability,” City Engineer John Noble said of the project. “(There’s) less chances of trees knocking down wires.”
Other improvements included in the project are additional trees planted along the street and expanded sidewalks.
The total cost, according to city documents, is $1,371,929.15, which is up from the original $1.2 million estimated in the 2011-2012 fiscal year budget.
The budget will be amended to re-appropriate funding and to reflect the adjusted amount, once bids have been received and a total cost is known.
Undergrounding aerial utilities was listed in the 2007 Downtown Master Plan, in an effort to reflect the look of East Granada Boulevard and the Boulevard 2000 project.
Construction, which will take roughly three months, is estimated to begin in June.
