The toll road cutting through Port St. Lucie could get a few more interchanges at critical roadways – and the Port St. Lucie City Council is doing what it can to lobby Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise to do just that.
“Get ’er done,” said Councilwoman Stephanie Morgan in support of a resolution the council ultimately approved. “I’m excited about it.”
The resolution clears the way for the city’s staff to engage the Turnpike Enterprise in considering an interchange at Crosstown Parkway. Preliminary plans from the Florida Department of Transportation show the potential for another interchange at St. Lucie West Boulevard.
“Currently the Turnpike has a Project Development and Environment (PD&E) study underway that is considering enhanced access at St. Lucie (West) Boulevard and Crosstown Parkway,” said Chad Huff, public information manager of Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise. “The PD&E study is expected to last approximately two years.”
City Manager Russ Blackburn told the council that it is his understanding that the Turnpike will host two public hearings in December and early 2018 to take public input on the Project Development and Environment study. One of the hearings is likely to be held in Port St. Lucie, he added.
During the hearings Turnpike officials are expected to lay out the agency’s short- and long-term plans for the toll road.
“We’re giving you a glimpse” as was provided to staff by the Turnpike, Blackburn said.
Mayor Gregory Oravec directed Blackburn to include in the city’s transmittal to the Turnpike the city’s projected growth rate, noting that Port St. Lucie is currently home to 185,000 residents. He asked that the number of vacant lots available for development on the east side of the Turnpike be included as well as the number of approved dwelling units – 60,000 – on the west end of town.
Already, the Turnpike Enterprise is conducting a study regarding widening the Turnpike to eight lanes between Indiantown and Fort Pierce. The study includes evaluating potential interchange and ramp upgrades as well as new interchange locations.
According to documents from the Turnpike Enterprise, St. Lucie West Boulevard could get an entrance to the northbound Turnpike and a southbound Turnpike exit onto the boulevard.
Crosstown Parkway, according to the document, could get a southbound entrance and a northbound exit.
When any construction could actually start remains to be determined. The PD&E study is expected to conclude by June 2019 and construction won’t start until funding becomes available.
However, the Turnpike Enterprise expects to start construction on “interim” improvements to the ramp and the intersection of Bayshore and Port St. Lucie boulevards sometime in March 2018.
Improvements include a sidewalk, a northbound right turn lane, and an additional southbound through-lane.
