project is 70% complete<\/a>, according to a Seminole County spokeswoman. Recent work has included sheet piling for stormwater ponds, drilled shafts for future signal installations and ongoing drainage improvements.<\/p>\nThe project is expected to wrap up in the fall of next year. Plans include new sidewalks, bike lanes, landscaping and a median, while keeping Oxford Road at two lanes.<\/p>\n
Oxford Road runs north-south, similar to U.S. 17-92, and can be used as a cut-through for drivers trying to avoid the U.S. 17-92 and State Road 436 interchange. The project also includes extending Fern Park Boulevard from Oxford Road to U.S. 17-92 near Lowe\u2019s, across the street from Fire Station 22.<\/p>\n
Seminole County hopes the extension will improve first responder access and eliminate the need for the fire department to consider relocating Station 22. The county also expects the project to help traffic flow near the interchange.<\/p>\n
For businesses along Oxford Road, the construction has created challenges. Bass Central, a dealer that sells specialized bass guitars, is located along the project route.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can tell you a couple of times it shut the business down,\u201d said Mike Amico of Bass Central. \u201cThey\u2019ve taken the power out. We\u2019ve had to close the store because there was no power, which takes down our internet, which takes down everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Amico said Bass Central draws customers from around the world, including Brazil and France, but construction has affected access to the shop.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost people come from out of the country,\u201d Amico said. \u201cThis is a destination stop. But as you know, as you can see outside, we have a slight problem with the destination at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
The project is also tied to broader efforts to revitalize the Fern Park area. Developers are eyeing a more pedestrian-friendly \u201cmain street\u201d atmosphere with wide sidewalks, bike lanes and landscaping.<\/p>\n
Amico said another access point could help the area over time, even as construction creates short-term difficulties.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope it expands. I hope it attracts new businesses and more people,\u201d Amico said. \u201cAnd that\u2019s good for everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. \u2014 A $41 million road project in Fern Park is aimed at improving traffic flow…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":357084,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[2178,2179,2176,115,139,141,140,729,835],"class_list":["post-357083","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-app-traffic-inbox","tag-inbox","tag-jerry-hume","tag-news","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-news","tag-traffic","tag-vod"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/357083","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=357083"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/357083\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/357084"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=357083"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=357083"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=357083"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}