Pinellas County to replace Thirteenth Street bridge to Paradise Key; construction expected in late summer 2025

Pinellas County officials said the design is complete for a replacement of the Thirteenth Street bridge — the only ingress and egress for the Paradise Key neighborhood within Tierra Verde — and that construction is expected to begin in late summer 2025.

Rob Meader, transportation section manager for Pinellas County, told residents during a virtual pre-construction meeting that "the design phase is complete, and we have scheduled the contract, or hired the contractor to, build the project." He said the county anticipates a start in August 2025 for work that will last about 24 months but added the start "may move to September" because Sunshine Water reported a delay in getting its contractor on site.

The project will replace the existing Thirteenth Street bridge over Pine Key Cutoff (also called Mud Bayou) and reconstruct the roadway approaches. County presenters said the new structure will have two 12-foot travel lanes, minimum 6-foot shoulders and 6-foot sidewalks on both sides of the bridge; the roadway outside the bridge will include curb and gutter and sidewalks per the presentation. The new bridge will increase horizontal navigational clearance by approximately 18.5 feet and raise vertical navigational clearance…