Plantation planning board endorses brick facade, side-mounted sign and Victorian lighting for Midtown bridge

Samira Shalane, the city engineer, asked the Planning & Zoning Board on April 8 to recommend an aesthetic alternative for the Midtown Bridge so staff could present a recommendation to City Council the next day. “Tonight we prepared a brief presentation for you to give you an update on the progress of the Midtown Plantation Midtown Bridge,” Shalane said.

The board heard a status update from Jeff Widener, chief planner with Marlin Engineering, who described the project scope and schedule. “It’s a 200 foot long bridge, with 3 lanes,” Widener said, and explained the design includes pedestrian and bicycle accommodations, high-emphasis crosswalks, flashing in-road lights for the greenway, and new pedestrian lighting on the corners and at points along the greenway. Widener also summarized recent approvals, including federal acceptance to break the limited-access line adjacent to I‑595 and a February location-and-design concept acceptance that allows the team to advance DOT reviews and the 60% plans.

The presentation included two aesthetic options for the bridge—one with a traditional brick treatment and a second with a travertine-like finish—and two approved lighting styles. Shalane noted the Midtown Advisory Board had favored the brick facade, a side-mounted gateway sign, and Victorian lanterns. Board members and members of the public raised maintenance and safety concerns during discussion: one member said travertine “doesn’t look so hot anymore” and is prone to mildew, and another asked staff to consider the bridge approach geometry where high-speed turns from I‑595 could create maintenance or safety issues near overhanging pier elements.

Members asked about raised crossings and intersection treatments for the greenway and Seventeenth Street approach. Widener and other engineers cautioned that the bridge approach is a structural profile and that raising the greenway or intersection would require coordination with the bridge profile and additional transition length; the team said they would study whether pavement treatments or localized elevation changes could improve visibility while respecting structural constraints.

Chair Korman then requested the board’s visual preference. The board voiced consensus in support of a brick facade, a side-mounted Midtown sign on the bridge, and Victorian-style lighting. The board did not take a formal vote; Shalane said staff would include the selected aesthetics in the 90% design plans and present recommendations to City Council at the council’s meeting the following day.

Public commenters supported the brick treatment and asked staff to address sight lines for low-profile vehicles and to consider pavement color and stamped concrete to increase crosswalk visibility. Joanne (address provided on the record) urged engineering adjustments to ensure visibility from the former service-station area and suggested multi-colored stamped concrete to attract attention to the crossing.

Staff identified the next steps as submitting 60% plans to FDOT for review, pursuing permits including a South Florida Water Management District permit for work in its right of way, advancing to 90% design, and then advertising the project for construction in early 2026. No formal action was taken at the Planning & Zoning Board; members provided a consensus recommendation that staff will carry to City Council.

The project schedule presented at the meeting projects construction procurement in early 2026 pending permit approvals, with design/permitting continuing through winter 2025–26.