Consultants from Marlin Engineering and Dover, Kohl & Partners on Monday presented draft concepts for a Dixie Highway streetscape and a Rio Civic Center master plan to the Martin County Community Redevelopment Agency, laying out two Civic Center site alternatives and a set of streetscape design and traffic‑calming options that staff said will be refined through public outreach this winter.

"My name is Christina Furman. I'm with Marlin Engineering, and I'm here today with, Pablo Duenas, who is with, Dover Collin Partners," Christina Furman said as she opened the presentation and described the concurrent schedules for both projects, including public meetings and a return to the Neighborhood Advisory Committee (NAC) in January.

The consultants presented community survey and demographic findings for Rio: a population of about 2,500, a median age near 56, roughly one‑third of residents aged 65 or older, a homeownership rate near 97 percent and an estimated poverty rate of about 12 percent. The consultants also reported that more than 80 percent of households have three or more cars and that about 90 percent of commuters drive alone.

Survey responses showed the most popular desired Civic Center uses were community events and festivals, followed by community gardens, art exhibits, meeting space and performing arts or dog park space. The team presented two preferred Civic Center site alternatives: one that pulls the building close to Dixie Highway with flex space behind it, and a second that sets the building back to create a larger lawn and event space with a pavilion or bandstand.

"We want to incorporate decorative entry features, decorative furniture, and an open lawn or outdoor space for events," Pablo Duenas said while describing alternatives that include a convertible paved plaza for a farmers market, a village green for performances, and a pavilion for staged events.

Staff noted limits on the site. Staff said the parcel where the current Civic Center sits is required to remain in civic use; adjacent parcels the CRA has purchased may be used as open space or could be sold or developed privately to create synergy with the civic functions if the community supports that direction. Consultants said the final report will include two conceptual site plans (one limited to the Civic Center parcel and one that includes the adjacent eastern parcel) and that the CRA will solicit public preference at Winter Fest in December before returning to NAC in January with a preferred alternative and final documents planned by February.

For Dixie Highway, the consultants described two study segments (west: Florida East Coast Railroad to Bridal Pine Lane; east: Orange Avenue to Langford Lane) and summarized data collection: speed and volume counters at four locations, 24‑hour pedestrian and bicycle counts using cameras and machine counts on a typical Thursday and Saturday, and trajectory analysis to identify mid‑block crossing behavior. They reported average daily traffic of about 7,000 vehicles in the western section slipping to just under 6,000 in the eastern section and found speeding of roughly 3–8 mph above posted limits in some locations.

Proposed streetscape measures emphasized pedestrian comfort and traffic calming: planting shade trees, continuous sidewalks where missing, retaining or adding on‑street parking to buffer sidewalks, reduced curb radii at side streets, medians in wider right‑of‑way sections, and potential raised intersections or ‘‘race table’’ crossings at the S‑curve to slow turning speeds and shorten crossing distances.

Consultants said proposed mid‑block crossings shown to the board were supported by the counting data and that they will present potential countermeasures to the public at Winter Fest. They also noted constraints: right‑of‑way width varies across the corridor (40–100 feet), existing easements and utilities create design tradeoffs, and one segment was previously completed about a decade ago and is not included in the new design work.

Public commenters asked for clarifications and cautioned against removing or narrowing existing turn lanes without full understanding of turning movements. Gary Ehrler of Port Salerno pointed to a nearby example where elimination of a right‑turn lane created issues and asked which turning volumes were used to justify the change; staff and consultants said the countermeasures will be shared with the public for feedback.

Next steps outlined to the CRA: refine alternatives with stakeholder input, present concepts publicly at Winter Fest in December, return to the NAC in January with a preferred alternative, and finalize plans and cost estimates by February. Consultants said the current funding covers planning and design; additional construction funding has not been fully identified and may require borrowing or future bonds.

Evidence for this report was drawn directly from the consultants’ presentation and the subsequent public Q&A before the CRA. The consultants emphasized that design details remain conceptual and that final designs will reflect public and stakeholder feedback.