Lee County hears transportation priorities update; staff seeks federal bridge grant and will provide project fact sheet

Lee County commissioners on Wednesday received an annual update on the county’s transportation project tiers and pressed staff for clearer start and completion dates and funding details.

Rob Price of the Department of Transportation opened the presentation, saying, "Today, we're here excited to present our annual transportation tiers for your input," and walked through the scoring criteria used to rank projects by preservation, level of service, continuity, safety, multimodal benefits and grant/match potential.

Price said three projects — including the Littleton Road 3‑laning and the Colonial safety improvements — were completed and removed from the Tier 1 list. He provided cost figures for several Tier 1 projects: Colonial improvements at about $1,500,000; Littleton Road at roughly $24,000,000; the 3 Oaks extension (two phases) at about $143,000,000; the Big Carlos Pass bridge at just under $113,000,000; Laney (Ortez) widening at about $34,000,000; and Corkscrew Road (two phases) at roughly $55,000,000.

On the Cape Bridge replacement — one of the county’s highest priorities — Price said the PD&E phase is complete, design is roughly 90 percent finished, right‑of‑way acquisition is under way, and staff expect final plans around 2027 with construction to follow in early 2028. On that project, he said the county has pursued a large federal bridge infrastructure grant and asked for $250,000,000. "We asked for $250,000,000 on that particular grant," Price said, and added that if the county is shortlisted and wins the award it could cover the Burnt Store Road project and allow county bonding plans for the Cape Bridge to be repurposed to Burnt Store.

Commissioners asked for clearer, public‑facing schedule and funding information. One commissioner said a simple table showing project start dates and estimated completion dates would help staff answer the frequent public question, "When are you gonna be done?" Price agreed to provide a fact sheet breaking Tier 1 projects down by start date and timeline.

The board also discussed strategies to support the federal grant application. Commissioner Mitchell Wayne, who said he has coordinated with senior congressional leaders, urged a coordinated push in Washington and said he would like to fold Burnt Store into the grant pursuit. Wayne also cited data from neighboring Charlotte County, asserting that "31% of the people that come to Burnstool Road travel on Burnstool Road to work in the county," and urged closer coordination with regional partners.

Directing staff on next steps, the county manager and staff said they would solicit letters of interest for potential federal lobbying services and aim to bring those requests before the board at the April meeting (or the following meeting if not ready). Staff also said they can prepare a concise funding/status matrix listing start dates and completion estimates.

Commissioners pressed about other state projects and closures: a state/agency official said work to construct SR‑80 up to SR‑78 is programmed for 2029 and that decking replacement on a local bridge will require up to 10 days of closures in April (exact dates pending).

The workshop concluded with staff asking for board concurrence on the proposed priorities and commitments to provide the requested materials and procurement options to support federal advocacy. The board adjourned without any formal votes recorded during the workshop.