FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FORT
MYERS, Fla. (August 22, 2002) –
After nearly three years of permitting tie-ups, Lee County today received
permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to widen Alico Road from U.S. 41
to Interstate 75 and realign and deepen the nearby Briarcliff Ditch.
The $12-million project will
widen the road from two lanes to six lanes along the 2.85-mile stretch and
relocate and install new utilities watermains along the roadway.
The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency signed off on the permit earlier this year after the county
presented a plan to develop a comprehensive mitigation/preservation strategy for
offsetting the impacts of this and future projects.
The project also will include
the improvement of the Briarcliff/Fiddlesticks Canal located one mile north of
Alico Road beginning at the Ten Mile Canal and continuing easterly for 2.65
miles. The construction will
consist of box culverts, a water control structure, channel excavation and
maintenance access areas.
In addition, Lee DOT is
building a six-foot-wide sidewalk on the south side of the road and
four-foot-wide bike lanes on both sides. Construction
of the project will take about 18 months.
As part of the agreement with
the EPA, the county and private sector partners also are building a marsh along
Ten Mile Canal to filter and cleanse drainage and runoff.
The 15-to-20 acre marsh – to be built east of the canal and south of
Daniels Road – is intended to have dense vegetation that will filter out
pollutants from water diverted to it before they reach Mullock Creek and Estero
Bay. Ten Mile Canal runs from the
Hansen Street area in Fort Myers to Mullock Creek near San Carlos Park.
The county also is looking into a filter marsh on Briarcliff Ditch, if
feasible, to comply with permit conditions.
The $2.8 million project is included in the county’s capital construction budget. The private sector Water Enhancement & Restoration Coalition is expected to contribute $500,000 toward the cost and the South Florida Water Management District may reimburse another $800,000.