Gunter: Meetings with Lee County reps bearing fruit
The city of Cape Coral’s outreach to county officials is making headway.
Mayor John Gunter said Wednesday that he and City Manager Michael Ilcyczyn have been meeting with County Commissioner Kevin Ruane and County Manager Dave Harner.
The group met about six weeks ago, identifying 12-13 items of concern. A second meeting was held Tuesday.
Among the topics was additional widening of Burnt Store Road.
Gunter said an agreement with the county that the project, which is slated for 2036, needs to be moved up considerably. He said it is one of the city’s top priorities.
“They are looking at a variety of scenarios to fund that. One that they are entertaining is incorporating the debt into the Cape Coral bridge to put both projects under one debt bond going forward,” Gunter said.
In the meantime, understanding there is a safety hazard, the Lee County Board of County Commissioners approved $5.7 million for temporary safety improvements until the county can identify the funding mechanism to get the project started.
The $5.7 million will add rumble strips, passing lanes, and a paved shoulder to make the 5 miles in question safer.
Another item making headway is for median improvements on Del Prado Boulevard. Gunter said he is pleased that the discussions were very fruitful and glad to see the result is the approval of $500,000 for the median.
Pondella Boulevard and Northeast 25th Avenue was another concern, as a traffic study warrants a traffic signal. Gunter said there was a verbal agreement to split the cost 50/50 with the county.
Another concern that now has funding revolved around the Lee County EMS five-year growth plan.
“We are going to get a new EMS station in Cape Coral as a result of that,” Gunter said, adding that the county is investing in public safety like the city.
An interlocal agreement was sent to the city manager regarding the D&D Boat Ramp property. Gunter said the county needs a site plan from the city to come up with an agreement on how to move forward and develop the property.
“We’ve made a lot of progress in just a couple of meetings. We will continue to have those until all the items are resolved. We will continue in the path we have now as long as it is fruitful and we are getting things accomplished,” Gunter said.
To reach MEGHAN BRADBURY, please email news@breezenewspapers.com