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Work on busy road starts soon
By JENNIFER FARRELL, Times Staff Writer SPRING HILL -- A trip down Spring Hill Drive to the Suncoast Parkway is about to get longer. And dirtier. A 3-mile stretch of the busy east-west corridor will soon be torn up and rebuilt, complete with new curbs and gutters, sidewalks and three extra lanes. And while they're at it, workers will try to eliminate any problems with sight distance, filling in low spots in the road and shaving off crests of hills. Traffic signals are also planned for both intersections with Coronado Drive. Construction will begin in mid-February and run from Finland Drive to the Suncoast Parkway. The $5.2-million project is expected to last 18 months and is the final step in a five-phase plan to widen Spring Hill Drive from two to four lanes, plus a turn lane, east of Deltona Boulevard. "It's one of the largest projects we've ever done," said Hernando County public works director Charles Mixson. "I've been here 15 years. It's the largest I can remember." The project will no doubt play havoc with day-to-day life for residents and business owners along the route. Mark Baines, 44, is prepared for a little inconvenience. He lives along the construction route, and his pet-grooming business, It's a Dog's Life, is also located there. "I think it's needed," he said. "Fifteen years ago, a little two-lane road was fine for Spring Hill. But a lot has changed." Mixson said Inverness-based D.A.B. Constructors Inc. will have crews working at night to try to cut down on congestion and traffic delays. He said no detours are expected, but predicted lane closures and other inconveniences like short interruptions of water service and relocation of mailboxes and trash collection points. For drivers in a hurry, Mixson offered simple advice. "Try to obey all the rules and drive slow and be patient," he said. "This is it. Once we do this improvement, it'll be the last improvement that's done on it." Bob Kirshy, lunch manager at Domino's Pizza near the corner of Linden Drive, worries how the construction will affect business, but he called it a necessary evil. Right now, customers who want to make a left into the Domino's parking lot end up blocking traffic on Spring Hill Drive, he said. More lanes will give customers a safer way to turn. "They do need it," he said. "It's just going to be a mess." As the project moves forward, Mixson said, he plans to ask county commissioners next month for approval to improve the intersection of Spring Hill Drive and Mariner Boulevard. Designs are not complete, but Mixson said plans call for installing dual left turn lanes in each direction and installing concrete medians at each approach. The job would cost roughly $1.5-million, Mixson said. Anyone with questions about the projects should call the county engineer's office at 754-4475. -- Staff writer Jennifer Farrell covers Spring Hill and can be reached at 848-1432. Send e-mail to farrell@sptimes.com.
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