Neighborhood report
Davis Islands: Hospital donation to enhance crosswalk
Additional sidewalk and improved pedestrian safety markings are planned near the Davis Islands bridge.
By JONATHAN MILTON, Times Staff Writer
Published April 23, 2004
The Davis Islands bridge is about to get a little safer, thanks to a $25,000 donation from Tampa General Hospital.
The City Council on April 15 heard a presentation from the public works department on ways to improve the pedestrian crosswalk at the foot of the bridge on the Davis Islands side.
"The city plans to construct additional sidewalk along the west side of Davis Boulevard so that the sidewalk extends a little bit closer to the end of the bridge," Jack Morriss, director of public works, said Monday.
The project is expected to take about six months. A construction date has not been set.
The donation stems from a rezoning request last summer to expand the hospital. To accommodate some of the neighbors' concerns about additional traffic, the hospital agreed to improve pedestrian safety and access around the medical center.
"We committed $25,000 to the city for improvements. It was part of a condition of our rezoning," said John Dunn, a hospital spokesman. "What the improvements would be and where the project would take place was all left up to the city."
The plan is designed to help pedestrians see vehicles as they are coming off the bridge onto Davis Islands. The area is heavily traveled by bicyclists, pedestrians and hospital visitors and employees.
Also included in the plan are pedestrian crossing signs and markings on the road warning motorists to slow down as they come over the bridge.
The Bayshore Boulevard side of the bridge also poses a concern. Last year, cyclist Ian Bellis, while stopping for traffic, was killed by a car that jumped the curve on approach to the bridge. The driver, Joseph Robert Kinz Jr., was on his way to visit his mother at the hospital and was issued a $90 ticket for careless driving.
Although the hospital's donation does not cover the Bayshore side, a task force created by Mayor Pam Iorio is looking into ways to improve safety along the entire waterfront road.
The group's recommendations may include improvements to the ramp leading to Davis Islands but none are planned at this time, Morriss said. After the cyclist's death, the city restriped the crossing on the ramp.
- Jonathan Milton can be reached at 226-3374 or at milton@sptimes.com
[Last modified April 22, 2004, 12:45:18]
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