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County Road 1 encounters rain delay

The Palm Harbor section was supposed to reopen last week, but the weather didn't cooperate.

By GRACE CHENG
Published July 2, 2005

PALM HARBOR - The long-awaited opening of County Road 1 was supposed to happen this week, but that blasted rain delayed it.

So, weather permitting, look for the barricades to come down and the road to open around the middle of next week, county officials say.

"We're trying to get the paving finished, but the rains have stopped that," said Robert Guercia, senior engineer for Pinellas County. "As soon as we pave we'll open the road."

The $4.4-million project to reconstruct the 1.16-mile section of CR 1 between Tampa Road and New York Avenue has been going on since March 2004. When finished, CR 1 will be a two-lane divided road with a raised median. The project includes sidewalks, bicycle lanes, an upgraded sewer system and a new traffic light at Nebraska Avenue. Guercia said a separate landscaping project to plant trees on the median will start when the construction is finished.

Meanwhile, Palm Harbor business owners are waiting eagerly for CR 1 to open.

Lesley Klein, owner of Oak Trail Books on Florida Avenue, said that the project has had some impact on her business, but she thinks when it's finished it will help.

But Kathy Lanni, owner of Palm Harbor Family Barber Shop on Florida Avenue, is unhappy about the construction project.

"I never wanted this to happen," Lanni said.

Lanni's shop has been in downtown for 13 years. She said that many customers have gone to her family's other barbershop in Oldsmar because of the construction here.

"It's pretty bad," Lanni said. "Unless people are really in tune to how to get here, you don't know. It's a mess, people just get too confused."

Brenda Brown, owner of Iris and Ivy, a florist shop on Florida Avenue, said construction has slowed business a bit.

"I'm happy they're upgrading it, it'll be nice when it's done," Brown said. "I'm anxious to see it open, but it probably slowed things down here."

Mary Ann Smith, owner of Bamboo Gardens on Virginia Avenue, said construction has affected customers' access to her business, but she sees the project as a good thing.

One effect of the construction, Smith said, is that neighborhood mockingbirds have learned to imitate the beeping of the construction machinery when it backs up.

"We were grateful when (the construction) started, we'll be more grateful when it ends," Smith said. "And I hope the mockingbirds find something else to do when it does."

[Last modified July 2, 2005, 01:21:22]