- An extension of Dempsey Mayo Road through the Miccosukee Greenway is in the works.
- Leon County is adding raised crosswalks to the area.
- Watch the video to hear the concerns from one neighborhood group.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
An extension of Dempsey Mayo Road through the Miccosukee Greenway is in the works.
I’m speaking with the county and neighborhood groups on how they plan to keep pedestrians safe and protect the greenway.
Crosswalks like two of these ones on Dempsey Mayo Road are coming to Miccosukee Road.
Changes neighbor Rob Lombardo said are needed.
"These people that live over here in Lafayette Oaks and Hillwood, they should be able to walk over here without fear of being run over," Lombardo said.
He is the president of the Friends of the Miccosukee Greenway.
Lombardo said his group is working with Leon County to see if they can add pedestrian safety while protecting the canopy road and greenway.
"There should be a traffic light, a walking light that helps people know especially for people who are a little bit deaf, a little bit blind how to cross and get through here," Lombardo said.
Leon County has planned a crosswalk for down the road.
I met with Artie White, the director of Planning, Land Management and Community Enhancement for the city and county.
He says the improvements are aimed at keeping people safe while enjoying the greenway.
"The crossing actually being elevated, which will require cars to slow down almost like a speed bump, just kind of a bigger area," White said.
The additions coincide with a roadway extension planned for Dempsey Mayo Road across the greenway to connect to new housing developments.
It's a plan that was in the works prior to the formation of the greenway.
Now, the new road extension worries Lombardo.
"Traffic has to stop for a good full minute and a half before all of those horses could get across," Lombardo said. "If it doesn't, then we have accidents."
That's why he and his group wrote Leon County asking for additional protections that would prevent roadways from going in here.
"You have a four lane speedway up here that's going to take everyone back and forth into town," Lombardo said.
White said those protections are already in place under the canopy road zone ordinance and the greenway protection. However, he said they always engage groups like his in conversations brought to commissioners.
"There's citizen engagement throughout multiple of the processes and multiple of the phases," White said.
And Lombardo is hopeful leaders hear their concerns.
"Everybody around here is a county resident. Some of them have been here 30, 40, 50 years," Lombardo said. "They deserve help."
This will all be talked about by county leaders at their commission meeting Tuesday evening.
