Broadway Street construction marathon nears finish line

After more than a decade of planning and construction, the Broadway Street widening project in Oviedo’s old downtown is now in the final stages, with most of the landscaping, drainage work, roadway widening, and resurfacing completed.

The construction, which covers 1.4 miles cutting across Oviedo’s historic core, begins just west of Oviedo High School at Pine Avenue and extends east to Adeline B Tinsley Way. The most recent update from the Florida Department of Transportation “projects it to be completed in early 2025”

Tim Freed, FDOT District 5 communications manager, said that most of the construction has been completed and that only a few installations are missing.

“We’re very close to completion,” Freed said. “The remaining tasks include completing the permanent pavement markings, signalization, activation, and addressing minor repairs.”

Initially set to be completed at the end of 2024, the project has faced unforeseen circumstances that have forced the FDOT to push back the completion date. Freed said that this is very common for construction projects and that is something that the construction crew needs to adjust to.

“We had rain in the recent hurricanes, which prevented work from taking place and we also faced unexpected conflicts with underground utilities, which is when the project team digs down in the dirt and they find something that they didn’t expect to be there, but they have adjusted accordingly,” Freed said.

The construction is affecting residents. Cars getting in and out of Oviedo High School seem to be affecting the people working at the plaza near Broadway Street.

Braxton Kimball, an associate team leader at H&R Block, said that traffic gets really backed up near Oviedo High School because of the construction.

“This project has impacted my work hours,” Kimball said. “It has made me late to work on at least one occasion so I’m very eager to see the project actually finished.”

Jaden Cordonero, a resident near Oviedo High School, said that he struggles every time he has to pass through the intersection between S.R. 426 and Pine Avenue right in front of the school.

“There are so many cars just coming through there, and because of all the construction and businesses increasing in the area, just trying to make that right can take at least three extra minutes,” Cordonero said.

He said that in the past year and a half, there has been a noticeable increase in traffic.

“The other day I was coming down Mitchell Hammock and literally every light was backed up,” Cordonero said. “Every time a light changed to green, I was like ‘Okay I can go,’ but almost immediately you would get a red light because of how bad the traffic is on that road.”

Freed said that construction can be disruptive at times. However, in the end, it’s going to be beneficial for the community.

“We’re excited to bring these new safety and mobility improvements to the community around historic downtown Oviedo and we’re trying to limit those disruptions as much as possible,” he said