Last year, it was about building bridges for pension reform.
This year, it’s about knocking down parts of a bridge itself.
Mayor Lenny Curry made a pitch Wednesday to members of the Duval County Legislative Delegation to secure money to knock down the nearly 50-year-old, elevated portion of the Hart Bridge expressway that leads to the heart of Downtown.
He called the ramp an “aging relic.”
Curry later said he is seeking $50 million for the project that would be handled by the Florida Department of Transportation. He said it was premature to discuss any potential city funding for the project.
The road would be reconfigured so motorists would enter Downtown from Bay Street near EverBank Field. Currently, the elevated roadway takes them to Adams or Duval Streets.
Curry said the idea has been discussed internally for about a month.
An FDOT spokeswoman in a message Wednesday said the city has discussed the early concept with the department and it is evaluating the request.
There are several reasons Curry wants to demolish the stretch of roadway.
His priorities for the project, he said, are traffic flow and safety. The roadway has no breakdown lanes, nor does it have dedicated room for pedestrians or bicyclists.
It also only flows west on the river-side of Bay Street. The initial use of the stretch was to allow a roadway to co-exist with shipyards along the St. Johns River.
With those historical shipyards gone, Curry said, the roadway remains an aging relic — and as the land in the Sports Complex and that area continue to develop, traffic problems would only grow, he said.
That leads to another perk of removing the roadway. If gone, it would provide easier access to developable land along the riverfront.
“There would be an economic benefit, it would appear,” he said.
One possible beneficiary could be Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan, who has shown interest in developing land near the Sports Complex. Curry said the request comes from the city, however, when asked directly about Khan, the mayor said the city “keeps our folks doing business with the city informed” of such projects.
Should the money be secured in the next session, Curry said the demolition portion of the project could be done next year.
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