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MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. — Crews are set to begin construction this summer on a new Cortez Bridge.
It’s a $128 million project to replace the span connecting Bradenton to Anna Maria Island.
What You Need To Know
- Construction for the Cortez Bridge Project is to begin in June 2026.
- According to FDOT, it will take four years for the new Cortez Bridge to be completed.
- Officials say regular repairs are no longer an effective or long-term option. Instead, crews will begin building a four-lane bridge this summer.
Change can happen fast or slow.
But for this area in Manatee County, a new Cortez Bridge has been years in the making.
For the businesses and workers rooted in this historic Cortez Village, like James Gowett with the Star Fish Company, construction is a concern.
“You know, it’s going to affect business. People just won’t be able to get here,” he said.
James has been working there for 25 years and knows how busy traffic gets, especially during the busy season. He hopes when construction begins this summer, it won’t interfere with customers coming in.
“We are going to wait and see,” he said.
FDOT says, “We are going to be working and coordinating with the locals in the area and the businesses to try to ensure that they still have access to their businesses and their homes. We’ve had coordination with them during the design process as well.”
FDOT tells us the Cortez Bridge was built in the 1950s and connects Cortez to Anna Maria Island. Officials say regular repairs are no longer an effective or long-term option. Instead, crews will begin building a four-lane bridge this summer.
“Cortez Bridge has to be replaced,” he said.
John Chappie, the mayor of Bradenton Beach, agrees the new bridge will help reduce traffic.
“The bridge is going to help traffic off the island, I think, a lot more than it will coming onto the island,” he said.
“It’s safer because traffic will be able to flow easier, with less opportunity for people getting upset in traffic,” he said.
Animation from FDOT’s YouTube page shows the new bridge will have four lanes instead of two and will not include a drawbridge. FDOT says once the new bridge is complete, the old one will be demolished.
One of the biggest differences between the Cortez Bridge and the new bridge is the height. The current bridge is 22 feet high and must open for boats to pass underneath. The new bridge will be 65 feet high, allowing ships to pass without stopping traffic, which could reduce congestion.
James worries the new bridge won’t make a difference in regards to the traffic.
“It gets so backed up because the bridge has to keep going up and down, and it gets really crazy on Cortez Road. I don’t see how that’s going to help because you’re just allowing more and more people to flow over it, which is going to be the same problem,” he said.
It’s a big change people are preparing for.
According to FDOT, it will take four years for the new Cortez Bridge to be completed.
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Julia Hazel
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