New hotels may clog up this Bradenton interchange. County says a fix will come first
A pair of planned hotels coming to a problematic Bradenton interchange are on the right side of Manatee County’s road improvement timeline, according to county staff.
The Board of County Commissioners considered the general development plan for Wisdom Hotel’s two four-story, 100-room hotels just off of State Road 64 near Interstate 75. The plan also includes 6,500 square feet of commercial retail space.
Neighbors attending Thursday’s Land Use Meeting voiced concerns over the traffic impact on 64th Street Court East, which will serve as the only access point to the 6.82-acre site. Commissioner Priscilla Whisenant Trace also highlighted issues with the intersection.
“It’s a crowded little intersection there,” said Trace. “So I do think we need to accelerate and take a look at that with the development of the hotel.”
Fixing congestion problems at that intersection is already on the county’s roadmap, according to Deputy Director of Traffic Management Clarke Davis, who pointed to tentative funding in the Capital Improvement Plan. Board members are set to finalize that plan later this year.
About $750,000 is set to be allocated over the next two years to add northbound left and right turn lanes at 64th Court East’s intersection with State Road 64. The county has already paid nearly $150,000 to design the project. Construction is set to begin in October 2020 and should be completed by the end of 2022, staff said.
“It makes the timing right that the development is coming forward at this time,” Davis said.
One of the hotels will be located on the east side of the site and another is located closer to the center of the parcel to the south. The retail space will be built closer to 64th Street Court East to the west.
Representatives for the developer pointed out that construction of the hotel will be phased in over time, allowing for the county to construct road improvements before the hotel opens.
Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the site’s general development plan.
