TALKING POINTS DOCUMENT REVEALS HOW COUNTY OFFICIALS WILL ANSWER QUESTIONS ABOUT FAILED $10M PROJECT.
BY: ANDREW COLTON | Editor and Publisher
UPDATE: 4 p.m. Monday: Use this link to view the meeting LIVE. It is being held at “The Bridges” and features member of the Palm Beach County departments overseeing the construction.
UPDATE 8:13 p.m. — More than twelve hours after this update was posted on Sunday, Seven Bridges, which has declined to take an active role in solving the Lyons Road issue, transmitted a copy of the memo we obtained to homeowners Sunday evening. The community claimed in an email that it was obtained by an ex-board member. We note that BocaNewsNow.com first published the memo at 8 a.m. Sunday, following our initial reporting on the Lyons Road issues on Friday. “The Bridges” is holding a town meeting on Monday with several county officials. “Seven Bridges” is not taking part.
BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2022 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — Following our exclusive reporting Friday regarding the seemingly dormant project causing traffic havoc on Lyons Road between Clint Moore and Atlantic in West Delray Beach, BocaNewsNow.com has obtained the document that will be used as “talking points” for Palm Beach County officials to use at public meetings where they expect to be blasted over the situation. We are publishing the document, below.
The project — part of a multi-year effort to widen Lyons Road — came to a halt in the spring when workers discovered unmapped utility lines under the road. The find required Palm Beach County to reconfigure the nearly $10M project, but not before shifting and reducing traffic to two narrow lanes. The result: huge backups, accidents, and problems for the now estimated 8,000 to 10,000 motorists who use the stretch of Lyons daily.
While the road widening is expected to continue shortly, it’s unclear how long the reconfigured project will take to complete. The project was expected to be completed by the end of 2022. It may now run until the summer of 2023. County officials speaking with BocaNewsNow.com say they do not know why major utility lines running under Lyons Road weren’t discovered before construction crews started their work.
The stretch of Lyons serves The Bridges, Boca Bridges, Seven Bridges, Lotus, Mizner Country Club, Divine Savior Academy, and the new shopping center at Lyons and Atlantic. Once a secondary road, the segment has become a major thoroughfare. Each of the residential communities includes roughly 1000 homes. G.L. Homes, which built The Bridges, Seven Bridges, Boca Bridges, and Lotus, was not required to pre-expand the road due to Florida law, despite knowing that thousands of homeowners would suddenly rely on a road initially used by few.
Read our original coverage, here. The talking points document follows, below. A town hall meeting is set for Monday in “The Bridges” and will include several Palm Beach County engineering supervisors. The community may provide a remote viewing option for the general public.
