A series of existing sewer manholes in the Lakeland downtown area are no longer serviceable for maintenance or rehabilitation so they will be replaced starting on April 20th. City crews will begin the manhole replacement on Massachusetts Avenue (adjacent to City Hall) on April 20th. At this location, traffic will be rerouted around the work zone and one lane of travel will be open in each direction. Crews anticipate work beginning on April 27th for the second manhole replacement located at S. Kentucky Avenue between E. Main Street and E. Lemon Street. The third manhole replacement is slated to start April 29th at S. Tennessee Avenue between E. Main Street and E. Lemon Street. The work duration is expected to be approximately two days per manhole replacement.
The Kentucky Avenue and Tennessee Avenue manhole closures will require the roadway to be closed to vehicular traffic adjacent to the work area. Pedestrian traffic will not be impacted at any of the work areas. Traffic control signage will be placed at each location during the construction phases. City Manager Tony Delgado said, “We certainly apologize about any inconvenience but this work needs to be done. Our team requested that it be moved up because of the reduced activity in the downtown area due to the Coronavirus outbreak. Completing this work now will be considerably less interruptive to traffic and business flow.” He added, “It is our goal to have the needed infrastructure improvements complete and ready for a vibrant downtown once we are rid of COVID-19 – We like many in our community look forward to that day.”
The City of Lakeland was incorporated January 1885 and has grown to become one of the largest inland communities in Florida. Lakeland continues to grow with the current population over 100,000. It has been designated a Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area by the US Census Bureau for over 30 years. With tourist attractions and gulf beaches only an hour away, Lakeland capitalizes on its ideal central Florida location along the I-4 corridor. The City owns and operates Lakeland Electric, the third largest publicly owned utility in Florida and it was one of the first to offer power in the Sunshine State 115 years ago. For additional information about the City of Lakeland, please visit www.lakelandgov.net. Citizens are also invited to follow the City on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Vimeo, Snapchat and Nextdoor. Citizens can find the City of Lakeland on these social media platforms by searching lakelandgov.