It’s said that, “If there’s a will, there’s a way,” and that seems to be the work ethic of the crews currently hustling to finish Simon Property Group’s newest outlet mall -— the Tampa Premium Outlets on S.R. 56 — in time for a planned October opening in the Cypress Creek Town Center (CCTC) Development of Regional Impact (DRI).
While that feat may have seemed far-fetched when ground officially was broken in December on the project that had long suffered from years of setbacks, judging by the progress in the past seven months, it appears that the challenge is finally becoming a reality.
Much work has coincided with the construction of the mall, including the on-going $6.8-million resurfacing of the 2.42-mile stretch of S.R. 56 from Wesley Chapel Blvd. east to Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd., which will include the north and southbound I-75 on-ramps. Sidewalks also are being added to S.R. 56, including on the I-75 overpass. New traffic signals have been hung at the intersection of the future Grand Cypress Dr. and S.R. 56 and a new right turn lane has been installed on eastbound S.R. 54 approaching the Wesley Chapel Blvd. extension.
As construction has increased in the area, so has traffic, and the developers of CCTC and Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) are working with Pasco officials to try to provide temporary relief and set future plans to alleviate driving headaches.
FDOT spokesperson Kris Carson says that the resurfacing project has caused periodic daytime lane closures along S.R. 56, but that the project should wrap up by late summer, weather permitting. The project technically has until next spring to be completed. She says that a future study is planned to look at reconstructing the S.R. 56 interchange entirely, but no details about that possibility currently are available.
In addition, the county is planning to widen the 3.5-mile stretch of Wesley Chapel Blvd. from the S.R. 54/56 intersection north to Progress Blvd., which is the entrance to the Westbrook Estates development on C.R. 54. This segment of the overall “C.R. 54 Extension Pipeline Project” is referred to as the “Sierra Segment,” as Sierra Properties is developing the northern section of CCTC, where the widening will occur.
Pasco transportation planning manager James Edwards says that the project currently is programmed into the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO)’s “Mobility 2040” Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) for fiscal year 2019, and that a recent payment to the county of $6 million from J.G. Cypress (one of the other CCTC developers), is to be allocated to reimbursing Sierra Properties for obtaining the necessary right of way for the widening, as well as the cost of the bid process, design and construction of the widened lanes.
The C.R. 54 Extension Pipeline Project also is planned to stretch to the south in the future. According to the LRTP, Wesley Chapel Blvd. will be extended south to intersect with County Line Rd. between 2020-25 and will be funded with county mobility fees, Edwards says.
“County Line Rd. is an important connecting road in the transportation grid in this area,” Edwards explains. “It is important because it allows (nearly) unimpeded travel from U.S. 41 to BBD and even east of BBD (into Meadow Pointe). I-75 is a barrier to east/west travel and there aren’t too many other alternatives out there. (County Line Rd.) is essentially a back door for those residents who know it and use it to access BBD, and Collier Pkwy. to Livingston Ave. and U.S. 41/Dale Mabry Hwy.”
For more information about the Tampa Premium Outlets, visit PremiumOutlets.com. For information about the outlet mall’s upcoming Job Fair, see the story on pg. 1.
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