by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
If you haven’t driven down Mayport Road in a while, you should. It’s likely you won’t recognize what you see.
Gone are the cracked sidewalks and middle turn lane, which Atlantic Beach Mayor John Meserve called the “suicide lane.” Gone is the rough road and uneven pavement. Instead, you’ll find a traffic-friendly, landscaped median complete with grass, foliage and 20-foot palms and four newly-paved lanes on a clearly-marked roadway.
Area officials — including Meserve, Mayor John Peyton and Capt. Aaron Bowman, Commanding Officer of Naval Station Mayport — officially opened the road Wednesday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a few words. The tab was $5.5 million, of which the Florida Department of Transportation contributed $3.5 million.
“This is the end of a long journey that started in 2002,” said Meserve. “This has been a long time coming. It was on time and on budget which is probably unheard of in local government.”
As mayor of Atlantic Beach, Meserve appreciates the project from both an official and personal perspective. Mayport was long-known as one of the most dangerous roads in the city, something that hurt business and caused trepidation among area residents forced to use the road that connects Atlantic Boulevard to the Naval base and now the Wonderwood Connector.
According to Meserve, there are 140 accidents a year on Mayport Road and several deaths. The new median and eliminated turn lane should curb both of those numbers. Meserve is also counting on area property owners and businesses to now take some pride in the area.
“This is also the beginning of a journey for Atlantic Beach,” he said. “There is a commitment not just to a new road, but to re-energize the area. We want clean neighborhoods we can all be proud of.”
Peyton said government has done its part to revitalize the area.
“Now, it’s up to the property owners to do their part,” said Peyton, who called the project a great partnership. “Government by itself will not transform Mayport Road. These are the kind of projects we need to see in a down economy.”
Evidence that Mayport Road is already on the rebound is evident. A new hotel and apartment complex are under construction and Meserve said a new Walgreens is planned. Meserve said as property values go up, the used car dealers and similar businesses that have operated on the road for years will be slowly relegated to other areas. As a result, new businesses will move in.
“The five-year goal is to clean up the whole area,” said Meserve, adding one of the current issues is the 60 percent rental rate in the area. “There is a tendency for that to spiral down and I want to see it spiral up.
“People think this area is crime-ridden. It’s not. We have two police officers on the ground and in the neighborhoods, not to arrest people, but to serve as a neighborhood watch. I want people to take some personal pride in the area and help the image change.”
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