Sarasota city sewer project will prompt lane closures on South Osprey Avenue

Drivers on South Osprey Avenue south of downtown will have to contend with a five-month long sewer project that will require lane closures from June 3 into early July, the city of Sarasota said in a news release.

The project will replace a force main as part of a $300 million master plan to improve infrastructure and add redundancy and resilience to the system. Sections of the existing 8-inch pipeline are reaching the end of their useful lifespans, the city said.

This is the first of this project’s three phases. To accommodate the project’s first phase, the following road closures and traffic modifications will be in place through July 8:

• South Osprey Avenue will be closed to traffic between Floyd Street and Waldemere Street, and from Clematis Street to Wisteria Street.
• South Osprey Avenue will be restricted to one-way traffic from Lincoln Drive to Floyd Street.
• Left turns toward South Osprey Avenue will be prohibited at the intersections of Alta Vista Street, Irving Street, Loma Linda Street, and Prospect Street.

The project’s construction schedule was coordinated to coincide with Sarasota County Schools' summer vacation to lessen traffic effects and is estimated to be completed in fall 2025.

City Commissioners approved the overall master plan in 2019.

Additional information about this project, as well as a map showing each phase of the project, can be found at www.Sarasotafl.gov/OspreyAveForceMain