South Semoran Boulevard is a main artery into Orlando, but no one would describe it as a red carpet or a welcome mat.
Indeed, a recent report in the Orlando Sentinel called it "shabby" and quoted Mayor Buddy Dwyer as saying the thoroughfare does not offer a very good impression of our city to the 37 million visitors a year who pass through it on their way from Orlando International Airport.
No city can afford to have valuable commercial real estate like the South Semoran corridor be blighted, so that's why we are glad to hear that efforts to polish it up are underfoot.
A $3 million effort will bring wider sidewalks, more landscaping and decorative touches like artistic utility poles to the corridor. New LED streetlights are expected to be more pleasing and energy-efficient.
The hope is that these improvements might lure in more businesses to occupy the empty storefronts and abandoned shops that city leaders think makes the area unsightly.
South Semoran is also perilous for pedestrians, so it is hoped that the new sidewalks and other traffic-control measures will make it safer for those on foot.
The work is expected to be wrapped up by June.
We know that the impression others have of our community is important to local businesses. What do you think of South Semoran and the efforts to improve it? Is there anything not currently in the works that you would like to see? As we said, we see this as an important community issue, so we are interested in what you have to say.
Source: The Orlando Sentinel, "Face-lift starts on shabby stretch of Semoran," Mark Schlueb, Nov. 27, 2012
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