FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Scott Gilbertson, Lee County Department of Transportation
              (239) 479-8580

COUNTY'S JANUARY 2003 FIX OF SANIBEL CAUSEWAY WINS NATIONAL AWARD

FORT MYERS, Fla. (September 14, 2004) - Lee County's 26-hour repair of the Sanibel Causeway's middle bridge (B span) in January 2003 has been selected as one of the Public Works "Projects of the Year" by the American Public Works Association (APWA).

The DOT project manager for the repair, Betsy Rowan, picked up the award at a ceremony Monday (Sep. 13) at the Public Works Congress and Exposition in Atlanta.

The APWA is an international educational and professional association of public agencies, private sector companies, and individuals dedicated to providing high quality public works goods and services. It has 67 chapters throughout North America and more than 26,000 members.

Lee County won in the category for "Disaster of Emergency Construction/Repair Less Than $2 Million."

During a routine inspection on January 6, 2003, cracked beams that hold up the bridge deck were identified on the middle bridge of the Causeway - the lifeline to Sanibel and Captiva for commercial goods, residents and tourists. The county immediately implemented weight restrictions and developed a plan to replace a 48-foot section of the bridge over the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday weekend.

The massive coordination effort included not only managing the weight restrictions and fabrication of the replacement section, but also working with the City of Sanibel, Sanibel-Captiva Chamber of Commerce, Lee County Port Authority, LeeTran and Visitor & Convention Bureau to ensure transportation for residents and tourists during the closing (via a water ferry service supported by LeeTran).

The Causeway was closed on schedule (January 19 at 10 p.m.) and demolition of the span began. Removal of the existing span and installation of the prefabrication steel span (two pieces with onsite interconnection) were completed on January 20 and the bridge reopened to traffic at midnight, six hours ahead of schedule.

The replacement was scheduled to take 32 hours, however the county and its contractor, Zep Construction, completed the repair and reopened the Causeway within 26 hours.

The total time from discovery of the cracked beams to replacement of the span was 14 days, which included a bridge closure of only 26 hours.