The City of Fort Myers began building the Hanson Street Extension from Veronica Shoemaker Boulevard to Ortiz Avenue in early May 2017. The project includes building the new roadway extension, installing new force main, relocating existing water main, adding landscaping, and relocating part of the Eastwood Golf Course north to allow for the new roadway. The road will follow the “complete streets” initiative to include 6-foot sidewalks and 7-foot buffered bike lanes. The City is also including two roundabouts, one at the new intersection of Hanson Street/Ortiz Avenue and the other at the existing intersection of Hanson Street/Veronica Shoemaker Boulevard. Phase I (through Eastwood Golf Course) is expected to be completed by fall 2017. Phase II (remainder of the road to the west to Veronica Shoemaker Boulevard, and both roundabouts) is expected to begin in the summer 2018 and the full project is expected to be completed and open to traffic in fall 2020. A public meeting is tentatively scheduled for June 2018.

In order for the contractor to build the new roadway, Eastwood Golf Course was closed through October 31, 2017. Improvements were made to the front nine holes to accommodate the roadway project. The new road will be located just north of the FPL easement. Through Eastwood Golf Course, the road will be raised to allow golf cart traffic to pass on the cart path through a tunnel.