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Starbucks is opening a new location east of Interstate 75 on a busy Manatee County corridor, a sign that commercial development east of the interstate is continuing as the economy rebounds after the COVID-19 outbreak.
Starbucks is bringing a new 2,555-square-foot location to the northwest corner of State Road 64 and Upper Manatee River Road in Manatee County, commercial building permits show. The new Starbucks will be directly west of the existing Wawa gas station and convenience store at the intersection, according to public records.
Starbucks tends to open its stores in high-traffic areas with good visibility. County building permits filed also show plans for a Starbucks at the growing intersection of University Parkway and Lorraine Road and another at Venice s Jacaranda Junction. The company also opened a location in Sarasota s The Landings plaza at U.S. 41 and Proctor Road.
Lorraine Road
Distance: 2.8 miles
Estimated cost: $38.1 million
Three major road projects in East County that were not previously listed in Manatee County’s five-year capital improvement plan were pushed ahead to the design phase unanimously by county commissioners at an April 20 meeting.
The three projects are the widening of a 2.8-mile stretch of Lorraine Road from State Road 64 to 59th Avenue East from two lanes to four; widening of a 2.6-mile stretch of Upper Manatee River Road from State Road 64 to Fort Hamer Bridge from two lanes to four; and an extension of Lena Road by about a half-mile to create a continuous route from S.R. 64 to State Road 70.
Manatee County scheduled road projects
44th Avenue East
Projected cost: $101,304,276
Estimated completion: Dec. 2029
Moccasin Wallow Road
What: Three-segment plan to widen from two lanes to four or six, depending on the segment, from U.S. Route 301 to U.S. Route 41
Projected cost: $42,226,247
Estimated completion: Dec. 2025
What: Reconstruction of Verna Bethany Road to align with Verna Road at State Road 70
Projected cost: $2,519,682
Estimated completion: Dec. 2023
Manatee County commissioners have stated their desire to make road construction a top priority in the next year.
However, they said deciding which projects come first and how to pay for those projects is more difficult.