If the commute to and from the Florida Strawberry Festival has been an annual headache, raise your hand.
Now, breathe a sigh of relief: Many of the problems have been addressed.
According to Phil Waldron, who oversees traffic policies and procedures for the festival, the Plant City Police Department has examined all the problem areas, such as Oak Street and Gate 1, and helped draft solutions.
“(Before) when traffic (got) bad, we (blocked) Oak from Lemon to Woodrow Wilson,” Waldron says. “Now, we’re splitting the use.”
Oak, from Lemon Street to Woodrow Wilson Street, now will be a one-way street, with areas for pedestrian walkways. This allows for better internal flow into the parking lot, helps get the pedestrians out of the way of oncoming traffic and fixes one of the biggest jumbles of the past.
“It’s a major change — the first year we’re trying this,” Waldron says.
In addition, eastbound traffic now will re-route through Forbes Road, going south past U.S. 92 and down to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. This should take some pressure off of directing traffic through Alexander Street and also lead Tampa visitors to a parking area out of the way of most people traveling from Plant City.
The festival also has examined the parking on the grounds and worked to improve that experience. It purchased space from the Howell family for a new, 1.7-acre parking lot, located on the north side of Tomlin Middle School.
“It’ll handle a lot of cars, we think,” General Manager Paul Davis says. “Somewhere around 200 to 250. It’ll be easy to get to.”
The new parking lot is dubbed the Mason & Annie Mae Howell Parking Lot, in honor of the original land owners. Volunteers from Plant City Church of God will handle parking, and proceeds from parking will be split between the festival and the church.