DESTIN — Residents can get a look at the state’s long-range plans to widen U.S. Highway 98 at a meeting Thursday at Village Baptist Church.
“I know there are some folks in Destin who want to know about this project,” Destin City Councilman Jim Wood said. “This will give you a good chance to see what this is going to look like.”
The bulk of the project would widen U.S. 98 to six lanes from Airport Road east to the Walton County line, excluding the stretch from Matthew Boulevard to Kel Wen Circle.
Improvements will be made to seven signalized intersections, including a new traffic light at Indian Bayou Trail. Plans also call for 4-foot-wide bicycle lanes, ADA-compliant sidewalks and handrails, and landscaping to medians.
The project is expected to allow for more capacity on the highway while addressing bicycle and pedestrian traffic, according to a news release from the Florida Department of Transportation.
Thursday’s meeting is scheduled for 5 to 6 p.m. There will be no formal presentation, but maps, drawings and other information will be available. DOT representatives also will be on hand to answer questions.
No money has been set aside for the work yet.
Wood, who is chairman of the Okaloosa-Walton Transportation Planning Organization, said the project is at least 10 years from breaking ground.
“This is still a good ways out, but we’re in the planning phase, which is where you make your changes.”
Destin Log Staff Writer Matt Algarin can be reached at 850-654-8446 or malgarin@thedestinlog.com. Follow him on Twitter @DestinLogMatt.