KISSIMMEE, Fla. — In June, Banks Lee was one of several confused residents who found a portion of Funie Steed Road closed from Formosa Gardens Boulevard to Entry Point Boulevard.

  • Some say it can take up to 20 minutes without Funie Steed Road
  • Road will be closed due to private development project
  • Road may open sometime in early 2020
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"The first time I saw the signs pop up I was like, 'Oh man, there goes my shortcut; now I got to hit the traffic," recalled Lee, whose job at Attractions Magazine takes him to the theme parks often. "We used to be able to take this road as a kind of a way to avoid the traffic on (U.S.) 192, especially headed over to Disney."

It marked the beginning of one of the closures of Funie Steed Road at Formosa Gardens Boulevard. One resident said it can take an extra 20 minutes of travel time without this road, because he has to take busy U.S. 192 instead.

Osceola County government told us that the road is closed for the reconstruction and realignment of the dirt road to a paved section as part of the Westgate Resort project, a private development project not managed by Osceola County. The new road, however, will be built to county standards. It is closed to through traffic, but vehicles owned by people who live on the closed section can be seen entering the closed portion.

The last report the county received had indicated a completion date of mid-January to early February 2020. However, the contractor placed signs for a longer time period in the case of unforeseen problems or issues.

We reached out to the contractor for the project and was told that they have the authorization to keep the road closed until next June if needed, but they anticipate having the road opened again by early spring.

In the meantime, Lee will continue to adjust.

"I do a lot of work at the theme parks, so to be able to take that road and go straight to Disney and Sherbeth Road and avoid (U.S.) 192 can add an extra 10 minutes to my commute," he said.


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