Superintendent: Center would affect traffic near Suffolk school

SUFFOLK

A proposed distribution and warehouse center near Lakeland High School would aggravate an already frustrating traffic situation on workday mornings, the school division superintendent said Thursday.

While not opposed to the project, Superintendent Milton Liverman told School Board members that vehicles using the center could tie up roads around Lakeland from about 7 to 8 a.m. - when buses and staff members arrive.

In the summer, CenterPoint Properties revealed plans to build 5 million square feet of warehouse and distribution space off U.S. 58-Holland Road, west of downtown. The development, proposed to cover 900 acres, would be next to the school.

Because of a buffer of wetlands, noise from the facility would not be a problem, and traffic jams would be an issue only in the morning, Liverman said.

Overall, "I really see the project as having minimal impact on the schools," he added.

One solution to the traffic problem, Liverman said, is to ask CenterPoint to set shifts that do not send drivers flooding onto Holland and Kenyon roads at peak travel times. Board members voted unanimously to send a resolution to the City Council expressing that position.

In other business, the proposed 2009-10 school calendar was approved, with students attending classes from Sept. 8, 2009, to June 18, 2010.

Hattie Brown Garrow, (757) 222-5562, hattie.brown@pilotonline.com