[FrontPage Image Map Component]

THE BRADENTON HERALD

Monday, December 9, 1996 Section: Local Edition: Final Page: L1 BACK IN BUSINESS REOPENED CORTEZ BRIDGE PLEASES SOME PROPRIETORS Kevin McDonald, Herald Staff Writer What a difference a year makes. Lou Nassar, owner of Cortez Market, fretted last year over the impact the Cortez Bridge's closure would have on his store. This year the bridge is open and business is better.

``This is my best year. I can't complain,'' said Nassar, who has owned the market, 12203 Cortez Road, for 19 years. ``It's going great.'' The Florida Department of Transportation (DOT) originally had scheduled intermittent lane closings from September 1995 to February 1996 - including complete lane closure in October - to repair the drawbridge's mechanical and electrical parts and the bridge-tender station. Nassar's customer base, like many businesses near the bridge, is dependent heavily upon traffic traveling from Anna Maria Island across the Cortez Bridge. Nassar knew business would be slow during October, but he thought business would pick up once the bridge reopened by the first of November. However, Nassar and others were in for a rude awakening when work crews from Coral Springs-based PCL Civil Constructors found lead paint and structural damage on the bridge. As a result, the bridge remained closed from October to Thanksgiving, which caused about a 20 percent to 30 percent drop in customers for many businesses. Nassar was considering taking out loans to help pay his bills, but said he had enough money saved to weather the storm. To entice diners to drive farther, Ed Chiles, owner of Beach House Restaurant, 200 Gulf Drive. N., Bradenton Beach, ran a coupon in newspapers that gave customers 20 percent off meal prices. Chiles said the restaurant has not suffered any adverse effects from last year's bridge closure. ``Business is up,'' Chiles said. ``We don't feel like there are any after-effects.'' Chiles said he doesn't fault DOT for the time it took to complete the project. Ham Jones, owner of Seafood Shack, 4110 127th St. W., said his restaurant had 4,000 more customers in October 1996 compared to October 1995 and 3,000 more in November 1996 over November 1995. ``We are extremely happy to have our business back,'' Jones said. ``We are looking forward to a new bridge some point in the future.'' DOT spokesman Gene O'Dell said there are no plans within DOT's work program, which goes to the year 2002, to replace the Cortez Bridge. If the bridge makes the work program for the year 2002-03, O'Dell said it will take a minimum of five years to complete environmental studies, design, right-of-way and construction activities.

Illustration: color photo/Baldwin: The Cortez Bridge is open and business is steady this year for Lou Nassar, owner of Cortez Market. color photo/File: A closed bridge meant little traffic in October 1995; Lou Nassar could sit in the middle of Cortez Road.

All content © 1996 THE BRADENTON HERALD and may not be republished without permission. All archives are stored on a SAVE (tm) newspaper library system from MediaStream Inc., a Knight Ridder, Inc. company.

[FrontPage Image Map Component]