POINCIANA, Fla. — The Central Florida Expressway Authority is moving forward with a project that was once dubbed the Great Wall of Poinciana.

What You Need To Know

  • Central Florida Expressway Authority is promising changes for proposed Southport Connector Expressway

  • New elevated toll road would be built in median of Cypress Parkway in Poinciana

  • CFX’s revisions call for widening Cypress Parkway to help local traffic

  • New toll road would help connect Florida’s Turnpike to I-4

After facing backlash from the community, and even a federal complaint, the expressway authority is promising changes for the proposed Southport Connector Expressway.

“The biggest news is that in looking at the Southport Connector study that we’ve been able to incorporate a widening of the Cypress Parkway,” said Manager of Community Engagement Brian Hutchings at the expressway authority. “So that will be a huge improvement for the local traffic, and then you’ll have the regional traffic that will be up on top using the expressway.”

Lita Epstein, a resident of the Solivita 55 plus community in Poinciana, knows how challenging it can be to drive in the sprawling community split between Osceola and Polk counties.

“Commutes were an hour and a half to two hours in each direction,” said Epstein, who primarily works from home and avoids the traffic.

Poinciana has the longest commute in the nation, averaging 43.5 minutes, higher than New York City and LA.

That’s why the Central Florida Expressway Authority came up with the Southport Connector Expressway. It’s a 15 mile toll road that would help connect I-4 to Florida’s Turnpike, coming right though Poinciana.

But that’s also the problem, according to Epstein.

“There’s no question the Southport Connector will improve that commute, but at the same time it will destroy what is Poinciana,” she said. 

Plans call for an elevated toll road to be built on the median of Cypress Parkway. Concerned about splitting Poinciana in half, Epstein and others formed a group opposing the plan and what they called the Great Wall of Poinciana.

She even filed a title 6 complaint.

It was eventually denied, but the opposition was enough to get the expressway authority to change their plans.

Hutchings says now the proposal calls for Cypress Parkway to be widened to 6 lanes to help alleviate local traffic, while the plan is still to add an elevated toll road in the median.

“We’re looking at bridge structures,” Hutchings said, in an effort to remove some of the wall-like structures that had caused concerns.

Renderings show bridges will be used for much of the project, but some sections will still have a wall.

Epstein is glad the expressway authority is adding extra lanes to Cypress Parkway and removing some of the proposed wall, but she still has issues with the project.

“The road, as an eyesore, will still be there and we still have the pollution from the trucks and the cars that are going to come through here on the expressway, so that will be a negative,” she said. “A positive will be that people in Poinciana will be able to get up to route four and the turnpike much more quickly.”

The expressway authority is still studying the proposed route and taking in community feedback.

To learn more about the project, and even take a survey, click here.