After being closed for nearly a month because of heavy damage caused by Hurricane Matthew, State Road A1A reopened Monday after repairs were completed in about two weeks.

  • Hurricane Matthew washed away about 5,000 feet of sidewalk
  • Tidal surge cased waves that caved in portions of the road
  • Some local businesses were heavily impacted by A1A closure

Gov. Rick Scott on Monday went to Flagler Beach to announce the reopening of the roadway. It had been closed since the storm moved north along Florida's east coast. Two weeks ago, Scott directed the Florida Department of Transportation to use all available resources to expedite the process.

Halifax Paving Inc. was selected to do the construction work and had 45 days to reopen the roadway. The firm was one of five invited to bid on the project. The winning bid was about $3.95 million.

Work officially began Oct. 24, and the roadway reopened exactly two weeks later.

The hurricane washed out about 5,000 feet of sidewalk.

Oceanside Beach Bar and Grill, which is located between South 18th Street and South 19th Street, has been struggling to get customers in the door since the storm passed by.

"It's been down time since the hurricane hit," said Tony Lulgjuraj, who owns the restaurant with his brother, John. "Streets (have) been closed. It's been hard to access. Business dropped about 50 percent."

The Lulgjuraj brothers said A1A is like a lifeline to their restaurant.

"We were devastated," John Lulgjuraj said. "They were saying six months to a year, and we were so worried we were going to have to close down."

Halifax Paving Inc. had a monetary incentive for completing the work sooner than the 45-day deadline. The bonus was a little less than $1 million, state transportation officials said.

"They did it in 18 days," Scott said Monday. "What's going to help is individuals like this get back to business, their employees get back to a normal life."

The temporary fix includes a lane closer to the sidewalk along A1A. Officials are discussing a seawall and fixing the dunes for a permanent fix.

Flagler Beach and Flagler County staff are scheduled to meet Nov. 8 to discuss a permanent solution for the roadway.


Florida Gov. Rick Scott announces the reopening of State Road A1A on Monday, Nov. 7, 2016, in Flagler Beach. (Brittany Jones, staff)