CFX, Seminole County Approve Partnership to Speed SR 417 Sanford Airport Connector

The Central Florida Expressway Authority unanimously approved an interlocal funding agreement with Seminole County to accelerate the State Road 417 connector to Orlando Sanford International Airport, after the Seminole County Commission advanced the county’s side earlier in the week. CFX board chair Christopher Maier called the pact “really unprecedented,” saying, “This is truly a partnership between CFX and Seminole County and this is accelerating a project that is direly needed in this county.”

Under the agreement, Seminole County will contribute $50 million toward the project, a commitment framed in the interlocal to unlock consultant selection and move the design into production phases. Public materials give different milestone dates: one set of documents requires 60 percent design by September 2028, while CFX materials tied to the October board meeting link a Dec. 31, 2028 deadline to two $25 million county payments. The total project estimate appears as roughly $200 million in round figures and $200.4 million in the October CFX estimate.

The alignment selected for the connector is labeled Alternative 2A and is planned to start north of Lake Jessup, traversing a largely undeveloped portion of Seminole County toward the rapidly growing Sanford airport area. Alternative 2A is intended to tie into recent and planned S.R. 417 work - including widening between the county line near S.R. 426 and the crossing at Lake Jessup near S.R. 434 - and to connect to Lake Mary Boulevard en route to Orlando Sanford International Airport. “The impact of 2A is minimal compared to what it would have been with the alignments,” Herr said in remarks during board consideration.

Officials say the connector would deliver traffic relief for east Seminole County, projecting a 46 percent reduction in traffic on East Lake Mary Boulevard once the link is open. The project footprint, however, would directly affect about 25 parcels of land, including eight residential properties, and the chosen alignment runs through at least one homeowner’s property. One resident, identified only as Burke in public comments, said, “I feel so strongly for my neighbors and myself because we're in a hurry-up-and-wait mode. And I have mentioned multiple times that I am trusting God with this process, every step.”

Key next steps identified in the agreement and public materials include Seminole County payments that trigger consultant selection for design, movement through the design milestones noted above, completion of an environmental study, and securing remaining construction funding. CFX projection materials state that, based on current funding, construction could begin no later than Dec. 31, 2031. Reporting and public documents show some discrepancies in the timeline of recent votes and in the chair’s name, Christopher Maier is also referenced as C.J. Maier in CFX materials, matters that will be clarified in official meeting minutes and the interlocal agreement text.

For Sanford-area travelers and affected property owners, the partnership establishes a schedule of payments, design milestones, and environmental review that will determine whether Alternative 2A moves from maps to construction; the county’s $50 million commitment and CFX’s previous October actions are intended to hasten that process while environmental and property impacts continue to draw local scrutiny.