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Did Orange County finish the Kirkman Road Extension within five years, as its 2018 grant terms said?

The Roadmap Reckoner · Orlando, Orange County, Florida (the Kirkman Road Extension, from Universal Boulevard north to Carrier Drive) · last checked 2026-10-15

Verdict	DELIVERED LATE (completed in fiscal 2024-25, past its five-year deadline)
Promiser	Orange County Government
Place	Orlando, Orange County, Florida (the Kirkman Road Extension, from Universal Boulevard north to Carrier Drive)
Promised	2024-06-28 ("shall be completed on or before the fifth anniversary of the Effective Date", the state grant's first amendment; the agreement took effect June 28, 2019)
Delivered / status	Fiscal 2024-25: "Construction of Kirkman Road was completed in FY 24-25" (the county's International Drive CRA report); opening day not found
Last checked	2026-10-15

Verdict: DELIVERED LATE (completed in fiscal 2024-25, past its five-year deadline). On December 18, 2018, Orange County told its Board of County Commissioners that the road would "Commence Construction Summer 2020" and that the "Project must be completed within five years of agreement approval" [C1, C3]. The state grant agreement took effect on June 28, 2019, and its first amendment set completion "on or before the fifth anniversary of the Effective Date" [C10, C12]. Universal builds the road under a 2019 agreement with the county, and in 2020 it took on the grant's construction obligations [C13b, C18b]. The county's International Drive redevelopment report says "Construction of Kirkman Road was completed in FY 24-25 with the opening of a major theme park accessible from the road" [C24]. The report does not name the park. The county's November 2023 update tied the road to Universal's Epic Universe, which opened on May 22, 2025, almost eleven months after the fifth anniversary of June 28, 2019 [C19b, C25, C10]. The county's own schedule in November 2023, "near the end of 2024", was also past that anniversary [C20]. The road was built at the size promised, six general lanes plus two lanes for transit [C9, C24]. The county's payment for it and the handover of the road to the county were still ahead in the last records read [C23, C26].

Last checked: October 15, 2026.

The promise. Construction from summer 2020, and completion "within five years of agreement approval" [C1, C3].
Who builds it. Universal designs and builds the road, and the county pays Universal a lump sum after completion [C13b, C15].
The start was late. The state moved the construction start from June 1, 2020 to September 30, 2020 [C11]. In November 2023 the county said "construction actually started two years ago with underground utilities" [C19].
The finish was late. In November 2023 the county said "The project is scheduled to be completed near the end of 2024" [C20]. The county's report puts completion in FY 24-25 [C24].
The road is the size promised. The December 2018 grant terms said the road "is proposed to be six lanes with two dedicated bus lanes", and the county's FY 24-25 report describes a "six-lane general use roadway with two dedicated transit lanes" [C9, C24].
The money is not settled in the records read. The county's report says "Additional funding is anticipated in future budget cycles to pay back funds" [C26].

The promise

The county's presentation to the Board of County Commissioners on December 18, 2018, for the Kirkman Road Extension and its state grant, lists these next steps and grant terms [C1, C2, C3, C4]:

"Design anticipated to be complete Fall 2019" … "Commence Construction Summer 2020" … "Construction is planned to commence June 2020" … "Project must be completed within five years of agreement approval"

What. A 1.7-mile extension of Kirkman Road, with a state Florida Job Growth Infrastructure Grant toward its construction [C1, C10a].
The deadline. The Board approved the grant agreement on June 18, 2019, and the state and the county entered it on June 28, 2019 [C10a, C10]. Its first amendment says the project "shall be completed on or before the fifth anniversary of the Effective Date" [C12].
Who builds it. The county's 2019 Roadway and Infrastructure Agreement with Universal is the one "pursuant to which Universal will design, engineer, and construct an extension of Kirkman Road as a six lane road" [C13b]. In September 2020 the county assigned the grant's construction obligations to Universal: "County assigns and Universal accepts and assumes the obligation to satisfactorily complete each Deliverable", "to complete same by the final date by which such criteria must be met for completion of the Grant Agreement" [C18b]. The 2018 promise was the county's own [C1, C3].
The jobs. The same presentation says "Estimated 2,534 jobs created", to be reported once: "One-time job creation self reporting (ten years after project completion)" [C4].

Timeline

December 18, 2018. The county's presentation of the project and the grant terms [C1, C2, C3, C4].
February 12, 2019. "On February 12, 2019, the Board approved a Cooperative Memorandum of Understanding" with Universal for the extension [C7].
June 18 and June 28, 2019. The Board approved the grant agreement, and the state and the county entered it [C10a, C10]. The grant is "up to $16,000,000" [C10a].
December 17, 2019. The Board approved the Roadway and Infrastructure Agreement with Universal, "recorded under Instrument Number 20190800173" [C13]. The road "will have six general traffic lanes plus two dedicated transit lanes" [C14].
May 2020. The first amendment to the grant extended "the date to commence construction on the project from June 1, 2020 to September 30, 2020", citing "the COVID-19 state of emergency", and set completion "on or before the fifth anniversary of the Effective Date" [C11, C12].
September 2020. The county assigned the grant's construction obligations to Universal [C18b].
November 2, 2023. The county's construction update: "With Universal's Epic Universe theme park scheduled to open by the summer of 2025, road construction has begun on the Kirkman Road extension project" [C19b]. It said "construction actually started two years ago with underground utilities", and "The project is scheduled to be completed near the end of 2024" [C19, C20]. The road would have "three traffic lanes in each direction for general use, and dedicated bus lanes" [C21].
Fiscal 2024-25. "Construction of Kirkman Road was completed in FY 24-25 with the opening of a major theme park accessible from the road" [C24].
April 30 and May 2025. A county staff item, dated April 30, 2025, for an operation and maintenance agreement, says road segments "are to be conveyed from Universal to Orange County" [C23].
May 22, 2025. Universal's Epic Universe theme park opened [C25].

What changed, and why, in the record's own words

The start moved from June 1, 2020 to September 30, 2020; the county's memo gives the reason as "the COVID-19 state of emergency" [C11]. The county later said construction started with underground utilities about two years before November 2023 [C19].
The finish moved from the five-year deadline to "near the end of 2024" in the county's November 2023 update, and then to FY 24-25 in its report [C12, C20, C24].
Why the finish moved: no county record read gives a reason for the completion date passing the deadline [the trace].
No amendment moving the completion date was found in the county's Board records [the trace].

What it cost

The deal's terms. The county's fact sheet says "The current total cost estimate provided by Universal is $315 million" and "Orange County's portion is capped at a maximum of $125 million" [C8b, C8a].
The split, as the county put it in 2023. "Orange County is providing $125 million in funding to the project, Universal $160 million" [C22]. The state grant is "up to $16,000,000" [C10a].
The county's lump sum. Under the 2019 agreement, the county is to "pay Universal a lump sum amount equal to the lesser of" two amounts, within 90 days after the project is complete [C15]. The fact sheet describes it as a "Lump sum payment of $60 million at the end of construction/upon completion" [C8a].
One year's spending. In FY 24-25 the International Drive redevelopment area spent $164,213 on the extension; its list of that year's project expenditures shows "Kirkman Road Extension $164,213" [C26]. The report adds: "Additional funding is anticipated in future budget cycles to pay back funds based on prior commitments stated in an interlocal agreement and memorandum of understanding." [C26]

What is still open

The lump sum. No county record read shows the lump sum paid [the trace].
The handover. As of the April 30, 2025 staff item, the road segments "are to be conveyed from Universal to Orange County" [C23]. No later record read shows the conveyance [the trace].
The jobs. The 2,534-job estimate is to be self-reported ten years after completion [C4].

What this entry did not check

The opening day. No county or Universal record read gives the day the road opened to traffic; news reports were used only to look for one [the trace].
The state's own grant file at FloridaCommerce (formerly the Department of Economic Opportunity), which could hold a later amendment [the trace].
The county's FY 2025-26 budget, which could show the lump sum [the trace].

Sources

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