POLK COUNTY, Fla. — A Polk County community is celebrating a big win after county commissioners put the stamp of approval on building sidewalks in their neighborhood.

“People have gotten used to doing whatever they want as far as speed, and that goes for buses and everyone else that speeds down this road,” said Steve Essary, a North West Lakeland resident.

Steve Essary first spoke with Spectrum News last year after a number of speeding complaints came in about NW 1st street in Lakeland.

“This is a 15-30 mph zone, but we’ve got people doing at least 80 (mph) down that road,” said Essary.

The speeding problem in that North West Lakeland neighborhood isn’t new. The support from mothers across town shined light on another problem — the residential community has no sidewalks.

“My son was only 19 years old when that car hit him on the side of the road; he was walking on the grass,” said Yaica Irizarry. “The car was only supposed to be going 15-30 mph on this road.”

A car hit and killed Irizarry’s son on NW 1st street in Lakeland in Nov. 2021. Since then, she’s been attending city council meetings and connecting with commissioners to make that area safer for pedestrians.

“I’m doing this for my son; it’s all for him,” said Irizarry. “Your first son teaches you how to love, that’s what he was for me and so actions speak louder than words. All of this has been for him.”

The Sidewalk Advisory Committee in Lakeland agreed that NW 1st street needs sidewalks, based on their location and the amount of fatalities in the area.  

“It’s bittersweet, just because it shouldn’t have happened that way, but the fact that we were heard and our crazy selves made impact — it brought some type of joy to my heart,” said Irizarry.  

The Sidewalk Advisory Committee has a $2 million budget for this project and several others in the works in Polk County.