ORLANDO, Fla. – As the backlash deepens in response to the Florida Department of Transportation’s removal of the rainbow crosswalk outside the former Pulse Nightclub, News 6 has learned that the department has identified nearly 20 other pavement markings that need to be removed.
The rainbow crosswalk at Orange Avenue and Esther Street was not on that list.
News 6 obtained the letter that FDOT sent to the city of Orlando on Thursday, Aug. 21. A city spokesperson claimed the city received the letter at about 7 p.m., nearly 12 hours after city officials learned that state transportation workers removed the rainbow paint from a crosswalk at Orange Avenue and West Esther Street.
FDOT approved the crosswalk in 2017 as a tribute to the 49 people killed in the 2016 mass shooting at Pulse.
[WATCH: Rainbow crosswalk near Pulse Nightclub removed]
A city spokesperson reiterated Friday that the city did not have any advanced notice about FDOT’s intention to remove the rainbow-painted crosswalk.
The letter, which lists 18 crosswalks, paver intersections, and bike symbols, alleged that the locations did not comply with state traffic control standards due to their pavement markings.
FDOT advised the city that the “noncompliant markings” must be removed by September 4, 2025.
If not, the letter warned, the pavement markings would be removed by the department.
The letter includes the following excerpt:
“You are further notified that if the markings are removed by the Department, all costs associated with the removal will be assessed against City of Orlando. You may avoid these costs by removing the pavement markings and then notifying the Department of compliance immediately.
“Please note that the Department will pursue withholding of state funds as permitted by the law should City of Orlando reverse course and decide not to comply.”
Earlier this summer, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy issued a letter to all 50 governors and urged them to keep intersections and crosswalks “free from distractions.”
“Roads are for safety, not political messages or artwork,” Secretary Duffy said in the letter, dated July 1. “Today I am calling on governors in every state to ensure that roadways, intersections, and crosswalks are kept free of distractions.”
[FROM 2019: Crews finish rainbow crosswalk near Pulse nightclub]
On Thursday, a spokesperson for FDOT sent a statement, saying the decision to remove the crosswalk was part of “a months-long process of updating the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices with input from representatives of state and local governments. This update included a prohibition on non-uniform traffic control devices, such as pavement markings on state and local roads.”
FDOT said it notified all local governments in June about the coming changes, and that it could withhold state funds for noncompliance. The agency also said local governments began receiving notifications for local last week.
When News 6’s Orlando Community Correspondent Mike Valente visited Pulse on Friday, Taylor West--who stopped by with her mother--suggested that removing the rainbow-painted crosswalk was not about safety.
“I think they’re full of it,” West said. “They’re colors on the road. If that’s a distraction to you driving, then maybe you shouldn’t be driving.”
West and her mother went to the crosswalk on Friday to express their outrage over FDOT’s actions, as well as to fill in with chalk the now-empty spaces in the crosswalk.
“I will come out here every day and do it over and over again,” she said. “I don’t care.”
The list of “noncompliant locations” mentioned in FDOT’s letter is as follows:
- S. Rosalind Ave at E. Jackson St – (Crosswalk)
- Church St at S. Rosalind Ave – (Crosswalk)
- Magnolia Ave at E. Concord St – (Crosswalk)
- Orange Ave at Concord St – (Crosswalk)
- N. Orange Ave at E. Central Blvd – (Paver intersection)
- S. Orange Ave at E. Pine St – (Paver intersection)
- S. Orange Ave at Church St – (Paver intersection)
- Summerlin Ave at Washington St – (Crosswalk)
- Amelia St at N. Hughey Ave – (Crosswalk)
- Amelia St at Ronald Blocker Ave – (Crosswalk)
- Amelia St at Chatham Ave – (Crosswalk)
- Amelia St at Putnam Ave – (Crosswalk)
- Livingston St at N. Hughey Ave – (Crosswalk)
- Central Blvd at N. Eola Dr – (Crosswalk)
- W. Kaley Ave at S. Division Ave – (Crosswalk)
- Corrine Dr at East End Ave – (Crosswalk)
- Laureate Blvd at Benavente Ave – (Bike Symbol)
- Laureate Blvd at Kellogg Ave – (Bike Symbol)
The crosswalk art was part of a City of Orlando transportation program to increase pedestrian safety and create a more inviting community. Other projects include intersection murals, and traffic signal box art.
A city of Orlando page on Crosswalk Art was removed from the website this week. The page was indexed in the Internet Archive, though, and gives more insight into the rules for the projects.