It’s been shut down for nearly two years, but now, Bumby Avenue is back in business.

North Bumby Avenue in Orlando, closed between Colonial Drive/State Road 50 and Corrine Drive, reopened to traffic on Friday. The city of Orlando said it would open by 3:30 p.m., but crews removed the signage blocking off Bumby sometime before noon.

“I love it. I can take that trail all the way down to Virginia and go up to my trail. It makes it nicer for the bikers and for the kids," said Fabio Zepeda, pausing as he rode his bicycle down the street.

The father of three has lived in the neighborhood for the past 12 years and said the road needed repair for some time. The closure, he added, was equally inconvenient: dangerous for cyclists and children playing in the side streets.

“Some of them kept speeding down the street, and we have kids who play basketball," he said. “Now we’re happy. We don’t have to have as many cars down. We’re safer down the street.”

Fey Geving agrees that the revamp time was lengthy but necessary.

“You can’t have something good unless you put up with something bad," she said. “My parents bought the house in 1950. It was gravel road; there was hardly any traffic."

But, as The City Beautiful grew, so did the problems along Bumby. Potholes riddled the cracked roadway, and flooding was a constant problem for residents.

In spring 2015, crews shut down North Bumby Avenue for their improvement project -- to the concern of some in the neighborhood.

“Where’s the vein of traffic going to go now? How are they going to reroute it? That’s my main concern," one neighbor asked quizzically.

The one-mile stretch of roadway connects two busy roads and is a major thoroughfare for many east of downtown Orlando.

The city's work included resurfacing to rid the road of potholes; new drainage systems to reduce flooding; beautification, such as planting more than 125 trees; and installing things useful for pedestrians, such as sidewalks, crosswalks, signage and a 10-foot-wide path.

Now, the two years of construction is complete — and the neighborhood is ready to celebrate.

The community party will take place at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, April 15. Local leaders, from Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, to District 4 City Commissioner Patty Sheehan, will participate in a ribbon-cutting celebrating the reopening of Bumby, as well as the new multi-use path.

Those participating and attending will be involved on a short bike ride on the path to Audubon Park Garden District.