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100-mile greenway emerging
By RON MATUS TAMPA -- Imagine bicycling from New Tampa to Lowry Park for a picnic. Or from Tampa Heights to McKay Bay to marvel at roseate spoonbills. Now, picture doing that without dodging motorists or sucking up car exhaust every pedal of the way. A decade or so from now, that pipe dream just might be reality. Spurred by Tampa's dismal reputation for cyclist and pedestrian safety, efforts to create a 100-mile network of greenways and trails throughout the city are quietly gaining steam. City officials say they don't know how long it will take, or how many millions of dollars it will cost. But here and there, links are emerging that in a decade or two are intended to connect isolated trails in Tampa to each other, and then to trails in Hillsborough County, Pinellas County, the north Suncoast and beyond. "You look at a lot of cities that have trails and linear parks, and their quality of life is perceived to be a lot higher than Tampa's," said Tom Johnston, an urban planner with the Tampa Parks Department. Tampa's fledgling trail system got a boost last year when the City Council approved a master plan that outlines the big picture. Parks officials regularly add links as money and land become available -- and when neighbors don't object. The most recent addition: 14 acres of woods near MacDill Air Force Base. At the city's request, Gov. Jeb Bush and the Florida Cabinet voted last week to spend $1.1-million for the parcel, which was zoned for industry but ripe for a sprawling apartment complex. That parcel is part of a planned trail to connect the Friendship Trail Bridge to South Tampa. "It's a vital chunk," said Melanie Higgins, president of the Ballast Point Neighborhood Association and a supporter of the purchase. On a city map, Tampa's trail vision resembles strands of spaghetti. Most strands are connected to others. But some hang in isolation; among them, a stretch of S Himes Avenue north of Gandy Boulevard. It was included in the city's master plan because bike lanes will arrive with future road improvements, Johnston said. No bike friendly links to or from Himes Avenue are proposed for now. The city plan includes clusters of trails in South Tampa, West Tampa, New Tampa, along the Hillsborough River and around McKay Bay. Dozens of city parks will be stepping stones. Tampa Bay, the Hillsborough River and downtown will be prime destinations. Roads such as Bayshore Boulevard, many of which will need bike lanes or other improvements, are part of the mix. So are more than 40 miles of proposed off-road trails, similar to the asphalt strip that now parallels part of Bruce B. Downs Boulevard. The result is expected to be a city less dependent on cars, a little more green and brimming with options for walking and biking. "Bayshore is used very heavily," Johnston said, referring to the way people flock there for exercise and a great view. "Imagine if you didn't have to live in South Tampa to do that. You can live in West Tampa and do the same thing at Cypress Point." Cypress Point, on Old Tampa Bay, is one of the city's most underused parks. It's in line for improvements, including a parking lot, a building for restrooms and food vendors, and plans to keep the beach from eroding. A trail right to it would complete the package. But creating those trail links won't be easy -- or cheap. Johnston said Tampa doesn't have the abandoned railroad that many communities, such as Pinellas County, have used to anchor a trail system. The Pinellas Trail, which runs from St. Petersburg to Tarpon Springs, draws nearly 1-million visitors each year. And real estate in the middle of the city doesn't come cheap. Although he voted to buy it, Gov. Bush grumbled about the cost of the South Tampa land, which sits along Manhattan Avenue between the base and Robinson High School. According to property appraisers who prepared assessments for the state, owner James W. Keen was offered $1.3-million from private developers who could put 225 to 250 apartment units on the land. Now it will likely become a nature park. City officials want to buy a half-dozen other major chunks of land in South Tampa, and are working with MacDill to put a trail along the base's northern boundary. So far, including the Keen purchase, more than $4-million has been spent for greenways and trails in that part of the city alone. Elsewhere in Tampa, dozens of parcels are being eyed for purchase. They include several acres south of Cypress Point and an old railroad line that ties Channelside Drive to McKay Bay. City officials are cobbling together funds from city, county and federal sources. Meanwhile, a $275,000 facelift will begin this fall on a milelong trail segment behind Blake High School. The ribbon of asphalt will be gussied up with benches, lights, signs, kiosks and water fountains. City officials say it will be a model for what the trail system will look like in the rest of the city. "That will be our prototype," Johnston said. Jim Fleming is among those who can't wait to see more. Fleming is chairman of the Metropolitan Planning Organization's bicycle and pedestrian advisory committee. He has been riding his bike to work almost every day for 12 years. He says Tampa's ranking at the bottom of the list for bicycle and pedestrian safety is well deserved. "I've become hardened to riding in traffic," he said. "But it's not safe for the average rider." Fleming said he doesn't doubt that a trail system, once in place, will be widely used. "Virtually everybody rides a bike. It's at the top of the list for recreational activities, for both residents and tourists," he said. "If you build it, they will come." Not everybody is a fan. Several neighborhoods don't want trails slicing through their parts of Tampa, among them Beach Park, Riverbend and Old Seminole Heights. Sharon Keene, president of the Riverside Heights Civic Association, said city officials wanted to put a 12-foot-wide trail through the easements that front their lots. Two years ago, more than 200 people packed a meeting to say no way. "Here's this trail actually running across your driveway," she said. The city backed off. Keene gives credit for that. "They said if a neighborhood didn't want it, they didn't have to have it," she said. "We don't plan on forcing it down their throats," planner Johnston said. "This whole thing has been community driven. We expect that to continue." Eventually, Tampa's trails will hook up with those in Hillsborough County, which is also expanding its network. Work will begin this summer on another phase of the Upper Tampa Bay Trail, which currently runs from Linebaugh Avenue to Peterson Park. There are plans to connect that trail to the Suncoast Parkway Trail, which begins in north Hillsborough County and runs almost 30 miles to Hernando County. Tina Russo, the county's trail manager, said a trail tying both sides of Tampa Bay together isn't too far in the future. "Trails weren't popular eight or nine years ago," Russo said. "Now they're the rave." -- Times researcher John Martin contributed to this report.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
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