Legacy Trail (Florida)

Legacy Trail
Railroad mast at the trail's southern terminus in Venice, Florida in October 2017
Length 12.5 miles (20.1 km)[1]
Location Sarasota County, Florida
Established December 21, 2004[2]
Trailheads
Use Shared-use for walking and cycling
Hiking details
Season Year round
Months Year round
Sights Oscar Scherer State Park, Venice Train Depot
Hazards Weather, at-grade pedestrian crossing at vehicular thoroughfares
Surface Asphalt
Right of way Seminole Gulf Railway[1]
Maintained by Sarasota County
Website scgov.net/LegacyTrail
Trail map
Legacy Trail highlighted in green

The Legacy Trail is a 12.5-mile (20.1 km) multi-use recreational trail in Sarasota County, Florida running between Sarasota near Palmer Ranch and Venice. The rail trail is on an abandoned Seminole Gulf Railway corridor and opened to the public on March 28, 2008.[3]

History of the trail

Overpass over U.S. 41 Bypass Route in Venice

The railroad line was originally built in 1911 as part of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad's extension to Venice.[4] The railroad line provided passenger service to Venice up until 1971, and most notably carried the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which was headquartered in Venice from 1959 to 1992.[5] The circus was the last consistent service the rail line carried.

Due to decreased demand for service and the heavily deteriorated condition of the tracks and bridges, CSX Transportation (Seaboard's successor) and Seminole Gulf Railway, who had been leasing the line from CSX since 1987, collectively came to an agreement with Sarasota County to abandon the line south of Palmer Ranch. In return, Sarasota County, in conjunction with The Trust for Public Land, purchased and acquired the right of way in December 2004 for $11.75 million for use as a trail.[6] The Legacy Trail opened to the public on March 28, 2008.[7]

Legacy Trail near State Road 681 overpass (milepost 898).

In 2011, an overpass was built to carry the trail over the Venice Bypass, a major six-lane highway. Prior to the overpass's construction, trail users had to use a crosswalk at an adjacent intersection. The $3.1 million overpass is 18 feet (5.5 m) tall, spans 900 feet (270 m), and was built with federal stimulus funding.[8] Another pedestrian overpass constructed by FDOT over Laurel Road started construction in November 2017 and is expected to be completed by late summer / early fall 2018.[9]

Sarasota County is planning to extend the Legacy Trail beyond its current northern terminus into the city of Sarasota. The extension will continue the trail along the railroad corridor an additional 8 miles to just south of Fruitville Road, which would connect it with Payne Park, and another proposed bike trail along Alderman Street towards downtown Sarasota.[10][11] In early 2017, Seminole Gulf and CSX announced their intention to abandon an additional 9 miles (14 km) of the remaining southern segment of the railroad up to a point just south of Fruitville Road. In December 2017, Sarasota County, in conjunction with The Trust for Public Land, purchased and acquired 2.7 miles (4.3 km) of the former railroad corridor right of way for $7.9 million.[12] The county owns the former railroad corridor up to Ashton Road, approximately one-half mile (0.80 km) north of Clark Road.

Route description

Legacy Trail near Nokomis

The north end of the Legacy Trail is just south of the Seminole Gulf Railway's current terminus near Palmer Ranch. From there, it travels south in a straight line towards Venice. It passes through Oscar Scherer State Park in Osprey and has a direct connection with the park's trails. After leaving the park, the trail continues south, passes underneath State Road 681 and through Nokomis. South of Nokomis, the trail crosses Dona Bay and enters Venice. The trail overpasses U.S. 41 Bypass then to the historic Venice Seaboard Air Line Railway Station, which is currently in used as a bus station. At the station, the trail goes on to connect with the Venetian Waterway Park at Venice Avenue, another trail that continues south along the Intracoastal Waterway to the Gulf of Mexico.

The Legacy Trail includes many references to its historic railroad past. The trail's milepost numbers (numbered 892–902) correspond to the railroad's original mile numbering. The original railroad trestle crossing South Creek at milepost 897.6 also remains. It is the only trestle still standing, and a newer bridge carries the trail over the creek next to it.[13] Roadway crossings also include decorative railroad crossing signals with cross bucks reading Sarasota Rail Trail.

Future

A referendum vote on November 6, 2018 will ask county voters to approve funding to acquire the final 6.3 miles (10.1 km) of the former railroad corridor and its construction, which would include two overpasses and improvements to trail connections.[3]

An extension to North Port is planned. The North Port extension or North Port Connectors would connect to the Legacy Trail in Nokomis and run along T. Mabry Carlton Reserve and an FPL utility easement through Deer Prairie Creek Preserve.[14][15]

The Legacy Trail is also planned to be part of the Southwest Coast Regional Connector, an initiative by the Florida Department of Transportation to built a continuous multi-use trail from Tampa to Naples.[16]

References

  1. 1 2 "Historical Overview of The Legacy Trail". Sarasota County Government. March 22, 2018. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  2. ↑ "Board Meeting Packet - Acquisition of Land for The Legacy Trail Extension" (PDF). Sarasota County Government. August 29, 2017. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  3. 1 2 "The Legacy Trail Referendum". Sarasota County Government. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  4. ↑ Turner, Gregg M. (December 1, 1999). Railroads of Southwest Florida. Images of America. Arcadia Publishing.
  5. ↑ The Circus in Venice, Florida Archived October 29, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
  6. ↑ "Sarasota County Rails to Trails - Land Owner Update". Maglio Christopher & Toale. December 5, 2017. Retrieved March 27, 2018.
  7. ↑ "Pages - Legacy Trail". Sarasota County Government. Archived from the original on June 20, 2013. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
  8. ↑ Becnel, Thomas (November 4, 2011). "Cyclists cheer Venice's Legacy Trail Overpass". Sarasota Herald Tribune. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Legacy Trail Pedestrian Overpass" (PDF). Florida Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
  10. ↑ "Sarasota County Trails Plan". Sarasota County Government. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
  11. ↑ "Proposed Extension to the Legacy Trail in Sarasota Florida". Friends of the Legacy Trail. Retrieved January 12, 2015.
  12. ↑ "Land acquired for Legacy Trail extension". Sarasota County Government. December 20, 2017. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
  13. ↑ "The Legacy Trail Bicycle Trail in Sarasota from Sarasota to Osprey and Venice, Florida". Retrieved April 7, 2018.
  14. ↑ "Expanding the Legacy". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. January 22, 2014. Retrieved January 12, 2015.
  15. ↑ "North Port Connectors". Friends of the Legacy Trail. August 13, 2018. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
  16. ↑ "Southwest Coast Connector Trail" (PDF). Florida SUNTrails. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
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