Former county Commissioner Hines reports on latest step in creating Florida Gulf Coast Trail
Thanks to collaboration among the Trust for Public Land, the Gulf Coast Community Foundation and Sarasota County staff, work is underway on a Beneva Road segment of The Legacy Trail Connector to Nathan Benderson Park, former county Commissioner Charles Hines has reported to the current commissioners.
During a presentation that was part of the County Commission’s regular meeting on Nov. 18, in Venice, Hines talked of the “amazing public-private partnership we have going on” in regard to the construction of this latest section of the Florida Gulf Coast Trail, for which Hines is the program director, on behalf of the Trust for Public Land. As he noted, the regional trail eventually will reach Manatee County.
A document in the Nov. 18 agenda packet explains that, at the expense of $500,000 — which the Gulf Coast Community Foundation and the nonprofit Friends of the Legacy Trail provided, as Hines reported — a half-mile route is being built from the Legacy Trail’s terminus at Beneva Road to Fruitville Road. The 10-foot-wide, paved surface will be suitable for “a variety of uses, from bicycles and scooters to wheelchairs and strollers,” the document notes.
The anticipation is that a ribbon-cutting ceremony can be held in March or April 2026, Hines told the commissioners. The Trust for Public Land is managing the project, he noted.
“This is a segment that was a gap, and a very dangerous gap,” he stressed.
The Florida Gulf Coast Trail itself will be 420 miles long between Naples and Tampa, the document points out. The Benderson Park Connector “is poised to be a pivotal component” of the Trail, the document says.
Ultimately, a separate document explains, the connector from the Legacy Trail at Beneva Road to Benderson Park will be 4 miles long, costing $9 million to $11 million. That figure does not include a future bridge over Fruitville Road, which the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) intends to construct that document adds.
Earlier this year, FDOT opened such bridges over Clark and Bee Ridge roads in Sarasota.
The Benderson Park Connector will include “trailhead amenities at Bobby Jones Golf Course” and the county’s 17th Street regional sports complex, that Nov. 18 agenda document also points out.
Funding for the connector is expected from a variety of sources, it adds, including a state appropriation, the Florida SUN Trail Program, commitments from Sarasota County and the City of Sarasota, and private foundations and donors, the document says.
During his remarks, Hines noted that the City of Sarasota’s Circus Trail Extension project is another facet of the Florida Gulf Coast Trail.
A city webpage explains, “The City of Sarasota has been working with Kittelson and Associates to perform the Circus Trail Extension project’s planning, environmental assessment, and 30% design. The project limits begin halfway through the existing Circus Trail, remain on the east side of Circus Boulevard, go into [the] Bobby Jones [Golf Club] and terminate a few feet from Sarasota County’s 17th Street Park. The existing Circus Trail starts at the corner of Fruitville Road and Beneva Road.”
A separate city webpage says that the city received $550,000 from FDOT through its SUN Trail program for the next project phase, which is planned for this fiscal year.
County staff members were able to get the design done for the half-mile route from Beneva to Fruitville, Hines told the county commissioners, and they assisted with the necessary right of way use agreement.
He also pointed out that the county’s Transportation Department, whose director is Spencer Anderson, had cleared the trees on the segment.
On Dec. 1, Hines continued, “Bennett Contracting [of Bradenton] is going to start the paving …”
“I just really thought that this is a great example of how, when the private sector is aligned with county projects, we can do [an initiative] quicker and cheaper …”
This latest project, he further noted, makes the staff of FDOT realize that the local government leaders and community members want to see The Legacy Trail heading north, including that Fruitville Road bridge.
“The whole goal here is to create connectivity — safe connectivity — and create a true trail for Sarasota County” that will extend from the southern part of the county all the way to the northern section, Hines emphasized. “We’re going to work on one segment at a time.”
“I know this is a very, very strong message to you all as our leaders that the private sector wants to see our trails completed not in 10 years or 20 years, but let’s keep working on them now,” Hines told the commissioners.
His only request of them that day, he continued, is to take opportunities to talk with their colleagues involved with the Sarasota/Manatee Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) and the members of the Sarasota County Legislative Delegation about the need for state support. “A lot of great things will come from [the Florida Gulf Coast Trail],” Hines added.
At the conclusion of Hines’ remarks, Commissioner Mark Smith told him, “This is a tremendous effort on your part.” Smith added with a smile, “I know we’ve got a ways to go before you lose your job, but I hope it’s sooner rather than later.”
Hines indicated that he is looking forward to the day when he can say that the Florida Gulf Coast Trail is complete.
During his remarks, Hines also referenced the Friends of the Legacy Trail statistics about the number of users of that route, which extends from North Port to downtown Sarasota. Through October, the total for this year was 496,453, the nonprofit reported on its website.