A former railroad corridor cutting diagonally through downtown St. Petersburg could create new opportunities for redevelopment, and improve access to surrounding neighborhoods and businesses.
Trust for Public Land announced its acquisition of the approximately 0.86-mile Booker Creek rail corridor in August, following more than two decades of efforts to preserve the former CSX property for public use. The planned trail would run between Fifth Avenue N. and First Avenue S., connecting to the Pinellas Trail and advancing the planned 420-mile Florida Gulf Coast Trail.
Lindsay Cross, Florida state director for Trust for Public Land, opined on the corridor’s unusual advantages.
“Most of St. Pete is set up on a grid system, and there are only certain places that move block to block,” Cross said. “Having a diagonal segment [like the Booker Creek Trail] expedites travel for some communities.”
The connection could also bring additional pedestrian and bicycle traffic to the EDGE District, home to restaurants, entertainment venues and small businesses.
The project could also encourage redevelopment along the corridor, including properties where the former railroad alignment has influenced what can be built.
“You could put buildings on either side of the trail that otherwise wouldn’t fit there,” Cross said.
Ferg’s Sports Bar owner Mark Ferguson has already made a significant financial commitment to the project.
In July, St. Petersburg City Council unanimously approved two 99-year ground lease agreements allowing Ferguson to contribute $6 million toward the city’s $7 million purchase of the corridor. The agreements cover portions of the former railroad property not needed for the public trail.
Ferguson, whose business has occupied portions of the property for more than three decades, previously told the Catalyst that the investment could attract additional development and customers.
“We’re going to have a lot more business from it,” Ferguson said in July. “There will be apartments and retail built there. Business will be brought to the Trop, EDGE District and Ferg’s Sports Bar.”
The agreements also allow Ferg’s to continue using portions of the property for its business operations.
City officials have pursued the corridor since it appeared in local trail plans in 2003. The acquisition followed years of negotiations with CSX, including litigation after the railroad company reached an agreement to sell the property to another buyer.
During a February City Council meeting, transportation and parking management director Evan Mory described the property as underutilized.
“This vision has withstood the test of time,” Mory said, “Acquiring the line and putting it to higher and better use has been adopted in many planning documents dating back to over 20 years ago.”
The acquisition involved Trust for Public Land, the city, CSX Transportation, Rails to Trails Conservancy and private partners. Trust for Public Land plans to transfer the property to the city for trail development.
Cross said the city will be responsible for designing and constructing the trail. A grant request has been submitted to Forward Pinellas, and additional revenue sources and outside assistance will be needed.
The $7 million acquisition did not cover the cost of building the trail. The amount requested from Forward Pinellas and the project’s total construction budget have not been confirmed.
City transportation manager Cheryl Stacks previously estimated that the trail could take three to five years to complete, with funding for design and construction still to be identified.
Trust for Public Land celebrated the acquisition Sunday, Nov. 8, with a guided bicycle tour through the Booker Creek corridor and Historic Gas Plant District, followed by a community conversation at Ferg’s Sports Bar.
The project comes as St. Petersburg advances another major trail initiative.
City Council recently accepted a $55 million master plan for Trails Crossing, which would transform approximately 12 acres beneath Interstate 275 into parks, public gathering spaces and pedestrian and bicycle pathways.
“I think all of these efforts are complementary to each other,” Cross said. “More trails. More access to restaurants and businesses.
“Whatever we can do to make it easier for residents to get around will make us stand out across the county and state,” Cross added.
Cross, a former state representative, recently took over as Florida state director for Trust for Public Land.
“I’m coming back to the things I’ve always loved: conservation and getting people outdoors,” she said.
This content provided in partnership with StPeteCatalyst.com
