Port St. Lucie will complete several park projects this year, including a long-anticipated trail throughout its Southeast communities, starting next month.
The Westmoreland Boulevard Wilderness Trail will enter a $2.77 million construction cycle starting in early February, wrote city spokesperson Scott Samples in a Jan. 26 email. A Jan. 12 city release said construction would begin by the end of January.
A $500,000 Florida Department of Environmental Protection Recreational Trails grant will help the city pay off the remainder of funding from their $869.9 million budget for this fiscal year. The 10-foot-wide concrete “multimodal” trail, Samples wrote, will span approximately 2.1 miles along Westmoreland Boulevard. Features to the upcoming trail, releases say, include “a new restroom with a covered pavilion, picnic tables and a drinking fountain” for patrons.
The trail will also coexist with other attractions including the Saints golf course and The Port District. The latter, city records show, is expected to open their own green space – dubbed “The Preserve” – by March.
When completed, the trail will be found a “quarter mile” from the Port District Preserve entrance, according to Samples. “This allows users to enjoy the Wilderness Trail, then make a short journey to the Preserve Trail.”
The Westmoreland Trail will “increase access to trails as envisioned by (the) Naturally PSL initiative,” Samples wrote. This need “was among the top resident requests when the Parks and Recreation 10-year Master Plan was developed.”
Another much smaller park in the southern city will also be built out from now through the fall. Duck Court Park, 452 SW Rad Court near Becker Road homes, will receive substantial improvements at a cost of $236,970, wrote Samples.
Enhancements to Duck Court Park, releases say, include “shaded pergolas”; “a decorative three-tier water fountain”; Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant benches; “bike racks”; improved pedestrian/bike paths; and “on-street parking.”