SUBJECT/RECOMMENDATION:
Title
Approve the grant agreement between the City of Clearwater and the State of Florida Department of Environmental Protection Recreation Trails Program (RTP) for a grant in the amount of $104,637 for replacement of a trail bridge on the Ream Wilson Trail, and authorize the appropriate officials to execute same. (consent)
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SUMMARY:
The City has been awarded a matching grant in the amount of $104,637 for the design and construction of a trail bridge on the Ream Wilson Trail within the Carpenter Field Complex. The City will be required to match the grant with $104,638. The funding is available in the CIP 315-93272 Bicycle Paths-Bridges.
The Ream Wilson Trail is recognized as a National Recreation Trail by the US Department of Interior. There are only two others with this recognition in Pinellas County (the Pinellas Trail and the North Bay Trail).
Presently, the existing bridge is 6’ in width and is inadequate for a shared use path. The bridge was initially installed prior to the development of nationally accepted guidelines for shared use paths, and was adequate at the time of construction. Since then, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ “Guide for the Development of Bicycle Facilities” recommends a minimum of a 10’ width for a shared use path.
The project includes the design, engineering, site preparation and the construction of a 12’ wide steel truss trail bridge including railing and asphalt approaches. It is important to have a wider width due to the high volume of use of the trail.
This grant was brought forward and approved by the Resource Management Committee at their April 1, 2015 meeting.
No additional operating impacts are needed to support this project.
APPROPRIATION CODE AND AMOUNT:
Funds are available in capital improvement project 315-93272, Bicycle Paths-Bridges, to match this grant.
USE OF RESERVE FUNDS: N/A