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Commission redirects School Avenue Greenway funds to multimodal trail bucket
Summary
After neighborhood opposition and a feasibility update, the City Commission voted unanimously to move available multimodal transportation impact fee money from the School Avenue Greenway to a citywide “multimodal trail network” bucket that will help fund Circus Trail extension and a North Sarasota Legacy Trail feasibility study.
Sarasota City commissioners voted unanimously Oct. 6 to reallocate available multimodal transportation impact fee funding from the School Avenue Greenway to a broader “expansion of the city multimodal trail network” program.
The move came after city transportation staff presented results of a feasibility review for the School Avenue Greenway and outlined other projects eligible for the same funding, including the Circus Trail extension and a potential North Sarasota Legacy Trail connector study. Senior Transportation Planner Corinne Arriaga and Chief Transportation Planner Alvy Marie Corrales Quadrado told the commission the impact fees can only be used for projects that add new capacity for walking, biking, driving or transit and must be identified in the adopted thoroughfare plan or multimodal plans.
Arriaga said the multimodal bucket could be used to fill funding gaps for the Circus Trail and to pay for a feasibility study for the North Sarasota connector. Corrales told commissioners the existing School Avenue concept was feasible but not yet funded for construction; design and drainage issues remain to be studied in subsequent phases.
Nearby residents urged the commission to reconsider the School Avenue route. Rob Grant of Arlington Park said a neighborhood survey posted near the project area received 33 responses and that “75% said no” to building the off-street path through the stormwater ditch because of concerns about flooding, tree loss and the trail funneling users onto narrow neighborhood streets. Flo Antler, president of the Arlington Park Neighborhood Association, told the commission the project “is in a flood zone” and that an alternative would cost nearly $6 million. Resident Alex Gurley said the alignment would not provide convenient neighborhood access to destinations and had privacy and safety concerns for homes adjacent to the proposed path.
Commissioners debated options and ultimately moved the funds into the multimodal trail network bucket, saying it would best leverage the city’s remaining transportation impact fees to complete projects that connect to regional assets such as the Legacy Trail and to position the city for matching state and federal grants. Vice Mayor Trice said the reallocation respects neighborhood concerns while supporting trail connectivity; the motion passed unanimously.
What happens next: staff will use the bucket to address funding gaps for Circus Trail, advance a feasibility study for the North Sarasota connector in partnership with outside partners, and then use leftover money to advance other adopted multimodal connections as funding allows. The commission did not cancel the School Avenue effort; staff said the project could be revisited pending future funding and further design and drainage study.
