Trail offers safer route to Lake Park

By JESSICA BALANZA | jbalanza@tampatrib.com
Published: June 15, 2009

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NORTHDALE --

After a long wait, the Northdale community has a trail that will connect it to Lake Park.

"It allows us to get to Lake Park and avoids us having to walk through Dale Mabry" Highway, Bill Castens, president of the Northdale Older, Wiser, Lively Seniors, said at a ribbon-cutting June 5 to celebrate the opening of the Northdale Lake Park trail.

Hillsborough County Commission Chairman Ken Hagan said at the ribbon-cutting that he remembered hearing about the trail idea when he was campaigning in 2002. After being elected to the commission in 2003 Hagan was able to secure $1.2 million for the project.

Construction on the two-phase project started in February. The project's first phase, which is the only partly finished, consists of the 1.5-mile path that begins at the Northdale Soccer Field and ends at either Lake Park or Northdale Boulevard. The cost was about $593,000.

Community producer Jessica Balanza can be reached at (727) 451-2342.