CITY WATCH: More parking planned for Lehigh Trailhead

Palm Coast Observer
News

For years, Palm Coast’s City Council members have pressed the need for improvements — including much more parking — at the Lehigh Trail Trailhead on Belle Terre Parkway.

Palm Coast to host Virtual Town Hall

The city of Palm Coast will host a Virtual Town Hall session on Friday, Feb. 26, about the city's Business-Friendly Initiative. The session will be held over YouTube at youtube.com/palmcoastgovtv. Chief Development Officer Jason DeLorenzo will be answering resident questions that were submitted by Feb. 22.

City seeks public feedback on recycling, solid waste

Palm Coast will send out a communitywide survey about recycling and solid waste pickup on March 1-30, placing paper surveys in utility bills and offering them in person at City Hall and the Palm Coast Community Center.

An online versions of the survey will be available at palmcoastconnect.com and palmcoastgov.com, and residents who get email utility billing will receive an email link to the survey.

Palm Coast's current Waste Pro contract — which include twice-a-week garbage pickup and once-a-week yard waste pickup and recycling pickup for $20.36 per month — will end on May 31, 2022.

The survey asks residents about their preferences for the next contract.

Palm Coast will be hosting a Virtual Town Hall about solid waste issues in March, featuring Mayor Milissa Holland, Director of Citizen Engagement Cynthia Schweers and a consultant from NewGen Strategies & Solutions.

Residents can submit questions on palmcoastconnect.com starting March 1.

At City Council meetings, Mayor Milissa Holland has recounted stories of hikers and cyclists parking on the opposite side of the street and dashing across the busy road to get to the trailhead.

Now, those improvements — including the additional parking — are slated to happen sometime this year.

The city of Palm Coast has received a $1.58 million grant for the work from the Florida Department of Transportation, with assistance from the River to Sea Transportation Planning Organization, according to a city of Palm Coast news release.

The project has been incorporated into an amended version of FDOT’s 5-year Work Program and the River to Sea TPO’s 5-year Transportation Improvement Plan, and will add more than 60 ADA-compliant parking spaces, a restroom, and a water fountain at the popular trailhead.

Other trailheads are also slated for improvements later this year, according to the news release.

Local spending contributes to such projects when money spent in Palm Coast is returned to the city government in tax dollars, so the city has initiated a “Be Local, Buy Local” campaign to inform residents about how local spending can be used to improve city amenities.

Other funding for such capital projects comes from recreation impact fees paid by developers when new homes are built.

“Our parks, trails and amenities are integral to the high quality of life our residents have come to cherish and expect,” Holland said in the news release. “Adding these enhancements to this amenity will significantly improve the safety, security and user experience for trail users, walkers and cyclists right here in Palm Coast.”