About the Emerald Trail Master Plan
Within the overall Master Plan, the trail system is dissected into two implementation tiers. Tier 1 reflects Klutho’s orig-inal vision for the Emerald Necklace, with linkages to the existing S-Line Rail Trail. Tier 2 expands the trail to provide additional connections to several historic neighborhoods and Edwards Waters College. The goal is to have a trail seg-ment within acquisition, design, permitting, and construction at all times until completion, which is anticipated to be 2028.
Tier 1 includes 6.8 miles of new trail at a cost of approximately $13.59 million:
• Segment 1 - Model Project: South end of S-Line on State Street to the intersection of Park Street and Stonewall Street
• Segment 2 - Hogan Street Connector: Hogans Creek at 1st Street to the Northbank Riverwalk at the Landing
• Segment 3 - Southwest Neighborhood Connector: Artist Walk under I-95 to the south end of the McCoys Creek Greenway on Edison Avenue
• Segment 4 - S-Line Connector: Boulevard Street to East 21st Street
• Segment 5 - Hogans Creek Greenway: S-line near 12th Street to Hogans Creek Greenway at North Laura Street
Tier 2 is includes 14.1 miles of new trail at a projected cost of $17.44 million:
• Segment 6 - Westside Connector: McCoys Creek Boulevard at Leland Street to Florida C. Dwight Memorial Playground
• Segment 7 - Northwest Connector: McQuade Street north of the active S-Line to Moncrief Road
• Segment 8 - Eastside Connector: North Liberty Street just south of East 13th Street to Hogans Creek Greenway south of the Arlington Expressway
• Segment 9 - Hogans Creek to Riverwalk: Hogans Creek Greenway at Laura Street to Northbank Riverwalk at Newnan Street
Programmed trail segments are the proposed trail connections that have existing funding allocated for implementation. McCoys Creek greenway, Artist Walk to Fuller Warren Bridge and the San Marco Connector are programmed segments that the Emerald Trail will connect to as part of the Master Plan.
An early concept for a shared use path as a part of the Fuller Warren Bridge project. This shared use path is currently under construction.
How the Plan Was Developed
Over a six-month period the PATH/KAIZEN team reviewed numerous research and planning documents developed over the years by the City and other organizations, performed extensive field research to determine potential routes that will connect active destinations and vetted their findings with Groundwork Jacksonville and key constituents.
Each month the design team met with a Steering Committee convened by Groundwork Jacksonville. In addition, Groundwork met monthly with a Neighborhood Working Group comprised of community members who live and/or own businesses along the proposed trail.
To help prioritize trail segments for implementation the Steering Committee first considered extending existing trail segments, like the S-Line, to provide greater trail use and connectivity. The group also took into consideration input from the Neighborhood Working Group and others in the community to determine the most desired trail connections. Ensuring the trail segments connect places where people are to places they want to go was a primary consideration, along with determining the complexity and potential cost of property acquisition. The iterative planning process incorporated feedback from the Neighborhood Working Group and other constituents at each stage of development. The draft plan was presented to a standing-room-only group of more than 300 community members in July 2018, who provided additional feedback and input.
The $88,200 plan cost was privately underwritten by a $50,000 donation from JTC Running (JTC) as well as through grants from Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) and the Giving Forward Community Endowment Fund at The Community Foundation for Northeast Florida.
The Emerald Trail logo, designed by local graphic artist Lindsay Powell