- Alachua County and Florida Forever opened a new 69-acre preserve called Little Lake Santa Fe Preserve with a 0.81-mile loop trail for public use.
- The preserve is located at 20201 NE 132nd Ave., Waldo and is managed under a 50-year county lease with trail access for walkers, runners, cyclists, and horse riders.
Alachua County and the Florida Forever program cut the ribbon on a new 69-acre preserve at Little Lake Santa Fe on Friday, so Mainstreet sent reporters to check it out on Saturday morning.
Reporters confirmed the preserve was called Little Lake Santa Fe Preserve (see photo) and that the preserve was in fact on Little Lake Santa Fe just southwest of Waldo and northeast of Melrose. Also verified was the given address (20201 NE 132nd Ave., Waldo) and presence of a small parking lot.
Alachua County entered into a 50-year lease to manage the property and public access, including a loop trail that reporters marked as 0.81 miles compared to the advertised full mile.
The trail is open to walkers, runners, horse riders and cyclists, according to a Monday press release. Mainstreet reporters noted that the trail was also in use by common ground doves, with one Carolina Wren heard nearby. The trail is mostly dirt, pine needles and wood chips that runs through pine uplands…