A long-planned effort to transform an abandoned CSX railway line that runs through downtown St. Petersburg into a multiuse trail cleared a major hurdle this week, with the Trust for Public Land announcing Tuesday it acquired the Booker Creek Rail Corridor for $7 million and will transfer the property to the city for future trail construction.
The acquisition advances a project city officials have pursued for more than two decades and will soon result in a nearly one-mile trail connecting the city’s EDGE District to the Pinellas Trail. That corridor will also be a key piece of the planned 420-mile Florida Gulf Coast Trail, which is an ongoing effort by the Trust for Public Land to link regional pathways across seven of Southwest Florida’s coastal counties spanning from the Tampa Bay region to Naples.
The national nonprofit conservation organization says the acquisition is the result of a partnership between the City of St. Petersburg, CSX Transportation, Rails to Trails Conservancy and St. Petersburg business Ferg’s Sports Bar & Grill. The city pitched in $1 million for the purchase while Ferg’s contributed about $6 million and the Trust for Public Land provided philanthropic support, according to a statement…