Gulf Coast Trail: Dream Trail Closer to Reality

It's exciting to see momentum building for the Southwest Coast Connector trail that's part of plans for a Florida statewide connected trail system.  
The News-Press feature article has several components, including a piece on the economic benefits of trails and a video that highlights the vision.  Thanks to Laura Ruane of News-Press for the great coverage. See links to previous BWL blogs on topic at end of this post. [Note: Photos in blog are not the ones in the News-Press article.]

News-Press, Sunday 2/12/17:  Southwest Florida dream: 300-mile, paved bike-ped trail closer to reality
By LAURA RUANE , LRUANE@NEWS-PRESS.COM

Front page of Sunday 2/12/17 News-Press

Picture a 300-mile ribbon of pavement for walking, running, bicycling or skating that stretches from Clearwater through Naples.

It runs past scenic waterfronts, bucolic landscapes and lively downtowns.

That’s the dream for The Gulf Coast Trail, known by some as the Southwest Coast Connector.

Its proponents say the trail will be a boon for bicycle-pedestrian tourism, and in some spots also serve commuting workers and schoolchildren.

It’s a big dream Isobel Hitchcock hopes will come true.

“There was no need for me to have a driver’s license until I moved to Florida,” said Hitchcock, a transplant from Denver who owns and operates the Ancient Art Tattoo Studio in North Fort Myers.

That was nearly 25 years ago. Today, Hitchcock doesn’t think she would commute to work on the trail, but envisions long weekends or even a weeklong vacation “riding 30 or so miles a day” on her bicycle, seeing some of the region’s best beaches, wooded areas and downtowns.

Not for recreation only

Support for paved trails is growing nationwide because they’re catalysts for safer walking and bicycling, increased tourism, higher property values, business development, health and wellness and overall community well-being.

But there’s much work to be done. The Gulf Coast Trail is a network of existing paved segments with numerous gaps to fill, and routing decisions yet to be made.

The good news is that Southwest Florida counties are uniting behind the concept – and substantial new state funding has started to roll in for bike-ped trail development across the Sunshine State.

Why the push for major, named regional trail networks?

With some noteworthy exceptions – New York City’s famous 1.8-mile High Line among them – long trail networks get more bang for their buck than individual, short trails.

Florida Greenways and Trails Foundation says when a trail is 150 miles or longer, that trail becomes a national and international destination, pumping up the overnight stays and economic benefits.

The SUN Trail breakthrough

Historically, bike-ped trail-building in the Sunshine State has been sporadic, with city and county governments scraping up what they could, competing with each other for state and federal grants.

Statewide, bike-ped trails’ big breakthrough came in 2015. That’s when the Florida Legislature passed a bill establishing the SUN (Shared-Use Non-motorized) Trail program, which makes $25 million available yearly for the development of paved, multi-use trail networks for bicyclists and pedestrians.

The money comes from a portion of the fees drivers pay for new motor vehicle license tags.

The Florida Greenways and Trails Council recommends priorities for links in the system.

The Coast to Coast Trail – nearly 230 miles long and connecting St. Petersburg with Titusville – got first dibs.

The council next recommended the St. Johns River-to-Sea Loop, a 260-mile route that will link the St. Johns River, St. Augustine and Titusville.

The remaining third of SUN Trail funds is designated for helping to fill gaps in other major trails.

Gulf Coast Trail proponents hope to qualify for dollars in that third spot, and ultimately move up in priority as the Coast-to-Coast Trail is substantially completed.

But they aren’t waiting for that to occur.

Transportation planners from the seven Florida counties of Hillsborough, Pinellas, Manatee, Sarasota, Charlotte, Lee and Collier have joined the Gulf Coast Trail Alliance, a collective effort aimed at raising public and private dollars to fill the gaps.

These planners and other bike-ped facility experts and enthusiasts met in Venice on Jan. 23 for a trail summit organized by the Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority.

Staffers from County Metropolitan Planning Organizations reviewed the status of local trails included in the route map, gaps and possible detours.

What's happening in Collier, Lee?

In Collier County, the MPO will continue to collaborate with other agencies on completing the trail, said Eric Ortman, senior planner.

"There are financial challenges. Extending the Richard King Greenway may be a next logical step in the process," Ortman said.

The Richard King Greenway connects Radio Road and Rattlesnake Hammock Road, and is used by some work commuters as well as recreational walkers and bicyclists.

Lee County's MPO is seeking the Florida Greenways and Trails Council's endorsement for a coastal loop detour from the mostly inland trail route which would lead to Fort Myers Beach and Bonita Springs.

Lee MPO's Proposed Coastal Loop Detour Trail

That would make the trip more scenic and compatible with the Gulf Coast Trail theme, said Don Scott, Lee County MPO executive director.

The detour would pass by Lovers Key State Park, with one version also skirting Estero Bay State Preserve State Park and its lakes.

Portions of the detour, though, would have limited separation from busy beachfront Estero Boulevard, which is undergoing a county-funded bike, pedestrian and transit enhancement.

The Estero Boulevard improvement project already underway will build or include existing sidewalks anywhere from 8 feet to 9 1/2 feet wide in those sections of the boulevard where constrained rights-of-way won't allow bike lanes or would permit only sharrows. The latter are those shared road markings, often with a picture of a bike, reminding motorists that cyclists have a right to use regular road lanes.

That's OK with food safety manager Linda Anders, recreational cyclist who prefers trails to roads – even those with bike lanes.

Anders likes the idea of the Gulf Coast Trail  despite the likelihood some stretches will be on or near busy roads.

“Because it will be a designated trail, people will use it more often," Anders said. "And drivers will understand there will be bicyclists on it.”

It all comes with a cost. Lee County MPO estimates that total needs, including the coastal loop alternative, will cost nearly $36.5 million.

Grant paves way for new Cape Coral bike-ped trail

Considering the cost and complexity of acquiring rights of way, designing and building bike-ped trails, will gaps remain in Lee County's share of the Gulf Coast Trail 20 years from now?

“There might be,” the MPO’s Scott said. However, he thinks progress in some areas can be made in five years or less. That might be establishing a new link from the northern end of the John Yarbrough Linear Park Trail to Hanson Street.

Still to be answered are questions such as how the Gulf Coast Trail would flow through downtown Fort Myers and cross the Caloosahatchee River into North Fort Myers.

Lee Health backs bike-ped trail promotion

These kinds of challenges were summarized at  the Venice bike-ped trail summit in January. It drew a crowd of close to 200 people – easily three times the number organizers initially expected.

The Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority organized the event, with Lee County-based Lee Health public hospital system paying for deli box lunches for the crowd.

Lee Health also has pledged $2,500 seed money for a video that would acquaint people with the Gulf Coast Trail's benefits and what it might look like.

The hospital system will host a meeting of Florida Greenways and Trails Foundation at Cape Coral Hospital in May.

Lee Health supports the Gulf Coast Trail because “being able to safely move about, outside of our automobiles would be a huge benefit to our health, to our lifestyle and to our economy,” said Christin Collins, who helps the hospital system plan wellness programs for its staff and the community at large.

Cape Coral, Fort Myers area most dangerous in U.S. for pedestrians

In January, the National Complete Street’s Coalition released its “Dangerous by Design” report naming Lee County as the most dangerous place in the nation for pedestrians.

Collins called the report “a gift.” Asked to elaborate, she said:

“If we don’t know about the problem, we won’t take time to educate ourselves and work for change.”

Connect with this reporter @Alvascribe (Twitter) and LauraPatrickRuane (Facebook).

Trails attract tourists, dollars

Generally, the longer a bike-ped trail, the likelier it has significant economic impact.

One happy exception to this is New York City’s High Line, a 1.8-mile linear park and bike-ped trail built on a defunct elevated freight line.

High Line’s ground-breaking was in 2006. It opened to the public in 2009.

By 2014, here's how parks consultancy GreenPlay LLC summed-up the financial rewards:

*Four million visitors yearly;

*$900 million more in city tax revenues annually;

*$2 billion in new economic activity; and

*Soaring property values:. One block from High Line, values doubled, with the rest of downtown Manhattan increasing by 75 percent.

In Florida, one of the biggest bike-ped trail successes hinged on a single county's initiative: “Penny for Pinellas” is an additional 1 percent sales tax voters in that county approved more than 20 years ago.

Pinellas Trail

It was a major funder for the 47-mile Fred Marquis Pinellas Trail that was built along a former railroad corridor, and which gets more than one million visitors yearly.

The Legacy Trail in Sarasota County is an up-and-comer that would be part of the Gulf Coast Trail network. It’s a $40 million investment to date that’s been paid for primarily through a variety of local taxes.

 The trail stretches from the city’s historic train depot near its downtown, runs north more than 10 miles, and passes Oscar Scherer State Park, before ending at Culverhouse Nature Park.

However, a 7.5-mile extension to Payne Park in the heart of downtown Sarasota is a long-term goal that's getting tantalizingly closer.

In a recent newsletter, Friends of Legacy Trail said it’s learned the owner of the rail corridor intends to sell it to a public land trust that would then transfer the title to Sarasota County.

About 175,000 people use  the trail yearly, according to a recent study by Friends of Legacy Trail.

“That’s pretty amazing given that the trail does not yet link the two major population centers in the county: the cities of North Port and Sarasota,” said Roger Normand, who speaks for the friends group.

Things are improving for cyclists and pedestrians in Florida, but danger abounds. The Cape Coral-Fort Myers metropolitan area was recently named the deadliest in the nation for pedestrians. However, that study didn’t include improvements over the past two years. For example, a local initiative called the Bike-Ped Master Plan for Cape Coral should help make conditions safer for pedestrians and other non-motorists. A new grant is paving the way for 7 miles of improvements primarily along Kismet Parkway in the Cape.

Go to news-press.com for more.
See News-Press video 
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Links to Previous BWL Blogs on topic:

BWL Blog 10/12/16: Cape Receives $1.8 Million SUN Trail Grant to Design Multi-Use Trail in North Cape

BWL Blog 3/7/16:  BikeWalkLee supports Southwest Coastal Regional Trail 

Regional cooperation links us to our neighbors and the rest of the state

Florida Weekly 'Outdoors' column, 12/21/2016 
danMOSER
bikepedmoser@gmail.com

Roadways linking neighboring communities have always been the norm and that link is obviously one of their primary functions. In some cases, nonmotorized facilities — such as sidewalks, shared-use paths and bike lanes — accompany them or have been added.

Until recently, however, trails unassociated with or well separated from roadways or trails that would be more than a bare-bones facility, rarely crossed county lines. But thanks to a number of efforts taking place — including those being undertaken by state and local governments — those wanting to use human power are getting better connected to our neighbors.

The respective Metropolitan Planning Organizations of each county inSouthwest Florida have been working together to create a regional network of non-motorized transportation and recreation facilities and roadway treatments. Seizing on planning and funding opportunities from the Florida Department of Transportation and the Office of Greenways and Trails, the MPOs are coordinating efforts to ensure the area receives the resources necessary to make this possible.

Vision of Florida interconnected trail system

A while back I wrote about FDOT’s SUNTrail (shared use non-motorized trail network), which includes the Southwest Coastal Regional Trail segment. A local champion, Christin Collins, was recruited to represent the region at the state level. Armed with our regional bike/ped plans that Lee County MPO and our neighbors to the north and south had agreed upon, Ms. Collins attended a statewide gathering and made the case for the southwest coast segment to be the next area of focus — or at least get funding for projects. While the area didn’t make the cut as the state’s primary focus area, it did eventually come away with significant dollars to start building the Kismet pathway in north Cape Coral.

Lee County segment of SW Coastal Regional Trail

Lee MPO’s Bicycle/Pedestrian Coordinating Committee has been meeting with Collier County MPO’s Pathway Advisory Committee annually for many years, allowing the area to refine plans to connect the two counties. Recently, BPCC and Charlotte County/Punta Gorda MPO’s Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee met for the first time to compare notes on how to best connect with each other.

Besides discussion of the Kismet project - which is an important part of the western link to Charlotte County along Burnt Store Road - the eastern link along the SR 31 corridor, which includes Babcock Ranch, was a major topic. An excellent presentation was made as to how the fledgling Babcock town will be integrated into the trail network.

And as is the case for Collier County, U.S. 41 is the central county connection between North Fort Myers and south Punta Gorda. It may not be the preferred route for most folks but there is or eventually will be bike lanes and sidepaths along the entire corridor, one that will undoubtedly be a key trail link for most of Florida’s west coast and beyond. An example is the possibility of Florida River of Grass Greenway, a trail that would run adjacent to the U.S. 41 corridor and link Collier County to Florida’s east coast.

It’s going to take many years for much of the network to be complete but there is progress. Much more information about the regional plans can be found at www.bikewalklee.blogspot.com.


Join the Million Mile Movement
 
What might be considered the perfect motivator for a New Year’s resolution, Healthy Lee’s Million Mile Movement challenge will be happening from Jan. 9 through March 31. Those who register (it’s free) can log their daily exercise at healthylee.com, where every “step” counts.

Tracking walking miles and other healthy activities like running, swimming, bicycling and even housework and yard work, will add to the total as they are converted to walking miles. The goal is to collectively log 1 million miles by March 31. So plan to take a walk or run, climb stairs (an excellent training regime for April’s Fight for Air Stair Climb event; ClimbFortMyers.org) or exercise any way you want and log your progress. It just may be the thing we all need to keep our own New Year’s resolutions.¦

- Dan Moser is a long-time bicycle/pedestrian advocate and traffic safety professional who cycles, runs and walks regularly for transportation, recreation and fitness. Contact him at bikepedmoser@gmail.com and 334-6417.

Healthy Lee challenging residents to get fit

Florida Weekly 'Outdoors' column, 8/10/2016
 
danMOSER
bikepedmoser@gmail.com

Ten years into an ambitious and collaborative effort to make Lee County an all-around healthier place to live, the community coalition known as Healthy Lee is going strong.

The initiative is led by Lee Memorial Health System and the Florida Department of Health in Lee County and includes almost 300 active individuals and organizations all striving to improve the health and wellbeing of residents and visitors. The approach is multidimensional both in its areas of focus and the way it attempts to reach the general public, government agencies, for-profit businesses and nonprofit organizations.

Using sophisticated health data that gauges many health indicators for individuals, ethnic groups, socio-economic categories, and geographic sub-communities, Healthy Lee’s leadership is able to get a good picture of how Lee County is doing and what needs to be the focus of attention. Although a moving target, one that’s always at the top is health problems related to obesity. Most research confirms that inactivity and poor nutritional habits - sometimes due to lack of access to good foods due to scarcity (i.e., food desserts) and/or economics - are two of the primary causes of the condition.

To address the ongoing obesity problem Healthy Lee’s current awareness campaign is the 5210 Pledge. Its aim is to get folks to eat at least five fruits and vegetables a day, limit screen time (TV, video games, computer, etc.) to two hours a day, engage in at least one hour of physical activity daily, and refrain completely from consuming any sugar-sweetened beverages (including those that are artificially sweetened). This campaign began as a child-focused school district / health department initiative but was expanded to all ages for the summer.

Following 5210 Healthy Lee’s next big promotion will be round-two of the Million Mile Movement, a public campaign that was first undertaken last year in the fall but will be moved to a new year’s resolution time period this time. The logic being, of course, to seize upon the post-holiday season collective attempt to undo the damage done during the prior three months. Starting with Halloween, when candy is everywhere and the “(over)eating season” begins, many of us take part in one holiday occasion after another with food and drink as the main attraction. During the 2015 campaign more than 2,600 individuals - some as team members - tracked their walking miles as well as converted their running, cycling, swimming, stair-climbing, other workouts such as weight lifting, aerobics, Zumba and Pilates, and even activities such as gardening and yard work into miles. Recording one’s activities, whether competing with others or just one’s self, is a very effective and simple motivator. It’s as easy as wearing a pedometer or keeping time. And like any of Healthy Lee’s campaigns, there’s no charge to participate in Million Mile Movement. Simply visit the website (healthylee.org) for more information and to sign up once the new challenge opens registration.

Healthy Lee’s activity and event calendar is another excellent resource to tap into. While it’s still being underutilized by those organizing active events, the plan is to make it the go-to calendar for everything from health expos to bike rides, walk-a-thons, triathlons and running events. And one need not be an active Health Lee participant to post an event, as long as it’s appropriate and not merely a self-promotion for a for-profit venture. But don’t overlook bikewalklee.blogspot.com, meetup.com/Biking-SWFL, caloosariders.org, mudcutters.org, ftmyerstrackclub.com, 3dracinginc.com and endurancesportstiming.com when seeking things to do to improve your health and well-being.

One final word is in order. Along with its counterpart, the Lee County Injury Prevention Coalition, which has been active for more than 20 years, Healthy Lee is working to impart very basic and common knowledge that’s ignored (shunned?) by too many of us. This, as you can imagine, is both frustrating for those working to improve the community’s health and safety and is counterproductive for the public at large. The basic premise of both coalitions is that we should embrace an active lifestyle while doing so with due care and not take unnecessary risks.

Until next time, I’ll look for you on the roads and pathways…. ¦

- Dan Moser is a long-time bicycle/ pedestrian advocate and traffic safety professional who cycles, runs and walks regularly for transportation, recreation and fitness. Contact him at bikepedmoser@gmail.com and 334- 6417.

News-Press editorial: Get into the 'health zone'

Thanks to News-Press for its editorial in support of local efforts, led by Healthy Lee and the Blue Zones Project, to promote healthy lifestyles, with an emphasis on the role of the built environment and the importance of complete streets in this effort. The editorial also applauds BikeWalkLee's efforts in support of complete streets.
News-Press editorial Nov. 28, 2015  
 Below are excerpts:

The statistics are alarming and demand our attention: 1  out of every 4 children in the U.S. are too fat to serve in the military. The number of obese and overweight people in this country is pushing 70 percent.

Is there hope these statistics can change and change soon? Yes. We have been encouraged by the efforts of the Healthy Lee initiative, the Million Mile Movement crusade, the efforts of the Lee Memorial Health System to invest so much into health and wellness programs and now the healthy living program rolling out in Collier County called the Blue Zones Project. The city of Naples is investing in the project that has been embraced by 26 U.S. cities. We also are pleased to see that Bonita Springs, Estero, FGCU and Florida SouthWestern State College officials have expressed interest in the project as well.

Investing in healthier lifestyles – finding time to exercise and improving eating habits – should be at the top of everyone’s priority list. This should be a lifetime commitment, starting with parents encouraging their children to exercise and promoting a healthy eating lifestyle. It should continue into the school systems, where healthy breakfasts and lunches are provided and vending machines are loaded with nutrition. It should be encouraged in the work place and made a priority for seniors, either those living on their own or in senior living facilities....

......Healthy Lee and the dedication of those involved with the initiative has been a positive response. Fittingly, the program was recognized in July by America’s Essential Hospitals, winning the 2015 Gage Award for Population Health, which nationally honors activities that improve health outcomes. The latest Healthy Lee cause to promote positive lifestyle changes is the Million Mile Movement, which has encouraged the community to log one million miles by Dec. 29. There are over 1,200 participants in the challenge, but there is plenty of work to be done to reach the goal. As of this week, only 211,000 miles have been logged in the first 60 days, with only a month to go to the deadline. We applaud the efforts of Michael McCullough (1,880 miles), Bob Green (1,759), and Matt Moomaw (1,296), who are the challenge pacesetters.

We also applaud the efforts of BikeWalkLee and the dedication of its members to encourage communities to follow the Smart Streets concept and build streets that not only accommodate vehicles but also paths for cyclists and pedestrians. This not only promotes safe streets but also exercise.

The Blue Zones initiative and the work of Naples Community Health to lead the program also deserves our praise. “We want to get out of the repair business and into the prevention and maintenance business,” Naples Community Health CEO and President Allen Weiss said.

He is right. Encouraging healthy lifestyles now, through programs like Blue Zones and Healthy Lee, can lower the risks of developing diabetes and other diseases. We also applaud the efforts of those on the project’s steering committee and others who have reached out to the low income communities in Immokalee and other areas, as well as faith-based organizations, to encourage their participation as well.

Click here to read the full editorial.

Cape Coral Hospital officially opens 'Pathway to Discovery'

Kudos to LMHS and its Cape Coral Hospital and all its community partners for creating this 1.75 mile pathway on the campus of the CC Hospital that includes stations for healthy living and recreation. It was inspiring for BWL to be part of this morning's ribbon-cutting event. This is a great asset not only for the hospital but for the Cape Coral community. A special thanks to Scott Kashman, CAO of CC Hospital, who had the vision for this project and brought together many community partners to make it a reality. 
Cape Coral.com, November 6, 2015, Submitted by Jeff Koehn 

Photo courtesy of Lee Memorial Health System

When a dream becomes a reality, it is nothing short of a special moment.

Such a special moment took place this past Wednesday morning at Cape Coral Hospital when the official ribbon cutting took place for the hospital’s “Pathway to Discovery”.

Health system leaders, city leaders, and others gathered along the path to usher in, what Lee Memorial Health System is calling an example of the significant shift its hospitals and other health care facilities are making in the way it cares for not only its patients but the community as a whole.

The shift is part of an initiative called creating an optimal healing environment.

Pathway to Discovery (Photo by Letourneau)

Optimal Healing Environment is a concept created by the Samueli Institute with the focus of shifting healthcare solely from disease treatment approach to a healthy creation approach.

It was just a few years ago that Cape Coral Hospital Chief Administrative Officer Scott Kashman and the hospital directors decided to use the Optimal Healing Environment initiative as the framework to create a different atmosphere at the hospital, “We wanted to create an environment for people to flourish. Not just think of our campus as a hospital, but a place where you can prevent becoming sick,” explains Kashman.

Scott Kashman (Letourneau photo)

Kashman says part of that process was utilizing the hospital’s entire 43-acre campus. To fully utilize the hospital’s expansive property, the idea of the “Pathway to Discovery” was created to completely interconnect the campus through sidewalks and walkways. The Pathway would feature such things as gardens, exercise stations, benches, bodies of water, and more to create a healthier atmosphere both physically and mentally, “At that time, when you looked at the campus, it just looked like a big parking lot. We wanted to change that.”

It was a novel idea, but one Kashman and others at the hospital thought would take years to bring to fruition. However, once the hospital began presenting their image to the community, it began to take a life of its own, “When we started it sounded like a great vision, but a grand vision. When we reached out to the community, the response was overwhelming. It quickly became a true community project.”

Kashman says much of the credit in getting the community involved falls belongs to Lee Memorial Health System Health & Wellness Strategic Business Partner Christin Collins.

Collins worked tirelessly presenting the vision to local business and community leaders, and soon those presentations paid off. To date the community has provided over $200,000 in donations toward building the pathway, “What has been amazing is to see how many people, as the project progressed, really wanting to be part of this and become involved. The community involvement was sincerely the key piece that made this a reality,” says Kashman.

With funding available, the hospital set forth building their vision. First, there was a Healing Garden, located near the entrance of the Women and Children’s Center entrance. Then came the Teaching Garden next to the Wellness Center that provided an opportunity for the neighboring Caloosa Elementary and Middle School children to plant and grow food that could eat and share with their families. At the same time, the pathway itself was being constructed as well as the addition of exercise stations and other features like canopy trees to create a more aesthetically pleasing environment when one walks the pathway.

Photo by Letourneau

By the time the first phase of the pathway was complete it had included nearly a half mile walkway as well as connecting with the 1.3-mile sidewalk loop that travels along the perimeter of the hospital’s campus.

For those who attended the ribbon cutting Wednesday morning, what they saw was nothing short of astonishing, “This (Pathway to Discovery) is a wonderful way to integrate a healthy lifestyle into our community. What has been done here is amazing. We have the unique opportunity to be considered a trendsetter in establishing an optimal healing environment. This is just another example of people all around the country looking at Cape Coral as an example of making a positive impact,” said Cape Coral Mayor Marni Sawicki.

Photo by Letourneau

"The pathway is built upon people caring about people, sharing a vision, helping build that vision. It is more than a pathway. It is the beginning of another step in our journey as a community. As a region. As a state and as a nation that we can make a difference in our lives by helping and support each other. Having a vision for not just repair center medicine, but living healthier lifestyles and having an optimal healing environment,” Lee Memorial Health System Chief Executive Officer Jim Nathan told those in attendance at the ribbon cutting

The work done through the pathway in creating an Optimal Healing Environment was such an accomplishment, that Dr. Wayne Jonas, President and CEO of the Samueli Institute, the organization that created the initiative was in attendance at Wednesday’s ribbon cutting and had rave reviews for what he saw, “This is one of the most remarkable examples of a community effort and community gathering that I have seen in any of the places I have been who are trying to achieve optimal healing environments,” Jonas told those in attendance. “Normally they go inside the hospital. This is much, much bigger than that and it is tremendous.”

With such an overwhelming response, Kashman says that plans are already in place to continue to expand the pathway in the near and distant future, including partnering with the City’s Parks & Recreation Department to add more enhancements, “We are going to add other pathway areas around the campus. The ultimate goal is that everywhere you walk around the campus it will somehow connect. Now the first phase is done, and it gives people a better look at what we are trying to accomplish. This gives us a canvas to show others as we move forward with the next phases.”

Pathway to Discovery Team (photo by Letourneau)

While the hospital continues to plan for the future regarding its grand scheme for an Optimal Healing Environment, Wednesday provided Kashman at least a moment to reflect on where the project has come since its humble beginnings of being just an idea, “This has exceeded the expectation. What you see here is something we always felt could happen. What has been amazing is to see how many people as the project progressed really wanted to be part of this and become involved. The community involvement was sincerely the key piece that made this a reality.”

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Dan Moser Column: Join the Million Mile Movement

Dan's column today highlights Healthy Lee's Million Mile Movement.  Be sure to sign up to participate starting Oct. 1st.  See BWL's blog post for more details.

 Florida Weekly, Outdoors section, Sept. 23, 2015

Loud and clear alarms have been sounding for quite some time now, but the call for all Americans to get fit is more urgent than ever. The damage we’re doing to ourselves continues to proliferate. Just as we’re irreversibly hurting our planet through our own actions, we’re doing the same to ourselves by being overweight and sedentary. And, similar to the price we’re paying for overusing carbon-based energy and polluting our air and water, costs associated with the medical conditions that result from obesity and inactivity are hitting us directly in our individual and collective pocketbooks.

One of the early alarm sounders was and continues to be Jim Nathan, CEO/President of Lee Memorial Health System. He’s been preaching the prevention message for all of the many decades he’s been in the health-care business and he’s as much about making that a key mission of LMHS as ever. Mr. Nathan continues to hammer home to anyone who will listen the message that preventing disease and injury will do the most good for individuals, society and LMHS. Everyone benefits when a health-care facility is more about being a wellness center than a fix-it shop.

Just as a power company that sells electricity encourages its customers to conserve energy so that capacity building is unnecessary, Mr. Nathan makes clear that having to provide less repair but more care and maintenance is by far a better way to operate any health care system for the same reason. More importantly, he knows what that means for individuals’ quality of life.

Mr. Nathan’s message to the LMHS board of directors at its recent meeting focused only on that topic: LMHS should do whatever it must to help its customers (i.e., all residents and visitors to our area) become and/or stay healthy so they don’t need as many non-prevention services. To that end, he announced Healthy Lee’s “Million Mile Movement,” a challenge to the whole community to collectively log 1 million miles of walking, running, bicycling, swimming, stair climbing and skating between Oct. 1 to the end of the year. In his presentation he informed the board that as a way for LMHS to provide leadership in the challenge, he committed the board members to log 10 percent of those miles. I’m guessing he made that pronouncement only to be sure they were listening, but even though the board members alone obviously can’t rack up 100,000 miles, if everyone who works and volunteers for LMHS participates they just might be able to reach that number. Whether you’re affiliated with LMHS or not, we can all do our part by getting (more) active and logging our miles by registering at healthylee.com/million-milemovement.

Safe routes to school

Back in a May, 2015 column I wrote that Lisa Indovino, the Safe Routes to School Community Educator who works within Lee County schools, was the very worthy winner of Florida Bicycle Association’s Educator of the Year. We have been fortunate to have her expertise and energy here for the past few years but, alas, Ms. Indovino has decided to take on that role in Manatee County so she’ll be closer to her home. During her tenure here she reached more students than any other individual or program ever did and she did so by utilizing a variety of creative and fun-filled approaches. Her shoes are surely going to be hard to fill, so if you know of someone who can work well with kids, teachers and school administrators— and especially who’s passionate about bike/ped safety — encourage them to apply for the two open positions. One is full-time and the other part-time, but I’m told both positions must be applied for. The plan is for Ms. Indovino to stay long enough to help in the transitioning of her replacement(s). The job descriptions and applications can be found at allkids.org/careers/jobs/details-page?requisitionidno=7025 (Full time Community Educator Position) and allkids.org/careers/jobs/details-page?requisitionidno=6983 (Part Time Community Educator Position).

As usual, you’ll find much more about the Million Mile Movement, Safe Routes to School, and other community matters at BikeWalkLee’s blog: bikewalklee.blogspot.com.

Until next time, I’ll look for you on the roads and pathways.

— Dan Moser is a long-time bicycle/pedestrian advocate and traffic safety professional who cycles, run and walks regularly for transportation, recreation and fitness. Contact him at bikepedmoser@gmail.com and 334- 6417.

Join Healthy Lee's Million Mile Movement!

Wondering what you can do to respond to the Surgeon General's recent Call to Action to make walking a national priority?  We challenge the BikeWalkLee network to take a step toward healthier living by joining Healthy Lee's Million Mile Movement!  They've challenged Lee County to get more active by moving 1 million miles in 90 days.

Join the Movement and register now: http://healthylee.com/million-mile-movement/.

See Florida Weekly 9/30 story about the kick-off event.

It is easy and free and will help engage our community in conscious efforts to increase physical activity in any way.  The website has the tools to register and log your miles daily or whenever you get the chance.  It has easy to use conversion tools to assist in estimating miles tied to various activities from gardening to swimming or your gym workout.  

So have some fun with this...set up a team for your bicycle club, your business, your family, your neighborhood association, your service club, etc. and log your miles as a team; or you can participate as an individual. The 90-day clock starts on Oct. 1st so sign up now, spread the word, form a team, learn how the game is played, and be ready to challenge yourself with a personal goal.

TIGER grant opens avenues of fun, fitness

Thanks to LMHS's Sally Jackson for highlighting the importance of the MPO's TIGER grant Complete Streets Initiative for promoting healthy lifestyles, the goal of the Healthy Lee coalition. Both Healthy Lee and LMHS are BikeWalkLee supporter organizations.

News-Press Sept. 8, 2015

By Sally Jackson, Healthy Lee and LMHS

 http://www.news-press.com/story/life/wellness/2015/09/03/tiger-grant-healthy-lee-county-university-loop-fgcu-bonita/71650388/

 (Photo: Andrew West/The News-Press, Andrew West/News-Press)

Since 2007, Lee Memorial Health System has supported a diverse group of community leaders in the Healthy Lee initiative which conducts research and makes recommendations to improve our community’s health status and our health care delivery system. Healthy Lee strives to actively engage the community in healthy lifestyle activities and education, working to improve the quality of life for everyone who works, plays or visits Lee County.

As part of the Healthy Lee work, the Lee County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), in collaboration with local governments, applied for and was awarded a $10.5 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery, or TIGER Discretionary Grant.  TIGER provides a unique opportunity for the Department of Transportation (USDOT) to invest in road, rail, transit and port projects and Congress has dedicated more than $4.1 billion to the program.

Lee County was one of 52 transportation projects in 37 states to receive funding from the USDOT in 2013, and has designated the grant to improving safety and connectivity on Lee County's bicycle and pedestrian paths. This grant allows Lee County to fill gaps in our regional network and link three high priority loops with committed local funding: 

• Lee County Tour de Parks Route ($5.2 million) is filling in gaps on a 35-mile segment, designed to connect several Lee County parks, anchored by Lakes Regional Park in south Fort Myers, and is focused on significantly boosting eco-tourism in this area. This segment will also connect two spring training stadiums (JetBlue Park and the Hammond Stadium) to the multi-use path system, encouraging alternative and active transportation to games and entertainment.

• University Loop ($2.2 million) is filling in gaps on a 15-mile segment constructing bicycle, pedestrian and transit facilities linking the FGCU campus to the rest of Lee County to encourage safe bicycle, pedestrian and transit travel.

• Bi-County Connector ($3.1 million) is filling in gaps on a 22.8-mile segment that links Lee County, the City of Bonita Springs, and Collier County. The project will add sidewalks, bike facilities and new bus shelters to further support the phenomenally successful year-old LinC Lee/Collier transit route.

These three projects are part of Lee County’s Complete Streets Initiative, and will provide a safe, connected corridor for biking, walking, and transit facilities that stretches from downtown Fort Myers, through Florida Gulf Coast University, and also links to Collier County by transit.

Our community was hard hit by the economic downturn, and access to biking, walking and transit has been essential for families with little or no income.  Not only will these projects create jobs for locals, they open accessibility for families who have no other options for transportation.

Our local economy relies on tourism.  People come from all over the world to enjoy all that Southwest Florida has to offer and these improvements will help promote tourism and small business.
Providing safe paths will increase outdoor activity among the people who live, work and play in Lee County.  It’s a solution that also aligns with the number one priority of Healthy Lee: promoting healthy lifestyles and pursuing ways to create a culture of wellness.  Walking and biking are activities that nearly everyone can participate in at little or no cost.  We hope you’ll take advantage of every opportunity to step out and enjoy all Lee County has to offer.  Remember to use www.HealthyLee.com for more information.

Sally Jackson, System Director of Government and Community Relations for Lee Memorial Health System.  

Streets Alive! recognized Fort Myers City Council and Healthy Lee

Kudos to the Fort Myers City Council and Healthy Lee Coalition for awards in recognition of support of the inaugural open streets event--Streets Alive! 

 

Four members of the Streets Alive! team attended the Fort Myers City Council meeting on Monday Jan 6^th to present the Council with an award of recognition for outstanding support for last November’s inaugural open streets – Streets Alive! – a community event also supported by  BikeWalkLee.  

This family-friendly event featuring healthy foods and a range of healthy activities opened several miles of roadway in the downtown Fort Myers River District to fun and safe activities along a route running from near the new Library through Centennial Park. 

Fort Myers City Council and staff, the CRA and the River District Alliance had all given extraordinary support to make this first event a success. Councilman Banks remarked on the many volunteers he saw helping at the event and asked if they would be returning. Streets Alive! team members referenced feedback received from evaluations sent to vendors and activity participants. All indicated positive interest in a next event. Mayor Henderson noted that the Council was aware that “there are other cities in Lee County where this event could be held, but we want it here in Fort Myers”. 

On Jan 16^th, other Streets Alive! team members, themselves all participants in Lee County’s premier community health coalition – HealthyLee, presented HealthyLee representatives Dr. Judith Hartner of the Florida Department of Health in Lee County and Sally Jackson of Lee Memorial Systems with awards of recognition for the coalition’s support of this first Streets Alive! event. 

Three Healthy Lee members had originally pitched the open streets idea at a coalition meeting in the summer of 2012, where Healthy Lee members unanimously voted to support it as their signature event to engage, educate and motivate the community in making healthy lifestyle changes. Health Department personnel then set about securing the initial grant used as seed money to launch StreetsAlive!

Held this past November 10^th, the five hour long event drew nearly 5,000 people, who traversed the course on foot or bicycle sampling varieties of fresh foods and a myriad of activities; everything from paddle boarding to line dancing to children’s crafts.

A second Streets Alive! is planned again in downtown Fort Myers for November of this year. BikeWalkLee, which is well represented among the members of the Streets Alive! Steering and Executive committees, will be at this next event, as they were at the first, with an active community engagement booth.

Report by Ann Pierce