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County gives green light to Sun City Center golf cart path

Staff photo by PAUL LAMISON

Hillsborough County commissioners voted unanimously this morning to spend between $250,000 and $300,000 on the paved path.

By MIKE SALINERO | The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 4, 2009

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TAMPA - After more than three years of organizing, petition-signing and meeting with local politicians, Sun City Center residents were successful today in getting approval for a golf cart path that will help them get across U.S. 301 to Walmart.

Hillsborough County commissioners voted unanimously this morning to spend between $250,000 and $300,000 on the paved path, which will cross a vacant field to a signalized crossing of U.S. 301 at Cape Stone Avenue.

"This is a real milestone for Sun City Center," said Ed Barnes, president of the Sun City Center Community Association. "We had a lot of people working for the last three-and-a-half years to bring this to fruition. It's good to get it done."

More than a decade ago, the county commission paid for a golf cart path to the Walmart store at State Road 674 and Cypress Creek Boulevard. When that store closed and Walmart built on U.S. 301, residents once again mobilized to get political support for another path. A group calling itself GolfCarts2Walmart, or GC2W, launched a petition drive that garnered 4,400 signatures.

Rick and Stan Whitcomb, developers of Commonwealth Office Plaza near the intersection, have agreed to grant the county an easement across their property for the cart path. Money for construction will come out of the county's critical accident mitigation fund, which can be used for practically any transportation project that concerns traffic or pedestrian safety, said Bob Gordon, public works director.

Money in that fund comes from property taxes and gas taxes.

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