DUNEDIN — Residents and visitors will likely lose access to Hammock Park’s scenic boardwalk if voters approve a November referendum eliminating property taxes, a senior parks official told city commissioners July 9.
Commissioners voted unanimously that night to replace the aging boardwalk, awarding a $152,231 contract to Price Marine Construction of Tarpon Springs. But whether the work happens at all may depend on the referendum.
“If the property tax issue passes in November, what would this item look like a year from now?” Commissioner Jeff Gow asked Parks and Recreation Director Tony Mulkey. “Where would we get the money?”
Mulkey said the city is still assessing the potential fallout. “This would probably not be scheduled, just looking at the initial numbers,” he said.
“It would be loss of an amenity,” Mulkey added, “because the boardwalk, currently as it stands out there, is not safe and it would have to be blocked off from the public.”
Gow urged residents to weigh that. “If anybody is considering the vote in November, keep that in mind — that we’re going to lose some things,” he said.
The 90-acre park features 5 miles of shaded nature trails, including an elevated boardwalk along Cedar Creek that carries the 0.7-mile Osprey Loop through a dense coastal hammock, bringing visitors close to native birds and wildlife. A second boardwalk on the Fern Trail crosses a bayhead swamp.
A staff review found the western boardwalk near Cedar Creek “has exceeded its useful life and requires urgent attention,” and said replacing the decking and handrails would keep the structure in compliance with safety standards.
Staff also recommended swapping the pressure-treated wood decking for WearDeck composite material, calling it “a fiscally responsible investment” that would last significantly longer and cut long-term maintenance and replacement costs.
The project covers removal and replacement of all decking and handrails, along with inspection, cleaning and replacement of compromised stringers and poles where necessary. Additional stringers will be installed as needed to support the composite decking, commissioners were told.
Causeway repairs underway; bridge replacement design on hold
Pinellas County is repairing hurricane damage to the Dunedin Causeway, but design work on a full replacement of its two bridges — which a recent study called functionally obsolete — has been put on hold.
The county received Federal Highway Administration funding, routed through the Florida Department of Transportation, to repair damage from hurricanes Helene and Milton. Work to restore the access road, repair the movable bridge fenders and fix the bag walls on both the tide relief and movable bridges is complete.
Construction on a separate maintenance project began earlier this month and is expected to run through approximately winter 2027. It involves removing and replacing the bridge’s steel coatings and damaged structural steel.
Boaters should expect limited bridge openings during construction, the city said in its Dunedin News newsletter. The bridge will offer only single-leaf openings, with vertical clearance on the closed span reduced to 6 feet. The navigation channel will be cleared during non-work hours, though one span will keep the 6-foot clearance because of the containment system. Drivers should expect intermittent lane closures, with message boards posted in advance.
The county and FDOT had finalized plans to replace both the Main Bridge and the Tide Relief Bridge, according to a July 13 update from the county Public Works Department. Those design plans are now on hold.
A joint county-FDOT study weighing rehabilitation against replacement concluded both bridges should be replaced. Built in 1963, they are considered functionally obsolete because of their narrow width, the study found: no shoulders, sidewalks just 3½ feet wide on the north side, and a 6-foot multi-use path on the south. Neither meets current engineering standards for withstanding vessel strikes or high waves in major storms.
“Major rehabilitation or replacement of both bridges is needed to keep the bridges open and the Main bascule bridge operating efficiently,” the study concluded.
Under the plan, the Main Bridge — a bascule span connecting Ward Island to the causeway — would be rebuilt as a two-lane, mid-level movable bridge. The Tide Relief Bridge, a fixed span linking the causeway to Honeymoon Island, would be rebuilt as a two-lane, low-level fixed bridge.
Both would be 62 feet 7 inches wide, roughly 22.5 feet wider than the current structures, with two 11-foot travel lanes and 8-foot shoulders that could serve as undesignated bicycle lanes. Plans call for a 5-foot sidewalk on the north side and a 15-foot multi-use trail on the south as part of a Pinellas Trail spur. Vertical clearance under the new Main Bridge would be 35 feet above mean high water, up from 20 feet.
Temporary bridges would be built before demolition to maintain traffic, and minor roadway work would be needed to tie the existing road into the new spans.