Battling inclement weather on Saturday morning, the community celebrated the grand reopening of the recently upgraded West Orange Trail Bridge, a local landmark users said are excited to use again following months of closure.
On Saturday, May 31, attendees celebrated the reopening of the nearly 20-year-old bridge located at the U.S. 441/Orange Blossom Trail at South Forest Avenue in Apopka. Among the highlights were a fun run, bike and walk led by the Apopka Run Club, a ribbon cutting and a drone photo from the top of the bridge.
To make the bridge safer and more enjoyable for multi-modal use, the county helmed the $2 million project from October 2024 to this past April. The upgrade involved structural repairs like metal replacement and cosmetic improvements including pressure washing, painting the bridge trim and grooming palm trees. New amenities include emergency placards and wayfinding signs.
“I wanted you to be here because today is the day that we are going to activate and reinvigorate this whole trail area,” Orange County District 2 Commissioner Christine Moore told the crowd at the ceremony. “I was talking to many of you before, and I said, ‘Well, we can be as good as Winter Garden and Oakland.’ What did you all tell me? We could be? Say it again, we can be – [‘Better!’ the audience responded] That’s right. We’re going to be better.”
The bridge refurbishment was part of the $4.5 million overhaul for the estimated 22-mile West Orange Trail, which got at least 20 miles of new asphalt, signage, and edging for erosion control. The 30-year-old trail runs from the Killarney Station west of Oakland to Welch Road in Apopka.
The Orange County Parks and Recreation budget provided the money for the entire trail project.
“The commitment is we need to finish the trail,” Apopka Mayor Bryan Nelson said. “We have this 22 miles from here to Clermont, which is awesome. We love it. We love it. All we have to do now is to finish from here to neighborhood lakes at the Lake County line.”
In 2024, Orange County celebrated its 200th anniversary, and the Orange County Parks and Recreation Division celebrated its centennial anniversary, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings noted.
Demings acknowledged several people including Nelson and Moore, as well as the team that manages the division’s 113 parks, boat ramps, recreation centers, sports facilities, over 53 miles of trails of 15 million program participants each year. On top of that, the team watches over the nearly 15,000 acres of parkland, from the establishment of the county’s first park until the present.
“We can say it’s only the beginning, and imagine what the future will hold,” Demings said.
Volunteer groups have contributed to the West Orange Trail cleanup including the People of Southern Apopka and the Apopka High School Student Government Association (SGA).
A few months ago, the Apopka High School SGA and Moore cleaned and painted an area dubbed the Apopka Pass, a West Orange Trail section located on the corner of Oak Street and Highland, north of the dog parks.
Moore invited volunteers to join the group to finish painting the Apopka Pass, which will be at 7:30 a.m. on June 14.
Users of the trail said they were excited that the trail had re-opened.
Event volunteer Rebecca DeCerbo helped attendees get to the bridge. Living up the street from the bridge, DeCerbo bikes and runs the trail two to four times a week. She always runs with the Apopka Run Club.
“If I’m running, I will use sometimes, like tomorrow, I’ll probably run up to Forest Lake, up in Clarcona,” DeCerbo said. “If I’m biking it, I’ve gone all the way out to Clermont before. I mean, this is a huge trail. People don’t realize how far this trail goes.”
Sara Vircher, a volunteer with the People of Southern Apopka, bikes on the West Orange Trail about once a month. She said she doesn’t like to cross the actual U.S. 441 on her bicycle, but loves to go up on the bridge and get across safely.
“Then again, I can get over the bridge and get to the other side where there’s a nice park,” Vircher said. “Kit Land Nelson Park’s up there. So, there are all kinds of things I can do. It’s easier to park my bicycle than it is my car.”
The Apopka Chief and The Planter are weekly community newspapers, independently owned and family operated, that have served the greater Apopka area in Central Florida since 1923 and 1965 respectively.
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