Legend Westervelt Dyer Parcels HIKING MULTI-USE PADDLING _ ^ Public Lands FGTS Priority Buffer 0 0.5 1 2 Miles Florida Department of Environmental Protection Div ision of Recreation and Parks WESTERVELT & DYER PARCELS
SR PALM BEACH COUNTY 71 0 WESTERVELT PARCELS 27.49 ac. Loxahatchee Slough Natural Area Hungryland Slough Natural Area Sweetbay Natural Area DYER PARCELS 42.98 ac. Legend Westervelt Parcels Dyer Parcels Public Lands FGTS Priority _ ^ State Routes Existing Trails: Hiking 0 625 1,250 2,500 Feet Florida Department of Environmental P rotection Division of Recreation and P arks Date of aerial: 2009 WESTERVELT & DYER PARCELS
Project Name: County: Ocean to Lake Dyer C18 LLC Properties Palm Beach Applicant: Palm Beach County Department of Environmental Resources Management Proposed Manager: Palm Beach County Department of Environmental Resources Management Project Description: The Dyer C18 LLC Properties contain an estimated 43.03 acres and is approximately 1.77 miles long, and 220 feet wide. Site is a drainage right-of-way composed of a canal and a gravel maintenance road. Mostly grass with some slash pine and waxed myrtles at the edge of the right-of-way. If acquired, the County will construct a multi-use trail, and adjacent equestrian trail, which will serve as a segment of the Ocean to Lake Trail Corridor. The project will also provide access to a hard-to-reach portion of the Hungryland Slough Natural Area. 1. FGTS Status: The Ocean to Lake Corridor is part of the Priority Trail Network, and was formally designated as part of the Florida Greenways and Trails System in 2006. 2. Matching Funds Available: 50% matching funds by the County. 3. Less Than Fee Proposed: Fee Simple 4. Ecological Values: See the attached Biologist Field Inspection Report. 5. Recreational Attributes: The project Area will offer a range of nature-based outdoor recreational opportunities, including hiking, biking, trail riding (equestrian), wildlife viewing, bird watching, nature appreciation, fishing (from the canal bank) and nature photography. In addition, the County will investigate the feasibility of creating a canoe/kayak trail that would connect the Project Area canal to a water resource project that is planned for a 1,800+acre property (identified as Mecca on Exhibit 1) located just southwest of the Project Area. The Ocean to Lake Corridor is part the Northeast Everglades Natural Area (NENA) project which aims to connect approximately 165,000 acres of conservation lands in northern Palm Beach County and southern Martin County. It is a cooperative effort among partnering land managers and educational centers to link 35 conservation lands, parks and activity/education centers through a system of designated trails and thematic elements. The Ocean to Lake Corridor is approximately 60 miles and includes portions of Jonathan Dickinson State Park, Riverbend Park, Loxahatchee Slough Natural Area, Hungryland Slough Natural Area, J.W. Corbett Wildlife Management Area, DuPuis WMA and the County s Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail (LOST) trailhead. It also includes existing road
rights of way that connect DuPuis WMA to the LOST Trail trailhead, located just east of the Herbert Hoover Dike at Lake Okeechobee. 6. Historical and Cultural Resources: The entire project area has been impacted by the construction and maintenance of a drainage canal. The Division of Historical Resources reports there are no archaeological sites or historic structures but much of this segment includes PB15976, which is the historic C18/C18W Canal listed as a linear resource in the site file. The Seaboard Airline Railroad Bridge (PB14862) also lies just northeast of this proposed trail segment. Staff recommendations regarding conditions that should be imposed on the project to protect or sustain the purposes for which the project would be acquired and managed: Owners Estimated Value: $25,952 Staff recommendations for modifications to the project boundary needed for resource protection, acquisition planning, or management: None Recommended Grouping: A Additional Comments: South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) holds a permanent easement for flood control, reclamation, conservation, water storage and allied purposes over the entire Project Area. At this time there is no designated crossing at the Bee Line Highway. There hasn t been a need since the public doesn t have the legal right to use the property on either side of the highway. However, if the state is successful in acquiring title to the canal rights of way properties on either side of the Bee Line Highway, project sponsor states that creating a trail crossing should not be a problem for the following reasons: 1. The Bee Line Highway is basically at grade so there are no elevation issues that would make a trail crossing difficult to create. 2. There is a nice grassy, approximately 29-foot-wide, interior median that trail users could use to help them get across the four-lane divided highway. 3. Traffic typically is intermittent along this stretch of the highway, so trail users should be able to cross the road with little difficulty. 4. The Bee Line Highway is very straight and very flat on either side of the proposed crossing; there are no hills or curves to block trail users or drivers line-of-sight at the proposed trail crossing. 5. Palm Beach County will submit a request to the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to install pedestrian/bicycle/equestrian crossing signage/flashing lights on both sides of the highway to warn drivers of the trail crossing. FDOT has indicated a willingness to work with Palm Beach County on trail crossings at other locations in the county so the project sponsor believes FDOT would be willing to do the same at this location.
6. Palm Beach County also will request that FDOT provide a pass through gap in an existing guard rail on the south side of the median. The gap would be wide enough to allow a single horse or bicycle to pass through uninterrupted.
Office of Greenways & Trails Land Acquisition Program Biologist Field Inspection Report Project Name: Ocean to Lake Trail Dyer C18 Properties Project Location: Palm Beach County Potential Recreational opportunities: Multi-use trail Name of biologist(s): Andrew Flanner, Environmental Specialist II, Division of Recreation and Parks Office location(s)/telephone number(s): District 5 Administration, 13798 SE Federal Hwy. Hobe Sound, FL. 33455 (772)546-0900 Date(s) of Inspection: May 22, 2014 Vegetative Cover 1. Almost all of the project area can be classified as ruderal/developed as it is primarily comprised of a right of way along the C-18 canal. The project area does have a thin section of mesic flawoods (G4, S4) on the north side that runs the length of the project area. Vegetation is comprised of slash pine (Pinus elliotti), gallberry (Illex glabra) and wax myrtle (Myrica cerifera) as well as a variety of smilax and muscadine vines and grass species including wiregrass (Aristida beyrichiana var. stricta.). 2. Rate the condition of each intact natural community as either Excellent, Good, Fair or Poor. Mesic flatwoods the mesic flawoods are currently in good condition. No exotic plant species were observed but there is some minor sediment erosion impacts from the adjacent right of way. 3. The majority of the project area is considered ruderal/developed as it is a right of way. The southern side of the project area includes the C-18 canal. Much of the canal is devoid of aquatic vegetation due to the depth of the water from dredging practices but the bank of the canal does have some vegetation such as cattail (Typha domingensis) and pickerwelweed (Pontederia cordata). Listed Species 4. No listed species were observed during the site inspection. 5. Possible listed species that may use the project area include the wading birds wood stork (Mycteria Americana), tricolored heron (Egretta tricolor) and little blue heron (Egretta caerulea) along the canal bank. Exotic Species 6. No exotic species were observed during the inspection.
Management and Restoration Needs 7. No management or restoration needs were identified during the site inspection Optimal Boundary N/A Summary The proposed project area in addition to its recreational possibilities does contain some areas of natural resources that will benefit from protection. The mesic flatwoods are in good condition and further protection and maintenance will benefit the project area and the adjacent Hungryland Slough natural area. The C18 canal while not a natural feature does provide some wildlife habitat and also plays an important role in the water supply for the Loxahatchee River.