JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The link between San Marco and Riverside is complete. Finally.
The Riverside Avondale Preservation and the San Marco Preservation Society came together Saturday morning to host a grand opening celebration for the highly-anticipated Fuller Warren Bridge Shared Use Path (SUP), which residents have been waiting years for its completion after construction was delayed last fall.
The official ribbon-cutting ceremony was Thursday, but on Saturday, organizers had a marching band lead a parade of people over the path.
“This is a bridge that’s connecting two really vibrant sides of the river,” said Executive Director of Riverside Avondale Preservation Shannon Blankinship.
The shared-use path is less than a mile long (4,654 feet), but it feels far greater than that. It’s 12 feet wide and split into two 6-foot lanes -- keeping people safe from cars. There are also two lookout areas on the path where pedestrians can branch off and enjoy the scenery.
Mika and her twin sister walked the path for the first time.
“I think it’s great,” Mika said. “I didn’t think it was that high of an incline, which was amazing for the legs. The experience was really nice. It was relaxing and calm.”
News4JAX Sports Reporter Justin Barney took a bike cruise across the newly opened span Thursday, there were more than a dozen people on the path. Some were on foot. More were on bicycles. One man, wearing slacks, a long-white collared shirt and a tie, was taking a walk on his break from lunch. Another man pulled a small child up in a wagon.
“It really gives Jacksonville an identity. We want to have people come and have amazing experiences with our river. It’s such a special place and this is exactly the kind of thing that gives people a chance of the majesty of the St. Johns River,” Stephanie Garry Garfunkel said.
So, where can people looking to check out the new shared use path access it? There’s an access point off Riverside Avenue, under the overpass directly across the street from where the Riverside Arts Market is held. There is free public parking to use the path there. On the San Marco side, there is paid public parking not far from the shared use path entrance. Pedestrians can access the path from that side behind Nemours Hospital.
The Florida Department of Transportation began work on the project in May 2017 as a way to upgrade and improve the I-10/I-95 interchange. The cost of the entire project was $126 million.