Sanford’s Riverwalk along Lake Monroe is popular spot.
“Seeing the boats, relaxing, I’m able to walk my dog here, very nice,” said Lola Caporaletti, who comes to Sanford often from nearby Heathrow.
Right now, the Riverwalk ends at French Avenue, but when a planned expansion is complete, it will extend west along Lake Monroe, in an area where many bikers and walkers have to compete with a lot of traffic on the shoulder of Seminole Boulevard.
“It would be good. I ride my bike all the time down here. It would be safer, and better,” said one biker.
After more than 10 years of planning, phase two of the Riverwalk project will extend it beyond French Avenue, all the way down to North Mangoustine Avenue, to the entrance of Central Florida Regional Hospital. If there is enough money left, the walk could be extended even further west.
“There’s an apartment complex housing about 500 units, and we’d like to be able to extend this to them, and let them enjoy the Riverwalk,” said Sanford project planner Christopher Smith.
“It gives us more room to walk, enjoy the sunshine, and truly take in the beauty of downtown Sanford,” said Nukola Herndon.
The $7 million project will also rebuild collapsing sea walls along the Lake Monroe shore.
The Riverwalk expansion is scheduled to begin this spring, and be completed by early 2014.
Sanford city leaders hope to eventually extend the Riverwalk to I-4, past the Central Florida Zoo.