SARASOTA COUNTY – Since voters overwhelmingly supported a 2018 effort to secure $65 million in funding to extend the Legacy Trail – which runs 12.5 miles south from Culverhouse Nature Park to Center Road in Venice – some south Sarasota County residents felt they were being left behind.
Residents of North Port watched as elected officials fast-tracked the construction of the northern extension. They watched a groundbreaking ceremony for those segments over the summer. They wondered if they would also get a paved trail.
The fear became so pronounced that it was a brief focal point during the election to fill South County seats ahead of the November general election.