Category: Uncategorized
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March 2023 Newsletter
NEWSLetter Vol I – March 2023 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Welcome to a new format for the monthly BERT communications! Enjoy our first installment of Friends of BERT Newsletter. Read on to learn about Rail to Trail project progress; where you’ll find BERT in the community; our membership, HOA and endorsements, and how to donate to our Rail…
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April 2023 Newsletter
NEWSLetter Vol II – April 2023 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Hello Friends of Bonita Estero Rail Trail and welcome to our April 2023 Newsletter! This month’s articles are all about the potential that the Bonita Estero Rail Trail will bring to Lee County. In particular, our focus is on the potential economic benefits of BERT and how…
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June 2023 Newsletter
NEWSLetter Vol III – June 2023 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Hello Friends of the Bonita Estero Rail Trail (BERT) and welcome to our June 2023 Newsletter. Here you will get an update on the activities of our new volunteer committees, and an event announcement we’re very excited about as well as information on trails and crime. Some…
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Volunteer Program
Friends of BERT Launches Volunteer Program! It all started the evening of May 3rd with 15 passionate Friends of BERT who attended the very first volunteer training and planning session. After a 45 minute orientation/training session, we broke into two teams for planning: Since that date, the teams have been busy! Team members have gone…
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Multi-use Trails and Crime
Multi-use Trails and Crime To understand the impact on crime of converting the Seminole Gulf Rail corridor to a multi-use trail, we must first understand what is already occurring along the unused rail line. Take a quick look down the corridor today from any given road that intersects with the rail line, or from the…
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Volunteers
Calling All Volunteers! Want to get more involved in your community? Want to accelerate the pace of the Bonita Estero Rail Trail project? This is your chance! Friends of BERT is organizing volunteer committees, and we need you! Some of you have already headed North as “Season” is coming to a close. Don’t let that…
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ConnectLee
Let’s ConnectLee! Imagine a linear park and greenway that extends from the Lee/Collier County border, all the way north to the Lee/Charlotte County border. We at Friends of Bonita Estero Rail Trail call that effort…ConnectLee! While we advocate for BERT, we know our 14.9-mile linear park and trail is part of a larger trail network that…
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Dunedin
The Pinellas Trail Effect: How a sleepy little town, with a failing economy, experienced an economic boom! The Pinellas Loop Trail is a 75-mile-long bicycle and pedestrian trail that traverses all of Pinellas County and bisects downtown Dunedin. Dunedin’s strategic location along the trail has turned this once depressed community into a destination spot for outdoor enthusiasts. Compared…
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BERT ECONOMIC BENEFITS
BERT Economic Benefits It’s time to get excited about the economic benefits that the Bonita Estero Rail Trail will bring to Lee County! Upon completion the trail is expected to draw thousands of tourists annually contributing heavily to the growth and diversification of the tourism economy for Lee County. Trail user expenditures for hotels, restaurants, grocery stores,…
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Feasibility Study Approved!
Feasibility Study Approved! On March 17th a big milestone was met. The Lee County MPO Board unanimously approved the feasibility study, bringing us one step closer to making this Rail to Trail a reality. Friends of BERT packed the MPO meeting with at least 35 Friends sporting BERT shirts, 13 of whom gave 3-minute presentations during the public…