Local Bagdad Waterfronts Florida Partnership Chairman Doug Lasater said the fishing pier at the Bagdad Mill Site Park is the first positive new construction of a fixed structure at the recreational area. Until this point, the bulk of the work focused on dealing with the remains of Anderson-Columbia, the asphalt company previously occupying the location and laying the additional groundwork. First president and current VP of the BWFP, Richard Lewis said the project lost two months of time due to the major flooding this year. Lasater, along Lewis, and Tom Scott, BWFP member and Bagdad Mill Site Park grand opening planner took time to discuss the park’s progress and future plans Wednesday as crews continued working on the pier and the grounds.
Lasater said the next major item on the agenda is the parking lot and grating for the park’s walking trail.
Lewis said, “The TDC [Santa Rosa County Tourist Development Council] provided a major portion of the funds to the park, but if not for the BWFP probably none of this would have happened. Fewer than 20 people worked on this.” Lasater said it doesn’t take politicians to see through a project like this, just citizens with love of community and bulldog tenacity.
The park, Lewis said, would have more facilities than any park in the area with a dog park, fishing pier, boat dock, and special kayak launch with parking. It will also have an amphitheater and pavilion. “Most parks are for children’s athletics. This will be a passive park, quiet and serene.” Scott said the park can be what people want. However, Lewis said the park will not have a boat launch since the Oyster Pile Boat Ramp is so close. Also known as the Tampa Landing, Oyster Pile sits adjacent to a 2008 project of the BWFP, the Ollinger & Bruce Shipyard Park, a one-acre waterfront park with a pavilion, picnic area, and nature trail. According to the BWFP website, the park is planned to connect with the Mill Site Park and Bagdad Heritage Trail at a later date.
In addition to the physical components of the park, Lasater said he and Ben Wells, local archeologist are working on the Bagdad Blueways Trail, what Lasater described as a water-born virtual trail along the river. He said it will provide general locations for historic sites, non specific to prevent looting. It will also serve, he said, as a way to save data for future reference. Some panels will be physical while others accessible on the internet through a device like a smartphone, Lasater said, and provide information from early history in the area along with local flora and fauna.
Scott’s main task is preparing for the tentatively organized Bagdad Riverfront Festival May 1 and 2. He said his three main tasks include organizing the park dedication, a kayak run from Mayo Park, (Pond Creek and Highway 90), to the Mill Site Park, and acquiring transportation displays such as tractors, cars, and boats from the early 1800s and 1900s. While the event will mark the park’s grand opening, Lasater said he wants the occasion to be an annual affair.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Bagdad Mill Site Park presents first structure since flood, site cleanup