New park opens along Florida’s Manatee River with trails, art and focus on water quality
Palmetto has a scenic new park along the Manatee River that also plays a role in boosting local water quality.
Connor Park, which has been in the works for several years, features a walking trail, a public art installation and a stormwater pond that uses a natural treatment process to promote clean water. The park opened to the public in April.
“That is one of my favorite projects that we’ve done because it ties an opportunity for the community to really enjoy it, but it’s also such an environmental process that has been created there,” said Palmetto Mayor Shirley Groover Bryant. “The end result is beautiful, but everything has a purpose.”
The retention pond at Connor Park is capable of retaining 500,000 gallons of stormwater runoff. As the pond system fills up, water overflows through a channel of wetlands filled with native Florida plants that absorb contaminants that can be harmful to water quality, such as nitrogen, before they enter the river.
Reducing the amount of harmful nutrients in the water has been hailed by local environmental groups as one of the best ways to combat harmful algae blooms like red tide.
The park at 505 Fifth St. W., Palmetto, sits on 1.7 acres along the railroad track that connects Bradenton to the south. A walking trail circles the main pond. There are boardwalks, educational signage and a community pavilion on the site.
Connor Park opens in Palmetto
Palmetto’s Community Redevelopment Agency also commissioned a sculpture from artist Ron Berman. “Flight of the Spoonbills,” which towers over the parking area, “captures the importance of Connor Park to Palmetto’s bird and wildlife population,” according to the city.
The park also features an osprey nest platform and bat houses. Bryant said the city installed more than 600 plants and trees at Connor Park.
On Friday morning, Kimberley Lee and her husband, Ed, visited the park to walk eight laps. Exercising at the brand-new park has become part of their routine, they said.
“We think it’s fantastic. We’ve been watching the transformation and the nature is beautiful,” Kimberley said.
The park is named after Francis Connor, who created a bigger name for Manatee County’s agricultural economy in the Tampa Bay area. Connor, who died in 1953, was posthumously inducted into the Manatee County Agriculture Hall of Fame in 2010.
Connor made his career with the Seaborne Airline Railroad company, which later joined with its rival to become CSX Transportation. CSX operates the railroad line that runs along the east boundary of the park.
CSX railroad operations on the property were also the source of contamination in the soil, the Bradenton Herald previously reported. Palmetto leaders received $1.7 million in grant funding and over 900 tons of contaminated soil were removed, according to the city.
“It was essential that we clean it because, otherwise, you’re part of the problem,” said Bryant. “We wanted to be part of the solution.”
Palmetto also has plans to connect Connor Park to a citywide network of trails in the future.
This story was originally published May 5, 2023 at 12:29 PM.
