07 Sep Jupiter Opens Newest Part of Riverwalk Project
JUPITER — With the snip of a ceremonial ribbon, Mayor Karen Golonka and a handful of town administrators and local businessmen debuted the latest section of the town’s 2.5-mile Riverwalk project Tuesday.
The 1,100-foot section of pathway between the Indiantown Road Bridge and U.S. 1 runs along the site of the proposed $150 million Harbourside project on the Intracoastal Waterway.
It features a 15-foot-wide bicycle and pedestrian path, a public dock, drinking fountains, outdoor furniture and a sea wall.
“This is wonderful,” Councilwoman Wendy Harrison said of the new section’s opening. “It’s a very important connection between what already exists, and it also shows how serious the town is about Riverwalk and Harbourside and the redevelopment of the area.”
Construction costs totaled about $3.2 million, Riverwalk project coordinator Brenda Arnold said. The Florida Inland Navigation District contributed $1.5 million toward the project, while Palm Beach Gardens-based Allied Capital & Development of South Florida provided the rest. Allied Capital & Development, which is developing Harbourside, donated the land on which the section was built.
The Riverwalk pathway is expected to draw visitors to Harbourside, which was approved by the town in 2008 and will include a waterfront hotel, parking garages, retail stores and restaurants. Completion is expected to be completed by late 2013.
“This is the perfect example of a project that will provide waterfront access,” said Florida Inland Navigation District Commissioner Donn Colee .
“But it also has the benefit of encouraging developers to invest more of their construction money in these kinds of projects because they can have some good commerce and good business,” he said.
Construction on the section took about eight months to complete, Arnold said. Two other sections of the southern portion of the project are under construction or close to breaking ground.
Riverwalk runs between Ocean Way north to the Jupiter Inlet. The first sections opened in 2002. About 2 miles have been completed, Arnold said.
By JODIE WAGNER
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer