CAPITAL CASCADES TRAIL - SEGMENT 2 Cascades Park

Cascades Park has been recognized by Blueprint 2000 as the centerpiece of the Capital Cascades Trail greenway project. Forming a gentle bend in the southeast corner of Tallahassee’s Downtown. Capital Cascades Park will ultimately provide significant stormwater management facilities that will abate the existing flooding problems along the St. Augustine Branch and provide a beautiful setting for a world class park. The stormwater management facilities will include a series of organically shaped ponds connected by a restored stream bed landscaped with native and “Florida Friendly” riparian vegetation to protect the stream bank from erosion and create natural habitat. The stormwater facilities will provide both flood protection and treatment of urban runoff pollutants. A large underground culvert will divert the runoff generated by large storm events directly to the lower pond to protect the integrity of the restored stream bank and to minimize the impact to the park. Capital Cascades Park is being designed to flood during major storm events. This is necessary to provide the desired flood relief both upstream and downstream of the park. Capital Cascades Park will be a continuous park extending from Lafayette Street on the north to Monroe Street on the southwest. To make the park continuous, Gaines Street (from Meridian Street to Suwannee Street), Gadsden Street (from Bloxham Street to north of the railroad), and Bloxham Street (from Gadsden Street to Meridian Street) will be removed. To address vehicular circulation issues and to provide additional “eyes on the park”, a new park road, Cascades Park Lane, is currently under construction adjacent to the railroad to connect Gadsden Street to Suwannee Street.

Federal, state, regional and local regulatory agencies participated in the extensive permitting effort prior to starting construction. The permitting process was complete (47 permits total) in Spring 2010. Due to the lengthy permitting process, construction did not begin until July 2010. The park is expected to be open to the public September 2012.

View Project Map

To view public comments and suggestions click on the following link:

Public Comments and Suggestions

Other related links:

CascadePark.org (Amenity Fundraising Site)
Community Participation Plan (CPP)
Capital Cascades Trail – Segment 2 Public Meetings
Capital Health Plan Donation Announcement - December 5, 2007
Cascades Park Donor Recognition Page