Oldsmar to add zipline park at Mobbly Bayou Preserve
Ever wondered what Oldsmar would look like from high above the treetops?
Thanks to an agreement between the City and an outdoor adventure concession company, you will soon be able to learn the answer to that question.
On No. 17, the Oldsmar City Council approved a request to allow City Manager Bruce Haddock to negotiate an agreement with Empower Adventure Operations, LLC. to install a zipline/outdoor adventure park at the Mobbly Bayou Wilderness Preserve.
In approving the consent docket item by a unanimous 5-0 vote, the Council addressed concerns that were raised in a letter about the invasiveness of such facilities on the environment.
Ultimately, the five council members all agreed that the benefits of the parks far outweighed the concerns.
“The actual impact is going to be fairly minimal,” Mayor Doug Bevis said. “A zipline really allows you to see beautiful areas…of the woods without really impacting them. You’re basically like a bird flying over them.”
“While I appreciate the concern, I think we need to do it with attention to minimizing any impacts that there are, but I think it’s a great asset, and what better way to showcase it (the preserve) than by flying over it? And it’s fun.”
“I agree. I’ve done a few ziplines and it is beautiful,” Council member Linda Norris said. “I think it’s a good idea. It’s what we’ve been wanting to do in the City of Oldsmar. It is eco-tourism.”
Vice-Mayor Gabby McGee, who is no stranger to outdoor adventures, also praised the ecotourism aspect of these types of parks.
“I just went zipling on Saturday in Ocala…and when you got to the top, it was the most beautiful view of pure Florida I’ve ever seen,” she said.
“I think it’s a beautiful way to showcase the ecotourism that you have.”
According to information contained in Empower Adventure Operation’s proposal, the park will feature a 55-foot-tall start tower, five ziplines of varying lengths, a 100-foot suspension bridge as well as other adventure park elements such as log bridges, catwalk bridges, steps, tires, and poles.
Professional guides will lead groups of 12 through the course, which will take approximately an hour and a half to complete and will run at varying times during the day. Photos will be available for purchase, and reservations are recommended.
In addition to the aerial park, the company plans to add kayak and bike rentals at the preserve in the future.
According to the proposal, work on the park would start in January and take approximately 8-12 weeks to complete.
The proposal stated the company hopes to have the facility ready in time for the 2016 spring break season.
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Awesome! What a fantastic addition to the wonderful City of Oldsmar!
Sorry to see the peace and quiet leaving the area.The small town feel is going away.Very sad.
As a resident of Oldsmar this was a big surprise. I have to question how it’s going to impact the preserve and the surrounding homes. I also must question how a private for profit zipline was able to gain access to the park while a non pofit animal sanctuary was denied. Moving forward i hope the city of Oldsmar will allow the horses and the zipline to coexist and work together.
Poor land management! This zip line will eliminate the natural quiet and peacefulness of the preserve and the neighborhood as a whole. The disturbance created by substantial human presence and activity on the fauna, particularly the rookeries, cannot be refuted. It also cannot be refuted that families will be disturbed into living a different way of life due to the onslaught of noise, traffic and transients this commercial enterprise will produce. The sanctuary that is home and neighborhood will be lost. This zip line is a grievous assault on the PRESERVE and on the prerogatives of Oldsmar citizens as well.
calm down about oldsmar being ruined. this will be fun. dont be a negative nelly and only think about your cozy quiet way of living.
I fear you are being obtuse. I am a homeowner who specifically purchased a plot of land
adjacent to the quiet peacefulness of the estuary. The peacefulness of the estuary is ruined
just as I had predicted. The jarring cacophony of hooting and hollering is overriding the sounds of birds and nature that are normally to be had while working in and enjoying the outdoors. To actually invite avoidable disturbance and noise into the middle of the preserve and neighborhood is a flagrant lack of regard.
You need to be roused out of the entitled thinking that others’ “fun” supersedes the comforts and dominion of any Oldsmar citizen. Home is a haven. If I wanted to live next to a fun park, I would have bought property there, but I didn’t. I bought property next to a PRESERVE.
The zip line needs to be shut down.
I live right across from the boat ramp,my view looks out to mobly bay .I hope I don’t hear people screaming out there,.Its bad enough already with the div park and all the noise that creates.If si I will be attending the city council meeting.
yeah the sound of happy children and lovable dogs playing with each other is known to make people angry. Attend those meetings and voice your opinion on something that is actually destructive.