[John_W]

Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter

Cart bridge from Spanish Springs to the Historical section of The Villages, crossing US441.


(John show her a picture)

The bridge actually has it's own Facebook page

Villages Golf Cart Bridge

GOLF CART OVERPASS TO BE LINK TO SHOPPING July 12, 1992 Orlando Sentinel

By next year, residents of this city's massive retirement community will be able to motor across U.S. Highway 27-441 in their golf carts - on a peach stucco bridge.

Developers of the Villages at Lady Lake plan to build an overpass for golf carts across busy U.S. 27-441 from the residential community to a shopping area on the highway's west side.

"Most of our residents use golf carts as a major means of transportation," said Gary Morse, vice president of the Villages at Lady Lake, formerly Orange Blossom Gardens.

"This bridge will expand their horizons of where they can go."

The overpass is needed because golf carts aren't permitted to cross state highways. The bridge should be ready for use by next summer, Morse said.

The bridge will be of peach-colored stucco, in keeping with the decor at the Villages of Lady Lake.

Although overpasses for pedestrians are commonplace, the idea of building a bridge for use by golf carts is unusual, said Tom Berry of the state Department of Transportation office in Deland.

State transportation officials plan to issue a permit for the project after reviewing it. "We're just making sure their plans comply with our standards," Berry said.

DOT officials also don't mind that the stucco bridge will be painted peach. "I've seen the renderings, and I think it looks kind of nice," Berry said.

The bridge, expected to cost $675,000, will be paid for with investor-backed bond money that will be used to develop the shopping area into a 169-acre commercial development district designed to attract more businesses to Lady Lake.

Town leaders first must approve the development district plan.

Morse proposes to raise $9 million through bonds to pay for improvements to the property, including roads, utility services, parking areas, landscaping and the bridge.

The bond money would be repaid by assessments levied against businesses in the district, bordered by U.S. 27-441 and Avenida Central, a road that loops around the 169-acre tract.

Morse said although the bond money will pay for the overpass, the cost really will be incurred by the Villages at Lady Lake.

"The bond taxes us, so we end up paying for the bridge," Morse said.

Building roads through the district will cost $3.5 million, while water and sewer service will cost a total of $1.75 million, records show.

Another $1.3 million will be spent on landscaping and parks, and $500,000 for parking lots.