Summary
To: Town Commission
From: Ashley L. A. Bernal, Assistant Town Manager via Gay Lancaster, Town Manager
Date: 2/17/2026
______________________________________________________________________
Subject:
Title
Indian Rocks Road and Pathway Determination
Summary: In Fall 2025, Town staff was approached by a few residents and the Belleair Country Club to consider their proposal of an option to shift the shared-use path from the West side to the East side of Phase 3. Since then, staff have met with these parties, as well as our engineering team, to review the potential challenges and opportunities of each option. Included in this narrative is an analysis of the following three options:
• Option A: Continue with the current approved design, keeping the shared-use path on the West side of Indian Rocks Road and widening the East sidewalk to 6 feet.
• Option B: Shift the shared-use path to the East side of Indian Rocks Road and remove any sidewalks from the West side entirely.
• Option C: Halt phase 3 design & engineering and pursue Phase 2 of Indian Rocks Road.
End
Previous Commission Action: On April 18, 2023, the Town of Belleair Commission approved the staff and engineers’ recommendation for the shared-use pathway:
• East side for Phase 1
• West side for Phase 2 (with crossover at the four-way stop on Poinsettia)
• West side for Phase 3
• Reduce the width of the shared-use path from 10 feet to 8 feet
Expenditure Challenges: As of January, 2026, the Town has spent a total of $408,929.61 on engineering and design for Phase 3. This does not include any costs related to reanalyzing the shift of the roadway, new cost estimate for design, or meetings that RS&H or WSP has attended. Additionally, this does not include any staff time. Finally, we have spent approximately $5k on PFM for consulting for funding Phase 3.
Financial Implications: Each option has differing financial implications, which are summarized below. A detailed table of financial implications is attached to this item.
• Option A: Continue with Current Approved Design: This approach would experience minimal financial impacts. Based on construction estimates provided by RS&H on January 26, 2026, construction costs have decreased dramatically, resulting in savings of $1.3 million on materials from our previous formal estimate. Phase 3 currently has $2.611 million funded through appropriations. The remainder of funding would require that the Town borrow approximately $3.4 million. Phase 2 engineering would begin as estimated in Winter of 2027, with Phase 2 construction commencing the following year.
• Option B: Shift the Shared-Use Path to the East Side: This option has multiple financial implications. Firstly, the reduction of construction quantities and material costs results in a savings of $176,827.39. However, the engineering and redesign of the project is estimated to cost the Town an additional $400k - $500k. Therefore, going with the conservative estimate, Option B would cost the Town an estimated additional cost of approximately $300,000. Presently, there is no concrete way to estimate the financial impact of the delay (around 2 years) in beginning the construction of this project. Phase 3 currently has $2.611 million funded through appropriations. The remainder of funding would require that the Town borrow approximately $3.7 million.
• Option C: Halt Phase 3, Commence Phase 2: This option has the least financial impact, because the project is currently fully funded. There is no concrete way to estimate the financial impact of the delay (around 1 year) in beginning the construction of Phase 3.
Recommendation: Staff recommends option A. The Finance and Infrastructure Boards have also recommended option A.
Proposed Motion: I move to select Option (A / B / C) for continuing Indian Rocks Road.