Black Lake Preserve opens in Alachua County with trails and disability access

Alachua County held a ribbon-cutting Friday for Black Lake Preserve, a 287-acre natural area south of Lake Santa Fe in Melrose. The preserve, purchased in 2020 for just over $2 million through the Wild Spaces Public Spaces surtax, offers more than three miles of hiking trails for wildlife viewing along with accessible sidewalk features. About 32 acres fall within the Santa Fe River System’s Outstanding Florida Waters designation, and the site shares roughly 9,500 feet of wetland boundary with Lake Santa Fe and Black Lake.

Sources: WCJB TV20