CLECO Power LLC is giving Tammany Trace users some needed parking space.

Mike Polk, the distribution operations manager with CLECO, noticed a high volume of trace trekkers parking their vehicles on the graveled entryway at the major CLECO substation at the intersection of Dove Park Road and the Tammany Trace in Mandeville.

Between the substation and the trace is a small grassy lot bordered by a deep ditch.

CLECO and St. Tammany Parish Engineer officials broke ground on a plot of land that will be turned into a parking lot for Tammany Trace visitors on Dove Park Road. From left are, Eddie Williams and Martha Patterson with the St. Tammany Department of Engineering, Mike Polk and Eric Schouest with CLECO (Staff Photo by Chad Ruiz)

Polk witnessed visitors parking their vehicles then walking along Dove Park Road to avoid the ditch to gain access to the trace.

Besides blocking the substation entryway, Polk saw the makings of a treacherous situation with the high flow of utility vehicles cruising up and down the shoulder-less street.

“It’s a safety issue because big trucks come through here all the time,” Polk said. “We want to be good neighbors.”

After talks with his company and parish officials, a deal was arranged where CLECO would extend its gravel driveway over the unincorporated swath of land and create a small parking lot for trace visitors. A small bridge using recycled utility materials is also planned to span the ditch area.

“This way they won’t have to walk in the street to get to the trace,” Polk said.

A user of the trace himself, Polk sees the 31-mile recreation corridor as one of St. Tammany’s unique assets.

“It gives people a safe location to exercise and enjoy the rural environment,” Polk said.

Polk estimates the graveled parking lot will cost CLECO about $5,000 and will likely fit six to eight vehicles.

“It will likely be complete within a couple of days,” he said.

The trace was born when the parish first purchased the abandoned Illinois Central Railroad corridor in December of 1992.

With the help of grants and federal dollars, Louisiana’s first Rails to Trails operation came to fruition.

Spanning from Slidell to Covington, the trace boasts several trailheads and more than 30 bridges crossing rivers, creeks and bayous.

For more information on the trace, visit www.tammanytrace.org.