McIntosh Preserve Is Getting a Hill. Walk It This Winter Before the Dig Starts.

"The sleeper project that is happening right in front of everyone's eyes, but nobody is paying attention to, is McIntosh," Plant City Manager Bill McDaniel told the Plant City Observer in October 2024. In that interview he described a 60-foot hill shaped like Florida, with a pavilion on top and a view over the tree line to downtown. The same story said Phase 2 would start at the beginning of 2025 and take 18 months to two years.

That start date came and went. The project finally went out to bid on August 19, 2026, with bids due Thursday, October 22. The bid documents describe a different preserve than the one in that 2024 interview. One part is required work. Most of the visitor amenities are optional. And the City has confirmed that public access can be restricted while the work goes on. For anyone who walks the trails off Knights Griffin Road, that makes this cool season the one to use.

What the bid locks in, and what it leaves open

The City's posting is titled "McIntosh Park Wetland Construction," project 26-048UO-IFB, and it lives on the City of Plant City's procurement portal. It calls for a 608-day contract term once the contractor gets notice to proceed.

The scope of work turns the 365-acre site into "a series of enhanced wetland cells, some of which will be augmented with reclaimed water and four percolation cells." The fill dug out of those cells goes into "a central mound to a height of 55 feet that will serve as a recreational area." The base work covers the wetland excavation, berms, control structures, a reclaimed water line run in from Alexander Street, and "a compacted fill mound with access ramp to the top." In the City's answers to bidders, that mound is the "Florida Mound," and its accessible trail is expected to be asphalt, concrete or similar hardscape.

The rest is split into two priced alternates.

Bidders had to price the base plus both alternates. The City can then recommend the base alone, the base with every alternate, or any mix, depending on its interests and available funds. So the dig and the mound are certain if the contract moves forward. Whether the boardwalk, restrooms, pavilion and new parking come with them depends on a decision that hasn't been made yet.

Money is moving in the right direction. On October 12, the City Commission voted to accept $2.7 million in state funding for the wetland work, bringing the state awards for the project to more than $14 million, the Plant City Observer reported. McDaniel told the paper the park is more than a place to walk: "We're managing stormwater, water quality and aquifer recharge. This is generational water security for our community."

During bidding, a contractor asked whether public access could be restricted "for the duration of the project" for public safety. The City's whole answer was "Yes." No trail-by-trail plan has been posted, and no contract has been awarded. But a 608-day job of digging wetland cells and building a 55-foot mound is a long stretch for a preserve this size to stay unchanged.

The preserve you can walk right now

The current McIntosh Preserve came out of a much smaller project. In 2021, a $300,000 State of Florida Legislative Appropriation Grant, matched by the City, added 2.5 miles of trail, a 30-foot observation tower, parking and educational signs to about 50 upland acres. That small upland section is the part most people know, and it's the part sitting closest to the coming change.

Here's how a visit works today, according to the City's McIntosh Preserve page:

• Where: 775 East Knights Griffin Road, north of I-4 near North Alexander Street
• When: Open daily from sunrise to sunset
• The main walk: 1.5 miles round trip from the parking area to the Osprey Overlook observation tower, with the other trails branching off from the tower area
• What to bring: Water, which the City specifically recommends for the tower walk

The trails pass through mixed hardwood hammocks, pine flatwoods and cypress domes. The City lists bald eagles, hawks, quail, bobcats, deer and alligators among the animals visitors might see. The Tampa Audubon Society named the preserve one of three "birdability" sites in the Tampa Bay area for its ADA accessibility. The preserve's eBird hotspot page shows 172 species across 381 checklists, a bit above the "over 160" the City's own page cites.

The wetland itself isn't new. In 2005, the eastern 100 acres, which had been pasture, became a prairie wetland built for $2.5 million, mostly with grant money. The City says that wetland can remove up to 50% of the pollutants going into the Hillsborough River from northeast Hillsborough County. The Eastside Canal drains 6,300 acres in and around Plant City and runs through the wetland before reaching the river at Two Rivers Ranch. The new project scales that approach up across the property and adds reclaimed water that recharges the Floridan aquifer. If you stand at Osprey Overlook today, you're looking out over the land that is about to be reshaped.

The preserve's busiest months are coming up

McIntosh doesn't run one flat schedule all year. Its programming picks up in the cool months, which overlap with the window before construction.

In January, Environmental Land Management Supervisor Madison Atkins described the year's plans to the Plant City Observer as having "a big focus on getting people outside and connected to nature in ways that feel welcoming and accessible." Last season's lineup shows what to watch for:

1. Outdoor movie nights, December through February. Last season showed FernGully on January 24 and WALL-E on February 14. Guests brought blankets, lawn chairs and snacks.
2. The Great American Camp-Out. Last held February 21, 2026, with a bonfire dinner, guided hikes and a tent clinic. It cost $10 per person, was free for kids 17 and under, and was capped at 50 people. It was the only preserve event with a fee.
3. Guided hikes, day and night, offered throughout the year.
4. Junior Ranger activities, held monthly for young explorers.

Dates for the 2026–27 movie nights and the next Camp-Out haven't been announced. With the Camp-Out capped at 50 people, it pays to watch the City of Plant City events calendar closely.

The newer events show the preserve's year-round pull. Wicked Wilds, a nature-themed art event, returned for its second year on October 10 with local artists, food trucks, hayrides and a Halloween movie after dark. Like every preserve event except the Camp-Out, it was free. The McIntosh Green Market, a plant sale that brings together local growers, nurseries and makers, held its second year in September. According to the Plant City Observer, weather moved that market from the preserve to the Sadye Gibbs Martin Community Center at 302 S. Maryland Ave. Both events are built around being on the preserve grounds. A construction schedule would affect events like these first.

Two November dates to pair with a preserve morning

McIntosh's winter programs don't have dates yet, but the city calendar already lists two November events that fit the same idea of a cool-weather morning or evening outdoors.

On Saturday, November 14, Empty Bowls: Soups at Sunset runs from 4 to 7 p.m. at 102 N. Palmer St. downtown. Since the preserve closes at sunset, an afternoon walk out to Osprey Overlook followed by a drive downtown for soup fits neatly into one Saturday.

On Thanksgiving morning, Thursday, November 26, the 8th Annual Cinnamon Roll Run 5K starts at 7 a.m. at Ellis-Methvin Park, 2601 E. Cherry St. The City notes its calendar is selective and that changes can post with a delay, so check with organizers before you go.

When the contract is awarded and its alternates are decided, McIntosh Preserve will start turning into the wetland-and-mound park the City has planned for years. Until then, the 1.5-mile walk to Osprey Overlook is open every day from sunrise to sunset.

Questions like what a new hill, boardwalk or trail might mean for your corner of Plant City come up often in my work, and I'm always glad to talk them through. If you're thinking about your next move or just want a local perspective, Karena Caputo is happy to hear from you. Let's Connect.