ATV park not in sight for Collier County

Collier County doesn’t have its own ATV park. They’ve been mulling over land options for over a decade. The County told us they are not actively pursuing the idea of developing a park for ATVs, but they are not panning it either.

Meanwhile, neighbors say it can be dangerous in areas of the county like Golden Gate Estates, where many fellow neighbors own ATVs. At night, most are not expecting to see one on the road.

On Sunday, Collier County Sheriff’s Office arrested Jacob Earnest, 44, after he was accused of riding an ATV on the sidewalk without lights on and without an active driver’s license.

“They’ll do whatever they can to play on their toys, the big boy toys,” Ray Smith said.

It’s against the law to ride an ATV on any public road, street or highway in the state.

Smith lives in Golden Gates Estates and owns an ATV like many who live there. However, he packs up and drives to legal places to ride it. He admits not all do.

“There’s a few private places you can pay and ride,” Smith said. “But everybody likes to sort of to get around that.”

Seth Logan is another ATV rider. He admits it’s a safety issues when riders don’t follow the law.

“One time, I was out at night, and somebody actually came out right in front me, jumped in the road, and I was like, Woah, I almost hit him,” Logan said.

Collier County is continuing its ticket to ride program, giving ATV riders access to other parks.

“It would be nice though if we had some kind of park like that because it would solve a lot of issues,” Logan said.