Amelia Earhart Park playground makeover reveals an exciting new space to help kids be active outdoors

(MIAMI, February 11, 2015) - On February 7, 2015, residents joined staff from the Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Department and Miami-Dade County District 13 Commissioner Esteban Bovo Jr. for the grand opening and dedication of the new playground at the popular “Tom Sawyer’s Play Island” at Amelia Earhart Park, located at 401 E. 65 Street in Hialeah. A fort-style tree house with climbers, spinners, slides, balance beams, swings, and musical instruments to play are part of the new playground amenities, designed to keep children ages 2-12 active and engaged in the great outdoors. The fully-accessible playground area is approximately 7,500 square feet, making it the largest playground in the Miami-Dade County Parks system.

The Parks Department completed the playground improvement project in conjunction with contractors HG Construction and No Fault Industries. Other upgrades included improvements to the island’s landscaping, pavilion and fencing, and the installation of new flooring in the existing walk-through cave. The project cost was approximately $500,000 and was funded by the “Building Better Communities” General Obligation Bond Program (BBC-GOB).

The 515-acre Amelia Earhart Park also features five crystal blue lakes, picnic facilities, an 18-hole disc golf course, a five-acre fenced dog park, a mountain-bike trail, a multi-use recreational pathway, and a bike wash station. The park is home to the Bill Gram Farm Village, Miami Wakeboarding Complex and Soccer 5 Soccer Complex. For more information about Amelia Earhart Park visit www.miamidade.gov or call 305-685-8389.

Photo#1 – A bridge connects visitors to the new playground at Amelia Earhart Park’s “Tom Sawyer’s Play Island.”

Photos #2 (L-R) & #3  – Miami-Dade County District 13 Commissioner Esteban Bovo, Jr. and Miami-Dade County Parks Deputy Director George Navarrete at the dedication ceremonies and with staff and local youth at the ribbon-cutting.

Photos #4-#6 – Views of the new playground amenities at the newly revitalized “Tom Sawyer’s Play Island.”

Photo #7 – An inside view of the walk-through cave. 

Photo credit, photos #2 & #3:  Michael Fullana, Miami-Dade County
Photo credit, all other photos: Laura Phillips, Miami-Dade County Parks