Check Out the Plans! Partnership with Argentine Football Association Moves Forward

Neighbors and friends, I'm pleased to update you on the progress of our long-awaited partnership with Miami-Dade Public Schools and the Argentine Football Association (AFA) to construct a Community Center and vastly improve our school.

The plans for the building and initial plans for the Community Park and fields are ready, and can be viewed at the link I'm sharing below. If things continue to move according to plan, we will be breaking ground on these amazing community enhancements by Spring 2024. The Planning and Zoning Board will review the plans this week.

This partnership will improve the green spaces around Treasure Island Elementary, create a community park open to the public for hours when the school is not in session, and build a much-needed community center on Galleon Street, to replace the dilapidated public works building.

To say the least, this has been a complex and difficult undertaking. It's taken literally years to iron out the agreements between the city, AFA, and the Miami-Dade Public School system. And there have been plenty of roadblocks to overcome.

We're grateful to our partners at Miami-Dade County Public Schools, the Miami-Dade County School Board, and the Argentine Football Association for their partnership and vision in working through this innovative process. This is the first time anything like this has been done in Miami-Dade, or in all of Florida as far as I'm aware.

As of October, the School Board gave their final approval for the project to proceed on the area that includes their land. The Community Center and padel and pickle ball courts will be built for the village on our land, and brand new athletics fields, a walking path that circles the school, and a number of other amenities and upgrades are planned for the Treasure Island school site.

In total, this project amounts to an investment of well upwards of $10 million, heavily subsidized by AFA. The village will contribute funds to the path, landscaping and the park on school grounds.

Also important, these facilities will belong in their entirety to the city and school, respectively, from the beginning. No ownership or interest either property changes hands at any point.

AFA will be granted a license to operate the facilities and a soccer academy for our community's kids, with offices in the community center. All aspects of the Community Center and field are public assets, with abundant free access and use for the school and public, in addition to programming for the school, city and AFA as a public recreation licensee.

With the respective approvals taken care of, we now enter the planning and design phase. Again, the goal is to achieve the necessary permits and break ground by the spring. This will also include moving our public works facilities, including the garbage truck parking and dumpster storage, out of North Bay Village, to a facility across the bridge on the mainland.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out. Looking forward to seeing at the groundbreaking!

The site plan to be discussed can be found here: d6012a61-7f01-11ee-852f-0050569183fa-2a13c1c8-6acf-4dce-919d-8bbeacd9e6c8-1701306068.pdf (d3n9y02raazwpg.cloudfront.net)