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Contact: Allyson Gantt, 305-242-7714
HOMESTEAD, Florida – Everglades National Park and the South Florida National Parks Trust (SFNPT) launched a campaign today to restore the park's Flamingo Visitor Center with support from American Express, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the public through the Partners in Preservation program. With its distinctive breezeway and bright pink exterior, the Flamingo Visitor Center has served as a gateway to the Everglades and Florida Bay since the 1960s. The waterfront building was damaged in 2005 by back-to-back hurricanes and is now in need of repair. Everglades National Park is one of 20 national parks competing for $2 million in grant funding from the 2016 Partners in Preservation: National Parks campaign, honoring the Centennial of the National Park Service. The grants will be awarded to the national parks that win the most public votes during an online voting campaign from May 25 to July 5. To secure the funding needed to restore the Flamingo Visitor Center, Everglades National Park and the SFNPT are encouraging everyone to go to www.voteyourpark.org and vote for the Everglades. The public can vote once a day for their favorite park until July 5. "Everglades National Park needs everyone to get behind this project, to help restore the Flamingo Visitor Center and create support for a larger rebuilding effort in Flamingo," said Pedro Ramos, superintendent of Everglades and Dry Tortugas National Parks. The Flamingo Visitor Center was built by the National Park Service in the early 1960s as part of a "Mission 66" program to modernize national parks for a new generation of park visitors. Mission 66 transformed the national park system by adding new visitor centers, administrative buildings, campgrounds, roads and trails to parks across the country. Mission 66 also ushered in a new style of park architecture, a style known as Park Service Modern. The Flamingo Visitor Center combines Park Service Modern architecture with tropical touches that shout Miami and make the building distinct –pink paint, a keystone veneer, jalousie windows and a covered breezeway. A $250,000 grant from the National Trust's Partners in Preservation program would repair the exterior of the building, restore the historic landscape and improve the visitor experience while supporting the goal of opening a new visitor center inside the building. The park recently completed a design study for interior renovations that would transform the building's former restaurant into a new visitor center and bookstore with exhibits on the Everglades and sweeping views of Florida Bay. The study is part of a larger plan to revive the entire Flamingo district inside the park by adding overnight lodging (24 elevated cottages and 20 eco-tents) a restaurant for casual family dining, and new visitor services. The park is seeking a business partner to provide commercial services in Flamingo for the next 20 years. Proposals are due July 13. The Partners in Preservation program, launched in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service in 2016, gives everyone an opportunity to support the park's rebuilding efforts by casting a vote for the Everglades at VoteYourPark.org and sharing on social media with hashtag #VoteEverglades. Restoring the Flamingo Visitor Center to its former glory through a Partners in Preservation grant will connect a new generation of visitors to this iconic spot and serve as a catalyst for the rejuvenation of the entire Flamingo Mission 66 district. About Flamingo Located at the center of the greatest wilderness east of the Rockies, Flamingo is the gateway to the 99-mile Wilderness Waterway and many shorter boating and paddling adventures in Everglades National Park. The area surrounding Flamingo is a birder's paradise, home to the Roseate Spoonbill and a host of other birds, including the occasional American Flamingo (a pair was spotted in November 2015 just east of Flamingo). The waters around Flamingo provide refuge for the threatened American crocodile, and manatees are frequently spotted in the Flamingo marina. Flamingo is also one of the world's premiere fishing destinations. Anglers pursue mangrove snapper, redfish, snook, tarpon, and other game fish on Florida Bay and in the backcountry. About the South Florida National Parks Trust The South Florida National Parks Trust is the official nonprofit partner of the National Park Service in South Florida. Since 2002 the Trust has provided more than $5 million in grant funding to South Florida's national parks to support environmental education for South Florida school kids, resource protection projects, ranger programs for the public, volunteer activities and community outreach. Visit www.southfloridaparks.org or www.facebook.com/southfloridanationalparkstrust to learn more. The voting website is VoteYourPark.org More information on Everglades National Park can be found on the park website at www.nps.gov/ever This and other park news releases are available at www.nps.gov/ever/parknews/ -NPS- |
Last updated: May 26, 2016