The Southport/McCoy Parks Master Plan
The closing of the NTC McCoy Annex,
now known as Southport, provided a tremendous opportunity to meet
the need for recreation in southeast Orlando, an area of the city
under-served by active recreation facilities. The land and
facilities at the McCoy Annex included a wide range of
recreational facilities. The City's challenge was to re-invigorate
these facilities to serve Orlando's civilian population, to
supplement these facilities with new recreational opportunities
geared to the needs of southeast Orlando, and to bring all these
together into a unified recreation system that efficiently serves
the population.
The new park reflects the rich history of the area. First
occupied
by Native Americans, the land began to see permanent settlement
during the 1850’s. After World War II, the site became a military
installation used first by both the Air Force and then the Navy. The
park’s designers used this history in the park’s architectural
elements and in an educational sign package. Southport
Community Park includes six lighted baseball fields, a playground, a
pavilion overlooking a newly constructed lake, community stage,
picnic facilities, basketball courts, biking and walking trails,
site lighting, landscaping and irrigation. A large portion of the
park is informal open space.
A
public meeting on April 20, 1999 at Durrance Elementary School was
attended by over 150 people and provided excellent comments to the
Glatting-Jackson team for the final plans for the 50-acre Southport
Community Park. Other park plans for the area have been
included in the Southport Vision Plan. These include a
wetlands enhancement educational park, and a complete system of
bicycle and pedestrian pathways linking all of the major facilities
proposed at the McCoy Annex property.
|
NTC Main Page | Southport
Main Page |
|
