Demolition Nears for Aging Armbrister Park Community Center as $10 Million Rebuild Moves Forward

After years of planning, the wrecking crew is almost ready to move in at Esther Mae Armbrister Park. The City of Miami has set a timeline for demolishing the park’s aging community center, clearing the way for a new $10 million, two-story facility that officials say will transform the West Coconut Grove neighborhood’s civic and recreational hub.

The Timeline

According to the City of Miami’s Office of Capital Improvements, the following schedule is now in place, though officials caution it could shift due to weather or other unforeseen conditions:

• End of September 2026: Miami-Dade Water and Sewer (WASD) is expected to complete water connectivity work for temporary trailers that will house Parks and Recreation staff during construction.
• End of September 2026: Demolition of the existing community center building is set to begin as soon as the trailer hookups are complete.
• End of October 2026: Demolition is expected to be finished, a process anticipated to take about one month.
• Early November 2026: Construction of the new building begins with excavation work.
• Completion date: To be determined, based on how construction progresses.

The park’s afterschool program will continue operating at Armbrister Park facilities until further notice as the project moves forward.

A Long Road to Groundbreaking

The project has been years in the making. It was first proposed in 2020 by then-District 2 Commissioner Ken Russell, and has since gone through multiple rounds of community input and design revisions. Funding was finally approved as part of the city’s 2024-25 fiscal budget, and the most recent design plans were presented to the community at a meeting on March 26, 2026.

The project is now being carried forward under current District 2 Commissioner Damian Pardo, in partnership with the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation and Office of Capital Improvements.

What’s Replacing the Old Building

The existing single-story community center — located within the 4.4-acre park at 4000 Grand Avenue — will be replaced by a new two-story structure of roughly 10,000 square feet, along with an outdoor pavilion. Planned features include:

• An administration office and entrance reception area
• A food prep room and multi-purpose room
• Workrooms, including an art workroom with a sink
• Elevator access to the second floor
• Restrooms on both levels, with first-floor restrooms accessible from outside
• An information technology room with laptop charging stations
• Sports equipment storage with exterior access
• Three individual classrooms
• Interior storage for tables, chairs, and recreation supplies
• Landscaping and an electrical power generator
• An Art in Public Places component

The design also incorporates Caribbean and Bahamian architectural influences, a nod to the cultural heritage of West Coconut Grove. Beyond day-to-day recreation and after-school programming, the new center is also intended to serve as an outreach center during hurricanes and other natural disasters.

Honoring the Park’s History

Armbrister Park is named for Esther Mae Potts Armbrister, a Bahamian-descended community activist known for her advocacy at Miami City Hall, including a campaign to renovate a local park and secure historic designation for parts of West Grove. Within the current community center hangs a plaque honoring the park’s first recreation supervisor, Carolyn Evans Payne — and some community members have expressed hope that her legacy will be preserved in some form even after the old building comes down.

Former Commissioner Ken Russell, who first pushed for the project, said the years of community engagement paid off. “The hard part is done. The political will was there to create the plan, listen to the community, and gather the stakeholders,” Russell said, adding that the new facility will serve as a much-needed central hub for the neighborhood beyond sports and cultural programming.

What’s Next

The city has not yet announced a completion date for the new building, which will depend on how construction progresses once excavation begins in November. Residents can submit feedback on the project through the Office of Capital Improvements or by emailing AskOCI@miamigov.com

Renderings Source: City of Miami Office of Capital Improvements