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Updated: FDEP said they had “overwhelming interest” and would reschedule the meetings for the week of Sept. 2. They also have a form where people can offer input.

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Florida’s state parks are our treasures. When working on Backroads of Paradise, I spent all but two nights in our parks. Much of the work on Florida Spectacular was also done in or inspired by our parks. When I visit our parks, I’m transported to a Florida people who don’t visit our parks will never experience. It’s wild, and I’m not speaking hyperbolically. Florida’s parks show us what Florida looked like when it was wholly unbuilt or, in some cases, barely built.

If you’ve read… well, pretty much anything I’ve written about Florida, you know how much I love the parks. Our legislature mandated state parks as we entered the Great Depression (actually, we entered it well in advance of most of the country, but that’s another story for another time). We had no money to build these mandated parks. But when President Roosevelt’s New Deal came into play, funding appeared to help stimulate the economy. He sent the Civilian Conservation Corps — his tree army  — to Florida to build our first nine parks.

Florida’s First Nine State Parks

I won’t go into it here — I have an entire chapter on the WPA in Florida and our state parks in Florida Spectacular — but here are the first nine, in order of when they opened:

1. Highlands Hammock State Park (1931)
2. Ravine Gardens State Park (1933)
3. Hillsborough River State Park (1938)
4. Mike Roess Goldhead Branch State Park (1939)
5. Fort Clinch State Park (1940)
6. O’Leno State Park (1940)
7. Myakka River State Park (1941)
8. Florida Caverns State Park (1942)
9. Torreya State Park State Park (1942 — mostly; some parts opened later)

Why are Florida State Parks Significant?

When the CCC built these first nine parks, they used the National Park Service as a model. What this meant for Floridians — and future tourists — was that Florida has a park system on par with our national parks. Our state parks consistently win awards for being so amazingly spectacular.

It’s not only the awards, it’s not only me.  Florida has 175 state parks, and on the weekends, they’re packed. Many are also packed on weekdays. Some close because they hit capacity on the weekends. If you want to camp in the parks, you have to reserve well in advance. I’m not the only one who prefers a Florida state park campground to a KOA or Thousand Trails or other commercial campground.

But, for some reason, our government wants to make these parks more like those campgrounds.

What’s the Risk to Florida State Parks?

Earlier this week, the FDEP announced plans to add golf courses, pickleball courts, and other amenities to several well-loved parks. With what appears to be no awareness of irony, FDEP’s calling this plan its “Great Outdoors Initiative.” In the same press release announcing these changes, FDEP praised the revenue the parks already generate in Florida:

“In Fiscal Year 2022-23, Florida’s 175 state parks attracted nearly 30 million visitors, contributing to an annual economic impact of $3.6 billion and supporting more than 50,000 jobs. Florida’s broader outdoor recreation economy continues to thrive, generating over $52 billion in economic output and supporting more than 460,000 jobs in 2022 alone—a 20% increase in economic output and an 11% rise in employment compared to the previous year.”

What Does FDEP Want To Build In Florida State Parks?

Some of what FDEP proposed is wonderful — better restrooms, more camping cabins, that sort of thing. I don’t mind disc golf, either, because the course is often wild terrain and works with the existing environment. But much of it flies in the face of why people who love our parks flock to them time and time again. This includes:

• At Topsail Hill Preserve State Park, a conceptual map shows plans for a 350-room hotel and pickleball courts.
• At Grayton Beach State Park, plans include pickleball courts.
• Anastasia State Park’s  plans include a 350-room hotel, and pickleball courts.
• Hillsborough River State Park’s plans include pickleball courts.
• The plans for Jonathan Dickinson State Park have a golf course, which involves removing existing amenities such as the Hobe Mountain boardwalk.
• Honeymoon Island State Park will get pickleball courts — and more parking to accommodate this.
• Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula State Johnson Park plans include pickleball courts.
• At Oleta River State Park, FDEP plans to build pickleball courts.

These “amenities” all involve tearing out the existing flora, will negatively impact the wildlife, and jeopardize all that makes our state parks amazing.

Who Runs Florida State Parks?

The Florida State Park system is part of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection,  whose stated mission and values say this:

Mission: “The Florida Department of Environmental Protection protects, conserves and manages the state’s natural resources and enforces its environmental laws.”

Vision: “To advance Florida’s position as a world leader in protecting natural resources while growing the state’s economy.”

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While FDEP didn’t give much notice, it has scheduled public meetings close to each park with proposed changes. All the meetings take place Aug. 27 at 3 p.m., so pick either the one you care about the most (how does one choose a favorite state park? I can’t!) or the one you can get to, and please, please, please go there and tell FDEP to keep their paws off our parks.

Please click the links for the meeting locations — they do not take place at the parks!

Florida State Parks at Risk Meeting Locations

• Hillsborough River State Park
• Honeymoon Island State Park
• Oleta River State Park
• Jonathan Dickinson State Park
• Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park
• Anastasia State Park
• Camp Helen State Park
• Topsail Hill Preserve State Park
• Grayton Beach State Park

You may also be able to help protect these parks by emailing epnews@floridadep.gov, but the best way is by attending one of the meetings above.

Get More Florida!

Finally, if you love Florida, please support my Florida travel habit, my dogs, and this website. Here’s how:

• For $5/month, subscribe to my Florida Keys Spectacular podcast with Keys historian and writer Brad Bertelli.
• Not ready to commit? Check out the always-free Florida Spectacular podcast!
• Finally, pre-order my book by the same name. Because Florida is pretty damn amazing.