Hialeah wants to spruce up pedestrian bridge with painted pink flamingos, nod to racetrack

Miami Herald

13-03-2025

Hialeah is moving forward with plans to refurbish a more than 60-year-old pedestrian bridge that connects to Miami Springs.
The proposed design shows painted pink flamingos, a nod to the large colony at the Hialeah race track, as well as other birds in flight perched above the columns. Landscaping and ground cover below will include native and sustainable plants.
'Hialeah is turning 100 next year and we want key features of the city to shine alongside new additions,' the project's proposal says.
An estimated 62,000 vehicles, on a daily basis, whisk under the 1,400-long prefab concrete pedestrian bridge that crosses U.S. 27 at Red Road, or Okeechobee Road and West Fourth Avenue, according to the Florida Department of Transportation.
The city awarded a $64,021 contract last September to R.J. Behar, a Fort Lauderdale-based infrastructure contractor, for engineering plans and permitting work. The vote was 6-0, with Council Member Luis Rodriguez absent.
A spokesperson for Behar said the project is under review by the Florida Department of Transportation as it involves a state road.
FDOT said Wednesday the agency is reviewing Hialeah's request. 'We have received a Community Aesthetic Feature request from the City of Hialeah,' said FDOT spokeswoman Cynthia Turcios.
Such a request involves 'an enhancement installed within the Department's right of way to represent or reflect the surrounding community's identity, culture, and values,' according to the agency.
FDOT will meet with Hialeah officials on March 20 to discuss comments provided by state transportation officials, Turcios said. If necessary, the city may have to revise its plans based on the agency's suggestions.
Following the review, Hialeah most likely will advertise the project by the end of April with a contract expected to awarded in the fall, a Behar spokesperson said.
'The beautification of the Okeechobee pedestrian bridge is vital to one of the initiatives that the city is spearheading, the expansion of our city's connectivity,' Hialeah Councilman Jesus Tundidor said.
It is unclear whether Miami Springs has plans to spruce up its portion of the bridge, which exits onto North Royal Poinciana Boulevard and links to parks, fishing and picnic areas, walking trails and a free shuttle that meanders about the city on an hourly loop to Hialeah.
Miami Springs Mayor Maria Mitchell and council members did not return an email seeking comment. Mitchell's term ends in April and she is not seeking re-election.
A few blocks west, Hialeah has also floated plans to build a pedestrian bridge underneath the Hialeah Expressway, according to Hialeah's 2050 plan draft.
The new pedestrian bridge would be part of a linear park called 'Hia-Line,' according to Hialeah's 2050 plan. Plans call for creating 'a network of pedestrian paths, sidewalks and trails with safe and comfortable crossings.'
Read more: Hialeah wants its own version of The Underline, a linear park called 'Hia-Line'
The area under the proposed bridge is a geographic conundrum, as the land borders Miami Springs, Medley, Hialeah, unincorporated Miami-Dade County and Florida East Coast Railway property.
Hialeah Mayor Esteban Bovo did not return a message asking whether the bridge would be built on county-owned land sandwiched between Medley and Miami Springs.