Orange Bowl Legacy Gift - Carter Park

Rendering of Orange Bowl Field at Carter Park by Carty Architecture.

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Staff Writer | www.orangebowl.org

Miami Lakes, Fla. and Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (www.orangebowl.org) – Today, the Orange Bowl announced its partnership with the City of Fort Lauderdale to invest $3 million - $1.5 million from each entity – to renovate Joseph C. Carter Park in Fort Lauderdale. Located at 1450 W. Sunrise Boulevard, the project will benefit thousands of underprivileged children who participate in various athletic leagues, after school programs and summer camps at Carter Park.

A ground breaking ceremony was held at the park on July 19 at 10 am. The renovated park is expected to be unveiled at a ribbon cutting ceremony during the week of the 2013 Discover BCS National Championship Game. New features at Carter Park include:

• Installation of a synthetic turf football field which will reduce maintenance costs, increase availability for usage and is environmentally friendly. Once open, the football field will be officially known as Orange Bowl Field at Carter Park.
• Enhancement of the bleachers to provide better visibility and protection from the weather for spectators.
• Addition of a state-of-the-art eight lane regulation track and accompanying individual track & field event areas (long jump runway, hammer throw / shot put circle, etc.) surrounding the football field.
• Replacement of existing scoreboard

"Creating the opportunity for South Florida youth to benefit from the positive lessons learned from organized sports – dedication, discipline and sportsmanship – is what drives the Orange Bowl in our desire to give back to the community that has supported our organization for the past 79 years," said O. Ford Gibson, president and chairman, Orange Bowl Committee. "Following the Orange Bowl’s Moore Park project in Allapattah, we are looking forward to making a similar impact in Fort Lauderdale, serving thousands of residents and creating the opportunity for Carter Park to attract a greater range of youth athletic competitions and community activities."

"This project marks the beginning of an exciting new era in the history of Carter Park," said City of Fort Lauderdale Mayor John P. "Jack" Seiler. "It represents a significant investment in our community that will allow us to expand our recreational programming, while continuing to encourage healthy, active lifestyles. The new turf football field, eight-lane track and other amenities will enable us to enhance our youth football program, build a championship track and field program, and provide adults and seniors with an outstanding venue for daily exercise and physical fitness. We’d like to thank the Orange Bowl for their commitment to this project, and we look forward to working with them to make this one of the premier athletic facilities in South Florida."

One of the events to be hosted at Carter Park upon the completion of the renovations is the Orange Bowl Florida Youth Track and Field Invitational (Orange Bowl FLYTAF). Open to all clubs and athletes ages 5 to 18, the Orange Bowl FLYTAF traditionally is held in May and will be entering its eighth year.

In addition to benefitting children in their athletic development, the new park will serve as an aide in their individual maturation. In a survey by Physical Education for Life, 93 percent of parents said youth sports promoted personal growth and 84 percent said organized athletics nurtured good moral behavior. Additionally, a growing body of research is showing the social and economic benefits of participation in youth sports to be surprisingly large and overwhelmingly positive.

The Orange Bowl Committee and City of Fort Lauderdale are also partners in the City of Fort Lauderdale Orange Bowl Downtown Countdown, the annual New Year’s Eve celebration in Downtown Fort Lauderdale.

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