WCOM NEWS

6-23-04

County supports park project in eastern Miramar

MIRAMAR--Snake Warrior's Island is already popular with walkers and nature lovers. Now a plan is in place to provide a covered shelter, bathrooms and a welcome center.

The Broward County Commission last week approved a $600,000 second phase project at Snake Warrior's Island in eastern Miramar. The 53-acre county-operated natural area, on Southwest 62nd Avenue just north of County Line Road, attracts visitors from Pembroke Pines, Weston, Davie, Hollywood, Cooper City and other municipalities.

Snake Warrior's Island is named for the Seminole Indian "Snake Warrior" Chitto Tustenuggee, who inhabited the area in the mid-1800s. The state now owns the land, but allowed the Broward County Parks and Recreation Division to restore the site over the last decade and now manage it. The area opened Jan. 21.

"It's a real popular site, especially for walkers and those viewing the wildlife," said Dan Cotter of the Broward Parks and Recreation Division's environmental section. A half-mile concrete path gets a lot of use for those wanting to jog or walk among nature, he said.

In the second phase of improvements, the county will begin an upgrade in 2005 and should be finished in early 2006, Cotter said. The project has yet to be designed and must be put out for bid.

The welcome center near the area's entrance will have space for offices, a small classroom and nature displays. The shelter will be built along the existing walking path and might have a connecting fishing dock, Cotter said.

The money will come from the $400 million Safe Parks and Land Preservation bond issue that Broward voters approved in 2000.

(source) Sun Sentinel (Nick Sortal) 6-23-04