Beginning with City Park (today’s Williams Park) in the late 19th century and expanding to the waterfront in the early 20th, St. Petersburg’s parks have a long history of providing locals and visitors with a wide variety of amenities. Today, St. Pete can boast more than 150 city parks and numerous Pinellas County parks. According to the Trust for Public Land, 77 percent of residents live within a 10-minute walk to a park. Park amenities vary depending on location and size and can include picnic areas, playgrounds, beaches, boat ramps, fishing docks, playing fields, sports courts, fitness equipment, trails, nature preserves, art installations, and historic sites. Dogs and skaters even have their own spaces. Parks & Recreation also offers classes, service projects, camps, and a variety of after-school educational programs. Choose an activity or choose to relax, and there’s a park or recreation center that fits your needs.
Something For Everyone
Campbell Park and its recreation center originally were intended to serve only the segregated Black community living just south of the rapidly developing Central Avenue corridor. Today, Campbell Park is a sprawling complex with something for everyone. From Fifth to Seventh avenues S between Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and 16th streets.
Its 30-plus acres offer visitors a wide variety of outdoor activities. Walkers and runners can enjoy more than one mile of paved sidewalks. These paths meander through green space and across Booker Creek while also taking visitors by the park’s many amenities, including two playgrounds, an exercise zone, and a skate park. The park also has several athletic fields and ball courts where outdoor sports enthusiasts can play basketball, softball, and football. It also is the home field for the St. Pete Lil Devils Football and Cheer Youth Organization.
Recreation Center
The mural-adorned recreation center serves as the hub for many of the Lil Devils’ activities, and many other scheduled activities, programs, and classes the park offers. For kids, the center provides numerous before-and-after-school programs and activities as well as summer camps. For teens, the Rec Center sponsors before- and after school programs and trips as well as TASCO leagues, open gym time for basketball, a video and board game room, and tutoring specialists. Adults can sign up for a variety of sports leagues including indoor basketball. In addition to the park’s 12 shelters and four convenient parking lots, the Campbell Park Recreation Center also has a banquet room with a kitchen so the park can serve as a great place to host entertainment events or a family gathering such as a baby shower, family picnic, reunion or wedding. Summer and winter, Campbell Park offers something to keep adults and kids active and engaged.
For more information about any of St. Pete’s parks, visit www.stpeteparksrec.org or call (727) 893-7441.
For detailed information about Campbell Park Recreation Center’s hours, programs, leagues, and fees call (727) 893-7733 or visit www. stpeteparksrec.org/campbellparkrec/
