BROWNSVILLE OBSERVER GOES ON IMPRESSIVE TOUR OF CAMERON COUNTY PARKS ON SOUTH PADRE ISLAND

Cameron County Park Director Joe E. Vega(black shirt), 

along the boardwalk at Isla Blanca Park, showing park

 amenities to Cameron County Parks Advisory Board members

Overseeing 793 acres of parkland at seventeen parks and two social centers, Cameron County Park Director Joe E. Vega tries to balance the county's recreational needs while protecting the environment.

The park advisory board is a serious group.  We met this morning at 9:00 AM in a construction trailer at Isla Blanca Park, then got into a 15 passenger parks department bus for a tour of three newly constructed facilities;  the E.K. Atwood Pavilion at Access #5 and the Sandpiper and D.J. Lerma Pavilions at Isla Blanca Park.

As we walked along the boardwalk at E.K. Atwood, Vega pointed out the recycled plastic deck boards, designed to last at least thirty years in a beach environment, the Brazilian teakwood of the railing, the beautiful restrooms, showers and vendor cubicles.  

The D.J. Lerma Pavilion, still under construction, and the Sandpiper Pavilion, already in service, are almost identical at opposite ends of Isla Blanca Park.  

Native plants from the dunes have been transplanted around the pavilions, with that work done by two local colleges.  Each pavilion will eventually have its own butterfly garden, an amenity Vega says exists at all county parks.

La Esperanza Community Park, an "all-inclusive" park, for able and disabled residents, is already in operation near the Cameron Park colonia, but, due to a hardworking grant writer, plans include adding a splash pad, exercise equipment, a covered basketball court and a trail.

A Texas Parks and Wildlife grant enabled repairs at Adolph Thomae, Jr. Park, improving the boat ramp, adding LED lighting and two launch areas.

Another grant was used to stabilize the shoreline of the Arroyo Colorado with an eye to preserving and encouraging the growth of native plants.

The county's admission fee for South Padre Island facilities is $10 per car with a $2 trash pickup charge, refunded when the bag furnished is returned with refuse.  The picnic tables and grills are available on a "first come, first serve" basis.