ST. PETE, Fla. — The city of St. Pete is entering its final stretch of working to repair the parks, playgrounds, recreation centers and city-owned structures that were damaged during the back-to-back 2024 hurricanes.

Mike Jefferis, the city’s Community Enrichment Administrator, says the Lake Vista Recreation Center in South St. Pete sustained some of the worst damage. The facility, which is one of the city’s busiest recreation centers, has been closed since Hurricane Milton when it took on 18 inches of water and flooded with raw sewage.

What You Need To Know

  • Renovations at  Lake Vista Recreation Center to be completed in May, center to reopen in June

  • 18 inches of water flooded the facility and raw sewage backed up causing major damage 

  • Repairs cost roughly $1.5 million 

  • City received funding to fix 12 playgrounds that have been closed since the hurricanes 

Jefferis says when his staff discovered the extent of the damage, they quickly worked to place all of the affected students at different before-and-after school care programs.

“We know that the working families who depend on this location for childcare…they have no other options,” he said. “The nearby facilities were able to absorb those children so that our parents and children experienced continuity of service.”

Coaches and staff were also reassigned to nearby recreation centers in the interim, so when students returned to school and their before and aftercare programs, they would be greeted with familiar faces.

Due to the extent of the damage inside of the recreation center, Jefferis says they had to pull out all the flooring, much of the drywall, the basketball court and anything that was contaminated. They had a mitigation company inside the day after the storm had passed in order to keep the damage as minimal as possible.

“We made sure that anything that was contaminated we got rid of. We absolutely did not want to take any chances,” he said.

Reconstruction formally began in February, and crews are working daily to install new flooring, walls, fixtures and a basketball court. Jefferis says the cost to repair the damage to date is about $1.5 million.

“We realized getting back to normalcy is critical, it’s important and part of the healing this community needs and demands,” Jefferis said.

Roughly 12 playgrounds have been closed since the hurricanes. Jefferis says flooding caused the ground to swell and damage to the subsurface, making the equipment unstable. The city approved funding in early March to replace the subsurface. The city hopes to have the necessary products ordered shortly so repair work can begin.

Other damages include the city-owned concession stand and parking lot on Treasure Island as well as areas of the shuffleboard court.