Flamingo Waterpark
Speculative climate-adaptive public infrastructure concept.
What It Is
A Harvard GSD design research project that reimagines Flamingo Park in Miami Beach as a decentralized water infrastructure and public landscape system. The proposal addresses sea level rise, salinization, flooding, and freshwater scarcity by using a seasonal water strategy centered on stormwater retention tanks, altered topography, and distributed irrigation.
Rather than treating the park only as recreation space, the project imagines it as part of the city’s climate adaptation infrastructure.
Why It Matters
In subtropical climates like South Florida, water arrives in extremes. There can be too much water during storm events and not enough usable freshwater for irrigation during dry periods. At the same time, sea level rise and groundwater salinization put urban vegetation and public landscapes under stress.
Flamingo Park is one of Miami Beach’s major open green spaces, making it a strategic site for testing how public space can also function as water infrastructure. This project explores how a park can help manage flooding, store freshwater, support vegetation, and create usable civic space without losing its identity.
How It Works / What I Did
Framing the climate-water problem
- Studied how sea level rise, salinization, rainfall variability, and groundwater conditions affect freshwater availability in Miami Beach
- Defined different “water types” and seasonal water conditions as a design problem, not only an engineering problem
- Positioned Flamingo Park as a pilot site for a broader adaptive landscape strategy
Seasonal freshwater strategy
- Developed a concept for capturing and storing stormwater in a series of retention / cistern-like tanks
- Proposed periodic storage and distribution of freshwater for irrigation based on seasonal patterns
- Reduced dependence on energy-intensive desalinated water by imagining local collection and reuse
Park + infrastructure integration
- Reimagined Flamingo Park as a hybrid of public realm and municipal water infrastructure
- Proposed strategic landform modifications above projected flood lines rather than elevating the entire park
- Used elevated topography and tank placement to create dry ground, support post-storm use, and maintain the park’s public character
Decentralized system thinking
- Designed the proposal as part of a connected system, not a single object
- Imagined an underground pipe network linking tanks to support irrigation for park trees, sports fields, and nearby green spaces
- Explored how a park-based system could extend benefits beyond the park itself
Ecological + spatial design language
- Integrated flood- and drought-tolerant planting strategies and adaptive vegetation thinking
- Treated elevated cisterns / tanks as spatial elements that support multiple public uses and experiences
- Explored how water infrastructure can also become civic space, botanical landscape, and urban identity
Outcome
A climate adaptation design proposal that treats public landscape as active infrastructure. This project shaped how I think about resilience, systems design, and the role of public-facing spatial interventions in responding to environmental change.
It remains foundational to my current work at the intersection of climate, complex systems, and usable tools for the public.
Project Links
- Miami Herald feature
- View project on Harvard GSD → Flamingo Waterpark
- Related research context (Harvard GSD + City of Miami Beach) → South Florida and Sea Level
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