LED lights illuminate coastline for Super Bowl

The million guests expected to flood into Downtown for the Super Bowl will be treated with hot pinks lights as they amble along Bayfront Park’s coastline. 

A total of 46 LED lights have been installed in the Baywalk, with 36 illuminating Bayfront Park, and another 10 lighting up Parcel B, located behind the AmericanAirlines Arena. The project ties into the Downtown Development Authority’s ongoing efforts to revitalize the Baywalk, the work-in-progress trail hugging Downtown Miami’s waterfront. 

The lights are one of several Super Bowl LIV Legacy Projects, as the tri-county area prepares to host football’s biggest night. Christina Crespi, acting executive director for the authority, said the newly installed lights around Bayfront Park are to be officially unveiled before the Super Bowl, with a potential date of Jan. 23. 

Savino Miller Design Studio has been behind developing the design elements for the Baywalk, including the lights, which were designed in collaboration with Louis Poulson Lighting. The LEDs run down the curved poles and the colors can be changed. 

“This is the beginning of standardizing some design elements that help promote the Baywalk,” Ms. Crespi said.  

She added that the lights will be programmed to hot pink during the Super Bowl Festivities, including Super Bowl Live!, the premier event occurring in Downtown Miami.

The funding for the 36 LED lights installed in Bayfront Park came from a $300,000 grant from the NFL Foundation, a matching grant of $300,000 from the City of Miami, and the remainder of about $110,000 from the authority. The authority also funded the additional cost for the LED lights in Parcel B, upgrading plans for traditional lights to be paid for by Miami-Dade County. 

The Super Bowl 2020 Host Committee approached the authority with a request for $300,000. The authority agreed, contingent on the funding from the city and the NFL Foundation’s grant.

Some of the other Super Bowl LIV Legacy Projects receiving grants from the NFL Foundation are the restoration of the athletic field in Miami Beach Senior High and the renovation of the turf football fields in Gwen Cherry Park and Goulds Park.

In the efforts being led by Savino Miller, the firm has developed guidelines for the future of the Baywalk, including plans for the installation of a total of 131 lights throughout the trail. The plan also calls for the harmonization of the Baywalk with the Miami Riverwalk and the  Underline, the linear park to run beneath the elevated portions of the Metrorail.

“It has the potential to be the spine of Downtown Miami, an open space amenity that connects three distinct neighborhoods, and allow waterfront access to all residents, not just those that can afford to live on the water,” an update from the authority reads.

Ms. Crespi also emphasized that the Baywalk’s future will be a valuable amenity to not just Downtown Miami residents but all city residents. 

She said, “It’s the beginning of many great things to come for the Baywalk.”