Just a stone’s throw away from the Hard Rock Stadium, the Orange Bowl drew up a different kind of play for the Miami Gardens community.
Last Saturday marked the opening of the Orange Bowl STEAM Center at Bunche Park, a digital-first facility designed to give students hands-on access to tools like digital editing equipment, music production software, and 3D printing stations.
“I know first-hand what it means when someone opens the door for you at the right moment. Access, exposure, and belief can completely change the trajectory of a young person’s life,” said Orange Bowl Committee Chair Henri Crockett. “This is how the Orange Bowl gives back.”
Children check out the STEAM Center’s PC setups.
(Rafael Hernandez for The Miami Times)
Beyond a space to tinker with state-of-the-art tech, STEAM Center staff and management hope the building becomes a place where students can foster their creativity and discover new passions fit for the digital age.
The Orange Bowl Committee is a volunteer-driven nonprofit sports organization that uses its annual Orange Bowl football game and related events to promote tourism, youth programs, and community development across South Florida.
The $600,000 center was the result of a partnership between the Orange Bowl Committee, Miami-Dade County, the City of Miami Gardens, and AutoNation.
A STEAM Center staff member explains how kids will be able to use the music room’s production software.
(Rafael Hernandez for The Miami Times)
Miami-Dade Commissioner Oliver Gilbert, who was repeatedly credited for pushing the project forward, pointed to the park’s long history of producing athletes like Teddy Bridgewater and Sean Spence, but emphasized that the new space reflects a shift in how public parks should serve young people.
“We should have space in our parks to attract and cultivate all of our kids’ interests,” Gilbert said. “Football is my thing, but it may not be the kids’ thing.”
Gilbert acknowledged he doesn’t fully understand some of these emerging fields, noting he sees kids with expensive gaming headsets doing things he never experienced growing up with just a Nintendo.
But that generational gap, he suggested, is exactly why spaces like this matter.
“They can shoot podcasts. They can do all types of things here, because that’s what parks should be. Not just some place where you can play football,” he said.
Miami Gardens Mayor Rodney Harris emphasized how the center fits into the city’s rapid transformation since its incorporation in 2003.
Orange Bowl President and Committee Chair Henri Crockett delivers his remarks.
(Rafael Hernandez for The Miami Times)
Once dismissed as a place that people rushed through on their way elsewhere, Harris says developments like the STEAM Center are changing things for Miami Gardens.
“Years ago, people would ride through this city and try to rush to get out of it,” Harris said. “Right now we have people that’s trying to get into our city. Miami Gardens is really the place that you want to be a part of right now.”
(L-R) Miami Gardens Councilman Reggie Leon, Vice Mayor Robert Stevens III, Mayor Rodney Harris, and Miami-Dade Commissioner Oliver Gilbert.
(Rafael Hernandez for The Miami Times)
Vice Mayor Robert Stevens III highlighted education as central to the city’s continued growth.
He described the center as helping Miami Gardens not just thrive, but remain current. To him, the center is a place where residents can access cutting-edge learning tools right in their neighborhood.
“We’ve come to realize that we can’t advance the community without education being at the forefront of its conversation. So creating opportunities such as this today helps us to remain not only a thriving, but a relevant community, a relevant city,” he said.
For Jermaine Scott, a Miami Gardens resident who attended the ribbon-cutting with his family, the center exceeded his expectations.
His partner works with the city’s Parks and Recreation department, and when she told him about the opening, he knew he and his two young daughters needed to see it for themselves.
“I’m walking around with just, like, my mouth open,” Scott said. “Just, like, all the resources, the podcast studio, all the STEAM resources, all the sewing machines, 3D printers. These are all amazing resources that the residents of Miami Gardens can have access to.”
Scott sees the center as a turning point for his community, and hopes that projects like it will turn people’s attention away from Miami and South Beach and toward Miami Gardens itself.
“The city itself is just always advancing, always doing more, always looking forward and being progressive,” Scott said. “I think this is just the beginning. I think the city can provide more free resources for its residents. I think we’re going to start seeing more foot traffic and more commerce come to the city.”
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