Intracoastal Sports Park in Sunny Isles Beach: Court Booking Guide

On Thursday, September 3, Sunny Isles Beach cut the ribbon on Intracoastal Sports Park at 15800 Collins Avenue. It has multi-use courts for tennis and basketball, outdoor exercise equipment and a walkway along the water. Before this, the City had one place to play, the indoor gym at Pelican Community Park. When the park broke ground in February 2025, City leaders described that gym as the city's only indoor court. That gym fits one full basketball court or two half courts. You need a membership to get in, and open play happens only when no program has the floor.

City leaders had long said the city needed more outdoor sports facilities. The new courts sit on a 0.63-acre parcel at 158th Street. Court time there is limited, and the rules for using them are written to share it out. They also feed into a bigger question the City Commission put off until these courts opened.

The courts work in two shifts

The park and the courts keep different hours. The grounds are open daily from sunrise to sunset. The courts and the staffed facility run from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., close, then reopen from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.

That four-hour midday break shapes everything else. Bookable time falls into a morning block and an evening block. Basketball is narrower still, since basketball reservations run only from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. each day. The evening block is also when the walkway, the fitness stations and both sports draw the most people at once. Courts with no reservation go to whoever gets there first.

Because time is short, the City wrote rules to spread it around.

The booking rules, in the order they come up

Only residents with a valid Sunny Isles Beach Resident ID Card can reserve online, through sibfl.gov/activities. After that, the posted rules play out in this order:

1. Look early. Reservations open up to seven days ahead, first come, first served.
2. Pick one hour. Each booking is one hour and starts on the hour.
3. Watch the household cap. A household gets three reservations a week, no more than one a day, and only one court at a time.
4. Register your guests. A tennis booking allows up to three guests and a basketball booking up to nine. Guests don't have to live in Sunny Isles Beach, but each needs a waiver on file.
5. Check in at the office. Staff confirm the booking, check waivers and assign a court before anyone walks on.
6. Arrive on time. There's a 10-minute grace period. After that, the reservation is forfeited.

Cancellations follow their own rule. Under the City's policy, failing to show or cancel at least 12 hours ahead can lead to a booking suspension, and doing it three times in a 90-day quarter brings a one-month block on online booking. You can cancel through your CivicRec account or by emailing [email protected]. If weather closes the courts, staff contact the holder by phone or email, and the slot can be rebooked within the same week if space allows.

What the Resident ID card is worth on the court

The weekly cap limits how often residents can book. The fee schedule decides who can book at all. Here are the City's posted rates side by side:

A doubles game of four nonresidents comes to $120 an hour at the posted rate. The same game booked by one cardholder with three guests costs $15. The City has also covered residents who pay before they have a card. If you pay the nonresident rate and then apply for a Resident ID within five business days, the City considers a refund once the card is approved.

A few rules on the courts tend to surprise first-time players. Only tennis and basketball are allowed on reserved courts, and private tennis lessons aren't permitted. You can't bring a ball basket or more than six tennis balls onto a court. Only staff can install nets or adjust hoop heights. The office sells tennis balls and bottled drinks. Pets, bicycles, scooters, e-bikes and fishing aren't allowed anywhere in the park.

Getting the card before your first booking

The card itself is free. Besides court access, the City lists free fishing at Newport Pier, lower prices and priority registration for camps and programs, discounts on City events, and access to amenities at Gateway Center.

A first-time application needs a government photo ID and either a current deed or a lease of at least one year. Renters also need a letter from the condo association or building management naming the occupants, plus two of the residency proofs on the City's list. Cards expire one year after they're issued, and the address on the card has to match the application documents.

You can apply online or at one of three desks:

• Government Center Visitor Center Desk, 18070 Collins Ave., weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Pelican Community Park, 18115 North Bay Road, weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. and weekends 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Gateway Center, 151 Sunny Isles Blvd., weekdays 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The City says approval takes 7 to 10 business days. Cultural & Community Services takes questions at 305-792-1706. Applying now gets the card in time for this fall's events, which use the same two-tier pricing as the courts. Booogie by the Beach, a dinosaur-themed Halloween night at Pelican Community Park, runs Friday and Saturday, October 23 and 24, from 7 to 10 p.m. Wristbands cost $10 a day with a Resident ID and $50 without one. Winter Fest comes to Gateway Park on November 21 and 22, from 5:30 to 9 p.m., with the park lighting on Saturday. Tickets are again $10 per person per day for cardholders and $50 for nonresidents.

Parking takes a second registration

The card alone doesn't get you the parking discount. The park lot is open daily from 6:45 a.m. to 10:15 p.m. It's limited to park users, head-in only, with no beach or overnight parking. You pay through the PayByPhone app at location 34045. The standard rate is $5 an hour.

To get the resident rate, you register your vehicle with the City through Code Compliance. That takes the Resident ID, a government ID, vehicle registration, proof of insurance and a photo of the vehicle, along with a PayByPhone account. The two City pages don't agree on the discounted rate. The park page lists $3 an hour and the general public-parking page lists $2, so check the rate in the app before you park.

Why your bookings matter after this season

The courts are also a test. At a City Commission workshop on May 15, 2025, commissioners talked about turning the unused Lehman Basketball Court under the causeway into tennis or pickleball courts. As Citizen Portal's summary of that workshop reported, staff said the court is too small for regulation tennis and estimated about $100,000 to expand it. Staff recommended opening the Intracoastal Sports Park courts first to see how much demand there is.

The new park doesn't include pickleball. Its court rules allow tennis and basketball only. The City's Fall 2026 Live & Play guide doesn't list any pickleball clinics or leagues either. Its court programs are Tennis Fixe After School for ages 4 to 14 and Basketball Academy for ages 7 to 12, which runs September 1 through November 20 at $225 for residents and $450 for nonresidents. Staff check in every reservation before play, and walk-in players have to register with staff for court time. That's the demand staff said they wanted to see before the next court decision.

In the City's grand opening announcement, Cultural and Community Services Director Colin Summers said the City looks forward to seeing the park "become a vibrant destination for our residents." Mayor Larisa Svechin listed the options: "Maybe you'll come here for a game of tennis. Maybe basketball. Maybe you'll get in a workout, or just take a walk along the water and enjoy the view." Aventura Beacon called the park primarily resident-only in its preview. Under the posted rules, nonresidents and hotel guests can still play if they book in person and pay the higher rates. The Commission hasn't announced a decision on the Lehman court, and the courts at 15800 Collins Avenue are where staff said the answer would come from.

If you've been wondering how a new park, a new booking system or a two-tier fee schedule fits into what your home is worth, Jordan Casanas can walk you through it with local context and a clear process. Get a Free Valuation whenever you're ready.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.