Don’t tell anyone about the golf course. It’s our hidden secret and we don’t want anyone know about it.
Yes, yes…we know it’s the oldest golf course in Miami-Dade County. We know it’s held grand PGA events including 30 Miami Opens. We know the greats played on this course including Sam Snead, Arnold Palmer, and even Jacky Robinson.
Just don’t tell anybody about it. Especially the thousands upon thousands of locals and travelers that traverse NW 36th Street. Shhh! It’s our secret. We don’t want people staying at the nearby hotels to know we have a wonderful golf course and country club with a restaurant and bar. We don’t want all the locals who only use 36th Street to get from point A to point B to know there’s a beautiful behind the mixed facade we call 36th Street.
Clearly, I’m being facetious. But our actions as a City reflect a desire to keep the greatest gem within our city a secret from all these commuters. Don’t tell the thousands of people who drive up and down 36th Street that there’s a Golf Course and Country Club Community behind those buildings. Shhh…Keep it a secret.
Well, if the only perception you have of Miami Springs is NW 36th Street, you might think the whole community is as rundown as some of our 36th Street motels. The last thing you think is that we have a gorgeous golf course and an entire Country Club Community behind it.
COUNTRY CLUB ESTATES
Glenn Curtiss was a genius. He distinguished Miami Springs from Hialeah and Opa-Locka and called it “Country Club Estates.” Yup, in case your new here, Miami Springs wasn’t always called Miami Springs. It was originally dubbed “Country Club Estates.” Glenn Curtiss chose that moniker because it means something. It means we are a Country Club Community. We have large lots for residential estates. As a community, we need to market ourselves better. I know we have a slogan “At the heart of it all.” But frankly, that doesn’t mean a hill of beans to any outsider. We don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Glenn Curtiss knew the answer years ago. We are a “Country Club Community” and we should do everything to promote our lifestyle.
What does our “Country Club Community” have to offer in the form a “Country Club Lifestyle?” Well, let’s list them. Residents get a discounted rate to play golf. We are a “Golf Cart Community” with many residents commuting locally on street legal golf carts. We have quiet streets that are fantastic for afternoon bike rides. Not to mention the miles of bike paths for pedestrians to enjoy. Plus we have a tennis center, rec center, pro shop, wonderful dining options, and much more to offer. It’s time we stop selling ourselves short and promote ourselves as the wonderful Golf Course and Country Club Community we are. We are Miami Springs…A Country Club Community.
UPSCALE SIGNAGE
Here’s a challenge for you. Drive down NW 36th Street and count all the signs directing you to the golf course. Go ahead. Take your time. Did you count them all? Did you use both hands?
Of course, the answer is zero. Nada. Not one sign along NW 36th Street promoting our golf course. The busiest part of our town has not one sign indicating we have a beautiful golf course.
We do have some beautiful signage along Curtiss Parkway. it’s an elegant sign that includes the Golf Course logo. I think this is the type of sign we need to add along NW 36th Street. It’s an elegant design and it would be consistent messaging and aesthetics. Imagine a sign similar to what you see below that reads:
MIAMI SPRINGS
GOLF & COUNTRY CLUB
Turn Right in 1.5 Miles
Simple message, right? Miami Springs Golf and Country Club…turn right in X.X distance. Nearly all of us take for granted that we have a beautiful golf course in our community. But most people have no clue about this historic treasure in our community. Adding these simple signs tells people (1) you’re in Miami Springs. (2) we have a Golf and Country Club (3) it’s a destination (4) Miami Springs is a Country Club Community.
Where to promote Miami Springs?
There are several places we can add these signs along NW 36th Street and the heavily trafficked LeJeune Road.
The example below (highlighted in yellow-green) is an area where we can include a sign indicating where to turn to get to the Golf Course.
Just east of Curtiss Parkway we have these bus benches. This is a perfect spot to place a sign indicating “Make a right at the light.”
This is the corner of 36th and Palmetto Drive. Yes. We know we can get to the golf course by making a right turn here, but we should direct people to continue on 36th Street and to make a right turn at Curtiss Parkway.
Here’s another bus stop at South Drive where we can place a nice elegant sign promoting the Golf Course.
Adding a sign at the McDonald’s not only gets the folks traveling down 36th Street to see it, but also the folks that come in and out of the McDonald’s. While we’re at it, we should remove the graffiti phone booth.
Another bus stop that has space to place an elegant sign indicating the distance to the Golf Course.
Here’s another bus stop a little further east.
If we can have the ugly cluster of courier boxes, we can most definitely add an elegant sign directing you to the Miami Springs Golf Course.
Off State Road 112 to NW 36th Street
Years ago, there used to be a coral wall with the City of Miami Springs emblem greeting you to the City at the corner of NW 36th Street and South Royal Poinciana Boulevard. That sign no longer exists. We should add a sign indicating your 1.5 miles away from the Miami Springs Golf and Country Club.
LeJeune Road Signage
LeJeune Road gets a ton of traffic heading north and south. For many folks, their only experience in Miami Springs is this little stretch. They have no idea we are a Country Club Community with a beautiful Golf Course. Heck, we have tons of folks who travel through here with an intention of playing golf at Doral. Why not indicate there’s a much closer golf course just 1.5 miles away from this location in Miami Springs?
While we’re at it, can we ask the FDOT to add a sign that points to the Miami Springs Golf Course?
Below is the southbound side of LeJeune Road at South Royal Poinciana Boulevard. There’s a big sidewalk that can easily accommodate a Miami Springs Golf Course Direction sign.
We would have to add a sign at the corner of southbound LeJeune Road and NW 36th Street to let people know to make a right hand turn to get to the Golf Course.
PROJECT 2026
Can we make these changes before 2026? Will we start promoting our golf course and our Country Club Community before we hit the City’s centennial on August 23, 2026? Let us know what you think in the comments section or via social media.
I believe we need more than just country club signage.. Although that would be a great idea, I also believe we should have at least… Updated address signages like what you see in I.e: Pinecrest, palmetto bay, coral gables in lieu of your average county signs. Also I don’t know who is picking the light fixtures on the public right of ways but there is no uniform lighting. Drive down Curtis and Ludlam and you get the 4′ crooked post lamps, in the middle of that you get random old concrete/ yellow pole lights. Stroll down Royal Poinciana and there is a mixture of all sorts of lights… Black tall “fancy” poles, fpl street lamps, green 4′ posts.. the list goes on.
If we want to be respected as a more beautiful community as mentioned in your article, I believe our tax dollars should be going into beautifying the city and having more stringent codes on the public right of ways and crappy run down motels rather than my good friendly neighbor who renovated the inside of his house and got cracked down by the permit police all in the name of him trying to make his home a nicer place. Although as a General Contractor, I agree with neighbors pulling permits but I strongly feel that code enforcement needs to concentrate on the bigger problems. Such as the perimeter of Miami Springs… I can spot code violations at every corner in the commercial and public right of ways, YES our city work has code violations everywhere!! That Prius needs to take a closer look at their own work.
UNIFORM lighting, UNIFORM landscape, and UNIFORM traffic signage can please the eye in many ways. I say we push for not just golf course signage but beyond. I agree, I say we raise the bar and push for a respected “Country Club Community” but there is much more work to be done by all residents, businesses and city officials. Our tax dollars need to be pushed to beautify our Community!