Tequesta Finally Owns Its Biggest Park. Why Does the Next Step Run Through Martin County?

North of County Line Road and west of U.S. 1, Tequesta Park covers 41 acres. Its three baseball fields aren't in good enough shape for games, so teams use them only for practice. The walking trails are dirt paths lined with scrub, and the landscaping is tired. In recent years, the only parts that have seen improvements are the tennis and pickleball courts and the dog park, Stet News reported in June.

Since June 1, 2026, the park has belonged to the Village of Tequesta. The deed decided who pays for the rebuild. The county line decides who approves it and which public money can be used. Because the park sits in Martin County, Martin County's review schedule controls the village's biggest park project, and a parks bond on the Palm Beach County ballot can't pay for any of it. The village's answer is to build in phases.

Decades of Running a Park the Village Didn't Own

The land was part of Jonathan Dickinson State Park. Tequesta ran it for the state starting in the 1970s, and on June 1 the state transferred ownership to the village. For residents, the visible part of the park stays where it has always been. The village calendar lists the Tequesta Park tennis and pickleball courts at 594 N Dover Road.

Owning the land changed how the village talks about investing in it. "I think it makes it easier to justify investing in this park," Mayor Molly Young told WFLX. Vice Mayor Patrick Painter described the property in Stet News as "a significant asset that we can now do something special with. We don't have anything like this."

Ownership also changed the paperwork. A village park on Martin County land now needs a Martin County site plan approval before any construction starts.

Martin County Sets the Permit Schedule

At an August 3, 2026 village workshop, staff explained the review process. The plan goes through staff-level site plan review in Martin County. Each review cycle takes 45 days, and staff expected two to three rounds, or about three to six months in total. Staff said the county would allow a site plan approval that doesn't expire quickly and that supports building in phases. In August, staff were aiming for construction readiness in spring 2027.

Martin County's public correspondence log shows the application has reached the county. An entry dated September 9, 2026 reads "Completeness Review T151-002 Tequesta Park Improvements Final Site Plan." The village's September manager report says staff attached the Recorded Deed and Certification of Property Transfer to the application, and it lays out what happens next:

1. Martin County confirms the application is complete.
2. The county begins technical review.
3. Kimley-Horn, the village's engineering consultant, and village staff respond to county comments and resubmit as needed.
4. The village sets a construction timeline, which depends on how many revisions and hearings the review requires.

As of the September report, the village had not set a construction timeline. The village runs the project, but its pace depends on the review cycles of a county where Tequesta residents don't vote.

What the Phased Plan Would Add

At the August workshop, Jonathan Hague of Kimley-Horn presented the site plan drawings. The design keeps much of the park open while construction moves through it in stages. It includes dry retention and detention areas, shade structures for the pickleball courts, more parking, and space set aside for playgrounds.

The order matters. The first phase is built around families with young children: water play, a playground and a pavilion for groups. The baseball fields, which are the park's most visible weakness today, are part of the last phase. Before the August drawings, Stet News reported a broader village wish list that included new batting cages, lighted baseball fields, a concession stand, sand volleyball courts, a shaded playground, a multi-use field and a splash pad.

Mayor Young has tied the project to demand for fields. "People can't find space to play volleyball for youth sports," she said, according to Stet News, adding that a busier park "will really help our businesses, too. People will be coming to the park a lot more and they will be more inclined to eat lunch in Tequesta."

The Price Grew as the Drawings Got Specific

The two June estimates both had a top end of $12 million or less. By the August workshop, the figure was close to $15 million.

Compare those figures with the village's own budget. According to Stet News, Tequesta has about 6,000 residents and an annual general fund budget of about $20 million. Even the June estimates were a big lift. The money committed so far pays for planning. The village is matching a state grant to fund a $500,000 design budget, and the state covers 47% of it. In June, WFLX reported that the village budget set aside $250,000 to match that grant and that the construction budget line showed no funding.

In the FY2026–27 budget proposal presented at the July 20 workshop, the Tequesta Park item was an $18,600 increase for sod installation and annual maintenance. The capital project money in that proposal went elsewhere, including $536,026 for playground equipment at Constitution Park. The village's September manager dashboard lists "Tequesta Park (RMPK Funding)" among its parks and recreation grants, with a status of "On track."

The county line also narrows where construction money can come from. This fall, Palm Beach County planned to ask voters for $280 million to improve aging parks and build new ones. As Stet News put it, even if some of that money went to city parks, "it can't help Tequesta since the park is in Martin County." Village Manager Jeremy Allen has named the remaining sources as grants, state appropriations and the general fund. He also said that "planning and funding are often intentionally staggered phases rather than a single 'all-or-nothing' decision," according to Stet News.

Phasing Costs More and Matches How Money Arrives

The August workshop included an estimate that building everything at once could save about 20%, or roughly $3 million. The village is still planning phases. A village that can't pay for the whole park at once accepts a higher total cost so it can build each phase as grants or state money comes in, while keeping much of the park open in the meantime. That tradeoff also explains why the Martin County approval matters so much. Staff said the county would issue an approval that supports phasing and doesn't expire quickly, which gives the village time to raise money between phases without starting the review over.

Phasing is also how the council's skeptic says he'd do it. At an April 13 special meeting, Council Member Rick Sartory questioned whether the village could raise the money. "If the state had wanted to invest the time and the resources, they would have done that," he said, as reported by Stet News. "Now this is going to fall on us." When Stet News followed up, he said he supports the improvements but doesn't see how the village can fund the full plan. He favored putting the south-end playground, splash pad and multi-use field first, which is roughly what Phase A and Phase B now contain.

"We're going to have to figure out how to fund and how to approach the construction. We are committed to this park either way." Mayor Molly Young, speaking to WFLX about the statewide property tax proposal on the November ballot

The Cost the Phases Don't Show

Building the park is one cost. Running it every year is another. At the August workshop, council members asked whether the fields would be lit, how construction access would work, and how maintenance staffing would grow as the park grows. A resident asked during public comment about annual maintenance, labor, insurance and where the revenue would come from. Staff said they have current league fees and rough maintenance estimates, but a full analysis of annual operating costs is still needed before the council makes final decisions on the phases.

The council's direction at that meeting was to send the site plan to Martin County for staff-level review, then come back with final permitting and phasing details and refined costs.

The next public milestones are Martin County's review comments on application T151-002 and the operating cost analysis the village has said it owes the council. When those arrive, residents will see which phase gets built first and when.

At GulfStream Properties, we're following the Tequesta Park plan through Martin County review because work like this shapes daily life in Tequesta and how buyers see the village. If you'd like a clear picture of where your home stands while the plan moves forward, get your free home valuation and we'll go through it with you.