Monroe County closes Harry Harris and Key Largo fields for maintenance

Monroe County Parks & Beaches posted a notice on Jan. 9 that athletic fields at Harry Harris Park in Tavernier and Key Largo Park are closed through Jan. 16 while crews complete scheduled field maintenance. The temporary closures are intended to preserve turf and soil conditions ahead of the upcoming baseball and soccer seasons, and the release asked for public cooperation while work is underway.

The timing matters for families, coaches and adult leagues in the Upper Keys. With the winter maintenance window overlapping league practice and pickup times, organizers will need to reshuffle schedules or seek alternate sites for drills and scrimmages. For parents balancing work and transportation, a one-week disruption can complicate carpools, volunteer staffing and youth registration timelines that typically accelerate as spring approaches.

From an operational standpoint, short, planned closures reduce long-term repair costs and safety risks. Preserving root zones, regrading low spots and applying seed or topdressings now helps prevent rutting and poor drainage during the heavier spring and summer months. That translates into fewer emergency repairs and less season-time cancellations, which in turn limits lost field rental income and minimizes impacts on local businesses that support recreational play, such as equipment shops and food vendors.

There are also public-safety and liability considerations. Allowing fields to recover during maintenance reduces the risk of injuries that arise from uneven surfaces. For Monroe County Parks & Beaches, routine preservation work is a cost-effective policy choice compared with larger capital projects to reconstruct heavily damaged turf. Coordinated maintenance planning like this typically improves field availability over the full season even when it imposes short-term inconvenience.

Community leaders and league managers should treat the closures as a scheduling signal. Parents and coaches should confirm practice locations before departing; informal pickup games on closed turf can delay recovery and extend repair times for everyone. County residents who rely on these parks for exercise or youth sports should expect crews to be on site and cooperate with posted signage until maintenance is complete.

Our two cents? Treat this as a temporary pause that protects the season ahead: check for county updates, adjust practice plans this week, and give crews space so fields are game-ready when spring play kicks off.