Palm Bay Parks and Recreation Guide

The City of Palm Bay lists 29 city parks along with an aquatic center, a 200 acre regional park and Turkey Creek Sanctuary; Recreation handles pavilion and center rentals, and Parks and Facilities builds and maintains the parks.

The City of Palm Bay About page gives the 29 park figure and lists an aquatic center, a 200 acre regional park, two public/private golf courses and Turkey Creek Sanctuary among the city's recreation choices (City of Palm Bay About page). The online park directory reads differently: it shows 36 items, and alongside the parks it lists the Greater Palm Bay Senior Center, the Captain's House, the Palm Bay Paintball Park, the Ted Whitlock and Tony Rosa community centers and the Ted Moorhead Lagoon House (Palm Bay City Parks directory, page 2). The city does not reconcile the two counts on either page.

The Palm Bay Parks and Facilities Department handles contract management, future development, new construction, renovation and maintenance of the parks, community centers, the Aquatic Center, dog parks, the Lagoon House, the Nature Center and the Senior Center (Palm Bay Parks and Facilities page). Most park listings in the Palm Bay directory share one phone line, (321) 952-3443, while Fred Poppe Regional Park and the Ted Whitlock Community Center use (321) 952-3231, and Turkey Creek Sanctuary, the Ais Trail Park and the Boundary Canal Trail use (321) 676-6690 (Palm Bay City Parks directory, page 1, page 2). The Palm Bay neighborhood parks guide covers the smaller pocket parks, such as Arc, Dade Circle, Oak View and Victoria, that the city lists without rentals or restrooms.

Palm Bay has two city boat ramps, at Goode Park and Pollak Park on Turkey Creek, and kayak or canoe launches at Castaways Point Park, Ais Trail Park and Turkey Creek Sanctuary.

Goode Park, at 1300 Bianca Dr NE, lists a boat ramp, a dock, a playground and rentable pavilions, and the directory marks it as located on Turkey Creek (Palm Bay City Parks directory, page 1). Pollak Park, at 1455 Main St NE, adds a fishing pier and the city's Boating Safety Center to its boat ramp, and is also on Turkey Creek (Palm Bay City Parks directory, page 2). Those two are the only Palm Bay parks with a Boat Ramp amenity in the city directory.

For paddlers and anglers, Castaways Point Park at 2990 Bay Blvd NE lists a kayak and canoe launch, a fishing pier, a boardwalk, an overlook and a fish cleaning station (Palm Bay City Parks directory, page 1). Stearns Point Park, at 4295 Dixie Hwy (US 1), has a dock and a fishing pier and is marked pet friendly, and the Ted Moorhead Lagoon House at 3275 Dixie Hwy (US 1), phone (321) 725-7775, is an education center with fishing and trails rather than a launch (Palm Bay City Parks directory, page 2). The Palm Bay guides to Goode Park, Pollak Park, Castaways Point Park and the Ted Moorhead Lagoon House cover each waterfront site in detail.

The Palm Bay Aquatic Center at 420 Community College Parkway SE is the city's public pool, with $4 admission, but the city has scheduled it to close to the public on November 30, 2026 while it seeks proposals for the center's future operation.

Fall hours at the Palm Bay Aquatic Center run August 10 to November 1, with open swim on Friday (splash pad area) and Saturday from 12 PM to 4 PM, and lap swim Monday to Friday from 8 AM to 8 PM and Saturday from 8 AM to 12 PM (Palm Bay Aquatic Center page). Admission is $4 per person, veterans swim for $1.50 and seniors 55 and older for $2; a 12-swim pass costs $40, or $15 for veterans and $20 for seniors. The city asks swimmers to call the hotline at (321) 726-5680 first, because weather, staffing or mechanical problems can close the pool, and minors under 18 need a waiver signed by a parent for open swim.

The bigger change is the closure. The City of Palm Bay plans to issue a formal Request for Proposals on October 26, 2026, seeking qualified organizations to operate, manage, program or use the Aquatic Center, and states that the center is scheduled to close to the public on November 30, 2026 (Palm Bay Aquatic Center future operations page). The city held a public presolicitation meeting at the Aquatic Center on October 7, 2026, and as of October 15, 2026 the page lists the solicitation documents as a link to be added when available. The Parks and Facilities page logs the presolicitation meeting announcement under 09/24/2026 (Palm Bay Parks and Facilities page).

Two other parks list water features. Liberia Park at 2197 Northview St NE lists a splash pad, and Veterans Memorial Park at 2201 Port Malabar Blvd NE lists a bathing lake (Palm Bay City Parks directory, page 1, page 2). The Palm Bay Aquatic Center guide, the playgrounds and splash pads guide and the Veterans Memorial Park guide go into hours, rules and amenities.

Palm Bay has dog parks at Fred Poppe Regional Park and Ken Greene Memorial Park, and the city marks several other parks pet friendly, but Turkey Creek Sanctuary admits service animals only.

Fred Poppe Regional Park, at 1951 Malabar Rd NW, lists a dog park among its amenities, along with a disc golf course, cricket, soccer and softball fields and a community center (Palm Bay City Parks directory, page 1). Ken Greene Memorial Park, at 550 Riviera Dr NE, lists a dog park, lighted basketball courts, pickleball/tennis courts and a playground. The directory also tags Ais Trail Park, Dewar Park, Liberty Park, Lynbrook Park and Fred Poppe as Pet Friendly YES, while Bill Madden Park on Eldron Blvd SE is tagged Pet Friendly NO.

Turkey Creek Sanctuary is the main exception in Palm Bay: the city states service animals only and no pets (Turkey Creek Sanctuary page). The sanctuary page itself points dog owners to Ais Trail Park at 2800 Hickory Ave. NE as the pet-friendly alternative. Stearns Point Park, at 4295 Dixie Hwy (US 1), lists Beach / River among its amenities and is also marked pet friendly (Palm Bay City Parks directory, page 2). The Fred Poppe Regional Park guide and the Liberty Park and Lynbrook Park guides cover the hours and amenities at those sites.

Turkey Creek Sanctuary, at 1518 Port Malabar Blvd NE in Palm Bay, is a free 130 acre preserve with a 1.85 mile boardwalk, open 7 days a week from 7 AM until sunset.

The Margaret Hames Nature Center inside the Palm Bay sanctuary opens daily from 9 AM to 4 PM.

Parking for Turkey Creek Sanctuary is at the Margaret Hames Nature Center beside the Tony Rosa Community Center, off Port Malabar Blvd. at Santiago Dr. (Turkey Creek Sanctuary page). The sanctuary was established in 1981, belongs to the Brevard County Environmentally Endangered Lands program and the East Florida section of the Great Florida Birding Trail, and offers 1.5 miles of jogging trails, a 1 mile mountain bike trail that links to 8 more miles, and canoe and kayak access. The nature center is staffed by volunteers, so the city suggests calling (321) 676-6690 before a visit.

Two practical points are new on the Palm Bay page: the sanctuary has opened new restrooms with a drinking fountain and bottle filler, and the city now offers a self-guided QR code tour. Feeding squirrels or any wildlife is prohibited. The Turkey Creek Sanctuary guide covers the trails and the nature center programs in full.

Palm Bay pavilions rent for $25 to $105 a day plus tax and reservations are generally accepted up to one year in advance.

Palm Bay parks with lighted ball fields include Fred Poppe Regional Park, Fred Lee, Knecht, Liberty, Lynbrook and Lynne Manion Nungesser.

The Palm Bay rentals page sets the rates: large pavilions with electric and water at Bill Madden, Fred Poppe Regional Park, Inspiration and Liberty cost $105 a day; large pavilions with electric at Fred Lee, Goode, Knecht and McGriff cost $90; the Nungesser large pavilion is $75; and small pavilions at Knecht, Oak View and Woodard are $25 (Palm Bay Recreation rentals page). Pavilions are open dawn to dusk, seven days a week, and can be rented on holidays; all renters need pre-approval and a contract. Questions go to the Tony Rosa Community Center at (321) 952-3443 or the Ted Whitlock Community Center at (321) 952-3231.

Addresses and facilities in the table come from the Palm Bay park directory (page 1, page 2). Each of these Palm Bay parks has its own Digital Towns guide, from the Fred Poppe Regional Park guide to the McGriff Park and Driskell Memorial Park guides.

Each Palm Bay park question above has a deeper guide; the table pairs the question with the key fact from the city and the guide to read next.

All 17 Palm Bay park guides are linked in the related content list below this answer. Facts in the table come from the Palm Bay park directory (page 1, page 2) and the Aquatic Center page (future operations page).