WATER & COAST
Bradenton Riverwalk
Manatee County · Gulf Coast
A mile and a half of public waterfront along the Manatee River through downtown Bradenton, opened on October 18, 2012.
ABOUT THIS PLACE
It replaced Anthony T. Rossi Waterfront Park, built with federal grant money in the 1980s and largely unused by the end. The Downtown Development Authority commissioned the redesign from Kimley-Horn and the result is a continuous strip of things to do rather than a promenade: a skatepark, an amphitheater seating four hundred, playgrounds, a splash pad, sand volleyball courts, a botanical walkway, picnic areas and a day dock where a boat can tie up for a few hours. A series of public artworks called Postcards from the Friendly City tells parts of the area's history along the way. Events held here bring roughly a hundred and ten thousand people into downtown in a year, among them farmers markets, music series, a blues festival and art events. The city has been extending it eastward toward Manatee Mineral Springs Park and Manatee Village Historical Park, buying an acre and a half to close a gap, with the first phase opened in September 2022
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