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17‑year‑old proposes Miami Lakes pickleball inclusion clinic; board seeks $3,000 to pilot program
Summary
Seventeen‑year‑old Andrew Allejo asked the Miami Lakes Special Needs Advisory Board to support a one‑day inclusive pickleball clinic for children with special needs. The board voted to add the item to new business and to seek a $3,000 allocation to fund an initial clinic, subject to council approval.
Andrew Allejo, a 17‑year‑old Miami Lakes resident and student at Matters Academy, told the Special Needs Advisory Board he wants to bring a one‑day pickleball clinic for children with special needs to Optimus Park this summer. “I wanted to bring this event for kids with special needs closer to home,” Allejo said, describing a buddy system in which each participant is paired with a volunteer and, if needed, an adaptive coach to provide one‑on‑one support.
Allejo said he modeled the proposal on volunteer work he has done with the Parkland Buddy Sports Program and estimated an initial roster of about 20–25 children. The proposed budget covers paddles, balls, cones, shirts, water and tents for shade; Allejo suggested morning time slots in June or July to avoid the heat and said Optimus Park’s four courts would accommodate the clinic format.
Board members praised the presentation and discussed logistics, including reserving courts, recruiting volunteers through the town Eventbrite and partnering with an adaptive coach for supervision. The board moved to add Allejo’s proposal to new business and later advanced a motion to allocate $3,000 from the social and recreation/community programs budget to cover an estimated one‑day clinic for 25 participants. Members noted that the allocation is an internal committee action to be presented in the board’s report to the town council for formal approval.
The board’s next procedural step is to include the clinic request in its July report to the Miami Lakes Town Council and to have staff check park availability and firm dates. If the council approves the request, staff said the town would coordinate park reservations and promotion; Allejo said he will provide contact information to staff and follow up with a planning draft.
The meeting record shows no formal vote tally recorded in the transcript; the motion and inclusion in the report were treated as approved for presentation to council.
