Balboa Plaza 2478-2498 Anderson Road, Coral Gables, FL 33134

"Small place. It is the heart of Miami. I did not know how special it was until I came here to put in the address. I didn't understand.. I was just wondering about filming."

"Another hidden gem in Coral Gables. Good for Instagram users and a picnic in a cool day"

"I love Coral Gables. One of the things that makes it so charming are the fountains and plazas like this one. Balboa Plaza is just a tenth of an acre in the median of Coral Way, South Greenway Drive, De Soto Boulevard, and Anderson Road. This plaza is named for Spanish conquistador, Vasco Nunez de Balboa (1475-1519) who is famous for having crossed the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean which made him the first European to lead an expedition to the Pacific Ocean from the New World. Balboa Plaza was designed by Denman Fink, the uncle of George Merrick who founded Coral Gables. He was not a licensed architect so he worked with landscape architect Frank Button. The plaza includes a wall fountain that spouts water into a half circle basin. In 2018 the public art piece A Midsummer's Night Dream by artists Roberto Behar and Rosario Marquardt was added to the plaza. The art piece is a giant sofa made of oolitic stone. It is 30 feet long and four feet high. On either side are two lamps standing 14 feet high. About their art piece the artists said "the oversized piece is sudden and wondrous, at once real and fantastic, familiar and unprecedented, bringing a slice of domesticity in a public park. The artwork invites us to converse, experience a moment of repose or wait for a friend. Together with the two lamps we are reminded of home." A Midsummer's Night Dream is estimated to have cost $120,000 and it was donated by MG Developer Miami LLC, the first contribution to the Art in Public Places, Public Art in Private Development program. In addition to the stone couch the park has giant banyan trees. Like all of the plazas in Coral Gables, this is the perfect place to stage a photo shoot. If you want some great shots bring your model and head on over to this historic treasure."

"Beautiful spot. But it needs maintenance..."

"I had been looking for this chair forever so glad I found it loved it!"