Hialeah Park Aims to Reinvent Itself With New Monthly Music Series

The City of Hialeah is known for many things — its large Latin population, a rich history, and streets numbered seemingly without regard to the rest of Miami Dade County, making it easy to lose your way if you’re not a local. Now, however, it has another attraction it can call its own: a new live-music venue housed in what has been the city’s most distinctive landmark, Hialeah Park. Known until now as an internationally famous racetrack, one of the oldest recreational facilities in South Florida, and a natural oasis in a city that claims distinction as the sixth-largest populated urban area in the state, Hialeah Park is about to be reinvented as a major entertainment destination with help from Jo Mersa Marley and Danay Suarez this Saturday.


After being added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979, Hialeah Park remained dormant for several years after the start of the new millennium, even as it remained a significant local landmark. But now it hopes to become a live-music venue. It’s a trend that’s seen other South Florida sports venues — Magic City Casino, Miami Jai-Alai, and Gulfstream Park, among them — find a renewed purpose as a concert locale. As is generally the case, the park has undergone a makeover that will give the facility enhanced appeal as it welcomes its new clientele. The park’s owners have invested in a new stage, bar area, service facility, and additional outdoor seating, all part of its newly expanded public centerpiece known as the Fountain Terrace.

“We are interested in offering our patrons more options for fine live entertainment,” Hialeah Park Vice President of Marketing & Entertainment Frank Fiore said in a statement. “We feel that the caliber of local talent we have scheduled through the end of February does just that. Our long-term goal is to continue to bring new folks to the historic Hialeah Park to enjoy all that we have to offer." 


Hialeah Park kicks off its current series of concert offerings with a free concert by local favorites Jo Mersa Marley and Danay Suarez on Saturday, December 19. The Spam Allstars have been booked for January, and other talent — mostly Latin and alternative artists — will follow as part of a monthly music series that’s currently slated to run through March.

Jo Mersa Marley and Danay Suarez. 9 p.m. Saturday, December 19, at Hialeah Park, 100 E. 32nd St., Hialeah. Admission is free. Call 305-885-8000, or visit hialeahpark.com.