One of the important functions of this park is to handle the large volumes of stormwater that every Florida city has to deal with. The water enters the various ponds, and one can see that there is a flow of water from one pond to another. However, there is something else going on, that is not as obvious. There are underground pipes that drain water out of the ponds into areas that are intentionally maintained as wetlands. These are called pop-offs; if you notice a wet area directly across the road from a pond, now you know what is happening. This process allows the water to slowly filter back to Boca Ciega bay.