$800 Million "The Fountain" Chosen as Winning Design for Signature Bridge

“The Fountain” has been chosen as the winning design for the $800 million Signature Bridge project in downtown Miami. The selection was made by FDOT which controversially shunned public opinion. The winning concept, which was inspired by Miami's location serving as a gateway to South America, came from a joint venture team led by Archer Western- de Moya. The bridge would feature color changing LED's on the cables and arches and will feature a 55-acre public park beneath which will be known as Heritage Trail. Construction will begin in late 2017 with completion estimated in 2022 but a formal protest from the 2nd place team which lost by a mere 1/2 point may delay the project. The press release states:

"The Fountain concept was inspired by Miami’s world renowned status as the center of the Americas. Miami has been influenced in its development and growth by various regions throughout the United States, the Carribean, as well as Central and South America due to its position as the Gateway City. In 1930, Pan American Airways established Miami as its worldwide headquarters with its terminal at the current City Hall, and provided the initial links that opened up the potential of Miami’s waterfront to all of the Americas. The Fountain’s design symbolizes these influences similar to an “airline map” depicting the curved travel paths to and from the central city of Miami.

The Fountain was aptly named to signify Miami’s connection to the water that began several thousand years ago with the Tequesta Indians and continues to this day with the tens of millions of visitors that make Miami their warm weather destination for the sun, beach, cruises, vibrant nightlife, and culture. The bridge is designed using contextual metaphors drawn from the region’s tropical and urban environments. The overall vision for this signature bridge is to emphasize the essence of Miami as a center for the Arts, with this structure as its nexus, making it a focal point of civic life for all Miamians, and what will become the heart of Miami for our children and grand-children.

The Fountain Bridge also provides vast open spaces below the bridge allowing for the development of our proposed Heritage Walk. Heritage Walk memorializes Miami’s history including the original Tequesta Indian inhabitants, Julia Tuttle and Henry Flagler, the original African American settlers to Overtown, the Cuban immigration, and Miami’s status as a global city with limitless potential through culture, art, and bold imagery."

PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter Hosts Jam Room Event Highlighting The Largest Amenity Deck in the U.S.

PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter hosted a live concert and jam session highlighting its Jam Room and the future, largest amenity deck in the U.S. PARAMOUNT Worldcenter features more than 40 amenities including resort style pool complete with floating pods and private bungalows, tennis courts, soccer pitch, boxing studio, Sky Observatory and Tai Chi deck, and a rooftop entertainment deck 60 stories above the Miami skyline. Over 900 guests were in attendance as PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter rolled out their new innovative video campaign. Check out the gallery below and read our PROFILE Exclusive Interview with PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter developer Dan Kodsi here.

Tour The Langford Hotel, Bloommiami's Repurposed Historic Miami National Bank

Bloommiami has transformated the historic Miami National Bank, one of Downtown Miami's most iconic buildings', into The Langford Hotel; a boutique hotel designed for the young professionals. The historic building is located in the heart of downtown Miami, an area that has seen a major surge of young professionals with disposable income. The Langford Hotel also features PB Station, a high-energy restaurant as well as Pawn Broker, an indoor-outdoor rooftop bar.  Rooms are simple, functional and utilitarian and Amenities include valet parking, in-room wireless internet, 24-hour front desk, concierge, dry cleaning, conference rooms and business center. 
 

Zaha Hadid's One Thousand Museum Filmed to Be Featured in Discovery Channel & PBS' "Impossible Builds"

Starchitect Zaha Hadid’s One Thousand Museum in the Park West neighborhood of Downtown Miami will be one of five featured in an upcoming documentary entitled Impossible Builds, which will air on PBS and Discovery Channel. Impossible Builds explores building complex structures such as One Thousand Museum from around the world. The 62-story, 709 foot, architectural work of art that sits on Museum Park and Biscayne Bay was handpicked by Discovery Channel due to the intricate engineering of the exoskeleton exterior. Pieces for the exoskeleton are prefabricated off-site and arrive in shipments from Dubai. The outer shell is made-up by close to 5,000 pieces sourced from glass fiber reinforced concrete which form the structural façade. Other projects that have been chosen for the series are Villa Resorts in Dubai and the thinnest skyscraper in New York City. The episode is expected to air in 2018 and is produced by Blink Films. One Thousand Museum has passed the halfway point and has an expected delivery date in 2018. 

“It is an honor for the project to be spotlighted in this important documentary film. We could not think of a better way to immortalize the forward-thinking project to a global audience across continents through this important documentary,” said Louis Birdman, one of the co-developers for One Thousand Museum by Zaha Hadid Architects.

Check out our April 2017 Construction Update HERE. 

Final Design for Miami Signature Bridge Proposal Chosen, Approved, to be Announced May 1

The Florida Department of Transportation has made the final decisions after sifting through proposals for Downtown Miami's new Signature Bridge and will release the chosen design on May 1. Miami's Signature Bridge will serve as a gateway to MacArthur Causeway and South Beach. The top ranked team include DB Firm Archer Western – de Moya JV along with Archer Western Contractors, LLC, The de Moya Group, Inc. and team members:

• HDR
• RS&H
• Leonhardt, Andra und Partner
• MacDonald Architects
• Illumination Arts
• RWDI Consulting Engineers
• Pennoni Associates
• Metric Engineering
• Corven Engineering
• GOAL Associates (DBE)
• Universal Engineering Sciences and HR Engineering Services (HRES)
• Cardno
• Manuel G. Vera & Associates (DBE)
• PlusUrbia
• Ronald E Frazier & Associates, Neil Hall, AIA, and Design 2 Form

Frost Museum of Science to Take Over Operations at Museum Park's Science Barge

The Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science will take over operations of Museum Park's floating Science Barge when they open on May 8. The barge will undergo extensive renovation throughout the summer as it will be transformed into an environmental lab where it will supplement the museum's Aquarium and science exhibits with the surrounding marine life. The 120 foot Miami Science Barge opened in 2016 after it won the 2015 Knight Cities Challenge. It was designed by Nathalie Manzano and Dr. Ted Caplow and cost $1.2 million. 

Construction Update: One Thousand Museum Passes Halfway Point, On Track for 2018 Completion

One Thousand Museum by Zaha Hadid Architects, has passed the halfway point for the 62-story building which is on track for delivery in 2018. The building will be Zaha Hadid's first residential skyscraper in the western hemisphere and is being developed by Louis Birdman, Gregg Covin, Kevin Venger and the Regalia Group with Plaza Construction as the general contractor. The tower will be among the tallest residential buildings in Miami and required a deep foundation that drilled to a record of over 170'. One Thousand Museum's design features an exoskeleton design which acts as the buildings structural support. This allows the developer to remove columns from the units, creating expansive glass views of Biscayne Bay. 

One Thousand Museum is over 50% sold and required over a $450 million buildout. The tower will feature only 83 units ranging from $5.5 million to over $20 million and 4,600 SF to over 10,000 SF. Amenities will include Miami's only private rooftop helipad, state-of-the-art fitness center, spa, two pools, indoor aquatic center, and a sky lounge.

Check-out our coverage of One Thousand Museum closing on their $225 million construction loan in December. 

YOTEL Hotel & Apartments Submits New Proposal to Miami's Planning Department

YOTEL Hotel & Apartments submitted a new proposal that removes the parking garage to Miami’s Planning Department. Due to the locations proximity to the Metromover, the zoning does not require parking for residential units. The proposal includes offsite parking for the hotel units as well as a scaled back plan for the tower that adjusts the project rom 45-stories to 29-stories which would house 188 apartment units and 225 hotel rooms. The previous 45-story proposal had 180 apartment units and 262 hotel rooms with a 10 story garage that had 144 spaces. YOTEL Hotel & Apartments is being developed in a joint venture between Aria Development Group with the Kuwaiti firm Agarat. The building is being designed by Stantec and will be reviewed by Miami's Urban Development Review Board next week. The YOTEL brand offers affordable hotels with micro-hotel style accommodations with locations in New York City, London Heathrow, London Gatwick, Amsterdam Schiphol, and Paris amongst others. 

Jungle Island Sold For $60 million, $15 million in cash, To ESJ Capital Partners, Plans to Add Zip Lines & Water Park

Jungle Island has sold to ESJ Capital Partners for $60 million. In the deal, $15 million will be cash and the rest of the $45 million will include the assumption of the the current mortgage on the property. The deal transfers the existing lease on the city owned Watson Island to ESJ Capital Partners. The new owners plan to add over 7 zip lines and a water park for the summer to the 18-acre attraction on Watson Island, right off of the MacArthur Causeway. The renovations will come over three-phases over 2 years with the plan to increase the number of visitors and revenue. A 260-room hotel has also been proposed but requires a voter referendum from the City of Miami. Other upgrades to the facilities will include a private beach club, updated dining and food facilities as well as banquet facilities. Jungle Island will still be managed by John Dunlap and Iconic Attractions Group. 

“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to capitalize on the heritage of Parrot Jungle, then Jungle Island, and create a truly unique experience within an urban setting,” said Gabriel Amiel, Chairman and co-Founder of ESJ Capital Partners.

PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter Releases Renderings of Guest Suites

PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter has released renderings of their guest suite collection. There are 30 suites in all and they are for exclusive use by PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter owners. Suites range from studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom layouts with sizes ranging from 530 SF to 1,200 SF. The accommodations can be used for visiting friends and relatives and helps enhance residents standard of living when guests come to town. PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter is now over 60% sold with over $300 million in sales. The 513 luxury-condo residential tower is expected to be delivered Q1 2019. PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter is being developed by Dan Kodsi with Art Falcone and Nitin Motwani. PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter is the luxury residential condo tower that is part of the larger Miami Worldcenter initiative that includes a high-street retail concept with shopping, dining, entertainment, office space, a Marriott Marquis Miami Worldcenter Hotel & Expo Center, apartment rentals, amongst others.  

Check-out our PROFILE Exclusive Interview with Dan Kodsi, the developer of PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter.