Archives

  • www.xinsurance.com
Advertisement
The Newspaper for the Future of Miami
Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin
Front Page » Real Estate » 82-story skyscraper headed for heart of downtown Miami

82-story skyscraper headed for heart of downtown Miami

Written by on April 24, 2018
  • www.miamitodayepaper.com
Advertisement
82-story skyscraper headed for heart of downtown Miami

Goodbye Courtyard by Marriott, hello 2nd & 2nd.

The heart of downtown Miami is set to change in a big way – literally – when the 14-story Marriott hotel comes down to make room for an 82-story skyscraper known as 2nd & 2nd.

A developer plans an 898-foot mixed-use tower at 200 SE Second Ave., with a hotel, rental apartments, retail and a two-story corner bar in a glass circle.

The site today is home to a Courtyard by Marriott.

Miami Convention Hotel Corp., a Yonkers, NY, entity, has filed the ambitious plan with the City of Miami. The city’s Urban Development Review Board last week recommended approval.

The high-profile site is hugged by an on ramp to I-95, off of Second Avenue, and is right beside the iconic Miami Tower.

The new tower will bring more than 1.5 million square feet of development to the compact site, according to the application to the city. The lot area is 50,187 square feet, or 1.15 acres.

2nd & 2nd is to provide 266 hotel rooms, 637 residences, 9,245 square feet of commercial-retail and 8,563 square feet of open space.

Parking will be built to handle 553 vehicles. The podium also contains hotel lobbies, restaurant space and loading and service areas.

Attorney Iris Escarra, representing the developer, said the plan is to build a sleek, elegant tower on an amazing corner.

“It will be a great asset to the Miami skyline,” she told the review board, adding that the site has four interesting frontages.

She wrote to the city, “The project is centrally located at an intersection which has a variety of retail, civic, and restaurant uses located on all sides of the Project. With the abutting Metromover Station, the entirety of downtown and Brickell is accessible from the property.”

Redevelopment will provide ground level retail, which the existing structure lacks, she said.

“This will enhance the pedestrian realm and encourage walkability along a stretch of downtown with no retail frontages,” she wrote.

The tinted-glass tower design is from Coral Gables architects Nichols Brosch Wurst Wolfe & Associates Inc.

Architect Igor Reyes spoke of the time and care put into designing the building and where it will be on the site, noting that access is very important to the project.

“There is a lot of traffic there. The intersection is really busy,” he said.

The developer is requesting several waivers, including:

■A 10% increase in maximum lot coverage. The unique shape caused by I-95 on-ramps and elevated Metromover tracks makes strict compliance with lot coverage requirements impractical for a site within the urban core, the application says. A waiver to increase lot coverage will alleviate a practical difficulty caused by the unique site and allow a functional design, the request says.

■A 10% increase in the maximum floorplate above the eighth story.

■Substitution of a commercial loading berth for an industrial loading berth.

■Parking encroaching into the second layer above the first story, along the primary frontage, with an art or glass treatment approved by the planning director with the review board’s recommendation.

The Courtyard by Marriott has 208 rooms, 25 suites and four meeting rooms, its website says.

12 Responses to 82-story skyscraper headed for heart of downtown Miami

  1. Greg Schenk

    April 25, 2018 at 10:15 pm

    I wonder if Miami doesn’t realize the gridlock and quality of life issues , as a part time resident , visitor I waste too much time getting in and out of that area . Not fun , when is enough enough ?

  2. Mike Moskwa

    April 26, 2018 at 12:26 pm

    It seems to me a missed opportunity for them to incorporate an elevated walkway/access route directly from and to the building to the nearby Metro”mover”. Design encourages residents to hop the metro INSIDE their building and dropped off the same. Design should incorporate an Uber/Lyft pick-up and drop-off specifically for residents who do not own cars. No car ownership of condos should begin to be part of the mix. In other words, you can buy a condo or rent an apartment but there is no parking. Instead incorporate Metro Mover and Uber/Lyft designated areas. Imagine how that would generate future copycats reducing or at least maintaining current traffic levels.

  3. PETER R EVANS

    April 26, 2018 at 3:36 pm

    LOVE IT!! CAN’T WAIT.
    People have to realize that Miami is now Manhattan South.
    Get over it and enjoy.

    • Dan

      April 28, 2018 at 11:09 am

      Lol…. we all wish this was true.

    • Kenneth Patterson

      May 1, 2018 at 10:02 am

      Manhattan has sidewalks wider than some streets in Downtown Miami. The infrastructure is not there for such concentration. As far as “Manhattan South” you clearly have not been to NYC.

      • Peter R Evans

        May 1, 2018 at 2:02 pm

        Born and raised there Skippy.

    • Anthony Churchill

      July 2, 2018 at 6:38 am

      It is starting to shape up to look just like Manhattan South, born and raised in Miami I love what they are doing to my city.

      • Anthony Churchill

        July 2, 2018 at 6:40 am

        Like all the highrise buildings, but they need to expand the metro rail to the burbs and further north.

  4. Fermin Albelda

    April 26, 2018 at 6:45 pm

    Gridlock can’t get any worse than it is now , Jobs ,jobs ,and jobs ,you don’t like it move to New York ,LA, or Chicago then you can open your mouth .

  5. Neybis Sanchez

    April 27, 2018 at 8:12 am

    The continuous growth of our amazing city is unstoppable! Real estate is cyclical and it’s beautiful to see that we are continuing on the path of becoming a True urban city. LOVE MY CITY

  6. CAMILO GIRALDO

    April 27, 2018 at 12:51 pm

    Urban development must go hand in hand with development planning within the city. It is true that the growth of our city is phenomenal and has allowed us to add a much more diverse and complete “Urban” environment, however planning and expansion of actual roadways and streets is fundamental to this growth. Specially when we are talking about a commercial component and a residential component. Introduction of mass transportation and Uber / Lyft platforms would be very convenient but because of the size of the lot, proximity to I95 and entrance to BRICKELL and Downtown, it is my opinion that the first subject to address before approval of a project this large, must be that of Traffic Impact.

  7. Alabaster

    June 25, 2018 at 4:22 pm

    As someone involved in architecture it’s fascinating to see the city changing so rapidly, however, city officials must be careful with building only on Miami code 21 and SAP parameters, while urban development is a welcomed sign of progress, all factors must be considered, traffic, green areas, walk-able spaces, parking etc..

  • www.miamitodayepaper.com
Advertisement