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Week of February 6, 2003 |
Arquitectonica creates 36-story glass tower for Miami's Design District By Susan StableyA new residential project called Blue would bring a 36-story sculptured glass structure with 356 units and a restaurant to Northeast 36th Street near the Julia Tuttle Causeway. All units would face the bay, said project manager Paul Murphy, with a glass skin on the north, east and west sides. "The combination of a glass curve wrapped around a cement surface on the south side makes it a really stunning building," said Mr. Murphy. "It will be a landmark." The land at 501 NE 36th St. just southeast of Miami's Design District was previously slated for a different development by Biscayne Bay Towers, Mr. Murphy said, and has a major-use special permit already in place. Instead, the parcel was sold to private developer Harvey Armstrong from San Francisco, president of Causeway Towers. The price of the land was not disclosed. Sales of the units are expected to approach $150 million, Mr. Murphy said. Architect Bernardo Fort-Brescia of Arquitectonica designed the curved tower. The firm also designed the American Airlines Arena and the Miami City Ballet building and is designing the two towers of downtown's One Miami and the federal courthouse building. The new developers will ask the City of Miami on Feb. 27 for a revision of the special permit so work can begin by June, Mr. Murphy said. If approved, the project could be completed as early as June 2005, he said. The original concept by the previous owners was for a rental building, said Otto Boudet-Murias, the mayor's senior advisor for economic development. "The developer that owns it now wanted to upgrade it, to change it to condos and upgrade the skins of the building," said Mr. Boudet-Murias. "It's mostly a cosmetic change." Mr. Boudet-Murias saw a model of the proposed structure at a planning advisory meeting and said, "It's really a beautiful building." |
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