PRESERVATION
DIFFERING VISIONS FOR
NORTH BEACH
Residents of North Beach helped defeat a ballot
measure that would have permanently changed
the character of their historic neighborhood.
development group purchased a significant
A
number properties on a block straddling
Ocean Terrace and Collins Avenue, where
zoning limitations currently limit the height of
new construction to 75 feet. The developer
asked the City Commission to increase height
limits as well as the allowable floor area (FAR)
that they were permitted to build. The concept
for revitalization of the area was an ultra-luxury
condo-hotel with a 250-foot tall tower, 70
luxury condominiums, 200 hotel rooms, and an
unspecified number of retail spaces complete
with indoor parking. Unfortunately, up to 11
contributing historic structures were proposed to
be demolished to make way for the project.
Just as South Beach is now considered
Art Deco central, North Beach has its own
architectural DNA with a large concentration of
Miami Modern structures, commonly referred
to as ‘MiMo.’ The style dates back to the
post-World War II late 1940s and features
acute angles, delta wings, sweeping curved
walls, and soaring pylons, built with an exotic
and eccentric range of materials including
architectural screen block, crab orchard stone,
high-grade marble, and rare hardwoods. Its
definitive style has helped North Beach be
recognized by the National Register of Historic
Places for two of its distinctive neighborhoods
— Normandy Isles and the North Shore.
Residents had mixed feelings about the
upzoning proposal and the direction it would
take North Beach. Preservationists were
concerned that the new 250-foot tower would
overwhelm the mostly low-rise historic district.
10
ART DECO WEEKEND
Olsen Hotel and the North Shore Bandshell.
(Imagine a skyscraper on top of an Art Deco
building on Ocean Drive.) The number of
structures proposed to be demolished also
seemed excessive – although the plans were
not finalized and would require Historic
Preservation Board approval, with or without
upzoning.
The issue of preservation is a sensitive one in
North Beach following the recent demolition of
the Biltmore Terrace, a Morris Lapidus-designed
hotel that was bulldozed in order to make
room for another ultra-luxury condo high-rise
residence. In addition, in 2014 the Historic
Preservation Board voted unanimously to create
2 local historic districts in North Beach, but
these were cancelled within 24 hours by the
City Commission, which has ultimate authority
on the creation of districts. Some question