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bobdreamz
Nov 11, 2007, 2:47 AM
the Park West proposal looks great and sounds very ambitious. I'm amazed at how these developers were able to keep this proposal under the table all this time while they assembled all the land. This will give the AA Arena & Performing Arts center crowd a place to go after events instead of crossing the causeway to South Beach.

bobdreamz
Nov 12, 2007, 5:46 AM
the following pics are from jamesgood72 who has a model airplane that he flies from BiCentennial Park downtown and shows off some of the recently completed & UC projects:

MarinaBlue completed on the left & 900 Biscayne next to it:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2404/1966957038_5fb999c53b_b.jpg

L to R: 900 Biscayne / 10 Museum Park & Marquis still under construction, notice the newly tiled mosaics on Biscayne Blvd. :

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2044/1966060737_794375f375_b.jpg

Marquis UC and just surpassing 10 Museum's 585 ft. height on the left:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2058/1965996795_c311cf90a9_b.jpg

shot looking south towards the CBD, Bayfront Park, AA Arena and other highrises still under construction:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2157/1966938120_933e3423ed_b.jpg

cityguy
Nov 12, 2007, 12:55 PM
It's strange than there are large buildings along one street and behind are several blocks that are vacant,very little density.Which is most evident in the third picture.Nice pictures by the way.

Complex01
Nov 12, 2007, 3:33 PM
:previous:


True but that leaves so much more space for future projects. Like the one listed on the page before. Those places will not be empty for ever.

Great pics. Biscayne wall is looking awesome...

:cool:

colemonkee
Nov 12, 2007, 5:31 PM
Great shots. Thanks for posting. Marina Blue turned out really nice.

bobdreamz
Nov 13, 2007, 3:13 AM
^ yes Marina Blue did turn out nice. Here is a ground shot of it by Arch Photographer:

http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/3291/mbforumar9.jpg

MET 2 foundation finally goes vertical ! :

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i102/stratoshpere/met2.jpg

pic by interesan-t

Everglades by the Bay update :

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/6779/everbay2k710coolns1.jpg

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/1608/everbay2k7101tj4.jpg

FernandoZ
Nov 23, 2007, 6:01 PM
Wow... great shots!

Complex01
Nov 30, 2007, 9:19 PM
Miami Art Museum designed to fit in with park
The building design for the Miami Art Museum – to be unveiled today – seeks to be one with its waterfront site in Bicentennial Park.

BY ANDRES VIGLUCCI AND DANIEL CHANG
aviglucci@MiamiHerald.com


The Miami Art Museum on Friday unveils a working design for its new $220 million bayfront home that, safe to say, looks unlike any building in Miami -- or any other place:

Beneath a set of long, flat, layered canopies held up by slender poles, a series of interconnected blocks -- the museum galleries -- seem to float over a raised platform. Thick vines hang from or creep up toward the canopy ceilings, which are punctured by skylights. Under the platform is an exposed parking garage.

The whole dreamlike composition, inspired in part by the houses of Stiltsville in Biscayne Bay, resembles nothing so much as a giant sandwich, pincushioned by toothpicks, in which the meat and bread have come slightly apart.

It will all be cooled by bay breezes and the latest green technologies.

The new MAM was designed by the Swiss firm Herzog & de Meuron, known for daring but carefully considered architecture.

It ought to dazzle and confound in equal measure. MAM officials could not be more pleased.

AN ORIGINAL

''It's an original Miami building,'' said museum director Terence Riley. ``It's not New York; it's not London. Right away, it has an iconic quality. But what I'm really excited about is that it appears it's going to be a fantastic museum.''

Scheduled for groundbreaking in one year and completion in 2011, the MAM building would co-anchor the proposed Museum Park on the 29-acre site of Bicentennial Park, the lodestone of Miami's downtown revival. Design work on the second anchor, a science museum by British architect Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, is in preliminary stages.

Construction of the MAM building, estimated to cost $130 million, will be financed with $100 million in Miami-Dade County bonds that voters approved in 2004, with the balance provided by museum donors. Riley said the museum has raised the full amount for construction, and will now focus on privately raising $70 million for an endowment and $20 million for other expenses related to the new building.

Starting Saturday, MAM will host an exhibition at its downtown building on the development of the new design, intended in part to spur fundraising as well as public discussion of the plan, Riley said.

''This is not theoretical,'' Riley said. ``We have results, and we want to share them with the people who are financing it.

''What we're looking for is a kind of mature community debate and discussion that eventually finds its way into the museum,'' he said. However, Riley expects more refinement than drastic change in the working design, which has been endorsed by the museum's board.

At least one insider says MAM appears to have an architectural hit on its hands, unlike other Miami buildings by famous architects that are widely regarded as duds.

''I think the building is brilliant,'' said Peter Menendez, a senior associate at the Miami architecture firm Spillis Candela DMJM and a former MAM board member. ``This is the building that will break the jinx in this city in which great architects have come and not done their best work.''

But MAM officials and architects say they have been wary of the pressure to come up with an instant icon along the lines of Frank Gehry's famed Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, which has drawn millions of visitors to the industrial city and prompted other cities around the world to attempt to reproduce the effect, often with unhappy results.

''There have been some iconic flops recently,'' said Riley, who handpicked Herzog & de Meuron. 'We said, `Don't worry about the icon business. Do a great museum.' If it's a great museum, it may become an icon.''

The architects -- who came to world renown after converting a massive power plant on the Thames River in London into the Tate Modern museum -- say their design started with South Florida's climate, the museum's bayfront park site and MAM's vision for expanding its small permanent collection.

''It was clear to us from the very beginning that this project is about climate, community, about community space, not just beautiful galleries in a park,'' said Christine Binswanger, the firm's partner in charge of the project. ``We want not just a beautiful building. We want to have this building relate to the park and be a part of the park.''

To that end, they came up with a large canopy-like structure, open to the air on all sides, that would provide a garden-like shelter -- with vines, trees and other flora -- and water views to park and museum visitors. The museum itself would be three stories, with the first and third having transparent walls to allow views in and out and providing the impression that the second floor -- housing the museum's main galleries -- floats in the air. A broad staircase would descend to a baywalk and act as a front porch for the museum.

Despite its apparent delicateness, Binswanger said the building's computer-aided post-and-beam design will be ''extra stiff'' to meet hurricane codes. Structural engineers from Miami have already done preliminary studies, and a model will be subjected to wind-tunnel tests.

SAVING ENERGY

The building will also be designed around energy-saving, sustainable materials and techniques. For instance, groundwater could be pumped up the columns to cool the canopy roof and the space beneath.

The museum would also include a café and shop, library and classrooms with panoramic views of the park and bay. An auditorium will be on the garage level, which may also exhibit art, likely projected video or photography.

''The beginning of this experience should be when you park your car,'' Binswanger said. Binswanger said the overall design mimics banyan tree roots or a mangrove cluster: a multitude of redundant structures creating a unified organism.

The design also was inspired by what Riley referred to as a classic example of South Florida ''folk architecture'' -- Stiltsville.

By incorporating copious foliage into a design that recalls a wrap-around porch, Riley said, the architects managed to bring the park inside the building, creating what he called ``open space under a roof.''

''It's not a trunk for art,'' Binswanger said. ``It's open and breathing.''

Inside, visitors will find a museum that does not, in Riley's words, ''aspire to be a mini-MOMA or a mini-Tate,'' alluding to museums with encyclopedic collections of modern art. Rather, Riley wants to build a collection that focuses on specific artists and offers broad overviews of artistic movements.

''To make this an interesting destination,'' he said, ``we don't have to tell the whole story [of contemporary art]. We can tell the story the way we want to.''

There would be three types of galleries: some that present an overview of the anticipated collection; others that focus on, or ''anchor,'' the works of a particular artist; and ones that will be created by architects in collaboration with a commissioned artist. The museum would have about 32,000 square feet of exhibit space, tripling that in its current building, designed in the 1980s as a temporary exhibition hall.

The open structure also allows flexibility for the young museum to grow. Rooms can be added to the galleries without major disruptions, MAM said.

http://media.miamiherald.com/smedia/2007/11/30/04/133-modelwhite00_miamiartmuseum.standalone.prod_affiliate.56.JPG

http://media.miamiherald.com/smedia/2007/11/30/04/791-01viewparksky00_miamiartmus.standalone.prod_affiliate.56.JPG

http://media.miamiherald.com/smedia/2007/11/30/04/804-intmodel00_miamiartmuseum_d.standalone.prod_affiliate.56.JPG

http://media.miamiherald.com/smedia/2007/11/30/04/335-gwithwindow00_miamiartmuseu.standalone.prod_affiliate.56.JPG

Complex01
Nov 30, 2007, 9:20 PM
I know i dont live in Miami, but i saw that no one else posted this and I thought it was a great story to post. Art museums really bring a flair to the city. The location is great next to the new theater and symphony hall. Also this will be a great addition to the DT area, great project...

:yes:

bobdreamz
Dec 1, 2007, 6:26 PM
Complex thanks for posting the story & pics. It looks like a very basic design and not thrilling but fits in well with the landscape since so many thought it would overbear the park.

I would have posted it but it seems there is no interest in Miami projects here.

Complex01
Dec 3, 2007, 2:51 AM
I love Miami, i have lots of interest in it. You know Florida use to have its own section, what ever happend to it...

brickell
Dec 3, 2007, 5:34 AM
If the park comes together like I'm hoping then the museum will come together very nicely. I'm not convinced that will happen, but it's a very interesting design.

bobdreamz
Dec 4, 2007, 9:21 PM
PLANNING FACT SHEET
LEGISTAR FILE ID:
07-00513mu
December 5, 2007
Item #
3
APPLICANT
Patrick N. Range, as attorney on behalf of the Empire World Towers, LLC.
REQUEST/LOCATION
Consideration of a Major Use Special Permit for the Empire World Towers project, to be located at approximately 300 and 330 Biscayne Boulevard, 227, 237, 243, 249 NE 3rd Street and 230, 249 NE 4th Street
COMMISSION DISTRICT
2
ZONING DISTRICT(S)
CBD (Central Business District)
SITE AREA
2.66± acres (Gross) and 2.03± acres (Net)
LEGAL DESCRIPTION
See supporting documentation
PETITION
Consideration of a Resolution, approving with conditions, a Major Use Special Permit pursuant to articles 13 and 17 of zoning Ordinance No. 11000, as amended, for the Empire World Towers project, to be located at approximately 300 and 330 Biscayne Boulevard, 227, 237, 243, 249 northeast 3rd Street and 230, 249 Northeast 4th Street, Miami, Florida, to construct a mixed use project with two 93 story high structures of approximately 1,022 feet, to be comprised of approximately 1,557 total multifamily residential units with recreational amenities; approximately 3,317 square feet of office space; approximately 24,741 square feet of retail space; and approximately 1,321 total parking spaces.
PLANNING RECOMMENDATION
Continuance by administration to January 16, 2008
BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS
See supporting documentation
PLANNING ADVISORY BOARD
VOTE:
CITY COMMISSION

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

* well it seems this proposal is still alive! thanks to toucano for the info for the city planning PDF.

Complex01
Dec 5, 2007, 3:51 PM
Well that is good that the project is still alive. 1000 feet is still good, taller would be nice, but still another project that will stand out for sure. I hope it gets approved...

:yes:

brickell
Dec 5, 2007, 4:04 PM
Approved probably, but I don't think this makes the project any more viable. Just my opinion, but that's a lot of inventory to move in this market.

Complex01
Dec 14, 2007, 3:53 PM
So i had a last minute trip to Miami, yesterday. I loved it, it was great. I love seeing all the new progress along the water front and downtown. I didnt take any pictures because i didnt have my camera, but i just wanted to say it was very nice and i cant wait to go again...

:yes:

newplace
Dec 14, 2007, 6:52 PM
I really really hope this gets under consturction and goes up. As if Miami, FL skyline wasnt already on the map.

VisionMIA
Dec 19, 2007, 12:11 AM
Somthing I put together and posted it on SSC.
OBP and Empire.
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/shinyOBP-1.jpg

newplace
Dec 19, 2007, 4:58 AM
Somthing I put together and posted it on SSC.
OBP and Empire.
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/shinyOBP-1.jpg

Please let this happen, Oh please!!!!. I can dream right...yes, yes I can.
Good render BTW:banana:

EAINMIAMI
Dec 19, 2007, 1:45 PM
Somthing I put together and posted it on SSC.
OBP and Empire.
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/shinyOBP-1.jpg


AWESOME !!! My prayers would be answered if Met 3 was included in that rendition.

Complex01
Dec 19, 2007, 2:50 PM
:previous:

Agreed. That rendering is awesome. I hope, I hope, I hope...


:yes:

JDRCRASH
Jan 8, 2008, 9:10 PM
^ ^ ^

Don't hope too much, apparantly only New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles are going to barely pull through this real estate slowdown.

As much as I love Miami for it's ladies and year-round 70 degree weather, it's Development boom is coming down......hard, and probably won't recover for at least 5 years.

But don't feel so lonely, Las Vegas is getting slammed just as bad. And I love Vegas!:happysad:

brickell
Jan 8, 2008, 9:44 PM
The Plaza on Brickell has added a light component.

http://www.miamiprogress.com/ssp/plaza5.jpg

VisionMIA
Jan 10, 2008, 5:12 PM
^ ^ ^

Don't hope too much, apparantly only New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles are going to barely pull through this real estate slowdown.

As much as I love Miami for it's ladies and year-round 70 degree weather, it's Development boom is coming down......hard, and probably won't recover for at least 5 years.

But don't feel so lonely, Las Vegas is getting slammed just as bad. And I love Vegas!:happysad:

uhhh there is no real estate slowdown in Miami...where did that come from? true condo prices are dropping pretty favorably but it doesn't mean it's stopping...Miami now has 4 office towers including met 2 647ft. now just going vertical.. and there are currently 8 condo towers way over 500 feet still under construction.. with still plenty more condo/mixed use towers ready to take off includin the soon to be Miami's tallest Met 3..after that expect the real big boys BFCentre 900 footer and OBPlaza and Empire which are over 1000 ft. to commence construction which is planned to begin in 2010.not to mention the towers of Park West, Omni, Infinity II 732 ft.,Liberta, Capital towers which spires will scrape past the 800ft mark...etc... the list goes on..

the city is now funding millions to develop street cars and a tunnel for the port of Miami..not to mention the rising of the new Marlins stadium..

JDRCRASH
Jan 10, 2008, 5:50 PM
:previous:

:lmao:

Really? Cause from what i've heard they're having problems with vacancy. In fact, one newspaper reported that prices could fall as much as 50-70%! This is probably due to over-building.

It looks like the Media Coverage of the Real Estate Market in America is being carelessly announced.

VisionMIA
Jan 10, 2008, 6:28 PM
:previous:

:lmao:

Really? Cause from what i've heard they're having problems with vacancy. In fact, one newspaper reported that prices could fall as much as 50-70%! This is probably due to over-building.

It looks like the Media Coverage of the Real Estate Market in America is being carelessly announced.

do you seriously believe what reporters write???
everyone has their thoughts on this city and sadly you are believing speculation....of course there are 50%-70% vacancies to these buildings due to the fact that these buildings were built based on the purpose to flip during the boom..when everything stalled no one could flip and many purchasers lost there condo's..Florida has a law where you must have at least 80% buyers before you can build. unlike New York which goes by build it they will come...which is why you see vacancies..try 50 biscayne for example a tower that was completed not long ago and is filling up fast..prices are dropping and it's beginning to pick up speed... Miami is one of the fastest growing cities in America... south Florida in itself is built out..we have no choice but to build high.. people are still moving down regardless.. developers don't care if it take 5 years to fill..these developers are looking whats ahead..they say it themselves..the city has potential to explode and the biggest developers all want a piece of Miami. and most of the towers that were topped off are still not yet available cause work is still being done on the interiors..I don't even think Marina Blue, or Plaza on Brickell is even yet open..problems with vacancies is mostly cause these buildings are not yet finished...People see the outside and don't know the inside...Just like reporters made speculation Pat Riley was retiring and the man came out fueled saying he never said once he was retiring.. everyone including reporters all have different views on whats happening in downtown...pure speculation my brother..

JDRCRASH
Jan 10, 2008, 6:42 PM
^ ^ ^
I'm not saying I TRUST those reporters.

I mean, try telling that to some of the other forumers in Los Angeles Downtown Rundown 3.0 Thread who apparantly think that Smart Growth, Big Ideas, Innovative Plans, and Low Condo Prices WILL NOT help Downtown Urban areas.

When I try to say what you just said, people just reply with stuff like :koko:, :lmao:, :sly: or :haha:

Take L.A. for example, it's been built out for decades now, and some believe(including our own Mayor Antonio Villaragoisa) that if ordinances are taken down at a record rate(which they are), and Mass Transit explodes with funding; the "Soda Bottle"(so to speak) will Nova and we could experience the Largest Construction Boom in U.S. History.
And your right; Miami's case is the same.

I personally believe that that "build it, they will come" idea is naive for New Yorkers to implement.

If what your saying is right, i'd like you to help me convey that to some of the idiots in that forum.

Complex01
Jan 10, 2008, 7:00 PM
The Plaza on Brickell has added a light component.

http://www.miamiprogress.com/ssp/plaza5.jpg

Nice, kewl colors...

:yes:

VisionMIA
Jan 10, 2008, 8:25 PM
^ ^ ^
I'm not saying I TRUST those reporters.

I mean, try telling that to some of the other forumers in Los Angeles Downtown Rundown 3.0 Thread who apparantly think that Smart Growth, Big Ideas, Innovative Plans, and Low Condo Prices WILL NOT help Downtown Urban areas.

When I try to say what you just said, people just reply with stuff like :koko:, :lmao:, :sly: or :haha:

Take L.A. for example, it's been built out for decades now, and some believe(including our own Mayor Antonio Villaragoisa) that if ordinances are taken down at a record rate(which they are), and Mass Transit explodes with funding; the "Soda Bottle"(so to speak) will Nova and we could experience the Largest Construction Boom in U.S. History.
And your right; Miami's case is the same.

I personally believe that that "build it, they will come" idea is naive for New Yorkers to implement.

If what your saying is right, i'd like you to help me convey that to some of the idiots in that forum.

and you are probably right..I do believe a lot of cities ordinances are what can keep a city from growing. but they do prevent the high risks or the fears..
You see our Miami mayor knows all this Mr. Manny Diaz and he doesn't care..He knows if he can imitate Chicago..his city will be rich...that is his soul goal..that is Miami's goal. they are fighting with the FAA to remove the height restriction they've already bumped it to the 1000 foot mark..they are finding all this money to fund for the building of the Miami port tunnel, Street cars...2.9 billion to be exact.

The rich that see the growth are jumping in and getting involved..like Shaq forming the Oneal group to help MDM development build the 866 ft. Met 3. a lot of celebs buying some condo space in downtown..like daddy yankee getting a top floor in 900 biscayne.. there is a lot of development demand..you see all this development was supposed to go to Miami Beach..but the city didn't want the highrises to shade the beaches.. So the developers all saw the space in downtown and jumped on it...

We have reporters here that say the bubble popped.. sure! but we also have reporters talking about the real estate slump is not affecting Miami at all.
all I know is prices will go down and even if it takes five years to fill the towers..they don't care..like they say "they are preparing the harvest for when the rain comes".
time will tell. but I'm telling you, slow or not! the city is not stopping it's growth..

check some links
http://www.dwntwn.com/
http://www.miamiherald.com/top_stories/story/361164.html

JDRCRASH
Jan 10, 2008, 8:45 PM
No city ultimately stops growing, that's for sure; it's just is a matter of how much growth at a time. Unfortunately the FAA blockheads act as slow as sloths!


And like I said, many dorks in Los Angeles Downtown Rundown 3.0 don't want to believe me.

VisionMIA
Jan 10, 2008, 9:02 PM
No city ultimately stops growing, that's for sure; it's just is a matter of how much growth at a time. Unfortunately the FAA blockheads act as slow as sloths!


And like I said, many dorks in Los Angeles Downtown Rundown 3.0 don't want to believe me.

I'd hate to compare Miami to Dubai..but they don't care either. they are building in the desert..most of their towers are empty too..that 's not slowing Dubai down either..they are preparing their harvest...

JDRCRASH
Jan 10, 2008, 9:19 PM
^ ^ ^
Yeah, the Three Palm Islands are really struggeling.

Heh, but that Sheik has all that money though.
Over $1.5 Trillion of it!:haha:

newplace
Jan 11, 2008, 6:42 AM
^^^
^^^
^^^
people, miami-dade is on the front lines of the bubble bursting. My family moved to ATL this past summer cuz they couldn't pay the morgage rates (that went up) up and the home owner insurance that was already high. Lots of middle to lower class people are moving north. I love miami, but just saying nothing is wrong and the buildings will keep going up makes no sense. I still want to see them get some supertalls thats why I am hoping that great render comes to life. sure lots of projects are moving forward but like someone said its going to be like dubai, lots of empty tall buildings.
las cosas no van bien en realestate del sur de Florida

http://cbs4.com/consumer/Foreclosures.Record.Numbers.2.599035.html

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami_dade/east/story/372092.html

JDRCRASH
Jan 11, 2008, 6:41 PM
^
WTF!!!!!!!!!
This is bad.

VisionMIA
Jan 11, 2008, 8:24 PM
^^^
^^^
^^^
people, miami-dade is on the front lines of the bubble bursting. My family moved to ATL this past summer cuz they couldn't pay the morgage rates (that went up) up and the home owner insurance that was already high. Lots of middle to lower class people are moving north. I love miami, but just saying nothing is wrong and the buildings will keep going up makes no sense. I still want to see them get some supertalls thats why I am hoping that great render comes to life. sure lots of projects are moving forward but like someone said its going to be like dubai, lots of empty tall buildings.
las cosas no van bien en realestate del sur de Florida

http://cbs4.com/consumer/Foreclosures.Record.Numbers.2.599035.html

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami_dade/east/story/372092.html


that is what always happens when there is a boom...the bigger it is the bigger the burst...spectators feared this day would come during the boom.
very true lot's a families that weren't smart with choices they made when purchasing a home got screwed from this boom. I'm including myself in this one too...we let our real estate agents make the money put us in a home we can't afford and their pockets real fat...unfortunately the sleezy real estate firms went out of business already..
they well know aren't suppose to put us in homes where our monthly mortgage rates exceed 30% of our monthly income...now because of many floridians ignorance in this matter many paid a heavy cost and having to move out...the State is not used to the high values that these houses are now worth. including the governor fighting to drop the homeowner insurance prices and the high propety taxes which are a killer..
..what will start happening now is prices will begin to deflate.. and people that are selling there homes will have to take huge losses..but if your a new yorker where your still paying $2500 a month for a studio in manhattan may find Miami cheap..you can purchase a 3 bedroom 2 bath here for the same monthly mortgage up there..we have to understand Florida itself went on high demand inflating to prices near the home values that would be found inCalifornia and New York.. my house here which is now worth 363,000..In Los Angeles for the same size would be nearly 600,000..I would know I was thinkin of moving there.. move to North Dakota and
you may live rich there..popular states means a heavy price especially if you want to live here in paradise..

but like I said deflation is happening prices are dropping and these condo's are getting to values where you will see people jump on..they are estimating when the prices continue to drop we may see another boom not as big as the one we had but enough to be called a boom in 3 years time..Miami is preparing for that with these condos..people will no longer have to camp out the city like they did in the previous boom in front of the sales centers lining up just to buy a pre construction condo.. but will be able to buy and move in...
that was one of the biggest errors and why many people lost their deposits...tired of waiting for these buiding to go up and developers not completing them in time due to increase cost in supply and labor..

VisionMIA
Jan 12, 2008, 12:26 AM
at anyway here are some pics I took 2 days ago of the city
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2875.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2879.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2869.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2880-1.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2856.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2853.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2854.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2851.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2882.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2883.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2864.jpg

JDRCRASH
Jan 15, 2008, 6:01 PM
Lately there has been more confirmation that the Market will rebound in the 4th quarter, so a little bit more sun is shining on Miami's future.:D

Complex01
Jan 15, 2008, 9:58 PM
[QUOTE=VisionMIA;3276454]at anyway here are some pics I took 2 days ago of the city

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y61/Sotomon3/IMG_2851.jpg
QUOTE]


:previous:

Thank You, Thank You, for posting some Miami pics. Long over due. Anyhow i love this pic. Oh what the hell, i love them all. Love it, love it...

Thanxs again...

:yes:

Surrealplaces
Jan 30, 2008, 12:41 AM
^^^
^^^
^^^
people, miami-dade is on the front lines of the bubble bursting. My family moved to ATL this past summer cuz they couldn't pay the morgage rates (that went up) up and the home owner insurance that was already high. Lots of middle to lower class people are moving north. I love miami, but just saying nothing is wrong and the buildings will keep going up makes no sense. I still want to see them get some supertalls thats why I am hoping that great render comes to life. sure lots of projects are moving forward but like someone said its going to be like dubai, lots of empty tall buildings.
las cosas no van bien en realestate del sur de Florida

http://cbs4.com/consumer/Foreclosures.Record.Numbers.2.599035.html

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami_dade/east/story/372092.html

I've heard that Taxes and Insurance are high in Florida. What type of property tax would someone expect to pay on a 1000 sq ft condo or 1000 sq ft house in Miami area?

SkyReefer
Jan 30, 2008, 12:14 PM
Prob. between 5 and 8 grand.

Also, this is an interesting story for those who haven't seen it:

Realtor fired over Hollo blog post
Posted on Mon, Jan. 28, 2008


Developer Tibor Hollo has filed a $25 million defamation lawsuit against a Miami real estate agent who blogged that the octogenarian went bankrupt in the 1980s and is headed for a fall with the upheaval in the condo market.

Hollo last week sued agent Lucas Lechuga and the Coral Gables brokerage Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell alleging they have engaged in a smear campaign against him and his Opera Tower condo development on Lechuga's Miami Condo Investments blog.

On Monday, the postings cost Lechuga his job.

''We just don't condone making statements, especially negative statements, about anyone, so we have terminated our relationship with our associate,'' said EWM President Ron Shuffield. Its agents are independent contractors, not employees.

Lechuga, 29, predicted on the blog that at least half of the buyers in the 635-unit Opera Tower at 1750 Bayshore Drive would default and the units would be taken over the project's lender.

''My opinion is that this development is doomed,'' he wrote on Jan. 10.

That followed this Nov. 25 post: ``This developer went bankrupt in the 1980's and I think we'll see a repeat performance within the next 6 months. What do I know, though? I'm no real estate oracle.''

An angry Hollo said neither he nor any of his companies ever filed for bankruptcy.

''I guess when you're running a blog [you] think [you] can say anything about anybody, and that's just not true,'' Hollo said. He called the postings ``plain, unadulterated lies.''

The suit was filed in Miami-Dade Circuit Court. Hollo declined to say how he arrived at the $25 million damage claim.

Lechuga said he was exercising his constitutional rights in musing about Opera Tower.

''Like any other blog out there, it's a collection of my unbiased opinions and thoughts,'' he said. ``I have buyers all over the world who go to my blog. They know I'm not going to sugarcoat the market.''

Lechuga removed the Nov. 25 post after learning of the lawsuit, but later reposted it without the reference to Hollo going ''bankrupt.'' He said he would have removed it sooner had he known it was wrong. He said a few people who told him about it may not have meant Hollo literally filed for bankruptcy, rather that Hollo had financial troubles of some kind.

Hollo lost some properties to lenders in the early 1990s, The Miami Herald reported at the time.

''In those days, I lost lots of money of mine, tens of millions of dollars,'' Hollo said. ``I didn't lose anybody else's money. That's all I can tell you about it.''

Hollo deemed Opera Tower a success, with the entire project sold out. Closings began this months, with about 40 units deeded to buyers so far, he said. Ten lawsuits have been filed in Miami federal court by buyers seeking to rescind their purchase contracts, however.

Robert Jarvis, a constitutional law and ethics professor at Nova Southeastern University, who isn't involved in the case, said he doubts Lechuga will be held liable for defaming Hollo.

''Courts understand [blogs] are written in unedited, unvetted fashion,'' Jarvis said. ``There's a lot of hyperbole. That's why it's so difficult to win defamation lawsuits.''

Plus, Jarvis said Lechuga could argue Hollo is a ''limited public figure'' -- making it harder for Hollo to claim he was defamed.

None of the legal arguments make any difference to EWM's Shuffield.

''I viewed these statements to be more negative in tone than just providing information,'' Shuffield said, adding the firm wouldn't have hired Lechuga had it known about the blog.

Shuffield said he feels like he's been caught in a dispute he has nothing to do with. Nevertheless, he said he expects there will be discussion with the company's 800 associates about what they can post on their blogs.

''We want to encourage associates to be a positive source of information,'' Shuffield said.

lviz
Jan 30, 2008, 2:45 PM
Mexican real estate developer Jacobo Cababie, whose vision is imprinted in two high-rise condo projects in downtown Miami, has died, leaving his family’s American subsidiary without its leader in the midst of the worst U.S. housing downturn in decades.

Cababie, 39, died Saturday of a massive heart attack.

Link to article:
http://www.dailybusinessreview.com/news.html?news_id=46850

lviz
Jan 30, 2008, 3:01 PM
Here are some photos I took around Brickell this week. The boat photos are from a couple of months back.

Click on any thumbnail for the full size.

Santa Maria, Imperial, Villa Regina, Palace and Four Seasons.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_100_9083Medium.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/100_9083Medium.jpg)

Four Seasons, Jade and Club Brickell Bay.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_100_9064Medium.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/100_9064Medium.jpg)

Mint, Ivy and Neo Wind.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_mintivywind1024768.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/mintivywind1024768.jpg)

Jade, Emerald, Sail, Four Seasons.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_jadesunset1024768.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/jadesunset1024768.jpg)

Jade Bay Lofts.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_jadebayloft1024768.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/jadebayloft1024768.jpg)

Epic Residences.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_epic1024768.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/epic1024768.jpg)

Downtown with Loft 2, Everglades and 50 Biscayne.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_downtown1024768.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/downtown1024768.jpg)

Mary Brickell Village, Axis and Infinity.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_brickellvillage1024768.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/brickellvillage1024768.jpg)

Brickell on the River.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_brickellriver1024768.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/brickellriver1024768.jpg)

500 Brickell.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_500brickell1024768.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/500brickell1024768.jpg)

Anyone know if 500 Brickell is supposed to be modeled on the Umeda Floating Garden Observatory in Osaka, Japan (http://pullonsupermanscape.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/dsc_00560053.JPG)?(click link for photo). I saw it on the Amazing Race and the design is somewhat similar. Are there plans to have any type of walkway around the circle between the towers?

Surrealplaces
Jan 30, 2008, 4:19 PM
Prob. between 5 and 8 grand.

.

Wow, that is really high for property tax. That's around 400.00/month and up. Is that typical for all of Florida, or just the Miami area?

Complex01
Jan 30, 2008, 4:55 PM
Nice shots Iviz. Very Kewl. What is the status of Met 1, 2, and 3...

dave8721
Jan 31, 2008, 3:03 PM
Wow, that is really high for property tax. That's around 400.00/month and up. Is that typical for all of Florida, or just the Miami area?

It is high but keep in mind there are no income taxes so it pretty much evens out.

JDRCRASH
Jan 31, 2008, 5:41 PM
Mexican real estate developer Jacobo Cababie, whose vision is imprinted in two high-rise condo projects in downtown Miami, has died, leaving his family’s American subsidiary without its leader in the midst of the worst U.S. housing downturn in decades.

Cababie, 39, died Saturday of a massive heart attack.

Link to article:
http://www.dailybusinessreview.com/news.html?news_id=46850

That's too bad, especially to die that young.:(

Surrealplaces
Jan 31, 2008, 7:27 PM
It is high but keep in mind there are no income taxes so it pretty much evens out.

Unfortunately for someone like myself, I'm looking at buying a property and renting it out as a vacation home. I would have to pay my stiff income tax up here, and stiff property taxes in Florida. :(


This is kind of an off topic question, but I noticed that alot of the swimming pools in Florida have glass coverings. Does anyone know what the reason for it is? Just curious.

brickell
Jan 31, 2008, 8:22 PM
Most are screen coverings. It keeps the bugs out.

Surrealplaces
Feb 1, 2008, 7:01 PM
Most of screen coverings. It keeps the bugs out.

Thanks, I didn't know there were that many bugs in Florida. I've never noticed it before.

brickell
Feb 2, 2008, 5:48 AM
We are a bug's paradise. No winter, lots of rain, and plenty of plants and tourists to munch on.

BrandonJXN
Feb 5, 2008, 6:33 AM
The hell kind of name is Neo Wind? And how many Jade's are there in Miami?

brickell
Feb 5, 2008, 2:47 PM
The hell kind of name is Neo Wind? And how many Jade's are there in Miami?

Neo is the name of the development company.
Neo Lofts, Neo Vertika, Neo Wind and Cima

There's 3 Jades. Jade Ocean and Jade Beach in Sunny Isles Beach and Jade Residences in Brickell.

There's 2 blues - Marina Blue and Blue
There's 2 Paramounts - Paramount Beach and Paramount Bay

BrandonJXN
Feb 5, 2008, 6:46 PM
Miami has some of the strangest names for it's buildings. I know that alot of cities name their condo buildings weird names (LA for example has Elleven, Luma, Evo, Jardin) but Miami has Ice, Blue, Mint, Jade in the middle of the ocean, Wind, Fart, Butt, Tree, Branches. Weird.

dave8721
Feb 5, 2008, 7:03 PM
The hell kind of name is Neo Wind? And how many Jade's are there in Miami?

One Jade in Miami itself (Jade at Brickell Bay is the full name), and 2 more Jades in Sunny Isles (Jade Ocean and Jade Beach)

dave8721
Feb 5, 2008, 7:09 PM
Miami has some of the strangest names for it's buildings. I know that alot of cities name their condo buildings weird names (LA for example has Elleven, Luma, Evo, Jardin) but Miami has Ice, Blue, Mint, Jade in the middle of the ocean, Wind, Fart, Butt, Tree, Branches. Weird.

Don't forget a project going up called "Eloquence by the Bay" or how about "Loftika"? We have an office tower going up called "Logik" but at least the tower called "Max Tower" was never built.

BrandonJXN
Feb 5, 2008, 11:28 PM
Well..at least Miami names their buildings better than Dubai. They have a tower called 'The Tower,' a skyscraper named, 'The Skyscraper,' and some buildings called, 'Buildings'

lviz
Feb 6, 2008, 2:16 AM
Wanted to share some photos I took from and around Epic Residences today. Click on any thumbnail to enlarge.

500 Brickell and Brickell on the River
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_500brickellandriver.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/500brickellandriver.jpg)

Brickell Key and Asia
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_asia.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/asia.jpg)

Brickell Avenue
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_brickellave.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/brickellave.jpg)

Icon Brickell
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_icon1.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/icon1.jpg)

Icon Brickell
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_icon2.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/icon2.jpg)

Icon Brickell, 500 Brickell and Epic Residences
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_icon500epic.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/icon500epic.jpg)

Icon Brickell and Brickell Key
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_iconbrickellkey.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/iconbrickellkey.jpg)

Met1
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_met12.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/met12.jpg)

Met1
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_met1.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/met1.jpg)

Construction site of Met2 (bottom) and Met3 (top)
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_met2met3.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/met2met3.jpg)

Looking north towards Loft 2 and Everglades
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_miami.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/miami.jpg)

Park West
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/th_parkwest.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/parkwest.jpg)

brickell
Feb 6, 2008, 3:12 AM
Nice. Would love to see more.

colemonkee
Feb 6, 2008, 6:04 AM
Excellent photos, Iviz. Icon Brickell looks nice.

ThreeHundred, you crack me up.

lviz
Feb 8, 2008, 2:21 AM
Another busy day (and a very hot one too), click any thumbnail to enlarge. Enjoy...

Apogee
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_apogee.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/apogee.jpg)

Asia
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_asia.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/asia.jpg)

Marina Blue, 900 Biscayne, Ten Museum Park and Marquis
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_bisc1.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/bisc1.jpg)

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_bisc2.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/bisc2.jpg)

Marina Blue and 900 Biscayne
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_marinablue900biscayne.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/marinablue900biscayne.jpg)

Ten Museum Park and Marquis
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_tenmuseummarquis.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/tenmuseummarquis.jpg)

City 24
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_city24.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/city24.jpg)

Continuum 2
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_continuumii.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/continuumii.jpg)

Epic Residences
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_epic.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/epic.jpg)

Epic Residences and Met 1
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_epicandmet.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/epicandmet.jpg)

Icon Brickell
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_iconbrickell.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/iconbrickell.jpg)

Met 1
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_met1.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/met1.jpg)

Midtown Miami
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_midtownmiami.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/midtownmiami.jpg)

Paramount Bay
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/th_paramountbay.jpg (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e85/kingdomchris/feb7/paramountbay.jpg)

MiamiSpartan
Feb 11, 2008, 1:28 PM
Somebody may have posted this already, but I'm hearing from several sites that the city of Miami will FINALLY be announcing the final plans and start dates for construction of the new Marlin ballpark and the Orange Bowl site within the next 3 weeks....
The skyline views from there would be decent....

Complex01
Feb 11, 2008, 4:49 PM
Great pics Iviz. Looking amazing...

:yes:

lviz
Feb 13, 2008, 2:15 PM
http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg44/thinkmiami/infinity/infinity_a.jpg

http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg44/thinkmiami/infinity/infinity_b.jpg

lviz
Feb 23, 2008, 8:57 PM
Look, no cranes!
http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg44/thinkmiami/brickrll.jpg

And here's Wind by Neo:
http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg44/thinkmiami/wind-small.jpg

bobdreamz
Feb 25, 2008, 12:30 PM
wow that base of the Infinity is horrid!

Complex01
Feb 25, 2008, 3:39 PM
[QUOTE=lviz;3374027]Look, no cranes!
http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg44/thinkmiami/brickrll.jpg

[QUOTE]

Ahh what happend to all the cranes, i think we need some more...

:yes:

cwilson
Feb 25, 2008, 10:01 PM
Never new there were so many beautiful buildings in Miami

MiamiJR
Feb 26, 2008, 5:15 PM
Posted on Tue, Feb. 26, 2008
Proposed towers may be among the tallest in the world
BY ANDRES VIGLUCCI
You think those new towers rising in downtown Miami are tall?

Well, you ain't seen nothing yet.

Get ready for the Great Leap Upward -- a new class of super-tall skyscrapers that would reduce those big new high-rises to the status of relative pygmies.

Undeterred by the real-estate downturn, and aided by a little-noticed relaxation of the downtown height limits that protect Miami International Airport's flight paths, two local developers want to take you higher -- up over the 1,000-foot threshold, rare heights in the United States outside of New York and Chicago.

On Thursday, the Miami City Commission will consider Maclee Development's proposed Empire World Towers, a pair of rounded residential cloud-busters that would rise 93 stories over Biscayne Boulevard across from Bayside Marketplace. The city's planning board has recommended approval.

Already approved by the commission: veteran Miami developer Tibor Hollo's One Bayfront Plaza, a 1,008-foot glass office tower resembling a twisting, billowing mainsail. The $1.8 billion project, which also includes a shorter hotel tower, would replace an existing 19-story ''high-rise'' at 100 S. Biscayne Blvd., across from Bayfront Park.

Both developers say they fully intend to build. Because of their size and complexity, both projects would take years to design, review and construct. They wouldn't be finished until the mid-2010s, allowing plenty of time for the sagging market to rebound, the developers say.

Both mega-towers would exceed Miami's current height champ, the 4-year-old, 789-foot Four Seasons Hotel & Tower on Brickell Avenue, by more than 200 feet. That's roughly 20 stories, or what used to be considered a skyscraper in Miami not so long ago.

But why so tall?

''It's begging for it, the site,'' said Hollo, chairman of Florida East Coast Realty, developers of the Omni complex, Venetia and the new Opera Tower. ``We are talking about creating a signature building for the city of Miami. I am laboring here for 52 years, and I wanted to leave a legacy to the city.''

Hollo, 81, says he's spending $35 million on 18 contractors, including Terra Architecture of Coral Gables, who are collaborating on the design. So massive is the undertaking that Hollo estimates it will take two years to finish the plans, and as long as two years more for city building officials to review the 8,000-plus pages he expects to generate.

For Maclee chief executive Leon Cohen, going tall is no case of skyscraper envy but of land economics, location and Miami's increasing affinity for urban living.

''We have had to face a lot of resistance to the concept of such a tall building,'' Cohen said. ``Why would anyone want to be up there on the 90th floor?

``It's no longer the Miami you and I knew in 1990. It's metropolitan. There is an opera house nearby, new activity downtown. There is unique interactivity of land and water. People will continue coming here. And there is nowhere else you can be at 1,000 feet and looking directly at the water.''

The $1 billion Empire World Towers, designed by Miami architect Kobi Karp, would wrap around the back and side of an existing hotel at Northeast Third Street and Biscayne. Karp said the towers, to be wrapped in blue-green glass to recall Biscayne Bay and connected by three sky bridges, do not strain to be iconic.

''We wanted to keep it simple and sleek and elegant,'' Karp said.

At a time when some local trophy projects have been going to bigger or imported designers, landing such large and prominent commissions has also been a boon to Karp and Terra principal Ignacio Permuy.

Terra is only 2 years old. Karp's Miami firm has extensive projects underway across the world, but no landmarks of this scope or significance in his hometown. But he said he's not taking construction for granted just yet.

''It would be a real honor and pleasure to have these buildings move ahead,'' Karp said. ``Right now, we have to have a kind of wait-and-see attitude.

If finished today, both towers would be among the 35 tallest in the world according to Emporis.com, a website that tracks and ranks buildings. Atlanta, Houston and Los Angeles each have one building over 1,000 feet.

But while Empire World Towers would be among the very tallest residential buildings in the United States, it would pale next to the 2,000-foot, 150-floor Chicago Spire, now underway at the mouth of the city's river.

And neither Miami mega-tower would approach the height of the world's current tallest, Taipei 101 in Taiwan, which exceeds 1,600 feet.

Until last year, 790 feet was as high as a Miami skyscraper could go because of regulations meant to keep tall buildings from interfering with MIA's flight paths, which go over downtown Miami. Developers and city officials complained the rules, supported by airlines serving MIA, were overly restrictive.

After long negotiation, airport officials reached a compromise that slightly broadened the area where the tallest buildings would be allowed and increased the top height to 1,010 feet, while lowering heights in some adjacent areas along the Miami River. That means the local rules will more closely mirror federal aviation rules. The Federal Aviation Administration approved the new plan.

Designs for both mega-towers are over that threshold, but the developers said they will reduce heights to comply. Both must still be reviewed by MIA and FAA.

If successful, the mega-projects could inspire other super-tall towers nearby, real-estate professionals say.

But areas where current zoning would allow them are limited to Biscayne Boulevard south of Interstate 395 and the West Brickell area, said Miami land-use attorney Lucia Dougherty, who represents Empire World Towers. Since most of the boulevard frontage has new buildings under construction or already approved, it's unlikely to be converted into a forest of super-tall buildings, she said.

''Everything else is done,'' Dougherty said.

The projects have raised few objections aside from concerns over increased traffic. Both are designed to be pedestrian-friendly, concealing massive parking garages and service areas behind screens of shops and offices, and with active storefronts opening to sidewalks. In addition, Hollo's project would be certified as green.

''I'm not going for the tallest building,'' Hollo said. ``I was looking for a lasting design. I'm hoping, I am trusting, we have done that.''

alleystreetindustry
Feb 27, 2008, 1:16 AM
http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg44/thinkmiami/brickrll.jpg

i really like that white concrete, compliments miami nicely.

lviz
Mar 1, 2008, 9:28 PM
Quantum and 1800 Club
http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg44/thinkmiami/precon/quantum1800club.jpg

Paramount Bay
http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg44/thinkmiami/precon/paramountbay.jpg

Opera Tower
http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg44/thinkmiami/precon/opera.jpg

JDRCRASH
Mar 2, 2008, 4:21 AM
Excellent photos, Iviz. Icon Brickell looks nice.

ThreeHundred, you crack me up.

:lmao:

BrandonJXN
Mar 2, 2008, 6:34 PM
wow that base of the Infinity is horrid!

I agree 100%. It looks like a massive bunker. Are they going to at least paint it? Miami loves pastels. They should paint it sky blue or something.

NewAtlantisMiami
Mar 2, 2008, 9:08 PM
Never new there were so many beautiful buildings in Miami:tup:

A lot of people don't know Miami has so many beautiful buildings because they are all very new with more on the way. The real estate market flattened out here in 2006 and the market corrected itself, but now the dollar is at its lowest level ever against the Euro, the Feds are talking lowering interest rates again to stimulate the economy, and we've had two hurricane seasons in a row with Miami nowhere in the radar picture. The real estate market could see a turn around here in 2008, and who knows what all else we might see go up as referenced by the above article from the Miami Herald.:tup: :tup:

lviz
Mar 4, 2008, 5:49 AM
I agree 100%. It looks like a massive bunker. Are they going to at least paint it? Miami loves pastels. They should paint it sky blue or something.

I believe that the plan is for Infinity II to be built here and it's pedestal will be joined to that of Infinity I with a shared common deck (kind of like Brickell on the River). I would imagine the pedestal is going to be painted in the mean time.

alleystreetindustry
Mar 7, 2008, 2:16 AM
Posted on Tue, Feb. 26, 2008
Proposed towers may be among the tallest in the world
BY ANDRES VIGLUCCI
You think those new towers rising in downtown Miami are tall?

Well, you ain't seen nothing yet.

Get ready for the Great Leap Upward -- a new class of super-tall skyscrapers that would reduce those big new high-rises to the status of relative pygmies.

Undeterred by the real-estate downturn, and aided by a little-noticed relaxation of the downtown height limits that protect Miami International Airport's flight paths, two local developers want to take you higher -- up over the 1,000-foot threshold, rare heights in the United States outside of New York and Chicago.

On Thursday, the Miami City Commission will consider Maclee Development's proposed Empire World Towers, a pair of rounded residential cloud-busters that would rise 93 stories over Biscayne Boulevard across from Bayside Marketplace. The city's planning board has recommended approval.

Already approved by the commission: veteran Miami developer Tibor Hollo's One Bayfront Plaza, a 1,008-foot glass office tower resembling a twisting, billowing mainsail. The $1.8 billion project, which also includes a shorter hotel tower, would replace an existing 19-story ''high-rise'' at 100 S. Biscayne Blvd., across from Bayfront Park.

Both developers say they fully intend to build. Because of their size and complexity, both projects would take years to design, review and construct. They wouldn't be finished until the mid-2010s, allowing plenty of time for the sagging market to rebound, the developers say.

Both mega-towers would exceed Miami's current height champ, the 4-year-old, 789-foot Four Seasons Hotel & Tower on Brickell Avenue, by more than 200 feet. That's roughly 20 stories, or what used to be considered a skyscraper in Miami not so long ago.

But why so tall?

''It's begging for it, the site,'' said Hollo, chairman of Florida East Coast Realty, developers of the Omni complex, Venetia and the new Opera Tower. ``We are talking about creating a signature building for the city of Miami. I am laboring here for 52 years, and I wanted to leave a legacy to the city.''

Hollo, 81, says he's spending $35 million on 18 contractors, including Terra Architecture of Coral Gables, who are collaborating on the design. So massive is the undertaking that Hollo estimates it will take two years to finish the plans, and as long as two years more for city building officials to review the 8,000-plus pages he expects to generate.

For Maclee chief executive Leon Cohen, going tall is no case of skyscraper envy but of land economics, location and Miami's increasing affinity for urban living.

''We have had to face a lot of resistance to the concept of such a tall building,'' Cohen said. ``Why would anyone want to be up there on the 90th floor?

``It's no longer the Miami you and I knew in 1990. It's metropolitan. There is an opera house nearby, new activity downtown. There is unique interactivity of land and water. People will continue coming here. And there is nowhere else you can be at 1,000 feet and looking directly at the water.''

The $1 billion Empire World Towers, designed by Miami architect Kobi Karp, would wrap around the back and side of an existing hotel at Northeast Third Street and Biscayne. Karp said the towers, to be wrapped in blue-green glass to recall Biscayne Bay and connected by three sky bridges, do not strain to be iconic.

''We wanted to keep it simple and sleek and elegant,'' Karp said.

At a time when some local trophy projects have been going to bigger or imported designers, landing such large and prominent commissions has also been a boon to Karp and Terra principal Ignacio Permuy.

Terra is only 2 years old. Karp's Miami firm has extensive projects underway across the world, but no landmarks of this scope or significance in his hometown. But he said he's not taking construction for granted just yet.

''It would be a real honor and pleasure to have these buildings move ahead,'' Karp said. ``Right now, we have to have a kind of wait-and-see attitude.

If finished today, both towers would be among the 35 tallest in the world according to Emporis.com, a website that tracks and ranks buildings. Atlanta, Houston and Los Angeles each have one building over 1,000 feet.

But while Empire World Towers would be among the very tallest residential buildings in the United States, it would pale next to the 2,000-foot, 150-floor Chicago Spire, now underway at the mouth of the city's river.

And neither Miami mega-tower would approach the height of the world's current tallest, Taipei 101 in Taiwan, which exceeds 1,600 feet.

Until last year, 790 feet was as high as a Miami skyscraper could go because of regulations meant to keep tall buildings from interfering with MIA's flight paths, which go over downtown Miami. Developers and city officials complained the rules, supported by airlines serving MIA, were overly restrictive.

After long negotiation, airport officials reached a compromise that slightly broadened the area where the tallest buildings would be allowed and increased the top height to 1,010 feet, while lowering heights in some adjacent areas along the Miami River. That means the local rules will more closely mirror federal aviation rules. The Federal Aviation Administration approved the new plan.

Designs for both mega-towers are over that threshold, but the developers said they will reduce heights to comply. Both must still be reviewed by MIA and FAA.

If successful, the mega-projects could inspire other super-tall towers nearby, real-estate professionals say.

But areas where current zoning would allow them are limited to Biscayne Boulevard south of Interstate 395 and the West Brickell area, said Miami land-use attorney Lucia Dougherty, who represents Empire World Towers. Since most of the boulevard frontage has new buildings under construction or already approved, it's unlikely to be converted into a forest of super-tall buildings, she said.

''Everything else is done,'' Dougherty said.

The projects have raised few objections aside from concerns over increased traffic. Both are designed to be pedestrian-friendly, concealing massive parking garages and service areas behind screens of shops and offices, and with active storefronts opening to sidewalks. In addition, Hollo's project would be certified as green.

''I'm not going for the tallest building,'' Hollo said. ``I was looking for a lasting design. I'm hoping, I am trusting, we have done that.''

miami is def. a city worthy enough to take the "tallest outside of new york and chicago" title from atlanta.

drew11
Mar 8, 2008, 2:47 AM
does anybody know if the brickell citycenter is still alive. :shrug:

brickell
Mar 8, 2008, 3:41 PM
I don't think so. I haven't heard anything in months.

drew11
Mar 10, 2008, 3:16 AM
hey take a look at this.

http://www.miamidda.com/implementation/pipeline/interactive_downtown_developments_search.html?appSession=20275223133258

NYC2ATX
Mar 10, 2008, 11:16 AM
I don't post much on this thread, but I was wondering if anyone knew the status on a certain proposal for the design district called the COR. I loooved that proposal. Is there any life left in it?

drew11
Mar 10, 2008, 4:14 PM
I don't post much on this thread, but I was wondering if anyone knew the status on a certain proposal for the design district called the COR. I loooved that proposal. Is there any life left in it?

i dont think so, it is approved but construction hasent started.

gelu1123
Mar 10, 2008, 5:40 PM
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami_dade/story/434960.html

I just hope to approve the construction of buildings of more than 2000 feet.
Just missing the construction of artificial islands and have the Dubai of the United States!:banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :D :D :D :D :D :cool: :cool: :cool: :) :) :) :) :)

VIVA MIAMI

Complex01
Mar 10, 2008, 7:35 PM
:previous:

Man that is awesome news i really hope it gets passed. The building i would really like to see is One Bayfront Plaza. Now that would be a hella kewl building.

Go Miami Go...

:wizard:

cityguy
Mar 10, 2008, 8:40 PM
With the state of the a American economy,I doubt weather very many projects will actually go ahead and begin construction.

gelu1123
Mar 10, 2008, 9:00 PM
With the state of the a American economy,I doubt weather very many projects will actually go ahead and begin construction.
The United States economy remains the strongest in the world!
I think that shortly surprised the world with something similar to what is being done in Dubai, and that city must be Miami!
If you spend money on more caring country rather than invest in other countries ...
I am convinced that the United States surprised the world with their future projects.:tup: http://www.hormiga.org/fondosescritorio/wallpapers/Varios/Banderas/Flag-2.jpg[/PHP]

Muskavon
Mar 10, 2008, 9:14 PM
Good economy or not...I wouldn't expect any large man-made Dubai-type islands to be constructed in the US. It simply couldn't be done because of environmental impact hurdles and protests of such, IMO.

gelu1123
Mar 10, 2008, 9:24 PM
Good economy or not...I wouldn't expect any large man-made Dubai-type islands to be constructed in the US. It simply couldn't be done because of environmental impact hurdles and protests of such, IMO.
I am not saying that construct artificial islands, which I personally, I seem unnecessary, but if they could build the tallest building in the world to "surprise the world" as they say in Dubai.
Frankly, the United States was, is and will remain the country of skyscrapers.:notacrook: :worship: :banana: :slob:
http://api.ning.com/files/H3e*dUjU1eWm9bk6l1U8V7aIhUQbt2YikX8D0j2biec_/miamiskyline01.jpg

skyscraperfan23
Mar 10, 2008, 9:54 PM
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami_dade/story/434960.html

I just hope to approve the construction of buildings of more than 2000 feet.
Just missing the construction of artificial islands and have the Dubai of the United States!:banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :notacrook: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :D :D :D :D :D :cool: :cool: :cool: :) :) :) :) :)

VIVA MIAMI

WOW!

NYC2ATX
Mar 11, 2008, 2:28 AM
i dont think so, it is approved but construction hasent started.

Cool thanks.

drew11
Mar 11, 2008, 4:17 AM
hey has anybody seen the progress of the brickell financial center. I looked at a picture that was taken 3 months ago of phase one, it was already one floor out of the ground, the first tower is 517'. even the seccond one the massive 903' tower is u/c. can somebody please get a picture. :)

JVissle
Mar 11, 2008, 1:11 PM
http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g31/JV1st/metropolitan_1_Miami.jpg

Soleil, meet Metropolitan, your long lost twin. Sacramento is trying to build a look-a-like.

NewAtlantisMiami
Mar 12, 2008, 3:45 AM
even the seccond one the massive 903' tower is u/c. can somebody please get a picture. :)

Where did you get your information? One security guard on the site told me phase 2 was under construction at the end of December, and there did seem to be activity separate from phase 1 going on on the site. Who told you that both phases were under construction? That could well be. I'm just looking for verification because there is activity on the site that looks like foundation work to me.

NewAtlantisMiami
Mar 12, 2008, 3:59 AM
With the state of the a American economy,I doubt weather very many projects will actually go ahead and begin construction.

A weak dollar against a strong Euro is partly what led to the boom here in Miami with American property becoming a bargain for foreign investors to capitalize on.

cityguy
Mar 12, 2008, 12:58 PM
Then why are there so many condos unsold,my uncle has been trying to sell a condo he bought for over a year.He has had to drop the asking price a few times.

noland123
Mar 12, 2008, 4:50 PM
A lot of the reason for the unsold condominiums was the fact that there was a lot of speculators all the way down to end speculators who could not flip their property for profit and just walked away from several -hundred thousand dollar deposits that drove up the prices of the condo. Another thing there was poor planning by the Developers, there has to be safe parts of town before anyone will want to move in there and the Central Business District in the Park West area has to be cleaned up with the homeless people there and the crime these are factors that keep people away.

Another thing I believe is that they did construction in 3 years in what would have taken 15 years of normal construction if spread out,so it will be a while before demand catches up with supply.

Aiphanes
Mar 12, 2008, 6:54 PM
A lot of the reason for the unsold condominiums was the fact that there was a lot of speculators all the way down to end speculators who could not flip their property for profit and just walked away from several -hundred thousand dollar deposits that drove up the prices of the condo. Another thing there was poor planning by the Developers, there has to be safe parts of town before anyone will want to move in there and the Central Business District in the Park West area has to be cleaned up with the homeless people there and the crime these are factors that keep people away.

Another thing I believe is that they did construction in 3 years in what would have taken 15 years of normal construction if spread out,so it will be a while before demand catches up with supply.


yeah there was no real planning in the Miami condo market. In Austin and San Antonio there are doing some serious planning...and all the new highrise condo development in those cities are in good secure parts of town.

I thought most of the miami condos were near the water though...so some of that area is unsafe?

brickell
Mar 12, 2008, 8:41 PM
I thought most of the miami condos were near the water though...so some of that area is unsafe?

Most are part of downtown which previously closed after 5pm. The difference that has been created in the last 2-3 years is quite amazing however. I believe that downtown is on it's way to becoming a "hot" new neighborhood for Miami. Those condo's will fill up sooner rather than later. Maybe not at the prices the speculators want, but they will come.

EAINMIAMI
Mar 24, 2008, 7:40 PM
Not an important question, but the answer will give me peace of mind.

Isn't 900 Biscayne Blvd suppose to be taller than Marquis ? According to Emporis, 900 Biscayne's height is 712' and Marquis is 679'. However, each morning as I drive in to work I compare heights and Marquis seems taller than 900 Biscayne.... and it's driving me crazy.

brickell
Mar 24, 2008, 8:53 PM
I don't track heights, but I recall reading that Marquis was to be the tallest of the 4 Biscayne towers. It's definitely taller now.

VisionMIA
Mar 25, 2008, 4:12 AM
Not an important question, but the answer will give me peace of mind.

Isn't 900 Biscayne Blvd suppose to be taller than Marquis ? According to Emporis, 900 Biscayne's height is 712' and Marquis is 679'. However, each morning as I drive in to work I compare heights and Marquis seems taller than 900 Biscayne.... and it's driving me crazy.

to ease your mind...900 Biscayne was scaled down to 649 feet...the older rendering was 712..would've been taller. Marquis from what I was told on SSC went back to it's original plans to reach 698' feet.

from rober2010 on SSC
http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/6532/sd177-1.jpg

http://www.zilbert.com/marquis_miami/images/p3.jpg

VisionMIA
Mar 25, 2008, 4:15 AM
from Kobi Karp website

http://www.kobikarp.com/images/Empire-World-Towers-Skyline.jpg

http://www.kobikarp.com/images/EWT-Aerial-1.jpg

http://www.kobikarp.com/images/EWT-Aerial-2.jpg

http://www.kobikarp.com/images/Empire-World-Towers-Night.jpg