At the left above we look at the parking lot where visitors to the MIami Building Department are supposed to park.  Then, we walk down this dismal street under the overpass, past an empty lot.

Then, we have to walk down the driveway on the left, through the employee and disabled parking garage, to finally come out on the other side.  Then, we walk through this empty, uninviting plaza.

Last week I went to go pick up something at the City of Miami Building Department.  For those of you who don’t know, it’s next to the river on SW 2nd Avenue.  As I was approaching the building, I looked around for parking.  There is a large sign on the entrance to the parking garage that says that the multi-story parking deck is for the employees and the disabled.  So I looked around and the nearest parking lot for visitors (except for a little parking in front of the plaza which was full) is across the street in the fenced area underneath the I-95 overpass.  The street in front of the lot is also available as metered parking.  

I took the photographs above so you could experience with me the lack of urban planning, with its accompanying lack of human scale, and total insensitivity to human needs.  I had been there before many times, but never had I seen it as run down and uninviting as I saw it last week.  

Now let’s compare that to the City of Coral Gables Building Department, which is in a historic building sitting at one end of Miracle Mile in Coral Gables.  It's actually the focal point of Miracle Mile at its west end.  This photograph, taken by Thomas Territt at night, highlights the beauty of the building.  

Now tell me, which of these two cities invites you to build in its city?  

The funny thing is that the City of Miami has the land.  It has a huge plaza in front of the building which could be redesigned into a wonderful urban space.  The empty lot could be designed as a parking lot.  As much traffic as this building gets, the plaza could be developed into a really wonderful space with kiosks and covered spaces, selling everything from pastelitos, Cuban coffee, sandwiches, newspapers, magazines, flowers and possibly even hot food.  With a few table and chairs, this dull, uninviting plaza could be transformed into a money-making, wonderful place to gather as we transact business with the city.  

So everybody wins!  The public wins because they don’t have to go through a dismal street and through a parking garage to get to the building.  The city wins because by adding value they can make money. 

If architects, contractors, developers, and investors and going to invest and pay taxes in the city, why wouldn't the city administration take notice and make the entrace to the city's building department a welcoming experience?