Miami Architecture Then and Now: A Miami Architect’s Perspective
- Maria Luisa Castellanos
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
A few days ago, when I was interviewed for a podcast, I was asked what I have seen as architectural changes in Miami over the years I have been practicing architecture. So as a Miami architect who has lived here for many years, I will give you my impressions.
When I first arrived in Miami in 1976 after finishing my Master of Architecture at Georgia Tech, I thought Miami was beautiful. It had all those trees and the landscaping was amazing. What was shocking was that there were no outdoor cafes. Miami had the perfect weather, but no one sat outside at a restaurant.
Miami Beach had its historic district, but it was nothing like today. The buildings were old but had not been remodeled and upgraded yet. It was full of retired New Yorkers who had moved here for the cheap rents and the weather. It was a depressing place. However, in 1979, Andrew Capitman, whose mother, Barbara Capitman had started the Miami Design Preservation League, purchased the Cardozo Hotel with a group of enthusiastic investors who believed in the resurgence of the city through the preservation of its past. And in the early 1980’s renovations started on Miami Beach’s Art Deco District in mass.
Miami Architect explains Coral Gables Transformation
Coral Gables was a sleepy little town with old houses. Even though it was supposed to be an upscale neighborhood, many houses looked old and decaying. You could buy a house in the $50,000 range, if you were willing to remodel it. In the 1980’s Cocoplum, Old Cutler Bay, Gables Estates, and Gables by the Sea were developing neighborhoods. Miracle Mile still had angled parking on both sides of the street.
What was most shocking about Miami were the houses and buildings with mansard roofs. This was a cheap way of giving some style to a building or house, but to me, they looked awful. But then what could you expect. University of Miami’s School of Architecture was not accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) until the 1974-1975 academic year. And, in actuality, it did not become a well-know architecture school until Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk became the dean of the University of Miami School of Architecture in 1995. It was she, with her husband and partner, Andres Duany who put Miami on the map with their forward-thinking ideas of walkable cities in the New Urbanism Movement.
Andres Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk create new Miami zoning code
So how did Andres Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk contribute to the local architecture? By 2005, their firm Duany Plater-Zyberg and Co. had done hundreds of town plans in other areas of the country and the world. So the City of Miami chose them as the consultant to rewrite the City of Miami Code. They had 200 public meetings and workshops over a five-year span before the first draft made its public debut in May 2006. And undoubtedly, their plan and code have completely transformed the City of Miami.
Corporate Buildings
And to me, one of the biggest changes is the architecture of corporate buildings.
Towers along the Miami River
The last item I want to talk about is residential skyscrapers. When I moved to Miami, the only tall buildings were in downtown, then Brickell buildings sprang up. But the real growth spurt came when we started building tall buildings along the Miami River. It was due to Lissette Calderon’s efforts with Neology Life Development Group in 2004 that all of a sudden, we started to see residential towers on the river.
So slowly we are improving our urban environment, one building at a time.
Contact Information
If you would like to improve your building or house by an exterior or interior remodeling, call the principal of United Architects, Inc., Maria Luisa Castellanos, R.A., at 305-439-7898 to discuss your project ideas.
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