Everyone :) ! Its mentioned in last week's Miami Today ( 3/24 ) newspaper. after 60 days, since Florida Department of Transportation officials had a chance to buy the Opus property for I-395 Redevelopment, It was " NOT " done, and the City of Miami planning department approved with conditions that the developer of the OPUS 58 - story condo tower planned near the Performing Arts Center at 1237 Biscayne Blvd., next to Interstate 395, is to include two ( 2 ) towers, offices, 408 condo units, and 17,160 square feet of retail at a $ 190 million cost; To get a certificate of air space from the F.A.A. for the height limit of the tower and the affect it would have of the surrounding area. I still see this Opus Tower as a GO !!! :cheers:
p.s. I had to re-edited this to cut down the caps to keep Jason happy :) .

really dont wanna see this happen... rather not have the pac disrupted for yet another mediocre building that theyre just gonna build somewhere else anyways

come on fdot, get ur stuff together!

I thought Opus was clad in glass and oval with a twisted top. It could be worse...

yeah...it seems that you guys are unentusiastic about every single project that's not an Espirito...


Opus, in my opinion, is a very nice, slender tower

I can undersand you're opposition to the location, but I don't really mind seeing it built there, and don't really see it being a major disruption to PAC

but whatev...to each, his own!:)

From the March 31st. edition of Miami Today:

OPUS: City commission permitting for Opus, a 408-unit, 58-story condo project next to Interstate 395 at 1237 Biscayne Blvd., was pushed back another month Thursday at the developer's request. The project, continued for the third time, is held up by negotiations with Florida Department of Transportation officials who fear it would disrupt highway improvements. "Lucia, does Opus want to break the record of the Performing Arts Center delay?" Commissioner Tomas Regalado asked Lucia Dougherty, a Greenberg Traurig attorney representing Opus. "I don't think we could possibly do that," she replied. The issue is to go back to the commission April 28.

Im with Street, I dont mind seeing it built there either. Those us who are a little older know all about broken promises by the government, the DOT project may never happen. My wife is an engineer and worked for the Washington DOT years ago and worked on a project that had been on the books for 50+ years, and now its 13 years later and its still not even started, so how long will it take Florida to do this project, they are after straped for cash. I say if they want the land that Opus sits on they should pay them a large amount of cash and end the whole thing, but they will be as cheap as they can.

Build it.

Im with Street, I dont mind seeing it built there either. Those us who are a little older know all about broken promises by the government, the DOT project may never happen. My wife is an engineer and worked for the Washington DOT years ago and worked on a project that had been on the books for 50+ years, and now its 13 years later and its still not even started, so how long will it take Florida to do this project, they are after straped for cash. I say if they want the land that Opus sits on they should pay them a large amount of cash and end the whole thing, but they will be as cheap as they can.
So very true " rider of rohan :) ", believe it or not, that prime real estate property is worth at least 19 million now, since they waited so long, the value of that certain property next to the Performing Arts Center keeps going up every month, and Now the Florida department of transportation Cannot afford it and are trying to get the developer to change his mind about building the most beautiful slim and slender state of the art , arquitectoncia design 58 story condo tower, I'm with Dale :) and Streetscapeer :) , too, Just Build it. It will be a skinny tall tower and will not block the P.A.C. :cheers:

so how long will it take Florida to do this project, they are after straped for cash.

I would definitely rather have Opus 1 & 2 than the FDOT project, but it is erroneous to say that Florida is strapped for cash:

Posted on Mon, Feb. 07, 2005

FLORIDA

'Booming economy' to provide budget surplus for Gov. Bush

Gov. Jeb Bush told the Watchdog Report Friday at Coral Gables' Biltmore Hotel that Florida's economy is growing so well that the $61.6 billion state budget for 2005-06 he proposed to the Legislature will have billions left in reserves.

''After we fund our priorities, after we cut taxes and after we spend money, we will have $3.5 billion in cash, which probably puts us in a position unlike any state in the country,'' he said.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/state/10834901.htm

Build em. These towers are far from mediocre.. I think these buildings will enhance the area. And I think a residential district around the PAC will compliment it. Especially projects with ground floor retail.. It will keep the area from being dead when there is no events at the PAC and will make the Performing Arts District an around-the-clock area.

Plus, like Rider of Rohan said the DOT project may never happen. So we should scrap a huge project because there might be a possibility for road improvements?? I don't think this project will "disrupt" the PAC. Urban planners were thinking that the PAC would revitalize an area not freeze up any possible development, which is why they located it there.

The state has plenty of money...there are plenty of projects with street level retail happening all around and including the PAC.
I'd prefer to see is that the Opus not block that astounding curtain wall from the PAC. You would have to take one of those hard hat tours to see how astonishing the Bay Views are...
The Performing Arts Center is going to be one of the top three in the United States and one of the tops in the World. It would be icing on the cake to have Bay views from such a treasure.
But no way would I want to infringe on the developer's property rights. It is a shame that the city let themselves get into this situation.
I wish that someone would buy it for fair market value, and the developer could build another tower elsewhere for the good of the nearby community and the people of Miami.

[QUOTE=mileageman]I would definitely rather have Opus 1 & 2 than the FDOT project, but it is erroneous to say that Florida is strapped for cash:

Posted on Mon, Feb. 07, 2005

FLORIDA

'Booming economy' to provide budget surplus for Gov. Bush

If you notice the wording, "to provide" that means it is projected. If jeb is anything like his brother his math isnt any better than his english. If they have all this money, buy out Opus, if not then stop playing games. Enough said.

The PAC should have been built on Watson Island. Then it wouldnt have to worry about blocking views, and the area would remain parklike. Oh well too late now.

yeah, someone really needs to make a decision on this one. if FDOT is gonna sit on their asses with 395 than opus needs to be able to move forward.

what i don't understand is, why can't both happen? i can't believe that if opus goes up it will be impossible to bury 395. if boston can bury many levels of highways & train lines directly beneath downtown boston, why would 2 buildings be enough to derail something similar here?

or is this just a cost issue?

I would say build Opus but make them get rid of the giant podium or make them somehow come up with an orientation of the podium so that it does not impact the views of the PAC. Keep in mind its only the 10-15 story poduium of Opus that is blocking any views, not the sleek tower. While its true that Opus has the property rights to built what they want the Government also has the right to take any property it chooses fit for a public purpose (such as the PAC or road improvements).

Opus: I was in Miami on Friday and I gotta tell you, coming from downtown, its lot is way east on the right side of Biscayne and really wont block all that much.

395: It really does suck-- the alternative: I dnk.

PAC: the building abuts the bordering roads on all sides. That's very odd. They need to be creative here. I liked the idea of putting it on Watson. But, the alternative should be to build a park around the building-- a "buffer" of sorts. Then, build skyscrapers a block off the building. As it stands now, and I understand that the whole area is under development, there are slums and lots surrounding it.

If this were Chicago, the building would be at the edge of a park. Miami needs to do something about this--- maybe some hybrid sort of development master plan-- unless there already is one.

Dave is right. In the end the state can put the property in condemnation and then pay the assessed value of the land. This is a crappy backdoor way to do it. The state should step up and take care of this right away.

i feel that they should build opus,why because sorry there 's not much to look at when looking at the pac it not an architectural jewel or something you can say damn,it pretty ugly to me.also the chances of burying 395 are still pretty low no study,no research,no budget on this has been done so this could still take about 3 years to even get started,if at all.in my opinion i rather get a view of opus then the pac.i also don't get how opus would be getting in the way but yet marquis wouldn't.

i would be in favor of burying 395 if and only if we were told that land was going to be sold back to the city.

right now the onlying thing stopping this deal is a money issue the developer wants the land because he knows the value of it,also there was a high probablity that the 2nd parcel wouldn't of been a tower but parking for the pac.

Anyone :) please, 60 days have come and gone, any info please on this Opus tower, or even the opus 2 tower, I need info please, me Johnny 5, need input on Opus, please !!! :cheers:

i feel that they should build opus,why because sorry there 's not much to look at when looking at the pac it not an architectural jewel or something you can say damn,it pretty ugly to me.Hmmm...the Performing Arts Center by Cesar Pelli is not much to look at and Luis Revuelta is "the worst architect in Miami".

The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter.- Winston Churchill

its certainly no symphony center by calatrava...............or disney hall by frank gehry

Thank the Lord it's not a Gehry. And everything Calatrava does is white and boring. :)

I like the PAC....Gehry is Gaudy:)

Thank the Lord it's not a Gehry. And everything Calatrava does is white and boring. :)Thanks Dale...you're alright!

i agree that i dont like gehry and calatrava is redundant but the peli building was outdated before it even opened. if you look at the facades that arent glass lobbies, it looks just like a prison. The materials are also awkward and inconsistent with something like an opera/symphony facility especially in miami. The building is more than a year late and more than 100 million dollars over budget. It (for peli) sucks, i mean we go from petronas towers completed a year before this design was begun to the rhinos on biscayne... what happened?
I'd rather have a gehry or calatrava because at least you'd know where it came from and it would get some fame just for that. And dispite their 'cliches'
both architects do create very nice public spaces. This building probably won't get published outside of Florida becuase its very banal and lacks any unique moments - I mean a plaza crossing biscayne? thats almost going to work.

PS the koolhaas proposal was significantly more efficient, it had both bldgs. on the west side of biscayne and the east side was to be a park with ampitheather. Imagine that surrounded by the Opus towers and the future developments of herald and omni... actually there wouldn't be a dispute about Opus because there wouldn't be a behometh rhino to obstruct the views of. :)

couldn't of said it better myself,for me pelli's design is to boring and dull just like a certain architect"revuleta"

Just thought I'd throw this out there.

taken mid april
http://www.netrox.net/~erickahl/cruise1/pac.jpg

good pic brickell

those r gonna luk so nice once the towers start goin up around em...

thats beautiful

Anyone know how its going to be painted?

there not painting them,if you look at the one with the glass facing the bay thats going to be the color

I'm not one to believe that the Cesar Pelli design for the Miami PAC is visually stunning. However, I personally wouldn't compare the design to concrete Rhino's either. What is interesting to consider is how the PAC will be illuminated at night. I drive by the PAC district quite often, and the other night i noticed that several of the step-levels of the PAC were illuminated in multi-colored cascade lights. It was spectacular. There may be an effort to compensate for the not-so-impressive design by adding unique lighting to the complex, at night. During the day, i dare to say, the buildings look pretty damn nice. Let's remember, they are incomplete. The art deco water tower as the center piece is a great touch. Blocking the complex with a condo tower would be a terrible idea, not only because of aesthetics but transportation as well.

the rhino anology came from an article i read on peli in El Croquis from 2000 or 2001 where the plating and layering of the buildings was descriped like that of the Rhino and its skin layering systems, in 2003 as part of Architecture week Peli spoke at UM and said the buildings were like dolphins dancing playfully around each other.

Well at least the origins of the Rhino comparison are known

Anyone :) please, 60 days have come and gone, any info please on this Opus tower, or even the opus 2 tower, I need info please, me Johnny 5, need input on Opus, please !!! :cheers:

Nothing Yet. I thought I was going to make a killing there...had 10 clients under reservation extremly early in the game. Units were priced in the $300,000's...We'll never see that again...The whole thing is a mess...I was told more info will come my direction in 5 months...I'll keep you posted.

The building is more than a year late and more than 100 million dollars over budget. It's actually about 5 years late and $200M overbudget, but whose counting.
This building probably won't get published outside of Florida Pull out your checkbooks! I'm taking bets. This building will get published outside of Florida...and not only that, it will be regarded as one of the top three performing arts centers in the United States of America. People in the know will debate which one of the three is the best; the Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, or Miami's PAC.
The director, Mr. Hardy, has promised a state of the art illumination and interactive presentation on the outside, and incredible technologies inside. There has been a project in interactive electronics/sound with MIT university that holds lots of promise.
As for the dull, boring, design...to each his own. I like the subtilties. You shouldn't have to have something thrown in your face to appreciate the asthetics.
Hatter, on your next walking tour, could you please count the number of right angles that you find in the PAC? That might be a fun excercise for you. HINT: They don't jump out at and smack you in the face.

Wait a minute, Roark. Are you suggesting that stealth technology was used in the design of the PAC ?

It's actually about 5 years late and $200M overbudget, but whose counting.
Pull out your checkbooks! I'm taking bets. This building will get published outside of Florida...and not only that, it will be regarded as one of the top three performing arts centers in the United States of America. People in the know will debate which one of the three is the best; the Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, or Miami's PAC.
The director, Mr. Hardy, has promised a state of the art illumination and interactive presentation on the outside, and incredible technologies inside. There has been a project in interactive electronics/sound with MIT university that holds lots of promise.
As for the dull, boring, design...to each his own. I like the subtilties. You shouldn't have to have something thrown in your face to appreciate the asthetics.
Hatter, on your next walking tour, could you please count the number of right angles that you find in the PAC? That might be a fun excercise for you. HINT: They don't jump out at and smack you in the face.

I should start off by saying any cultural venue of this scale is good for Miami -we need it.

It will get published and i overstated myself, I guess what I meant was it will be one of those miami projects - like my alumni school of architecture at fiu -in which you get the name architect to drop something "plate-tectonic" that was regarded by the NY times as an alien landing strip for ketchup and mustard condiments
This is more a comment about the city and the architects perspective about 'landmark buildings' Theres more to it than just a name building, it needs something more integral and intimate. The 2nd ave (west) and bayshore drive (east) facades are really depressing considering their scale. I think everyone involved in design/planning this really went 1/2 ass on this one IMHO. The lighting and finishing could definitely help add some life to it but even still i dont think this building has a chance of rivaling met/lincoln for longevity character or charisma, i think its more likely to follow gehrys disney hall in LA - outdated and cliche/mundane before it opened.

plus i am really curious about the plausibilty of that cross-street plaza I mean have you seen the disruption just paving it causes, imagine an event. A better approach may have been giving more of the lot to the plaza and let the street be a street (again see the Koolhaas proposal) like the Met or Lincoln do pretty well (though no ones drama free).
sorry for the long post - HERES TO MORE PASSIONATE/SINCERE/QUALITY DEVELOPMENT IN MIAMI ESP. CBD/OMNI/BRICKELL!!!!!!!! :cheers:

The verdict is in: I'm easy to please, as regards performing arts centers.

just curious does anyone know if the opus2 and opus3 have to wait until opus1 goes through or not, or how is that going to work?
since they're on seperate lots it would seem smart to go w/2 & 3 while this gets resolved, that is unless they are considered obstructive as well?

I agree with you Archi...this is an improvement.
Having taken the hard hat tour of the PAC and heard the insight of the new director...I guess that I may have sipped the Kool-Aid.
This is going to be great.
Time will tell whether this will last...Lord knows time is telling that it has taken forever to even be completed!
In the big picture...this is something that we will all be proud of.

I hope that the developer doesnt get bogged down with the other Opus projects as well. I am not familiar with the location of the other proposed opus projects, except that they are in the PAC district, but based on the Met project, i think that the developer can move forward with the other projects so long as they do not impede future city planning. I just hate the idea of the PAC being blocked. keep in mind that with the Terra Group buying the 10 acres around the east and north of the PAC, tall buildings will be built there. The west side of the PAC with its vacant lots will lead to similar development. If Opus gets built, then the PAC will be boxed in. I am for a land swap deal and based on some articles i've read so is the developer. It is not fair for the rest of the city that one building will almost completely block the most important view (south view) of this vital new cultural venue. Plus i think people forget that the current overpass is an eyesore and prevents the PAC district/Uptown from amalgamating with Parkwest and the Financial District. Eliminating the overpass is the only way to achieve such a union. Lets think long term here. I'm all for the development of Opus, just not on the current site.

Opus 2 is right across Biscayne from Opus 1 so I would think they would run into the same FDOT problems with that structure.

Then it is obvious that the Opus projects are the only ones jeapordizing the FDOT's plans. Importantly, the FDOT's plans would create park space where the existing overpass runs--a huge contribution to PArkwest and the PAC district. Opus, other than adding another sleek skyscraper to the skyline, does not contribute much of anything. In fact, it is doing just the opposite.

So than does FDOT still plan on having the buried highway? i only ask, and ironically enough, because like the PAC this is a project that I heard about back in 2000 or so right after the PAC and Museum Park projects but have seen no fruition or progression of it. I hadn't heard of it in the city for a few years and thought it may have died there.

BTW imagine if they sunk 395 and 195, then you could merge Park West-Omni and Design District-Midtown. That would be a much better 'fabric' for the city. :cheers:

I hope that the developer doesnt get bogged down with the other Opus projects as well. I am not familiar with the location of the other proposed opus projects, except that they are in the PAC district, but based on the Met project, i think that the developer can move forward with the other projects so long as they do not impede future city planning. I just hate the idea of the PAC being blocked. keep in mind that with the Terra Group buying the 10 acres around the east and north of the PAC, tall buildings will be built there. The west side of the PAC with its vacant lots will lead to similar development. If Opus gets built, then the PAC will be boxed in. I am for a land swap deal and based on some articles i've read so is the developer. It is not fair for the rest of the city that one building will almost completely block the most important view (south view) of this vital new cultural venue. Plus i think people forget that the current overpass is an eyesore and prevents the PAC district/Uptown from amalgamating with Parkwest and the Financial District. Eliminating the overpass is the only way to achieve such a union. Lets think long term here. I'm all for the development of Opus, just not on the current site.

I havent heard about the land swaps but that sounds very interesting and the buried highway parkspace would give the PAC a more focal presence.

However, what do you think about the PAC becoming a true urban gem which is a relief element from the cities density? Take for example the successful atmosphere of the Met or Grand Central or the NY Public Library, these are buildings whose success relies on their contrast. The dense region around them appears centered on them, as if they were the origin/focus of the region. This in my opinion is more dramatic and exciting than the 'object in field' that allow open space and views from a distance - though there are some successful examples of this such as Guggenheim Bilbao but even it's most compelling images are often the ones contrasting it looking down the street context rather than the river views.

The Lincon Center has a vast open space in the center. The Miami PAC is going to have Biscayne Blvd. running through it, which basically eliminates the idea of a Lincoln Center-type pedestrian plaza. If the PAC is boxed in, then the only people that will see it will be pedestrians, and the cars driving though biscayne Blvd (north of the I395) or around the PAC proper. Whereas with Opus not being developed and the I395 being sunk, it will make the PAC stand out for all approaching the mainland from the beach, and those driving or walking on the ParkWest side of Biscayne. I doubt anyone will complain when they witness the illuminated PAC with soaring skyscrapers around it while driving east on the Macaurthur. It will definetly be a sight to see. Opus literally stands in the way of such a marvelous vision.

the sinking of the overpass between the design district and uptown, although great, is unlikely to happen anytime in the near future. Too much is already on the table, and sinking the I395 has already become difficult enough.

Arts center officials still looking for parking spaces

By Suzy Valentine
Less than a year before soft opening and little more than a year before its first booking, the Miami Performing Arts Center is still short 1,500 parking spaces.
The arts center is to be substantially complete by June 4, 2006, and finished two months later. A concert is booked for Aug. 14, 2006. "The performers will be in that day playing music," said arts center president Michael Hardy.
Arts center officials wouldn't disclose details about the first performance.
The date "would fall in our pre-opening phase," said chief marketing officer Gail Eaton, "and any events we do then are likely to be by invitation only rather than public performances."
The opening gala is slated to take place by early October.
Meanwhile, talks aimed at finding a stopgap solution to the lack of parking continue.
Two feasibility studies have considered parking possibilities for the arts center. An Urban Land Institute study was undertaken last year, and a second report, by Barry Abramson, recommended one parking space for every 2.7 users at the arts center. Its three venues combined offer seating capacity of 4,800 - 2,400 in the ballet opera house, 2,200 in the symphony hall and 200 in the studio theater.
"The ratio is based on the peak load as well as the potential for that happening," said Roger Carlton, vice president of ACS and a representative of the trust's parking task force, "and it factors in an assumption that some people will find alternative spaces."
Five facilities have been suggested as interim parking solutions:
NThe Miami-Dade School Board garages to the north of the arts center at Northeast Second Avenue.
NThe Argent-owned former Omni Mall parking garage at Northeast 15th Street.
NTen acres of bayfront land Terra Group bought from Knight Ridder for development that would be available during the planning and approval stages.
NLand to be acquired by the Florida Department of Transportation from Avra Jain, developer of the failed Opus project at 1237 Biscayne Blvd., which stretches to Interstate 395.
NThe site of a future project by developer Leviev west of the ballet open house and Northeast Second Avenue.
School board officials are preparing to draft a request for proposals a year after an arrangement with the arts center was first touted, a parking liaison said at a construction meeting June 8.
"Interestingly, that's where we were a year ago, and we're trying to push them to do that," said Mr. Carlton. "Their feeling is, not incorrectly so, that the magnitude of the deal that they're talking about is that there ought to be some kind of a public process. They are on fast track to get the request for proposals done. There was a draft prepared as part of the Urban Land Institute study. A more technical version is being put in place."
The school board has other properties that could provide solutions, he said, once the future of the first site is determined.
"They will not move on any of the other properties they have around here until this deal is settled," said Mr. Carlton. "The reason for that is this deal solves their parking needs as well as ours and others. Once this deal is put to bed contractually, then they have all this other property around here we can start to do all these other things with, whatever that happens to be.
"They are more than willing to sit down with us and start talking about utilization of the school board garages," he said, "so we could begin to put together the interim parking plan soon."
The former Omni Mall has more than 2,000 underused spaces. "We're going to meet with Argent representatives next week," said Mr. Carlton, "when they're next in town. They're still trying to figure out what they want to do. At one moment, they're going to tear down the whole garage, sell off some sites and break up the complex into sections. At another point, they're going to tear down half the garage.
"In terms of interim parking, they're willing to sit down and negotiate something with us with a clear understanding that there could be very short notice that we need to give up."
"It's pretty much empty," said Mr. Hardy.
Bicentennial Park, before it is developed, could also provide temporary respite, Mr. Carlton said.
Arts center officials are looking to a $500,000 streetscape project to complement a hunt for permanent parking spaces.
"The City of Miami has selected a consultant this week," said Mr. Carlton, "and that project is moving forward. Having nice sidewalks that link together with a parking space will give the public confidence in the area."
Bookings have been taken for the opening day.
"We'll have performers in playing music," said Michael Hardy, president of the arts center. "A gala will be arranged for the last week in September or first week in October."
miamitodaynews.com

In the article posted below notice one of the parking options:

"Land to be acquired by the Florida Department of Transportation from Avra Jain, developer of the failed Opus project at 1237 Biscayne Blvd., which stretches to Interstate 395."

Posted on Wed, Jun. 29, 2005

State buys land near I-395 from developers

BY MATTHEW HAGGMAN

mhaggman@herald.com

The Florida Department of Transportation has paid $78 million to a private development group for three parcels along I-395, averting the possibility of high-rise condominium towers rising alongside the under-construction Performing Arts Center in Miami.

Following months of negotiations, FDOT agreed to buy the land so it has the necessary space to make changes to the highway connecting the city of Miami to Miami Beach. The three parcels totaling 3.7 acres sit between I-395 and the Performing Arts Center.

A group led by developer Paul Murphy planned to build a high-rise condo called Opus, and potentially other high-rises, on the property. But when FDOT expressed interest in the property the two groups commenced negotiations.

Murphy's group was poised to win all of the approvals necessary from the city of Miami to build Opus, prompting Performing Arts Center supporters to fret about a hulking condo tower dwarfing the much-anticipated performance venue.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/12015054.htm

i've got mixed feelings about this. it's good to bury the road, but bad to stifle this development--unless they can move it.

Posted on Wed, Jun. 29, 2005
Murphy's group was poised to win all of the approvals necessary from the city of Miami to build Opus, prompting Performing Arts Center supporters to fret about a hulking condo tower dwarfing the much-anticipated performance venue.
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/12015054.htm

well i guess now everyone on 395 will have their great view of the PAC - except if they sink the highway you wont see anything other than retaining walls...which is kind of ironic since the debate is about views of the PAC. :)

i believe it should be for pedestrians and tower residents/users to see - it shouldn't be a building for fly by causeway shots from cars - its a cultural facility for people to use, its not just an object, monument, or obelisque, but a building. I really hope that they use these parcels for something parklike (i believe xzayvier alluded to this) that would enhance and encourage pedestrian activity. :cheers:

I don't like how Miami develops its landmarks as isolated things (see the less than successful: downtown library, the miami city bldg. on 2nd ave/river, Miami arena, Museum of Contemporary Art, Children's Museum (is there a kid who could get there w/o mom&dad?), etc.)
Thankfully the Herald and Omni are (re)developing as well as the other Opera building on the North. think about this - if the building had opened on time (2004 i think), however, it probably would be standing as it is today - in a field of vacant parking lots.

Dont get me wrong I LOVE WHAT THIS BUILDING CAN BE FOR MIAMI , im just saying they should me more precise and meticulous with this region because it is the make or break of the threshold between CBD/Park west and Omni/Edgewater. (see Miami arena for failed link between CBD and Overtown.)

If the highway doesn't get sunk, what do you have? Its already a 5 year project that hasnt gone 2 far past planning (this is FDOT people not the Related Group), personally I prefer risking paid in full 'hulking' towers to vague futures for vacant lots - name me one precedent in Miami (or anywhere really)that has been able to supercede the divisional power of elevated highways.

either way - FINISH THE BUILDING ALREADY AND BUILD MORE MIAMI!!!!!!

the views from the pac are not for the motorist who are driving down 395 it is for the people inside to look out the huge glass lanterns and be able to see bicentenial park which is soon to be museum park and across the bay that tower was a menace and im glad to see it gone.....

besides being huge and insensitive to the site the owners of the condos would have had a hard time to go into the building becuase the only road that leads to the tower is on an off ramp coming from southbeach....

the views from the pac are not for the motorist who are driving down 395 it is for the people inside to look out the huge glass lanterns and be able to see bicentenial park which is soon to be museum park and across the bay that tower was a menace and im glad to see it gone.....

besides being huge and insensitive to the site the owners of the condos would have had a hard time to go into the building becuase the only road that leads to the tower is on an off ramp coming from southbeach....

only the west building has the major window wall on the south. the east building (closest to Museum park) has a somewhat large windowed staircase/entry on the south but its main window wall faces north.
and getting into opus would be a nuisance but two right turns, one on 14th & one on bayshore would get you there.

i think the setbacks/angling for the PAC along with the street and setbacks for the opus towers would have allowed and created more intense/framed views of the bay/city juxtaposed with the opus towers in the foreground.

after looking at the site plan i noticed that opus was pushed to the west, and the window/stair thing on the PAC has an unobstructed view of the park and bay, though the same can't be said for the west buildings view corridor but the shortest face of opus is the one 'in the way' and it would have still had decent views.

anyways opus is dead so maybe we should begin a thread that looks at the FDOT plan for this site and follow its development?

The developer made out pretty well. He got $78 million one year after he paid $29 million for the property.

The more complete article in the Herald this morning:
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/business/12018865.htm

FDOT buys 3.5 acres in Miami for new I-395

The Florida Department of Transportation paid $78 million for property between Interstate 395 and the Performing Arts Center.

BY MATTHEW HAGGMAN AND LARRY LEBOWITZ

mhaggman@herald.com


The Florida Department of Transportation has paid $78 million to a private development group for three parcels along Interstate 395, in a move that secures land for modifications to the highway and averts the specter of high-rise condominium towers rising across from Miami's under-construction Performing Arts Center.

Following several months of negotiations, FDOT agreed to buy the land from a group led by developer Paul Murphy. Until FDOT stepped in to buy the land, Murphy's group had planned to build a high-rise condo called Opus -- and a two-tower project called Opus II -- on the 3.5 acre property squeezed between I-395 and the Performing Arts Center.

The deal is believed to be the highest per-acre price FDOT has ever paid, according to Javier Rodriguez, FDOT's director of production for the Miami-area district.

''I know it seems like a big number today,'' Rodriguez said. ``But we can justify the cost savings in the long run.''

The transaction concluded last week, said attorney Juan Muniz of Brigham Moore, who represented the Murphy group.

Before FDOT got involved, Murphy's group was poised to win all of the approvals necessary from the city of Miami to build Opus, prompting Performing Arts Center supporters to fret about a hulking condo tower dwarfing the much-anticipated performance venue.

''If those towers had been permitted to be built it would have destroyed the visual integrity connecting the Performing Arts Center and Biscayne Bay,'' said Parker Thomson, chairman of the Performing Arts Center Trust. ``We strongly asked [FDOT] to do it and they responded. I am absolutely delighted.''

For FDOT's part, it still doesn't know what it will be doing to improve the 1.29-mile stretch of I-395 between Interstate 95 and the MacArthur Causeway, said FDOT's Rodriguez.

Two alternatives are being studied to improve traffic flow and rectify many of the design problems that decimated historic Overtown when the original expressway was built in the 1960s.

One option, favored by city and county officials, would include dismantling the existing expressway and digging a deep ''open cut tunnel,'' a below-ground, open-air expressway. This option, with an estimated $1.5 billion price tag, would open up six to eight city blocks for redevelopment; bridges would be erected across the cut on various north-south streets for vehicular and pedestrian traffic.

The cheaper option favored by FDOT would ''only'' cost an estimated $500 million. I-395 would be elevated about 40 feet in the air -- instead of the current 20 feet -- removing the concrete columns and berms that partitioned Overtown. Unlike the below-ground cut tunnel, this ''sleek, graceful'' option designed to coordinate with the highest elevations on the MacArthur, would allow sun to shine on the entire redevelopment area, its boosters say.

The Opus property lies in the middle of the alignment for the open-cut tunnel option, and would play a crucial role in an elevated I-395 scenario because of proposed greenways that could link the Performing Arts Center, Bicentennial Park, museums and other attractions planned for the area.

The deal is yet another illustration of how real estate values continue skyrocketing and amounts to a highly lucrative move for the Murphy-led group, which never formally owned the land.

Last year the Murphy group put the property under contract for $29 million and began designing the condo towers, pre-selling units and getting building permits from the city. But it never closed on the property.

As a result of FDOT's purchase, the original sellers -- a collection of investors including members of a New York-based family named Schwalbe -- get $29 million and the Murphy group gets the balance, $49 million. If negotiations were unsuccessful, FDOT had signed a resolution that tagged the property for condemnation, Muniz said.

For FDOT's part, it still doesn't know what it will be doing to improve the 1.29-mile stretch of I-395 between Interstate 95 and the MacArthur Causeway, said FDOT's Rodriguez.

Two alternatives are being studied to improve traffic flow and rectify many of the design problems that decimated historic Overtown when the original expressway was built in the 1960s.

One option, favored by city and county officials, would include dismantling the existing expressway and digging a deep ''open cut tunnel,'' a below-ground, open-air expressway. This option, with an estimated $1.5 billion price tag, would open up six to eight city blocks for redevelopment; bridges would be erected across the cut on various north-south streets for vehicular and pedestrian traffic.

The cheaper option favored by FDOT would ''only'' cost an estimated $500 million. I-395 would be elevated about 40 feet in the air -- instead of the current 20 feet -- removing the concrete columns and berms that partitioned Overtown. Unlike the below-ground cut tunnel, this ''sleek, graceful'' option designed to coordinate with the highest elevations on the MacArthur, would allow sun to shine on the entire redevelopment area, its boosters say.



WOW!!!! ok so the owners made off pretty nicely, but do you guys seriously think that either of these will happen soon? Im NOT trying to be the grinch who stole PAC but....
the cheap one is 1/2 a BILLION dollars!!!!!! thats a lot of money and time for anyone especially FDOT. Also i am trying to imagine the disruption, the plaza at PAC causes ridiculous traffic as is - now imagine closing 395 for a very long time, this could end up like a mini big-dig.

I think the sinking idea is the best, i think if it goes higher even w/o columns its still a highway and will feel like 95 does by the river. Does anyone have images of either proposal? i once saw the plan and a rendering for the sunken version.

PS: if the highway goes up to 40 feet high with a 'thick' base (to be columnless it will have to be somewhat truss or bridgelike) what views do you get from the pac?

hmm...I too wonder what the cheaper version will look like....the articl mentions "sleek, graceful"....can wee trust the DOT? idk

no you can't trust the dot. How can it be sleek and graceful? The only way I see if is a steel suspended bridge with architectural significance-- not another concrete overpass/bridge.

^ and if they were actually going to give us a prominent architectural element (yeah right almost) it would cost about 500 million by itself + 500 million more for the demo, detouring and reconstruction so i expect another bland concrete element.