Downtown Miami Pictures

[Miami High Rise]

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April 21-22 night ride 183 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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April 21-22 night ride 174 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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April 21 night 050 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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April 21 night 043 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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April 21-22 night ride 152 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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April 21-22 night ride 126 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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April 21-22 night ride 114 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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April 21-22 night ride 115 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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April 21-22 night ride 098 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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April 21-22 night ride 073 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

It's the Port of Miami tunnel:

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April 21-22 night ride 066 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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April 21-22 night ride 053 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Bacardi Building lit up by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 092 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 072 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 070 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 060 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 107 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 095 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 052 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Sunday April 22 Rickenbacker 130 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 103 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 046 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 038 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 032 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 026 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

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Sunday April 22 Rickenbacker 078 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

Oxymoron:

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Rainy saturday flickr walk 083 by rcadimenisa, on Flickr

[Miami High Rise]

Originally Posted by DShoost88

No, no, no, no, NO!!!



The strongest demand for development--at least the kind that Miami305 and QuantumX are salivating for--will only come to a city with an expansive regional mass transit network. People who want to live in urban environments don't want to need cars to get around. Extending the metro rail down the US-1 corridor from downtown to Dadeland was a good thing to spur development downtown and along the corridor; however, it is only a small part of what should be a much larger system.

There should be metrorail lines (elevated or subway) webbing out in all directions from downtown Miami. Coral Way, SW 8th Street, NW 7th Street (by Marlins Stadium), N Miami Avenue/I-95 N of the city, and Dodge Island to Miami Beach (subway here) should all have light rail or heavy rail lines connecting them to downtown Miami. This is what spurs strong demand for development: a reliable mode of transportation infrastructure that gets people efficiently between the points they're trying to go, while promoting a mixed-use urban lifestyle and large-scale development focused on creating a sense of place in Miami's diverse (?) communities.

Downtown Miami & the Brickell neighborhood are not characterized only by their gleaming new skyscrapers atop parking pedestals lining Biscayne Blvd. & Brickell Avenue, respectively. They also feature dozens of whole city blocks that lay vacant or are crumbling parking lots in the shadows of all the new condominiums & office buildings. I agree that the neighborhoods have improved immensely in the last decade, but there is a very, VERY long way to go if Miami wants to lure the kind of "stronger demand for development". I'm talking high-tech, high-paying, high-profile jobs coming to the area.

Look, I'd love to be able to drink this Kool-Aid as well, and in many cases it might be true, but here it just doesn't work. Similar to what most of you do, enjoy from a far while not actually being in Miami, it is so that the best way to get encouraged about the metro system here is not to ride it. Even though it looks bad for the MDT employees and involved city politicians not to use it when they're offices are so close, it's probably a good thing because it would discourage them from pushing for it if they did. It's hard to explain this, but it's similar to the way a comedian shouldn't laugh at his own jokes, or enjoy watching comedy shows.

Listen, one time, for one job, which happened to be incredibly close to the metrorail I tried having somebody utilize it. What a failure, out of the less than five days attempted there was one delay due to an unsub prying open the doors between stations, another time when the police had to arrest somebody, and the other delay was the kid that commited suicide at University Station after spring break. All this was on the showcase south leg of the line.

Jeez.

What needs to change is for it to be useful enough for there to be a critical mass of real riders so the vagrants and downtrodden are less noticable in the crowd, less likely to ride in the first place, and less likely to say disturbing things. The airport thing might spell big change, putting it over the tipping point from a joke to a semi useful tool, but it may also add an unwanted element to the airport.

Another thing 7% sales tax, let alone the 6% in the rest of S FL is not a lot at all for such a large metropo area; if you're expecting even half of what Chicago has in terms of city services, prestige, greatness, etc, you're going to have to pay for it. However, if you want a business friendly low regulated system that favors high rise residential building and rapid almost Texas style growth, you've got it so enjoy it.

[miami305]

Originally Posted by QuantumX

Please elaborate. The city already does this.

Skyline....

[iloveclassicrock7]

Originally Posted by QuantumX

Nice find, Dave! What an ass-kicking skyline we now have, even without anything taller than the Four Seasons. I just love driving past the forest of skyscrapers on I-95 every chance I get, and to think more is on the way in this decade. I feel so privileged to live in Miami where I can witness this kind of development first hand. We now have have the third largest skyline in the US, but most assuredly now are going to move up in the world rankings in this decade.

Third largest skyline in the US ? Are you sure about that ? Their is Chicago and New York which are way ahead, then I though San Fran was next. Either way, Miami should really be expanded, its a beautiful area.

[Endeavor305]

Originally Posted by iloveclassicrock7

Third largest skyline in the US ? Are you sure about that ? Their is Chicago and New York which are way ahead, then I though San Fran was next. Either way, Miami should really be expanded, its a beautiful area.

Miami is 3rd according to buildings over X' count. San Francisco is not even in the top 5. Houston is at #4 and LA #5.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Ra...yline_rankings

No time soon will Miami be moving past Chicago, but the gap will close over the next decade as multi-high rise projects like CitiCentre and World Resorts get built. Miami will also be adding a supertall (over 1000 feet) in One Biscayne Plaza by the end of this decade.

[Endeavor305]

Originally Posted by QuantumX

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DSC_1303 by QuantumX, on Flickr

Can someone that knows how to, change the photo of Miami in the Wikipedia page I linked in prior post. I think the one Q took which I have in quote above makes a good replacement. Q, you okay with using your photo?

[QuantumX]

Originally Posted by iloveclassicrock7

Third largest skyline in the US ? Are you sure about that ?

Yes!

Originally Posted by Endeavor305

Can someone that knows how to, change the photo of Miami in the Wikipedia page I linked in prior post. I think the one Q took which I have in quote above makes a good replacement. Q, you okay with using your photo?

I prefer the aerials I've taken from above Virginia Key for that purpose.

[HavanaMiami1977]

Originally Posted by QuantumX

Yes!



I prefer the aerials I've taken from above Virginia Key for that purpose.

Yes Q that picture will be great on that article for Miami.

[QuantumX]

Originally Posted by Endeavor305

Can someone that knows how to, change the photo of Miami in the Wikipedia page I linked in prior post.

OMG, that's an old photo and not representative at all. I think this is a good one!

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DSC_0051 by QuantumX, on Flickr

[QuantumX]

I copied that Wikipedia pic on that page to make this comparison with a shot from a similar angle I took earlier this year. Mine, more up to date, certainly looks more like it could be the third largest skyline in the U.S.

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Miami_aerial_01 by QuantumX, on Flickr

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DSC_1018 by QuantumX, on Flickr

[Endeavor305]

Q,

both suggestions made by you are good, however, I think the one I picked is best and let me explain why!...

Your aerial photo is nice, but it is too narrow in my opinion and leaves out alot of buildings. The wikipedia page is talking about biggest in country, so why leave out some of the best like Four Seasons, etc. Also, since the view is at a downward angle it also shows the spacing between the buildings taking away from the dense compact feel of buildings right on top of each other. Those are my two biggest dislikes with that photo.

The second photo: Like the photo I chose, it shows a wide angle capturing most of the high-rises and also gives off a dense feel, but it looks a little too linear and strung out and not so deep from that angle. That however is not the biggest reason I don't like that photo as much. The biggest reason is the big open space of underdeveloped land in the foreground. Again, not bad, but not the best choice in my opinion.

As for the one I selected, it's wide, captures most of the prominent high-rises, has a super dense feel and depth, and lastly is on the water (in the foreground)! Miami is known for the tropical water and sun, why not integrate that with downtown buildings. Keep in mind this is for the wikipedia page that people from around the world will see. Let's show the best side of our face and not the one with a pimple or two.

EDIT: If someone can get a wide angle photo from the Virginia Key angle, then that might be the best shot. Especially if they can get a shallow angle of the 4 "Biscayne wall" towers looking snug without the space and on the other end the JPMorgan building, Four Seasons, etc moving to the right. That shot also has Icon showing a little better and Asia, One Miami, etc although it might block out Met2 and Miami Tower (or whatever the hell it's called now).

[QuantumX]

How about this one then? That last picture I posted was about comparing the angle.

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[/QUOTE]

[QuantumX]

Originally Posted by Endeavor305

Spell and Q,

both suggestions made by you guys are good, however, I think the one I picked is best and let me explain why!...

What I don't like about your selection though is that fact that the buildings are too on top of each other and the skyline loses scale.

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DSC_0487 by QuantumX, on Flickr

[brickell]

Originally Posted by Miami High Rise

Quite the opposite would actually be better for what you want (stronger demand for development). I-95 should have been extended to Dadeland/Palmetto/Snapper Creek instead of building the metro. If this had happened, guaranteed two metrics of the city/county would be greater:

Population and GDP.

I'm not sure I follow. What reasoning do you have, other than that Metrorail sucks?

South Dade certainly hasn't had any issues with growth, in fact, they've had huge increases in value in the last decade thanks to ongoing gentrification of Pinecrest, Cutler Bay, East Kendall. West Kendall growth has continued unabated.

North Dade... well they have I-95. Why aren't people flocking to Bunche Park to make use of such a wonderful resource?

[Endeavor305]

Originally Posted by QuantumX

What I don't like about your selection though is that fact that the buildings are too on top of each other and the skyline loses scale.

Yea but that "on top of each other" look is what is going to make someone from Nebraska or Alaska that has never seen Miami before go "wow!". It looks a little like New York. Not sure what you mean by losing scale? If anything it helps give the look of dense high-rises. Which is what we want given it's a public skyline rank page. If anything, there's actually a bridge and trees to help give it scale.

The two more recent photos you posted are much better, in my opinion. I think any of those 3 (your 2 or the one I selected) will work fine. Now do we have someone here that knows how to edit a wikipedia page? lol

[Aceventura]

Originally Posted by Endeavor305

Now do we have someone here that knows how to edit a wikipedia page? lol

I think MHR knows what's up.

[QuantumX]

Originally Posted by Endeavor305

Yea but that "on top of each other" look is what is going to make someone from Nebraska or Alaska that has never seen Miami before go "wow!". It looks a little like New York. Not sure what you mean by losing scale?

You can't really see how big the Miami skyline is in that photo because the buildings are too jumbled together. That is what I mean by losing scale.

[URBAN BEAUTY]

I agree with Endeavor. His pic of preference does emphasize massiveness and the different elevations... the ladder element is lost on the aerial photo where all the buildings seem to be of the same height. It's a good photo to show Miami's inner density though, and that shouldn't be taken for granted. I think all the pictures in Wikipedia should be replaced with all the 4 choices we have here.

[QuantumX]

Originally Posted by URBAN BEAUTY

I think all the pictures in Wikipedia should be replaced with all the 4 choices we have here.

Thanks! Whichever one you chose, they are all mine anyway.

[CF221]

I would go for between QuantumX's last two.. and preferably the first one of the two... its unbeatable.... awesome skyline, blue water, and tropical mangroves!