Sights and Scenes: Downtown Miami

[thelakelander]

^The U2C is completely counterproductive to the concept of TOD.  Any claims to it stimulating TOD are unfounded wishes and selling of wolf tickets at this point. Here's some Miami Metrorail TOD from a tour I took last week. Miami-Dade Transit has gotten pretty aggressive with the construction of TOD around its transit stations. Even going as far as building student housing near the University of Miami on top of an existing park n ride garage:


The Metromover from the 26th floor of the JW Marriott Marquis in Downtown Miami.



Metrorail's Brickell Station.



Metrorail's Douglas Road Station.



Metrorail's Douglas Road Station.



Student housing sitting on top of Metrorail's South Miami Station parking garage.



A first mile last mile solution in play at Metrorail stations already. This is essentially the U2C with a driver.



Downtown Dadeland TOD at Metrorail's Dadeland-South station.



Passing TOD at Metrorail's Dadeland-North station.



TOD around Metrorail's Brickell station.



Metrorail's Miami Intermodal Center station. Here, you can rent a car, take an automated people mover to the airport terminal, go downstairs and catch Tri-Rail to Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach or take Metrorail to Hialeah, downtown Miami, Brickell, Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, South Miami and Kendall.



Inside a Metrorail car.


In short, I believe there is a lot we can do to maximize what we already have. As of now, we have eight stations and another proposed in Brooklyn. Those things should have a couple thousand units of multifamily over them or immediately adjacent to them by now.

[marcuscnelson]

^The U2C is completely counterproductive to the concept of TOD.  Any claims to it stimulating TOD are unfounded wishes and selling of wolf tickets at this point. Here's some Miami Metrorail TOD from a tour I took last week. Miami-Dade Transit has gotten pretty aggressive with the construction of TOD around its transit stations. Even going as far as building student housing near the University of Miami on top of an existing park n ride garage:

I remember Bernard Schmidt insisting that some company either in Jacksonville or relocating to Jacksonville wanted to have a U2C stop inside their lobby. I don't think I've heard a word of it since.

Which reminds me, now that Bay Street is out of the bidding process I wonder if they have any new evidence of how this all somehow supposed to work that they weren't willing to give before. We know they're working with Beep, which means they're either using the Olli and Navya shuttles they have now or designing a new one based on those. But seeing as they're only at 30% design and they still need to select "technologies that will make the U2C function," I imagine they still just don't have a whole lot of detail.

It's still frustrating because they went so far as to spend all that money on the study and it doesn't seem to say much anyway, other than "building stuff near the existing Skyway infrastructure at JRTC and Rosa Parks is good, and also the Shipyards & District/RiversEdge".

In short, I believe there is a lot we can do to maximize what we already have. As of now, we have eight stations and another proposed in Brooklyn. Those things should have a couple thousand units of multifamily over them or immediately adjacent to them by now.

The frustration, as always, remains that instead of making sure the Skyway would be a reliable option with needed improvements to focus that TOD around, JTA is burning over a quarter-billion dollars to experiment. Already we've gone through five years we could have spent making the investments we needed to keep the Skyway going. But alas, I guess we're committed for whatever forsaken reason.

To get back on track somewhat, I wonder what a "Jax 21" plan would need to look like to repeat at least some elements of Miami's success. I heard form-based code, which seems like a good first step. Assuming we can't do anything about the U2C, is there anything else we could try and have JTA do for effective transportation?

I'm sure an immediate challenge is going to be the fact that Jacksonville is bigger than Downtown, how do we loop in or best serve other neighborhoods?

[jaxlongtimer]

It must be nice to have a city where the architects, and those who hire them, aren't afraid to think outside the rectangular boxy grey or bronze building.

Miami also created a visionary and forward thinking form-based code called Miami 2021 that has helped lead to better urban design and developments downtown and elsewhere. They hired world-renowned firm Duany Plater-Zyberk as their lead consultant and other well regarded firms as subs to create their plan in 2009. They are now reaping the rewards.

Miami (and most big cities in Florida) would NEVER allow things like the "conceptual site plan" for the TU site or the massive box on the River City Brewing Company site. It's ultimately up to the City and it's leaders as the shapers of public policy and community character to push for better design, imo.

Here! Here!  A city that demands creativity and some standard for aesthetics, not just throwing incentives to developers to build another boxy, suburban style structure that no one will even notice when going by it.  Hard to ignore a lot of the buildings pictured.  The architecture is an attraction in and of itself.  On par with NYC based on these samples.  Maybe even more avant garde given the skyline consists of so many recent additions.  Probably what NYC was to the art deco period.

Jax leaders don't understand that great architecture (1) promotes economic development as it draws its own masses to it and attracts trend setters to settle here, either companies or residents (2) by being iconic creates a unique identity for the city to be proud of (3) adds value to the structure itself and to the area surrounding it adding to the tax base (4) brings energy, buzz and excitement to the urban core 24/7 and (5) acts as a catalyst and inspiration for others to follow by raising the bar.

Regardless of what you think about the LERP sculpture, the buzz it has created in the City suggests it's on the mark for why it should go forward.  No iconic structures exist without controversy but that controversy is derived from how they demand attention, good or bad, which, ultimately, gives them the title of "iconic."  Frequently, over time, the public begins to "adopt" such controversial structures with affection.  It just takes getting used to them - getting over the "shock" of their initial presence.  Much of our "great" art today was not fully appreciated at it's inception, be it paintings, sculpture, music, theater, structures, fashion, etc.  As they say, time cures all.

What we have now reflects the City as conservative/not progressive, boring, lacking creativity, risk avoidant, not having its act together and not forward thinkers/leaders.  I would say that it's a good representation of where we have been up to now.  Another reason to promote great architecture - to project the City's "personality" in a more favorable light.

[jaxjaguar]

^meanwhile Jax leadership is so short sighted that they're willing to spend nearly a billion "revitalizing" a fountain for the 3rd time in 2 decades, a giant "derp" sculpture, dropping structures left and right and putting up cookie cutter suburban style apartment complexes with some colorful stucco slapped on.

The Publix project that was just approved in San Marco is another example of poor leadership and caving to nimby's. Mid town Miami and North East St Pete are great examples of mixed use suburban blend. I'll post some photo examples in a few weeks when we go back.

[iMarvin]

Miami really is in such a different league nowadays. Beautiful pictures. That Douglas Road picture doesn't even show the big towers that are there now.

It's not completely the same thing as Miami 21 but Jacksonville did have a 2030 Mobility Plan that was supposed to improve public transportation and lead to better land use by collecting fees from developments that didn't align with those principles. Unfortunately, city council put a moratorium on fee collection for a few years and I'm pretty sure the plan is now completely dead.

Jacksonville's 2030 Mobility Plan
The Mobility Plan: A Vision for Jacksonville
The Mobility Fee Compromise: Winners & Losers

Nothing will change until leadership changes, and the majority of the city just doesn't seem to care. I've learned not to expect anything.