Miami Worldcenter Opens With Designer Shops, Public Art, and Pricey Parking

Miami's landscape has changed drastically over the years, and it's not uncommon to see new buildings adorning its skyline from one day to the next, often constructed at a breakneck pace.

Miami Worldcenter is a little different. The $6 billion mixed-use development has been in the works for two decades. Some of its shops have been open for months, but the property at large marks its grand opening Thursday, May 22. Spanning 27 acres across ten city blocks with 100,000 square feet of public space, it will become the state's largest retail and entertainment venue. The development houses 12 dining venues and 11 stores, including an Apple Store, Savage X Fenty, lululemon, Starbucks, and other shops. Visitors will also find entertainment and hospitality venues like the Museum of Ice Cream, Lucky Strike, and the citizenM Miami Worldcenter hotel, plus 11,000 residential units inside the development.

Art Falcone and Nitin Motwani, founding principal and managing partner of Miami Worldcenter Associates, respectively, say they hope Miami Worldcenter will become a third space for its surrounding communities. The development is easily accessible via public transportation, and its murals, sculptures, and public art keep the space visually interesting for visitors strolling through its shaded walkways.

One of the most striking artworks on display is a 6,500-pound globe commissioned by Pan Am Airways in the 1930s. It sat in Pan Am's Dinner Key seaplane terminal for years before spending 55 years in the former Miami Science Museum.
Another piece, a mural by Nina Chanel Abney, is a "response to the legacies of gentrification that erase the rich histories of vibrant Black communities," according to Miami Worldcenter's website. Such an acknowledgment makes Miami Worldcenter's location significant. The development sits just five blocks away from I-95, the highway that famously displaced thousands of Black families in 1960s Overtown during its construction.

Miami Worldcenter is certainly not the first multipurpose project in South Florida, but it is the first major one to be built near Overtown, at once one of the most culturally rich, historic, and economically distressed neighborhoods in the city. With other developments coming into the area, residents have voiced concerns about encroaching gentrification.

Motwani says he recently met with students at Booker T. Washington Senior High School and children from Overtown Youth Center (OYC), both about a mile from Miami Worldcenter. He adds that one of the development's goals is to create a welcoming space for kids and families from the neighborhood, and that he doesn't want the kids to "be intimidated or worried about coming over to see what's there."

Despite the outreach and proximity, accessibility may still be an issue. With designer stores, $24 admission for the immersive museum on site, and parking starting at $7.99 for one hour (with rates increasing to $15.99 for two hours and $26.24 for six hours), it's unclear exactly how accessible Miami Worldcenter will be to the communities it aims to serve.