Sunset Place Mall to Be Razed, Foodie Mecca Taking Its Place

It's the end of an era: Sunset Place will officially be demolished to make way for a brand-new redevelopment project that will look and feel like a village filled with dozens of individual structures of different heights and designs to create a cornucopia of unique shops, restaurants, bars, and retailers.

The one structure that will remain from Sunset Place's original ten-acre property will be the parking garage, which will be "transformed" and "reimagined."

On the evening of Tuesday, October 15, Sunset Place was unanimously approved for redevelopment by the City of South Miami commission members during a City of South Miami commission meeting. The redevelopment may take upwards of ten years to complete.

The news comes after Midtown Development acquired the failing property in 2021 and teamed up with award-winning architectural firm Heatherwick Studio, based out of London, for the redesign. "It's been four years of hard work to reimagine both Sunset Place and the future of downtown South Miami," says Richard Perez of Midtown Development. "We are far from the end, but this is a very important milestone for all of us."

A Brief History and Reason for the Mall's Demise

Midtown Development closed on Sunset Place in December of 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is when Sunset Place truly reached its demise — and it wasn't the first mall to be doomed on the ten-acre property.

In 1982, the land that is now Sunset Place was once home to a $35 million mixed-use property called Bakery Centre, which at the time opened at the former historic Holsum Bakery site. However, it was doomed from the start, as it was knocked down in exactly ten years. Then, in 1999 came Sunset Place, a giant mall and structure owned by Federal Realty, Grass River Property, and Comras Company prior to its 2021 acquisition by Midtown Development.

Over the past 20 years, the soulless Sunset Place became an eyesore, lacking identity, foot traffic, meaningful retailers, and eventually, it became a ghost town. Sunset Place felt as though it was a separate entity from Red Road and the neighboring developments and community — it never truly belonged, nor did it try to belong.

As the failures of both Bakery Centre and Sunset Place have proven, one thing is for certain — the more than 300,000 square foot area does not and will never work as a shopping mall.

"This location doesn't work as a regional mall," reinforced Perez during the meeting.

Now, Midtown Development and Thomas Heatherwick of Heatherwick Studio hope to "break the cycle of soulless places being built" and hope to "activate Red Road and respect Sunset Drive" for the first time in decades.

What's Next for Sunset Place? Restaurants, Bars, and Shops, and Connected Streets Like a Little Village

"Our radical idea is that we're bringing back streets," explains Heatherwick in a video posted to YouTube and Instagram. "So, when we looked at the site from above and saw the surrounding existing street grid, we thought, 'What if we pull those surrounding streets through into our site to make continuous routes?' And by doing this, we can create a village of smaller spaces where the streets are alive with different shapes and forms, and each of these spaces can have a different focus."

Unlike local malls like the Falls, Merrick Park, and Brickell City Centre, which were all designed around one large and wide building, the developers aim to build a bunch of small buildings with streets cutting through and all around them. Most of the streets running through the buildings will be pedestrian-only, and there will be smaller buildings with diverse heights and forms.

Plus, each restaurant, bakery, and coffee shop will have a unique storefront, design, and height, which is completely unlike what people will find at restaurants within the Miami Design District, as those are all located along the same structure.

The structures closest to Sunset Drive, called the "Sunset Zone," will be of the lowest height at two stories tall and then make way to structures that are 12 stories tall. In a zone called the "Village Zone," buildings will reach a maximum height of 15 stories, followed by structures in the "Central Zone," which will be 25 stories at their maximum height. Lastly, structures in the "US-1 Gateway Zone" closest to U.S. 1 will have a maximum height of 33 stories.

What's Coming for Sure? A Place Where You Can "Explore"

Below, New Times has listed what visitors can expect at the new village development, which has been approved by the City of South Miami as of October 15.

1. Sitting above the village of shops, restaurants, and bars will be 1,500 apartment units, which developers hope will bring life to the village below.

2. A 15,000-square-foot open-air plaza surrounded by restaurants, bars, hotels, outdoor markets, or more independent shops will be the "heart" of the property.

3. Restaurants and bars will cut through the middle (a main street for restaurants and bars) with alleyways for smaller venues and pop-ups.

4. The sidewalk area along Sunset Drive between Red Road and U.S. 1 will have areas for boutiques and cafés with outdoor seating, just like in Paris or London.

5. A "culture and entertainment area" will be located along U.S. 1. (Maybe this is where the movie theater will be?)

As for what is to come, the developers have committed to a "temporary installation" to ensure businesses thrive throughout the long construction process. Plus, they have made a promise to the City of South Miami that local businesses and restaurants will be able to secure leases once the buildings are completed.

Furthermore, there are discussions surrounding the idea of building a bridge.