Rowan Moore looks at the multiple layers that are conspiring to make a maturing Miami the "new Most Exciting City in America". Diverse cultural offerings and branded architecture are attracting international investors.
Managing to outgrow its reputation for "riots, urban blight, drug dealing," and a busted housing market, Miami is taking on a new role: leading global destination.
"The city has become a drop-off point for the migrant tribe of global super-rich, who feel the need to keep homes in London, New York, perhaps Moscow or an Asian city, and now Miami," observes Moore. "Hence a sprouting of towers and blocks designed by celebrity architects such as Norman Foster, Richard Meier, John Pawson, Herzog and de Meuron, and the Mexican Enrique Norten as well as Zaha Hadid."
"From here, Miami can go in two directions. It can do what almost every other aspirational city has done in the past 15 years, which is to behave like a teenager let loose with a platinum credit card in a luxury store," he concludes. "Or it can invent new ways to renew itself, as yet unknown, based on its inimitable fusion of South and North America, each of which has powerful and distinct ideas about how to make cities."
FULL STORY: Miami's new vice – an addiction to star architects
Miami's High-Rise Orthodoxy Hides a Better Way
Alastair Gordon lambasts Miami's high-end architectural extremes. A horizontal, nature-inspired urbanism might better address contradictions between breezy luxury and inland poverty.
Miami’s Underline Linear Park Offers Recreation, Transportation, Conservation
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Miami Breaks Ground on All-Electric Transit Center
The terminal will have the capacity to power 100 electric buses.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Canada vs. Kamala: Whose Liberal Housing Platform Comes Out on Top?
As Canada votes for a new Prime Minister, what can America learn from the leading liberal candidate of its neighbor to the north?
The Five Most-Changed American Cities
A ranking of population change, home values, and jobs highlights the nation’s most dynamic and most stagnant regions.
Creating Ocean-Safe Plastic from Seashells
USC researchers have created a biodegradable, marine-safe plastic alternative using calcium carbonate from seashells, offering a promising solution to ocean pollution.
Rethinking Computing: Researchers Tackle AI’s Energy Demands
USC researchers are reimagining how AI systems are trained and powered — through smarter algorithms, innovative hardware, and brain-inspired designs — to dramatically reduce computing’s energy footprint.
Amazon-Owned Robotaxis to Begin Testing in LA
Los Angeles will become the sixth city where Zoox is testing its autonomous vehicle technology.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
New York City School Construction Authority
Village of Glen Ellyn
Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions