A recent article in The Biscayne Times discussed the possibility of Museum Park going back to the drawing boards, at least to a certain extent. I find it hard to believe that the debate over Bicentennial Park/Museum Park still goes on as some of the greatest architects in the world are currently designing museums for the space.
The complaint over rising expenditure will only be exacerbated by this continuous bait and switch over the future of the city’s greatest park, long since a derelict shame for the great city of Miami. There is a constant grousing over the lack of public waterfront access, and yet one of the proposed solutions would be to infill the waterway adjacent to the park, diminishing the waterfront footage by as much as fifty percent. The idea of using landfill from the tunnel project will push the execution of Museum Park back by years.
The park as it is designed now is a stunning example of dynamic urban planning. The structures of the two museums occupy only a small fraction of the green space of Bicentennial Park and will create a vibrant cultural intersection for this valuable piece of publicly held real estate. The current design gives the parkgoer many, many, diverse options to experience the waterfront and green space in a thrilling new downtown of exceptional design quality.
The selection of Swiss architects Herzog and De Meuron to design the new Miami Art Museum is a coup of historical scale. One only has to look at the success of the new DeYoung Museum, in the middle of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, to leave themselves craving the realization of such a park for Miami, now.
The cultural campus being created by the trifecta of the Carnival Center and the two new museums will be absolutely world class. The fulfillment of which defines true great urban environments. I have walked by this park hundreds of times, mourning its potential and wondering if we will all live to see it come to its fruition.
Furthermore, as pointed out in a recent SSC posting by Rx727sfl2002, the park is to0 deep (distance from waterfront to Biscayne Boulevard) to ensure the security of parkgoers. The museums would provide lighting and security that would render the park much more user friendly even into the evening hours.
As several of the exciting elements of the new downtown near completion it is unfortunate that Museum Park is still a distant reality. There will soon be a decisive moment in the growth of Miami and it’s perception by people around the globe. It would be a disservice not to have the greatness of this Museum Park as part of that moment, particularly when the process has very carefully come this far, under the watchful eye of those most qualified.
Terence Riley being named the director of the Miami Art Museum was yet another coup, whose enormous benefits cannot be understood at this early date. His time as the architecture and design director of MoMA in NYC and his overseeing the complete redesign and construction of that institution clearly show we are in for greatness in Miami.
As a member of the community who treasures the unique natural wonders of Miami, I can only hope that we honor and highlight those qualities with Museum Park and its museums as a scintillating backdrop.
Photo Credits: JamesGood, Marshall Astor/Life of the Edge, Kevotravel, The Tables Have Turned
Good points… What about parking? Are they planning on using Bayfront? Will people put up walking a few blocks?
-James.
There is underground parking for some. Others can take the metro-mover or can park downtown. We don’t need to design our city around cars, that keeps us car based.
I don’t particularly care who builds it, I just hope they do a better job maintaining the facilities and keeping the budget in the black than the PAC. Also, parks can be anywhere I’m not so sure that parks on prime waterfront green space is ideal for location of two monster museums.
I think as downtown keeps growing and changing, and space runs out, planners need to start getting more creative about parking in downtown. They definitely should build less parking than what most people are expecting, to encourage mass transit use, but also start providing smarter parking solutions like the ones used in denser cities. Space is getting tight in downtown and it shouldn’t be wasted in huge parking lots.
Intelligent parking (with DMS signs that show how many spaces are left, such as used in Europe and Israel), parking with lifts like the ones used in NYC, zipcars, etc should be things being considered to solve the parking/mobility issue in downtown.
They are NOT monster museums. Museum Park is 40 acres. The museums are only 4 acres each, That is only 20% of the expansive park. Only 1/5th of the space and I believe they are only permitted to be three stories tall. Across the street are 65 story buildings. They are actually quite petite. I think this is a good thing because it doesn’t create unrealistic operating costs, that could rightfully upset those concerned about a replay of the balooning costs of the Carnival Center. The park is virtually unused now, the museums will bring it to life.
How about not. There is PLENTY of parking next door at either Bayside or the AA Arena. Or, how about this….the Metromover is free. Park near the Metromover and hop on. It drops you off right in front of it.
I think it’s a travesty that we are still in the mindset of building our cities around cars instead of pedestrians.
I’ve found that structures such as these should contain enough parking for about 25% of their expected capacity. Just enough parking to make it available for some, but difficult or expensive enough to discourage most from utilizing it. Museum Park should follow this model, with a central parking lot beneath the museums. The Carnival Center would have benefited greatly from a 250 car subterranean garage, lets hope the Museums aren’t permitted to make the same mistake…
I hear you guys on dis encouraging parking, but I just don’t know how many people are going to visit if it’s not there. Think about it, most of the people that will be visiting will be coming from suburbia, and the mindset for public transportation is just not there in this part of the country. It’s unrealistic to think you can build these places, and just expect people to visit from outside of downtown without bringing their cars. Heck, even South Beach residents only have the bus option.
How many people use public transport for the PAC? Granted, Museums are more of a day time place, which improves the chance of the metro mover being used (it’s definitely a little scary at night, and yes, I do use it at night, often questioning myself why?!).
-James.
The future of Miami will have more transit, weather it be a baylink connecting the beach or extended Metro-Rails to bring people from the Suburbs. It just requires everyone to demand from various commissioners, mayors, both municipal and county a transit system. It’s gone on too long and if we do not make a big loud deal about it, we won’t have transit for another 30 years. I would like to know what commissioners don’t support transit anyway.
Why is Riley a coup? I’ve seen no one look into what role he actually played wiht MOMA construction. Did he oversee it? Did he raise the funds? I think both are in question. And even if he did see what NYT said recently - is this what we want for Miami?
The New York Times
Friday July 27, 2007
MoMA Plunge
By HOLLAND COTTER
..Not that the museum itself is in a kick-back mood. It’s taken some serious critical heat since its 2004 reopening. MoMA bashing is the art world sport that Whitney bashing was in the 1990s. People say the Yoshio Taniguchi building is leaden, space hogging, art hostile. Tongues wag about the museum’s cozying up to corporations and about extravagant spending (as if this were new to the art industry). And then there’s the $20 entrance fee.
There is also an option for anyone to attend the museum ABSLOUTELY free, on Friday evenings…a nice way to start the weekend. Like anything, there is criticism and praise. I find the new MoMA to be a work of genius. It is incredibly subtle and restrained, stepping back for the art to be feaatured. Last week I saw the Richard Serra show, and a new painting show. It was the most fulfilling museum experience I have ever had. The art was tranformational, and the structure supported it beautifully. Literally supporting the Serra sculptures, on the second floor, weighing hundreds of tons. Something that most critics don’t even consider in their evaluation.