All those vacant lots in Edgewater? We have plans for them!

Few areas along the Biscayne Corridor blossomed so brightly, then suffered so deeply from the recent building boom and bust as Edgewater. But Edgewater isn’t like most neighborhoods. Less than five years ago, this small waterfront enclave was at the heart of Miami’s “Manhattanization” -- a projected home to more than 6000 of new luxury lofts and condos, and a hip, fresh destination for young professionals and Miami Beach exiles.

Real estate developers, a number of whom had no experience building high-rise condominiums (or much of anything else), swarmed over the low-rise neighborhood, gobbled up apartment buildings, evicted tenants by the hundreds, and demolished what was already a rare commodity in Miami: affordable housing.

In one sense, the frenzy of activity was understandable. Geographically the area couldn’t have been more promising. Edgewater extends from roughly NE 15th Street to the Julia Tuttle Causeway, and from Biscayne Bay to NE 2nd Avenue -- precious bayfront property central to every major destination in the county.

But in another sense, the transformational dreams made little sense. Edgewater was one of Miami’s poorest areas. Its streets were narrow, some of them so narrow two-way traffic was impossible. Public transportation for thousands of new residents was woefully inadequate. Infrastructure fundamentals like water mains, sewers, and storm-water runoff systems were old and crumbling.

None of that dampened the aspirations of developers who envisioned towering condos with alluring names like Onyx, Ice, Quantum, Blue, Aria. Advertising campaigns promised an urbane, sophisticated lifestyle filled with gorgeous people, classy restaurants, and tree-shaded promenades.

But the gentrification of this working-class, predominately Caribbean and Latino community, once known as Miami’s first suburb and dotted with waterfront mansions and quaint bungalows, never materialized. The grandiose fantasy was vaporized by the collapse of the real estate market. Today the neighborhood is a patchwork of half-filled condos, a handful of up-and-coming shops and restaurants rubbing elbows with aging, down-market businesses -- and many, many vacant lots.

Many millions of dollars’ worth of dirt now lies fallow, from oversized parcels whose owners abandoned major development plans to a smattering of mini lots popular for illegal dumping. Depending on how you count them, there are somewhere around 50 vacant lots in Edgewater. Some are fenced; most are not. All of them, however, have potential, and they invite creative thinking about that potential. They are an imagineer’s equivalent of the painter’s blank canvas.

As a resident of Edgewater, I’ve done my share of daydreaming about what might become of all these vacant lots. And now, thanks to the power vested in me by Biscayne Times as its Real Estate Potentate, I can wave my wand and make dreams come true, at least figuratively. I carefully surveyed my neighborhood, consulted with everyone from civic activists to urban planners, and conjured some solutions.

MARKET FORCES

1776 Biscayne Blvd.

Having sat vacant since a developer in Houston shelled out $5.6 million for it back in 1996, this is one of the few lots where I don’t have a mere suggestion, but rather a Draconian decree. This must become a high-end grocery store -- and at 83,000 square feet it can. Most neighborhood residents are all too aware that Publix and Price Chopper leave a lot to be desired. (Note to Miami Shores readers: Our Publix is nothing like yours.) A Publix GreenWise market -- or better yet a Whole Foods -- would offer an attractive alternative for healthy eaters, luring foodies from the luxury condos on Bayshore Drive all the way up to NE 36th Street. A neighborhood that eats well lives well.

BETTER HOMES

421 NE 22nd St.; 418-446 NE 22nd Terr.; 413 NE 23rd St.; 513 NE 23rd St.; 601 NE 23rd St.; 516 NE 26th Terr.; and more

Some of these parcels, like 513 NE 23rd St., are already prepped for development; others are the home of ill-fated projects like Loft 26, down the road at 516 NE 26th Terr. Together they are worth millions. These and similar lots are ideal places for novel solutions to multifamily housing, such as low-rise “Mat Buildings.” A concept that traces back to Le Corbusier’s Venice Hospital design, Mat Building is a style of interconnected, modular architecture in which living units are linked by communal courtyards (similar to Moroccan housing). Coupled with a wider range of unit prices, the Mat style would encourage resident interaction -- something Edgewater’s diverse population needs. From a planning standpoint, the effect of mixing income levels in close proximity tends to benefit an area more than isolating people into groups.

Two large lots, one of them waterfront, at the foot of NE 32nd Street would be ideal for mixed housing, and would be especially attractive by virtue of their proximity to a major community park just to the south. (See GREEN DREAMS below.)

BAYFRONT BENEFITS

The NE 28th Street Inlet

Public Marina: At the dead-end of NE 28th Street a developer from Aventura owns both the north and south lots, while another owns the waterfront lots on the north side of NE 27th St. The rest of the vacant space around the inlet is owned by the City of Miami. With only three major stakeholders -- one being the city, which could provide financial incentives for the private owners -- there’s both the space and means to create a modest public marina. Rental slips, a bait and supply shop, a café, boat and jet ski rentals -- the works. This would liven up Edgewater’s midpoint and give residents a real reason to visit the waterfront.

Water Taxi: A marina could also be a pick-up point for a water taxi that shuttles residents to the Upper Eastside, downtown, and Coconut Grove. This idea was the subject of a design class taught at the University of Miami by architect Ricardo Lopez. “The bay is Miami’s greatest physical asset,” says Lopez. “The Biscayne Water Trolley would offer solutions to a number of issues: more transit options, reducing future congestion, enhancing parks, increasing property values, and more.” One of Lopez’s students designed a water-taxi station at the end of NE 20th Street that included docks and a fish market, essentially extending Margaret Pace Park north into the bay and creating brand-new reasons for residents to patronize the area.

Kayak and Canoe Launch: While we’re at it, let’s create an offshoot of the marina on the vacant parcel six blocks north (640 NE 34th St.) by offering a launch ramp for man-powered watercraft. Set up a rustic, open-air kiosk that rents canoes and kayaks (and sells kites!), and also leases storage space for privately owned paddle boats, and soon residents will be flocking to check out the spoil island east of NE 22nd Street, take off on Biscayne Bay adventures, or just laze away a few hours on the water in the sunshine.

GREEN DREAMS

Edgewater has a couple nice green spaces, but that’s about it. There is, of course, the one major park -- Margaret Pace Park, behind Cité. Then there’s Martell Park, a diminutive pocket of green for humans and dogs behind Blue Condominium on NE 36th Street. Otherwise the neighborhood is one big concrete jungle. We need much more green space, and all the shade we can get.

Richard Strell, head of the Neighborhood of Edgewater Association of Residents (NEAR), believes that green spaces can soon be created on the cheap: “Even more lots may become available in the coming years for purchase from the county due to unpaid property taxes. If empty lots like these are for sale at bargain-basement prices, the city could purchase them for both mini and full-size parks.”

Major Community Park

Waterfront lot between NE 30th Terrace and NE 31st Street

This perfect, three-acre lot of prime waterfront real estate was once home to Bayfront Manor, a sprawling, horseshoe-shaped apartment complex popular with young professionals, especially journalists (for some reason). In 1991 it was purchased for just $2 million. Last year it was valued at more than $27 million! For 18 years the New York-based owners have been biding their time, but in the meantime it would make for a spectacular park. Just as Margaret Pace Park spawned a whole network of valuable development around it, residential and commercial interests within the radius around this park and the marina complex a few blocks south would thrive.

Horticultural Park

246 NE 26th Terr.

At just under an acre, this shady slice of green on the west side of Biscayne Boulevard was picked up in 2001 by a Brickell developer for $2.1 million. But there’s been no move to develop since, so we’re thinking it would make a great horticultural park. With a little help from the city and the BT’s resident plant and park experts, Jeff Shimonski and Jim W. Harper, this could become a mini-Eden of exotic plants -- not to mention a reason to step out and meet the neighbors. Also throw in some public WiFi to lure the laptop crowd.

Bark Parks and Mini Parks

2300 Biscayne Blvd.; 411 NE 24th St.; 325 NE 26th St.; 330 NE 27th St.; 3200 Biscayne Blvd.

A few benches, some shade trees, and doo-doo bags are all these plots need to come alive as off-leash dog parks and neighborhood mini parks.

REEL POTENTIAL

345 NE 32nd St.

Edgewater residents who want to catch a movie must trek to Miami Beach, Aventura, or Coconut Grove -- and frankly we’re sick of it. Site of the unrealized, 33-story Park Lane Tower, this 1.4-acre lot across the street from Walgreens would be perfect for a boutique theater like the one planned for the Design District’s outdoor Living Room site, which never happened. It could even have a stage and double as a theater for drama. The Miami Beach-based owner of the property has been paying hefty taxes on the $1.8 million lot for more than 20 years. A few screens, some unique concessions, and a combination of independent and mainstream releases, and people would line up, guaranteed. You’d also see clusters of restaurants and bars pop up around it.

CHECKING IN

1701 NE 4th Ave.

This is one idea I can’t take credit for, because it’s already in progress. The Sonesta Mikado Hotel Miami, one block west of Margaret Pace Park and Biscayne Bay, broke ground last month. The latest project from Florida East Coast Realty tycoon Tibor Hollo, this 252-room mixed-use hotel will also have 119 residences. An upscale restaurant, pool bar and grill, 45,000 square feet of office space, a fitness center and destination spa, and a 12th-floor pool deck are also in store -- not to mention 500 construction jobs over the next 22 months and more than 200 permanent positions.

ISLAND INSPIRATION

I sat down with Nikolay Nedev, a partner in the architecture firm NC-office, to get additional urban planning insights. Like UM’s Ricardo Lopez, Nedev was trained to zoom out and consider an area’s overall potential. Some of his low-impact solutions to Edgewater’s street layout (very long blocks with dead ends) include carving north-south alleyways east of Biscayne. This would make it much easier for residents to walk from one block to another, which would encourage social interaction. Grander visions include a new north-south street along Biscayne Bay -- sort of like Ocean Drive built out over the bay and connecting all those dead-end streets. “Once those streets are extended, you could create artificial islands built into the bay with a loop road, similar to the Venetian Islands but very close to land,” says Nedev. “This would create small lakes or large pools between the land and the newly formed islands.”

This is probably the best -- and most unlikely -- thing that could ever happen to Edgewater.

CRITICAL COMMERCE

Nedev and Lopez both recommend as much commercial density as possible. There are plenty of residential mixed-use projects, but dedicated retail and commercial areas allow people to work and play in Edgewater -- not just live in it. There are many promising parcels: Several blocks of vacant land on either side of NE 18th Street and Biscayne Boulevard, and east toward NE 4th Avenue, as well as tracts at 2655, 2701, and 2990 Biscayne Blvd. These and other plots could support a variety of offices, stores, and businesses to support residents working -- and walking -- in the neighborhood.

GROWING GREENS

Community Gardens

Beyond bark and mini parks, activist Richard Strell has another vision for smaller vacant lots: community gardens. “They could be farmed by local residents, nonprofits, schools, inmates in for minor crimes, and so forth,” says Strell. “They already do this in other cities, and the gardens could be structured so the development rights of the owner are not threatened when they’re ready to build.” A great source of fresh food, a reason to get out and commune with neighbors, and more eyes on our streets? Sounds like a recipe for success. I found 11 parcels, none of which fall in the shadow of a high-rise, that would work well. There may be more. This simple but brilliant idea is, as they say, shovel-ready.

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