It's not every day that you can enjoy an intimate meal with 400 of your closest friends, but community dinners are a thing. And Miami isn't going to be left out of this trend. Are we ever? Enter Taste of Avenue 3. The Miami Dade Transportation Quick-Build Program--funded in part by a grant from NYC's Transit Center--is facilitating and developing community lead, short-term and inexpensive transportation improvements on Miami streets. Think light and quick and cheap. For four

Miami is a beautiful city with it's turquoise ocean and maze of water and bridges. Water inspires everything we do. It shapes our buildings, our road network our cityscape. But rarely do trees, flowers and landscaping influence our design in the same way. Flash forward to Upper Buena Vista-- a one-story retail/restaurant compound which was completely designed around the existing banyan and oak trees on the property. This project is not just about the simply crafted buildings

What can we learn from a repurposed shipping container on a downtown Charleston sidewalk? Charleston South Carolina is the quintessential southern town, known for it's historic architecture, it's foodie scene and its southern charm. But beyond the brick streets and the perfectly preserved shops are inventive and whimsical designs for the 21st century like this alternative to standard sidewalk scaffolding. How does a historic city stay relevant and even hip? Change the small s

If Rome had a do over, the architects would have made something like this. It's not enough that the Design District visionaries at DACRA created a monumentally beautiful neighborhood with some of the most exquisite examples of building design in Miami. Phase two unveiled four new city blocks and this gorgeous alley, designed by architect Daniel Toole. In many of my posts, I show examples of how other cities have brilliantly addressed some of the more banal aspects of their ou

Photo courtesy of MiMo Biscayne Boulevard Association Coppertone Girl Miami is a big bold city- always in the news, for better or worse. But by comparison, our neighborhoods- our buildings and streets- are timid. I’m not referring to South Beach which has always been bombastic sometimes at the expense of its residents or the Miami Design District which has some of the most high-quality design in the entire city. Rather, I’m referring to the neighborhoods in between the big on

We can't import Europe's historical character and public spaces to Miami, but we can learn from their examples to make our fair city even better. Here's a compilation of what I've learned in my year long endeavor to curate the best parts of my travel for geeky urban enthusiasts like me! PUBLIC SPACES: Places de la Vosges, Paris, Le Marais District. Here lies the most spectacular public square. I start with this image because it is quintessential Paris, but so simple, that an