Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Restoring the Deco District
South Beach's heart is its Art Deco Historic District, one of the largest in the USA on the
National Register of Historic Places. In fact, the area's rejuvenation and rebirth as a major
tourist destination results directly from its protection as a historic place in 1979. The Na-
tional Register designation prevents developers from razing significant portions of what
was, in the 1980s, a crime-ridden collection of crumbling eyesores populated primarily by
criminals and society's dispossessed - the elderly, the mentally ill and the destitute. It's a
far cry from that now. Today, hotel and apartment facades are decidedly colorful, with pas-
tel architectural details. Depending on your perspective, the bright buildings catapult you
back to the Roaring Twenties or on a wacky tour of American kitsch.
The National Register listing was fought for and pushed through by the Miami Design
Preservation League (MDPL), founded by Barbara Baer Capitman in 1976. She was ap-
palled when she heard of plans by the city of Miami to bulldoze several historic buildings
in what is now the Omni Center. And she acted, forcefully.
MDPL cofounder Leonard Horowitz played a pivotal role in putting South Beach back
on the map, painting the then-drab deco buildings in shocking pink, lavender and tur-
quoise. When his restoration of Friedman's Pharmacy made the cover of
Progressive Ar-
chitecture
in 1982, the would-be Hollywood producers of
Miami Vice
saw something they
liked, and the rest is history.
One of the best things about the 1000 or so buildings in the deco district is their scale:
most are no taller than the palm trees. And while the architecture is by no means uniform -
you'll see Streamline Moderne, Mediterranean revival and tropical art-deco designs - it's
all quite harmonious.
Interestingly, the value of these Miami Beach deco buildings is based more on the sheer
number of structures with protected status from the National Register of Historic Places.
Individually, the inexpensively constructed houses would be worth far less.
