The Collins Park Parking Garage, located at 340 23^rd Street, spans the entire block from Park Avenue to Liberty Avenue immediately adjacent to the Miami City Ballet. The facility includes + 500 parking spaces and 16,000 square feet of ground floor retail space below. The ground floor commercial space along 23rd Street features an open terrace wrapping around the exterior and provides a unique opportunity to activate the streetscape.

Upon completion of the garage, the retail space will remain completely raw and require build out for future tenants. The cost of any potential build out of the retail space will be determined by the specific tenant, the type of use, and the tenant’s space requirements. Given the role the project could play to enhance the character of the neighborhood, the Administration sought the committee’s guidance on future tenant programming at the February 22 meeting. The committee directed the Administration to determine if RDA money was available that could be used to invest in the retail space and attract tenants.  

Following the February 22 meeting, the Administration determined that the only RDA funds potentially available for the Collins Park Garage Retail project were approximately $6.9 million of non-TIF revenue currently earmarked for the Lincoln Road Renovation project, or alternatively, approximately $1.0 to $1.5 million in annual Quality of Life funds that could be available on October 1st as part of the FY 2021 Capital Budget process. Earlier this month, the City decided to postpone plans for major construction on Lincoln Road that would risk disrupting business recovery. Therefore, RDA funds originally intended for another capital use could be realigned from the Lincoln Road Renovation project depending on timing and reduced scope. Given the uncertainty of current market conditions, the Administration recommends the potential use of funds only with careful selection of a tenant that brings undeniable and long-lasting value to the neighborhood.