Downtown Doral: A New "Heart" for the City of Doral

It will have 2,840 residential units. There will be 580,000 square feet of commercial and retail space. Civic space, not available for private development, will amount to 100,000 square feet. It will be a 120 acre site where people can live, work, shop, eat and even play. The city of Doral is set to have a new downtown and the town is just 30,000 residents strong.

The city of Doral and the Flagler Development Group has spent two years planning its future downtown area and has spent several million dollars. Downtown Doral will be the largest mixed-use development is South Florida history. It will be twice the size of Midtown Miami and far larger than City Place in West Palm Beach and Mizner Park in Boca Raton.

“We envision that Downtown Doral will not only become the heart of the city of Doral, but the epicenter for many of Miami-Dade’s western communities,” said Armando Codina, president and CEO of the Flagler Development Group, in a statement.

Downtown Doral is to be on both sides of Northwest 53rd Street between Northwest 87th Avenue and Northwest 79th Avenue. What is now sleepy office space is set to be developed in a series of phases over a seven to 10 year period. All existing buildings will be demolished.

“It was a conscious decision to create a downtown area, a more urban area to the eastern part of the city,” said Nathan Kogan, director of planning and zoning for the city of Doral.

Phase one will consist of residencies such as Vista Blanca Tower, a 16-story luxury building that will feature apartments ranging in size from 640 square feet to 2,900 square feet. Phase one will also consist of commercial offerings such as the Professional Center, a 70,000 square-feet, fully-renovated office condominium.

The first building set to be part of Downtown Doral is due to begin construction in February or March of 2008 said Kogan. He also affirms that this first project is moving forward quickly, with this first building set to be one of the condo towers.

What has yet to be stressed residents is how Downtown Doral will be unique to other planned mixed-use developments. The young city, incorporated in the summer of 2003, already has residential, commercial, and industrial land use the just 15 square miles that is Doral.

“I have mixed feelings about the new downtown,” said Manuel De La Fuente, six year resident of the city. “It will be nice to have a real urban center in Doral with nice walkways and sidewalk restaurants. But on the other side, we have a horrendous traffic problem that will only increase with high density living.”

Traffic, one of the chief concerns in the area, is on resident’s minds. “Other than them saying that they are working on a few minor fixes, I have not seen a real solution put forth to residents,” said De La Fuente on the traffic issue.

It’s both the Flagler development team and the city of Doral that assure the traffic problem has been addressed. According to Kogan, despite the fact that roads are going to be narrowed internally in Downtown Doral, traffic will lessen because if it.

“When it comes to traffic you think ‘Oh, my God’ there’s going to be this massive downtown area. There’s going to be 2,800 residential units, we’re adding retail,” Kogan said. “We’re improving the traffic situation.”

“The amount of trips that are created by the existing offices equals the trips that will be provided by the new development,” Kogan continues. “So we’re taking down and putting up so it equalizes.”

It’s the mixed-use aspect of the downtown that Kogan explains will help relieve congestion from traffic. “When you mix residential and commercial people can live and work in the same place,” Kogan said.

Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, urban land planner and Dean of the University Of Miami School Of Architecture, adds that downtowns can actually alleviate traffic woes.

“Urban centers like Downtown Doral can relieve some of the single-direction commuting that causes the worse congestions,” said Plater-Zyberk. “Today, everything we do in South Florida has to be part of a long-term solution.”

Kogan adds that extensive traffic reports were conducted and that the city council did informal workshops that the public was invited to. It was after this planning that council approved the project about a year and a half ago.

Despite the fact that traffic is a major concern for residents, developers and the city want to stress the planned aesthetics of Downtown Doral.

“This is a unique large-scale redevelopment,” said Chris Cobb, vice president of residential development for Flagler. “It is a complex task transforming a million square feet of existing space.

Paseo Doral, a 150-foot wide by 1,600-foot long residential boulevard, is set to be Downtown Doral’s main street. The Paseo, which will be lined with townhouses, retail and restaurants, will also include extensive landscaping and green areas. Plans are so detailed that the Paseo will include two green areas and several landscaped courts.

The Court of Oranges will be retail oriented, bold, artful and fun in design and become lively at night, with tons of light and color. On the other hand, the Water Court will feature a “dancing” water fountain, moveable seating and an interactive sculpture for child’s play.

“There are no elevations...all there is are you general building placements,” said Kogan on the plans. “It does not show how the towers are going to look. It only gives you a general box. We’re building a city. We’re not building a project.”

It’s an urban yet cozy feel that Doral is striving for. Kogan cites Mizner Park as the quintessential planned mixed-use area in South Florida. “It’s very nice but it’s a little bit sterile,” Kogan said.

Kogan added that those who choose to live, work and build in the area will be able to add their own flair to the Downtown.

“A lot of time with conventional development now they will come in with just a site plan,” said Kogan. “The site plan will show the exact locations of the building and everything is master planned and everything is completely laid out. There’s no room for variation.”

Flagler Development says that the amount of flexibility granted in Downtown Doral will be integral. “You can work and live in your own space or you can own it and rent it out,” said Cobb. “This flexible approach appeals to creative professionals and entrepreneurs, as well as the growing number of people who work from home. Downtown Doral will serve them well.”

Despite its flexibility and plan to be a lively center for Doral, the development will take billions of dollars to execute and won’t be finished for a decade. Furthermore, residencies at Downtown Doral will begin in the $200’s. Larger spaces, such as town homes, will range from the $300’s to over a million.

The planning may be extensive but residents still remain somewhat hesitant and in the dark. “There is no communication system, that I know about, that updates us as to what the plans are,” said De La Fuente. “Nevertheless, I am proud to live in Doral.”

Residents and developers alike are hoping that the urban upgrade, which will also include parks, schools, and civic spaces, will firmly establish the young city.

Said Codina in a statement, “We believe that it takes a defined downtown to create a true city, and now Doral will have one of Florida’s most exciting downtown environments.”

For more information on Downtown Doral please visit www.downtowndoral.com

By Lalinda De La Fuente