Gables approves $16 million makeover for Miracle Mile.
Miracle Mile, the downtown center of Coral Gables, is inching towards a massive transformation that business and civic leaders touted as a “game-changer” at a time when neighboring urban centers have lured away tourists and residents.
Nine years after architects, residents, business owners and others came together to sketch out their desires for the Miracle Mile of the future, city leaders Thursday voted unanimously to endorse a new plan that will change the look and feel of that shopping district and Restaurant Row on adjacent Giralda Avenue. The vision for the Mile: Bismark palms and small gardens gracing wider sidewalks with parallel parking spaces. White buildings with colored awnings. A lawn for performances and a fountain by City Hall. And on Giralda: sidewalk cafes spilling out onto a curbless street, whose ground is marked with colorful pavers.“I think today is a day of visioning and dreams, and the day of details will come,” said city Commissioner Maria Anderson. Read More…
Posted on Thursday, Jan. 27, 2011
By TANIA VALDEMORO
The Miami Herald