from the Archives

The New Yorker Hotel

Read Time: 2 mins

The New Yorker Hotel once stood at 1611 Collins Avenue. It was the destruction of this iconic 1940 hotel in April 1981, considered by some the masterpiece of local architect Henry Hohauser, that really sparked the historic preservation passion in Miami Beach. Barbara Baer Capitman and other preservationists won national attention when they briefly lay down in front of the bulldozers in a vain attempt to block the demolition. Its symbol became the rallying point for those seeking local designation of the Historic District. In fact, the Miami Design Preservation League uses the image of the New Yorker in its current day logo. That logo was designed by architect Andres Fabregas, who also designed Miami Beach’s “new” City Hall and the logo for Miami Beach and also happened to be MDPL’s first President.

After the New Yorker Hotel was demolished, the lot stood vacant for many years until 1998 when the Loews Hotel was built.

Front side of 1949 brochure for Hotel New Yorker
Reverse side of 1949 brochure for Hotel New Yorker
1960’s photograph of the New Yorker Hotel

Miami Herald article “Beauty is in Eye of Deco Defender”; courtesy of Miami Herald archives
Miami Design Preservation League uses the image of the New Yorker Hotel
in its current day logo

1950's postcard of The New Yorker Hotel at 1611 Collins Ave

What would Miami Beach be like without Historic Art Deco, Mediterranean, and MiMo buildings?

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Explore the MDPL Archives

Capitman's Cardozo Leads Way (1979)

Capitman’s Cardozo Leads Way (1979)

Read Time: 3 mins Andrew Capitman, son of Miami Design Preservation League leader Barbara Baer Capitman, was a leading Art Deco rehabilitation pioneer in the late 1970s and 1980s. In 1979, he purchased the Cardozo Hotel with a group of enthusiastic investors who believed in the resurgence of the city through the preservation of its past. Mr. Capitman instinctively knew that a 1930s revival would dramatically improve tourism.

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Six Art Deco Hotels Facing Renovation (1984)

Read Time: 2 mins In 1984, six hotels underwent major renovations that would mark the second wave of an Art Deco revival in South Beach. According to a Miami Herald article written by Paul Shannon on July 8, 1984, Royale Group Ltd. officials secured a $13.5 million loan to pay for the planned renovation, which included painting and refurbishing in the original Art Deco style.

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