Read Time: 3 minsAndrew 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.

Read Time: 2 minsIn 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.

Read Time: 2 minsEditors Note: The Barbara Baer Capitman archives “Historic Threads” project is partly sponsored by the Department of State, Division of Historical Resources, and the State of Florida.

Read Time: 3 minsEditors Note: The Barbara Baer Capitman archives “Historic Threads” project is partly sponsored by the Department of State, Division of Historical Resources and the State of Florida.

Read Time: 3 minsIn the 1980s, Miami Beach faced a dilemma that would crucially impact its future: Would it turn into a city full of brand-new skyscraper condos, or would it be a revitalized city honoring its past with an eye toward its future? The following quotes are from a Miami Herald editorial written by Charles Whited on January 29, 1981, in which he argues that Art Deco could save the desolate island and move it toward a cultural revival.

Read Time: 3 minsThe annual Back to the City conference was a significant gathering focused on urban preservation and revitalization efforts in historic American cities. The conference served as a platform for discussing the resurgence of residential and commercial interests in decaying inner cities, aiming to rejuvenate and preserve the architectural and cultural heritage of these urban areas.

Read Time: 2 minsIn the 1980s, the apartment house was one of many undergoing reinvestment and restoration. It was also among the first to be converted from apartments to condominiums – ushering in an era of homeownership in the Flamingo Park neighborhood.

Read Time: 2 minsNow known most famously as the former home of Gianni Versace during the 1990s, in the 1980s the Villa Casa Casuarina was an apartment house called the Amsterdam Palace. At the time this article was written, the property was among the most sought-after in all of South Beach. Developers Gerry Sanchez and Amancio Victor Suarez bought the property for double its real estate value:

Read Time: 2 minsAt the time, preservationists fought to make this quaint neighborhood a historic district. Then referred to as the Bass District, the area is between Washington and Collins Avenue from 16th to 23rd Street. It features some of the best examples of Art Deco and Mediterranean architecture.

Read Time: 4 minsArt Deco hotels offered fashionable places to escape the Winter and Great Depression during the 1930s and 40s. But by the 1970s and 1980s, Miami Beach was in decline. By 1981, the city was looking to revitalize.

Read Time: 2 minsFound among the archives PostMortem, a South Beach newspaper that ran from 1988-1990 and focused on arts and culture. A full-page ad announces a reception for the artist Keith Haring on Monday, May 2nd, 1988, at the Wham Bam at 437 Washington Avenue in South Beach.

Read Time: 2 minsBarbara Baer Capitman, founder of the Miami Design Preservation League and monumental leader in the movement to save Art Deco, fought tirelessly for the preservation of Art Deco in the 1970s and 1980s. But it wasn’t until about 10 years into the effort that preservationists began to be taken seriously at the local level.

Read Time: 3 minsIn 1988, the Miami Design Preservation League held its 11th Annual Art Deco Weekend. The festival’s theme was Streamline Dreamtime. Ocean Drive and the Art Deco District were slowly progressing from a hopeful dream to an innovative reality.

Read Time: 3 minsHosted annually from 1978 through the 1990s, the Moon Over Miami Ball was a black-tie soiree held to fundraise for the Miami Design Preservation League. The event featured a lively evening with a 1930s nightclub atmosphere, held at several hotels in the historic Art Deco district, and featuring a variety of celebrities each year highlighting a unique theme. Over the years, the Balls brought in some of the greatest talent in the industry, including Cab Calloway, Eartha Kitt, the Xavier Cugat Orchestra, the Incomparable Hildegarde, Lionel Hampton and the Swing Classics.

Read Time: 2 minsBefore Miami Beach fully embraced its turnaround in the 1980s and 1990s, developers and preservationists alike had to come together to form a progressive and innovative plan for the future of the city. Part of this involved finding the best approach to planning and approvals within the district – a challenge given its status as the first 20th-century urban district in the United States listed on the National Register of Historic Places.