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.
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.
Art Deco in Miami Beach Gets City Protection Rule (1986)
Read Time: 2 mins Editors 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. The year was 1986, marking […]
Treasure or Trash, the Hotel is Gone (1981)
Read Time: 3 mins Editors 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. Despite preservationists’ efforts to save […]
Deco district on the Beach could be draw (1981)
Read Time: 3 mins In 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.
Revitalizing America’s Historic Resorts: Annual ‘Back to the City’ conference opens April 13 in Art Deco district (1984)
Read Time: 3 mins The 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.
Restoration Fever Spreads: Partners Turn Slum into Condo (1986)
Read Time: 2 mins In 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.
Restoration Fever Spreads: Two buy ‘jewel of Ocean Dr.’ (1986)
Read Time: 2 mins Now 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:
Preservationists Fight to Save Bass Museum Area (1988)
Read Time: 2 mins At 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.
Restored beach, cafes, nightlife putting new life in Miami Beach (1983)
Read Time: 3 mins The revitalization of Miami Beach in the early 1980s included major infrastructure projects that helped transform it back to its glory days. A Miami Herald article by Dory Owens, dated […]
Edison Hotel gets new life – with assistance from the State of Florida (1987)
Read Time: 3 mins In 1987, the state of Florida loaned $250,000 for the restoration of the Edison, with assistance from the Miami Beach Development Corp.
Miami Beach Conflict Pits Developers Against Lovers of Art Deco (1981)
Read Time: 4 mins Art 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.