Miami Beach Convention Center: Ocean Inspiration
Fentress Architects is finalizing their design for Miami Beach’s new futuristic Convention Center. Last May Fentress Architects was selected to redo the city’s convention center. The new center will provide upgraded facilities and amenities that should increase the convention center market for the city. The center is already home to world-renowned events such as Art Basel and the Boat Show. With this new 1.4 million square feet of design improvements, Miami Beach will have one of the most sought after convention centers in the United States.
The $511 million makeover includes a new 60,000-square-foot ballroom and 127,000 square feet of new meeting spaces. Capitalizing on the moderate climate of Miami Beach, the new convention center will feature new outdoor meeting spaces. These spaces will tie the center to the city and will include a tropical garden, game lawn, shade garden, veterans’ plaza, pavilion, and water feature. The facility is designed to achieve a LEED Silver rating from the U.S. Green Building Council as it will employ the latest sustainability techniques that Fentress Architects has helped pioneer over the past 20 years. The exterior façade was extensively studied with daylighting analysis technologies to determine how to best minimize or maximize available daylight.
Michael Winters, director of design and interiors for Fentress, said, “The studio intends to design a convention center that will give back to the urban and civic environment. Ultimately, we want to create a convention center that the neighborhood and the city of Miami Beach will be proud of.”
This new design takes its inspiration from the ocean. Waves, manta rays, and coral reefs were studied as part of the design process. State of the art media sculptures inspired by fan corals will welcome and greet visitors into the new grand lobby. The feature will incorporate digital art and provide visiting conventions with a digital banner to brand each specific show. Visually the elements will project the Miami Beach Convention Center as a high tech showcase.
The new Miami Beach Convention Center is all about enhancing the visitors’ experience, and it is sure to spur economic activity by reinvigorating this spectacular area. Curtis Fentress, president and principal in charge of design at Fentress Architects said, “Miami Beach is a world-class city and it deserves a world-class convention center”.
Fentress Architects has designed some of the world’s most advanced convention centers, airports, office buildings, residential towers, museums, courthouses, and government projects. Their results are iconic yet idiomatic landmarks that are entirely unique to their context.
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Materials provided by Fentress Architects