Wynwood streetscape plan under city’s microscope

The Wynwood Streetscape Master Plan project is currently under a call cost evaluation by the City of Miami.

The streetscape plan was initiated in 2018 by the Wynwood Business Improvement District, which has partnered with the City of Miami, Miami-Dade County and the neighborhood’s private-public property owners.

“This is a very ambitious project,” said Manny Gonzalez, the BID’s executive director. “What we’re doing is with the city’s property valuations, we want to come up with a total data number that could be shared or that could be evaluated by the organization and by the property owners to see if that would be a way that we could contribute into the project with other sources of funding.”

The streetscape plan’s main aspects are to strengthen a sense of place, neighborhood identity through new green space and artsy aesthetics and improve the public landscaping experience.

The project would also build the community’s resilience to the impacts of climate change by promoting green infrastructure to mitigate urban stormwater runoff and encourage actions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve the pedestrian experience with appropriate street furniture and lighting.

The BID is requesting new projects that are being constructed to follow the master planning guidelines that are going to be applied, he said.

“We could already have some aspects of the master planning in place, which will save us money in the end,” Mr. Gonzalez added. “When the projects come up, they’re doing their designs according to the master planning that we’re waiting for.”

The other aspect of the streetscape is the Woonerf, which is going to be the centerpiece of the master planning project.

The first-ever Woonerf would share the street with bicycles, pedestrians and automobiles, and would be designed to slow traffic and safely share roads, create new crosswalks and widen sidewalks. The lively street concept is projected to be on 29th Street and Northwest First Avenue, and 29th Street and Northwest Third Avenue, running from 29th to 25th streets.

“Property owners have already agreed to put money into it because we understand that nothing happens without public-private partnerships,” Mr. Gonzalez said. “We want to make sure our property owners are seeing the way that they’re helping us out by doing this work.”