The Capstone Project, organized annually by the Master of Real Estate Development + Urbanism (MRED+U) program, provides students from every program in the University of Miami School of Architecture to collectively apply what they’ve learned in a real-world scenario. Each year, the SOA’s MRED+U partners with a local real estate developer that has underutilized land, and the students are tasked with creating a plan to make better use of the chosen site. The collaborative input of students from the SOA’s Architecture, Urban Design, Construction Management, and Real Estate programs results in a complete development proposal to maximize the potential of the chosen site.
This past year’s Capstone Project inspired a proposal created by Sunbeam Properties for a 7.3M-square-foot project on North Bay Village, which the North Bay Village commissioners have since approved. Last year’s students were able to tour the site as part of their 2021 Capstone project to determine what they had to work with and brainstorm ideas on how to utilize the available property best. By the end of the project, the real estate developer involved has multiple development proposals for their property, and the students have had an opportunity to both showcase the knowledge they’ve acquired during their studies and develop their ability to work as a team to make the various aspects of property development come together functionally.
Following the reviews of the Capstone Project and the approval of their proposal, Sunbeam Properties intends to complete its project in four phases. In a recent article, Andrew Ansin, president and CEO of Sunbeam Properties, described the project plan to include “nearly 2,000 residential units with some workforce housing apartments; 112,500 square feet of hotel space with 300 hotel rooms; 870,000 square feet of office and retail space; public space that includes a baywalk; and about 5,000 parking spaces, and open space.”
