March, 1980
Andy Warhol, world-famous artist and one of the pioneering Art Deco collectors, called the MDPL office in March 1980 and asked if someone would show him the Art Deco buildings in Miami Beach. An appointment was made, Warhol arrived from New York and he was given a top to bottom tour led by MDPL founder, Barbara Baer Capitman and Diana Camber the Executive Director of MDPL, now Director of the Bass Museum of Art. This event was widely covered by the news media and gave our new historic district a stamp of approval from an art-world celebrity.
April 1980
The Boulevard Hotel, at 775 Dade Boulevard, was demolished.
January 1981
The Anderson-Notter-Feingold plan for the Miami Beach Architectural Historic District was completed (the plan was never adopted).
January 7, 1981
The New Yorker Hotel (Henry Hohauser, 1939), at 1611 Collins Avenue, was demolished. Despite sustained protests from preservationists, the hotel was destroyed by owners Abe Resnik, Dov Dunaesvsky, and Isaac Fryd. The hotel, which many consider to be Hohauser’s most successful design, awakened the community to the need to enact local legislation to protect properties listed on the National Register. The hotel’s façade was later used in the new logo of the Miami Design Preservation League; the New Yorker’s lot stood vacant for many years and is now occupied by the northern-most portion of the Loew’s convention center hotel.
February 1981
Adoption of the first Dade County Historic Preservation Ordinance, which required municipalities to adopt Historic Preservation Ordinances by July 1982.
February 4, 1981
City Commission adopted Resolution No. 81-16551 requesting exemption from County Historic Preservation ordinances.
1981
MDPL founders Barbara Baer Capitman and Leonard Horowitz took a cross-country trip to “discover” Art Deco architecture in major U.S. cities. The trip spurred the development of Art Deco societies in many of the cities, and Capitman began to be referred to as the “Johnny Appleseed of Art Deco.”
1981-1982
MDPL worked to protect historic buildings by encouraging local historic designation on the National Register District.
April 2, 1982
First meeting of Mayor’s Ad Hoc Committee to draft and review a Historic Preservation Ordinance for Miami Beach.
June, 1982
Miami Beach Art Deco District: Time Future was published by Community Action and Research under the auspices of MDPL. The booklet, edited by Paul A. Rothman and Barbara Capitman with graphic design by Woody Vondracek, summarized the Anderson Notter Feingold plan for the Art Deco Historic District and lobbied for its adoption by the City of Miami Beach.
June 16, 1982
The first Miami Beach Historic Preservation Ordinance, No. 82-2318, was adopted; it contained 100 percent owner consent provision.
September 23, 1982
The Dade County Historic Preservation Board found the Miami Beach Ordinance not in compliance with county requirements.
October 20, 1982
The City Commission appointed the first Historic Preservation Board.
January 31, 1983
The U.S. Department of the Interior found the Miami Beach Ordinance to be in compliance with National Register standards for local governments.
April 20, 1983
Ordinance No. 83-2367 amended Historic Preservation Ordinance No. 82-2318, changing owner consent from 100 percent to 51 percent required for designation.
May 4-7, 1983
The Art Deco District came to the attention of the art world as a result of “Surrounded Islands,” an installation by artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude in which a series of 11 islands in Biscayne Bay were wrapped in pink fabric. During the installation, the artists established their “headquarters” in the Art Deco District.
August 15, 1983
Dade County and others filed a lawsuit to invalidate the Miami Beach Historic Preservation Ordinance.
October 5, 1983
The City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 83-2388 designating the Old City Hall building as the city’s first Historic Preservation Site.
February 1, 1984
The City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 84-2402 designating the 21st Street Community Center a Historic Preservation Site.
April 4, 1984
The City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 84-2405 creating a Design Review Board.
1984-1989
The Art Deco District achieved worldwide recognition as a result of the hit television show Miami Vice, starring Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas. The show used the Art Deco District as a backdrop in many of the episodes.
February 6, 1985
The City Commission adopted the Ocean Drive plan containing recommendations for local Historic District designation.
March 20, 1985
The City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 85-2470 eliminating the owner consent provision from Historic Preservation ordinances.
October 16, 1985
The City Commission adopted the Espanola Way plan containing a recommendation for local Historic District designation.
1985
Renowned fashion photographer Bruce Weber chose Miami Beach’s Breakwater Hotel for a photo shoot for an ad for Calvin Klein’s “Obsession,” spurring an onslaught of fashion photography shoots in the Art Deco District.
July 23, 1986
The City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 86-2511 designating the Espanola Way District and the Ocean Drive/Collins Avenue District as Miami Beach’s first Historic Preservation districts. These ordinances were adopted after significant grassroots efforts by MDPL.
1986
“ Our Drive…Ocean Drive” was a joint campaign by MDPL and its sister organization, the Miami Beach Development Corporation (MBDC), now renamed the Miami Beach Community Development Corporation (MBCDC). As a result, a $3 million bond package was approved to fund the widening of the sidewalk on the west side of Ocean Drive, allowing hotels to establish sidewalk cafes. On the east side of the street, a wide promenade was created along the wall separating Lummus Park from the beach.
1986-1988
MDPL campaigned for local designation of the entire National Register District and revisions to the zoning codes to make them more compatible with historic preservation.
MDPL started the SOS (Save Our Senator) campaign to prevent demolition of the Senator Hotel. Although the hotel was demolished (see May 3, 1988), MDPL’s efforts delayed demolition for more than a year. The public outcry that MDPL created resulted in the City Commission passing a strengthened local preservation ordinance that could prevent demolition.
1987
The Biscaya Hotel (1925), at 650 West Avenue, was demolished. MDPL mounted an unsuccessful campaign to save the hotel, originally the Floridian Hotel and the last remaining example of the grand bayside hotels.
May 6, 1987
The City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 87-2665 designating Altos del Mar a Historic Preservation District.
January 1988
The Poinciana Hotel (Albert Anis, 1939), at 1555 Collins Avenue, was demolished.
February 3, 1988
The City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 88-2598, strengthening the demolition section of the Historic Preservation Ordinance.
May 1988
Miami Beach Art Deco Guide was published by MDPL. The guidebook, written by Keith Root with editorial assistance by Dr. Ernest Martin and Michael Kinerk, contained six self-guided walking tours of the Art Deco District.
May 3, 1988
The Senator Hotel (L. Murray Dixon, 1939), at 1201 Collins Avenue, was demolished.
June 1988
Deco Delights: Preserving the Beauty and Joy of Miami Beach Architecture, written by MDPL founder Barbara Baer Capitman, was published by E.P. Dutton.
June 1, 1988
The City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 88-2616 placing the Architectural District under Design Review jurisdiction.
April 5, 1989
The City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 89-2637 designating the Venetian Causeway (1926) a Historic Preservation Site.
September 7 & 21, 1989
The City Commission nominated the Flamingo and Museum neighborhoods for Historic Preservation Districts designation. The Museum area was nominated as a local historic district or collection of historic sites depending on the findings of the Historic Preservation Board.
ABOUT MDPL
A Brief History of MDPL - 1980s
