Underdeck Miami: An Upcoming 33-acre public park

As plans for the I-395 Signature Bridge solidified in 2019, concerned stakeholders at the Town Square Neighborhood Development Corporation (TSNDC) formed an ad hoc group, the Underdeck Advisory Board, to begin advocacy efforts for the public space beneath the expressway, currently known as “The Underdeck.” TSNDC is a Florida non-profit that was developed in 2011 to advocate for the needs of the area surrounding the Arsht, Museum Park, and American Airlines Arena.

The Underdeck Advisory Board consists of civic leaders, business leaders, philanthropic leaders, adjacent landowners, small business owners, nonprofits, and residents. Over the past three years, they have worked closely with City administration to advocate for state-level funding for this City of Miami project, to contribute to the development of the concept design submitted by the City to FDOT through their community engagement process, and to commit to solutions on this important project. This work unfolded into a formalized role when the City Commission approved a Memorandum of Understanding approving a collaborative planning process requiring heavy engagement and collaboration with all key stakeholders.

The Underdeck Advisory Board secured a Knight Foundation matching grant in the amount of $200,000 for the purpose of supporting community engagement in the planning and design of the Underdeck. TSNDC agreed to incubate the project for the purpose of receiving and administering the grant proceeds. Effective December 3, 2021, a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) was entered into between the City of Miami and TSNDC. The fully executed MOU can be found in the footer in this website.

The parties intend to work in good faith to develop a mutually agreeable framework for design, implementation, operation, maintenance, programming and management of the Underdeck under a to-be-formed non profit corporation.

TSNDC formed the Underdeck Subcommittee Advisory Group (“USAG”) to promote and engage the community in support of the Underdeck project and to raise the funds to match the Knight Foundation grant and other expenses. In order to execute the work defined in the MOU, the USAG contracted LM Genuine Solutions to Manage Committee activities alongside the Executive Committee and Working Groups and serve as Lead Facilitator. The recommendations and deliverables that emerge from the MOU will be finalized and transmitted to the City for approval by the City’s governing body (the “City Commission”). Final recommendations are subject to approval by the USAG Executive Committee.