Miami Beach to pedestrianize Drexel Avenue; Drexel Square, plazas and planting planned; construction to start June 23, 2025

Miami Beach officials and the Lincoln Road project team on a city-hosted public meeting laid out plans to pedestrianize Drexel Avenue, create a new plaza for performances at Lincoln Road and Drexel, add canopy trees and cafe space, and begin construction June 23, 2025.

The project team said Drexel Avenue will be converted in part to a pedestrian promenade with a vehicular turnaround and limited vehicle access preserved where needed for deliveries and residences. Ariel Gautan, project lead in the Capital Improvement Projects office, said the work has been years in planning: "finally, this project is getting going after so many years, and we can actually say that in a few weeks, we will have shovels in the ground."

The pedestrianization will run roughly from Lincoln Lane South north to Lincoln Lane North, with a vehicular roundabout/turnaround near Sixteenth Street and a pedestrian plaza at the intersection with Lincoln Road called Drexel Square. Mike Abate, the design lead from the project's landscape consultant, described Drexel Gardens and seating steps that will support performances and outdoor cafe seating. The design keeps existing cafe seating and some on-street parking where practicable and adds new planters, canopy trees and upgraded paving and lighting.

Contractor Ivan Busto said the Drexel portion of the work is scheduled to begin June 23, 2025, with a planned duration of about 300 calendar days (roughly seven to eight months). Working hours will be Monday–Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; weekends and holidays will be used only as needed with prior notice. The team described a three-stage construction staging plan intended to keep a continuous pedestrian route and maintain business and residential access during work. The contractor said localized fenced work zones will be used and that pedestrian circulation (shown as a continuous path in the team's phasing maps) will be preserved along the north side of Lincoln Road.

When asked about cost, project staff said the low bid for the initiating phase came in at about $13–14 million and, with project contingency, the overall contract is roughly $15.2 million. The team said Meridian Avenue — the other connector included in phase 2 — will follow later because of materials and lead-time issues and is expected to begin in fall 2025; phase 3 (the Lincoln Road corridor) remains in permitting.

Public information officer Maria LaRazabal said stakeholder outreach and one-on-one meetings with property owners and tenants have begun, and she offered to be the direct point of contact for businesses and residents during construction. Store managers and building tenants asked for clarity about pedestrian access; the project team responded that east–west pedestrian access will be maintained on the north side of Lincoln Road and that the pedestrian path will remain open, though narrower, during work. The Ray-Ban store manager said that assurance relieved her primary concern about customer access.

Performing-arts stakeholders, including David from New World Symphony, requested follow-up meetings about infrastructure in Drexel Square so artists would not need to haul excessive equipment. Mike Abate said that infrastructure needs were considered in the design and that the team has "a company switch planned" for the area to help performers, and staff agreed to schedule follow-up meetings to review technical provisions.

The project team emphasized the staging and communications plan: contractor staging areas will be fenced and localized, businesses are expected to remain open, deliveries will be coordinated (with some deliveries restricted to Lincoln Lane North during certain stages), and residential and alley access will be preserved. Maria LaRazabal said the team will provide regular construction updates by email and direct outreach and offered to conduct site visits with business owners after the construction zone is established.

The city presented renderings and a site plan, and the team said Drexel Square will include stepped seating and an outdoor performance area near the existing architectural folly at Lincoln Road. Meridian Avenue work will be delayed several months for material procurement and mobilization; phase 3 work on the Lincoln Road corridor is pending permitting.

The meeting closed after a brief public Q&A and an agreement from staff to follow up individually with stakeholders who requested meetings.