Virgin Trains Announces Aventura, PortMiami & Boca Raton Stations Will Open In October 2020

Virgin Trains has announced that both the Aventura, PortMiami and Boca Raton stations are expected to come online in October 2020. Formerly known as Brightline, the train line is now in negotiations with Orlando entertainment parks and venues for a 2nd Orlando station while the Orlando International Airport station remains on schedule. Aventura will get a $77 million train station with on-site parking and a pedestrian bridge to Aventura Mall, which is the 2nd most visited mall in the United States with over 28 million visitors annually. Construction is expected to start late December 2019 to early 2020. The Boca raton station expects to break ground before the end of 2019 as well. Other stations in the works include PortMiami which is expected to open in late 2020 with construction set to begin in Q1 2020. The PortMiami, Aventura and Boca Raton stations are expected to bring an additional 2 million riders to the train system with Virgin Trains now looking at a railway expansion west of the Orlando International Airport. Virgin continues its expansion into South Florida with Virgin Voyages, Virgin Hotels and Virgin Trains.

MSC Cruises Reveals Supersized Arquitectonica-Designed Cruise Terminal In PortMiami

MSC Cruises has revealed a new supersized Arquitectonica-designed cruise ship terminal coming to PortMiami. The terminal will be the largest in PortMiami at 350,000 SF, nearly double Royal Caribbean’s 170,000 SF Crown of Miami Terminal. The MSC Cruises terminal will be able to host 2 ships at a time and will be able to process 28,000 passengers per day. The terminal will also house its own parking with 2,000 parking spaces within the structure. Arquitectonica designed the terminal by drawing inspiration from Italian yachts, paying homage to MSC’s Italian heritage. Construction is expected to start in early 2020 with completion estimated for late 2022.

Virgin Continues Push Into South Florida, Reveals New PortMiami Terminal For Virgin Voyages

Just days after Virgin Trains USA announced it had taken a minority stake in Brightline and presented plans to the Securities and Exchange Commission for permission to conduct an initial public offering of stock, Richard Branson has continued his push into South Florida as Virgin Voyages prepares to launch. Virgin has now revealed a new $150 million terminal in PortMiami for Virgin Voyages whose first ship, Scarlet Lady, will launch in 2020. The new 2-story terminal is being designed by Arquitectonica and will be made of storm resistant glass which will resemble a palm tree. Virgin is currently awaiting approval from Miami-Dade commissioners before breaking ground.

Some Outraged Downtown Residents Have Made A Move Against The City of Miami For Ultra & Formula 1 Proposal

Not everyone can always be happy, no sooner then Miami had made strides on the world stage to host the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix in the streets of Downtown Miami, had a group of 11 residents moved against the city. Some Downtown Miami residents have teamed up and sought legal council combatting the city hosting Ultra Music Festival in Downtown's Bayfront Park and the city's bid to bring a Formula 1 race to the streets of Downtown and PortMiami as early as October 2019. The residents, who live in 50 Biscayne and Epic, have sent a Cease and Desist letter to the city. The proposed 2.57-mile course would run through Downtown Miami's Biscayne Boulevard, American Airlines Arena and PortMiami. The letter alleges that both the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix and "mega events" such as Ultra Music Festival and Rolling Loud Festival, all violate the City of Miami's noise ordinance, which in turn negatively affects the health of nearby residents and their property values. 

Ultra Music Festival has garnered much attention for the city of Miami, helping aid to boost property values and tourism. If looking at cities such as Monaco, property values on the race course have been boosted by popularity and a condo-hotel such as Epic benefits greatly from major events in near proximity. The noise ordinance clause has been used against other Downtown venues including the nightclubs behind Marquis Residences, Ten Museum, One Thousand Musuem, 900 Biscayne and Marina Blue. The difference between the two cases is one targets events which bring millions of dollars of benefit to the city and its taxpayers, typically operating during the day, while the clubs in question operate at late night hours with resident complaints coming between the hours of 2 am and 6 am with private prosperity. 

Ultra Music Festival was sold out in 2018 with a record-breaking attendance of 165,000 and over 30 million online streams. Ultra Music Festival is renegotiating their lease for hosting the festival in Bayfront Park, with Miami commissioners asking for rent to rise to $2 million. Ultra Music Festival currently pays around $1 million annually to host the festival at the site. Formula 1 does not yet have a deal in place, although city commissioners approved the race in a unanimous 5-0 vote in May 2018. Formula One has 500 million global fans and currently hosts 21 races across five continents which are broadcast to over 1.8 billion viewers. Hosting a Formula 1 Grand Prix's economic impact on Montreal is around $65 million and Formula 1 claims the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix could produce over $700 million annually for the city. Set-up time could take up to 3 months while clean up would take 2-3 weeks. The city expects to be sued over the matter. 

Formula One Is Coming To Downtown Miami In 2019 After City Commissioners Vote Unanimously

Last week the Miami City Commission voted 5-0 to bring a Formula One Grand Prix to Downtown Miami. Set to be part of Formula One's 2019 schedule, most likely in October, and will give the circuit a second event in the United States. The vote approved Resolution No. 22, which approves bringing a Formula One race to the city, Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix, from 2019 through 2028. The 2.57-mile course will run through Downtown Miami's Biscayne Boulevard, American Airlines Arena and PortMiami; although 4-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton, who is ecstatic about the race coming to Miami, has said that he would like to see changes to the proposed track. Promotions will be handled by Related Companies' and Miami Dolphins' owner Stephen M. Ross via his Ross Initiative in Sports for Equality (RISE). 

The approval of Formula One to come to Miami will bring a major, positive economic impact to the city. Formula One has 500 million global fans and currently hosts 21 races across five continents which are broadcast to over 1.8 billion viewers. The U.S. Grand Prix, which takes place in Austin, has attracted over 200,000 visitors to the city during race weekends. Adding races in the United States has been a goal of Liberty Media Corp. who acquired Formula One in 2016 for $1.1 billion in cash, 138 million Liberty Media shares and $351 million worth of an exchangeable debt instrument, issued by Formula One, which can be exchanged for shares of Liberty Media. Liberty Media also assumed $4.1 billion in Formula One's current debt. Liberty Media is also aiming to host races in the Las Vegas and New York markets which should further bolster the sports' fast growing popularity in the U.S. 

Norwegian Cruise Line Announces Pearl, The Futuristic LEED-Silver Certified Terminal Coming To PortMiami

Not long after Royal Caribbean's Broadway Malyan-designed Terminal A for Symphony of the Seas topped out in PortMiami, Norwegian Cruise Line has announced Pearl, their futuristic new terminal coming to PortMiami. The LEED-Silver Certified terminal is being designed by Miami-based firm Bermello Ajamil & Partners, Inc., inspired by a nautilus' spiral design. Construction is expected to start in May (2018) and completion is expected by fall 2019. Miami-Dade County has pledged to invest $100 million towards building the new terminal, the balance of the funds will be provided by Norwegian Cruise Holdings, LTD.

“Norwegian has been sailing from Miami for over fifty years, longer than any other cruise line, and we are honored to be partnering with PortMiami and Miami-Dade County to construct an iconic terminal that will contribute to Miami’s world famous skyline and strengthen its position as the Cruise Capital of the World,” said Frank Del Rio, president and chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.

Renderings via Bermello Ajamil & Partners, Inc.

Royal Caribbean's Crown of Miami Terminal Designed by Broadway Malyan Tops Out in PortMiami

Royal Caribbean’s new $247 million, Broadway Malyan-designed Terminal A has officially topped out in PortMiami. The 170,000 SF, state-of-the-art terminal will be used for mega-cruise ships Allure of the Seas and Symphony of the Seas, which is expected to debut as the world's largest cruise ship in November 2018. Allure of the Seas has previously also been the world's largest cruise ship. Suffolk was the general contractor on the project which has been named Crown of Miami after its unique crown-like shape. The terminal is expected to welcome its first passengers in October 2018. 

The Broadway Malyan-Designed Cruise Ship Terminal For Royal Caribbean's Symphony of The Seas Is Taking Form In PortMiami

Royal Caribbean's new state-of-the-art cruise ship terminal for Symphony of the Seas, the world's largest cruise ship, is rising fast in PortMiami. Framing of the 170,000 SF, Broadway Malyan-design is already complete and the project is expected to be completed and operating by November 2018. In total Costs for the project are estimated to be in excess of $200 million. Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas, which has previously held the title of world's largest cruise ship, will also be based at the terminal.