Overtown reimagined

By Barbara Gutierrez [email protected] 03-23-2026

How can you transform a historic neighborhood, provide affordable housing and walkable areas while inviting business opportunities without displacing current residents and maintaining the neighborhood's history?

That is the task given to 21 students from the University of Miami School of Architecture and the Pratt Institute in New York City in the first cross-institutional design studio of its kind called "Urban Intersections for a Growing City."

The partnership, said Rodolphe "Rudy" el-Khoury, dean of the School of Architecture, "establishes a great model for architectural education in the 21st century. By bringing together diverse perspectives, disciplines and urban contexts, the joint studio challenges our students to think critically and creatively about the future of our cities. It is through collaborations like this that we prepare future generations of architects to lead with innovation, cultural awareness, and a deep sense of community impact."

Headed by Teymour Khoury, an architectural curator and lecturer at the School of Architecture, in collaboration with renowned architect and urban planner Bernard Zyscovich and Pratt architect and professor Gary Bates, the studio offers students the chance to envision a new future for a swath of land south of Overtown, abutting Miami's downtown.

"The University of Miami focuses a lot on its own neighborhoods and Pratt does a great deal of work in New York," said Khoury. "Since both cities represent places in the U.S. with significant social, economic, and political importance, we felt it would be interesting to see how students from both schools could simultaneously work in these two cities and tackle a project while further increasing interdisciplinary collaboration."

In future sessions, Univerity students will have the opportunity to take on projects in New York. The Pratt students visited Miami on March 16 to tour the Overtown area.

Overtown was chosen because of its history. Once called the "Harlem of the South," the neighborhood was a vibrant area full of businesses, restaurants, bars, and nightclubs. With the construction of I-95, the neighborhood was virtually destroyed, displacing 12,000 residents and ending the livelihood of many business owners.

"We found some buildings in need of maintenance," said Renae Stamas, a graduate student who toured the Overtown area with her classmates. "And the area had many opportunities for new businesses."

On March 4, during the midterm presentations at the School of Architecture, five teams from the studio class unveiled drafts of their master plans for the area.

All the teams recognized that the area was hampered by train tracks and a highway that limited accessibility to adjacent populated areas. They also noted that the nearby downtown area, which includes the World Trade Center-a major retail and entertainment compound-and the nearby Brightline train station, could increase foot traffic to Overtown.

All teams also acknowledged the importance of historic landmarks, including the Lyric Theatre, the Dana A. Dorsey House-home of the first Black millionaire in Miami-and a popular community garden. All teams integrated these landmarks into their plans.

A team made up of Alana Cowan, Morgan Hadeed, and Stamas created a master plan that envisioned a series of interconnected, circular, self-sustaining hubs. Each hub blends housing, daily services, and cultural spaces, creating neighborhoods designed to foster accessibility, safety, and a strong sense of community.

At the heart of the proposal is music-a tribute to Overtown's African American and Caribbean roots. The plan calls for the creation of music studios, performance spaces, and flexible event venues that would host artists and community gatherings year-round. A music school connected to Miami Dade College would anchor the district, providing students with opportunities to study, record, and perform within the neighborhood.

They would also add a bus route so that residents and others would have easier access to the area.

Elevated pedestrian walkways would connect the circular hubs, creating continuous movement through the district and making it easier for residents and visitors to explore the area on foot.

Another team made up of Sage Zheng and Vero Vilato presented a master plan called "Overtown Undertown." The plan combines tall residential buildings as well as smaller ones, providing a range of residential opportunities for families on fixed incomes and those who can afford luxury housing.

"You would be able to see this village if you are traveling on the Metrorail," said Vilato. "From the train windows, you would look down at courtyards filled with residents enjoying everything from open-air studios to chatting on their balconies."

The plan added bike lanes to facilitate mobility, green areas to promote social interaction, and space for local merchants to set up markets as well as local restaurants. It also established a music corridor that would include jazz clubs leading to the underpass of the Brightline train.

Pedestrians can use a proposed, pink-colored path that would start at the southwest portion of the site and end near the northwest portion of the area near the I-395 underdeck.

At the end of the semester-when the students' master projects are completed-these will be included in a publication. Khoury said the publication will be distributed to local government and city officials so they may consider its implementation.