Brickell is one of Miami’s main economic engines, but its children and seniors enjoy an exceedingly small proportion of parks (less than 5%), especially when compared to its tax base contribution. We ask the City of Miami to convert the minuscule land lot at 240 SE 14th Street, clearly too small for a tower development that makes any type of aesthetic or urban planning sense, into a resilient neighborhood park for kids, families, and seniors. 

To:

• Commissioner Damian Pardo, City of Miami District 2
• Commissioners and mayor of the City of Miami and Miami Dade County
• City Manager and Planning & Zoning Board
• Resilience and Public Works Department

Petition

We, the residents, workers, parents, and friends of Brickell, respectfully request that the City of Miami protect and convert the land lot located at 240 SE 14th Street, Miami, FL 33131 into a permanent public children’s park and resilience space.

Brickell is now one of the densest urban neighborhoods in the United States, with nearly 40,000 residents living in just over one square mile. Roughly one in five residents is either a child under 15 or a senior over 65, including veterans — precisely the people who most need safe, shaded, and walkable parks.

At the same time, Downtown and Brickell together generate roughly one-third of the City of Miami’s taxable property base, while Brickell itself contains only a handful of small parks compared with more than 140 parks and recreation areas citywide. Brickell helps fund Miami’s parks, but its own families have almost none within a short, safe walk.

The lot at 240 SE 14th Street is one of the last remaining opportunities to correct this imbalance. Instead of more concrete, traffic, and shadow, this parcel can become a vibrant, resilient park: a place where children can play, families can gather, seniors can rest, and neighbors can breathe.

Why a park here matters

1. Resilience and flood protection

Brickell Bay Drive and the surrounding blocks already face chronic tidal and rain flooding today, including well-documented “sunny-day” king-tide events where water rises over the roadway with no storm present. Buildings along Brickell Bay Drive lie in storm-surge planning zones where flooding is expected from Category 2 hurricanes and potentially from a strong Category 1. The City’s own Stormwater Master Plan identifies Brickell Bay Drive seawall and flood improvements as a flagship project, with major investment planned to protect this corridor from future storm surge and sea-level rise.

Keeping 240 SE 14th Street as open, permeable green space—rather than another high-rise—will make it easier for the City to integrate a pump station, stormwater retention, bioswales, and other resilience infrastructure. Parks are natural allies of resilience: they absorb water, reduce heat, and create space for the upgrades that protect everyone who lives and works nearby.

2. Fairness, parks, and people

Brickell is home to almost 40,000 people, with high population density representing 30-40% of the total City of Miami revenues. and substantial taxes paid to the city. Yet for all its economic contribution, Brickell’s families lack a basic amenity that other neighborhoods take for granted: accessible neighborhood parks.

Citywide, Miami has more than 140 parks, gardens, and recreation areas. Within Brickell itself, only a handful (less than 5) of small parks and pocket greens serve tens of thousands of residents, many of whom live in high-rises without backyards or courtyards. For families with strollers, children, and seniors, crossing U.S. 1 or Biscayne Boulevard to reach larger parks in other neighborhoods is neither safe nor practical.

A dedicated children’s park at 240 SE 14th Street would:

• Put a real playground and green lawn within a short walk of thousands of Brickell families.
  Provide safe, car-free space for children, seniors, and people with disabilities—no need to cross major arterials to reach a park.
• Offer much-needed shade, trees, and benches in a neighborhood dominated by high-rises and concrete.
• Support families who choose to stay in the urban core instead of moving away in search of basic quality-of-life amenities.
• Show that the City is willing to reinvest in the people who generate a large share of its tax revenues.

3. Good for the city, not just good feelings

Downtown and Brickell together represent roughly $30 billion in taxable property value—over one-third of the City of Miami’s total tax base—on top of an additional Downtown Development Authority surtax paid by residents and businesses in the urban core. In other words, Brickell pays more than its fair share.

Great parks are economic infrastructure. They increase nearby property values, attract residents and visitors, and help employers retain talent. A modest children’s park in Brickell would be a small reinvestment compared to the tax revenues the neighborhood already generates, but with outsized benefits for livability, reputation, and climate resilience. In the long term, a resilient waterfront neighborhood with functioning public spaces will be more attractive to residents, investors, and insurers than one more speculative tower exposed to flooding and storm surge.

Our request to the City of Miami

We therefore ask Commissioner Damian Pardo, the Mayor, and Commissioners of the City of Miami, and all relevant departments to:

• Designate and zone 240 SE 14th Street as permanent public parkland with a strong focus on children and families.
  Integrate the site into the Brickell Bay Drive Resilience and Stormwater Plan, including the potential location of a pump station and green stormwater infrastructure within the park footprint.
• Launch a transparent community-driven design process so neighbors, local schools, and resilience experts can help shape a safe, inclusive, and future-ready park.

How you can help

Please sign and share this petition. Tell your neighbors, your building association, and your local businesses. Ask them a simple question: in a neighborhood that gives so much to Miami, shouldn’t our kids at least have one great park of their own?

                                                             Brickell deserves a resilient future—and our children deserve a place to play in it.