Magic City Innovation District – Little Haiti is revitalizing nearly 18 acres of underutilized industrial and vacant property located in Miami’s Little Haiti neighborhood to create a walkable urban campus that will become a premier destination for innovation, technology, entrepreneurship, art, and culture, while preserving the community’s authentic cultural identity.
Magic City Innovation District – Little Haiti (MCID) is a master planned urban community dedicated to technology, sustainability, health and wellness, and art and culture. The assemblage spans approximately 18 acres in Little Haiti, just north of Wynwood and the Design District, adjacent to the MiMo district in Miami, Florida. The Magic City Innovation District is a walkable, campus-like neighborhood where individuals from diverse backgrounds can enjoy a quality life and help write the next chapter of history on how we live, work, play, and learn together.
MCID is committed to bringing to life a unique development that will be a self-sustaining economic engine in one of the most vibrant areas of Miami. It will include responsible businesses, entrepreneurs, innovators, and educators. The development of MCID is three phased. First, assemblage, entitlement, and renovating the existing buildings. Second, the neighborhood activation through lease up of the newly renovated buildings and activation of the MCID Park (current phase). Third, development of new buildings in accordance with the new approved master plan.
MCID has been renovating existing factories, warehouses, and buildings into unique leasable spaces for offices, galleries, cafes, restaurants, retailers, and pop-up shops. Additionally, the team behind the project created the Magic City Innovation District Foundation, a charitable fund at the Miami Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation, to support the economic, social, and cultural prosperity of Little Haiti and the diverse people who live and work there.
Working hand-in-hand with the community for years, allowed the MCID team to understand the needs and values of those who will participate in and benefit from this inclusive project. MCID will provide significant community benefits, including a historic contribution package of up to $31 million in payments into the Little Haiti Revitalization Trust — a trust to be created by the City of Miami to coordinate and support community revitalization efforts in Little Haiti. The trust’s priorities include affordable housing and homeownership, community educational programs, local small business development, local workforce participation and hiring programs, community beautification projects, and the creation and improvement of public parks. Furthermore, the Little Haiti Revitalization Trust Fund will be overseen and administered solely by and for the community.
Considering the importance of mobility in a growing city like Miami, MCID is focused on enhancing neighborhood connectivity by improving local roads and investing in pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, as well as open public and civic spaces. This includes approximately 3.8 acres of public civic space and development of an approximately 2.18 acre landscaped pedestrian promenade named the Promenade du Grand Bois.
MCID will preserve and enhance the historic culture of the Little Haiti neighborhood, including one of Miami’s oldest structures, the DuPuis Medical Building. MCID will also contribute to the economic vitality of the area. To quantify some of the benefits, a leading independent advisor completed an analysis of its projected economic impact, which includes adding $188 million per year to the Little Haiti economy as a result of foot traffic into the neighborhood from new residents and visitors, creating more than 11,680 direct and indirect jobs in Little Haiti, and adding $27 million in property tax revenue for local schools to prepare children for the future.
As MCID continues to become a reality, it will serve as a new model for future innovation districts and real estate development worldwide.
