4/5/2016 CITY of MIAMI PLANNING DEPARTMENT Staff Report
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Staff: MCS & TL Application received: 4/5/2016 CITY OF MIAMI PLANNING DEPARTMENT Staff Report & Recommendation To: Chairperson and Members Historic & Environmental Preservation Board From: Megan Schmitt Preservation Officer Applicant: Lynn Lewis, HEPB Member Subject: Item No. – The Babylon, 240 SE 14th Street BACKGROUND: This is a new application. On April 5, 2016, Historic and Environmental Preservation Board (HEPB) member Lynn Lewis directed Preservation Office staff to prepare a preliminary designation report for the Babylon Apartments, located at 240 SE 14th Street. The purpose of this report is to establish if there is sufficient evidence to warrant a more thorough investigation about the significance of this structure. THE PROPERTY: The Babylon is located within the lower section of Brickell in an area called Point View. Point View is located between SE 14th Street and SE 15th Road and is comprised of two semi-circular roads that form an inner and outer ring that each start at Brickell Avenue, then swing out towards the bay and return back to Brickell Avenue. Around the outer ring at the circular edge, the lots are all irregularly shaped. This irregularity allows for the structures on these parcels to be placed at an angle that provides unique and advantageous views from the units within. Acting as a primary focal point of the structure is the front façade, a stair-stepped two-dimensional wall plane constructed of concrete block that is coated in stucco, and painted a vivid red color. This façade is referred to as a “ziggurat” and it is stated that it is “reminiscent of many Dutch 17th century facades” in the text description within the catalogue produced for an exhibition of Arquitectonica’s work between 1977 and 1984. A reason given for the stepped design is so that the architecture could conform to the constraints of the lot as well as those of the setbacks required under the then zoning code. A first floor of the habitable space is raised in order to accommodate parking at ground level, creating a base for the structure. The base is HEPB- MAY 3, 2016 Page 1 of 6 Staff: MCS & TL Application received: 4/5/2016 constructed of concrete with an opening on the front façade allowing cars access into the space directly from the street. The concrete base was originally scored with masonry lines and painted a gray color to mimic Florida keystone. Today this base is still painted gray however, the scoring lines have disappeared. At the second floor the structure separates, providing an open courtyard that is centralized on the plan containing the pool deck. This central clearing makes way for a second visible ziggurat form that closely mirrors the outline of the front façade. If viewed from an angle, looking from SE 14th Street towards the bay, the image of the double façade and the overall length of the lot is captured. HEPB- MAY 3, 2016 Page 2 of 6 Staff: MCS & TL Application received: 4/5/2016 PHOTOS: Figure 1. Babylon Apartments, east façade. HEPB- MAY 3, 2016 Page 3 of 6 Staff: MCS & TL Application received: 4/5/2016 ANALYSIS: Sec. 23-4. - Designation of historic resources, historic districts, and archaeological sites and zones. (a) Criteria for designation. Properties may be designated as historic resources, historic districts, or archaeological sites and zones only if they have significance in the historical, cultural, archaeological, paleontological, aesthetic, or architectural heritage of the city, state, or nation; possess integrity of design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association; and meet one or more of the following criteria: (1) Are associated in a significant way with the life of a person important in the past; (2) Are the site of a historic event with significant effect upon the community, city, state, or nation; (3) Exemplify the historical, cultural, political, economical, or social trends of the community; (4) Portray the environment in an era of history characterized by one or more distinctive architectural styles; (5) Embody those distinguishing characteristics of an architectural style, or period, or method of construction; (6) Are an outstanding work of a prominent designer or builder; (7) Contain elements of design, detail, materials, or craftsmanship of outstanding quality or which represent a significant innovation or adaptation to the South Florida environment; or (8) Have yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history. (b) Criteria exceptions. Ordinarily cemeteries, birth places, or graves of historical figures, properties owned by religious institutions or used for religious purposes, structures that have been moved from their original locations, reconstructed historic buildings, properties primarily commemorative in nature and properties that have achieved significance within the past 50 years shall not be considered eligible for listing in the Miami register of historic places. However, such properties will qualify for designation if they are integral parts of districts that do meet the criteria, or if they fall within the following categories: (1) A building or structure that has been removed from its original location but is significant primarily for architectural value, or is the surviving structure most importantly associated with a historic person or event; (2) A birthplace or grave of a local historical figure of outstanding importance if no appropriate site or building exists directly associated with his or her productive life; HEPB- MAY 3, 2016 Page 4 of 6 Staff: MCS & TL Application received: 4/5/2016 (3) A cemetery that derives its primary significance from graves of persons of outstanding importance, from age, from distinctive design features, or from association with historic events; (4) A reconstructed building when accurately executed in a suitable environment and presented appropriately as part of a restoration master plan and no other building or structure with the same association has survived; (5) A property primarily commemorative in intent if design, age, tradition, or symbolic value has invested it with its own exceptional significance; (6) A property achieving significance within the past 50 years if it is exceptionally important; or (7) A religious property deriving primary significance from architectural or artistic distinction or historical importance. Because the building is not yet fifty years old (completed in 1982, it is currently 34), Chapter 23 of the City Code says that it must be found to be “exceptionally important” in order to be designated. In this case, the Preservation Office has found that there are several factors that need to be considered before a recommendation can be made as to whether the structure at 240 SE 14th Street should be designated as a historic resource. The preliminary research that has been completed to date has established many important questions that, once answered, will determine whether the building should be considered “exceptionally important” or not. For these reasons, it is the recommendation of the Preservation Office that a Final Designation report be prepared. Further analysis is required regarding these questions: •How are we defining “Arquitectonica’s first” for the purposes of this analysis? The Babylon Apartments and the Palace were both designed in 1979, however the Palace was completed in 1980 and the Babylon Apartments in 1982. How much does this impact our understanding of the Babylon’s importance? If the Babylon’s design was completed earlier in 1979 than the Palace, would this change our understanding of significance? •The Pink House and the Babylon Apartments both won prestigious awards for their progressive designs. In a 1982 Miami Herald article, architecture critic Beth Dunlop asserts that because the Pink House had been a collaboration of Spear and architect Rem Koolhaas, it was the P/A (Progressive Architecture) award for the Babylon Apartments that “represented Arquitectonica’s real launching.” The Preservation Office needs to analyze other P/A recipients to understand how many, if any, are locally designated within their respective municipalities. How many P/A recipients from the 1970s and 1980s are considered to be iconic buildings today? HEPB- MAY 3, 2016 Page 5 of 6 Staff: MCS & TL Application received: 4/5/2016 •Several newspaper and magazine articles from the early 1980s make the point that Arquitectonica’s rise to fame came much faster than most young firms. After just two relatively small local projects, the Pink House and the Babylon Apartments, Arquitectonica began designing large-scale residential projects that even well established firms often have a hard time securing. Many of these projects – the Palace, the Atlantis Condominium and the Imperial – are considered fixtures on the Miami skyline. How does the Babylon Apartments fit into the firm’s early work within the broader context? Did the Babylon influence the designs that immediately followed? •How does the Babylon Apartments compare to the other historic sites that were designated by the HEPB prior to turning fifty years old? For these sites, how was their “exceptional importance” established? STAFF RECOMMENDATION: The Preservation Office finds that the preliminary research that has been completed to date establishes that there are many important questions that, once answered, will determine whether the building should be considered “exceptionally important” or not. For these reasons, it is the recommendation of the Preservation Office that a Final Designation report be prepared. This will allow staff the time necessary to conduct the further research required to finalize the analysis as to the significance of the structure. HEPB- MAY 3, 2016 Page 6 of 6 THE BABYLON 240 SE 14 Street Preliminary Designation Report 1 REPORT OF THE CITY OF MIAMI PRESERVATION OFFICER TO THE HISTORIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL PRESERVATION BOARD ON THE POTENTIAL DESIGNATION OF THE 240 SE 14 STREET AS A HISTORIC SITE Prepared By: Megan Cross Schmitt Historic Preservation Officer Trisha Logan Historic Preservation Planner Passed and Adopted On: Resolution Number: 2 3 Contents I.