our
projects

LaBelle Town Center Project Type: Master Planning Project Status: Completed Dates: March 2023 Site Area: 237 AC Team: Plusurbia Design The City of La Belle faces the challenge of balancing the demands of a dynamic market with the preservation of its historic downtown character. In this delicate balance, the allocation of land for growth becomes a pivotal consideration. Plusurbia was commissioned to develop a master plan and propose a phased growth strategy that accommodates organic expansion beyond the urban core. The Master Plan successfully implements a gradual growth strategy by extending residential, commercial, and open spaces within the designated 237 acres. It enhances pedestrian and bike connectivity through a network of open spaces that interconnect various housing options with the town center. Designed as a hybrid Town Center, this innovative concept allows established brands to meet their visibility requirements while seamlessly transitioning into a Main Street that connects with the surrounding neighborhood.

City Terrace Community Development Corporation Project Type: Transportation Planning & Urban Design Project Status: Ongoing Dates: June 2022 - present Site Area: approx. 6 acres Team: Plusurbia Design + BusinessFlare Client: Opa-Locka Community Development Corporation Inc. The premise of this project is to provide General Planning and Economic Development Strategy Services to provide a holistic development vision, strategies, and recommendations for the future development of the Opa-Locka CDC  properties as part of a larger special district. This planning exercise consisted of a dual-scoped approach. It included a high-level analysis and suggestions for Opa-locka’s downtown and surroundings, as well as a more detailed master plan and recommendations for a transit-oriented development (TOD) area. This TOD area is proposed to be located between the city’s Tri-Rail station and downtown, capitalizing on these assets and the properties owned or considered for ownership by the Opa Locka Community Development Corporation (OLCDC), reflecting their pivotal role in the area’s more extensive redevelopment. Specifically, the goals of the project are to: Create a walkable TOD destination for the City of Opa-Locka that helps reposition their place brand from unsafe and unpredictable to the next Miami transformation story and a place of opportunity. Maximize the development potential of the OLCDC properties as part of a larger strategy to leverage revitalization (commercial and residential) by applying Urban Core and TOD principles to the area and identifying market potential that supports financially feasible new development Create a phasing and acquisition strategy that maximizes leverage, ROI, and future opportunities for OLCDC and their partners, including the County, CRA, and City.

Hialeah 49th Street Corridor Project Type: Urban Design and Master Planning Project Status: Completed | June 2021 Dates: March 2021 - June 2021 Site Area: 38 acres Team: Plusurbia Design Client: City of Hialeah This study is a zoning and development analysis of east 49th street between east 4th and east 8th avenues in Hialeah. Further, this project provides a vision and development recommendations for properties fronting the street. The premise is to assess the potential of the corridor as it develops into a mixed-use environment incentivizing future development based on new land-use conditions, city-making, and demand while respecting and improving the residential context around it. Therefore, the study considers properties north and south of the corridor, beyond those fronting it, to understand the impact future development may have on the neighborhoods and districts.

Poinciana Station TOD Project Type: Transit-Oriented Development Project Status: Completed | June 2021 Dates: October 2021 - December 2021 Site Area: 14.5 acres Team: Plusurbia Design Client: 79th Street Corridor Neighborhood Initiative Miami faces a challenge in supplying affordable housing and creating location-efficient places. Transit Oriented Developments (TODs) are walkable, mixed-use development patterns located near transit; TOD studies are conducted to transform communities into places that provide safe mobility, housing opportunities, and neighborhood amenities. High-performing TODs must be specially tailored to the context of existing communities and provide optimal intensity and density within a quarter-mile of transit, gradually decreasing as distance from the transit core increases. The Poinciana Station Transit Shed has the potential to become a true transit-oriented commuter district, given that a great percentage of the surrounding land is primed for redevelopment. The potential for future transit-oriented development in the project site, in addition to the land identified for investment, will certainly bring many positive changes to the neighborhood.

Playa de Ponce Segment - Borinquen Trail Project Type: Mobility Plan Project Status: Completed Dates: February 2023 Site Area: 6 miles Team: Plusurbia Design This rails-to-trails study proposes a network of paths and first-phase interventions in Playa de Ponce, Puerto Rico. This vision report was developed in conjunction with community leaders, non-profits, and government stakeholders in Playa de Ponce, a historically underserved urban center on the South coast of Puerto Rico. Plusurbia Design proposed to carry out a study for Borinquen Trail for Para la Naturaleza’s cultural projects grant. Plusurbia Design carried out this study of Borinquen Trail for Para la Naturaleza’s cultural projects grant. The study mapped the existing conditions of Playa de Ponce’s mobility and public spaces, proposed a multi-modal implementation plan for walking, biking, and transit, and developed creative placemaking strategies. The results from this study will help guide the growth of Playa de Ponce by connecting its neighborhoods with cultural heritage sites and the rest of Ponce. The plan proposed to build a continuous ‘complete street approach’ along the route with bicycle routes and amenities, such as street trees, cultural centers, parks, bioswales, wayfinding signage, and historic property markers. The development of this new trail would create better streets and public spaces in Playa de Ponce while also improving access to jobs and opportunities. Furthermore, the plan included recommendations for implementing climate resilience, stormwater management, microgrids, storm surge defense, and historic preservation strategies. The city council is currently considering measures to implement the recommendations in the study. If approved, residents can look forward to a continuous bicycle route between Playa and the city center and a continuous path along the Southern coast connecting with communities along the former railroad. Ultimately, these proposed changes will lead to a more livable and sustainable Playa de Ponce. By providing residents with reliable and accessible transit options, the city can move towards achieving its goal of a greener future.

East Gateway District Project Type: Master Planning Project Status: Completed | October 2022 Dates: August - October 2022 Site Area: 170 acres Team: Plusurbia Design Client: East Gateway Coalition Greenville, South Carolina is known for the story of its downtown revitalization and embrace of planning to reinvent itself into one of the most vibrant, fastest-growing cities in the country. However, its most popular entrance, providing visitors with their first impressions of the city, must reflect this modern reality. Instead, the Gateway Area contains a series of disconnected development patterns that have evolved independently over the last 200 years, including a National Register-listed Historic Neighborhood, the city’s Arena, and the county’s Law Enforcement Center. The Community Vision Plan embraces the neighborhood’s assets and introduces strategies to weave the built environment back together, better establishing physical and psychological connections to the adjacent downtown. The project began by reimagining the central corridor as a multimodal boulevard flanked by mixed-use, urban-style development. From there, introducing a transition zone offers a way to preserve the neighborhood's historic character, while allowing the corridor to reach its ideal density. Furthermore, exploring additional infill development opportunities around the arena reveals the potential for a new entertainment district that will continue to build on Greenville's legacy of great placemaking.

Arsht Center Thomson Plaza for the Arts Project Type: Urban Design Project Status: Completed Dates: April 2019 - August 2019 Site Area: 0.56 acres Team: Plusurbia Design Client: Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County Plusurbia provided general urban design consulting services to address the needs of the Arsht Center's Thomson Square mobility and safety improvements. These Services included a conceptual design of pedestrian protection barriers on the edge of Biscayne Boulevard that also mitigate sound originating from moving traffic.

The Underline Special District Plan Project Type: Urban Planning and Design Project Status: Completed Dates: April 2019 - February 2020 Site Area: 10+ mile Corridor Team: Plusurbia Design + Tindale Oliver (Benesch) Client: Friends of the Underline, Inc. The Underline, a 10+ mile green corridor along the Miami-Dade Metro Rail, has the potential to impact its surrounding areas through careful planning and zoning positively. Inversely, the corridor will significantly benefit by assuring that surrounding areas are protected, that stakeholders are provided safe and pleasant access to the corridor, and that any potential future development is appropriate to its context and its privileged Transit Oriented location. This study calibrates through planning and zoning the future development and mobility improvements along the length of the corridor spanning five municipalities. To maximize the corridor’s positive impact and balance changes resulting from the creation of this Green Corridor, the study proposes mid-scale development that transitions from denser and more intense transit-oriented areas to single-family residential neighborhoods. Future development and infrastructure improvements are supported through financing strategies outlined in the study to allow the corridor's evolution to be incremental. Recommendations are necessary to understand this balance and propose improvements to development standards and value capture mechanisms to capitalize on the value created to build and maintain the Corridor’s positive impact.

TPO SMART Plan - North Corridor Visualization Project Type: Planning & Design of Generic Station Areas Project Status: Completed Dates: 7 acres Site Area: 207 acres Team: Plusurbia Design, The Corradino Group (lead) Client: Miami Dade TPO (Transportation Planning Organization) Planning and design for the TPO SMART Plan North Corridor. The SMART Plan is a comprehensive approach to creating six rapid transit corridors. The studio, as consultants for The Corradino Group, is providing its planning, design, and graphics expertise in defining a suitable location to use as a base for the design of the stations along the North Corridor, creating 3D volumetrics of the development around the stations and completing renderings to visualize the design for three station area plans: community station, neighborhood station, and regional station.

Downtown Rockledge Master Plan Project Type: Urban Planning and Design Project Status: Completed Dates: June 2020 - October 2021 Site Area: 30 acres Team: Plusurbia Design + BusinessFlare Client: City of Rockledge Downtown Rockledge is primed to be a magnet for revitalization that enables quality of life improvements for the City of Rockledge. The plan will serve as a basis for future development within the district and will help reinforce existing public and private investments. The main purpose of this master plan is to create a vision for a downtown that enhances the Civic Hub while expanding opportunities for development and improved connections. It endeavors to establish a vision centered on Main Street as a destination, through improvements to mobility, public safety, and entrepreneurial offerings. Mobility enhancements consist of improving walkability and comfort through complete streets, strengthening connectivity with adjacent destinations, highlighting proximity to Lake Betsi, and supporting businesses with public spaces and mix of uses. Public safety can be nurtured by increasing opportunities for people to stick around in the town center area, including through creation of landmarks, developing vacant lots, a pedestrian safety plan, and establishment of recreational trails through downtown. Landscaping will play a crucial role in enhancing comfort with shade trees and structures. 

Dolphin Station TOD Project Type: Transit-Oriented Development, Master Planning Project Status: Completed Dates: August 2019 - February 2020 Site Area: 70 acres Team: Plusurbia Design + Arquitectonica Client: Terra Group The 70-acre Dolphin TOD project - most of which fits into the 1/2 mile radius boundary from the proposed transit center - will serve a wide range of residents, commuters, and visitors alike. Its proximity to such large servicing job centers like Telemundo and shopping destinations like the Dolphin Mall makes it the perfect candidate for building transit-oriented development connecting people to place. Currently, only under 2% of the surrounding 1-mile radius of the potential station uses public transit to commute to work. Introducing a BRT system and train station could completely overhaul car dependency and encourage multi-modal mobility, making the surrounding Dolphin area more desirable, accessible, and convenient. This transit center also holds the unique opportunity to use its strengths of mobility and connectivity as a means to create supportive programming within it, solidifying its sense of identity and establishing it as an ideal destination to live, work, and play.

HART TODs Pilot Project Project Type: Streetcar and Bus Rapid Transit, Transit-Oriented Development Pilot Project Project Status: Completed Dates: February 2020 - October 2022 Site Area: 10-mile corridor Team: Plusurbia Design + HDR (Lead) Client: Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority The HART TOD Pilot Project is focused on the future of communities along the planned routes for HART’s Arterial Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service and the City of Tampa’s Streetcar Extension project. The project study area extends from Downtown Tampa to the University of South Florida (USF) along Florida and Fowler Avenues. HDR is working with local stakeholders to explore the potential for infill, redevelopment, and retrofit along the project corridor to increase levels of transit supportiveness, improve community livability and competitiveness, and increase access to regional employment and educational destinations. The project will result in policy and regulatory strategies and economic incentives to guide public and private investment, promote equitable infill and redevelopment, conserve and protect corridor communities, improve walkability and transit accessibility, and build demand for enhanced transit service. Recommendations will also be designed for application along other corridors planned for enhanced transit across the City of Tampa and Hillsborough County.

Biscayne Green Pedestrian Promenade Project Type: Transportation Planning & Urban Design Project Status: Ongoing Dates: March 2021 - May 2021 Site Area: 7.20 acres Team: Plusurbia Design + T.Y. Lin (Lead) Client: City of Miami Biscayne Green will redesign Biscayne Boulevard into a pedestrian promenade, enhancing pedestrian safety and connectivity. The intent is to minimize the barrier effect of Biscayne Boulevard and to improve the connections to Bayfront Park and the Biscayne to make downtown a more walkable, accessible, and connected place. The project vision narrows Biscayne Boulevard between SE 1st NE 6th streets from 8 lanes to 4. The repurposed corridor will meet the needs of all street users safely and comfortably. The new configuration for the Boulevard will narrow pedestrian crossing distances and provide safer bicycle and pedestrian connections from the downtown core outward in all directions. Biscayne Green aims to minimize the barrier effect of Biscayne Boulevard and the surface parking lots between its north and south lanes. The project will enhance connections to Bayfront Park and Biscayne Bay to open up those resources downtown, adding thousands of residents each year. Biscayne Green will serve a more densely-developed downtown by making it a more walkable, accessible, and connected place.

Borinquen Trail - Rails 2 Trails Project Type: Mobility Project Status: Ongoing Dates: September 2020 - Present Site Area: Islandwide Team: Plusurbia Design Client: Internal - Pro Bono Borinquen Trail is a proposal in collaboration with the Puerto Rico Historic Building Drawings Society to reuse the former railroad right-of-way. The vision is the transformation of Puerto Rico’s former railroad right-of-way repurposed as an off-road path network for sustainable and low-speed transportation, integrating community initiatives through an islandwide framework. The project traverses coastal communities along 680 Kilometers, passing along tropical beaches, forests, and urban centers. The Borinquen Trail plans to connect cultural and historic destinations (such as old sugar mills, former rail infrastructure such as bridges and tunnels, and miles of coastal areas) and economic hubs such as traditional town centers and recreational / sports facilities, including national parks. Rail-to-trails are multi-purpose public paths created from former railroad corridors. They are often flat or follow a gentle grade as they traverse urban, suburban, and rural communities in America. Throughout the extension of this corridor, an educational program will provide context to the historical use of the corridor, including the role railroads played in Puerto Rico’s 19th and early 20th-century economy, as its route extends along the coast and links to former sugar mills in the mountains. Most former railroad right-of-way runs along public lands, making the public sector a key partner. Learn more and show your support at the following link: http://rutaborinquen.org

Project Type: Corridor Analysis and Design of Multimodal Alternatives Project Status: Completed | August 2020 Site Area: 3.5 mi Team: Plusurbia Design + The Corradino Group (lead) Client: City of Fort Lauderdale Las Olas Boulevard is a vital link for multimodal traffic. It is a strategic part of the roadway network and the most direct east-west route for people walking and cycling. Our project vision is to connect residents and visitors of Fort Lauderdale through the enhancement of this iconic boulevard representing our history and future. As the major thoroughfare connecting downtown Fort Lauderdale and Central Beach, Las Olas Boulevard must balance moving people efficiently through a balance of transportation needs inclusive of pedestrian, bicycling, vehicular, and transit modes, with space programmed to safely accommodate other alternative modes, such as scooters, when they arrive. Las Olas is the most direct route between Downtown Fort Lauderdale and the beach. Its centrality also places it within reach of transit, first response, and park facilities. The goal is to reimagine the 3.5-mile length of Las Olas Boulevard from Downtown through The Isles. Las Olas Boulevard is considered the critical identity street for Fort Lauderdale, and our challenge is to build on the strengths already in place to create a memorable image; a world-class street. Las Olas Boulevard today has four distinct characters: Downtown, The Shops, Colee Hammock, and The Isles. Several variables comprise the makeup of each street segment: 1- Pedestrian areas, bicycle, and scooter lanes, asphalt for cars and vehicles, all things that move and are in motion; 2- Amenities throughout, such as landscaping, street furniture, signage, and lighting. These elements are static and have different purposes in different street parts. These elements are the basis of the visual identity for each street segment; 3- Different roles during the day and at nighttime; and 4- The street also differs from Weekday, Weeknight, Weekend, and Event operations. The design of Las Olas Boulevard strives to create a street that achieves the following for residents and visitors: • Promote quality of life through context-sensitive design • Efficient use of the road network to allow for a variety of uses, such as open streets • Safe, comfortable, and direct routes for nonmotorized modes of travel such as bicycles and scooters

Hialeah Heights Project Type: Master Planning Project Status: Completed Completion Date: April 2020 Site Area: 33 acres Team: Plusurbia Design Client: City of Hialeah Emerald Bay is a Conceptual Master Plan created in collaboration with the property owners, their consultants, and the City of Hialeah’s Planning Department to encourage a mixed-use, connected walkable development. The initial research and stakeholder meetings of the existing municipal regulatory conditions and a review of existing site plans in the area showed great potential to create a traditional neighborhood-style site planning and development framework. This project aims to provide a well-knit neighborhood lifestyle in a walkable environment. It offers several green spaces and amenities such as a clubhouse, pool, dog park, fitness center, and water features. It also considers a multimodal approach by providing walkable and bikeable streets that can connect to adjacent future projects. The design is divided into two properties with current industrial use that are designed similarly and function independently. This proposed multi-family design, within the City’s annexed area named “Hialeah Heights” at the northwest of the City’s boundaries, is planned to provide an urban framework that can expand to adjacent properties connecting to the proposed streets and block structure. It proposes 900 medium-income rental multifamily units designed in 3-4 story garden-style apartment buildings with 2- and 3-bedroom units. The design creates a traditional neighborhood with diverse building types, creating an exciting and vibrant community that encourages pedestrian movement and social engagement.

Project Type: Neighborhood Revitalization Project Status: Completed | September 2019 Site Area: 207 acres Team: PlusUrbia Design + C-Street Collaborative Client: Wynwood Community Enhancement Association (WCEA) Faced with development pressure from Wynwood Business District to the south, Midtown to the east, and Design District to the north, the Wynwood Norte Neighborhood is at risk of being redeveloped without a clear, holistic vision where a historically cohesive community may lose its current identity and strengths. This, in turn, may affect the future livability of its current neighbors and future residents. This community-led Master Planning exercise surveys the neighborhood, its character, and conditions; it presents a comprehensive Vision Plan integrating what residents, business owners, community leaders, and stakeholders of Wynwood Norte want to see in their community with best planning practices. This plan emphasizes an approach to growth that supports existing residents. This plan recognizes and addresses residents' fear of keeping their homes by introducing measures to mitigate displacement and improve affordability. Proposed strategies help residents reinvest in existing homes and to provide residents with expanded and better-quality housing options within the neighborhood. Proactive steps are taken to preserve the existing residential fabric while introducing incentives to develop or redevelop vacant and/or underutilized sites to meet community needs. It prioritizes public investments in infrastructure, transportation, open spaces, and parks, promoting sustainability and green building practices while providing equitable access to jobs and services.  The plan proposes strategies to create a safe and healthy environment while preserving the unique history and cultural identity of Wynwood Norte. Calibration of planning and zoning is paramount to maximize the neighborhood's assets and guide future development. 

Turning a Suburban corridor into a Transit Oriented Neighborhood Node Project Type: Transportation Planning & Urban Design Project Status: Completed Dates: 2018 Site Area: approx. 1/4 mile Team: Plusurbia Design Client: Pro-bono Plusurbia is devoted to spurring and improving development in suburban corridors converting them into transit-oriented developments. These urban centers encourage ridership and promote walkability, mobility, and accessibility for all. The incremental conversion of a former shopping center into a mixed-use development is a simple example of what can be implemented in suburban areas around the country to provide ex-urban communities with the services and access needed to reduce traffic and car dependency. Low to Mid-rise buildings provide a variety of housing and increase the population needed to support transit use. Large swaths of parking lots fronting the street can be replaced with street-level retail with active frontages, promoting walkability and encouraging residents to shop locally, use transportation, and fulfill many of their daily needs on their way to or from their destinations. Pavement reductions and increased tree canopy along the street reduce the heat island effect, creating a more comfortable walking and biking experience. These retrofits can provide an economic engine, convert sprawling suburban shopping centers into compact and vibrant urban centers, encourage the use of public transportation, and promote a better quality of life.

North Corridor Visualization - Transportation Corridor Project Type: Planning and Design of Generic Station Areas Project Status: Ongoing Site Area: SMART Plan North Corridor Team: PlusUrbia Client: The Miami-Dade TPO (Transportation Planning Organization). PlusUrbia is providing planning and design for the SMART Plan North Corridor. The TPO SMART Plan is a comprehensive approach to creating six rapid transit corridors. The studio, as consultants for The Corradino Group, is providing its planning, design, and graphics expertise in defining a suitable location to use as a base for the design of the stations along the corridor, creating 3D volumetrics of the development around the stations, and completing renderings to visualize the design for three station area plans: community station, neighborhood station, and regional station. For more information on the SMART Plan, visit http://www.miamidadetpo.org/smartplan.asp For more information on the North Corridor, visit https://www.miamidade.gov/transit/smart-plan-east-west-corridor.asp

Miami Beach Alton Rd. Multimodal Project Type: Multimodal Street re-design and Visualization Project Status: Completed Site Area: 0.8 miles Team: PlusUrbia Design + Marlin Engineering Client: City of Miami Beach Our team was tasked to create communication material to explain the project to elected officials and stakeholders. The studio created a 3-minute video/animation depicting the proposed conceptual design improvements for a shared-use path on Alton Road, Chase Avenue from Alton Road to 34th Street, and on 34th Street from Chase Avenue to Prairie Avenue in the City of Miami Beach. The video depicts two concepts for the portion of Alton Road as provided by the City of Miami Beach on typical sections at the parking lot location and for Alton Road south of Chase Avenue, the intersection plans for Alton Road and Chase Avenue as provided by the City of Miami Beach, and the recommended concept for Chase Avenue/34th Street as provided by Marlin Engi-neering Inc. and the City of Miami Beach.

Miami Transit Oriented Development Guidelines Project Type: Transit-Oriented Development Project Status: Completed Site Area: 1,500 acres Team: PlusUrbia Design + Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council Client: City of Miami & South Florida Regional Transportation Authority (SFRTA) Transit Oriented Development: Downtown + Midtown + 79th Street PlusUrbia created a typology report for future Transit Oriented Development (TOD) in three key locations in the City of Miami. The work for the Downtown, Midtown, and 79th Street stations will impact how communities will be connected by mass transit to major regional job, cultural and activity centers. The TOD guidelines will assist the City in improving conditions around the planned stations by promoting dense, walkable, mixed-use, compact development. They will contribute to future mobility by connecting communities to all significant regional job, cultural and activity centers. Vibrant, 24-hour communities will be anchored by commuter rail connecting to all major regional job, cultural and activity centers. PlusUrbia was selected for its clear and innovative planning guidelines, outreach, and understanding of transportation corridors. The studio partnered with the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council to create the report delivered to the City of Miami and the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority, which funded the guidelines.

Project Type: Urban Design / Street Revitalization Project Status: Selected Completion Date: Ongoing Site Area: 45+ acres Team: Archer Western + The de Moya Group and others. Client: Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) PlusUrbia is the Planner and Urban Designer on the Design-Build team for the signature I-395 bridge and open space, collaborating with Ron Frazier and Associates. The studio’s role is to provide planning and design to reconnect the city’s fabric through innovative design that will bring cohesion to Overtown's physically segregated and historic neighborhood while simultaneously integrating with Downtown Miami by providing a new urban linear park to the Downtown's northern boundary.  

Miami-Dade Transportation Planning Organization's  E-W Corridor Project Type: Mobility and Land Use Designation Project Status: Ongoing Site Area: East-West Corridor from Miami Intermodal Center (MIC) to Florida International University (FIU) Team: Atkins + PlusUrbia Client: Miami-Dade Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) PlusUrbia provides urban design and land use planning for the SMART Plan, a comprehensive approach to creating six rapid transit corridors. As part of the Atkins team, the studio held multiple workshops and worked with the Study Advisory Group to get stakeholder input on transportation solutions and land use. One of the project's major goals is to create more dense and intense land uses along the East-West transit corridor that will link the Miami Intermodal Center at Miami International Airport with Florida International University’s main campus in west Miami-Dade. The Miami-Dade County Board of Commissioners has contemplated a Tax Increment Financing District along the corridor to contribute significant funding for rapid transit. A TIF, incorporating a mile on each side of the corridor, could capture property values increased by Transit Oriented Development and proximity to rapid transit. For more information on the SMART Plan, visit http://www.miamidadetpo.org/smartplan.asp For more information on the East-West Corridor, visit https://www.miamidade.gov/transit/smart-plan-east-west-corridor.asp

Complete Streets - Puerto Rico Project Type: Street Improvements Project Status: Ongoing Site: Intersection in front of the entrance at Walmart in Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico Team: PlusUrbia Community engagement and volunteer service are means to promote road safety in Puerto Rico. One of these examples was Roberto H. Todd Avenue in Santurce, part of San Juan’s downtown areas. In conjunction with Walmart Puerto Rico, alternatives were presented to Puerto Rico’s Department of Transportation and Public Works for a road diet with bike lanes. To see more, please visit https://plusurbia.com/taking-matters-into-your-own-hands/

Next Stop Fort Lauderdale Project Type: Transit-Oriented Development Study Project Status:  Completed Site Area:  1,800 acres Team:  PlusUrbia Design + Kittleson & Associates (lead) Client:  City of Fort Lauderdale, FL Fort Lauderdale wants to be a place where people can get around easily. It hired a team to help meet this goal by studying Transit Oriented Development (TOD), which creates walkable communities. TOD supports a vibrant live, work, and play environment featuring easy-to-navigate neighborhoods. The project achieves the city's twin goals of being an urban center and a major vacation destination sustained by an accessible, resilient, and connected community. Fort Lauderdale's top infrastructure goal is to become pedestrian-friendly; Building communities that are easy to access and comfortable for people of all ages and abilities are central to meeting this goal. Premium transit service is an essential element that determines the success of these places. PlusUrbia Design is part of the team that reviewed best practices for creating healthy communities built around transit as part of its TOD urban design services under the prime firm Kittelson & Associates. The study developed a zoning code to support TOD. Please click on the following link for more information about the project:  https://www.nextstopftl.com/

Complete Districts Project Type: Design Guidelines Project Status: Ongoing Completion Date: Ongoing Site Area: n/a Team: PlusUrbia Client: In-house Study Complete Districts create holistic connectivity through a hierarchy of street design. Complete Streets are a growing concept for multimodal mobility – but a plan with isolated complete streets fails to sew all the urban fabric together with a seamless system. Complete Districts acknowledge that not all modes of transportation are proper for all streets. Bicycles do not belong on a highway. Transit does not belong on a low-density single-family street. Complete Districts establish the appropriate design hierarchy to deliver complete connectivity. Complete Districts do not try to force bike lanes onto every street, for example. Instead, they place them on routes that are best suited for cyclists. This way, a person can bike from home to work along a safe, dedicated route within the network. Using a logical hierarchy, the concept provides total multimodal connectivity most efficiently. APA Florida 2017 Award of Merit in the Neighborhood Planning category (as part of Hialeah TOD). For more information on Complete Districts, please visit completedistricts.com .

Hialeah Transit-Oriented Development | Guidelines and Zoning Amendments Project Type: Transit-Oriented Development Project Status: Completed Completion Date: October 2016 Site Area: 313 acres Team: PlusUrbia Client: City of Hialeah A 1925 suburb’s transformation from car dependency to 21st-century commuter rail connectivity The Hialeah Transit Oriented Development Plan (TOD) will transition two of the city’s car-dependent suburban, underutilized warehouse districts into vibrant, mixed-use, compact communities served by premium commuter rail.  The fully-adopted zoning will create 313 acres of walkable, urban development in a working-class community that has not benefited from significant economic growth in decades. For the first time in the city’s 90-year history, it will create dense, walkable, 24-hour mixed-use districts linked to some of the best fixed rail commuter transit in South Florida. The enacted legislation creates two compact districts to address Hialeah’s need for workforce housing, adaptive reuse, job creation, civic space, complete streets, and dense urban living. Hialeah, Florida, was incorporated in 1925 and was best known for the Hialeah Race Track in its early years.  The city grew rapidly after the Cuban Revolution in 1959, becoming a popular destination for Cuban exiles who began transforming the city into a working-class community. The pair of large TODs will transform Hialeah from the typical, nearly 100 percent car-dependent American suburb into a prime example of urban living. Complete Streets Guidelines, adopted in parallel with the two TODs, will transform suburbia into complete districts with pedestrian, bicycle, and transit mobility networks. Compact urban development created by the TOD districts is within walking distance of three rail nodes that provide direct rail links to regional job centers and three international airports. The city’s leadership in creating two major TODs will unlock the potential of primarily underused existing train stations. TOD will introduce more equitable, affordable, sustainable, and healthy communities to Hialeah. Transit Oriented Development regulations are a significant step toward reducing the cost of living for Miami-Dade County’s second-largest municipality. WalletHub ranked Hialeah as the second worst city in America regarding income gap applied to housing affordability, where “nearly one out of three tenants in Hialeah spends at least 50 percent of their net monthly income on rent, dwarfing the 35 percent maximum recommended global standard.” TOD zoning requires one space for each one-bedroom unit, generally under 650 square feet, and 1.5 spaces for larger units. Developers can reduce the parking requirement by a half-space per unit by paying into a parking fund that will pay for centralized garages, increasing walkability. Relieved of the expense of building excessive parking, developers can offer units at a more affordable price. The cost of living is further reduced by proximity to rail, eliminating the high cost of car ownership. Millennials searching for housing have been largely priced out of greater Miami. In Hialeah, the sixth most populous city in Florida, Market Station, and Transfer Station TODs will provide mixed-use districts with micro units connected by rail to all the region’s activity centers. A wide range of price points will serve empty nesters and young families seeking workforce housing. Increased density promotes arts, restaurants, and shops. All buildings must have ground-floor retail to activate the street. Market Station District is a continuation of the nearby existing LEAH Arts District. TOD zoning encourages adaptive reuse of existing warehouse structures.  Complete Streets promote healthy living options for mobility beyond the car. Their design is considered parallel to the uses they serve and incentivizes civic life. In Market Station, a high-rise allows 125 units per acre and up to 12 stories via a bonus program to get three additional stories. Mid-rise areas are zoned for 125 units per acre and up to eight stories by adding three stories via bonus. Low-rise areas are zoned for up to 36 units per acre at a maximum of four stories. High densities in lower buildings promote smaller, more affordable dwelling units. Transfer Station has the same density, with high-rise capped at eight stories, mid-rise at six, and low-rise at three. Bonus development rights can be attained by providing benefits such as affordable / workforce housing, public park / open space, LEED certification, adaptive reuse of legacy structures, and cash contributions to a public benefits fund. The benefits fund can be used to acquire, create, maintain, and restore green and open spaces. Market Station TOD encourages historic preservation by restoring the 1926 Seaboard Air Line Railroad depot, which was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1995. APA Florida 2017 Award of Merit in the Neighborhood Planning category

Little Havana 'Me Importa' Revitalization Master Plan Project Type: Neighborhood Revitalization Project Status: Completed Site Area: 1,700 acres Team: PlusUrbia Design + National Trust for Historic Preservation + Dade Heritage Trust + Urban Health Partnerships + Live Healthy Little Havana + City of Miami Client: Health Foundation of South Florida Plusurbia led the team in the partnership, preserving the authenticity of Little Havana while creating design guidelines for proper growth and development and setting the stage for zoning recommendations. The unprecedented project was in partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which named Little Havana a “National Treasure.” The effort also focused on healthy urban living, a goal of project partner Live Healthy Little Havana. Dade Heritage Trust and Urban Health Partnerships were also partners in this initiative to retain character, density, scale, and affordability in Little Havana. This is an outgrowth of PlusUrbia’s advocacy for a complete streets approach to the pending FDOT redesign of the Calle Ocho corridor (SW 7 and SW 8 streets between SW 27 and Brickell avenue). Images were created of a 21st-century Calle Ocho with multimodal transportation alternatives such as dedicated bike and transit lanes, comfortable wide sidewalks, and additional safe crosswalks in a vibrant urban setting. Dade Heritage Trust 2017 Annual Preservation Award Making Cities Livable Conference - Honor Award for Excellence - A Healthy City for All 2019 APA Florida 2019 Award of Excellence in the Grassroots Initiative category APA Florida Gold Coast Chapter 2019 Award of Excellence for Best Plan, Report, or Study         

Coconut Grove Master Plan Project Type: Visioning & Master Implementation Plan Project Status: Completed Site Area: +/- 150 acres - study area Team: PlusUrbia + Perkins+Will Client: Coconut Grove Business Improvement District (BID) Created from extensive stakeholder input, the plan is a comprehensive overview and specific action roadmap to guide proper growth that positively impacts economic development and quality of life. The results-oriented plan provides the tools to improve the identity and character, open space, mobility, land use and form, community, and resiliency of Coconut Grove’s Village Core. These tools are organized into six building blocks essential to maintaining the Grove’s history of lush greenery, idyllic waterfront, unique restaurants/retail, and a one-of-a-kind village vibe.  The goal is to create a vibrant Village Core while protecting the tranquil and livable adjacent residential neighborhoods that make Coconut Grove Miami’s unique Garden District. The master plan contains decisive action steps that empower the BID to re-energize the heart of the Village Core and have a clear long-term roadmap for the years to come.  It establishes the BID as the central coordinating body to ensure that great ideas become fully-implemented physical improvements. With this document, Grovites, elected officials, and municipal departments will have a comprehensive tool to deliver the combined synthesized goals established by the BID, the Village Council, the Grove 2030, government agencies, and other previous plans and studies. APA Florida 2019 Award of Merit in the Neighborhood Planning category APA Florida - Gold Coast - 2019 Award of Merit Implementation Award

Town Center Park - Miami's Gateway Project Type: Urban & Landscape Design Project Status: Planned Completion Date: January 2016 Site Area: 10 acres Team: PlusUrbia Client: Town Square Neighborhood Development Corporation Master planning, open space design, and general planning services for the neighborhood anchored by the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts. The design creates dynamic open space strategies and parking solutions. Flexible space can be used for surface parking and active park space when not needed for event parking. The park plaza creates an outdoor lobby for the Arsht Center, Downtown, the Bayfront, Omni, and Overtown. It takes one of the worst dead zones in Miami and turns it into a vibrant gateway between the performing arts to the north and museums to the south. The new urban space embraces Miami's multicultural heritage, breaking down long-standing barriers between communities that can now come together as one.

Nuevo Palermo Master Plan Project Type: Master Plan Competition Project Status: Planned Completion Date: March 2013 Site Area: 26.5 acres Team: Plusurbia Design + GSH studio + OSKI studio + Elefante-Arquitectos Client: Sociedad Central de Arquitectos Located along the Palermo Railway tracks in Buenos Aires, the site of Nuevo Palermo is bisected by an active railroad and flanked by two socially. Typologically distinct neighborhoods, Palermo Hollywood and Palermo Soho, whose only shared characteristic is a lack of green space. This proposal for the Palermo Railway Tracks Development Master Plan Competition is an ecologically and culturally aimed project that will create a destination Park, occupying 65 percent of the land, and commercial space on the remaining expanse that will employ green roofs and other open spaces that add to nearly 90 percent of the site as a green space. Inspired by the Humid Pampa ecosystem, the Park’s landscape would feature prairies, retaining ponds, grass meadows, and isolated forests strategically arranged for social use, aiming to buffer the train line while strategically allowing for open views to buildings and the adjacent neighborhoods.

San Antonio Downtown Visioning Plan Project Type: Urban design Project Status: Planned Completion Date: June 2012 Site Area: 1,000 acres Team: PlusUrbia + OSKI studio + GSH studio Client: Weston Center The plan uses a form-based code as the guideline for residential and commercial infill development in San Antonio’s urban core.  The plan uses a necklace of green space, calmed traffic and pedestrian-friendly spaces to connect an underutilized part of downtown to the vibrancy of the River Walk. The Master Plan focuses on a water network that ties existing rivers seamlessly into water features in the streetscape and reclaimed streams and lagoons. A main road is redesigned as a shared street that becomes a pedestrian spine running parallel to the San Antonio River and the linear park to the west. The plan addresses the relationship between building facades and the public realm, the form and mass of buildings in relation to one another, and the scale and types of streets and blocks.

Lujiao – Antler Town Project Type: Urban Design Project Status: Planned Completion Date: October 2011 Site Area: 673 acres Team: PlusUrbia (lead) + studio LFA Client: Vanke Chongqing Antler Town is designed to set new benchmarks in senior living and sustainability while harmoniously integrating the surrounding landscape and built form.  PlusUrbia Design master planned this development to become an exemplary community that enhances the natural beauty of Chongqing, China’s mountainous landscape.  Located near Chongqing’s City Center, the site is served by several metro trains and buses that connect it to the rest of the region. The advantage of mass transit is fully integrated into the design of a regional commercial center and hospital. The hospital acts as a hub for a continuum of healthcare facilities. The range of wellness and healthcare facilities creates a world-class design for aging in place. A careful programmatic strategy, harmonized with the natural amenities, enhances residents' daily experience.

Calle 8 Revitalization Project Type: Street Revitalization Project Status: Completed Site Area: 2 linear miles Team: PlusUrbia Client: City of Miami - Pro bono work For half a century, Calle Ocho (SW 8th Street) has served as an eastbound speedway for commuters, along with the equally dangerous one-way, three-lane, westbound SW 7th Street. Originally a 2-way typical main street, Calle 8 was transformed in the late 60s into the highway we know today. Plusurbia Design proposes to turn Calle 8 back to its original self - reversing 50 years of disenfranchising neighborhoods and commerce with blight left in the wake of a corridor-turned-freeway. The design proposes to unlock Calle 8’s potential by offering the restoration of the original two-way traffic. Images were created of a 21st-century Calle Ocho with multimodal transportation alternatives such as dedicated bike and transit lanes, comfortable wide sidewalks, and additional safe crosswalks in a vibrant urban setting. City of Miami 2015 Proclamation