Most Residents Living Car Free At New 1600 Unit Transit Oriented Development

Link at Douglas, a massive transit-oriented development next to the Metrorail, is attracting lots of residents living a car-free lifestyle.

More than half of residents who have moved into the newly completed apartments don’t have a car, the developer told Local10.

The Douglas Road Metrorail station is attached to the complex and is getting a beautification as part of the project. The developer is said to be spending $17 million on a public plaza and station beautification.

The complex includes a 37-story apartment tower called Cascade – said to be the tallest south of Brickell.

Cascade, which has 421 apartments, received a Temporary Certificate of Occupancy on January 5, with move-ins starting in mid-January.

Prices at Cascade start at $2,600 per month, with unit sizes ranging from 510 to 1,323 square feet.

A Milam’s Market is located on the ground floor.

Another 22-story tower at the complex called CORE was completed in 2021, with 312 apartments, and 6,000 feet of ground-floor retail.

Link at Douglas will eventually include around 1,600 residential units, over 32,000 square feet of retail space, and a public plaza that connects with The Underline.

The project is being developed by 13th Floor Investments and Adler Development, in partnership with global investment manager Barings.

 

Photos from December, before apartments were ready for occupancy:

(photos: Phillip Pessar)

(photos: provided by developer)

 

 

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anonymous
6 months ago

I live in the area and you can see the influx of people moving in. A couple years ago Merrick Park mall was dead. Now it is constantly busy. However, i think its wild you’d pay $2600 for 500 square feet

Miami Winning
6 months ago

It’s refreshing to see more walkable transit oriented developments with access to Brickell and Downtown via the metro line.

anon
6 months ago

this building is 17 minute indirect walk across a highway with no shade to the metro station. stations are supposed to be every half a mile for a reason, there should be one at mcdonald street between coconut and douglas.

Ameht
6 months ago

Yea but when you’re packed in em like a sardine can shit isn’t refreshing

Underline Expansion Development
6 months ago

When the Underline expansion is complete you can even ride a bike or jog on a landscaped art-filled separate path away from car!

Erica
6 months ago

So excited for that!

ParkingHater
6 months ago

Not just Merrick, noticeable how many people take the coral gables trolley.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Maybe we can get some double decker trolleys instead of busses.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Maybe a streetcar from Coral Gables along Coral Way to Brickell, as there was prior to WWII?

Anonymous
6 months ago

With a loop to Calle Ocho Little Havana and Riverside

Miami Brando New
6 months ago

Now that’s a streetcar I desire.

Jordan
6 months ago

Why not?
It is better than paying $2,200 + a $380 monthly car payment + a $200 monthly car insurance payment + $100 monthly in gasoline + $50 per month maintenance reserve + $120 per month parking at the office + hassle.

Doesn’t seem that wild to me.
It seems sensible.

Anonymous
6 months ago

1) pay cash for a car–no payment
2) pay insurance up front and save 10%
3) stop getting tickets as $2400/yr auto ins. is absolutely insane
4) who pays $120/mo to park in Miami? shop around

Anonymous
6 months ago

Any decent auto insurance is $200-300 per month. Who has all cash to put down on a car, and if they do why would they skimp on insurance, and shop around for parking?

Anonymous
6 months ago

^^how do you think they got cash to pay for a car? By being frivolous???

And no, $3600/mo car ins. is terrible—must have a DUI or a couple at fault accidents to be paying that. Or you’re insuring something like a new $80k Lexus SUV. Should’ve paid cash for a used Corolla instead.

Anonymous
6 months ago

If you think living in a place like this allows you to live in Miami without a car, you delusional and unrealistic!

Anonymous
6 months ago

How else will these suckers be able to pay $2600+ rent on a studio across from public housing LOL! They can’t afford a car after paying that. The car will get ripped off there anyhow. Never mind that $2600/mo could put them into owning a $350K 1 bedroom condo in a great area. They’re their own worst enemies with their life choices.

Anonymous
6 months ago

I love how y’all pretend the process to buy a house is a seamless as renting an apartment. It costs way more than a 1-2 month deposit to purchase.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Car free is the future but we need top-notch public transportation for that. Not buses but a subway system either under or above ground and something that expands to the entire Miami and Miami Beach.

Anon
6 months ago

It’s also the past, ironically enough.

Jordan
6 months ago

These people long for the days before cars, where horse dung clogged the drainage systems, ailing people couldn’t get galloped to the hospital fast enough to live and the average lifespan of an adult was 63 years old.

Ohhh…..let’s get back to they days with “cars off the streets”.

L.J.
6 months ago

You sound like someone who’s never visited a world city and can’t understand sustainable urban design. Take a trip to NYC, Chicago, Berlin, Paris, or London and then re-read what you wrote to understand how ridiculous it sounds.

Anonymous
6 months ago

^you sound like someone who doesn’t understand economic development. Take a job – any job – for a month and see which gets you there quicker—public transit or a car.

Juan
6 months ago

Dude what? They just want more public space and less pollution. This is like thinking we still need steam combustion locomotives for menial tasks, some things just go away because they aren’t needed as much anymore.

Anonymous
6 months ago

I think some people may have come here from places where people rode on horse carriages, and see high rises/ways as progress. Others came from places with too many high rises/ways, and see progress as greener clean spaces.There’s a happy middle ground for development and sustainable quality of life in the same City. That is progress to me.

ParkingHater
6 months ago

Buses are great, actually

Anon
6 months ago

Busses are more expensive in the long run because of maintenance. Also, busses will always just be pretend rail.

Melo, a true Giga Chad
6 months ago

How come when I mention a subway system, I get roasted? But this guy gets applauded lol. I’ve been saying subway under Biscayne blvd from design district all the way to UM, with a central station in front of FTX arena beside the freedom tower. With potential for expansion…

Not Anonymous
6 months ago

Because he said above or underground. It is impossible to build a subway because of the water table, unless you want to spend enough money to grade separate the entire Brightline on a tunnel that will constantly have water intrude during drilling when an overpass would cost billions of dollars less.

Miaminnovate
6 months ago

What about a ground level soundproof clear hypertube?

Anonymous
6 months ago

^^what about the costs per mile of that?

Melo, a true giga chad
6 months ago

did you just hear what you just said? “because he said above or underground” And how is a subway system not underground??

Anonymous
6 months ago

You didn’t give above ground as an option…

Anonymous
6 months ago

great to hear about this type of response to a project connected to transit…it saves the residents alot of money and aggravation by not driving in miami

ParkingHater
6 months ago

This, AAA pegs monthly car ownership at about 850$. Imagine how much more wiggle room someone would have without needing to pay that? Enough to consider paying a bit more for rent in a quality TOD development

Anonymous
6 months ago

I think it’s more around $1000 with car insurance and gas, all could be used to support the local economy in Miami with better quality development projects and consumer space.

Jordan
6 months ago

Or the savings could be used to save….so that the young people can buy a house when they are in their 30’s instead of whining about “unaffordable” housing.

VERY novel idea….

Anonymous
6 months ago

This! This is the model my partner and I followed and we are now considering purchasing our 2nd property in our 30’s.

Anonymous
6 months ago

This key to the plan was living in a place with transit connectivity so they wouldn’t have to own a car…

Anonymous
6 months ago

Pay cash for a cheap used car and for $2600/mo –christ find a place to buy instead.

Or, just keep living check to check forever.

Anonymous
6 months ago

It’s not that easy. When you’re young you need to be in the mix to meet people and build business. 2,600 a month is a deal to have your own space in the City! Buying a house anywhere close probably would cost 5-6k a month.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Not true at all about the cost of a home. We bought last year in Edgewater and are paying less on our mortgage than our rent in Brickell. It’s all about priorities. Some people just like to blow their money and don’t know how to save.

Anonymous
6 months ago

building your life around kissing ass comes with a big price young grasshopper

Anonymous
6 months ago

Why do you think the person renting has cash to buy a car? They probably don’t have the cash for a home down payment yet.

Anonymous
6 months ago

If you don’t have $8K for a decent used car, then forget homeownership.
I know, your buddies all take loans on $40K SUVs and spend $300/week eating out and drinking, how can you possibly save money? That’s for rich people.

Anonymous
6 months ago

I’d call this a “glue” project as it connects residents to a variety of Transportation modes as well as grocery to minimize car use – an incremental win to chip away at our car centric city…

Jordan
6 months ago

Clever!
Glue.

You can watch the cars disappearing by the dozens.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Perfect example of how to successfully develop around Miamis metro mover and rail. People prefer not to drive and want a walkable Miami lifestyle.

Anonymous
6 months ago

I don’t agree with that. Most people are lazy AF.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Maybe in Tallahassee or other parts of Florida, but not a Miami. People are here to move!

Anonymous
6 months ago

^^yeah sure newbie

ParkingHater
6 months ago

Even if he’s new, his or anyone else’s opinion is just as valid as well as anybodys.

Anonymous
6 months ago

I’m not “new,” and I’ve spent time in Tallahassee.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Let me guess, screaming at the capitol over some law that doesn’t affect you, meanwhile most of Tallahassee is a college town right up your alley?

Anonymous
6 months ago

The article is actually telling you your assumption is wrong. Look at downtown, for years, I heard you need a car. Several parking less buildings later and we still here the same nonsense.

Anon
6 months ago

That’s because developers are over incentivized to build denser development outside the metro-rich areas like in the Everglades or Edgewater, instead of along the metro lines. People who live in downtown and Brickell walk most of the time.

Jordan
6 months ago

You “heard”.
Yes, a lot of people SAY you need a car. I didn’t. not in the 1990’s, not in the 2000’s. Young people rarely NEED a car.

With a child, there is a stronger case for “needing” a car. you don’t want a skank Taxi cab without a car seat if you need a 3am trip to the Emergency Room when the kids fever is over 105.

Jordan
6 months ago

MOST is the operative word.
I agree.

MOST want someone else to pay for their transportation, they want someone else to pay for their student loan debt, they want someone else to pay for their housing.

They don’t work hard at a meaningful job, but they get in a nightly spinning class and some reps in the gym and they think that they are a “hard worker”.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Can we add a fee to our transit system to make critical improvements? It would cost us less than the $40 Uber ride. People don’t care if I there is a reasonable fee, as long as it gets us places and has modern climate-controlled stations. There can be a progressive tax so people who truly need free transportation can be subsidized (we are subsidizing everyone with a completely free system.)

Marco
6 months ago

Very true! Car-free lifestyle is great. Personally I don’t have a car anymore (for the last 10 years) and I love my life in Miami. Thank you Uber & Lyft. Now, to be totally honest, it would be amazing to get more public transportation and not just talking about that. Wake up Miami, stop focusing only on big buildings trying to look like NYC. We are more people everyday so we urgently need more options to move around the city. Easy like a pie. 😉

Anon
6 months ago

I dream of a car-free life in Miami. Sitting on the metro listening to music as I take it to the beach. Having a beach day then taking it home and watching the sun set behind Miami as I take in the skyline, for the first time being able to fully enjoy it and not concentrate on the road. One day I hope….

Anon1
6 months ago

Haha, I actually live sorta like this in NYC. I take the A train every day to Manhattan from the Rockaways in Queens. I’m in a highrise development called Arverne which is right next to Rockaway Beach so I get a nice view of the Atlantic Ocean and the elevated train which looks so majestic at night. It would be cool if Miami had their own version of this.

Erica
6 months ago

There’s a lot of us here manifesting that!

Melo, the true giga chad
6 months ago

We need a stronger eminent domain system when it comes to land near transit. Detached single family homes should not be allowed within 1000ft radius of a metro station

Name*
6 months ago

Back in the 70s they tried to stop the transit from being next to them.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Starting to see those single family homes along the Underline being replaced with three or four floor row houses with ground floor retail facing the underline. Imagine if it’s all redeveloped. It will be a huge pedestrian-only promenade with continuous ground floor restaurants offices and retail like you’d see in Greenwich Village.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Rowhouses don’t have ground-floor retail, and some of the single-family homes along the underline are the most beautiful in the city.

Anonymous
6 months ago

You’re right. Row house is the wrong description.

Preserve the nice blocks of homes nearby. For the Underline, more like this around the Underline:

comment image

comment image

Anonymous
6 months ago

People could live above and setup mom and pop local own and run shops below.

ParkingHater
6 months ago

Works great on japan

Anonymous
6 months ago

Dream vision for a VISCAYA transit-oriented neighborhood 2033

ParkingHater
6 months ago

Check out coral gables, Anderson and biltmore ish. Great examples. Mayor/basically anyone on the commission will laugh at your whenever you try and talk about it.

Anonymous
6 months ago

A lot of them seem run down… maybe nice ones could be bed and breakfast inns or restaurants.

ParkingHater
6 months ago

The county has a big role in this too with their old buildings, that ugly water and sewer office building needs to be replaced

Anonymous
6 months ago

One day the mayor of West Palm had enough with the piecemeal BS development and crazy hold outs we have in Brickell and Downtown, she acquired a huge parcel downtown West Palm via eminent domain and turned it into the thriving community space it is today.

https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/lifestyle/2017/10/19/photos-remember-when-cityplace-area-was-war-zone-of-crime-crack/4909837007/

Anonymous
6 months ago

“By the early 1990s, with a strong push by then-West Palm Mayor Nancy Graham, the city consolidated the properties, took others by eminent domain, fended off lawsuits and appeals that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, and entertained proposals to redevelop the area.”

“A group led by developer Ken Himmel and current Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, won, and the $550 million CityPlace opened 17 years ago on October 27, 2000.”

Can we use Eminent Domain in Miami? It seemed to work well for Mayor Graham and Related Companies, and West Palm has never been better!

Melo, a true giga chad
6 months ago

thanks for that, i will look into it. Miami should definitely do something like that, especially in areas around Brownsville and MLK stations. It can only help their communities with more money influx

Anonymous
6 months ago

The one on Douglas?? It was built just a few years ago 😂 The one on LeJeune was recently renovated.

Send WASD a check to build a new HQ to your liking.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Just like the airport that everyone loves?

Anonymous
6 months ago

^yeah just like that, so NO it isn’t getting replaced anytime soon. Buildings don’t get replaced because some fruitcake doesn’t like the way they look.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Love that they’re also improving the quality of the actual Metrorail station. The outdated and brutalist design, lack of air conditioning, and poor lighting doesn’t invite people to use transit. It’s not the developer’s responsibility, but hopefully more stations get renovated.

Anonymous
6 months ago

The lack of functionality is what holds people back from using Metrorail—it doesn’t go nearly enough places. Better to spend any money on rail extension, not on making the stations pretty. If station decor were the deciding factor for whether people will use transit, the NYC’s subways would be empty.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Correct, it drops people off near amazing destinations, but the areas around the stops are underutilized, even in Brickell. Build up and beautify those metro areas!

ParkingHater
6 months ago

Because people are scared of transferring to a bus! Seriously it’s not that bad

Anon
6 months ago

Busses are a hard no. We’re trying to move away from roads to rail, thanks.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Okay, so next time a private monorail is proposed, don’t go crying here about having to transfer.

Anonymous
6 months ago

I agree, but the need for extensions doesn’t negate the fact that the existing stations are dark, humid, and ugly. My point wasn’t that money should be spent on “making them pretty” instead of extensions. The county had like 30 years to expand and look where we are today. Least they could do is slap on some new tile, paint, and lights.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Ageee we need better lighting and extensions. You can’t even transfer from the Metro Line to the Metro Moved in Brickell without going up and down… this could easily be redone!!

New Metro Stations on Existing Lines!
6 months ago

I bet more people would ride the metro mover and metro line if it was indoors with A/C and well lit spaces like the Brightline. We could even build out kiosks for fast food and elevated convenient dining solutions INSIDE our terminals, and run them into new modern office buildings.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Too bad these towers are hideous and will age poorly, if not already.

Anonymous
6 months ago

If and when that happens, then they’ll buy a car. But I’m guessing most of the people moving in without a car are remote workers so where the job is doesn’t matter. Being a remote worker myself without kids it’s so much more convenient living in Brickell where almost everything I need is within walking distance compared to the burbs.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Point taken with that much, but it’s still across the street from a dangerous neighborhood. And with all that strolling around walking everywhere thing, it’s a real consideration to be doing that in this area.

Anonymous
6 months ago

That’s not a dangerous area. It’s one of the safest parts of Miami, surrounded by Coconut Grove, Coral Gables and Brickell.

Anonymous
6 months ago

There’s people dressing up to uber to Wynwood. This is even safer and prettier and along a metro line.

Anonymous
6 months ago

It’s 8 minute ride to Miracle mile and 3 minute ride to Merrick Park mall. The home values around there are literally in the millions of dollars. That area is the opposite of ghetto

Anonymous
6 months ago

This is not Overtown and Wynwood. Vizcaya is like Miami’s Versailles – it could bring in so much more tourism than present.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Brickell is great for remote workers and those going into new office towers.

ParkingHater
6 months ago

I’m gonna cream my pants. People this is why I scream about parking, carrot and sticks! And this area will only get better once the underline starts phase 3

Anonymous
6 months ago

Lol! I remember when Coral Gables tried to stop this project. This is what’s probably going to bring back all the happy hour business along Miracle Mile that has not been the same since before COVID.

ParkingHater
6 months ago

They did win something, they stopped zoning preemptions around RTZ corridors from effecting SFH. Anything above that is getting upzoned

Anon
6 months ago

That building has a lottttt of blank stucco facade.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Not to mention a that silly “stair” effect attempting to distract from the fact it’s another cereal box.

Azarius
6 months ago

All valid points

Anonymous
6 months ago

And yet we still force developers to build parking around transit. End parking minimums ASAP!

Anonymous
6 months ago

Why are there lots and lots of parking under our highways?! Those need to be parks! This is wasted land and parking spots are sketchy and crime magnets!

Name*
6 months ago

Tyson’s Corners.

Anonymous
6 months ago

It only took a few hours of Miami traffic to help them make that decision lol

BB1
6 months ago

It’d be nice to have a Milam’s downtown. We have a Whole Foods in one corner, and a Publix in the other. Would be nice to have something else in the middle.

ParkingHater
6 months ago

a Milams anywhere along the line is great, let’s anyone have access to a great groccer.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Millam’s proves there is an appetite in Miami for something in between Whole Foods Market and Sedanos, and notwithstanding Publix.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Milam’s Market downtown, please. Maybe in the place of that crappy CVS under Marinablue or space at the bottom of 501 First?

Anonymous
6 months ago

CVS>Milam’s

ParkingHater
6 months ago

Wrong! Competition is good, we want everything 😎

Anonymous
6 months ago

^^maybe you can bike to your new job stocking shelves at Milam’s

Anonymous but Famous
6 months ago

The missing pieces in all this? Let’s have a trolley connecting this station to Downtown Coconut Grove, much as happens toward Flagler. That strip is begging for redevelopment. Even more important, let’s triple the 40 route and in the rush hours, have private minibuses link nonstop to parking west of the Palmetto, at the woefully underused Tropical Park.

Anonymous
6 months ago

So negative.

Anonymous
6 months ago

I am a realist. No pollyanna cheerleading from me.

Azarius
6 months ago

They can’t afford a car living there smh 2600 for 510sqft

Anonymous
6 months ago

Same with Brickell, Downtown and Overtown, etc. all along Miami’s lifted transportation rails.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Having a car isn’t the flex you think it is.

Azarius
6 months ago

It is when living in the disconnection of Miami everything is spread out and I don’t like to be force to always deal with the “public” or volatile Uber/Lyft prices it’s wild out there

ParkingHater
6 months ago

Take a bus

Anonymous
6 months ago

The new high rise areas are not as spread out as you think. It’s not your Golden Girl’s pre-Brickell Miami. You can get everywhere by foot or bike.

Anon
6 months ago

Shut up brokie. A car is a flex. A bigger flex would be owning a car but not choosing to use it. This is America, owning a car gives you the freedom of movement.

Stupid Comment Warrior
6 months ago

Owning a car gives you freedom? Seriously? What is this, a 1950’s Sears catalog advertisement?

Anonymous
6 months ago

^^Taking a train gives you freedom? Seriously? What is this, a public transit advertisement?

***that was low hanging fruit

Azarius
6 months ago

Everything isn’t about cost. I like to move on my own time and a car gives me that freedom, nothing against public transit. It’s just not for MY lifestyle! Y’all clearly have a lot of time on your hands

ParkingHater
6 months ago

You are totally right!

For some people the time saved is worth it. But when systems are built to only support car ownership, and not alternatives, that decision is being made for them.

Turns car ownership into a defacto tax

Anon
6 months ago

Sure, like when you are stuck in traffic later for an event, or realize you can’t have a drink because you’re driving home after the cocktail reception.

Anonymous
6 months ago

on no! no cocktail reception drinks!!! and to think most are worried about getting to work on time and taking their kids to the doctor! But but but coctail reception drinks!

Anonymous
6 months ago

^^lots of time, and not much money

they “work from home” wink wink

Jordan
6 months ago

Truer words were never spoken.
It was great to have an SUV in Brickell and put about 9,000 miles per year on it …because it was only driven to the Crandon Park Golf course on Key Biscayne, N. Carolina mountains or to the Keys on road trips.

Not to flex, or impress anyone, but to know that you can do what you want, when you want, and however the hell you want is a nice luxury.

Anonymous
6 months ago

I rarely use the car anymore and prefer to go places connected by transit. Even Ubering in Miami is too expensive, around $50 one way Brickell to Midtown area? That seems unsustainable.

ParkingHater
6 months ago

You’re right, it is. Take the bus. $2.25. The 2, 9, and 10 all run though midtown. City of Miami has a free trolley route too

Azarius
6 months ago

Again the issue is time

Anon
6 months ago

With rail you can plan out your schedule and stick with it, do you know how many realtors are late to appointments “because of traffic”?

Anonymous
6 months ago

^not as many as workers who are late because Metrorail broke down

Pollo
6 months ago

Good news but that’s gonna be a lot of people for 1 station. Looking around on Google maps I don’t see much space around other stations for similar projects

Anonymous
6 months ago

There is ton of space around the Vizcaya, Brickell and downtown metrolines with knockdown buildings in need of master planned transit-oriented communities.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Vizcaya station is in between wealthy single family home neighborhoods

Anonymous
6 months ago

So what? If they don’t like the noise they can sell and move to a suburb. They clearly knew they would be living near a urban core and metro line. There are tons of wealthy brown towns in Manhattan. Some people would like a house near denser development. It’s common up north.

Anonymous
6 months ago

brownstones*

Anonymous
6 months ago

The neighborhood was there before Metrorail.

Anonymous
6 months ago

So was that house in Brickell where the guy is digging underneath the baseboard for artifacts.

Anon
6 months ago

Imagine if we said that when high rises were built near the Brickell mansions? There would be no Brickell.

ParkingHater
6 months ago

Your rights stop at the property line. beyond that is public land 😉

ParkingHater
6 months ago

The entire metro rail line is having its zoning preempted by the county, anything above single family detached. Developers will find the space, and we will be the better for it.

Anonymous
6 months ago

People have to be willing to sell. This isn’t the 1950s Robert Moses eminent domain abuse era.

Anonymous
6 months ago

Eminent Domain was used in WPB to transform the city. WPB has become a melting pot for diversity and progressive values, and lifted up the community. There probably would be no Brightline or no south Florida boom without this bold move. It transformed South Florida for the better. Nobody would go to WPB before the mayor and Related transformed a ghetto into thriving city. Read the history.

Anonymous
6 months ago

This wasn’t the 1950s. It was the 2000s when many of us were here.