Galleries and cafes revive downtown North Miami

The long, desolate stretch of 125th Street that comprises North Miami’s downtown district is undergoing a bit of an artistic renaissance, according to the Biscayne Times.

Fifteen years after the Museum of Contemporary Art opened on 125th Street, art galleries and gourmet cafes are supplementing an eclectic retail mix along the thoroughfare that includes tuxedo stores, hair salons, tattoo parlors, cell phone shops and health clinics. Many of the 14 galleries in the area have opened in the last 18 months, the Times said.

As artists descend on the area, the retail offerings will continue to improve. National retailers have largely ignored 125th Street, but the $12 per square foot rents haven’t gone unnoticed by artists, decorators and the businesses that serve them. And a $14 million expansion planned by MOCA should hasten their arrival, the Times noted. [Biscayne Times]