Even as a “Burn Notice” fire sale raged inside the Coconut Grove Convention Center, the USA Networks’ filming headquarters, the city of Miami began to chip away at the historic former auditorium’s bulky bayfront exterior.
The city is demolishing the building to make way for a park, a plan fully endorsed by two of the Grove’s wealthiest residents. Pedro and David Martin’s Terra Group is developing the neighboring luxe multimillion-dollar, Bjarke Ingels-designed condo Grove at Grand Bay, have publicly endorsed the city’s project.
“It’s a natural extension of Grove at Grand Bay,” the younger Martin told The Real Deal.
The convention center’s demolition has been met with some public opposition by preservationists who say Miami’s historic buildings are disappearing. The Doors played in Coconut Grove in 1969, when the center was called the Dinner Key Auditorium. [Curbed] — Emily Schmall