Inside look: Moishe Mana’s Puerto Rican center

Moishe Mana’s Mapton Holdings and BBA, the design firm behind the planned Puerto Rican Community Center and Chamber of Commerce in Wynwood, have released a new rendering of the project. 

In June, Miami-Dade County’s Economic Development Committee unanimously backed a land swap-construction deal between the county and the Wynwood developer.

As part of the deal, the county gave Mapton Holdings 1.4 acres of 60,560 square feet of land valued at $6.8 million, located at 270 Northwest 23rd Street, 251 Northwest 22nd Lane, 205 Northwest 22nd Lane, and 2268 Northwest Second Avenue. In exchange, Mana Wynwood will give the county 15,715 square feet of land at 2153 Northwest Second Avenue and 2145 Northwest Second Avenue valued at $3 million.

Included in the $7.37 million, three-story, 49,000-square-foot development are artist studios, a café, community spaces, offices and 29 parking spaces. About $2.5 million of the facility’s cost will be paid for by a county general obligation bond. The rest of the facility’s bill will be footed by Mana Wynwood.

“We are thrilled to be a part of such an important project for the Puerto Rican community and for the Wynwood Arts District as it continues to establish itself as a bustling arts hub north of downtown Miami,” Claudia Busch, principal of Berenblum Busch Architecture, said in a statement. “This is a truly unique project that incorporates history and culture within the walls of a modern designed building well-suited for the surrounding area.”

Mana Wynwood already owns 30 acres in Wynwood, as well as the massive Dade Foreign Trade Zone, which is located directly adjacent to the county property. – Katherine Kallergis