Miami-Dade Schools Revives Crescent Heights Land Swap

Miami-Dade County Public Schools is moving forward with a revived deal to relocate its headquarters to a planned tower in Miami’s Omni neighborhood.

The 43-story mixed-use development, planned by Miami-based developer Crescent Heights, would sit on two parking lots, one owned by the school district and another owned by the developer, the Miami Herald reported.

Under the agreement approved by the school board last week, Miami-Dade County Public Schools would transfer ownership of its parking lot, known as Parcel 7, to Crescent Heights in exchange for a new district office, auditorium and 600 parking spaces within the developer’s project. The district’s offices would occupy two floors in the tower, with a dedicated ground-floor lobby and elevator access, the publication said.

A school board member said the parking lot was valued at $27.5 million last year. The value of the district’s new administrative space is expected to be more than double that.

No money would be exchanged under the deal’s current structure. School district staff told the Miami Herald that the development mirrors plans tied to a similar project proposed in 2021 and later tabled.

The school district is currently headquartered at 1450 Northeast Second Avenue, also in the Omni neighborhood.

Miami-Dade County Public Schools also is evaluating redevelopment plans for the 10 acres of land it owns in the area. The board agreed to form a plan with the city of Miami’s Omni Community Redevelopment Agency to decide what to do with the assemblage, possibly paving the way for a new facility for iPrep Academy at 1500 Biscayne Boulevard, which the district has long been looking to relocate.

The district is also considering the future of Phillis Wheatley Elementary at 1801 Northwest 1st Place, an Overtown school that the board voted to close last week. That closure was part of a broader overhaul that resulted in the shuttering of nine public schools across Miami-Dade County. —Grace McClung