Building on phase 1 and 2, the design for The Underline’s Phase 3 stretches for 7.36 miles under the Metrorail as the final phase, completing The Underline and creating new connections between several communities including the City of Miami, City of Coral Gables, City of South Miami, and Dadeland.
Rethinking The Future Awards 2024
Second Award | Public Landscape (Concept)
Project Name: The Underline Phase 3
Category: Public Landscape (Concept)
Studio Name: Field Operations
Design Team:
Client: Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works in partnership with Friends of The Underline
Design-Builder: NV2A Central Joint Venture
Design Lead, Landscape Architecture, Urban Design, Public Realm: Field Operations
Area: 7.36 miles long
Year: 2024
Location: Miami, Florida, United States
Consultants:
Design Manager, Engineering Lead & Environmental Engineering: Nova Consulting
Design Manager, Engineering Lead & Structural Engineering: Assurance Consulting Engineers, LLC
Civil & Traffic Engineering: Stantec
Stormwater & Drainage Engineering: 300 Engineering Group
Lighting Design, Wi-Fi & Electrical Engineering: V2E Global
Horticultural Advisor: Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden
Land Surveying: Manuel G. Vera & Associates, Inc.
Tree Surveying: Bartlett Tree Experts
Geotechnical & Material Engineering: Nutting Engineers of Florida, Inc.
Photography Credits:
Sheet 1 (cover): Field Operations, courtesy of Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTPW) in partnership with Friends of The Underline
Sheet 2: Field Operations, courtesy of Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTPW) in partnership with Friends of The Underline
Sheet 3: Courtesy of NV2A Group
Sheet 4: Field Operations, courtesy of Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTPW) in partnership with Friends of The Underline
Sheet 5: Field Operations, courtesy of Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTPW) in partnership with Friends of The Underline
Sheet 6: Field Operations, courtesy of Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTPW) in partnership with Friends of The Underline
Render Credits: Field Operations, courtesy of Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTPW) in partnership with Friends of The Underline
Other Credits:
Built as seven segments with designated paths for cyclists and pedestrians, improvements to 25 intersections, and 12 community spaces with diverse programming, this next phase of The Underline is projected to serve over 100,000 residents within a 10-minute walk of the trail.
Working closely with the community through eight meetings held in various neighborhoods and over the course of 10 months, the design for Phase 3 directly reflects feedback provided through discussions, interactive boards, surveys, and drawings on maps, all in English and Spanish. Through these meetings, the design team listened to the community, establishing priorities and identifying specific areas and amenities to focus on.
Supported by its extensive new mobility corridor, The Underline will continue to improve access to public transportation and lead the project into its next chapter, intertwining nature and resiliency with community, programming, and art. With new opportunities for food trucks, markets, public art, bocce, outdoor fitness, basketball, pickleball, outdoor classrooms, performance spaces, a dog park, and natural playscapes, The Underline’s third phase complements existing phases and offers a wide spectrum of new amenities for all ages.
This phase will have a total of 3,960 trees, including 1,800 new trees for a 62.5% increase in canopy. Sequestering carbon, increasing biodiversity, and mitigating heat and sound pollution, these trees are part of the design team’s vision combined with new strategies for re-naturalization in South Florida. These include oolite gardens, prairie glades, pine rocklands, hardwood hammock micro-forests, stormwater gardens, butterfly gardens, and riparian planting throughout this extension of the new linear park and trail.
Utilizing a significant USDA Urban Forestry grant to bolster Miami’s urban tree canopy, advance environmental stewardship, and foster a thriving ecosystem, The Underline is designed with Miami’s native habitats and diverse ecosystems at the forefront. Informed by research that shows that communities with ample tree canopy coverage have up to 20°F lower temperatures, The Underline will have a significant addition of tree canopy in this phase, both mitigating heat and sequestering carbon. This phase is also utilizing pioneering urban forestry techniques such as the Miyawaki tree reforestation method, adding 14 micro-forests with approximately 14,000 native tree seedlings. These micro-forests will mitigate flooding, increasing systemic preparedness for severe storms and stormwater management.
Total construction costs for Phase 3 are estimated at $92.9 million. Project funding includes grants from Miami-Dade County, USDOT Build Program, FDOT, City of Miami and City of Coral Gables impact fees, and private developer contributions. The first three segments are currently under construction, with the project expected to be complete in 2026. Phase 3 will complete the 10-mile-long urban ecological corridor, leveraging existing infrastructure to create an active, sustainable, and inclusive connector that’s unprecedented for Miami and South Florida.
