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The Location
Proposed Miami Location
The “FEC Slip”
The “FEC Slip” on Biscayne Boulevard in the heart of downtown Miami, adjacent to the American Airlines Arena, and just 500 yards from the world's busiest cruise embarkation port best meets all criteria articulated by the Navy for a successful Naval ship museum. The “FEC Slip” is so massive, it can easily be identified from outer space - thanks in no small part to President Kennedy's efforts to jump-start the space program:
 
Satellite images extracted from Cooper, Robertson & Partners presentation to the City of Miami.
The “Father Of Miami,” Mr. Henry Flagler, established Miami as a viable city when his Florida East Coast (FEC) rail line reached Biscayne Bay in 1896 at the “FEC Slip.” Though the FEC donated its historic FEC Slip to the City of Miami years ago, it remains more an “economic anchor” than an “economic engine,” despite its prime location.
 
Ongoing refurbishment of FEC Slip by Shoreline Foundation, Inc. American Airlines Arena
The last vestige of Flagler's FEC shipping operations remains intact as the centerpiece of the downtown waterfront's “Museum Park.” Over a century after the slip's creation, the final home of the USS John F. Kennedy would fulfill the highest and best use of the railroad’s terminus at the port, currently being revitalized by $10 million in ongoing upgrades.
Miami’s New “Museum Park”
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| Original “Museum Park Miami” Rendering |
The FEC Slip is an integral part of the City of Miami’s proposed new “Museum Park,” the success of which will ultimately be defined by the total number of people who are drawn to use it on a frequent basis. The very reason for the park’s redesign is to improve upon the present condition, a vacant Bicentennial Park. The general consensus from those in the community who have voiced their opinions is that the eight-acre slip should be utilized to its maximum potential, central to the park’s appeal.
The firm of Cooper, Robertson & Partners has been retained by the city to design the entire park, which includes the larger space depicted above at right, featuring two proposed museums and other amenities. Also included under their design contract is the FEC Slip, conceived in this initial design to include an operable bridge, dock space and cantilevered platforms, plus the land known as “Parcel B” (originally known as “Maritime Park”), shown here at left as a proposed soccer field.
While the original price tag for full implementation of this design concept was pegged at $120 million (not including the cost of the proposed art and science museums), the tax payers have made it known that they do not wish to commit nearly that amount to this project. As a direct result of the community input that this design was intended to foster, a new design is presently being crafted, taking into account such issues as construction and maintenance costs, safety, parking and other accessibility-related considerations to ensure that people will USE the park.
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| Baywalk Promenade |
The Proposed “Baywalk”
Key to the success of the final design is the integration of a broader concept, Miami’s proposed “Baywalk.” According to the results of a 2004 charette conducted by Project For Public Spaces on behalf of Florida Atlantic University, the City Of Miami and Walk Florida, the most problematic portion of the entire project is the activation of Parcel B - combined with the desire to transit the mouth of the FEC Slip (shown below) enabling seamless at-grade (barrier-free) continuation along Biscayne Bay, as depicted at right.
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| Aerial Photography by James Good - Miami |
Given the concerns expressed by the community, that the ultimate use of the City’s most prized possession, its waterfront, be put to its highest and best use, our plan seeks to integrate a MAJOR attraction. As a destination, the John F. Kennedy Maritime Museum is projected to draw 1.2 million residents and visitors into the area to activate the entire waterfront as the social hub of Miami.
Parcel B / Maritime Park
Project For Public Spaces went to great lengths to obtain public input regarding this neglected property behind the American Airlines Arena on Biscayne Bay. Among the conclusions featured in their resulting overview, it was determined that “ballfields were not recommended for this location.” While several wide ranging options were recommended, a stand-out suggestion in our minds, given the actual name of this property, was “Maritime Museum.”
 
400 parking spaces on the lower level of “Parcel B” Proposed Baywalk Maritime Theater above
We propose 400 new parking spaces on ground level, contiguous with the American Airlines Arena parking structure, topped by a world-class Giant Screen (IMAX-type) Theater. This example depicts famed Spanish architect Santiago Calavatra’s “L’Hemisferic” Omnimax Dome Theater at the world renowned “City Of Arts & Sciences” in the heart of Valencia, as it might appear in Maritime Park as the “Baywalk Maritime Theater.”
This example is provided for the sole purpose of demonstrating this parcel's potential as an attraction and destination in its own right, in the context of the broader museum concept.
In partnership with its content provider, National Geographic Television and Film, Destination Cinema, Inc. (DCI), has expressed its interest in discussing the potential for development of Maritime Park as a world-class destination theater complex to complement the John F. Kennedy Maritime Museum visitor experience. Envisioned is the production of a giant screen film depicting, in part, the heroic efforts of then Navy Lieutenant, John F. Kennedy, in the aftermath of the sinking of his vessel, PT-109, in the Salomon Islands. National Geographic funded famed explorer, Robert Ballard’s successful efforts to locate the PT-109 on the ocean floor, as documented in their resulting television special and popular DVD title, “The Search For John F. Kennedy’s PT-109.”
While no substantive discussions or negotiations have been pursued to date, it is clear that these two world leaders in destination entertainment and cultural tourism perceive a significant business opportunity based on their own independent evaluation of our visitor projections. Upon learning of our proposal to site this aircraft carrier museum and related giant screen theater on the waterfront in Miami, DCI CEO, Bob Perkins, flew to Miami to walk the Maritime Park property and examine the FEC Slip firsthand, and was clearly impressed.
Excerpts of DCI Letter Of Interest dated August 31, 2007:
“Destination Cinema is without any doubt, the most qualified entity to design, build and operate a large format destination theater as part of this project. We are the largest and most successful owners and operators of large format destination theaters in North America. DCI provides interpretive film experiences for over 2.5M visitors annually to premiere tourist destinations in the United States and Canada.
National Geographic Television and Film and DCI have been partners for over 10 years. Between the two organizations, we have created and distributed some of the most successful large format films in our industry’s history. Grand Canyon: The Hidden Secrets is the highest grossing large format film ever made.
We believe that National Geographic is the most qualified film maker to take on the task of creating an interpretive film about JFK, and potentially, a brief history of the Caribbean.
Please let me know when you’re ready to proceed to next steps.”
Bob Perkins - Chief Executive Officer
Destination Cinema, Inc.
Miami Venue Parking:
Based on experience with similar attractions, and the area's tourism / traffic flow, we project that the John F. Kennedy Maritime Museum will draw 1.2 million annual visitors. As with any world class attraction, sufficient parking is an essential requirement for a pleasurable visitor experience. Fortunately, an ideal solution already exists adjacent to the proposed FEC slip dry-dock: the parking lot for the American Airlines Arena, home of the "Miami Heat" NBA team. Out of approximately 1,100 total spaces, about 700 sit unused during daytime hours nearly every day of the year.
 
American Airlines Arena as seen from “Parcel B” East end of Arena low-level parking at “Parcel B”
While most visits to the carrier will occur during daytime hours, a significant percentage of guests will attend functions and events aboard the vessel at night. During the 182 evenings of the busiest six-months (basketball season), only 53 evenings are booked, leaving 129 evenings available without conflict. Historically, the remaining six months feature no more than 12 evening concerts and events. Thus, Museum events can be scheduled during the 293 evenings when the Arena’s parking lot public spaces would otherwise sit vacant, thereby maximizing the capacity utilization and revenue potential of this Miami-Dade County taxpayer owned facility.
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