If it seems like buildings in Miami are getting taller, that\u2019s because they are.<\/p>\n
The Waldorf Astoria Hotel & Residences Miami, a skyscraper designed to resemble a stack of offset blocks, will tower above its downtown neighbors once it\u2019s completed in 2028.<\/p>\n
At 100 stories and 1,049 feet, the Waldorf Astoria will be Miami\u2019s tallest building and the city\u2019s first \u201csupertall\u201d skyscraper. The designation applies to buildings over 984 feet.<\/p>\n
But the Waldorf Astoria won\u2019t be Miami\u2019s only supertall for long. It\u2019s one of several tall buildings planned for Miami in the coming years.<\/p>\n
This parade of coming supertalls and near-supertalls seems to reflect the demand for \u201caspirational\u201d luxury real estate in Miami, said Ryan Shear, a managing partner at PMG, the developer behind the Waldorf Astoria. And some developers say these towers signal that Miami is becoming a truly global city.<\/p>\n
But building tall comes with unique challenges in engineering and urban planning, experts say.<\/p>\n
PMG is also developing the Delano Residences Miami, a 985-foot hotel and condo tower to be built near the Waldorf Astoria in downtown Miami. The building is expected to be completed in 2030, said Christian Tupper, PMG Residential\u2019s vice president of sales.<\/p>\n
The two towers, 300 Biscayne Blvd. and 400 Biscayne Blvd., are intended to complement one another in the Miami skyline, Tupper said. The Delano will have Miami\u2019s first public observation deck.<\/p>\n
Remaking the skyline ![\"View](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MIA_100WaldorfAstoria00NEWPPP.JPG\" "\\"MIA_100WaldorfAstoria00NEWPPP.JPG\\"")
A view of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel & Residences, a supertall skyscraper under construction in downtown Miami. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n
Miami\u2019s current tallest building is the Panorama Tower in Brickell, an 85-story, 868-foot skyscraper. But soon it\u2019ll be overshadowed by the Waldorf Astoria and the Delano, as well as the new Citadel global headquarters, a planned 1,049-foot tower that Citadel spokesperson David Millar said broke ground in the first quarter of 2026.<\/p>\n
Other proposed supertall projects in Brickell and downtown include One Bayfront Plaza, Regalia on the Bay, Miami Riverbridge and 888 Brickell by Dolce & Gabbana. Plans for all four buildings exceed 1,000 feet.<\/p>\n
Okan Tower, a residential and hotel building under construction in downtown Miami, will be 902 feet tall, just missing the cutoff for supertall status. But it will still stand nearly 50 feet taller than any of Miami\u2019s current skyscrapers.<\/p>\n
The building, which is the Turkish developer the Okan Group\u2019s first project in the U.S., reached its 50th floor out of 70 last month. The building will have a Hilton hotel in addition to condos.<\/p>\n
Building icons ![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MIA_105OkanTowerMiami00NEWPPP.JPG\" "\\"MIA_105OkanTowerMiami00NEWPPP.JPG\\"")
The Miami skyline from the 44th floor of the Okan Tower, a skyscraper under construction in downtown Miami. Once completed, the building will be one of the tallest in Miami at 902 feet tall. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n
Miami\u2019s skyline already has the third most skyscrapers of any city in the U.S. after New York and Chicago. And developers seem to be jostling to build the city\u2019s next iconic skyscraper, from the Waldorf Astoria\u2019s tower of blocks to the Okan Tower\u2019s tulip-shaped design. Michael Sadov, the head of sales for Okan Tower, said the design was inspired by Turkey\u2019s national flower.<\/p>\n
Shear said he hopes PMG will \u201chelp shape\u201d the Miami skyline with its two coming supertall projects.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s great for the city. The more supertalls, the better,\u201d Shear said. \u201cA lot of them have beautiful architecture. It helps to define a skyline.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eric Firley, a professor of architecture at the University of Miami, said supertalls and uniquely designed skyscrapers can be an act of branding, both for a developer and for a city.<\/p>\n
Developers hope their buildings\u2019 stand-out designs are a selling point for buyers. Cities may also hope these buildings will make their skylines distinctive, drive tourism and signal their status as important global hubs. In the Middle East and Asia, some cities directly fund developers to build landmark skyscrapers.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have reached a new phase of marketing,\u201d Firley said.<\/p>\n
Firley pointed to the Aston Martin Residences, a sail-shaped building with a large triangular cutout. Though not a supertall at 820 feet, the building has become one of the most recognizable structures in Miami\u2019s skyline.<\/p>\n
The idea of standing out in the skyline appeals to some buyers, said Jonathan Wingo, the global head of real estate and residential programs for Hilton. For some buyers at the Okan Tower, he said, it\u2019s a selling point that they can see the building from all over the Miami area.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhether it\u2019s an ego thing or just a reflection of themselves standing out in the crowd,\u201d Wingo said, \u201cI do think it draws an appeal to certain buyers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Challenges of building tall ![\"View](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MIA_103WaldorfAstoria00NEWPPP.JPG\" "\\"MIA_103WaldorfAstoria00NEWPPP.JPG\\"")
View of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel and Residences, center, a supertall skyscraper under construction at 300 Biscayne Blve. in downtown, Miami. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n
Building tall skyscrapers is expensive and energy intensive, Sadov said. Construction slows down and becomes more expensive as the building grows taller. For instance, it takes more time and energy for construction workers to ride an elevator to the 80th floor than to a lower floor.<\/p>\n
At these heights, construction crews also have to contend with strong winds. Once winds reach 35 miles per hour, cranes at a site automatically shut down, which can slow construction considerably, said Sadov.<\/p>\n
Shear said building a supertall can often take twice as long as building a shorter skyscraper.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause of their sheer size, everything is more complicated,\u201d said Shear, \u201cthe financing, the sales, the construction, longer time horizons.\u201d<\/p>\n
Shear said he thinks his firm benefits from its previous experience building supertalls in New York. PMG built the Steinway Tower, a 1,428-foot residential building in Manhattan.<\/p>\n
Supertalls can also come with \u201cexternalities\u201d for the surrounding community, like blocking views and worsening a neighborhood\u2019s traffic, Firley said. He thinks building near public transit hubs is important to help cut congestion.<\/p>\n
The Waldorf Astoria, Delano and Okan are all near the downtown Brightline station, and the Citadel headquarters will be near a Metrorail station in Brickell.<\/p>\n
Juan Mullerat, the founder of urban planning firm Plusurbia, said the most important thing about building skyscrapers is \u201chow they meet the ground,\u201d or how they appear to pedestrians at street level. He said building skyscrapers without shops, restaurants or other public-facing ground-floor amenities is \u201ca missed opportunity for a city.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Waldorf Astoria, Delano and Citadel will all have ground-floor lobbies. But street-level plans for the Citadel tower also include a public bayfront walking path, and renderings of the building show a restaurant at ground-level.<\/p>\n
Limits to Miami\u2019s supertall boom ![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MIA_100OkanTowerMiami00NEWPPP.JPG\" "\\"MIA_100OkanTowerMiami00NEWPPP.JPG\\"")
The Okan Tower, a hotel and condo tower under construction in downtown Miami, recently completed its 50th floor. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n
Although Miami\u2019s skyline is growing with this new crop of supertalls, the height of its buildings remains restricted because of the city\u2019s proximity to Miami International Airport. Downtown Miami is about nine miles southeast of the airport.<\/p>\n
The Federal Aviation Administration has rules for how tall buildings near airports can be.<\/p>\n
The maximum height in Miami is 1,049 feet in parts of Brickell and downtown. The Waldorf Astoria and the Citadel tower will take full advantage of the 1,049-foot maximum. Once completed, these buildings are expected to be the tallest in the Southeast, unseating Atlanta\u2019s 1,023-foot Bank of America Plaza, the region\u2019s only other supertall.<\/p>\n
While a height cap at 1,049 feet is certainly enough for Miami to join the ranks of cities with supertalls, it means cities like New York and Chicago will continue to dwarf even the tallest of Miami\u2019s skyscrapers.<\/p>\n
![\"View](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MIA_105WaldorfAstoria00NEWPPP.JPG\" "\\"MIA_105WaldorfAstoria00NEWPPP.JPG\\"")
Scaffolding at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel & Residences in downtown Miami advertises the building as \u201cMiami\u2019s first supertall.\u201d Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n
This story was originally published April 17, 2026 at 11:00 AM.<\/p>\n
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