{"id":245254,"date":"2026-04-24T20:29:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T20:29:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/245254\/"},"modified":"2026-04-24T20:29:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T20:29:10","slug":"miami-developers-discuss-housing-transit-and-culture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/245254\/","title":{"rendered":"Miami developers discuss housing, transit and culture"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Attendees<\/p>\n

Attendees of the Bisnow conference on the future of Little Haiti and Little River, which brought together developers, community leaders, business owners and policymakers to discuss redevelopment, investment, and preservation in these rapidly changing neighborhoods.<\/p>\n

Carl Juste<\/p>\n

cjuste@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n

Developers and community leaders at a Miami real estate conference said affordable housing and transit are critical to preventing displacement in Little Haiti and Little River as development accelerates.<\/p>\n

At the digital media company Bisnow\u2019s conference, \u201cThe Future of Little River & Little Haiti,\u201d<\/a> Thursday morning, panelists repeatedly returned to the same concern: how to grow the neighborhoods without pricing out the people who have long called them home.<\/p>\n

That urgency is underscored by shifting ownership trends. In Little Haiti, just 736 of the area\u2019s 7,269 residential properties were homesteaded in 2025 \u2014 about 10% \u2014 according to the Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser. A draft strategic plan from the Little Haiti Revitalization Trust and Florida International University also found that 37% of properties purchased since 2019 were bought by outside investors.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want [residents]to be part of the process, and not just spectators as they see development coming all around them,\u201d said Joann Milord, CEO of the Little Haiti Revitalization Trust.<\/p>\n

Milord said many longtime homeowners are holding onto aging properties, waiting for major projects like the Magic City Innovation District to move forward in hopes their land values will rise. But she said the trust is working to ensure residents are informed and able to benefit from that growth rather than being pushed out.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of dilapidated homes that people are just kind of waiting to see what happens with development,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019re waiting to see Magic City<\/a> put shovels in the ground because they are expecting for their properties to increase even more,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"President President \/CEO of the Little Haiti Revitalization Trust, right, Joann Milord, on a panel at Bisnow\u2019s conference on the future of Little Haiti and Little River, which brought together developers, community leaders, business owners, and policymakers to discuss redevelopment, investment, and preservation in these rapidly changing neighborhoods. Carl Juste cjuste@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n

Both neighborhoods have become an attractive to developers because of their proximity to downtown Miami, access to Biscayne Boulevard and potential for expanded transit.<\/p>\n

Still, panelists emphasized that new development must account not only for future residents, but also for the existing workforce.<\/p>\n

In Little River, a neighborhood home to warehouses, the Swerdlow Group<\/a> is expected to close on two properties as part of a project that will bring affordable housing to the area.<\/p>\n

RELATED: Homeowners in Little Haiti are aging. Here\u2019s what the next generation is facing<\/a><\/p>\n

Laura Tauber, principal and co-founder of commercial real estate development and management firm Taubco, emphasized workers also need to be able to afford to live where they work.<\/p>\n

\"Panelists G. Eric Knowles, president and CEO of Miami-Dade Chamber of Commerce, moderates a panel at a real estate conference hosted by Bisnow focusin on the future of Little Haiti and Little River. Carl Juste cjuste@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n

\u201cBecause although we might attract a company that wants to lease a half-million square feet of office, where does the support staff live? Two hours away,\u201d she said. \u201cIf we can put more housing that\u2019s not priced like luxury, that\u2019s priced really what people can afford\u2026We see we can provide benefits to the community and still be successful developers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beyond housing, speakers said preserving the cultural identity of the neighborhoods is equally important.<\/p>\n

Alfredo Riascos, founder and managing broker at commercial real estate brokerage firm Gridline Properties, said business owners should also be mindful of incorporating the \u201csocial fabric\u201d of a neighborhood, pointing to developer Aaron Goldstein\u2019s efforts with Lakou<\/a>, a local hang near the Little Haiti Cultural Center, as an example.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t neglect that,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have to try to incorporate it and make sure that it\u2019s there, that it continues.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Alfredo Alfredo Riascos, left, Gridline Properties; Doron Broman, Modern Development; Danny Fishman, GAIA Real Estate; Neil Fairman, Plaza Equity Partners; and Laura Tauber, TAUBCO, participate in a panel moderated by Steven Wernick of Day Pitney at Bisnow\u2019s real estate conference on the future of Little Haiti and Little River. Carl Juste cjuste@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n

Transit will be a key factor in whether residents can remain connected to their communities as development reshapes them, many panelists agreed.<\/p>\n

Neil Fairman, chairman of Plaza Equity Partners, which is attached to the Magic City Innovation District development, said transit would also help residents stay in their communities and enjoy the new amenities they are seeing, such as eateries and entertainment. \u201cWe need public transportation if we\u2019re going to become a real world city here, and we\u2019re lacking that,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

As investment pours into Little Haiti and Little River, panelists agreed that the future of both neighborhoods will hinge on whether growth can be balanced with affordability \u2014 and whether longtime residents can remain part of the communities they helped build.<\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Raisa Habersham<\/a><\/p>\n

Miami Herald<\/p>\n

Raisa Habersham is the race and culture reporter for the Miami Herald. She previously covered Hollywood and Fort Lauderdale for the Herald with a focus on housing and affordability. Habersham is a graduate of the University of Georgia. She joined the Herald in 2022.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Attendees of the Bisnow conference on the future of Little Haiti and Little River, which brought together developers,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":245255,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[225,227,226],"class_list":{"0":"post-245254","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-hialeah","8":"tag-hialeah","9":"tag-hialeah-headlines","10":"tag-hialeah-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/245254","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=245254"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/245254\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/245255"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=245254"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=245254"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=245254"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}