The derelict Miami Marine Stadium was on the cover of GQ magazine this month, showing football star and Taylor Swift fiance Travis Kelce soaring over the water in a jet pack. In the background of the shoot, the graffiti from decades of abandonment loom large.
But Marine Stadium might not be abandoned for much longer.
The City of Miami has called a special commission meeting next Thursday to address the future of the waterside venue that that has been abandoned and unused by the city since Hurricane Andrew in 1992.
READ MORE: 32 years later and counting, the iconic Miami Marine Stadium is still abandoned
The commission will consider putting an item on this November’s ballot asking residents whether to approve a contract for the private company Global Spectrum L.P to manage and operate the facility.
But details of the proposed contract have not been released by the city yet.
“As always the devil is in the details,” said Chris Rupp, the executive director of Dade Heritage Trust, a group that has fought to restore the stadium for decades. “There has to be money coming from somewhere not just to operate that stadium but also to restore it. Where is the money for restoration? It’s not like it’s ready to step into and plan events.”
The stadium’s storied history has included performances by Jimmy Buffet, Sammy Davis Jr. and political rallies by Richard Nixon, as well as a Catholic mass that was celebrated there every Sunday by recently arrived Cuban refugees.
"The community felt right away that it was open, it was accessible. It was to celebrate the point where the water and the land come together,” Cuban-born architect Hilario Candela told WLRN in 2013. He longed to see the stadium return to its former glory, but he died in 2022.
In recent years the parking lot in front of the stadium has been reactivated for music festivals and theater performances, raising hopes that the space could see a true reformation.
“It makes sense to bring this venue back to life,” said Rupp.
If commissioners approve the item, City of Miami voters would have to approve the contract on Nov. 4.
