George Neary returns to Miami Design Preservation League as interim exec director
By Michelle F. Solomon | ArtburstMiami
April 14, 2025 at 10:30 AM EDT
When George Neary arrived in Miami in 1991 from New York, he began volunteering at the Miami Design Preservation League (MDPL), started in 1976 by Barbara Baer Capitman in an effort to preserve and save the Art Deco architecture in Miami Beach.
“She was the voice for the architecture, for the buildings, for this whole neighborhood,” said Neary.
“(In 1991) Nancy Liebman was the executive director,” he recalled, “and then she decided to run for the city commission, and she won. The job became open and I was already there and a seasoned professional.”
From 1991 to 1998, Neary served as MDPL’s executive director.
Now history is repeating itself. The League’s director for eight years, Daniel Ciraldo, resigned in March after he filed to run for Miami Beach Commission. Neary is returning to serve as its interim executive director.
“I came out of retirement and I’m back on fabulous Ocean Drive where I belong,” said Neary, who added that he is going to “help them get through the next few months” until a full-time director is hired.
READ MORE: Residents face off against Miami's oldest church in battle over more concrete in Brickell
He retired as associate vice president of Cultural Tourism for the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) in 2018, a position he held for 20 years.
Neary said while it has been almost 30 years since he headed the league, he’s still very familiar with everything the organization does and oversees.
“Right now, I’m watching a group of tourists go on one of our Miami Design Preservation League Tours, which we run every week. We have the Welcome Center, and the museum, and gift store, and a lot more. And we put on the world-famous Art Deco Weekend, which just finished in January, which we’ve done every year since 1978.”
He said he’s already been making the rounds on behalf of the League – meeting with, he said, the Ocean Drive Association, neighborhood association SoBe Safe and the Art Deco Neighborhood Association.
“And I also visited with the Miami Beach Cultural Arts Council, which I helped found in 1998, so it’s kind of interesting to be back and attending their meetings. There’s just a lot going on and it’s just wonderful to be focusing on the architecture, the history, the culture, preservation and also a lot of tourism. I worked in tourism all those years with the convention bureau, so you get a twofer with me – the tourism and the preservation.”
He said his goal to stay on as interim is four to six months. “They wanted someone here to make sure things didn’t fall by the wayside – with grant money and lots of other things and that someone would also be the face of the organization,” said Neary.
On Thursday, April 17, Neary will be joined by Melissa Berthier, director, marketing and communications for the City of Miami Beach, for the League’s lecture series on the topic, “The Art of Architecture: 100th Anniversary of the 1925 Art Deco Exposition in Paris.”
“It’s from that exposition that all Art Deco architecture and style came from that we celebrate throughout the Art Deco district of Miami Beach.”
As interim, Neary doesn’t plan on just holding down the fort until someone new comes in.
“I’ll be giving lectures, bringing in new people, some new ideas to focus on preservation and design, and then the outreach to the community. When I worked at the GMCVB, I worked with every museum, every theater, every dance company, so I can pick up those relations and we can partner more – do some additional collaboration with the community. Create some excitement and just make sure that we are at the forefront in Miami and Miami Beach with preservation, with history, with Art Deco and well, just looking forward to continuing to shine.”
IF YOU GO
What: “The Art of Architecture: 100th Anniversary of the 1925 Art Deco Exposition in Paris”
When: Thursday, April 17, 6:30 p.m., museum opens at 6 p.m. through 9 p.m. for Culture Crawl
Where: Art Deco Welcome Center, 1001 Ocean Drive, Miami Beach
Cost: Free; reservation suggested
Information: mdpl.org
ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit news partner of WLRN, providing news on theater, dance, visual arts, music and the performing arts.
“She was the voice for the architecture, for the buildings, for this whole neighborhood,” said Neary.
“(In 1991) Nancy Liebman was the executive director,” he recalled, “and then she decided to run for the city commission, and she won. The job became open and I was already there and a seasoned professional.”
From 1991 to 1998, Neary served as MDPL’s executive director.
Now history is repeating itself. The League’s director for eight years, Daniel Ciraldo, resigned in March after he filed to run for Miami Beach Commission. Neary is returning to serve as its interim executive director.
“I came out of retirement and I’m back on fabulous Ocean Drive where I belong,” said Neary, who added that he is going to “help them get through the next few months” until a full-time director is hired.
READ MORE: Residents face off against Miami's oldest church in battle over more concrete in Brickell
He retired as associate vice president of Cultural Tourism for the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) in 2018, a position he held for 20 years.
Neary said while it has been almost 30 years since he headed the league, he’s still very familiar with everything the organization does and oversees.
“Right now, I’m watching a group of tourists go on one of our Miami Design Preservation League Tours, which we run every week. We have the Welcome Center, and the museum, and gift store, and a lot more. And we put on the world-famous Art Deco Weekend, which just finished in January, which we’ve done every year since 1978.”
He said he’s already been making the rounds on behalf of the League – meeting with, he said, the Ocean Drive Association, neighborhood association SoBe Safe and the Art Deco Neighborhood Association.
“And I also visited with the Miami Beach Cultural Arts Council, which I helped found in 1998, so it’s kind of interesting to be back and attending their meetings. There’s just a lot going on and it’s just wonderful to be focusing on the architecture, the history, the culture, preservation and also a lot of tourism. I worked in tourism all those years with the convention bureau, so you get a twofer with me – the tourism and the preservation.”
He said his goal to stay on as interim is four to six months. “They wanted someone here to make sure things didn’t fall by the wayside – with grant money and lots of other things and that someone would also be the face of the organization,” said Neary.
On Thursday, April 17, Neary will be joined by Melissa Berthier, director, marketing and communications for the City of Miami Beach, for the League’s lecture series on the topic, “The Art of Architecture: 100th Anniversary of the 1925 Art Deco Exposition in Paris.”
“It’s from that exposition that all Art Deco architecture and style came from that we celebrate throughout the Art Deco district of Miami Beach.”
As interim, Neary doesn’t plan on just holding down the fort until someone new comes in.
“I’ll be giving lectures, bringing in new people, some new ideas to focus on preservation and design, and then the outreach to the community. When I worked at the GMCVB, I worked with every museum, every theater, every dance company, so I can pick up those relations and we can partner more – do some additional collaboration with the community. Create some excitement and just make sure that we are at the forefront in Miami and Miami Beach with preservation, with history, with Art Deco and well, just looking forward to continuing to shine.”
IF YOU GO
What: “The Art of Architecture: 100th Anniversary of the 1925 Art Deco Exposition in Paris”
When: Thursday, April 17, 6:30 p.m., museum opens at 6 p.m. through 9 p.m. for Culture Crawl
Where: Art Deco Welcome Center, 1001 Ocean Drive, Miami Beach
Cost: Free; reservation suggested
Information: mdpl.org
ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit news partner of WLRN, providing news on theater, dance, visual arts, music and the performing arts.