Morris Lapidus Greater Miami Architectural Projects

I grew up in South Florida and drove by many structures that Morris Lapidus, a Russian immigrant, designed. I had no idea that he had a connection to so many buildings in Miami, my hometown, as well as Miami Beach and neighboring cities. Before his death at age 98 in 2001, he actually worked on projects located all over the United States and abroad. He is best known for the Fountainebleu Hotel, which was featured in Goldfinger, a 1964 James Bond movie and Eden Roc Hotel, that hotel's neighbor. As a teenager in the mid-1980s, I visited both hotels while looking for sites to host a high school prom. I hope to view all of the still-standing structures - including his redesign of Miami Beach's Lincoln Road - with new eyes on future trips to South Florida. Feel free to research the life of this remarkable man. He was open to creating work that went outside the box of expected architectural tastes. It is hard to speak about Miami architecture or postwar hotel architecture without mentioning his name. Because I did not easily find one site with all of his greater Miami designs online, I decided to offer what I found here. Source: Morris Lapidus: Too Much Is Never Enough: An Autobiography (New York: Rizzoli, 1996). All copyright holders retain the rights to their work. Fair use.

1949 - Sans Souci Hotel - Miami Beach

1951 - Ainsley Building - Miami

1951 - Algiers Hotel - Miami Beach

1951 - Biltmore Terrace Hotel - Miami Beach

1954 - Fountainebleu Hotel - Miami Beach

1955 - Eden Roc Hotel - Miami Beach

1956 - Hotel Americana - Bal Harbour

1957 - Biscayne Terrace Hotel - Miami Beach

1957 - Deauville Hotel - Miami Beach

1957- Shelbourne Hotel - Miami Beach

1958 - Lucerne Hotel - Miami Beach

1960 - Lincoln Road - Miami Beach

1960 - Hebrew Academy - Miami Beach

1962 - Variety's Children Hospital (Expansion) - Miami

1963 - Skylake Gardens (apartments) - Miami

1965 - Seacost Towers - Miami Beach

1966 - Fire Station - Miami Beach

1967 - Arlen Beach Apartments - Miami Beach

1967 - Oceanside Plaza Apartments - Miami Beach

1967 - Regency Towers Apartments - Miami Beach

1971 - Bonavista Apartments - Miami

1971 - Villa Dorada - Miami

1971 - Coronado (condominiums) - Miami

1973 - Bal Harbour Apartments - Bal Harbour

1973 - Theatre of the Performing Arts - Miami Beach

1974 - Gusman Concert Hall - University of Miami, Coral Gables

His greater Miami projects also include: 1957 - Voyager Motel - Miami Beach 1957 - Bay Harbor Isle Apartment Building - Bay Harbor 1957 - Sunny Isle Shopping Center - Sunny Isle 1959 - Bank of Miami Beach - Miami Beach 1960 - Meridian Office Building - Miami Beach 1962 - King's Bay Yacht Club - Miami 1962 - Bay Towers (office complex) - Miami 1962 - Crystal House (apartments) - Miami 1965 - North Meeting Room, Seacoast Towers - Miami Beach 1966 - Junior Chamber International Building - Miami Beach 1966 - Skylake Shopping Center - Miami 1967 - Medical Office Building, Bay Harbor Islands 1967 - Belle Isle Apartments - Miami Beach 1968 - Greater Miami Jewish Federation (office building) - Miami 1969 - Surfside Royale Apartments - Surfside 1970 - Second National Bank - North Miami 1971 - Rivergate Office Building - Miami 1971 - Bonavista (high rise) - Miami 1971 - Bonavida (high rise) - Miami 1972 - Citizens Federal Savings and Loan Building - Miami 1973 - Copa City Office Building - Miami Beach 1973 - Flamenco (apartments) Miami 1977 - Nueva Casa (apartments) - Miami Note: Some of the listed apartments are now condominiums. Also, Lapidus designed several structures elsewhere in South Florida including Key West, Hallandale and Ft. Lauderdale.