Miami cancels agreement for $10M ‘sports dome’ after Centners withdraw from deal
A controversial deal for wealthy private school owners to build a $10 million athletic facility on public land is officially dead after Miami commissioners revoked the agreement Thursday.
The revocation came hours after David Centner made a surprise announcement that he and his wife, Leila, planned to withdraw from the contract they inked with the city in 2022. In a unanimous vote, commissioners canceled the contract, which would have allowed the couple, the owners of Centner Academy, to build a “sports dome” on a swath of city-owned land on Northeast 19th Street called Biscayne Park.
Under the deal, which had the Centners paying $10 million to build the dome, students at the private school would have had time reserved at the sports facility, though some level of public access to the recreational center was required.
“We’re pulling out,” Centner said during the public comment portion of Thursday’s City Commission meeting. His announcement came amid a wave of criticism over how the deal derailed a separate plan to expand classroom space for a nearby public school, iPrep Academy, at the site.
Commissioner Miguel Angel Gabela sponsored the resolution to revoke the city’s contract with the Centners, which is central to the state’s corruption case against former Miami Commissioner Alex Díaz de la Portilla, who lost to Gabela in a November runoff.
Deputy City Attorney George K. Wysong said the commissioners were essentially forced to revoke the agreement since the Centners wanted to back out.
Gabela called the Centners’ withdrawal from the deal “the best outcome.”
“Let’s have a new deal, let’s have a new bidding process, let’s [have] everybody get a chance to bid,” Gabela said. “And by all means, if the Centners want to participate, let them participate. You know, I never said that they were bad people. I just want the biggest and best benefit for the residents in the district and the city of Miami.”
During public comment, dozens of people spoke for and against the Biscayne Park deal. Prominent speakers included Miami-Dade Public Schools Superintendent Jose Dotres and School Board members Lucia Baez-Geller and Dorothy Bendross-Mindingall, who sponsored a school board item Wednesday to endorse Gabela’s proposal to revoke the contract.
READ MORE: Private school’s $10M ‘sports dome’ deal with Miami should be overturned, School Board says
Centner, who began his comments Thursday by saying he was going to “drop a bomb,” addressed the recently resurfaced plans from Miami-Dade County Public Schools to expand iPrep at the site. Miami Herald reporting revealed how the public school deal was sidelined in favor of the Centner plan.
Centner said he and his wife had been “attacked” by opponents of their agreement with the city.
“There’s enough new information about the process that maybe we should reexamine this, you know?” Centner said. “I’m okay, I’m okay with this. You know, we’re still open to improving the park. We’re not interested in spending $10 million on a domed sports park, too much harassment.”
Centner confirmed his comments with the Herald after the fact, even as members of the public continued to provide comment on the matter. “Yeah, you heard that right,” he told a reporter.
Shortly after, Leila Centner made her and her husband’s position clear near the end of the public comment period, describing the investment they would have made as a donation.
“We are no longer in a desire to donate — donate — $10 million to the city. We are no longer interested,” she said.
She went on to criticize Commissioner Damian Pardo, who spoke out against the deal and publicly shared his plan to vote in favor of revoking the agreement before Thursday’s meeting. She also pushed back against the public outcry against the deal.
“It was not going to be a private park,” she said. “It was going to be fully accessible to the public. Just as it is now, except it would be useful. The way it is now, it’s just dirt.”
Pardo said he “couldn’t be more thrilled” with the Centners’ announcement and dismissed the criticism from Leila Centner regarding his comments before the meeting. On Wednesday, Pardo had posted the headline from the Herald’s article on Instagram.
“I am committed to making sure that — especially on issues of major community interest — I give people the reasoning and encourage them to engage,” Pardo said.
Herald reporting revealed that the city did not appraise Biscayne Park before it signed the deal with the Centners. In charging documents against Díaz de la Portilla, prosecutors estimated the land’s market value at $100 million. The Centners have characterized the required $10 million investment in the land as a donation.
“Boy, I’ve never seen somebody fight so hard to donate $10 million,” said Leslie Del Monte, an iPrep supporter. “The benefit is in the value of the land. I hope you recognize that.”
This story was originally published March 14, 2024 at 12:06 PM.
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