What did Miami’s Brickell Avenue used to look like? These old photos show the changes

By Jeff Kleinman

March 7, 2023 6:56 AM

Miami is a city of change. And Brickell is a neighborhood of change.

Private estates gave way to office buildings and hotels in the 1960s and ‘70s. In the 1980s, the skyline changed even more with the construction of signature buildings seen on the TV show “Miami Vice.” One of the stars of the show: the Atlantis condo tower — the building with the hole, the palm tree and the red spiral staircase in the middle. Producers put its glassy facade into the opening title montage.

The Atlantis building on Brickell. Chuck Fadely Miami Herald File

Then came more high-rise condos and office buildings, as well as a shopping village.

A slice of land off Brickell, Claughton Island, became luxurious Brickell Key, packed with residences. Over the past decade, skyscrapers continued to rise in the Brickell area, on the south side of the Miami River and the downtown core, with some comparing it to Manhattan south.

Now, the last remaining grass lot has been purchased, with plans for a boutique condo building.

Let’s go into the Miami Herald archives and take a look at how Brickell has changed through the years.