Miami-Dade Art in Public Places: Verde Gardens Call to Artists

The Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust is developing Verde Gardens, a unique green development on 52 acres at the former Homestead Air Force Base (SW 127th Avenue and SW 28th Street, Miami, Florida). The project will consist of 145 units of permanent supportive housing serving homeless and formerly homeless families, housing approximately 600 people when complete. The development features amenities including open public plaza areas, basketball court, community center, children's play area, and soccer field. The entire development is seeking Gold LEED certification and includes an organic farm and farmer's market providing job training and micro-enterprise opportunities for residents.

This call seeks a comprehensive design for the central public plaza, the main area for residents to congregate and a valuable community amenity. An artist or artist team will design an integrated plaza featuring landscaped gardens, lighting, walkways, shade structures and seating elements. The estimated project budget is $186,000. The artist must consider the architectural design of buildings on the site, the project's color schemes, and the permanence of all artwork and design elements in Miami-Dade's harsh sunlight, winds and rains. Eligibility is open to professional artists residing in South Florida (Broward, Martin, Monroe, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach Counties). Miami-Dade employees, selection panelists and their immediate family members are excluded from participation.

The selection process will identify finalists who will receive a $700 honorarium to develop specific proposals. A three-member panel drawn from the Professional Advisory Committee will review submissions and recommend artists for commission. The project timeline is critical: Application Deadline April 23, 2010; Initial PAC Meeting May 2010; Project Orientation Visit June 2010; Finalist Interviews July 2010; Selected Artist Begins Design August 2010; 100% Design November 2010; Fabrication Substantially Complete February 2011; Project Completion April 2011. All submissions must be received as a complete application via CaFÉ™ online system. There is no application fee. For additional information, contact Brandi Reddick at 305.375.5436 or [email protected].