Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Miami

Miami Mayor’s Economic Fix: Build America’s Biggest, Tackiest Mall

"The American Dream Miami" mall and retail complex would include an indoor ski slope, a Legoland and sea lions. Image: Miami Herald
"The American Dream Miami" mall and retail complex would include an indoor ski slope, a Legoland, and sea lions. Image: Miami Herald
"The American Dream Miami" mall and retail complex would include an indoor ski slope, a Legoland and sea lions. Image: Miami Herald

Forget what you've heard about the death of American shopping malls. Yesterday, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez unveiled plans for a 200-acre megamall complete with "submarines, a Legoland, sea lions and an artificial ski slope."

"American Dream Miami," as they call it, would be the largest mall in America, according to the Miami Herald. The corporation behind the plan is Triple Five, owners of the Mall of America in Minneapolis. Triple Five estimates that the enormous development would cost as much as $4 billion to construct and would eventually employ 25,000 people.

This behemoth would rise on undeveloped land between two major highways not far from the urban growth boundary, and Triple Five is currently negotiating with local officials on the purchase. The exact dimensions of the proposal haven't been released, but developers claim it would be larger than the Mall of America, which is 4.2 million square feet.

Mayor Gimenez has become a major booster, apparently intrigued by the economic prospects. He told the Miami Herald, "there’s going to be a huge spin-off."

But there are plenty of red flags. Marta Viciedo of the Miami non-profit Urban Impact Lab said that environmental analyses have shown the project site is in the "most flood prone and sea level-rise prone areas of Miami-Dade County" -- lowland areas by the Everglades.

The area is already notorious for traffic congestion and completely inaccessible by transit, she said.

"All these jobs are going to be low paid," she said. "How are people going to get there?"

Even if the developer funds transit service to the site, the traffic impacts would be huge, and probably very costly for the region, said Viciedo.

Then there's the question of whether Triple Five will require subsidies itself. The development will be "largely modeled," the Herald reports, off Triple Five's "American Dream Meadowlands" project in New Jersey. After more than 10 years under construction, it is still not complete, and in 2011, developers had to seek a $400 million bailout from the state of New Jersey to avoid bankruptcy.

The $2 billion American Dream project has also received $800 million from bonding by local municipalities -- four times more than Triple Five itself invested, according to Inside Jersey Magazine, which called it the "butt of jokes for the past decade."

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Friday Video: Let’s Go Biking in Berlin

Streetsblog takes you on a six-minute vacation to one of Europe's great cycling cities.

July 18, 2025

Friday’s Headlines Take the Long Cut

Republicans couldn't repeal higher fuel efficiency standards, so instead they made it painless for automakers to ignore them.

July 18, 2025

Can the D.C. Region Substitute Rail With Buses?

Instead of splashy new rail projects, the D.C. region wants to refocus around the bus. But will it work?

July 18, 2025

Trump and Duffy Continue Assault on California and the Environment, Officially Cancel Federal Funding for High-Speed Rail

“Canceling these grants without cause isn’t just wrong — it’s illegal,” said CAHSRA CEO Ian Choudri.

July 17, 2025

Talking Headways Podcast: Reclaiming the Road

Ohio elected official and geographer David Prytherch on his new book, Reclaiming the Road: Mobility Justice Beyond Complete Streets.

July 17, 2025

A Few Lowlights from Secretary Duffy’s First Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Hearing

Featuring: shouting matches, word-salad answers, blatant misinformation, and more.

July 17, 2025
See all posts