{"id":2494,"date":"2026-07-01T09:31:30","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T09:31:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2494"},"modified":"2026-07-01T09:31:30","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T09:31:30","slug":"what-to-do-with-a-100-year-old-courthouse-miami-dade-hopes-auction-brings-a-buyer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2494","title":{"rendered":"What to do with a 100-year-old courthouse? Miami-Dade hopes auction brings a buyer"},"content":{"rendered":"<article><!-- --><!-- --><!-- WPS-5038 -- removed the script from WPS and added the placeholder for trinity player --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- CONTENT --><!--[--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Under an ornate wooden ceiling in a courtroom where Al Capone once stood trial, representatives of Miami-Dade County on Tuesday made a pitch for betting big on one of Miami\u2019s oldest buildings.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2492\">No warning, no time to pack? Miami could make it easier to arrest the homeless<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cLook around this courthouse and look at the craftsmanship,\u201d Idania Barroso, a member of the county\u2019s in-house real estate team, told attendees of a catered kick-off to the online auction of Miami-Dade\u2019s 1928 courthouse. \u201cMarble floors, decorated ceilings, elevator doors made of bronze mosaics and historic woodwork represent the design standards of another era.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>So far, that\u2019s been part of the problem.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Months after opening a $267 million replacement next door, Miami-Dade has struggled to find a buyer for the one built nearly 100 years ago. Protected by a historic designation, demolition isn\u2019t an option.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Judges who worked there bemoaned the dated layout and amenities, suggesting that converting it into office space might be an uphill push. Transformation into luxury condos might work. But a developer would need to make do with no balconies, no pool and the architectural confines that come with a stone building that was designed for trials, not open-concept kitchens and heated bathroom floors.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>But for some of the prospective buyers gathered for the presentation in Courtroom 6-1, where Capone beat a perjury rap in 1930, the long history of the building provided the selling point.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think there is a tremendous opportunity to adaptively reuse the courthouse as a hotel,\u201d said Richard Heisenbottle, a prominent architect in Coral Gables who specializes in historic buildings, including work on the Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, Freedom Tower and the Gusman Center for the Performing Arts.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Miami-Dade had hoped a hotel buyer would be game the first time the county put the abandoned courthouse up for sale. That was in 2024, but Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said her administration wanted at least $52 million and couldn\u2019t make a deal with a willing buyer. There was one offer, from developer Russell Galbut, but he wanted to build a modern building next to the courthouse and get a tax rebate from the county to pay for upkeep of the historic structure.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Levine Cava balked, and county commissioners voted in 2025 for the auction that begins Wednesday on the government-surplus site govdeals.com. While an executive called the company \u201ceBay for government,\u201d anybody can\u2019t just log on to bid. That requires a $100,000 refundable deposit.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2490\">Deputies fatally shoot armed man in McDonald\u2019s parking lot in Davie, BSO says<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The highest bidder doesn\u2019t necessarily become the next owner of the courthouse, either.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Any sale agreement must first be vetted by Levine Cava\u2019s administration, then approved by the County Commission.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>That process led to criticism by some attendees that an online auction wasn\u2019t the right way to sell a historic building that should come with a detailed redevelopment plan before Miami-Dade considers an offer.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Otherwise, they said, the auction could result in protracted talks with the county for the winning bidder. Or, if the county allows it, a winning bidder without a viable plan could just sit on the real estate until another buyer comes along.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is nuts,\u201d said Arthur Porosoff, a real estate broker and a member of Miami\u2019s zoning board. \u201cYou\u2019re going to let someone come in, stroke a check and hold this building hostage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>County administrators pointed out the property was listed before on the open market, with limited interest from deep-pocketed buyers. Now they\u2019re hoping the reach of an online auction will find a new owner.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Manny Cid, an assistant director in the county\u2019s Strategic Procurement Department, noted it was nearly 100 years ago when the courthouse received national attention from the Capone trial. \u201cStarting [Wednesday], the same thing is going to happen,\u201d he said. \u201cOur entire country \u2014 not just here locally \u2014 is going to have eyes set on this building.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=2489\">Inside Fisher Island\u2019s \u2018disharmony\u2019 over the future of the exclusive community<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--]--><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A century-old Miami courthouse, known for the Capone trial, hits a govdeals.com online auction as the county seeks a buyer willing to preserve and repurpose it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2493,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2494","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-miami-dade-county"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What to do with a 100-year-old courthouse? 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