Wynwood historically was known as Little San Juan or El Barrio, because of its historically large Puerto Rican population. Wynwood has recently come into the national consciousness due to the spectacular amount of mural and graffiti art located between Miami and 5th Avenue and 21st & 29th streets. This has only been a “thing” since 2009 when a local developer used art murals as a way to help revitalize the neighborhood. Apparently the murals are mostly replaced after only a couple years of standing. Wynwood walls (now an outdoor art gallery) was where this also started). Taking advantage of this buzz there is now a plethora of food & beverage options, nightlife, museums, and new development rising up in Wynwood. Along the district’s northern edge is the extensive lifestyle center of Shops at Midtown Mall. There is also the Wynwood Technology District, home to various technology based companies and the co-working space, LAB Miami.
Wynwood has certainly improved from an urban standpoint since 2010. But there is still room for much improvement as many vacant and underutilized land remains, lack of bike lane infrastructure, limited park amenities, and generally expensive housing. Wynwood also lacks a real center, something that could be rectified with a new centrally located urban plaza.
URBAN STRENGTHS:
- Overall ADA infrastructure is quite good in Wynwood.
- Very good access to dwtn via all modes of transit.
- Decent diversity esp. family diversity.
- Culturally a wonderful array of art galleries, restaurants, bars, cafes, lots of interesting modern and pop art museums, plenty of night clubs, a couple of community theaters, and a wonderful array of art murals on countless buildings in the neighborhood.
- Very good retail amenities too including two full sized supermarkets, many small grocerias, a couple drug stores, a target, a Marshall’s, a Nordstrom Rack, a Dick’s and several other brand name retailers at the Shops at Midtown Mall. There are also lots of boutiques, creative stores, lots of salons, tons of desserts shops & gyms, and a local post office.
- Good array of walkable schools but some public options are rated poorly.
- Lots of hype and buzz in Wynwood now on a national level.
- Great urban in-fill with good form and often mixed-use.
- Very good mix of uses throughout the district.
URBAN WEAKNESSES:
* Limited bike lanes throughout but good array of dedicated bike stations.
* A decent amount of rental product but expensive. Studios lease in the mid to high 2Ks, 1 beds rent btwn 2K-3Ks. 2-bed product leases btwn 2-4K. 3-beds 4-6K. Some affordable hsg in Wynwood but not a ton.
* For sale options tend expensive but not too bad. Studios and 1-beds condos sell btwn 250K-500K, 2-beds generally sell btwn 350K-800K, 3 & 4 beds are generally SF homes selling btwn 350K-650K.
* Park amenities are limited to a handful of medium sized parks.
* Still some dodgy areas but Wynwood is generally pretty safe.
* Some decent but plain mid-century architecture with the basic commer. bldgs and historic homes in the NW section of the district. But much of the historic fabric has been wiped away..
* No real center in Wynwood. There are two development clusters: Midtown Mall Mixed-use Lifestyle node and the mural art and retail node in the center of the district.
* Urban form is generally good where bldgs stand (esp. the newer infill) but plenty of surface parking and vacant lots that disrupt the urban continuity of the neighborhood. This fortunately will get better as things fill in.
Evaluating our Urban Communities [with a focus on America] 