North Miami Beach’s new UNIDAD Community Center is designed as a sensitive quiet neighbor to the historic mid-century Bandshell Park Auditorium while simultaneously being a beacon for this beach front community.
UNIDAD is a streamlined, horizontal building that quietly makes references to the dynamic mid-century elements of its context. It synthesizes traditional elements and details to make a contemporary building that resonates with place and history. It is clad in perforated aluminum panels that evoke the porous qualities of the decorative architectural grille blocks used in mid- century buildings such as the neighboring Auditorium. At night, the perforated panels will be back-lit and, like fireflies, will illuminate the park with flickering points of light intertwining the built environment with the natural. The building acts as a public gathering ground and is designed to be open and inviting to the community. This is achieved by means of floor to ceiling glass walls which not only give the building transparency but also provide panoramic views of the park and ocean.
UNIDAD sensitively generates physical and experiential connections with the history of the site and the environment, producing a building that captures the essence of the place.
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