From Renderings to Reality
When completed in Fall 2026, The Underline will be a 10-mile linear mobility corridor below the Metrorail and will transform 120 acres of underutilized County-owned land below the aerial Metrorail tracks from the Miami River (Downtown) to the Dadeland South Metrorail Station into a first-class multimodal corridor. The $120 million project is funded by Miami Dade County, the Federal Transit Administration, the State of Florida, City of Miami, City of Coral Gables, City of South Miami, the Knight Foundation and private contributions. The Friends of The Underline, a 501(c)(3), is the organization shepherding the project.
The Underline will become a significant social and civic spine for Miami that will foster community, enhance value, and encourage recreation and healthy living. It will facilitate connectivity and social exchange, connecting people to their surroundings and each other. Over the course of the conceptual development of the project phases, numerous public meetings and workshops were held. This has built significant stakeholder involvement in the process.
VISIONARY LEADERSHIP
The founding vision for this major Miami transformation lies with Meg Daly, who for over a decade has served as the volunteer CEO of The Friends of The Underline.
A twenty-eight-member board of directors provides community leadership for the project. In January of this year, after an extensive search, Mr. Eulois Cleckley was introduced to the community as the new CEO of The Friends of the Underline. Cleckley, formerly the director and CEO of the Miami-Dade Department of Transportation & Public Works (DTPW), brings 20 years of leadership and expertise in the transportation industry, holding numerous executive positions in major metropolitan areas throughout the country. Cleckley is to champion the mission of advancing Miami’s multimodal urban corridor destination while working alongside founder Meg Daly as Chair of the board. He joins COO Patrice Gillespie Smith who since joining The Underline in 2020, has been the driving force behind the project’s growth, leading construction, operations, and the expansion of the team to meet the demands of our 10-mile urban trail and community destination. Additionally, a senior marketing officer was also hired. With over 17 years of experience in brand strategy and experiential marketing, Mr. Lisle Bowen came onboard as the new Chief Marketing Officer (CMO).
For additional information about the organization and the leadership team, visit www.theunderline.org.
The mission statement of The Friends of The Underline: To deliver and activate a 120-acre, world-class linear park spanning 10-miles below Miami’s Metrorail that will transform regional mobility and celebrate diversity, culture and lifelong learning. Through innovative urban trails and creative programming, we are connecting people to their environment and each other to create a safe, healthy, equitable, and sustainable community.
Core Values: The Underline is a 120-acre park in Miami’s urban core that is building a world-class city by celebrating:
- Community Connections
- Innovation
- Health & Wellness
- Sustainability
- Safety and mobility
- Fun
THE UNDERLINE COSTS
The total projected construction cost of the Underline is over $120 million, which includes:
$80 million for the trails, lighting, seating, native landscaping, and other amenities.
$20 million for intersections improvements (over 30 intersections).
$20 million for destination parks.
THE UNDERLINE CONSERVANCY
The Conservancy’s mission is to deliver and maintain a first class 10-mile linear park and urban trail and provide engaging community-based health, wellness, public art, culture and educational programming for all.
Conservancy has developed a pro forma dependent on contributions from both the private and public sectors, to be funded by the county and participating municipalities. The City of South Miami commission recently voted to participate in this ongoing plan: anticipated operational costs for FY26 are $8,774,000; South Miami portion would be $300,000.
IT’S MORE THAN A PARK. IT’S JUST WHAT MIAMI NEEDS
The Miami Herald Editorial Board wrote (April 24, 2024): Underline is more than a park. It’s just what Miami needs | Opinion
“…the 10-mile-long strip of a park — transforming unused land beneath the elevated Metrorail tracks into a multi-use community space and bike trail…. It’s a sophisticated and smart use of public land in a place not always known for that. It’s a feat of determination and ingenuity and years of sustained focus, something else we’re not always known for here, in quick-fix, shiny-new-object South Florida.”
Read more at: https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/editorials/article287906480.html#storylink=cpy
THREE PHASES OF THE PROJECT DEVELOPMENT
The Underline is being built in three phases. Each segment of The Underline will demonstrate the county’s Department of Transportation & Public Works (DTPW) commitment to improving and enhancing connectivity.
Visit www.theunderline.org to explore the phases of The Underline.
Phase 1: On November 2, 2018, The Friends of The Underline broke ground on the Brickell Backyard on the first half-mile of The Underline Brickell Backyard is located between the Miami Rier and SW 13th Street, next to the Brickell station. Phase 1 was opened to the public on February 26, 2021.
Phase 2 opened to the public on April 24, 2024. This 2.14-mile segment of The Underline connects SW 13 Street to SW 19 Street linking Phase 1 to the historic Roads, Shenandoah, and Silver Bluff neighborhoods in the City of Miami.
Phase 3. On September 12, 2023, The Underline reached a major milestone: ground was broken to begin construction on the final 7.36-mile segment ofThe Underline, connecting SW 19th Avenue near the Vizcaya Metrorail station to the Dadeland South Metrorail station. panning from SW 19th Ave to Dadeland South Metrorail Station. The entire segment links numerous diverse communities including the City of Miami, Coral Gables, South Miami, and Unincorporated Miami-Dade County.
GROUNDBREAKING FOR PHASE 3 – September 12. 2023
Photo: The Underline
Meg Daly noted at the event “As The Underline expands south, we’re stitching together more neighborhoods and communities. With 19 amenity areas planned throughout the 10 miles, The Underline is bringing health and wellness, community, safety and mobility, and art and tech to our urban green corridor.
SOMI magazine is focusing on the one mile within the City of South Miami municipal boundaries and over the next year and one-half will be documenting the development of our “somi mile.” Construction has begun on the mile, from SW 57 Avenue to SW 80.
SOMI magazine is focusing on the one mile within the City of South Miami municipal boundaries and over the next 18 months will be documenting the development of our “somi mile.”
We start at SW 57 Avenue and head down to SW 80 Street.
Looking south at Red Road June, 2025
SW 70 Street at the Metrorail Station June, 2025
Looking north from Sunset Drive at the Metrorail Station June, 2025
At the bus entrance to the Metrorail Station looking north June, 2025
Looking north from SW 70 Street June, 2025
At Sunset Drive (72 Street) looking south.
FOREST PARK at South Miami city hall campus June, 2025
SW 62 Avenue & US1 looking north. June, 2025
SW 62 Avenue looking north. June, 2025
SW 62 Avenue looking north. June 2025
Looking south from South Miami Hospital egress onto US1 June 2025
Wooden bridge over the Twin Lakes Canal June, 2025
At 80th Street looking north. June, 2025
At 80th Street looking north. June, 2025
At 80th Street looking south. June, 2025
At 80th Street looking south. June, 2025
A FEATURED AMENITY on “the SOMI mile” is the PLAY FOREST sponsored by Nikki Spoelstra. It is destined to be a nature-based play area for children and families to explore, imagine and connect with nature through active and healthy play. (Read more about the Play Forest in this issue’s “In & Around” feature.)
AN UNDERLINE “FIRST” IN SOUTH MIAMI
The first private property installation along the ten-mile linear path and trail. Just two weeks after the groundbreaking on Phase One of The Underline at Brickell, on December 13, 2018, there was a dedication ceremony of Baptist Health South Florida’s Meditation Garden. This urban oasis of peace and tranquility is adjacent to the bustle of U.S. 1 in South Miami. Baptist Health in partnership with Friends of The Underline created the Meditation Garden near where The Underline trail runs in parallel with U.S. 1 and intersects with SW 62nd Avenue near South Miami Hospital’s East Tower.
Founder and President of The Friends of The Underline, Meg Daly remarked to the guests that “The Meditation Garden designed by Baptist Health is an urban masterpiece and evidence of the possibilities when we shift our transportation philosophy to include alternatives such as walking and bicycling in a safe and beautiful environment.” Daly congratulated Baptist Hospital noting “this reflects on how private property owners adjacent to The Underline can contribute to safe public spaces in meaningful ways.”
PEDESTRIAN & BICYCLISTS SAFETY IS PARAMOUNT
User safety is one of the biggest priorities so where possible, the biking trail will be separated from the walking trail. In late 2023, FDOT completed the stripping of intersections and crosswalks along the trail from the Miami River to Dadeland. These improvements include: widening crossings to the combined minimum width of the bike and walking trails, 10 feet and 8 feet respectively; allowing more time to cross the street; having a “no traffic movement” period to allow people on foot and bike advance time to get into the crossing; no right turn on red where possible; and in some cases, tabled, or raised crossings. These, and other safety improvements, are being implemented by Miami-Dade County and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT).
Lighting along The Underline addresses user safely as well.
TRAIL HEAD MARKERS. In addition to The Underline branding on the Metrorail columns, on the trail heads, these two logos capture some of the history of the pathway. The East Coast Greenway is composed of a 3,000-mile spine route, Key West north to the Canadian border in Maine. The “M Path” was the name given to the pathway under the Metrorail which was opened in 1983.