North Beach Yard Is Officially Not Happening

It started with a bang and ended with a thud. The much talked about North Beach Yard from the celebrated founders of Wynwood Yard is officially not happening. Miami Beach City Manager Jimmy Morales notified Commissioners he is terminating the lease agreement with North Beach Yard LLC.
 
On June 6, Morales informed Commissioners the founders had not complied with several terms of the lease including providing a security deposit or letter of credit for $17,914 which was due on November 20, 2017. They also failed to provide proof of financing and a performance bond which was due on November 20, 2018.

“Two months later, those items have not been remedied and the developer has not communicated with the City,” Morales wrote in a memo on Thursday. “Furthermore, we are receiving expressions of interest about this and other of the West Lots, and we want to be able to develop a strategy to assess the best approach to the utilization of these lots.”
 
“Towards that end, it is my intention to terminate the Lease with North Beach Yard LLC,” Morales wrote.
 
The lease for the North Beach Yard to be located on the City-owned West Lot at 8100 Collins Avenue was approved by the City Commission in July, 2017 and signed that November. The area covered under the lease is 52,500 square feet and includes a 2,500 square foot building. In his June letter, Morales noted the City had spent $33,195 creating design drawings for the building onsite. At the time he also wrote that North Beach Yard co-founder Della Heiman indicated she was out of the country until July but that “she would like to meet with the City upon her return” but his latest memo indicates there has been no communication.
 
The Wynwood Yard, an open-air space with trucks and shipping containers that housed pop-up restaurant concepts, was always imagined as temporary (as was the North Beach Yard) – a means of activating vacant space in a fun way that drew the community in. It closed in May after the land owner announced plans to build apartments on the site.
 
North Beach Yard champion, Commissioner Ricky Arriola said, “We’re sorry to see Della go and we hope that the door will be open in the future for other opportunities but we understand that businesses sometimes have to focus on other priorities, but the good news is that there are several other local operators who have contacted me and the City and are very interested in moving forward with a similar concept. I look forward to bringing a proposal back to the City in the next couple of months.”
 
Heiman’s next venture, The Doral Yard, which was initially scheduled to open in Spring 2019, is now advertised for “late 2019.”  A healthy food hall concept opened by Heiman and co-founder Ken Lyon closed last Fall after being open for six months. Lyon is moving on with his recent purchase of The Anderson bar in Miami.

When contacted for comment, Heiman indicated she was busy with meetings and out-of-town guests but would respond to email questions in another week. 

UPDATE: Full statement from Della Heiman regarding the closing of North Beach Yard.