The Rotunda in Collins Park

The Rotunda in Collins Park (on Collins Avenue between 21st and 22nd Streets) was built in 1962 and was originally part of the library. It has been closed off to the public for the past 8 years, viewable only from the outside… like a piece of artwork in view of the Bass Museum. Now three ideas have surfaced for its re-activation: a café, an additional exhibit space for the Bass, and a high-tech climate change center. Agreeing on a use will not be an easy task. Three members of the Commission’s Neighborhood and Community Affairs Committee have three different viewpoints.
 
Commissioner Kristen Rosen-Gonzalez supports a café, saying the area is like “a desert” with no place to even get a soda. Commissioner Joy Malakoff said the new Bass will have an indoor-outdoor café and she supports using the Rotunda as art installation space for the Bass which she believes will attract more visitors to the museum. Commissioner John Alemán backs a climate change center to take a positive look at what the City is doing with regard to sea level rise. “It says that we’re going to get a handle on this and we’re all together going to move forward and there’s going to be a Miami Beach 50 years from now,” she said.
 
Any option would be funded by the operators of whichever use is ultimately selected. The Committee referred it to the full Commission for discussion at its April meeting. Email commissioners with your thoughts.