MIAMI DESIGN PRESERVATION LEAGUE INC

Today, MDPL champions the legacy of its founders by influencing public policy and public actions in ways that are consistent with our original mission. That means:

- Preserving the districts and the buildings in them
- Supporting city, state and national preservation and land use policies, and proposing changes when necessary
- Preserving and protecting historical, architectural and environmental resources in other areas of the city, and supporting the residents and property owners who share our mission.

Our current programs fall into the following areas:

Art Deco Visitor Center: South Florida's highest-volume visitor center, providing assistance to over 120,000 visitors per year at our location along historic Ocean Drive

Art Deco Museum: Allows visitors and locals to understand the architectural heritage and community culture of Miami Beach

Art Deco Weekend: A celebration of all things Art Deco, Miami Beach's longest running free community cultural festival

Center for Resiliency and Sustainability: Focused on solutions to sustain historic resources and make them more resilient. We hold an annual conference each April

Daily Walking Tours: Our volunteer Tour Guides provide daily walking tours to residents and visitors from around the world. Tours include the Official Art Deco Walking Tour, Lincoln RoadTour, South Beach Scandals, Jewish, LGBT, and MiMo

Advocacy: Our ongoing advocacy focuses on preserving, promoting, and protecting historic resources in Miami Beach and surrounding areas. We recently helped secure the historic designation of major areas of North Beach, a treasure trove of Miami Modern (MiMo) architecture- the largest historic designation in Miami Beach since 1990.

We focus on the following outcomes:

Preserve and protect the historical and architectural integrity of the Miami Beach Architectural District, both of its individual buildings and of the district as a whole;

Support the historic preservation process put in place by the City of Miami Beach and the City's enforcement of the outcomes of that process in any area “where historic preservation is a concern."

Propose and support changes in the City's historic preservation process and land use policies when necessary to carry out and fulfill the mission statement;

Propose and support changes in Florida and national policy when necessary to carry out and fulfill the mission statement;

Preserve and protect historical, architectural, and environmental resources in other areas of Miami Beach, especially when designated as local historic districts by the City of Miami Beach, but including any area “where historic preservation is a concern."

Act to support residents and property owners, in current and potential historic districts, when citizens act to preserve, protect and promote the historic, architectural, cultural, social, economic, and environmental integrity of any area “where historic preservation is a concern."

Along with government and community advocacy, MDPL has made Miami Beach synonymous with art, cultural and preservation—hardly your typical beach town. The annual Art Deco Weekend (ADW) draws over 150,000 to Ocean Drive every January. MDPL exhibits, lecture and film series, historic tours and education have become regular daily, weekly and seasonal events all year long, mainstays of the global draw Miami Beach boasts. Our Art Deco Welcome Center attracts over 120,000 annual visitors. Our Art Deco Welcome Center is considered the highest volume generating Visitor Center in greater Miami and the beaches.

The Art Deco Museum opened at the Welcome Center in 2015, highlighting the architecture and history of Miami Beach.

A brief timeline of the history of MDPL can be found at the following link: http://www.mdpl.org/about-us/about-miami-design-preservation-league/a-brief-history/

Currently there are fourteen local historic districts in the City of Miami Beach, all that were either initiated or supported by Miami Design Preservation League's efforts. The City also has four National Register Districts. We continue to advocate for the preservation, promotion, and protection of these unique neighborhoods.

In addition to our advocacy, we invest considerable effort in educational outreach and programming throughout the year. This includes our Daily Walking Tours, Lecture Series, Museum exhibitions, Art Deco Weekend educational programs, and more.