A Run-down and Neglected Downtown Miami

A couple of weeks ago my dad took the boys and I to downtown Miami, as I had not been there in the two years that I have lived in the area. It was just like going back in time though, as I went to downtown Miami in 1997 with my mom, my dad and my younger brother. I remembered buying new Nikes for running track, and the store looked just like it had more than ten years ago.

While the outskirts of downtown Miami were dominated by skyscrapers, we did manage to find one remnant of the past. It was an old restaurant, which had been left alone with its charm.

 

Flagler Street which is the main street in downtown Miami looked just like it had during our 1997 visit, and it is need of a serious renovation. According to my dad's tourist book, renovations had been scheduled for this part of the downtown area, but due to the recession they had been postponed.

 

 

The store fronts were all run-down, the tile covered sidewalks were neglected and broken in many places, and they really looked like they had done their time. I actually felt as if I was walking around downtown Passaic or Paterson in New Jersey, and there was certainly nothing glamorous about downtown Miami. Many stores had been closed down, lots of them had close-out sales, and with a few exceptions most of the inventory looked like it had been there since we last left Flagler Street behind.

 

 

 

When I saw the Macy's storefront I was in shock. It looked as if, the store had been undergoing renovations that had been put on hold. The house next to it, had been torn down and now there was just an empty hole. We went inside to take a look, and although it did have the usual setup of a Macy's department store, it was obvious from a closer look that the store in fact was just as neglected as the rest of the stores on Flagler Street.

 

Above is the overlook from the entry way to the restaurant and restroom at Macy's. The building to the right is the Macy's store, while the one to the left had the restaurant and the restrooms.

 

Below you see the other side of the Macy's store, where a building had been torn down.

 

We paid a visit to the restroom, and the elevators sounded like they were disasters about to happen. The restrooms were in clear need of a drastic remodeling, as the 1960s decor was very outdated, and we all agreed that this store must be on the closing list.

 

I found this beautiful peace of mosaic on an old storefront of a store and building that looked like it could be torn down any time.