As construction surges ahead on downtown Miami’s new I-395 Signature Bridge, the city is securing a critical funding deal for the 33-acre park and greenway planned beneath it.
Miami commissioners are set to sign off on a combined $7 million on July 24 from the Omni and Southeast Overtown/Park West Community Redevelopment Agencies (CRAs), clearing the last major hurdle to unlock $60.3 million in federal grant money. The commitment allows final design and construction to move forward on the long‑anticipated project, which aims to transform the space below the I‑395 overpass into a civic greenway reconnecting Overtown with the city’s cultural core.
Known until recently as the Underdeck, the project was officially renamed the Reverend Edward T. Graham Heritage Trail this year to honor the longtime Mt. Zion Baptist Church pastor and civil rights leader who helped shape Miami’s Black community in the mid‑20th century.
Envisioned as a sweeping public landscape, the Heritage Trail is to weave beneath the elevated I-395 viaducts, transforming 33 acres into open space and active streetscapes designed to reconnect Overtown, a historically Black neighborhood severed by highway construction in the 1960s, with downtown and Biscayne Bay.
The mile-long linear park will stretch from Northwest Third Avenue to Biscayne Bay, offering safe routes for walking, jogging, biking and scooting while promoting sustainability and neighborhood vitality through its design. It is to include an amphitheater, community plaza, event lawn, playgrounds, a dog park, multi-use courts and water features, all designed to support recreation, cultural events and community gatherings.
In March 2024, the US Department of Transportation (DOT) awarded Miami $60.3 million through its Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods Program, the largest federal grant in the city’s history. The award jump-started long-stalled effort to realize the vision beneath the I‑395 Signature Bridge, which is being built in partnership with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) as part of an $840 million overhaul of downtown’s highway infrastructure.
To receive the federal funding, the city must contribute a local match and enter into a Locally Funded Agreement (LFA) with FDOT. On Dec. 12, 2024, commissioners authorized the city manager to negotiate and execute the agreement, committing $10.8 million from city and CRA sources to support planning, design, administration and construction. The execution of the LFA and transfer of local funds to FDOT are required to release the federal grants.
The item before commissioners this week is to officially allocate $3.5 million each from the Omni and SEOPW CRAs, totaling $7 million, to satisfy the remaining local match requirement and enable the city to proceed with grant execution. Combined with $3.8 million pledged from the city, the $10.8 million local match is to supplement the $60.3 million federal award and $11.5 million in state funds from FDOT, bringing the total budget for the Heritage Trail to roughly $82.7 million.
Work on the park is to be phased in alongside the I-395 Signature Bridge construction, which remains on track for completion in late 2027. Together, the Heritage Trail and Signature Bridge are poised to transform this corridor into a vibrant and environmentally resilient public space, restoring walkable connections between Overtown and Miami’s waterfront cultural hubs.
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