Royal Caribbean Cruises has selected internationally-based Broadway Malyan to design a snazzy new cruise terminal at the Port of Miami (PortMiami).
The 170,000-square-foot terminal, to be built on land leased from Miami-Dade county, will be the homeport for Royal Caribbean International ships, including a 5,400-passenger vessel that’s currently the world’s largest pleasure boat.
Global firm Broadway Malyan beat out four firms—Zaha Hadid, Aedas, BIG, and Asymptote—to score the commission. The building’s working name is the Crown of Miami because, when viewed from the water, the terminal resembles regal headwear. When seen from the east or west, the structure resembles a capital M (for Miami), or waves, if semiotics are not your thing.
The terminal is the first North American project for Broadway Malyan. The structure’s prefabricated frame and floor panels were utilized to quickly build out the building’s core, while steel beams will create the profile below the waterproof aluminum–clad roof.
“Miami-Dade County is happy to welcome Royal Caribbean’s expansion at PortMiami, and all the economic benefits that come along with it,” said Carlos Gimenez, Miami-Dade county mayor, in a press release. “This public-private partnership will have an estimated economic impact of $500 million and generate approximately 4,000 jobs. Royal Caribbean has been an important part of our world-class community for almost 50 years, and this expansion will once again make PortMiami Royal Caribbean’s largest cruise port in the world. I thank them for their continued investment in and commitment to Miami-Dade.”
At this time, PortMiami serves 750,000 Royal Caribbean customers annually. Once the terminal’s completed, the company expects to welcome at least 1.8 million passengers to the city. The deal goes before the Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners for approval on July 6.
Construction is expected to begin in the first quarter of 2017 and the terminal is slated to accept passengers by the fourth quarter of 2018.
