LINCOLN ROAD MALL

Carl Fisher conceived of Lincoln Road as a Main Street for Miami Beach, and its construction began in 1914. It was promoted as the "Fifth Avenue of the South,” and flourished as a prominent shopping destination. By the late 1950s, however, Lincoln Road suffered from traffic congestion and increased competition. In a bold move to save their businesses, property owners contacted Morris Lapidus, architect of the Fontainebleau and Eden Roc hotels, to develop a new plan for the road. In an article published in 1960, Lapidus described his vision for Lincoln Road: "It will not just be a place of shopping. It will be a promenade where people can walk and see beautiful flowers and foliage, in addition to what they see in the store windows.” Completed and opened to the public in December 1960, the project was organized around a black and white “piano key-like” paved central spine interspersed with architectural follies, planting beds, and water features. The Lincoln Road Mall is regarded as one of the first instances in the United States where a major thoroughfare was closed to traffic and pedestrianized. It is the oldest pedestrian mall in Florida, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011.