Margaret Pace Park Has Its Makeover Money and No Construction Date Yet

On September 24, 2026, the Miami City Commission voted unanimously to accept up to $10 million for the first phase of improvements at Margaret Pace Park. As of today, the city's own project page for the park still says Phase 1 is funded for "design only." The page and the vote disagree because the money moved faster than the website did.

For anyone who uses the park at 1745 North Bayshore Drive every week, the practical answer is simple. The future park now has funding. This fall's park is the same one you already know. Its weekly schedule runs on free community groups and a neighborhood association, and the funding resolution names none of them.

How the Money Got Here in Two Votes

The funding came from the Omni Redevelopment District Community Redevelopment Agency, which covers the area the park sits in. It reached the park in two steps, two weeks apart:

1. September 10, 2026. The Omni CRA board adopted Resolution No. CRA-R-26-0047, setting aside up to $10 million for the park project.
2. September 24, 2026. The City Commission adopted Resolution R-26-0440. It authorizes the City Manager to accept the funds from Omni CRA Redevelopment Revenue Bonds, Series 2026, for "eligible costs" of Phase 1. District 2 Commissioner Damian Pardo sponsored and moved the item, and District 3 Commissioner Rolando Escalona seconded it.

The South Florida Business Journal covered the proposal under the headline "As Edgewater booms, Miami eyes $10 million Margaret Pace Park upgrade". The city's legislative record lists R-26-0440 as adopted unanimously. The meeting entry still shows a draft status, which is common for minutes that are only two weeks old.

Neither vote set a construction start date. The resolution authorizes accepting the money and updating the city's capital plan and budgets. It does not include a groundbreaking date, a fencing plan or a closure notice. The city's project page describes design work, not active construction, and no closure or access advisory has been posted for the park. The city has not announced when construction will start.

Two Lists for One Phase

The two city documents describe Phase 1 in different words. Side by side, they show what the park is meant to become.

The project page starts at the water. It frames Phase 1 as resiliency work, a "green shoreline stabilization plan" with access for non-motorized boats and revised walkways around the park. The resolution adds the parts of a park people use every day: shade from a fuller tree canopy, benches, fountains and exercise equipment.

Read together, the plan describes a bayfront where you could launch a kayak, walk a rebuilt baywalk under more shade, and stop at a fountain on the way. The city's Office of Capital Improvements and the Parks Department are designing it now. The meeting presentations from 2024 and 2025 are posted on the project page for anyone who wants to see the concept renderings.

The Weekly Schedule the Resolution Doesn't Mention

"Exercise equipment" appears in the resolution. The park's fitness life already exists without it, and every week it is run for free by groups that bring their own mats and routes.

The city's park directory lists what is there today: basketball, tennis and volleyball areas, a dog park, outdoor gym equipment, a playground, walking trails, picnic tables, BBQ, bathrooms and the waterfront. Posted hours are 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. On top of that, current listings show at least four groups meeting at the park.

Edgewater Run Club's Monday listing already shows the next session on October 12, so that schedule is current this month. Free Yoga Miami's Wednesday class is listed for tonight at 6:30. Its organizer says the class meets every Wednesday at that time. A 2025 Miami New Times guide noted that the class has shifted its start time with the seasons and runs weather permitting, so the current listing is the one to check.

The Sunday run is the most rooted in the neighborhood of the four. Miami Run Club's route starts by the park's tennis courts and ends at Pura Vida for a post-run hangout. The event platform MATO describes the Sunday session as weekly. The Pilates & Lattes Club listing calls its park class recurring but doesn't say how often it meets, so check the next date before planning a Saturday around it.

Phase 1 is meant to bring exercise equipment, shade and benches. The schedule above already shows how the park gets used for exercise, and none of it waits on a capital budget.

October 23 Is the Date to Hold

The biggest community event on the park's fall calendar comes from the Biscayne Neighborhoods Association. Its Trunk or Treat is set for Friday, October 23, 2026, from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at Margaret Pace Park, with a movie at sundown.

The listing is still a save-the-date. BNA hasn't named the film, vendors or sponsors yet, and the page says "More info to come." The time window is long enough for an early-evening costume round and a film after dark. Because the park's posted closing time is 10 p.m., the event fits within normal hours.

With no construction notice posted, the event can use the park as it is now, with its open lawn and the bay behind it.

The Blocks Around the Park Are Moving on Their Own Timelines

Margaret Pace Park's improvements now have funding and a design process but no build date. Some of the businesses around it are moving faster, and others are planning further out.

Pura Vida, 1756 North Bayshore Drive. This café is on the same stretch of Bayshore as the park entrance and is where the Sunday run club ends. Its Edgewater hours are 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday, close to the park's own hours.

AIRE, 111 NE 20th Street. An open-air nightclub and lounge opened in late September at the former Boho Miami address. Boho had operated there for six years. AIRE added a new bar, moved the DJ booth, refreshed the design, and started Wednesday-through-Saturday programming on September 30.

Gioia Hospitality Group, 560 NE 34th Street. Further up the bay, the team behind Daniel's has leased space for an unnamed steak-and-seafood restaurant of about 11,500 square feet with a 2,500-square-foot bayfront deck. The projected opening is late 2027 or early 2028.

AIRE opened within days of the commission vote. Gioia's restaurant is on a timeline of more than a year. The park's Phase 1 work falls somewhere between them, with funding approved and no construction calendar. When the city posts a schedule, the project page linked above is where it should appear. Until then, the park keeps its current weekly routine: Monday runs, Wednesday yoga, Sunday miles from the tennis courts to Pura Vida, and a Trunk or Treat on October 23.

If you follow Edgewater's bayfront closely and want to talk through what changes along North Bayshore could mean for your building or your block, I would be glad to hear from you. Reach out through Nathalie Garell and let's connect.