Approved by Miami-Dade County voters in November 2004, the $2.9 billion Building Better Communities Bond Program includes over $450 million for countywide cultural facilities development. The BBC program encompasses an array of community capital improvements, ranging from water and sewer infrastructure projects to healthcare facilities and elderly housing, and is funded by bonds to be sold over the next 15 years and repaid by debt service millage. The most comprehensive, countywide bond program in more than three decades, the BBC program is the largest of its kind in the Southeastern U.S. and the third largest in the nation.

The BBC program includes funds for the design and construction of a new Miami Art Museum and Miami Museum of Science in Bicentennial Park, key projects in establishing Miami-Dade's international status as a major cultural center. It also provides substantial funds for 18 other projects that continue the work of developing the network of excellent neighborhood cultural facilities throughout the county.

GOB Allocation: $1 million

GOB funds will used to complete this cultural center’s new Music Building which complements the other spaces that form the Center’s campus, including a black box theater, art gallery and teaching spaces for dance and the visual arts.

GOB Allocation: $5 million

GOB funds are programmed for the property acquisition and refurbishment of this theater that has the potential to serve as a catalyst for the cultural and economic revitalization of the NW 7th Avenue corridor.

GOB Allocation: $15.5 million

This project includes the planning, design and construction of a cultural museum and nature center located in the restored Virginia Key Beach Park, a protected natural resource. The Cultural Center and Museum Complex will exhibit the history and culture of African Americans and Caribbean Americans, and will house traditional museum spaces, meeting rooms, dining and banquet facilities, café, gift shop, nature center, and offices. The Complex will present the history of the park and South Florida during the civil rights era, and the significance of the natural environment of the barrier island on which the park is located.

GOB Allocation: $15 million

GOB funds will help in the transformation of one of Miami’s oldest theatrical venues into a 21st century performance space. Built as a glamorous movie theater in 1926, the theater was shuttered on and off for decades until it underwent a $1 million renovation in 1956 converting it from movie house to a home for live theater, and reopening with the U.S. premier of Waiting for Godot. Considered to be an economic engine for other Coconut Grove businesses, the Playhouse has been home to numerous world-class stars, playwrights, and directors, and has seen many productions go on to Broadway and London’s West End. Reconstruction of the theater is necessary to address the structural deterioration of the building.

GOB Allocation: $10 million

GOB funds will cover costs related to securing a site and completing the design and construction of a permanent space for the Cuban Museum, Inc. Its exhibition, support and administrative spaces will be dedicated to showcasing Cuban cultural heritage through music, dance, literature, history, theater, and the plastic arts. This new museum will commemorate and cultivate key influences on the development of the artistic heritage of our community.

GOB Allocation: $0.7 million

Designed by Philip Johnson as part of the earlier Decade of Progress bond issue, this Spanish-Mediterranean-styled downtown cultural center serves as the home for the Miami Art Museum, the Historical Museum of Southern Florida and the Main Library. GOB funds will be used to repair and upgrade this complex.

GOB Allocation: $15 million

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden will use GOB funds for the rehabilitation and renovation of its infrastructure. Project work will include replacement of the 68-year old irrigation and drainage systems, the renovation of historic features, the upgrading of popular garden attractions such as the extraordinary conservatory and the expansion of its educational facilities. Fairchild is one of the world's preeminent botanic gardens, with extensive collections of rare tropical plants including palms, cycads, flowering trees and vines. Established in 1938, the 83-acre garden offers a variety of programs in environmental education, conservation and horticulture. An international leader in tropical plant research, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden plays an important part in preserving the biodiversity of the tropical environment.

GOB Allocation: $5 million

GOB funds will complement private funds in the construction of a new headquarters for the Florida Grand Opera, including a 485-seat theater and three rehearsal halls that will be made available to community users. The Florida Grand Opera is the nation’s seventh oldest and the southeast’s premiere opera company. The Andersen Center consists of a new six-story building that will be located directly north of the Miami Performing Arts Center’s Opera House, and also will house a music library, costume shop, music coaching rooms, and several artist apartments.

GOB Allocation: $10 million

This innovative, joint project between Miami-Dade County and the Miami-Dade County School Board will develop spaces necessary to complement the school’s auditorium and make this complex the first fully functioning cultural center in the City of Hialeah, the 2nd largest municipality in Miami-Dade County. The newly renovated 800-seat auditorium serves the student population during the day and the community during nights and weekends. GOB funds are programmed to add cultural support spaces like a studio theater, scene shop, and parking facilities, necessary to make this a multi-purpose working center for the arts.

GOB Allocation: $2 million

Located in Liberty City, this 1000-seat theater is operated by the Miami-Dade County Park & Recreation Department. GOB funds will be used to continue the upgrades to the venue’s theater, sound and communications systems and to front-of-house spaces.

GOB Allocation: $10 million

GOB funds will complete the renovation and expansion of the historic Lyric Theater as a renewed focal point for Overtown, the center of Miami's historic African-American community. When the theater opened in 1914, it was an important stop on the black vaudeville circuit. In the 1930s and 1940s, the theater was a major component of NW 2nd Avenue's “Little Broadway” entertainment district contributing to Overtown's reputation as the “Harlem of the South,” and was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. The expansion of the stage house will add adequate wing space and back of house support spaces and state of the art sound and communication and theatrical systems. A welcome center, gallery, and administrative offices also are included in the expansion project, along with revenue generating spaces such as meeting and banquet rooms, and a catering kitchen.

GOB Allocation: $100 million

GOB funds will be used to construct a new 150,000-square-foot facility for the Miami Art Museum (MAM) in Bicentennial Park on Biscayne Bay in downtown Miami. MAM will have a landmark building and sculpture park designed by leading architects selected through an international competition. More than 50,000-square-feet will be dedicated to a suite of galleries showcasing artwork from around the world, Miami and Florida through MAM’s special exhibitions and permanent collection. The project will include a sculpture park filled with notable work created by masters of 20th-and 21st-century art.

GOB Allocation: $175 million

A new Miami Museum of Science and Planetarium, with gallery space for the Historical Museum, will be constructed in Bicentennial Park on Biscayne Bay in downtown Miami. The new museum will be a state-of-the-art, 250,000-square-foot center for science and technology. A giant exhibit in its own right, the building will showcase the latest developments in new technology. It will provide an active, engaging, participatory experience, with events and facilities playing a prominent role. The project will include a new Outdoor Science Park and Wildlife Center, reinforced with indoor environmental exhibits, to encourage people to get actively involved in environmental issues. It will feature immersive environments, aquarium, interactive exhibits, web cams, expanded wildlife in native environments and links to research projects with real scientists.

GOB Allocation: $8 million

Located in Little Havana, Miami-Dade County Auditorium is a 2,429-seat theater that serves a wide variety of cultural and community groups. GOB funds will be used to upgrade the theater systems and audience amenities as well as to add a campus of ancillary spaces that will support the performance and rehearsal needs of cultural groups.

GOB Allocation: $6.346 million

A converted grocery store located in the heart of Hialeah, the Milander Auditorium will be re-built as a multi-purpose cultural and community space. The flexible-use auditorium will be designed to serve as a state-of-the-art cultural center adjacent to the existing library and recreational complex along 49th Street.

GOB Allocation: $10 million

The South Miami-Dade Cultural Center has been designed by local, world-renowned architectural firm Arquitectonica Int. Inc. and is a key component of Commissioner Dennis C. Moss’ Plan for the development of downtown Cutler Ridge. Construction is scheduled to begin in late 2005, with a facility opening projected for late 2007. The Center is comprised of a 71,500 sq. ft. Main Building housing a 966-seat theater on three levels, orchestra pit, stage area with fly loft space, multi-purpose room, dressing rooms, administrative offices, and a separate 7,500 sq. ft. Activities Building providing rehearsal, small-scale performance, and classroom spaces. Adjacent to the South Miami-Dade Government Center, the Cultural Center will also provide a plaza and lawn for outdoor concerts, festivals, and art fairs.

GOB Allocation: $10 million

This Miami Beach-based museum showcases American and European decorative and fine arts produced between late 19th to mid-20th centuries. The expansion with GOB funds is anticipated to include such elements as additional exhibition space, a new auditorium, classrooms and educational spaces, public amenities, and a state of the art study center to enable the public access to the museum’s extensive collection. The Wolfsonian’s holdings include more than 100,000 objects, rare books, and archives, and were conservatively valued at $75 million in 1997 when Mitchell Wolfson, Jr. donated it to Florida International University.

GOB Allocation: $50 million

GOB funds will be used for renovations and upgrades to the Main House and Gardens of this National Historic Landmark property. In addition, the Vizcaya farm village will be restored and reactivated for cultural and educational programming. Vizcaya was built by American industrialist James Deering, who wintered on the property from 1916–1925. Today, the European-inspired estate includes a house filled with art and furnishings, ten acres of gardens on Biscayne Bay, a hardwood hammock (native forest), and a historic village.

GOB Allocation: $4 million

GOB funds will used to create the first cultural center in this West Miami-Dade County neighborhood.