It’s a lot easier to keep Coral Gables businesses operating well and happily in the city, than to attract and secure new ones. That’s part of the reason the city is partnering with the Miami-Dade Beacon Council and why they will soon be launching survey of existing Gables businesses as part of larger countywide effort.
The Coral Gables Economic Development Board on Oct. 7 discussed a new business visitation survey designed to give the city a more formal picture of how existing businesses are doing.
Belkys Perez, the city’s director of Economic Development, said the survey will focus initially on businesses that have been established in Coral Gables for the longest time, as well as some of the city’s largest employers.
The questionnaire asks businesses about their plans and outlook, including whether they are considering expanding or contracting, when their leases expire or are up for renewal, and whether they anticipate making changes to their operations.
The goal, Perez said, is to identify businesses that may be considering leaving and determine whether the city can help them remain in Coral Gables.
“It’s a lot easier to retain a business than go out and get new ones,” Perez told the board.
Perez said the city already conducts informal outreach to businesses, but the new survey would put that work into a more consistent format while strengthening its partnership with the Beacon Council, Miami-Dade County’s economic development organization.
The Beacon Council has sought the city’s assistance in conducting business surveys because of the difficulty of reaching businesses throughout the county. Its goal is to survey approximately 300 businesses each year, Perez said.
Coral Gables will use most of the Beacon Council’s questionnaire, with only a few questions omitted. The city will also share information gathered through its visits with the Beacon Council.
Perez said the survey will not initially involve every business. Newer businesses already have regular points of contact with the city through the business tax-license process. Instead, the effort will concentrate first on businesses that have been in the city longer.
Perez added that the survey can help identify potential problems before a business decides to leave. In some cases, she said, businesses need assistance with matters such as parking or permitting when they expand.
One challenge for businesses seeking to expand, she said, is the limited availability of contiguous space large enough to accommodate major corporations.
Have Gables business recovered to pre-pandemic levels?
The board also received an update from Perez on the city’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly the return of workers to Coral Gables’ central business district.
Using 2019 as a pre-pandemic baseline, Perez said the city had about 12,000 employees in the central business district. During the first half of 2026, that number reached approximately 12,400 — about 3% above the 2019 level.
While employment has recovered, employee visitation has not fully returned to pre-pandemic levels because many workers now operate under hybrid schedules.
Perez said employee visits are currently at about 92% of the 2019 level, with roughly 1.1 million visits compared with 1.2 million before the pandemic.
The recovery also varies by day. Tuesday has reached about 95% of its 2019 activity, while Friday remains at about 80%, making it the largest remaining gap.
At the same time, weekend activity has increased substantially, Perez said, benefiting restaurants and retail businesses as more residents and visitors spend time downtown outside the traditional workweek.
Board members discussed ways the city could encourage more Friday activity, including partnerships with restaurants and employers to promote group lunches or other incentives.
Perez said the city’s economic development efforts will continue to focus not only on bringing businesses and workers back downtown, but on finding ways to increase overall visitation and support the businesses that depend on it.
Author: Coral Gables Gazette News Staff
Originally established in 1996 and relaunched as a digital publication in February 2025, the Coral Gables Gazette is an independent local news organization dedicated to factual, objective and accountable community journalism. Our newsroom reports on the people, policies, institutions and events shaping Coral Gables, Florida, providing residents with timely, informative coverage of the issues affecting their community. Our reporting includes City Hall, local government, municipal elections, public spending, real estate development, business, education, arts and culture, and neighborhood affairs throughout the City Beautiful. We follow City Commission decisions, examine public records and report on the businesses, organizations and individuals contributing to Coral Gables. We believe informed residents are essential to a healthy, engaged community. Stories published under the Coral Gables Gazette News Staff byline are prepared or compiled by the publication's editorial team. We strive for accuracy, fairness, transparency and clear distinctions between news reporting, opinion and advertising. Readers are encouraged to submit news tips, corrections, editorial inquiries and story suggestions through our Contact page and learn more about our standards through our Editorial Policy.
