By Coral Gables Gazette staff

The recently approved and soon-to-be-constructed Mobility Hub just south of Miracle Mile in the 200 block of Aragon Avenue should be the prize jewel of the Coral Gables Parking Board’s future plans. After all, it will provide more than 600 parking spaces for the city’s central business district, and replace one of two dilapidated structures on Aragon Avenue.

But judging by the board’s March 18 meeting, some board members are less than thrilled with the Mobility Hub’s design and openly questioned the scale and ultimate purpose of the building. After a prolonged discussion on the multiple steps the city would be taking to mitigate lost parking during construction of the Mobility Hub – and the loss of the existing parking garage spaces – things started going sideways when two board members began questioning the merits of the proposed structure.

Board members Blanca Famadas and Lisa DeTournay led the critique, raising concerns about both the size and long-term rationale behind the project. DeTournay questioned why the structure needed to be as tall as proposed, suggesting that elements such as rooftop uses could have been sacrificed in favor of a shorter, more traditional parking facility, a concern she previously brought up at a City Commission meeting in August of last year. 

Famadas raised concerns about whether the building’s design fits within the character of Coral Gables, arguing it does not “honor what the city is all about.”

The discussion quickly turned to the concept they believed was underpinning the Mobility Hub itself: that it is being designed not just as a parking garage, but as a convertible structure that could one day be repurposed into residential or office space. That future flexibility, intended as a forward-looking feature, instead became a focal point of skepticism.

DeTournay questioned the logic of investing heavily in what she described as a temporary solution. “The ultimate goal is not for that to be permanent,” she said, arguing that the city is effectively asking residents to support a large expenditure for a facility that could eventually be “flipped” into another use. Both she and Famadas suggested that the project’s scale and cost are difficult to justify if its primary function (parking) may diminish in importance over time.

Parking Director Monica Beltran defended the concept, explaining that the design reflects an effort to “right-size” parking for both present and future needs. The ability to convert the structure later, she said, ensures the city is not left with excess parking capacity if transportation trends shift. “You don’t want excessive parking, and you don’t want under-parking,” Beltran said. “You want to be right-sized… and have options for what to do with excess parking.”

The conversation also veered into the role of emerging technologies, particularly autonomous vehicles. Beltran recounted a recent ride in a Waymo self-driving car, noting both its capabilities and the rapid pace of change in transportation. That prompted De Tournay to question whether such innovations could eventually make large parking structures obsolete. “We don’t need a mobility hub if we’re going to have everybody taking Waymos,” she said.

Beltran acknowledged the potential impact of autonomous vehicles but emphasized that widespread adoption remains uncertain and likely years away. In the meantime, she said, the city must address current parking demand while remaining flexible for the future. The Mobility Hub’s convertible design, she argued, is a practical response to that uncertainty.

Despite the philosophical debate, Beltran reiterated that the project has already been approved and that staff is now focused on managing the transition. Much of the meeting centered on efforts to mitigate the temporary loss of more than 200 parking spaces during construction and to minimize impacts on nearby businesses.

Among the strategies discussed were increasing valet options, relocating city vehicles to free up public spaces, coordinating with private garages, and potentially expanding shuttle or “park-and-ride” services to move visitors from more distant parking areas. The city is also conducting regular parking occupancy counts, exploring reservation systems for spaces, and working with businesses to coordinate delivery schedules and peak demand periods.

Beltran said the city has already begun outreach to merchants and stakeholders to better understand their needs and adjust plans accordingly. “We’re looking at anything and everything that we can do to help,” she said.

While debate over the Mobility Hub’s design and long-term purpose may continue, the immediate challenge facing the Parking Board and the city will be ensuring that access to the downtown area remains as seamless as possible during the construction phase.