By Victor J. Rosario, Candidate for Miami-Dade County Mayor
If you've ever driven the MacArthur Causeway toward Miami Beach, you've passed it. Just before you reach South Beach, on your right, there's a small island sitting in Biscayne Bay. Most people never think twice about it. It's home to U.S. Coast Guard Base Miami Beach and Sector Miami, at 100 MacArthur Causeway.
I know that island. I'm a U.S. Coast Guard veteran. And I can tell you plainly: that island is some of the most valuable land in Miami-Dade County, and it should be working for the residents of this county.
I call it 8 Torres.
The Plan
Under my administration, the Coast Guard station will be removed from the island, and the island will be used for county and public-safety purposes. The Coast Guard will have to relocate off the island. No part of the island will be kept for the station. On that island, Miami-Dade County will build eight towers.
The island will also keep a small, dedicated marine public-safety area. It will have space for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), so state officers can patrol the bay and carry out their duties, and space for the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office Marine Unit. Both agencies will be able to launch directly from the island, right at the gateway to Miami Beach and Biscayne Bay.
Eight towers with space for everything: restaurants, shops, nightlife, and marine public safety, all on one county-owned island.
What's Inside 8 Torres
Every tower's lobby will be open to the public and built to generate revenue for Project Fund.
- Restaurants in the lobby areas, for residents, tourists, and cruise passengers heading to and from PortMiami.
- Miami-Dade shops selling the things visitors always look for: towels, t-shirts, and souvenirs representing Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach, and all 34 municipalities. Everything a traditional cruise passenger or tourist buys on the way in or out of Miami, sold in a county-owned store where the profits come back to the residents.
Two Nightclubs, Done Differently
8 Torres will be home to two nightclubs: one dedicated to EDM, and one playing hip-hop and Top 40 together, so people can dance and have fun all night.
Traditionally, when you go to a club anywhere, you either buy a bottle or you buy an entry. That's how it has always been. Since we are building this system from scratch, we are going to do things very differently.
Your ride is part of your ticket. When you buy your entry, you add your home address. Your ticket includes a voucher to be picked up by the MDC Rideshare app, the county's own rideshare, driven by residents, for residents.
Tables for your whole group. You can book a table that comes with one or two bottles or champagne. You select how many people are coming. Your friends park at your home, everybody gets picked up together, everybody has a great night, and when the night is over, everyone gets picked up and taken home.
Why do it this way?
- Responsibility. We want to take care of everybody who walks into our spot, and that includes making sure they get home safely.
- No parking problem. We are not building a lot of parking on the island. Everyone arrives by taxi, by public transportation on Miami-Dade Transit, or by MDC Rideshare. The bus stops right in front of the island: you step off, you walk in, and at the end of the night you ride home. No DUIs, everybody gets home safe, everybody has a great time.
- Rides for residents. Every pickup and drop-off is a ride given by a Miami-Dade resident driver, creating a way of getting around that is completely unique to our county.
This is how we build: from zero, the right way, and every piece connected back to the residents. And we are going to keep building.
Not eight towers sold off to a private developer. Not eight towers where the profits leave the county. Eight county-owned buildings, operated under MDC Quarters, generating revenue that comes straight back to the people who live here.
Why "8 Torres"
The name is a tribute to Calle Ocho — the heart of Little Havana and one of the most recognized streets in the world. Calle Ocho represents who we are: immigrants, families, workers, small business owners, culture, music, and pride. Eight towers standing at the gateway to Miami Beach will carry that same spirit. Every person who drives across the MacArthur Causeway, every cruise passenger leaving PortMiami, every visitor landing in our county will see them — and they will know they belong to the residents.
MDC Quarters Brickell: 909 SE 1st Avenue
8 Torres is not the only MDC Quarters property. The second is in the heart of Brickell: the Brickell Plaza Federal Building at 909 SE 1st Avenue, Miami, FL 33131. It's a nine-story building on a lot of about 60,000 square feet, right on the Metromover line and walking distance from Brickell City Centre.
Today it houses the headquarters of Coast Guard District 7, now called the Southeast District. Just like the station on the island, District 7 will have to relocate out of Brickell. The property will become county-owned under MDC Quarters.
The federal government itself has already said it doesn't want this building. In late 2024, the General Services Administration named it one of eight federal properties nationwide it planned to sell instead of paying for a costly renovation. Miami-Dade should not let prime Brickell land go to the highest private bidder. It should belong to the residents, and its profits should flow into Project Fund alongside 8 Torres.
How 8 Torres Pays the Residents: Project Fund
8 Torres is part of Project Fund, my plan to create new county-owned industries whose profits go back to the people.
Here's how it works:
- Revenue from 8 Torres flows into Project Fund.
- Profits are split 70% to residents and 30% to the county.
- Residents receive their benefit every 3 months.
Project Fund is not a stock, a dividend, or a financial product. It's a benefit. The land belongs to the county, the buildings belong to the county, and the county belongs to the residents. So the residents share in what it earns.
The 30% that stays with the county goes back into services, maintenance, and future Project Fund projects — so the county gets stronger without asking residents to pay more.
Building It Right
I am pro-development and pro-construction. But we are going to build responsibly, without cutting corners.
- Designed for transit and rideshare, not parking. The island will not carry a large parking footprint. Visitors arrive by taxi, by Miami-Dade Transit bus, or by MDC Rideshare, so we don't add traffic and parking pressure to the causeway or the neighborhoods around us.
- Built for our climate. This is an island in Biscayne Bay. Resilience, flood protection, and hurricane standards are non-negotiable from day one.
- Full transparency. Every contract, every cost, and every dollar of revenue from 8 Torres will be published on the Public Integrity Portal. If you're a resident, you'll be able to see exactly what your towers are earning.
Residents First
This administration puts the residents of Miami-Dade County first — ahead of developers, ahead of donors, ahead of friends. Too often, the most valuable land in our county gets handed over, and the people who live here never see a dollar of it.
8 Torres changes that. Prime waterfront land at the entrance to Miami Beach, owned by the county, operated for the county, paying the residents every three months.
That's what a residents-first administration looks like.
8 Torres. Built by Miami-Dade. Owned by Miami-Dade. Paying Miami-Dade.
— Victor J. Rosario victormiamidadecountymayor.com
About Victor J. Rosario
Victor J. Rosario is the Residents-First candidate for Miami-Dade County Mayor 2028. A U.S. Coast Guard veteran, entrepreneur, technologist, and artist, Victor brings a track record of building real solutions — from AI tools to campaign policy — that serve Miami-Dade's 2.8 million residents.
Learn More About Victor