Located in the heart of Miami’s Design District, the 103-year-old Moore Building has discovered what it wants to become.
The final part of a multi-year development project has now been completed. The Hotel at The Moore, as its official name is, will open to the public on October 14 with 13 suites available for guests.
Suites
The largest suite is approximately 1,100 square feet, while the smallest is at least 700 square feet. Each room has a separate living room. Most have a small area upon entering where you can sit at a dining table and relax with a glass of wine or a meal, make business deals or buy or sell art. A door closes the room from the bedroom and provides privacy. The toilets are separated from the showers, making it easier to invite business associates for longer meetings.
Suites range from $800 to $2,000 per night.
Hotel guests will have full access to the private club during their stay, which occupies much of the second and third floors of the Moore Building and opened in April.
The art-rich, members-only club includes 157 works of art, largely loaned by members. The Elastika restaurant occupies the first floor and is open to the public. The entire space is 90,000 square feet. The hotel entrance is at 4040 NE Second Ave.
The developer and operator of the project is WoodHouse, known for building upscale members-only clubs in Dallas and Houston and for creating the headquarters of the Dallas Cowboys. It received a lease from longtime Moore owner Craig Robins. It then engaged the architectural and design firms ICRAVE and Studio-Collective.
History
The land where the Moore Building stands was once a pineapple farm owned by Theodore Vivian Moore, called Pineapple King of South Florida. Together with architect and financier David P. Davis, he then developed it in the 1920s, initially as a furniture store. It then became a furniture warehouse and later an event space for artists and creatives. Design Miami, the annual art fair dedicated to exhibitions of museum-quality furniture and decorative arts, began in the Moore Building. Bono performed there for a private event. Miami’s Design and Architecture Senior High used it for an annual gala.
It is perhaps best known as the home of the late Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid’s enormous sculpture, which she created on site for Art Basel in 2005. The Herald described the piece that year as “a spectacular and somewhat mysterious slanted white piece that fills the room like bubble gum” in a profile of the first woman to win the Pritzker Prize.
Although the latest version of the Moore is new, Hadid’s sculpture remains center stage. Guests can view it just outside every hotel room. The four floors of the building surround it.
The overall development of the Moore Building has been in the works for years.
Robins, a Miami Beach native, has been trying to determine the proper use of the property and searching for the right developer. It is one of the most iconic buildings in Miami and was central to the rise of the Design District. “The historic nature of it and the cultural roots of what happened in the building are profound,” said Brady Wood, founder and CEO of WoodHouse, in an interview. He understood and respected the wait.
First impressions
At the end of 2020, Robins Wood called. He was impressed with Wood’s work and thought this might be the person who could get the most out of the Moore.
Shortly afterwards, Wood flew to Miami and Robins took him to the Design District to see the Moore.
“I took one look at the building and my jaw hit the ground,” Wood said. A 100-year-old heavy wood building in Miami is rare, he noted, and “the light coming through the ceiling was breathtaking.” He immediately recognized the building’s significance and potential, even though he had never worked in South Florida.
He then brought in ICRAVE and Studio-Collective to do the architecture and interior design.
“It was quite intimidating to have to understand how we were going to plan it and how we were going to use the extensive space to create intimacy,” said Lionel Ohayon, founder and CEO of ICRAVE, in an interview. Early on he wondered how they would bring this thing to life.
“The real breakthrough for us came when we started mapping this in 3D and understanding how light gets into it and how people move through it,” he says.
The building already had a large atrium. They’ve opened up that space further. Now even more light shines down into the interior and over Hadid’s artwork.
As part of the original plans they created Elastika, the restaurant on the ground floor. It opened last April and has a menu with an emphasis on produce, seafood and meat from local suppliers. The designers and operator hope it will become an important public meeting place for people visiting the Design District. From October 7, it will be open seven days a week, from 12 noon. There is also happy hour from Monday to Saturday from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM. The idea was to fulfill Robin’s long-standing desire: a main lobby for Miami’s Design District. It’s a place “to hang out, bring your friends and eat,” Wood said. He sees it as the hub for the entire neighborhood.
All hotel suites are located on the fourth floor, as far away from the noise as possible. “During events you also want a level of privacy” for guests, said Christian Schulz, co-founder of Studio-Collective, in an interview.
The plans initially called for as many as 17 rooms. The concept was that they would revolve around the central atrium space. But as they built the individual rooms, they discovered the challenges of developing an old building.
One day they found an elevator shaft behind the walls, Schulz recalls, so they had to move some rooms. “We were always moving things around,” he says
The building also includes an art gallery on the third floor, open to the public for rentals and shows. There is currently an exhibition of Mr.’s work on display. Drip. There is also an area called Workspace, which offers private offices for rent, desks and co-working spaces.
The hotel also distinguishes itself in other ways. There is no swimming pool here. There is also no beach, pool terrace or fountains with running water. That was intentional.
“You don’t come here because there’s a pool and a spa. It’s not the usual trappings when you come to Miami,” Ohayon said.
Place for adults
Access to the members-only club seems like a much more important benefit.
Since the private club opened on April 16, more than 120 events have taken place. It has several lounges, game rooms and a speakeasy with metal doors. It has several meeting rooms, including the so-called La Pina (pineapple) room, a tribute to the history of the Moore Building. It also has a large private dining area where members can eat on couches or tables. Like Elastika, the kitchen is led by Florida native and chef Joe Anthony.
If you are interested in joining the private club, you can sign up on the website. It has multiple tiers: the lowest is $5,000 for an initiation fee with an annual fee of $5,000, while the highest is by invitation only and can go up to $125,000.
Wood says he imagines that during one of Miami’s big art or fashion weeks, designers or others could stay in the hotel suites and use the front foyer as a showroom. That space then becomes an extension of the specific event.
If successful, it could be an important reflection of the Magic City.
“Miami is a city, people live here, and in many ways this is turning its back on the beach by moving to mainland Miami and supporting a neighborhood that is full of creatives and art, full of fashion and full of delicious food, Ohayon said.
It’s a “coming of age” for the city, he said.
Photos: The Moore Building
HOTEL AMENITIES
▪ Full access to the Club + Workspace
▪ Concierge services
▪ Dedicated butler
▪ Cultural programming
▪ Personal Shopping + Lifestyle Advice
▪ VIP access + privacy
▪ Culinary facilities + in-room dining
The Moore Building
Where: 4040 NE Second Ave
Info: https://www.mooremiami.com/hotel
