Mix-Master

Over the years, the architects of Coral Gables created a rich tapestry of building styles that continue to define the city.

By Bruce Fitzgerald and Karelia Martinez Carbonell. Photo by Vicki Cerda.

As a thriving 21st-century metropolis with 20th-century roots, Coral Gables has long celebrated its trove of historic buildings, committing significant resources to their preservation and to an understanding of the importance of distinct architectural styles. From Mediterranean Revival to Neo-Baroque, Streamline Moderne to Googie, the mix was the message. 

Renowned as a repository of 1920s homes, hotels, shops, and civic buildings, the city has extended its architectural reach in subsequent decades. While the Depression marked the big divide between the city’s original European-inspired buildings and the Modernist style that followed, the transition served to open the design floodgates to include even more building styles. Brutalism and Post-Modernism eventually became part of the mix. And the streets became the conduit for the expression of the city’s architectural identity. Consider the words of well-known designer and author Burton Hersch on the subject of historic preservation: “…the most anti-historic thing you can do is make new things look old, because when you are trying to preserve something in historic preservation you don’t mistake new fabric for old fabric – history is embellished in the facade of the street.” 

Coral Gables has been making history for 100 years, ever since its1925 inception. The urban tapestry has grown ever larger, and more complex, reflecting changing standards of beauty and the disparate needs of the populace. Through it all, the architects continued to enhance George Merrick’s vision of a cosmopolitan tropical city.