A $13 million marine operations center will replace the aging patrol building at Maurice Gibb Memorial Park in Miami Beach's Sunset Harbour neighborhood, putting police and fire marine units under one roof on Biscayne Bay.

The city of Miami Beach will hold a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Marine Patrol Facility on Friday, July 24, at 9:30 a.m. at Purdy Avenue and 18th Street. The project consolidates the Miami Beach Police Department and Miami Beach Fire Department marine patrol units into a single facility for the first time, a move the city says will improve emergency response across the waterfront.

New building will triple the current footprint

The existing two-story, 2,500-square-foot building at 1790 Purdy Ave. will be demolished to make way for a three-story, 10,924-square-foot facility, according to the city's project fact sheet.

The ground floor will include a public lobby, upgraded public restrooms, a parks department office, covered boat storage and secure equipment storage for both police and fire marine units. The second floor will become the new headquarters for the Miami Beach Police Department's marine patrol unit. The third floor will be dedicated to the Miami Beach Fire Department's marine patrol unit.

The facility is being designed to achieve LEED Gold certification, a nationally recognized sustainability standard for energy efficiency, water conservation, indoor environmental quality and environmentally responsible building materials.

Construction timeline runs about 13 months

Construction will begin after the July 24 groundbreaking and is expected to last about 13 months, with work scheduled on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The project is funded through the 2018 voter-approved general obligation bond as G.O. Bond Project No. 54.

M.C. Harry is the architect, and Lunacon Construction Group is the contractor. David Gomez, the city's capital improvement projects director, is leading the effort alongside senior project manager Predrag Kosovac and project manager Lazaro Martinez.

Parking near the boat ramp will be affected

During construction, part of the Maurice Gibb Memorial Park boat ramp parking area will be temporarily inaccessible. The city said the construction zone should not affect the parking lot adjacent to the playground.

The park reopened in April 2025 after a separate bond-funded expansion that added a fishing pier, living shoreline and higher seawall.

Residents with questions about the project can contact South Beach neighborhood affairs manager Lauren Firtel at [email protected] or 305-986-6403.