The new 507-ft-long South West 1st Street bridge provides a stylish connection between downtown Miami and the Little Havana neighborhood, with a 315-ft double-leaf bascule span across the 125-ft-wide Miami River navigation channel. Drawing on input from a community advisory committee, the bridge’s art deco-themed aesthetics with local architecture and those of the predecessor crossing, built in the late 1920s. The project also included two new approach spans providing 18 ft of clearance over North River and South River Drives, new seawalls along the river, incorporation of Miami Greenway riverwalks, an improved stormwater drainage system, decorative street lighting and an exclusive bicycle lane.

Constructing this signature structure required extensive coordination given the volume of cargo traffic on the river, as well as the constraints of a busy urban area adjacent to Interstate 95, including multiple other building projects nearby. Cofferdams were built to allow installation of prestressed driven concrete piles into preformed holes.