Last week, after more than 50 years of advocating for local businesses, the Miami-Dade Chamber of Commerce cut the ribbon on its first permanent headquarters in the organization’s history.
Returning to its roots in Liberty City, the Chamber’s new headquarters and small business incubator was framed as a launching pad for Black entrepreneurship and a steward of Northwest 15th Avenue’s revival as a historic business corridor.
The “Serenity at Liberty Square” mixed-use development will serve as the Chamber’s permanent home.
“It didn’t just happen with me and a couple people. It was many folks who came together to see this to fruition,” said Chamber President G. Eric Knowles after the ribbon-cutting. “Having a 3,500-square-foot office, providing support and technical services for small businesses — it’s a community effort.”
The new office is based out of The Serenity at Liberty Square, a 193-unit mixed-use building at the center of a multi-phase redevelopment plan. Spearheaded by Related Urban Development Group (RUDG), the initiative aims to revitalize the historic Liberty Square community.
An indoor look at the Chamber’s new facility.
Miami-Dade County leaders turned out in force for the ceremony, including City of Miami Commissioner Christine King and State Rep. Ashley Gantt.
King described the new office as a “game changer” for the community, noting its potential to transform local businesses. She is also sponsoring a new grant to contribute to that effort.
Miami Gardens Councilwoman Katrina Baskin, one of the many Miami-Dade leaders at the ceremony, speaks to another attendee.
The grant offers up to $10,000 to small businesses in District 5, but outside of Overtown and Little Haiti, which already have funding opportunities through the Southeast Overtown/Park West Community Redevelopment Agency (SEOPW CRA) or the Little Haiti Revitalization Trust. King encouraged every business owner in attendance to apply.
“This is evidence that dreams do come true, that there is no space that is not salvageable. We can do anything if we come together as a community like we have right now for this moment,” said King.
City of Miami Commission Chairwoman Christine King, Miami-Dade County Commissioner Eileen Higgins, and Florida Rep. Ashley Gantt sit side-by-side as members of the Chamber are honored.
Beyond the potential for economic development, King hopes the office will inspire residents to become Liberty City’s next entrepreneurs and contribute to 15th Avenue’s rise to prominence.
“It may give them the entrepreneurial bug,” she said. “‘I can have my own business, I can own my own business. This person is doing it, therefore I can do it.’ And the elimination of slum and blight in this area gives the community pride.”
Gantt, who spoke on behalf of both herself and an absent Sen. Shevrin Jones, emphasized the importance of economic development in the Black community, rallying behind the Chamber’s mission.
“As an entrepreneur, I understand the impact Black businesses have,” she said. “I am honored that it’s in our community, and I look forward to partnering with the chamber throughout my time here and to pass it on to whoever comes after me.”
For RUDG President Alberto Milo Jr., the opening of the Chamber’s new headquarters was a long time coming.
Chairwoman Christine King congratulates the Chamber on stage and declares her support.
He described how the annual purchasing power of the approximately 450 families living in Liberty Square was less than $9 million before the redevelopment initiative, but said that number rose to $56 million after the project’s four phases.
“You can do redevelopment. You can take care of the people that live in the community. You can bring mixed income and you can raise the standards for the whole community,” Milo Jr. said on stage.
For RUDG President Albert Milo Jr., the office’s completion was a monumental step toward a greater plan.
As RUDG prepares for the next phases of Liberty Square’s development, he estimates the area’s purchasing power will climb to $130 million.
“That’s a dramatic difference in the ability for people to do business. That’s why it was so important to bring the chamber here to be able to have an opportunity for local businesses, Black businesses to thrive and bring back 15th Avenue,” he said.
Members of the audience listen as Chamber President Gordon Eric Knowles speaks.
At the ceremony’s close, Knowles underscored the Chamber’s historic return to Liberty City. He reminded attendees that members had been “nomads” since its founding in 1974, moving from universities, banks and civic centers before inevitably returning home.
He stressed 15th Avenue’s status as one of Miami’s “main streets” essential to the city’s economic lifeblood, and vowed that the new headquarters would be the center of a new era of economic progress.
Central to this mission is the small business incubator that will be based out of the building, which aims to nurture early stage businesses by providing critical resources and guidance services.
A sign depicting the MDCC’s logo outside of its new headquarters.
“15th Avenue is back, and the Miami-Dade Chamber of Commerce plants its flag back in Liberty City after 51 years,” said Knowles. “We’ve been on life support, but we’re here to pump up that volume and keep it going.”
Jelani Miller, a general contractor who grew up in Liberty City, traveled to the ceremony to meet with Knowles, hoping to strike a partnership with his company, J. Mill’s R&R Construction, and the Chamber.
Knowles delivers the ribbon-cutting ceremony’s closing remarks.
That the Chamber’s office will be based out of his community means a great deal to Miller, but he says it will only succeed if the community is aware of the resources they provide.
Accessibility of information and resources will need to be at the front of the Chamber’s mind, and events like the ceremony contribute to that end, Miller said.
“You definitely got to educate,” he said. “Educating and putting on enough of these to let the community know what’s going on as far as they can know what’s going on and what’s coming.”
