What is now a sea of asphalt at 5800 Blue Lagoon Drive is set to turn into hundreds of homes, after the Miami-Dade County Commission signed off on a major residential redevelopment for the Pullman Miami Airport Hotel property.
The plan keeps the existing 15-story, 281-room hotel in place while carving out its surface parking for two eight-story residential buildings with 600 apartments, ground-floor retail and structured parking. County staff and the developer have framed the deal as a transit-oriented infill move that converts a slice of the Blue Lagoon office district into new housing.
What the Commission Approved
According to Florida YIMBY, the project calls for 600 apartments split between the two eight-story buildings, with 300 of those reserved as workforce units to meet SMART Corridor requirements. The proposal also includes roughly 14,900 square feet of ground-floor retail, about 1,151 parking spaces in structured garages, resident amenities and new pedestrian improvements. The developer plans for the hotel to keep operating alongside the new residential component.
Developer and Design Details
The application was filed by LR Miami Airport Hotel, LLC, an affiliate of London + Regional Properties, with design work by Miami-based firm BIZI ARQ. BIZI ARQ has shared details from the Administrative Site Plan Review filing, along with early visuals that show the two eight-story buildings with street-level retail. Project materials highlight on-site open space and pedestrian connections tying the new construction into the broader Blue Lagoon campus.
Carving Out the Site for Transit Zoning
Per Miami-Dade County documents, about 11.3 gross acres, or roughly 10 net acres, were removed from the Blue Lagoon Development of Regional Impact so the land could be reassigned to the county’s SMART Corridor subzone and redeveloped under rapid-transit zoning rules. County staff recommended approval with conditions and found the plan consistent with the Comprehensive Development Master Plan and with transit-oriented goals for the East-West SMART Corridor along SR-836. Commissioners approved the item with conditions on June 18, 2026.
What Happens Next
The commission’s vote is a big step, but it does not launch construction. The project still needs final site-plan approvals, building permits and financing before any shovels hit the ground. The county’s conditions and follow-up permitting will spell out mitigation requirements, frontage upgrades and how the workforce units will be delivered. Neighbors, transit advocates and the hotel operator will be watching those timelines closely to see when this Blue Lagoon plan moves from paper to reality.
