Miami is drawing up a plan to let Rockstar Games and Take-Two Interactive rent up to six downtown banners for $202,000 apiece during the launch window of Grand Theft Auto VI, with the roughly $1.2 million in proceeds earmarked for the Underdeck Heritage Trail park rather than the city's general fund.
The proposed ordinance, sponsored by City Commissioner Damian Pardo, would temporarily loosen billboard and signage rules and apply from October 15 through December 31, 2026, bracketing the game's November 19 launch date, according to GTA BOOM. Under the plan, Rockstar and Take-Two could cover downtown Miami with GTA VI promotional banners, building wraps, and displays, though any promotional displays would still require downtown homeowner association approval. The outlet reports the arrangement is temporary, privately funded, and confined to downtown billboards, with the city commission set to vote on the ordinance next Thursday, September 10.
The banner revenue would flow directly into the Underdeck park project, a 33-acre linear park designed to reconnect Overtown with downtown Miami beneath the new I-395 Signature Bridge. That funding path carries real urgency: the U.S. Department of Transportation rescinded a $60.3 million federal grant for the project in August 2025 following new federal legislation, according to Florida Politics, leaving the $82 million park facing a major shortfall. The overhead bridge structure itself, an $866 million state project, saw new delays in July 2025 that pushed completion back to late 2029, per Miami New Times.
A Much Smaller Ask Than the County's Stalled Vision
Miami's six-banner proposal looks modest next to Miami-Dade County's own pitch to Rockstar, which sought a far broader takeover of public infrastructure. The county's 19-page proposal, submitted in July 2026 and detailed in Hoodline's earlier reporting, floated temporarily rebranding Miami International Airport as “Vice City Airport,” wrapping Metromover trains in game artwork, installing Vice City-branded manhole covers, and hosting a car culture festival at Tropical Park. That county arrangement has undisclosed exact terms and, per GTA BOOM's reporting, nothing about the broader Miami-Dade takeover has been approved.
The county proposal has instead run into fierce political resistance. Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz and County Commissioner Juan Carlos Bermudez released a joint statement on September 3 rejecting any county marketing deal with Rockstar, arguing public facilities should not be used to promote a video game franchise centered on murder, carjacking, and violence against law enforcement, according to a Miami-Dade County statement. Cordero-Stutz noted that officers work daily to combat the exact criminal behaviors depicted in the game. Bermudez went further, criticizing Mayor Daniella Levine Cava's staff for entertaining the partnership and saying the county's goal should be to remain “paradise and not to be paradise lost” for marketing dollars, according to WSVN 7News. GTA BOOM reports the county takeover has faced opposition from the sheriff, a commissioner, and the chief judge.
How the Talks Became Public
The negotiations came to light after veteran Miami watchdog journalist Francisco Alvarado broke the story in late August for the independent newsletter The Miamian, obtaining the county's 19-page pitch deck through a Florida public records request, according to Secret Miami. The documents became public record because marketing proposals received or created by county officials are subject to disclosure under Chapter 119 of the Florida Statutes and Article I, Section 24 of the Florida Constitution. GTA BOOM also reports that, per the Miamian's reporting, Rockstar Games and Take-Two Interactive have no registered lobbyists in Miami city or county databases.
Pardo's History With Banner Deals
Commissioner Pardo is not new to leveraging street signage for local economic goals. In May 2024, he allocated $10,000 in district funds to install street-pole promotional banners along Grand Avenue to launch the Little Bahamas Business Corridor, according to Coconut Grove Spotlight. Pardo was elected to represent City Commission District 2 in November 2023.
A Commercial Juggernaut Fuels Municipal Interest
The scramble for a piece of GTA VI's marketing budget reflects the sheer scale of the release. Shares of Rockstar parent company Take-Two Interactive rose 2.3% in pre-market trading on August 28 after the studio released an extended gameplay preview on Netflix and reaffirmed its November 19 launch date, according to ADVFN. The game is anticipated to be one of the largest media releases in history, and interest has spread well beyond South Florida. The U.S. Army's 92nd Engineer Battalion at Fort Stewart, Georgia, offered soldiers a four-day special pass in August as a reenlistment incentive tied to the launch, as Hoodline previously reported in its piece on the battalion's reenlistment pass.
For now, Miami's path forward hinges on next Thursday's commission vote. If approved, the six-banner ordinance would represent a narrower, privately funded compromise, directing corporate marketing dollars toward the Underdeck park's funding gap while sidestepping the public safety objections that have stalled the county's much larger Vice City ambitions.
