Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is proposing to use a parking lot next to Miami’s Freedom Tower as the site for a Donald Trump presidential library. The 2.6-acre parcel at 500-540 Biscayne Boulevard in downtown Miami would become the first presidential library in Florida if approved.
DeSantis plans to bring the proposal before the Florida Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund, which will vote on it at its September 30 meeting. “No state has better delivered the President’s agenda than the Free State of Florida,” DeSantis said in a statement. “And we would be honored to house his presidential library here in his home state.”
Donald Trump, who served as both the 45th and 47th president of the United States, resides primarily at Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach.
The trustees of the improvement trust fund include DeSantis, Attorney General James Uthmeier, Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia, and Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson. This board manages decisions regarding state-owned lands.
Currently, employees of Miami-Dade College’s Wolfson Campus use the parking lot that could become the library site. On Tuesday morning, according to reporting from the Miami Herald, Miami-Dade College’s board of trustees voted to transfer ownership of this property to the state. The college also owns Freedom Tower, which reopened recently after undergoing $25 million worth of renovations.
Freedom Tower is considered one of downtown Miami’s most recognizable landmarks. Built in 1925 as home to The Miami News newspaper, it later became known for its role as a Cuban Refugee Center during the 1960s and 1970s when it helped many Cuban immigrants settle in South Florida. In 2005, Miami-Dade College received Freedom Tower as a donation and turned it into a museum.
DeSantis’ efforts come after tensions between him and Trump during last year’s Republican primary campaign season when DeSantis attempted but failed to win his party’s nomination against Trump. After ending his candidacy in January last year due to lack of support, DeSantis has made moves seen as attempts at reconciliation with Trump.
Recently, DeSantis’ administration supported federal immigration enforcement by converting an old air strip in the Everglades into a detention center called Alligator Alcatraz. A U.S. appeals court recently blocked an order that would have closed this facility.
