Miami Beach’s World-Famous Lifeguard Stands Replaced

Miami Beach is replacing up to 6 of its 29 world-famous lifeguard towers with new models designed by the original architect, Bill Lane. The old, weathered wooden towers are showing their age (I just took the above photos last week) and no longer reflect the vibrant, modern city that they represent. Miami Beach’s World-Famous Lifeguard Stands have appeared in countless books, movies & photos and when they were originally installed in the reconstruction after Hurricane Andrew in 1992, they instantly became landmarks of the revived South Beach. The Ocean Rescue currently guards twenty-five (25) locations. They are located at the Jetty Beach, South Point Park, 1st Street, 3rd Street, 5th Street, 6th Street, 8th Street, 10th Street, 12th Street, 13th Street, 14th Street, 15th Street, Lincoln Rd, 17th Street, 18th Street, 21st Street, 29th Street, 35th Street, 46th Street, 53rd Street, 64th Street, 72nd Street, 74th Street, 77th Street, 79th Street, 81st Street, 83rd Street and 85th Street.

The new towers, a set of six shown above, are both revamped versions of the original designs, and entirely new designs including: the Sci-Fi Earth Cabana, the Punk, the Ducktail Greaser, and the Airstream Diner Trailer.  The City approved the refurbishment in November, with plans to have them ready by the Miami Beach Centennial 100-Hour Celebration.

According to the city’s Design Review Board staff report, discussions about replacing the lifeguard stands began in November of 2006 and took until 2015 to actually accomplish. In the report, the old red-and-white lighthouse-style lifeguard stand at South Pointe (shown in the above photos that I took last week) is New England in style, having no relevance to South Beach. Other lifeguard stands constructed by the city’s Property Management division “Were generally considered decorated in questionable taste,” the report reads. One example of this is the horrid seashell covered stand in my photos!

“When you have structures on the ocean, there’s a lot of wind, there’s a lot of salt, there’s a lot of wear and tear. And that’s our front door. That’s the beginning of where our brand takes place, I think it’s going to be a positive shock, because the new styles and designs are really hip, they’re really cool, and they match what Miami Beach is all about.” said Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine.

“The cost of the new lifeguard stands is about $30,000-$50,000 each, out of $1.5 million that’s already been budgeted. Miami Beach City commissioners still have to bid out construction plans for the lifeguard stand construction.

The city of Miami Beach is considering auctioning off the old stands.