ULI Southeast Florida/Caribbean’s Vision

Bernardo Fort-Brescia is the owner and principal of Arquitectonica, an architecture firm established in1977. Arquitectonica received acclaim because of the bold modernism style it implemented, as evidenced in a renaissance in the Miami urban landscape. In 2017, Bernardo Fort-Brescia and his co-principal, Laurinda Spear received a lifetime achievement award from the Southeast Florida/Caribbean District Council of the Urban Land Institute.

The Urban Land Institute (ULI) is a research and education organization with about 45,000 members worldwide. The institute aims to “shape the future of the built environment for transformative impact in communities worldwide.” Every year, ULI Southeast Florida/ Caribbean honors the best building projects and top leaders in the local region through the Vision Awards.

In choosing award winners, ULI Southeast Florida/ Caribbean picks the individuals and projects that best exemplify the institute’s dedication to land use and development. The district selects award winners based on four major areas; leadership, responsibility, impact, and innovation. The awards are cut across various areas of the building industry, and a wide range of professionals are eligible.

Arquitectonica Designs New Virgin

With a global presence in contemporary urban architecture, Bernardo Fort-Brescia, FAIA serves as founding principal of Miami-based Arquitectonica. One of Bernardo Fort-Brescia’s high-profile projects is a Virgin Voyages cruise terminal that broke ground at PortMiami in early 2021.

Designed for a premier location framed by the downtown Miami skyline, Terminal V spans 100,000 square feet and has a design inspired by Miami Beach’s iconic palm groves. With the rooftop mimicking a palm tree grove, pockets are designed to let natural light stream into the main building. At night, the rooftop features a large red Virgin Voyages logo that mirrors the civic skyline.

Crafted of storm-proof glass, the two-story facility offers the ground-level atmosphere of a lush plaza and accommodates drop-off areas for ride-share, VIPs, and provisioning. The result is a distinctive “shore to ship experience” that puts passengers in a vacation state of mind when they arrive.

With large-scale ships, such as Scarlet Lady, set to embark from the world's cruise capital, the LEED Gold-certified cruise terminal represents a long-term commitment by Virgin Voyages to PortMiami.