Aviation Building

Aviation Building was a landmark structure in unincorporated Dade County, Florida, located at 3240 NW 27th Avenue, approximately 16 blocks east of the eastern end of runway 9/27 at what is now Miami International Airport. Although it became associated with aviation education and weather forecasting, the building was not originally designed as an aviation facility. It began as the planned Fritz Hotel, a large hotel project whose construction started in 1925 under the M.R. Harrison Construction Company. By 1927, approximately three quarters of the hotel had been completed. Construction then stopped during the economic collapse associated with the Great Depression. The unfinished structure never opened as a hotel and was instead adapted repeatedly for unrelated uses. After standing unoccupied for about a decade, its owners rented portions of the building to small businesses and modified individual areas to meet the specifications of different occupants. Its first known use was as a temporary poultry facility. The building reportedly housed as many as 60,000 hens, an unexpected function for a structure of hotel scale that led to the nickname “Million Dollar Hen House.” This period illustrates the building’s unusual history: rather than being completed according to its original plan, its substantial shell was repeatedly repurposed as local needs changed. The building acquired its best-known identity in aviation education during the early 1940s. In November 1940, the Technical Division of the Embry-Riddle School of Aviation moved into the south wing. The division trained aircraft mechanics. By 1941, Embry-Riddle had taken over the entire structure, which contained offices, classrooms, workshops, military barracks, a cafeteria, a library, and a clinic. At that point the building was renamed the Aviation Building. Its use by Embry-Riddle connected the site with the expansion of aviation training during the period surrounding the Second World War. The building later accommodated federal meteorological operations. On June 1, 1958, the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Miami moved part of its operations into the building while Embry-Riddle continued to occupy it. A WSR-57 weather radar was installed on the roof on June 26, 1959. The National Weather Service remained there until December 23, 1964, when its offices moved elsewhere. Embry-Riddle left the building in April 1965, reportedly moving the school’s contents to Daytona Beach overnight. After the aviation school and weather office departed, the structure was vacant for several years. In the late 1960s it was used as a clothing factory. Lorenzo Blanco is identified as the owner of the structure during this later period. The Aviation Building was demolished in May 1971. The site was subsequently replaced by a county juvenile detention center and courthouse. Despite its demolition, the building remains notable for its succession of uses: intended hotel, poultry house, aviation school, meteorological office, clothing factory, and ultimately a demolished local landmark. It is therefore best understood as a historic building rather than as a conventional commercial brand or operating company.

The structure now known as Aviation Building began as the Fritz Hotel, a hotel project started in 1925 by the M.R. Harrison Construction Company in what was then unincorporated Dade County, Florida. Its location was 3240 NW 27th Avenue, near Miami International Airport. By 1927, roughly three quarters of the construction had been completed, but work stopped during the Great Depression. The hotel never opened, and the unfinished shell spent much of its later life serving purposes unrelated to hospitality. After remaining unused for approximately ten years, the building was rented to small businesses. Its owners adapted parts of the structure to the technical requirements of successive occupants. One early use was as a temporary hen house capable of holding up to 60,000 hens. This unusual conversion produced the informal nickname “Million Dollar Hen House.” The site’s aviation association developed in 1940, when the Technical Division of the Embry-Riddle School of Aviation moved into the south wing. The division provided aircraft mechanic training. By 1941, Embry-Riddle had occupied the complete building. The facility included classrooms and offices as well as workshops, military barracks, a cafeteria, a library, and a clinic. The building was then renamed Aviation Building, reflecting its principal institutional use rather than its original hotel purpose. A second major institutional occupant arrived in 1958. On June 1 of that year, the National Weather Service Forecast Office of Miami moved into part of the building while Embry-Riddle continued to operate there. A WSR-57 radar was placed on the roof on June 26, 1959. The weather service departed on December 23, 1964. Embry-Riddle remained until April 1965, when the school was moved to Daytona Beach in an overnight transfer. Following the departure of both principal occupants, the building was vacant for several years. In the late 1960s it was converted for use as a clothing factory. Lorenzo Blanco is identified as the owner during this period. The structure was ultimately demolished in May 1971, and the site was replaced with a county juvenile detention center and courthouse. Aviation Building’s historical importance comes from its repeated adaptation. It was planned as a hotel but never functioned as one, temporarily housed poultry, became a major aviation-training facility, hosted federal weather operations, and later housed manufacturing. Its name and surviving historical references are therefore tied to a physical place and a sequence of occupants, not to a continuing consumer brand or corporate enterprise.

• 1971

  Demolition

  [1]Aviation Buildingen.wikipedia.org

  The Aviation Building was demolished in May and later replaced by a county juvenile detention center and courthouse.

• 1965

  Embry-Riddle leaves for Daytona Beach

  [1]Aviation Buildingen.wikipedia.org

  Embry-Riddle moved out of the building and relocated its school to Daytona Beach in April.

• 1959

  Weather radar is installed

  [1]Aviation Buildingen.wikipedia.org

  A WSR-57 radar was installed on the roof on June 26.

• 1958

  National Weather Service operations arrive

  [1]Aviation Buildingen.wikipedia.org

  The Miami forecast office of the National Weather Service moved part of its operations into the building.

• 1941

  The building becomes Embry-Riddle's full facility

  [1]Aviation Buildingen.wikipedia.org

  Embry-Riddle acquired the entire building and renamed it Aviation Building.

• 1940

  Embry-Riddle occupies the south wing

  [1]Aviation Buildingen.wikipedia.org

  The Technical Division of the Embry-Riddle School of Aviation moved into the south wing in November.

• 1927

  Construction is halted

  [1]Aviation Buildingen.wikipedia.org

  About three quarters of the hotel had been completed when construction stopped during the Great Depression.

• 1925

  Construction of the Fritz Hotel begins

  [1]Aviation Buildingen.wikipedia.org

  The M.R. Harrison Construction Company began building the planned Fritz Hotel in Dade County, Florida.

A historic, multipurpose building associated particularly with aviation training and Miami-area weather forecasting.

1. 1Aviation Buildingen.wikipedia.org