The Miami City Commission finalized a controversial deal to transfer ownership of the historic Olympia Theater in downtown Miami to a charter school company co-founded by rapper Pitbull, whose real name is Armando Christian Perez.
On Thursday, city commissioners voted unanimously, 5-0, to sell the 1926 landmark and its adjacent 10-story office building to Sports Leadership Arts Management, or SLAM, for just $10. In exchange, Pitbull’s SLAM pledged to invest a minimum of $57 million into restoring the deteriorating venue’s interior performance space and seating area, with an additional $20 million budgeted for renovations to the theater’s upper floors.
“This is the best of both worlds,” said commissioner Joe Carollo. “They’re putting the money to upgrade the whole building, and we’ll still have the Olympia Theater.”
Opened in 1926 as a silent movie palace, the Olympia Theater has long been considered a crown jewel of downtown Miami’s Flagler Street. Designed by John Eberson and renovated decades later by Morris Lapidus, the theater was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. It has hosted cultural icons including B.B. King, Luciano Pavarotti and Etta James.
The property’s condition, however, has worsened in recent years. Leaks, structural damage and outdated systems have left the building in disrepair, city records show. Required upgrades in the SLAM agreement include reconstructing dressing and crew rooms, repairing water-damaged decorative plaster, retrofitting mechanical systems and restoring the marquee, façade, roof and ticket booth.
The sale also resolves an ongoing legal dispute with the heirs of Maurice Gusman, the late developer who rescued the property from demolition in the 1970s. In 2019, his family sued the city for allegedly violating a covenant involving its management of the theater via the semiautonomous Miami Parking Authority. Under the SLAM deal, the city and the Gusman family will settle the lawsuit if SLAM restores the property within five years of receiving building permits.
SLAM, which operates several charter schools in South Florida, plans to open Miami Tech at Mater Innovation Academy within the Olympia Theater complex. The campus would likely partner with Miami Dade College for dual enrollment programs, and the building would be renamed the Miami Innovation & Arts Academy. SLAM must also host programming that is available to the general public for at least 180 days of the year.
Dozens of charter school employees and parents whose children attend SLAM-affiliated schools spoke in favor of the agreement during the public comment portion of the city commission meeting.
“Olympia is an iconic landmark that must be preserved,” said SLAM co-founder and CEO Millie Sanchez. “Our proposal saves the Olympia Theater, and it saves the city and its taxpayers from bearing that cost. The Gusman family, the original benefactor, supports this plan.”
However, dozens of city residents spoke against giving Olympia Theater away to SLAM. Longtime Miami activist Elvis Cruz said the city was prioritizing its own convenience over residents’ concerns.
“Over 45 years of civic activism I have learned the city of Miami loves to do things for its own comfort and convenience, even if it causes discomfort and inconvenience for residents,” Cruz said. “Don’t sell the Olympia Theater. Please restore it.”
Another activist, Sandy Moise, criticized city leaders for ramming the agreement through. “City officials have been acting like lobbyists,” Moise said. “What we are closer to is giving away one of Miami’s greatest public treasures in a backroom deal that does not reflect the will or the best interests of the people.”
