Beyond the view, who actually gets to touch the water
Revised October 13, 2026
Miami’s new buildings compete on how much they can fit into an amenities package. Golf simulators, cigar lounges, wine cellars, private dining rooms. The square footage devoted to keeping residents entertained has become a selling point of its own, and the roof is now part of the program.
Santa Maria Marina | Photo by Nadia Bouzid
As Brickell gets taller, pools on lower decks can spend hours in the shadow of neighboring buildings. A second pool higher up can offer another exposure, depending on the season and what surrounds it. A sunny afternoon by the pool is something I would want to see for myself rather than infer from a rendering.
Some older buildings have a marina downstairs. For someone who owns a boat, that gives the comparison with a new tower an entirely different weight. You may be looking at dated interiors and an association with expensive work ahead, but you are also looking at somewhere the boat might actually live.
Nineteen slips, six powerboats
Santa Maria has 19 marina slips, but the county’s approval tells a more interesting story than that number alone. In November 2000, Miami-Dade accepted a covenant tied to Class I permit CC96-078: thirteen slips were restricted to sailboats, and only six could accommodate powerboats.
The site was within essential manatee habitat. Seagrass and shallow water brought additional restrictions, including designated mooring areas and a maximum vessel draft of 5.25 feet. Those were the conditions recorded in that approval; subsequent permits and amendments must establish whether they have changed.
That is quite a different proposition from reading “private marina” on a property listing. It also explains why I would ask about the specific slip before assuming the apartment solves the boat question.
Miami-Dade adopted its Manatee Protection Plan in 1995. The plan addressed new and expanded boating facilities but also recognized historical uses, allowing existing facilities to continue and renovate under permitting guidelines without increasing their size or number of slips.
The county explained that newer manatee guidelines should not be applied retroactively to properties with historical vessel use. That is the substance behind calling a marina grandfathered, rather than a general privilege attached to every old waterfront condominium. The authorized use and the facility’s permit history are what matter.
Santa Maria’s record also prevents us from telling an overly convenient story about older buildings getting their marinas before environmental restrictions arrived. Its approval expressly incorporated manatee protection and limits on how the slips could be used. The advantage of an existing marina can be substantial without pretending it has no conditions.
Why another developer cannot simply build one?
Say someone buys a waterfront parcel and plans a condominium. A marina would appeal to purchasers upstairs, but the environmental review has to account for what those boats would do after leaving the dock.
DERM considers vessel routes and their overlap with areas used by manatees, including places where they gather for mating and nursing calves. Navigation, marine resources and other environmental impacts also enter the review. The amount spent on the tower does not resolve those questions.
At 1201 Brickell Bay Drive, a 2000 county approval allowed one courtesy docking slip. It prohibited additional docking hardware that would create more slips because of manatee concerns, with further restrictions linked to shallow water and nearby seagrass. That is an actual Brickell approval showing how narrowly waterfront dockage can be permitted.
Then there is ownership of the land beneath the water. The waterfront parcel and the submerged land in front of it can have different owners, so the developer may need a separate lease or authorization before putting docks there.
The St. Regis proposal at 1809 Brickell Avenue illustrates this. In September 2026, the city authorized an agreement allowing the property owner to pursue marina permit applications on adjacent city-owned submerged land, at its own expense and risk. The resolution granted no leasehold or property interest and left a future agreement subject to separate commission approval.
The marina was still a proposal at that stage of the process. Being next to Santa Maria did not, through that resolution, give the project Santa Maria’s permissions.
Brickell Place Marina | Photo by Nadia Bouzid
The buildings with dockage already in place
Alongside Santa Maria, Brickell Place has a private, noncommercial marina. An apartment and a slip may be offered together, but the transaction needs to say so; otherwise, the dockage requires its own arrangement and price.
At Villa Regina, marina use is connected to condominium ownership and residency. Its published 2014 rules restrict slip purchases to owners and require people maintaining boats there to reside on the premises. The current rules matter if the apartment is intended for rental or the boat is held through a company.
Skyline on Brickell also has a private marina. Brickell Harbour and Brickell Biscayne appear in Miami-Dade’s 2024 inventory of facilities with active marine operating permits, giving the search a few more addresses beyond the best-known towers. Current availability and the conditions for using a particular slip still need to be confirmed.
The apartment still comes with an association
Older buildings can face substantial costs for recertification, repairs and reserve funding. Those expenses can reach owners through maintenance charges and special assessments, which is why the inspection reports, reserve study and budget need a careful read. Having a marina downstairs does not make the financial obligations upstairs disappear.
I would want to know what has already been repaired and paid for, what remains and whether the association has the money for it. I would also want the slip negotiated early, rather than buying the apartment and hoping something becomes available afterward.
For someone who spends weekends on the bay, an older condominium with dockage can be worth the expense and the work. A new kitchen is within the owner’s control; permission to put a boat outside the building is a much more complicated purchase.
Marina access in Brickell is nearly impossible to build today.
These few buildings already have it and they’re not what you think.
In Brickell, land isn’t the rare commodity anymore. Water is.
Towers rise. Penthouses flip. Developers compete on spa menus, golf simulators, and cigar lounges. But there’s one feature even the most ambitious renderings can’t replicate: a marina.
Not a valet to a nearby dock. Not a concierge partnership with a boat club. We’re talking about real, on-site, private marina access, where your residence connects directly to the water, no middleman required.
In a city built on the idea of water as lifestyle, it’s surprising how little of it you can actually own.
Especially in Brickell, Miami’s most vertical neighborhood and financial core, where new buildings stretch taller, sleeker, and more speculative, yet remain landlocked when it comes to actual marine rights.
The handful of Brickell condos that offer private marinas didn’t win the lottery, they got in early.
In the 1970s and ’80s, when Miami was expanding fast and Brickell still felt like the edge of the city, waterfront land came with water rights. Developers could build docks with relatively little oversight. Zoning was flexible. The environmental review process was a fraction of what it is now. The idea of building a residential tower and a marina wasn’t a loophole, it was standard.
Then came the change. As the city matured and Biscayne Bay’s fragile ecosystem became a political priority, the permitting landscape tightened. Marine life protections, most notably for manatees began dictating development rules. New shoreline projects became subject to environmental reviews, water quality assessments, and a web of overlapping federal, state, and local agencies.
In today’s Miami, securing a new marina permit is somewhere between Herculean and impossible.
Which is why every single new development in Brickell, with one major exception, skips the dock entirely.
Rooftop pools, yes. Helipads, maybe. But direct access to the water? That’s a different game.
The Legacy List
If you want the freedom of walking from your unit to your boat, your options aren’t just limited, they’re fixed.
Here are the buildings that still have it:
Santa Maria: A classic. Gated and discreet, positioned on the quieter southern end of Brickell. The marina is directly on Biscayne Bay, not offshoot canals or shared slips. It’s reserved for residents, and when slips come up, they’re handled quietly, often through word-of-mouth deals, not public listings.
Brickell Place: Understated but smart. This isn’t a branding play; it’s for people who know what they’re doing. Marina access includes power and water hookups, and the building offers something almost no new project does: real storage. For gear, tools, parts, the things boaters actually need.
Villa Regina: A product of 1980s Miami, when developers integrated architecture and utility. Villa Regina combines bay access with a distinct art identity, the building itself is a visual statement. Its wooden marina deck has a clean line of sight across the bay, and the docks are private to owners.
Skyline on Brickell: Functional, quiet, and efficient. You won’t find it on glossy magazine covers, but that’s the point. Boat slips are occasionally available to lease, and demand stays consistent. For long-term residents who use the water, not just look at it.
The Imperial: Bold for its time, and still holding strong. The Imperial has a modest, functional marina, well-maintained and secure. It’s a small, tight-knit community of owners who understand what they have and don’t feel the need to advertise it.
Brickell Harbour: Boutique and rare. One of the only properties where you can grab Japanese takeout (OBBA Sushi) on the ground floor and be on your boat minutes later. A handful of slips, no nonsense, and a building that’s more lifestyle than luxury showroom.
Buy the dock. The rest can be upgraded.
Because in Miami, the view isn’t the flex anymore.
The dock is.
Here is a list of Buildings in Brickell with Marinas
1. Brickell Place: Located on the waterfront, Brickell Place offers residents a marina experience. The marina features boat docks for residents, providing easy access to Biscayne Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. Residents can enjoy a range of amenities, including storage facilities. Additionally, if you own a slip at Brickell Place, power and water are included, making it even more convenient for boat owners.
Buildings in Brickell with Marinas | Photo by Nadia Bouzid
2. Santa Maria: Santa Maria is a luxury condominium also on the waterfront in Brickell. On 16th street and Brickell just a few blocks away from all the commotion/ on the quieter side of the neighborhood. The condominium features a private marina with boat docks for residents, offering direct access to the bay and ocean. The marina has boat slips that sometimes come available for sale.
3. Villa Regina: Villa Regina offers residents a private marina with some slips. The marina features wooden decks, providing residents with a serene and relaxing environment to enjoy the waterfront views. Additionally, the marina is equipped with all the necessary amenities to ensure a comfortable and enjoyable boating experience for residents.
4. Skyline on Brickell: Skyline on Brickell is a waterfront condominium that offers boat docks for its residents. The docks provide convenient access to the bay and ocean, allowing residents to enjoy a variety of water activities. The marina is well-maintained and offers a range of services to residents, including boat slips and storage facilities. With its prime waterfront location, Skyline on Brickell offers residents the opportunity to enjoy the best of waterfront living in Miami.
5. Brickell Harbour: Brickell Harbour is another condominium in Brickell that offers boat docks for residents. The marina provides residents with direct access to the bay and ocean, making it easy for them to enjoy boating and water activities. The marina is equipped with all the necessary amenities, including boat slips and storage facilities, to ensure that residents have a comfortable and enjoyable boating experience. Additionally, the building has a Japanese restaurant “OBBA” on site where you can easily order “take away” and pack for your boating activities.
6. The Imperial: The Imperial is a condominium in Brickell that offers boat docks for residents. The marina provides residents with access to the bay and ocean, offering opportunities for boating and water activities. The marina is equipped with amenities to enhance the boating experience for residents, making it a desirable feature for those who enjoy waterfront living.
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