The plan is for the complex to be completed in '21, likely before training camp opens that JulyDOLPHINS
The Dolphins finally did something about the team’s "outdated football hub, and the separation of the football and business side" of the organization by breaking ground on a new $135M "state-of-the-art training complex and sports performance clinic" next to Hard Rock Stadium, according to Omar Kelly of the South Florida SUN SENTINEL. With yesterday's ground-breaking ceremony in the books, the plan is now for the complex to be completed in '21, "likely before training camp opens that July." The facility, which will be 125,000 square feet, will also "house a new 30,000 square foot site for Miami’s Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Institute." The thought process is that the complex "will help" Dolphins Owner Stephen Ross’ RISE Ventures, a private investment firm he owns that "focuses on sports and entertainment projects, attract more major events" (South Florida SUN SENTINEL, 8/22). In West Palm Beach, Hal Habib writes the new facility will put the Dolphins "on par with top universities and NFL teams, which should help recruit free agents." The weight room will be 12,800 square feet and the locker room 5,645 square feet, representing 37% and 18.5% increases from the team's current setups, respectively. With the "expectation of Hard Rock Stadium landing matches" for the '26 FIFA World Cup, Dolphins Vice Chair, President & CEO Tom Garfinkel said that "'most likely' the facility also will be used for soccer teams" (PALM BEACH POST, 8/22).
BIGGER IS BETTER: In Miami, Adam Beasley notes the facility's construction "will take roughly 18 months" and will "apparently cost" some $25M more than previously announced. Baptist Health "bought the naming rights and will build an on-site orthopedic center." The facility will be "bigger and better than the existing team headquarters located at Nova Southeastern." It will be "roughly twice the size of the Dolphins’ current home, with more meeting rooms (10), more conference rooms (10) and a bigger auditorium." The practice bubble will be "no more, replaced by a permanent full-size indoor facility adjacent to two outdoor practice fields." Doctors Hospital Sports Medicine will "open a Miami Gardens location on stadium grounds, making its doctors and technology available to the team and the public." The privately funded project "will be on land the team already owned" (MIAMI HERALD, 8/22).
