Judge Halts Land Transfer for Planned Trump Presidential Library in Downtown Miami

A Florida judge has paused the transfer of a downtown Miami lot slated to become the site of the Trump Presidential Library, ruling that the process violated the state’s transparency law.

In an order issued on Nov. 3, Judge Mavel Ruiz of Florida’s 11th Judicial Circuit granted an emergency injunction requested by historian and activist Marvin Dunn, who sued to stop Miami Dade College from handing over a 2.6-acre parcel next to Miami’s iconic Freedom Tower to the state of Florida.

The land was expected to be turned over to the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation. But Ruiz found that Miami Dade College’s board of trustees failed to give the public adequate notice of its intent to do so under Florida’s Sunshine Law, a set of statutes that generally mandates government business to be conducted in open and properly noticed meetings.

At a Sept. 23 board meeting, Miami Dade College approved the land transfer to the state. Dunn argued in his complaint that the meeting was poorly publicized, noting that its public notice referenced only a “potential real estate transaction” without saying anything about the presidential library.

Ruiz agreed, finding that the board’s notice failed to inform the public of the specific nature of the transaction.

“The statement in the Notice concerning ‘possible real estate transactions’ did not identify which real estate would be discussed or what transaction would be considered,” Ruiz said in her injunction order. “Thus, the Notice did not apprise members of the public about the pendency of the matters that might affect their rights.”

Her order blocks the transfer for now, leaving the property under Miami Dade College’s control until a final decision is made.

Attorneys for the college’s board of trustees filed a notice of appeal on Nov. 4 with Florida’s 3rd District Court of Appeal, seeking to overturn the injunction.

Carmen Cartaya, an attorney representing the college, contended during an Oct. 23 hearing that the board acted lawfully and that the notice was as specific as state law allows.

“The Sunshine Law does not require an agenda,” Cartaya argued in court. “It doesn’t require it because … it doesn’t want to limit the public in thinking only these matters will be addressed.”

Miami Dade College officials did not respond to a request for comment.

The property in question is currently used as a parking lot for college employees. It sits next to the Freedom Tower, a historic landmark once used by the federal government to process refugees fleeing from Cuba’s communist regime in the 1960s.

Some estimates have valued that downtown parcel at between $250 million and $300 million, though others place the figure closer to $67 million, according to court filings. Regardless of the exact valuation, the college agreed to transfer the land at no cost.

The transfer has the backing of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who signed into law a bill earlier this year to preemptively stop any local government from blocking the development of a presidential library. The Trump Library Foundation would be required to begin construction within five years of the transaction’s completion.