$60 Million in Federal Funding Killed for Miami’s ‘I-395 Underdeck and Heritage Trail’

Funding for Miami’s Underdeck and Heritage Trail project has been wiped out. Last week, the city learned that the entire $60 million allocation for the project would be rescinded. The cut originates from the passage of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” in Congress, which eliminated all unobligated funds from the Neighborhood Access and Equity Program: now renamed “Reconnecting Communities.” In Miami’s case, the money was considered unobligated because construction had not officially begun.

In a letter provided by Loren Smith Jr, deputy assistant secretary for policy at the DOT, he wrote, “Connecting Miami: I-395 Underdeck and Heritage Trail will undergo and unobligated balance recission of $60,353,730.00”, “H.R. 1, One Big Beautiful Bill” rescinds all unobligated balances from the NAE Program”.

The Underdeck was planned as a way to reconnect residents and businesses in Overtown on both sides of the highway, transforming 33 acres into public open space with walking and biking paths, plazas, children’s play areas, water features, spots for food and drink, and so much more.

The funding cut couldn’t come at a worse time. Weeks before, news was announced that the Underdeck and Heritage Trail secured the last pieces of financing needed for the project. To unlock the $60.3 million federal grant, the city needed to chip in $10.8 million of its own financing and sign an agreement with FDOT. Earlier this year, $3.8 million from the city was committed, and this week commissioners were approved $3.5 million each from the Omni and SEOPW CRAs, covering the rest of the local share. Together with $11.5 million recently received from FDOT, the project’s total budget was expected to reach about $82.7 million.

With the federal funding now off the table, the city will have to find a way to replace the $60 million shortfall before it can even tap into the money already committed by the City of Miami and FDOT. Speaking to the Miami Herald, Commission Chair Christine King, whose district includes the park, said “I am not discouraged”, “If we have to do only a section at a time, that space will be representative of our struggles, our culture, and our resiliency.”

Adding to the irony, plans and construction for Miami’s Signature Bridge project, which includes highway upgrades, is still moving forward. Its budget has swelled to $866 million, and the completion date has slipped from fall 2024 to late 2027, and now to late 2029. Far from being just a road improvement project, the bridge features six towering arches that serve both as structural supports and aesthetics. Yet, unlike the Heritage Trail, its funding comes entirely from the State of Florida.

However, Miami is not alone. Multiple cities across the U.S. have had funding cut on projects, including Austin. In a similar fashion, Austin’s I-35 cap-and-stitch program lost $105 million in federal funding. The project would’ve delivered above-ground parks and recreation facilities that hid I-35 from public view. Both the Underdeck and the I-35 cap-and-stitch program have one thing in common: both were designed to reduce the harm historically done from highway projects.