Overview
Coral Gables Museum Corp. is a publicly funded, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. It provides equal access and equal opportunity in employment and services, and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, sex, pregnancy, age, disability, marital status, familial status, sexual orientation or physical ability, in accordance with Title VI and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; the Age Discrimination Act of 1975; Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 as amended (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.); the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; and Miami-Dade County ordinances No. 97-170, § 1, 2-25-97 and No. 98-17, § 1, 12-1-98. The Museum’s main facility located at 285 Aragon Avenue, Coral Gables, Florida is fully accessible to the public as are all programs housed in or originating from this location.
Mission
Coral Gables Museum celebrates the 1920’s planned community of Coral Gables and presents exhibits and programs that examine the built environment.
The Museum’s mission is to celebrate, investigate and explore the civic arts of architecture and urban and environmental design, and the visual arts, including fostering an appreciation for the history, vision, and cultural landscape of Coral Gables; promoting beauty and planning as well as historic, artistic and environmental preservation for a broad audience, including children, families, and community members, as well as local, regional, national and international visitors. The Museum optimizes its mission by cultivating effective partnerships, and providing programming that includes exhibitions, collections, educational offerings, lectures, tours, publications and special events.
History
In 2003, the non-profit Coral Gables Museum Corp. was formed under the leadership of the City of Coral Gables to direct and operate a museum in the Old Police and Fire Station. In 2008, work began in earnest on the restoration, renovation and expansion of the 1939 WPA building, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The architect Jorge Hernandez together with Dooley Mack Constructors led the historic preservation project. On October 10, 2010 (10-10-10), Museum staff occupied the building and reopened it to the public. In November 2011, the Coral Gables Museum unveiled the inaugural exhibits and began its first year of full operation. In 2013, the Coral Gables Museum became the Official Visitor Center for the City Beautiful.
The Museum is a true public/private partnership between the City of Coral Gables and the Coral Gables Museum Corp., a private, not for profit 501.c.3 corporation operating an educational cultural institution within a City owned facility. The Museum raises its own operating budget to fund the exhibitions and educational programs it provides, through memberships, private and government grants, admissions, earned income and, most importantly, with contributions from community members who believe in our mission.
The Museum Complex
Coral Gables Museum’s facility consists of the historic site of the Old Police and Fire Station, and additional galleries and outdoor spaces that were constructed in the 2010. New spaces include the 3,000 square foot Carole A. Fewell Gallery, a beautiful 5,000 square foot Museum Plaza and Courtyard off of the main lobby.
Visitors can explore the building’s history as the Old Police and Fire Station by viewing the photography exhibit in the lobby area, or scheduling a guided tour. Inside the building, visitors can see the former jail cells, courtroom and apparatus bay/fire engine room. The building’s exterior features WPA artworks, including firefighter busts, that add striking decorative features to the building’s architecture, which is a blending of “Depression-Moderne” and Mediterranean Revival.
The Museum is LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified, having been restored and constructed utilizing best environmental practices and materials. Additions to the existing building and new construction are sympathetic to the original design.
Coral Gables Museum acknowledges the ancestral and traditional territories of the Seminole Tribe of Florida, the Council of the Original Miccosukee Simanolee Nation Aboriginal Peoples and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, who are the original owners and custodians of the land upon which we stand today.
Board Of Trustees 2024-2025
CHAIR
Wayne “Chip” Withers
VICE-CHAIRS
Ivette Arango O’Doski
Eduardo Otaola
TREASURER
Christopher M. Solis
SECRETARY & YOUNG ASSOCIATES PRESIDENT
Nicolas Cabrera
IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR
Jose Valdés-Fauli
Diane Amado-Tate
Tere Shelton Bernace
Ernesto Erdmann
Mayi de la Vega
Richard J. Heisenbottle
Adam Hlavaty
Eric Gros-Dubois
Adriana Meneses
Alirio Torrealba
Arnold J. Weil
Raymond J. Zomerfeld
EX-OFFICIO
Richard Lara, Commissioner, City of Coral Gables
Anna Pernas, Historical Resources & Cultural Arts Director, City of Coral Gables
George Kakouris, Founding Chair & Chair Emeritus
CHAIR 2012-2013
Arva Moore Parks†
Staff
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Elvis Fuentes
DIRECTOR OF ADMINISTRATION AND LEARNING PROGRAMS
Oliver Gorf
DIRECTOR OF CURATORIAL PROGRAMS
Yuneikys Villalonga
DIRECTOR OF EVENTS
Zorana Krstevski
COLLECTIONS AND EXHIBITIONS MANAGER
Fabian Peña
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST
Maylin Lara
VOLUNTEERS COORDINATOR
Simone Lee
BUSINESS OFFICE ASSOCIATE
Stephanie Schweinberg
LEARNING PROGRAMS ASSISTANT
Carolina Vilato
VISITOR SERVICES
James Fernandez
Esteban Corral
Jason Grover
*All staff can be reached at (305) 603-8067