Bay Racket Club, LLC, led by William Jacome and Orlando Medellin, has submitted a pre-application for developing the Babylon Racquet Club, a 23-story mixed-use building planned at 240 Southeast 14th Street in Brickell, Miami. Positioned on a pie-shaped lot approximately 19,164 square feet (0.439 acres) in size, where SE 14th Street meets Brickell Bay Drive along Biscayne Bay, the project is designed to become downtown Miami’s premier racket sports and health/wellness center. The building aims to serve as a central recreational hub featuring indoor sports courts, a gym, a wellness center, dining facilities, hotel accommodations, and residential units. Rotterdam-based MVRDV is the design architect, with ODP Architecture & Design acting as the architect of record. The pre-application was filed on April 24 and is progressing through the approval process with Miami-Dade County.
The proposed 523-foot-tall tower has various amenities tailored for convenience and lifestyle. The building allocates five floors (levels 6-10) exclusively for sports courts catering to padel, tennis, and pickleball enthusiasts. Dining facilities are strategically placed on levels 5 and 15. Levels 11 and 12 house a longevity hub and gym designed to support wellness activities. Hotel accommodations are distributed across levels 13, 14, and 17. The multi-functional 16th floor serves diverse needs with office, daycare, a salon, and event spaces. Residential units, including several duplex options, occupy levels 18 through 22, providing a variety of living spaces, and parking is available across levels 2, 3, and 4.
Babylon Racquet Club. Credit: MVRDV.
Renderings depict a slender design characterized by vertical architecture, defined by a series of stacked volumes creating dynamic, protruding balconies. These cantilevered sections, distinct in their projection, form expansive outdoor living spaces. The facade, predominantly clad in glass, showcases undulating paneling that features tall panes with a ripple effect, enhancing the building’s verticality and facilitating substantial natural light penetration.
Babylon Racquet Club. Credit: MVRDV.
Solid, slab-like elements run horizontally across the building, providing structural rhythm and articulating the building’s scale and segmentation of its functions. Greenery is integrated into each cantilevered balcony, and the architecture’s clear, contemporary lines harmonize with the urban landscape. The design focuses on a sophisticated integration of form and function to deliver a high-quality urban living experience.
Babylon Racquet Club. Credit: MVRDV.
Located just a short walk from the Financial District Metromover Station, the property enhances accessibility and encourages a pedestrian-friendly environment. This proximity to mass transit supports Miami-Dade County’s goals to increase Metromover ridership and fosters transit-oriented development within the RTZ Metromover Subzone, newly established by Ordinance No. 24-16.
Historically restricted by stringent zoning regulations that prohibited mixed-use and recreational developments, this site has remained vacant and underutilized. The proposed project aims to fulfill residential and commercial needs and create a new recreational landmark for those living and working in Miami’s urban core.
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It’s not really 23 floors, many of the floors will have 2 levels. It’s a high building in a very small area (0.44 acres) which will affect all the sorround building structures. Please remember Surfside!!! 🙏🏻