Lincoln Road Rents Fall, Opening Doors to Shops
Panelists say hotels, homes and offices near Lincoln Road now drive which retail projects can work.
Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Commercial
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Retail spaces in Miami do better when they sit near a mix of homes, offices and hotels, panelists told a Real Deal audience at the Miami Forum. Shoppers and restaurant operators on Lincoln Road and in the Design District are feeling that shift in rents and foot traffic.
Why it matters
For Miamians, the retail corridor near your home is only as lively as the people living, working and staying close by. Lincoln Road rents have come down sharply from their 2016 peak, a shift that could change which shops and restaurants can afford to open here.
Lincoln Road asking rents have dropped from $325 per square foot in 2016 to $150 to $225 a decade later, according to panelists. Palm Beach island rents grew 200 percent in roughly two years, a comparison the panel used to show how fast luxury markets can move.
The players
Michael Comras
Founder and CEO of Comras Company, which is developing NoLi Lane on Lincoln Road.
Zach Winkler
South Florida executive managing director of retail brokerage at JLL, who spoke on the panel about hotels and urban pricing.
Brett Damato
COO of Pura Vida Miami, a Miami-based restaurant chain expanding across the tri-county area.
Francisco Alvarado
Real Deal reporter who moderated the Miami Forum retail panel.
The details
Panelists at The Real Deal's Miami Forum, moderated by TRD reporter Francisco Alvarado, argued that retail performs best near a mix of residential, office and hotel uses. Zach Winkler, South Florida executive managing director of retail brokerage at JLL, said hotels would bring more people into the market during morning hours, when residences alone do not create enough activity. Michael Comras, founder and CEO of Comras Company, is developing NoLi Lane, a 150,000-square-foot adaptive reuse project at 723 Lincoln Road that will include 40 small spaces. Brett Damato, COO of Pura Vida Miami, said the Miami-based restaurant chain is expanding across the tri-county area, citing its successful location in the Loews Hotel at 1601 Collins Avenue in South Beach.
Timeline
Wednesday: The Real Deal's Miami Forum panel on retail and mixed-use districts
2016: Lincoln Road rents peaked at $325 per square foot
About a decade after 2016: Lincoln Road asking rates fell to $150 to $225 per square foot
Beyond the 305
Lincoln Road's rents have fallen far from their 2016 peak of $325 per square foot, and the panel said the corridor is rebounding. NoLi Lane's 40 small spaces and the hotel-driven foot traffic panelists described are part of how that corridor is trying to recover.
If you run a small shop or restaurant, the drop in Lincoln Road asking rents may open doors that were shut a few years ago. If you are a shopper, expect more of the small-format spaces and hotel-linked restaurants that panelists described around Lincoln Road and the Design District.
The takeaway
Retail in Miami depends on more than storefronts; it depends on who is nearby at breakfast, lunch and dinner. Watch Lincoln Road and the Design District over the next year, because new hotels and projects like NoLi Lane will show whether the corridor's rebound holds.
Further reading
For more on how commercial space is being leased and priced across the city, see Commercial real estate coverage in Miami.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Real Deal New York.
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