Virginia Key Beach Park Museum

Virginia Key is an island just south of Miami that holds historical significance civil rights history as the site of the 1960s protests against segregated public beaches—most notably the wade-ins led by African American residents demanding equal access to the shoreline. By 1982, Virgina Beach was closed and ongoing efforts to preserve it as an important historic site were ultimately successful.

Lord Cultural Resources was engaged to produce a concept and business plan for a museum and visitor center with the goal of telling a holistic and compelling story of the parks’ history and the broader narrative of African American experiences in South Florida, who tracing their origins from within the U.S., in the Caribbean, Latin America and Africa.

In 2023, Lord was re-engaged to produce a new concept plan, which included a visitor experience strategy, building program, capital cost estimates, a new business plan, and community workshops to gather local support and input.