College appeals ruling blocking Miami land transfer for Trump presidential library

By KATE PAYNE
Associated Press/Report for America

The board of a South Florida college is appealing a judge’s ruling temporarily blocking officials from giving away a parcel of prime real estate in downtown Miami to be used for President Donald Trump’s future presidential library.

Attorneys for the District Board of Trustees of Miami Dade College filed a notice of appeal in Florida’s 3rd District Court of Appeal on Tuesday, challenging a lower court’s injunction that bars the transfer of the property — at least for now.

Last month, Circuit Judge Mavel Ruiz sided with a Miami activist who alleged that college officials violated Florida’s open government law when they gifted the sizable plot of real estate to the state. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and other top Florida officials then voted to transfer the property to the foundation for the planned library.

Marvin Dunn, an activist and chronicler of local Black history, filed the lawsuit arguing that the college board violated Florida’s Government in the Sunshine law by not providing sufficient notice for its special meeting on Sept. 23, when it voted to give up the land.

The nearly 3-acre (1.2-hectare) property is a developer’s dream and is valued at more than $67 million, according to a 2025 assessment by the Miami-Dade County property appraiser. One real estate expert wagered that the parcel — one of the last undeveloped lots on an iconic stretch of palm tree-lined Biscayne Boulevard — could sell for hundreds of millions of dollars more.

The parties are expected to appear before the Miami-Dade judge again on Nov. 24, when attorneys for the college plan to ask that court to stay its proceedings, pending the appellate court’s review.

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Kate Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.