BENTLEY BAY, Miami Beach
Making the iconic and picturesque drive to South Beach from
I-95 and downtown Miami across I-395, you leave behind the
Miami Herald building on the left, as you cross onto Watson
Island [home to the Miami Children's Museum and Parrot
Jungle (now called Jungle Island)], pass the Miami Arena
across Biscayne Bay in the distance to the right (as well as
Port of Miami cruise ship docks), the entrances to Palm and
Hibiscus Islands, and Star Island to your left, the ferry to
ultra-exclusive Fisher Island and the Coast Guard Station to
the right, and there, to the left, rise the Bentley Bay
North and Bentley Bay South . . . Dubbed the "25-story-work-of-art-in-glass", the Bentley Bay North and South are luxury waterfront condominiums
created by the renowned Miami architectural firm, Arquitectonica,
with developer, Ricardo Olivieri. On the site of the fabulous
former "Biscaya" Hotel—a Mediterranean gem once frequented by Al Capone—that, sadly,
was imploded when it fell into disrepair,
the even-more-fabulous Bentley Bay waterfront condos are the first buildings you see to the left as you
leave the bridge from Miami and enter South Beach, and what
a first impression! As "cool" goes, the Bentley Bay's beauty
is striking in its nonchalance. Like being smacked with a
feather, it carries a punch, but the feeling is soft. |