A Miami judge has ruled in favor of a college’s controversial decision to donate prime downtown real estate for the construction of a presidential library dedicated to Donald Trump. This decision effectively allows the former real estate mogul and president to erect a significant landmark in a prominent section of the city.

The lawsuit was initiated by a local activist against Miami Dade College, alleging that the board failed to provide adequate public notice and breached state open government laws when they voted in September to grant the nearly 3-acre property in downtown Miami.

This prime location, situated on a coveted stretch of Biscayne Boulevard, is highly sought after and valued at over $67 million as per a 2025 assessment by the Miami-Dade County property appraiser. A real estate expert suggested that the value of the land could be much higher, potentially reaching hundreds of millions of dollars.

Initially, Circuit Judge Mavel Ruiz sided with Marvin Dunn, a retired professor and advocate of local Black history, who had brought the case. In October, Ruiz placed a temporary hold on the land transfer, postponing the decision until a trial scheduled for next August.

However, on Thursday, Judge Ruiz dismissed Dunn’s complaint without prejudice. This decision followed a reevaluation of the board’s vote on the land transfer, conducted during a lengthy public meeting earlier this month, which included passionate discussions on the matter.

Lawyers representing the college argued that the board had not breached state laws, asserting that any previous violations were rectified following the renewed voting process.

After the college voted in September to transfer the property to a fund controlled by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Cabinet, the GOP officials voted to transfer the land again, effectively putting the property under the control of the Trump family when they deeded it to the foundation for Trump’s library. That foundation is led by three trustees: Eric Trump; Tiffany Trump’s husband, Michael Boulos; and the president’s attorney, James Kiley.

Eric Trump has pledged the future library will be “one of the most beautiful buildings ever built” and “an Icon on the Miami skyline.” Under local zoning rules, the best use of the property would be a towering condo building, according to one Miami real estate expert, who described the site as a potential “cash cow.”

___

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.