Commissioners have OK’d an agreement that keeps famed Art Basel Miami Beach at the city’s convention center through 2031, at a lower license fee but with added benefits for city residents. The city estimates the fair drew 80,000 visitors in 2025 and generated $570 million in economic activity ac ross Miami-Dade. The fair began in Miami Beach in 2002 as the counterpart to its Swiss predecessor and is credited with igniting a regional visual arts and visitor boom that is now labeled Art Week. The first fair featured 160 art galleries from 23 nations. Last year the fair had 283 galleries from 43 nations. The new agreement bars the Miami Beach Convention Center and nearby sites from hosting competing art fairs or commercial art events for 30 days before and after Art Basel. Design Miami is exempt. The agreement sets a base license fee of $500,000 for 2026, $454,585 less than at present. Beginning in 2027, the fee is to rise at least 3% and up to 5% annually. The city’s contributed police, fire and emergency medical services during Art Week will start at $300,000 a year, with Art Basel reimbursing any costs above that. Art Basel is to contribute yearly $100,000 to transportation and mobility and $50,000 to the city’s STEAM+ initiative. Miami Beach residents will get a seven-day presale offering of tickets at half price, limited to two apiece. Commissioners raised the cap from 2,000 tickets to 2,500 during the Oct. 14 meeting. Residents would get discounts of at least 20% after the presale. David Suarez, the lone dissenter, sought unlimited half-price tickets. Art Basel CEO Noah Horowitz declined to commit to unlimited discounted admission, citing capacity restrictions. The agreement maintains the Art Basel Zone, extending from 16th to 24th streets between Alton Road and the ocean. During the fair, Art Basel gets approval rights over special events on public property within the zone. The post Art Basel deal with Miami Beach gets a redesign appeared first on Miami Today. ...read more read less