The Ocean Palm Motel was the very first two-story motel in the United States. It is considered a landmark and proudly stands at the southern end of Sunny Isles Beach, 15795 Collins Avenue. One of South Florida's well-known architects, Mr. Norman Giller, designed the motel in 1949, which opened January 1, 1950 and is still in operation.

The Ocean Palm is considered part of the Miami Modern Style of Architecture (MIMO) (mid '40s - '70s). The architects from this movement experimented with new building materials, such as: plastics, formica, laminated wood, masonry, etc. MIMO represents a shift in design from classic to modern.

The Ocean Palm is an example of MIMO with its use of Doric columns (classic design) and geometric shapes juxtaposed to create an interesting three-dimensional building space (modern design).

The modern colorful sign at the Ocean Palm is perhaps influenced by artist Piet Mondrian from the De Stijl Modern Art movement. The artist's style is discernable with the flat-painted primary colors in a rectangular or square geometric composition.

A modernistic idea from the Ocean Palm is the ambulatory catwalk, a walkway area on the side of the building to the entrance to each individual room. The catwalk emphasized a crisp horizontal line perpendicular to the ocean shore.

When the Ocean Palm Motel was built in 1950, a room cost $10.00. In 1974 when long-time employee Al Joseph Prospere started working there, he remembers that a room was $20.00 per day; a room with a kitchen $30.00 per day, and a bus ride was $.50 cents.

The lay out of the structure was to take advantage of the balmy ocean breezes. Jalousie windows were installed. This type of window was popular for many years in Florida humid climate. Eventually they were replaced with energy-efficient windows and individual air-conditioning units.

In 1950 when the Ocean Palm first opened things cost.

	House $14,500
	Philco TV $199
	Milk $.82
	Bread $.14
	Send a letter $.03
	and the average income was.$3,216

In the mid to late 1940s, veterans were returning from World War II. These young men, who had some money, bought cars, got married and started their families.

Vacations became long car trips with the family, and motels became popular roadside overnight stops. It was easy to drive up to a motel and rent a room. And it was very convenient to "move in" when you were parked right in front of your door.

According to the architect, Norman Giller, "The developers of the Ocean Palm did not know if a two-story motel would work. Would families be willing to carry suitcases to a second level? Could a motel, not a hotel, become a destination instead of just a stop along a vacation route? With the Atlantic Ocean in its backyard, the developers decided to take a chance; they built the first two-story motel in the United States. It was an immediate success."
 

In 1950..

	The United States population was 150,697,361.
	The world population was approximately 2.5 billion.
	Diner's Club became the 1st credit card.

Compiled by David Udoff and Marlene Calero

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