The board of a prominent South Florida college has once again voted to transfer a multi-million-dollar parcel of land for the construction of a future Donald Trump presidential library, a move that comes amidst an active legal challenge.
Legal Challenge and a Second Vote
On Tuesday, 2 December 2025, the board of Miami Dade College held a fresh vote to gift a nearly 3-acre property in downtown Miami. This decision follows a lawsuit filed by a local activist, which alleges the board violated Florida's open government laws during its initial vote on 23 September. The lawsuit contends that sufficient public notice was not provided for the September special meeting where the land transfer was first approved.
A judge has issued a temporary block, preventing the college from formally transferring the deed while the legal case proceeds. The trial is scheduled for August. In response to the controversy, the board convened a new meeting at its Hialeah campus, a suburb with a strong Cuban American and Republican voter base. The session was packed with students, faculty, alumni, and officials, many of whom felt excluded from the original, hastily arranged vote.
A Prime Piece of Real Estate
The land in question is no ordinary plot. Appraised at over $67 million by the Miami-Dade County property appraiser in 2025, it is considered one of the last undeveloped lots on the iconic, palm-lined Biscayne Boulevard. Real estate experts suggest its market value could reach hundreds of millions of dollars, calling it a "developer's dream."
Criticism has centred on the lack of transparency. The agenda for the September meeting only stated the board would consider conveying property to a state fund overseen by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis and the Florida Cabinet, omitting crucial details about the specific land or the ultimate beneficiary.
The Path to the Trump Foundation
The process for transferring the land involves multiple steps. A week after the college's initial vote, Governor DeSantis and other top Florida GOP officials voted to move the land from the state fund, effectively placing it under the control of the Trump family. The property is to be deeded to the foundation established to build Trump's presidential library.
That foundation is led by three trustees: Eric Trump, Michael Boulos (husband of Tiffany Trump), and the former president's attorney, James Kiley. Notably, neither the contentious September vote nor Tuesday's re-vote were livestreamed to the public, unlike most of the board's other proceedings.
The situation continues to develop, with the court case set to determine the legality of the board's initial actions and the future of the valuable downtown Miami site.
