Fourth office building to rise at Governors Square campus

A member of Miami Lakes’ founding family and a historic figure in state and national history will soon have a new office building in town named for him.
A worker installed a fence as heavy equipment cleared a cow pasture on Feb. 14 for the Bob Graham Building, part of the Governors Square complex of corporate buildings on the west side of town.
Former Governor and U.S. Senator Bob Graham, 83, and his wife, Adele Graham, split their time at residences in Miami Lakes and in Gainesville, Fla.
His family’s firm is developing the four-story building with a mostly glass facade that will anchor the east side of the campus at 14800 Oak Lane.
“The Graham Companies is very excited to begin construction of the fourth and final building in the Governors Square complex,” said Stuart S. Wyllie, president and chief executive officer.
The Bob Graham Building will be 80,000 square feet on a nearly seven-acre lot; it was designed by RLC Architects of Boca Raton.
It is rectangular, with a clean, white modern interior, wood accent walls and white stone floors.
It will be built by Miller Construction of Fort Lauderdale.
When finished, the Bob Graham Building may be leased to a single tenant or, if used by multiple companies, spaces will be a minimum of 2,500 rentable square feet. There will be free parking on site.
The corporate office park was dedicated in 1986 and has three buildings named for Bob Graham’s predecessors: Andrew Jackson, Spessard Holland and Leroy Collins.
Jackson was the state’s first territorial governor in 1821. Holland was Florida’s 28th chief executive who served from 1941 – 1945, an era when Florida, including
Miami Beach, was used to train the military during World War II.
As the state’s 33rd governor, Collins served from 1955 – 1961 and led the state through desegregation, the company said.
From 1979 - 1987, Graham was the 38th governor.
He was known for his “workdays,” when he would labor alongside constituents as a teacher, waiter, cop and garbage hauler, among other jobs, to see what their lives were like.
Graham was very popular, with an 83 percent approval rating after his second term, the company said.
He is remembered for working to improve Florida’s public schools; protecting the environment and fostering economic development, with 1.4 million jobs created during his administrations.
While a U.S. senator from 1987 – 2005, Graham led the Senate Intelligence Committee’s investigation into the 9/11 terrorist attacks and won passage of federal legislation to restore the Everglades.
He retired from public service at the end of his third senate term.
Graham has written books about government as well as a suspense novel and a forthcoming children’s book.
An alumnus of the
University of Florida, he meets with students and educators at the Bob Graham Center for Public Service at the school, in Gainesville.
The school awarded him an honorary doctor of public service degree in 2006.
The Bob Graham Building at Governors Square is set to open mid-2021.