William Lane’s Iconic Lifeguard Towers

If you’re visiting Greater Miami and Miami Beach, no trip is complete without getting on the sand and snapping a photo in front of the iconic, colorful lifeguard towers lining the surf of Miami Beach. With their funky, Art Deco-inspired geometric designs in a rainbow of color combinations, these towers grab about as much attention as Miami’s turquoise waters.

Most importantly, the lifeguard towers are used for saving lives – but they’ve also become vibrant symbols of Miami Beach. From the southern tip of South Beach up to 87th Street, you can find 38 towers, with a 39th lifeguard tower under construction in 2026. The towers are regularly repaired and swapped out as needed, and are designed locally by acclaimed Miami architect, William Lane.

Architect William Lane Transformed The Towers Into Pieces of Art

William Lane is an award-winning Miami architect who’s most known for adding his design flair to the whimsical lifeguard towers that line Miami Beach. After working in the studio of artist Dennis Oppenheim in New York, the Office for Metropolitan Architecture in London and I.M. Pei and Partners in New York, Lane established his own practice in 1990 and moved to Miami in 1992.

Beyond the towers, he’s credited with splashing his distinctive, surreal mark throughout the destination’s public and private spaces, as in the award-winning oval antennae pavilion at South Pointe Park and the restroom/shade/concession building in Samson Oceanfront Park in Sunny Isles Beach.

The Design And Architecture Of Lane’s Towers

Take a walk on the white-sand beach and you’ll see these are not your typical lifeguard stands: They are color-drenched pieces of architectural art that embody Miami and its time-honored Art Deco and Miami Modern (MiMo) heritage.

The towers’ bold mix of colors and shapes is meant to command attention. Some of the most popular include the red-and-white, lighthouse-inspired tower at the southern tip of Miami Beach that marks the jetty (a new one was reconstructed in 2026 and designed in-house); the futuristic circular tower at 10th Street, colored in bright hues of pink, green and orange; and the 12th Street rainbow flag station.

At 8th Street, a red, white and blue tower with a star-shaped roof, painted with stars and stripes, was wrapped to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary in 2026, and will return to its regular color scheme later in the year.

You’ll spot rooflines that mimic waves and sunbursts, with curls and sharp angles and even swooping forms that call to Miami Beach’s mid-century style. The color palettes also stand out. Some are splashed in pink with green and orange accents; others are dashed in purple and trimmed with lavender and peach; some are teal with royal blue and lime combinations. Lane compares the towers to the Moai figures on Easter Island in that they are “an expression for identity and culture on Miami Beach,” he says.

The History of the Towers

After Hurricane Andrew hit South Florida in 1992, the City of Miami Beach hired Lane and his team to design five lifeguard towers to replace those damaged in the storm. When crafting the towers in 1995, Lane drew inspiration from the city itself. Miami Beach is famous for its Art Deco-style buildings, and Lane took cues from those buildings, along with its rich melting pot of cultures.

“The lifeguard towers were influenced not only by Miami’s mid-century and Art Deco architecture, but also by its Caribbean culture and the use of vibrant colors derived from the natural beauty of the tropics,” Lane says.

He was also influenced by his friendships with other renowned creatives. “When I first moved to Miami, I had the pleasure of becoming friends with Morris Lapidus, the architect of the Fontainebleau Miami Beach, Eden Roc Miami Beach and the Lincoln Road follies,” says Lane. “His use of contemporary forms mixed with bold geometries and even baroque elements inspired me to push boundaries that other designers may not have.”

Soon, just like the Art Deco buildings, the unique, vibrant lifeguard stands became a trademark of Miami Beach. Twenty years later, Lane was approached again by the city to create six new prototypes to replace 36 lifeguard towers from the tip of South Pointe Park to 86th Street. His designs once again reflected Miami’s Art Deco style.

The next time you’re sunbathing or just enjoying Miami Beach, stop to snap a few photos that capture the lifeguard stands. And discover more about William Lane and his design firm’s projects around Miami.