A polarizing measure to loosen development regulations and allow bigger buildings in Miami’s Little Havana is advancing.
The proposal, spelled out in a land-use and a zoning item, primarily targets Little Havana, an area traditionally associated with preserving and showcasing Miami’s Cuban heritage, including with its famous Calle Ocho. Some of the properties targeted are in the Miami River District.
The items are backed by the city, marking its latest push in of a yearslong effort to permit taller buildings with more units in specific neighborhoods. City Commissioner Rolando Escalona represents the district.
On Wednesday evening, the Miami Planning, Zoning and Appeals Board voted 7-3 to approve the changes. The decision is preliminary and heads to the city commission at a yet unscheduled meeting.
This measure is “taking one of the few remaining places where you could walk down the street and understand what you are looking at as being unique to that area,” said Adam Gersten, board chair, who voted against the changes. “Why would you kill a golden goose?”
A massive swath of properties spanning 661 lots on 136 acres is targeted for upzoning in the proposal.
The separate land-use item calls for changing development regulations on 349 properties on 72 acres, proposing to designate 47 of the properties as “medium density multifamily residential” and the remaining 302 as “restricted commercial.” This would allow developers to build out lower-scale areas under the T6-8 zoning district, which generally allows up to eight stories, and also to build up to 150 units per acre on lots where 36 to 65 units currently are allowed.
After the community meeting, most, if not all, potential impacts of the legislation south of Southwest Eighth Street were removed, Escalona said, adding that there’s still work pending on the measures and the city may pursue historic designations for some sites.
The changes in part address mismatched zoning and help the city maintain more control over development “in the face of the Live Local Act,” he said.
Miamians opposing the measure aired out their concerns, including increased traffic on already congested streets and strain on infrastructure including schools, water and sewer. Still, not everyone is opposing the changes, as several Little Havana property owners urged board members to approve.
“Little Havana, it’s its turn,” Mauricio Villasuso, a broker with Fausto Commercial, told the board. “There’s multi-generational owners, people who want to see this de-regulation so they can use their property rights.”
But a major sticking point for opponents is how quickly the proposals were sprung on them and the short notice they received — and the fact that city staff members amended zoning maps depicting the proposed changes shortly before the planning meeting. Many urged the board to defer its vote.
“The latest amendment was provided yesterday afternoon, not even the commissioner had seen it,” said Denise Galvez Turros, an executive of the Viernes Culturales art and culture festival in Little Havana.
“Nobody comes to Little Havana to look at big concrete buildings that look out to the sidewalk. How is this going to affect traffic? How is this going to affect the quality of life for all the people who live north of Little Havana? The congestion is horrible. This is called putting the cart before the horse.”
Little Havana property owners took to Reddit and Facebook last week to air out their frustrations over receiving a flyer announcing a community meeting on the changes a day before that meeting was held.
“That gave affected residents effectively one business day to learn about the proposal, understand the impacts, and make arrangements to attend the meeting,” one Redditor wrote.
