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| The
Miami Herald That's the sort of incentive that developers who wish to build outside Miami-Dade's urban development boundary are offering as the County Commission prepares to decide the fate of nearly 1,000 acres of undeveloped land on the county's western and southern flanks. Opposition is fierce. Three major home builders have already dropped out of the fight, citing the politically unfriendly atmosphere. A poll last month found more than 70 percent of Miami-Dade voters opposed moving the boundary. Six applications by developers seeking to build retail, commercial and office space on land that's currently off-limits to large-scale building remain -- including one that could allow more than 200 new homes near Homestead. The commission is set to vote on them beginning Tuesday -- decisions that will likely set the tone for future debates. ''This will be a landmark vote in recent Miami-Dade history,'' said real estate developer Matthew Greer of The Carlisle Group in Miami, who opposes moving the urban boundary line. "All of the difficult questions -- quality of life, traffic, affordable housing, water, protecting our natural environment -- boil down to this vote.'' Established in 1975 by the Miami-Dade County Commission, the boundary limits building to one dwelling per five acres along the county's western and southern edge. Broward County has no such line. Every two years Miami-Dade considers applications to amend the boundary. It was never meant to be a fixed line but hasn't been altered for a residential project in more than a decade. It was moved for two industrial projects in 2002 after a bruising fight. Proponents contend Miami-Dade's supply of undeveloped land is dwindling while its population grows -- meaning the county must open more space for large-scale building. The fact some municipalities are restricting development, they say, is all the more reason to move the line. And they argue it can be done while not increasing traffic, crowding schools or straining the county's water supply. HOLD THE LINE Opponents, who've loosely assembled under an umbrella group called Hold The Line, maintain there's ample developable land within the boundary -- a claim backed up by Miami-Dade's Planning & Zoning Department. Allowing growth farther west and south, they say, will stress already strained schools and roads at a time when there are pressing needs inside the development boundary, such as mass transit and safe drinking water. Florida's Department of Community Affairs said earlier this year that all proposals to move Miami-Dade's Urban Development Boundary should be rejected. The South Florida Regional Planning Council advised against all but two. Miami-Dade's Department of Planning & Zoning said only one was acceptable. In the face of such opposition, applicants are proposing to ease environmental, traffic and school concerns. The city of Hialeah, for instance, is promising to spend millions on a new water treatment plant that will serve the 794 acres it wants brought inside the UDB. And polluted areas on the site, such as the Peerless landfill, would be cleaned up, said Hialeah City Attorney Bill Grodnick. Attorney Chad Williard, who represents a group trying to turn 43 acres at the western end of Kendall Drive into new offices and retail stores, contends the application will actually improve traffic flow in his area. ''We will provide an extension of 172nd Avenue to Kendall Drive,'' he said. In addition to its rooftop-rainwater irrigation system, Lowe's Home Center promises to sell part of its property to the school district at a discount for a new senior high. The retailer wants 52 acres at the western end of Southwest Eighth Street brought inside the development boundary. ''It's a bargain,'' lawyer Juan Mayol told the county's planning advisory board at a recent meeting. Still, opponents reject even the slightest movement of the line, saying that incremental shifts would ultimately lead to big changes. ''They are using the office and industrial projects as a Trojan horse to break the line and bring in residential later,'' said attorney Michael Pizzi, who opposes moving the line. Williard called it ''laughable'' to suggest any coordination among the applicants. Attorney Felix Lasarte, who is working on an application to bring 2.5 acres west of Doral inside the line, said it's "absolutely wrong.'' The last-minute tweaking may be having an effect for some of the applicants. For instance, the office park slated for far West Kendall that is being pushed by Williard has gotten relatively high marks from Commission Chairman Joe Martinez, who said the builder's promise to extend Southwest 172nd Avenue will relieve traffic congestion. ''I told these applicants, don't come to me unless you have some solutions to the traffic problem,'' he said. Martinez said he may also support the Lowe's application based on the promise to reclaim water on-site. ''You have applications that are bringing something to the table, and that makes a difference,'' he said. But nine of the 13 commissioners' votes are needed to amend the development boundary. And that may be a tall order -- especially after state regulators identified the gravest concern: the county's water supply. WATER POLICY CRITIQUE Florida's Department of Environmental Protection, as well as the state's regional water managers, singled out Miami-Dade this year for what they described as a shockingly short-sighted water policy. They said the county's water plans over the next 20 years threatened to suck dry natural resources and put the multibillion-dollar Everglades restoration in jeopardy. They also warned that new state laws linking development to water supply could prompt the state to bar future growth. Meanwhile, Gov. Jeb Bush, who counts Miami-Dade as his home, has openly challenged the need to move the UDB. Prominent developer Sergio Pino, a Bush ally, recently wrote to Martinez suggesting more planning before moving the line. Developer Jorge Perez, CEO of Miami-based Related Group of Florida, said moving the line is a "misuse of resources and compromises the environment.'' Miami-Dade Mayor
Carlos Alvarez had embraced the Hold the Line cause soon after taking
office. ''I'm not going to say I'm going to veto this one or that
one until after I hear the testimony,'' he said. "But I will
say this: I am philosophically opposed to moving the line.'' |