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Miami 21 “needs some tailoring,” says
Commissioner Marc Sarnoff. |
After a grueling nine hours of discussion,
debate, explanation and deliberation, the Miami City Commission
unanimously voted to defer the implementation of Miami 21, a
proposed form-based zoning code, for 90 days.
Miami 21
is a zoning program that focuses on “urban design practices
proven to be effective, including great neighborhood centers,
stable residential streets, successful urban parks, vibrant
high-density commercial streets and the successful coordination
of standards for urban design, architecture, landscape,
thoroughfare and use,” according to the Web site miami21.org.
The current code, dubbed “11,000” by city officials, focuses
more on what is allowed, rather than what the overall direction
of the city should be.
Miami Mayor Manny Diaz formally introduced the plan, and was
“pleased to come before the commission” with an urban plan
“designed to blend into a cohesive” city and set of communities.
Miami 21 “attempts to provide citizens with more access to
public spaces and parks,” create “a sense of place” that could
set the standard for Miami for decades to come and make “a clean
break from the city’s failed past.” For good measure, Diaz even
quoted from a newspaper article written in 1915 that quoted
Miami elected officials lamenting their failure to take proper
planning measures.
After a
20-minute PowerPoint presentation by Elizabeth Plater-Zyberg,
head of the consulting firm Duany Plater Zyberg that helped
draft Miami 21, a throng of neighborhood group representatives,
architects, attorneys, commercial property owners, contractors
and residents stood in line to tell commissioners their various
problems with Miami 21. From the broadest to the most specific
concerns, the overall message was loud and clear: The idea is
great but it needs more work.
“This is
a great project, but it’s just not ready yet,” said Hadley
Williams, head of Miami Neighborhoods United’s Miami 21
committee. This statement, in different forms, was echoed by
numerous other neighborhood groups from Edgewater, Coconut
Grove, Buena Vista, Wynwood and others.
Among the specific issues raised: unspecified housing conformity
laws that seemed to make every residence non-conforming, the use
of permits to create additions to homes, how damage from natural
disasters could be repaired, the public benefits aspect of
contracting and the need to alert the entire public of these
proposed changes.
This
meeting was set to pass implementation of Miami 21 in the East
Quadrant, which includes neighborhoods within the districts of
Commissioner Marc Sarnoff’s and Commissioner Michelle
Spence-Jones, who was not present due to illness. (Her absence
was another reason given for the 90-day delay.)
The
Miami 21 vision is to create a smart-growth plan that produces a
tight, compact urbanism structure which is public-transit
oriented, with mixed-use neighborhood centers. This in turn will
create a stronger sense of community with more
pedestrian-friendly sidewalks, Mayor Diaz reasoned. It was
difficult to find someone who did not support these measures and
their consequences, such as less car use, and more use and care
of parks. But in general, residents and property owners at the
meeting felt the city was somehow sneaking in a flawed draft
without first seeking the opinion of all city residents,
including those living outside of the East Quadrant.
“No
homeowners associations in my district have been briefed about
this and the majority of people do not know about this,” said
Commissioner Tomas Regalado, whose district includes the
neighborhood of Flagami and part of Little Havana. “The culture
and city of the East Quadrant are different in other parts of
the city. We need to consult the rest of the city.”
Regalado
also questioned the reasoning behind implementing Miami 21 for
only certain neighborhoods. “How can we announce to the world
that we have a new zoning code, if we only have a zoning code in
one part of the city?” he asked.
Indeed,
this theme ran throughout the meeting, with speakers talking
about citizens’ lack of knowledge and the complexity of the
document itself.
Speaker
after speaker came to the podium and complained that the
language of the Miami 21 draft was too difficult and complex to
comprehend.
Commissioner Joe Sanchez called the document “cutting-edge
legislation,” and was discouraged that the document was
“complicated” and that “people could read it a half a dozen
times and the light does not turn on.”
Another
concern, expressed mostly by architects, was the creative
freedom that Miami 21 impedes on. According to the code, after a
certain number of floors are constructed upwards, developers
would have to pay another fee per square foot for “public
benefit.” Many architects disputed this decision, arguing it
would restrict their creative license and might discourage
investment.
Though
Commissioner Sarnoff was not kind to architects who he felt were
trying to super-size their projects, he did ask Bernard
Zyscovich, “Do you think this code restricts your creativity in
any way?” Zyscovich, who had just completed a presentation in
which he argued that a building he designed on Biscayne
Boulevard would not be permitted under Miami 21, replied, “Yes.”
Also
appearing were groups seeking more benefits for affordable
housing. Statements were read from organizations such as the
Human Services Coalition, which believed Miami 21 was the city’s
chance to create more affordable housing for low-income
residents. The Association of Community Organizations for Reform
Now, or ACORN, was represented by about 20 people, of which six
or seven spoke for more affordable housing, offering their
stories of strife and hardscrabble livelihood to sway the
commission. One member, Jenny Lawson, said she was “disappointed
by this commission” because of its lack of attention to the idea
of affordable housing. “We support Miami 21,” she said, “but we
want true benefits for the public.” Every new building that went
up should be required to contain some amount of affordable
housing, she said. “This forces developers to be part of the
solution and not part of the problem.”
Regalado
tried to add a bit of comedy to a long and somewhat discouraging
night, telling the DPZ consultants not to be disheartened,
because in his tenure in office, he had never heard contractors
and residents agree on a piece of legislation.
Sanchez,
though, said he was very encouraged by what he had seen and
heard.
“It is
impressive to see how many people are getting to know the
documents, and the nine hours that I’ve been here have been
rewarding, because of the great testimony presented by
everyone,” he said. He also conceded that “it’s very important
we walk slowly, because this could affect Miami for 10, 15
years. This is something that’s going to make history, and you
can make history two ways, the good way or the bad way.”
Sarnoff
said Miami 21’s form-based coding gives the city the direction
it needs, but officials could not make the mistake of just
passing the law and fixing it as it goes along. “I don’t want to
waste anymore time on this draft, but I don’t want to force this
down anyone’s throat,” he said. “Miami 21 is the right decision
and with some tailoring, ironing and sewing, it will be a lot
better.”
The final ruling, a unanimous decision that was met with
thunderous applause from a nearly full chamber, reschedules
Miami 21 to 90 days time, requiring that three complete meetings
in each district be assembled to inform the public of the code
and to see how it could be improved.
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