Sasaki Associates’ vision for Coconut Grove’s waterfront is ambitious but details, like an estimate for how much it will cost to implement, are still lacking.

The city of Miami’s Waterfront Advisory Board elected Tuesday to defer until Sept. 11 its verdict on a consultant’s ambitious plan to create more public access to Coconut Grove’s waterfront.

Although the plan has been in the works for two years, waterfront board members were not ready to approve it without more information.

The new Waterfront Master Plan, created by Sasaki Associates, an urban design firm, requires serious changes to the Grove’s waterfront area, including the demolition of the Coconut Grove Expo Center, the Coconut Grove Sailing Club and the headquarters of Shake-a-Leg, a nonprofit organization that teaches mentally and physically challenged people how to sail. Under the current plan, Shake-a-Leg and the Sailing Club would be moved to new facilities elsewhere on the waterfront.

The day before, on Monday, the Planning Advisory Board passed the plan unanimously as a “guiding tool for the future development and implementation of the plan, according to city budget constraints and availability of funds.” However, City Manager Pete Hernandez pulled it off the July 26 Miami City Commission agenda until the plan is more fully developed.

The demolition of standing buildings is necessary to open up more public space and create a green area where pedestrians can venture and see the waterfront, according to the Sasaki plan.

But the Sasaki consultants never met with representatives of the Coconut Grove Sailing Club to discuss the facility’s relocation. Jack King, a member of the Waterfront Advisory Board, called this “reprehensible,” and another board member, Jose Fuentes, agreed, saying “there should be some discussion with the Coconut Grove Sailing Club.” Spencer Crowley, also on the waterfront board, found it “shocking” that this step was not taken.

Waterfront Advisory Board member Phillip Everingham went further, stating that “there should have been a one-on-one talk with every stakeholder on the waterfront. That was a flaw.”

Stuart Sord, a dockmaster, echoed most of his fellow board members who spoke at Tuesday’s meeting; he believed that “nothing has been developed so perfectly than the [Coconut Grove] Sailing Club. This whole plan is impractical, and the Sailing Club should stay exactly where it is.”

Discussion about the annihilation of the Coconut Grove Expo Center was meek in comparison with the sailing community’s desire to keep the Coconut Grove Sailing Club location intact. Most attending the Waterfront Advisory Board meeting actually applauded the demolition of the expo center, saying it was underused and not aesthetically pleasing.

The question of economics was brought up in both meetings, as the Sasaki associates who conducted a PowerPoint presentation admitted they had not calculated costs, which they said would be extensive. Waterfront Advisory Board members believed that without a clear financing strategy and cost guidelines, they couldn’t vote to pass the Sasaki plan.

Other concerns were raised about knocking down good buildings like the Shake-a-Leg water sports center, which has operated in Coconut Grove for the last 25 years. (Harry Horgan, a co-founder of Shake-a-Leg, is also a member of the Waterfront Advisory Board.)

Board member Lee Smith chimed in, saying “I would hate to see a fully functional building that has survived hurricanes be torn down just to build another one.”

Still, Sasaki’s plan had its supporters, including Miami City Commissioner Marc Sarnoff. During Monday’s PAB meeting, Sarnoff spoke as a Coconut Grove resident, commenting that “sometimes life is about change, compromise and sharing.” He believes that the waterfront should be accessible to those who are not boaters, stating that “this is the best public space that we have in Miami, and some of you have to be open to the idea of providing it to all of Miami.” Sarnoff also pointed out that this was the ninth master plan that has been developed for changing the waterfront since 1985, with the eight previous plans being voted down.

Nina West of the Planning Advisory Board believed that there was still time to provide input to Sasaki and supported the consultants’ plans because “it’s the best plan that we’ve seen and it’s the best public process in the city of Miami” in terms of input from the public.

Another motivation to move the Sasaki plan forward was explained by Commissioner Sarnoff and Planning Advisory Board member Ernest Martin: The state was threatening to take the moorings, where boats are tied, away from the city because of neglect.

Still, the Waterfront Advisory Board reached an almost unanimous decision to delay the plan until Sept. 11, with only Crowley opposing.

King defended his decision by stating that the Sasaki plan needs a little more massaging, such as talks with all the stakeholders and projections of economic feasibility, before moving on to the City Commission for approval.

Sarnoff, though, thinks the stakeholders are too fearful about what they will lose and should be more open to change.

“Instead of white-knuckling and holding on to what you have, open your hearts and minds for the possibility that something else can be provided, and provided for more people. Provide for the possibility that there can be something better than what you have,” he said Monday night.

King, despite having serious problems with the current state of the Sasaki plan, agreed that the concept was the right one for the city, and that the deferral would create progress.

“The Coconut Grove Sailing Club would be the biggest losers if this plan dies, because the lease belongs to the city and their membership has been declining. They need a way to reinvent themselves,” he said in reference to the sailing club members in the crowd. “No one is looking at what if. If we keep looking backwards, we aren’t going to go forwards.”

The Waterfront Master Plan is available for viewing online at http://projects.sasaki.com/coconutgrove.

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