Planning, Zoning, and Appeals Board

Planning, Zoning, and Appeals Board — October 8, 2025 - 5:09 PM

ection is available online and at the City Clerk's office. Any person making a presentation or petition concerning real property must make disclosures in writing. A copy of this code is available at the office of the City Clerk and online. Please silence all cellphones. Any person with a disability requiring aids or services MAY notify the board's listen. . The agenda was made available for the board in advance of the meeting. The materials are online 24 hours a day. Any person MAY be heard for not more than 2 minutes. First Student: Your If you could em speaking about. If you wish to appeal any order by the board, you MAY do. Verbatim record of Jiyai. Em. Members of the board will disclose ex.. Arte communications to remove the presumption of prejudice. Staff will present items to be heard. The applicant will present its application or request. If agreeing with staff's recommendation, the board MAY proceed to the deliberation. The applicant MAY waive. The right to an evidentiary hearing. Anyone requesting action must disclose consideration provided to support or withhold objections of the requested action. The communications department will broadcast the meeting. Live on miamigov. com/tv and Comcast 77 in the city. The broadcast will have closed captioning. The public can submit public comment onlione. These will be distributed so that the board can consider them prior to taking action. The online public comment form will be open until the chair closes public comment. These will be considered by the board prior to taking action The city published an agenda and included the items and topics discussed at this meeting. The public has been given opportunity to provide public comment during and before the meeting. Are you comfortable with these notices and provisions set forth? >> Yes in is thank you. Ou. >> All right. It is 6:50. It is 10. 8, wednsady. . Please, stand for a moment of silence and our Pledge of Allegiance. [Pledge of Allegiance] >> All those who intend to testify, stand and raise your right hand. Do you solemnly swear or affirm your testimony is the whole truth? Thank you. You MAY be seated. >> Thank you very much. Can we have a roll call? >> [Roll call] I have 4 absence waiver requests. >> [Inaudible] >> Sorry. Mario j Bailey. >> Present. >> Sorry about that. I have 4 absence waivers. >> I will entertain a motion -- who are the 4. >> Porosoff, Gersten, Carall, and Patinkin. >> Motion to approve. >> Second. >> Thank you. >> All those in favor -- ? Any opposed? Seeing none, it passes. Thank you very much. Any items for deferral? >> Yes. I believe we are deferring items 1-7. All to be indefinitely deferred. Um -- 1-6. Yeah. Yeah, 1-6. Sorry. Including number 6. >> I will entertain a motion for indefinite deferral. >> So moved. >> Second. >> All those in favor -- ? Any opposed? Showing none, approved. Thank you. Let's move on now. I guess we just did -- we swore in the public. We did that. We set the agenda. There are no meeting minutes. We go on to our first item. Can we have item -- >> Through the chair, I would like to request if we can move items 18, 19, and 17 in that order and hear them first? >> Let's do this -- I will take -MR. Bailey, go ahead. >> MR. Chair, there are minutes from the SEPTEMBER meeting. >> We have members in the audience including a private application. There are members in the audience that are here -- >> Yeah, I will take -- >> For item 12, and the applicant is also here for items 13 and 14. >> Okay, so let's do this. I don't see any meeting miniatures. An you please advise? >> That was done today, so it didn't make it on the agenda. They needed a resolution for the city commission item, so it was done today. >> We will do meeting minutes -- >> They didn't make it on the agenda. >> Oh, I understand. Super. What we will do then is -- let's take 12, 13, 14. That way, members of the public -- >> Then, we can take 18, 19 -- >> 18, 19, 17, and then we will do the reminder. . >> MR. Chair, can I close online public comment? We have not received any, so I did not send out an email. >> Thank you. Will start with number 12. >> Thank you. >> [Unclear] Recommending an amendment to the zoning atlas of 13114 by changing from t5l to t68o of the property at 1521 Northwest 37 Street, 1501 Northwest 37 Street, and 1505 Northwest 37 Street described in the attached exhibit a, making findings, containing a severability clause, and providing for an effective date. >> Give it a second. >> Okay. >> I don't have to press anything, do I? >> [Inaudible] >> Okay, thank you. Good evening. [Unclear], City of Miami planning department for the application 2519809 for 1521 Northwest 37 Street. We are here for a rezoning application to request a change of the Miami 21 zoning classification from t5l to t68o for aprxmntly 60,000 square are feet, changing the zoning classification pursuant to article 7 of Miami 21. The property is located at 1501 Northwest 37 Street, 1521 Northwest 37 Street, and 1535 Northwest 37 Street, District 1 -- recommending approval. The property has three parcels bounded by Northwest 38 Street to the Northwest 37 Street to the south, and Northwest 15 Ave to the east, and Northwest 15 Ave to the west. To the north, there's as t5l zone. To the south, t68o. To the west, we have t68o. To the north, we have median-density restricted commercial at 65 dwelling units per acre. To the east, we have duplex residential, and restricted commercial to the wheelset. E north is single-family, medium-density. To the south, we have multi-family high-density. And sales/service commercial as well. To the east, we have residential duplexes. And some vacant land to the west. It is t5l with a proposal for t68o. We have site photos of a visit that was tc$rkein 8. 13. 25. The first photo is of the property with industrial use -- a vehicle and marine storage tow yard. The second photo is multi-family high-density residential to the south. The third photo is of the condos to the west of the property along Northwest 38 Street. The fourth photo is new multi-story residential areas. The fifth [Unclear] Shaded within Miami Jackson Senior High School. Additionally, we have notable single-family dwellings to the immediate north of the property and immediate east of the property along with notable vacancies you can see along here. Additionally, the property is within a one-mile radius from the metro rail station which is the Allapattah tod area from map lu14 where the property is symbolized with this red start. [Unclear] Integrates housing, jobs, and services as encouraged within the tod area. Article 3, table 4 -- this will e will unlock related commercial establishments. It will allow them by warrant in the t6o and unlock entertainment establishment from being allowed by warrant to right. It will allow amusement parks or rides. It was not allowed in t5l, but it. Will be allowed by exception. We have the building disposition here. The max benefit allowed in t68 is 12 stories. It does not require additional flum changes. With the rezone analysis pursuant to article 7 of the Miami 21 code, the proposed change will further the objectives and goals of the code. This property is proposed for rezone from t5l to t68o to allow denser developments and to enhance the neighborhood. It has approximate access to bus routes 17 and 36 and the Allapattah Metrorail station to encourage more transit use. The second criteria is article 7 of the Miami 21 code needing a justification for the change including the change in conditions that make the proposed change necessary. We have recent rezones from a quarter mile away. There's one from t3o to t5l in '24 at 1317 Northwest 37 Street, north of the property. Another rezone was t4o to t68o in '10 at 3380 Northwest 17 Ave. That latter rezone at 3380 resulted in developmentment of a -density residential area. Three more are currently under construction. Final criteria is pursuant to article 7, a successional transect change should preserve neighborhoods and provide intensity in building height. This requested change is consistent with successional zoning and aligns with patterns of high-density, multi-family residential, and commercial districts. To the east of the property, the subject property has maintained an automotive and marine storage yard since 1990 which predates the Miami 21 code Rezoning this property to t68o will allow for increased density that makes redevelopment Monroe nancially feasible and facilitates locally unwanted landuses. Pursuant to article 7 of 13114 as amended, the prelanding partment recommends approval to the change to t68o. This concludes my presentation. I am glad to answer questions from the board. >> Thank you very much. I believe I open it to the members of the public now, correct? If there are members of the public who wish to speak on this item, please come forward. Please, approach Thorpe demolish. D evening. Thank you for being here. >> Good afternoon. Barbara Simmons. 1454 Northwest 39 Street. Are you all saying that they are going to build that apartment building on that street of 37th Street and 15th Ave? Is that what you're saying? >> At this time, no project is proposed. >> Okay. >> The commissioner's office asked us to look at potentially rezoning this property. We studied it. We are making a recommendation to increase the zoning that would allow for a mixed-use building there. >> The only problem I have with it is because it will increase the traffic. It is already congested now. I live on 39th Street. 112 is right there. People come up the opposite way on 39th trying to get on 112. Then, they go on 15th Ave the opposite way. That's going to get worse. >> Any project that was built there, they would be required to do a traffic study at the time to obtain their building permit and any improvements will be required. They would have to make traffic improvements. >> j >> So, there's different ways that they handle the situation. Sometimes it's not always increased-like, it's not always adding a lane. Sometimes, they add a traffic light. Sometimes they MAY look at the road configuration to add a turn lane. Sometimes they might actually decrease the amount of lanes because they find that forces people onto other streets and decreases traffic. Out of the traffic study there would be a list of mitigations that would occur because of the project. >> I'm really concerned. I've been there 45 years and I don't want to move. I like where I live. It's convenient around everything. With this building coming, it's going to be 12 stories high That's a lot of apartments. I can see the streets. It's going to be very congested. I wish they'd give all the residents a chance to voice their opinion. >> I have a question for staff. Currently we're looking at a hypothetical but if there's a specific project that's put forth, would they have to come back before us or have a conversation with the residents/ >> Not necessarily. If the project was allowed by right under t6-8-o they could go right to building permits. Zoning would review it to ensure it met our zoning code. If they needed an exception it would come back, for a specific use they were putting into the building, it would come before this board. Most likely, probably not. Like I said, I don't know any specific projects. >> Through the chair, if I MAY. >> Let's finish the-are you done with comments? Thank you very much. Any other comments from the public? I'll bring it to the board. >> For staff, the existing t5 provides some transitional zoning in that area. How are you, how is this transitional? If you put t68 abutting t3, aren't you violating your own transitional rules? >> That's -- >> It seems to me that t5 is correct in this location. You have a t5 buffer. The t4 is missing but you have t5 protecting the t3 neighborhood to the east. Now you want to go t68 and you don't have a developer. There's no transition there at all. >> That condition already exists. >> Not in the picture I'm looking at now. I'm looking at just above the recommendation. On page 226 of my packet here. T68 is going to be directly across the street from, that's 15th? Directly across the street to the east is t3o. >> The block to the north already exists in that condition. >> Not to the north, to the east. >> There already is an existing condition in the area where you have t6 abutting t3. >> I don't understand why- >> So -- >> If you've already violated transition or you have a situation that has no transition, you're just going to allow this to have no transition also? It doesn't make sense. Unless you have a plan for the t3o to the east, if j'rs. 's a plan to buy out the people who live there and upzone that as well, then you can take the entire neighborhood to t6. If that's the plan I'd like to hear it but if all you're doing now is creating a t68 abutting t3 I couldn't possibly vote for it. >> I mean, when we look at our criteria that condition already exists. >> But not here. >> It does, in an abutting project it already exists. >> So, the condition in the area already-I mean, in the abutting property already exists. When we look at it we look at the fact that our comprehensive plan anticipates that this will increase to t68o. >> Abutting t3? >> Yes. >> Doesn't that violate all transitional theory the planning department works with? >> Our comprehensive plan doesn't always-it says this property could, not should, but it anticipates that the property will go all the way up to t68o. Between t5 and t68o that is t5l and t5r. If we want to maintain the transition it would be t68l or as high as the plan would which is t68o. >> Abutting an existing t3o? I can't vote for that. It's not right. >> Do you have the. Omp plan? >> It's throwing transitional zoning out the window. I couldn't back it. >> Do you have the. Omp plan? >> Hold on a second. >> I have a question. So, there's no plan right now other than just rezone this? >> We were asked to study this. >> Back up. Why this particular piece of property at this address? Something's going on. >> I don't have an answer. >> Look at the whole grid and pick this out. >> I mean, we were actually asked to look at several things in the Allapatah neighborhood by the Commissioner. Not just this. This is the first one you're seeing. We were asked to look at almost 200 acres of Allapatah. >> This is the first of many. >> This is what we could conquer right now. We're. In the process of looking. It's not necessarily an adjacent 200 acres. We are looking at another portion of Allapatah for rezoning. Don't forget, we have the introduction of the Allapatah cra so we anticipate more rezonings. >> It's part of a larger plan. >> Right, the cra has an entire redevelopment plan behind it as well. >> Thank you. >> I think this is the beginning of more to come for the area. We were asked to study this. When we looked at what is missing in our comp plan and for me if it says you can go to t68o it makes sense. I think if you want to maintain transitional zoning you could recommend t68l because that's the transition between t5 and t68o also with the comp. Plan anticipating that the zoning density for this property be increased into the future. >> Is that something. You recommend as a middle ground? >> That's what I would recommend as a middle ground if you were looking to keep that transition. You would recommend the t68l. >> Why wasn't that your recommendation? >> We looked at previously we looked at what existed currently and also the property code. When we changed to Miami 21 this property was down-zoned. >> I see. >> [Unclear.] >> a bunch of other stuff since 1990. >> [Unclear.] >> I think it was a t3. Yes, [Unclear] The 1100 code. >> The current use is nonconforming. >> Hmm. >> The comp.. Lan portion has not changed. That's always remained 150 units per acre. When we downzoned it we downzoned it to t58. Your regulations can be more restrictive so that changed it from 150 to 65 units per.. Cre. [Applause. Ther members? Yes? >> When I look at this area it's very hard for me to see zoomed in. I like to zoom out and see what's happening a little further out. I see a pattern. I see 36 streets, all lined with t3. Then you have t5, then you have t3o. We have the successional zoning that's occurring from 12th all the way to 15th. It's buffering on 36th and also 15th. On 17th you have [Unclear. ] You have that. Shape and you are hugging that t3 and protecting it from higher transit. It's difficult for me to say let's chop this area up. I know it's transitional. [Unclaer. ] The person that spoke from the public. It will be a higher development capacity because we will be permitting that. It will allow bonuses and it will allow greater. Height, greater density, and it will be facing the t3o so that concerns me. I don't see under which light I can say that this is beneficial. [Unclear] The current use and it's an improvement. It's better than what we currently have but I don't know if the correct process or the correct zoning, I don't think it is, it's a t68. >> Why do you think it's better than the current use? >> The zoning? >> Yeah. >> [Unclear. ] I think we are doing a service to the neighborhood. >> Is there any way to see? To test that? To see what's behind it? >> Behind it? >> Yeah, I think she's right. With the plan to develop. >> There's no applicant. >> Right, the applicant is the manager. >> The city. There's no individual, there's no developer. >> I know that. >> It's Allapatah. >> I will say that typically when rezones are done by commissioners there's typically not a developer behind it. It's typically because they see a need within the community. The times where there has been a developer behind it, since I've been here, is we did some in the west Grove and those were specifically to help nonprofits like Casa Valentina. We were also giving them grant money so there was already another association with the city. I've never seen that come from a Commissioner like that. As far as I know, that was not the case. We were asked to study this, we've studied it, and moved forward with the application based on that recommendation. I think if you would prefer to see t68l then that's the recommendation you should make. >> How many other properties are we looking at in Allapatah itself? >> We are looking at what we are calling the Curtis Park area. That's [Unclear. ] It's about 200 acres. We're doing a broader study with that because it's such a large portion. We anticipate there being more outreach with the community as well. >> I think we also need to look at the section of the street because 36th Street, which is lined up with t68, and 17th Avenue, which is also lined up with t68, are very different in width. When you put a building that has the capacity to go to 21 stories, the issue is that the building has a development capacity. The only thing we're tweaking are the uses. We're opening it to the. Uses or not but the development capacity will not change. What I'm concerned is the [Unclear] And number of units. If we're thinking of cars and traffic, my experience is [Unclear. ] I cannot hang my hat on that premise. >> Any other members? >> Make a motion to deny based on the fact that it violates traditional transact. >> Second. >> [Unclear.] >> Who made the second? >> So it's a motion to deny. >> We have to take the motion first. >> Yeah, so I can do that one. Point of inquiry to legal, counsel. Is this allowed? >> Is what allowed? >> Does it violate transitional? >> So, there are several criteria in Miami 21 regarding rezones. I'm happy to read them aloud but one of the criteria is transitions. >> In our case, staff is recommending that it meets transitional zoning or successional zoning. If you disagree with that, that's fine. MR. Mann's motion is appropriate and legal in that he is recommending denial based on the fact that the body does not believe it meets the criteria, specifically transitional and successional zoning. >> If the residents to the east wanted this and were looking to increase the value of their own properties that's a different story. At the moment, the way things stand now, it's just a clear violation. It's transitional to some extent now. This would be removing it. It's not the first time this has happened but that doesn't mean it's okay with me. >> There's been a motion and second. >> Would you like to proceed to a vote? >> Let's go for a vote. Roll call. >> Is it a roll call vote? >> Just a reminder, it's a motion to. Deny. A yes would be for denial. >> No is you're against the motion to deny. >> Correct. [Roll call. ] >> Motion passes 5:2. This will proceed to city commission with a recommendation of denial. >> Thank you very much. >> Next, 13. >> a resolution of the Miami Planning, Zoning and Appeals Board with attachments, recommending approval of an ordinance of the Miami city commission. >>. .. Subject to state statute 163. 3187 by changing the future land use designation from medium-density restricted commercial to restrict d commercial at 840 Northwest 6 Ave and 601 Southwest 9 Street as described in the attached exhibit a making findings, containing a severability clause, and providing for an effective date. >> Good evening. Jared Murphy, Planner ii, City of Miami. The property with the red outline is the subject property in question. Properties to the north are commercial orotund. . Number 12. S Miami automotive retail as s you go south, this is the Riverside and Rhodes neighborhoods. This is approximately 14,000 square feet. This slide here provides neighborhood context. [Unclear] Four-mile study area as in figure 2 to the right. We identified 532 property addresses within this study area. We retrieved, based on the Miami Dade County property appraiser report, we classified -- this was used for tax assessment purposes and to reclassify the property addresses. Out of that analysis, we identified 78. 6% of the property addresses as classified as residential. To the right, the yellow dots indicate the properties in questions. [Unclear] Are classified as commercial. You can see this is along the hwest [Unclear] Street. I want to bring to your attention "vacant. " It has a lot of meanings. In zoning. If you look at the vision line, Southwest 8th Street, it's are only 4 green dots/vacant properties. To the north, there are 21 green dots. At a cursory, it indicates transition to the north, less "change" to this Ouatah. Moving on tenth. Future land use acreage. This was retrieved from the Miami comprehensive neighborhood plan. 20% is commercial. 62% is residential. Only which makes sense based on this version of the addresses that are residential and the flum designations. Our key point I want to make -- that yellow star right here. That is the only zoning change that has happened since 2011 for ordinance 13292 which was approved in 2011. That zoning change went From from t5l to t5o which complies with the Miami comprehensive neighborhood plan. This entire band of restrict ve commercial and medium-density restricted commercial has remained the same. The point is stability and consistency in the pattern of the flum designation. As far as the comprehensive p. An amendment, the applicant seeks to go from medium-density restricted commercial to restricted commercial. This slide, for the future land use map, it shows the uses for both flum designations are identical. The only difference is really in the density going from 65 to 150 and nonresidential flr going from multiplier 6 to 11. That's the only difference. As far as the analysis, this application is compliant with all service standards. There were 4 criteria reviewed. The first is lu1. 6. 4 dealing with the previous slide regarding level of service. The applicant complies. Criteria 2 is lu1. 3 objective saying the city should provide development that enhances existing structures, supports mixed-use neighborhoods, and prioritizes neighborhoods with established infra