Miami nixes new code, but perhaps not for long

A four-year effort to place the city of Miami under a new urbanist zoning system failed in August when the City Commission deadlocked on the proposal, known as “Miami 21.” However, the code, which was formulated under the guidance of Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company (DPZ), has been scheduled for another vote Sept. 4. Many expect it to win approval. The code, which was devised and explained in more than 500 meetings involving residents, developers, architects, government agencies, city staff, and others, is seen as an instrument for bringing momentous change to an auto-oriented city in which zoning decisions have often been made inconsistently, with little regard for the well-being of neighborhoods. It has been common in Miami for zoning decisions to be made at the request of an owner or developer who wants to put a large new building on a property. Thus tall buildings shoot up next to low older ones — a situation that frustrates advocates of a more cohesive and human-scale environment. The proposed code, in the view of The Miami Herald, “would make Miami more walkable with inviting street-level attractions, driveways hidden on side streets and condo garages tucked behind storefront facades.” High-rise buildings would step back as they rise. Outgoing Mayor Manny Diaz has made the zoning proposal his signature reform effort. Its defeat, on a 2-2 vote with one commissioner absent, came as a shock. Commission Chairman Joe Sanchez, who cast an unexpected “no” vote, said he did so because the proposal’s restrictions on development could have exposed the city “to tens of millions of dollars in lawsuits from loss of property value.” He then added: “However, I am extremely hopeful that this is a temporary setback to a common goal that is within our reach. Miami 21 must be revisited immediately after we have cut the bloated salaries and pensions that threaten our current budget.” The code aims to prevent construction of buildings that are out of scale with their settings. Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk was principal-in-charge for DPZ. Project leader Marina Khoury said of the product: “It is a form-based code; it’s a SmartCode that has elaborated upon and calibrated to Miami and its history.” Distinctive aspects of code Miami 21 differs from other SmartCodes in that it authorizes six different varieties of the T-6 (urban core) zone. T-6 zones would range from one allowing buildings up to eight stories in commercial corridors to another allowing buildings up to 80 stories in the downtown. The code includes a public benefits provision; if developers want additional building capacity, they can pay into a transfer of development rights program, with the proceeds going to support historic preservation, parks, brownfield remediation, or other civic goals. “There are new sustainability standards in the code,” Khoury also pointed out. The Herald said the new zoning system would do for much of the city what has been accomplished in recent years on a stretch of Biscayne Boulevard from Northeast 18th to Northeast 30th Street. In that area, commerce and pedestrian traffic have been nurtured by mixing retail and residential uses and requiring new buildings to meet the streets and sidewalks in ways that encourage public activity. The Herald said the existing code has burdened much of the city with “self-contained buildings designed to be entered by car, with expansive driveways and yawning garages.” Opponents, including some architects and developers, attacked Miami 21 as too complex and too restrictive on building design. Some lawyers contended that it would intrude on the rights of property owners. Some homeowners claimed it was not strict enough, saying it would not sufficiently limit the size of tall buildings adjoining low-scale residential areas. Despite the August disappointment, Khoury proclaimed that “the tide has turned in Miami. There was an incredible show of support from so many people.” Xavier Iglesias of DPZ concurred, saying, “Too much energy has been expended and there is too much dissatisfaction with the current code” for reform efforts to suddenly end.