South Dade Restoration

The latest updates on planned Everglades-related restoration projects in South Dade is now available. Click here for PDF (4.6 MB).

Everglades for All Survey

Clean Water Fund and allies are distributing the Everglades for All survey to explore public participation given that the influence of Everglades restoration touches the lives of diverse communities spanning Florida's socioeconomic and cultural spectrum.  This survey will be a tool to begin generating concrete suggestions and strategies for improving broad public investment and involvement efforts by government agencies on Everglades restoration at the 2010 Everglades Coalition Conference.

We would like to challenge assumptions and identify gaps in understanding, access and communications to generate concrete suggestions and strategies for improving and restoring the public voice in Everglades restoration.  If we hope to foster dialogue regarding how government agencies currently interact with and distribute information to these distinct “publics” and to understand how discourse can be made more meaningful, inclusive and effective we need your help in distributing this survey broadly and get feedback from as many of our citizens, neighbors and friends as possible.

 

Click Here to take survey

Changes to Revised Virginia Key Master Plan

Miami Waterfront Advisory Board makes recommendations and forwards it to the Miami City Commission for their consideration

Despite pleas from the public to delve into the details of the revised plan and delay voting on the approval, the Miami Waterfront Advisory Board unanimously approved on Oct. 5 forwarding the Virginia Key Master Plan with suggested amendments to the Miami City Commission. 

The amendments (made by board member Jose Fuentes) include:

The Virginia Key Master Plan is scheduled to be heard by the Miami City Commission, Thurs., Oct. 8, Miami City Hall, 3500 Pan American Drive, Miami. There is no time certain set at the moment.

Enrique Nunez, of the City of Miami's planning staff presented the “revised” Virginia Key Master Plan, which he said was scaled back in response to community input. The previous (May 2009) version was unanimously rejected by two city advisory boards and dozens of civic, environmental and preservation groups.

The October 2009 version removes some buildings and parking garages throughout the island and opens land in front of the historic Miami Marine Stadium but retains a large dry dock storage facility and two large parking garages in the Marine Stadium basin as well as a retail shopping center now dubbed the “Marine Stadium Village.”

Nunez told the board the Marine Stadium Village will “provide access to the waterfront area.” No specific uses were identified for this “Village” though the  the square footage had been reduced to 32,000 square feet, “about the size of a Publix” but interspersed among various buildings. The attached parking garage would be five stories tall. 

The plan does not provide for a public boat ramp, though it presents two possible locations: next to the environmentally sensitive North Point area and in the Marine Stadium basin, where the boat ramp (now closed) has always been. The planners said reopening the existing boat ramp in the basin would interfere with the operations of the large private dry dock storage facility planned for the area. 

See the “Revised” city of Miami Virginia Key Master Plan.

 

A significant number of speakers called for more details on the size, mass and use of the buildings and requested a delay in approval of the revised plan in order to build greater public consensus about the island's future and further refine the plan with public input. They also asked for a commitment to the restoration of the historic Miami Marine Stadium and clean up of the contaminated landfill site. 

Fran Bohnsack, president of the Urban Environment League, said a very successful public charette held Sept. 26 had drawn more than 100 participants who developed ideas that had not yet been incorporated by the city's planners into the Virginia Key Master Plan. She also said the city's Planning Advisory Board had not had the opportunity to review the revised plan. 

Grace Solares, president Miami Neighborhoods United, a coalition of City of neighborhood civic associations, called for “pause and then a rewind.” She pointed out that the City of Miami budget had effectively defunded the historic Virginia Key Beach Park and if there is a dissolution of the governing trust “there will be no one to provide oversight.”

Judy Sandoval, community activist,  warned: “Be very careful about voting for a plan ‘in principle” and without details.”

Wendy Kamilar, chair of the board, called for a vote up or down on the plan.  “You can't get funding without some sort of plan. We have to have a conceptual plan going forward,” she said. 

With that, the Board voted unanimously to recommend that the plan go forward to the Miami City Commission Oct. 8 with recommended amendments.

 

Contact information for City of Miami Mayor and commissioners: 

Letters to the editor can be sent to: heralded@miamiherald.com

Tropical Audubon, Virginia Key advocates urge changes in Master Plan

The Virginia Key Master Plan designed by planning firm EDSA has unified many members of the community who fear a commercialized, over-developed Virginia Key. Tropical Audubon Society has been an outspoken voice for changes to the Master Plan, which calls for the construction of athletic fields, dry storage racks and a BMX course, among other things. TAS recently worked with Urban Environment League, Sierra Club, Dade Heritage Trust and many other concerned individuals to compose a letter and white paper, which identify many questionable elements of EDSA's plan. The documents were hand delivered to Mayor Manny Diaz, City Manager Pete Hernandez and City Commissioners, who will vote on the plan in the coming months.

Among the greatest concerns is the massive sports complex, made up of dozens of playing fields and courts, planned for the North End of Virginia Key. TAS and its allies suggested the fields be for day use only because the beach around Virginia Key is a nesting spot for sea turtles, which would be disrupted by artificial lights on at night.

TAS would like to see a plan with significantly reduced construction. Virginia Key is home to many threatened, endangered or protected species, such as Biscayne prickly ash and Johnson's seagrass. Native plants must be protectedDestinations such as the Marine Stadium and Virginia Key Beach Park give the island historical significance. An abundance of new development would obscure such sites and threaten the natural environment.

Thirty individuals and ten organizations agreed to these points and signed on to Tropical Audubon's letter. Many of the concerns raised were mentioned at public meetings hosted by EDSA, though a failure to incorporate the public's recommendations brought us to this point.

Both the Planning Advisory Board and the Waterfront Advisory Board rejected the Master Plan, and it has been removed (for now) from the Commission's agenda. City Manager Peter Hernandez indicated in a letter to the Miami Herald that the plan is being reworked with the public's suggestions in mind. To voice your opinions on the matter, call or write to your City Commissioner.

Contact your city commissioner by calling or emailing:

OR Sending a letter to:
Office of (commissioner's name)
3500 Pan American Drive
Miami FL, 33133

See the Master Plan

Here are the TAS letter and proposal for Virginia Key.

From the Miami Herald

Re the June 25 editorial Virginia Key plan is a dud: Virginia Key is an island consisting of approximately 1,030 acres. Of that, the Virginia Key Master Plan proposes improvements to only 257 acres -- 25 percent of the total area -- and reclaims more than 60 acres of inaccessible dredge fill and 116 acres of polluted landfill to provide recreational opportunities.

The master plan respects the existing 491 acres of conservation areas, improves beaches and coastal hammock areas and recommends improvements to the North Point area to include a recreational center, eco-campgrounds, nature trails for pedestrians and biking trails for all ages.  continued in Miami-Herald

ACES

Comprehensive energy and climate legislation is vitally needed this year to help deliver economic, energy, and climate security. As President Obama has said, the choice is ``between a slow decline and renewed prosperity; between the past and the future.'' The time to act is now. Click Here to read more...

ENERGY at What Cost to Our Environment and Economic Future?

 

On June 30th Florida Power and Light submitted an application to expand Turkey Point by adding two new nuclear reactors.  Tropical Audubon is opposed to the expansion of this area because of its impact on Biscayne Bay and the surrounding ecosystems.  We are also very concerned that this is not in the public's best interest because it will further put Florida's water supply in jeopardy and continue to damage the fragile marine ecosystem and its economic value to Dade County. Link to application.

Miami-Dade Development Master Plan

The Departmant of Planning and Zoning invites you to participate in our community's Master Plan. Take advantage of the town hall meeting near you to find out more about long range strategic planning!  Please read the attached flyer for more information and locations.

The Department of Planning and Zoning is in the process of updating the Miami-Dade County Comprehensive Development Master Plan (CDMP) and invites you to participate in the process. Long range strategic planning has never been more important for this community. The CDMP establishes plans and policies for the County for important topics such as land use, transportation, parks, economy, housing etc. Although we face many challenges related to how we will grow and develop, we can effectively deal with these challenges and create a dynamic community if we all work together towards developing meaningful public policies.

The update of the Comprehensive Plan is required every seven years and is part of a State mandated process resulting in an Evaluation and Appraisal Report (EAR). The EAR is an appropriate vehicle to reassess how we are doing and where we need to go as a community. Our next EAR is due for adoption by the Board of County Commissioners in October 2010 (EAR2010).

The process for updating starts now and your involvement is crucial to our success. There are several ways you can get involved:

We need to hear from you to plan for our future!

Subrata Basu, AIA, AICP, Assistant Director
Miami-Dade County Department of Planning and Zoning
111 NW First Street, 11th Floor, Miami, Florida 33128
305-375-2557 Phone (305) 372-6076 Fax
www.miamidade.gov/planzone/
"Delivering excellence every day"

See the flyer for info.

Important Public Meetings

Mooring Buoy and Marker Plan and EA

Biscayne National Park will be conducting public scoping meetings for the proposed Mooring Buoy and Marker Plan and Environmental Assessment in early July.

The park is reviewing its current navigational and mooring system to determine whether moorings and navigational markers should be removed, relocated, or increased in number to protect marine resources and provide for the enjoyment of park resources such as reefs and shipwrecks. The park is considering appropriate criteria and standards for establishing future mooring sites, as well as defining desired conditions for mooring sites and navigation. The proposed plan will describe management options for a few areas in the park where boating visitors are concentrated in confined areas resulting in resource damage, visitor conflicts, and unsafe conditions, for example the sandbar at Sands Key. The plan will examine whether some high-use areas need different or additional navigational or informational markers. The park is also considering formalizing and expanding the Maritime Heritage Trail in order to facilitate access to historic shipwrecks and other submerged archeological sites, by installing mooring buoys and providing diver cards and brochures for each of these sites.

There will be opportunities for the public to be informed about and participate in the Mooring Buoy EA process. The public comment period closes on July 31, 2009. If you wish to comment on the Mooring Buoy and Marker Plan EA scoping, you may submit your comments by any one of several methods. You may mail comments in any format to Biscayne National Park, Attn: Mooring Buoy EA, 9700 SW 328th Street, Homestead, Florida 33033. You may also comment via the Internet at http://parkplanning.nps.gov. If you do not receive a confirmation from the system that we have received your Internet message, contact BISC at 305-230-1144. You may submit verbal and written comments at one of our public meetings. Finally, you may hand-deliver comments to Biscayne National Park, 9700 SW 328th Street, Homestead, Florida 33033. Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot.

The public meetings will be held:

Tuesday, July 7, 2009 6-8pm
Homestead location
Miami-Dade College, Homestead Campus
Rooms F222-F223, Aviation Building F
500 College Terrace
Homestead, FL 33030-6009

Wednesday, July 8, 2009 6-8pm
Miami location
Crowne Plaza Miami International Airport
950 N.W. LeJeune Road
Miami, FL 33126

Thursday, July 9, 2009 6-8pm
Key Largo location
Holiday Inn Key Largo Resort
99701 Overseas Highway
Key Largo, FL 33037

Important Public Meetings

Marine Reserve Areas

Biscayne National Park will be conducting public scoping meetings to discuss the possible inclusion of Marine Reserve Zone(s) (no fishing area) within the General Management Plan.

The park is considering the inclusion of no-take Marine Reserve Zone(s) in the upcoming General Management Plan The purpose of this zone would be to provide an opportunity for the public to experience and enjoy a coral reef with a natural abundance and diversity of reef inhabitants, including hard corals, soft corals, fish, crustaceans, and other reef life. The park will provide information about the status of the reef tract and fish populations and provide pertinent information and data to the public. The public will have the opportunity to comment on whether Marine Reserve Zone(s) would be beneficial, and if so, where to locate the Marine Reserve Zone(s) and what size and configuration should be considered.

The public meetings will be held:

Tuesday, July 21, 2009 6-9pm
Homestead location
Miami-Dade College, Homestead Campus
Rooms F222-F223, Aviation Building F
500 College Terrace
Homestead, FL 33030-6009

Wednesday, July 22 2009 6-9pm
Miami location
Crowne Plaza Miami International Airport
950 N.W. LeJeune Road
Miami, FL 33126

Thursday, July 23, 2009 6-9pm
Key Largo location
Holiday Inn Key Largo Resort
99701 Overseas Highway
Key Largo, FL 33037

Water Supply Concerns in South Dade

 

In response to critically low levels in water supply wells in South Dade, the South Florida Water Management District, on May 7th, signed an emergency order to implement one day a week landscape irrigation restrictions in Miami-Dade and Monroe counties.

Tropical Audubon, as well as many others in the environmental community, has been working to highlight many issues effecting salt-water intrusion in the South Dade region. We feel that the agricultural draw down practice must be analyzed to better suit the needs of the citizens. At this time we are releasing valuable freshwater that could help keep saltwater intrusion at bay in the model lands region. TAS hopes to see the SFWMD Governing Board take a hard look at possible operational changes in the region that can benefit all stakeholders. Currently flood control is a priority over making sure the state does not suffer severe drought conditions.

Another issue facing this region is the cooling canal structures associated with the Turkey Point power plant. In the 1970's our best science was concerned solely with the warm water effluent plume generated by the power plant. Now, with new technology we have seen that the hypersaline water that has been building in this large radiator over the past 30 years is now coming back to haunt us. A dense concentration of salt coming from under the bedrock is exacerbating the saltwater intrusion in the region.

The interceptor ditch that was created in order to keep this system operational in a closed loop system is only 18-25 feet deep. The plume has breached this system and major mitigation is needed to solve the issues now facing the Homestead, Florida City and Florida Keys water supply wells, not to mention the valuable wetlands in the region.

We also now see how these operations are counter productive when the state and federal governments are spending millions of dollars to restore this region. Please let the SFWMD know you are concerned for the future of our water supply in this region, and support them in their efforts to solve these issues now. We can not afford to wait for the next drought.

Look at future governing board agendas posted online at www.sfwmd.org over the summer. Your public comments and phone calls can make a difference in elevating this issue.

Click for saltwater intrusion map.

Sorting Through the Wreckage in Tallahassee

Today the Legislature finally concludes work on the 2009-10 state budget. That document, SB 2600 will be remembered for the damage done to environmental programs.  This will be the first year since 1990 that bonds have not been approved for the Preservation 2000 or Florida Forever programs. Also, state land management funds were cut to the bone.  $50 million was provided for the Everglades, but that is only a fourth of the funds previously committed for Everglades and Lake Okeechobee programs.

This difficult year was framed by budget shortfalls related to the economy and Florida's antiquated tax policies.  The federal stimulus funds and random tax and fee increases barely covered necessary expenses for education and health care.  Sadly those funds do little for Florida's environment.

The session was also characterized by a series of proposals to cripple environment laws and open Florida's nearshore waters to oil drilling.  The common theme was that environmental rules including protecting our beaches from oil drilling, get in the way of business opportunities.

—Audubon of Florida Policy Team

Appropriations Highlights

The Good News:

The Bad News:

Good Bills that Passed

Good Bills that Didn't Pass

Bad Bills that Passed

Bad Bills that Didn't Pass

Good/Bad/Questionable Bills?

Southern Everglades Projects Important Now More Than Ever!

Now more than ever southern CERP projects are needed as it is our only defence against rising sea levels and saltwater intrusion issues that move 300-400 ft per year closer to drinking supply wells for Florida City, Homestead and the Florida Keys.

By putting more fresh water into this environment not only will we protect or coastal regions from sea level rise and protect water supply.  We will improve our economic viability in the region by improving the productivity of Biscayne Bay and Florida Bay.

Both systems are experiencing record high salinity's during the dry season and are losing their ability to foster nursery grounds for commercially important species such as snook, pink shrimp and other desirable estuarine species.

Although many causes are to blame for the problems we face in this area, there can only one solution, more clean freshwater introduced to the marshes of our remaining green spaces along the coast.

Elevating southern CERP project timelines should be a focus for the county, to insure sustainability moving forward.  We also must work simultaneously on reducing our carbon footprint, by supporting clean renewable energy legislation.

Read and view maps of the most recent climate change assessments and what that will mean for South Florida: 

Miami Herald

UDB Update

By MATTHEW HAGGMAN

In twin rulings marking the newest chapter in the long fight over sprawl in Miami-Dade County, an administrative law judge ruled that county commissioners wrongly expanded the western development boundary for a Lowe's Superstore but properly approved a separate request to move the line.

The ruling comes as a wealthy and politically powerful group of builders, including Lennar. and Century Homebuilders, is readying a proposal to move the development boundary for a new suburb on the Everglades' doorstep called Parkland.

Opponents to moving the line hailed the ruling Tuesday, saying it shows state regulators can enforce growth management laws even if Miami-Dade County commissioners vote to bend them.

The judge's decision to let one proposal stand was so filled with qualifiers and unique characteristics that it likely won't serve as precedent for other bids to expand the Urban Development Boundary, said attorney Richard Grosso, who represented the National Parks Conservation Association and 1000 Friends of Florida in the case.

''Except for some really unusual circumstances, this ruling means that the UDB should not be amended for many years in the future,'' said Grosso, a Nova Southeastern University law professor and general counsel of the Everglades Law Center.

Maureen Rich, a Lowe's spokeswoman, said the company is ``disappointed with the decision. We are continuing to evaluate the ruling before deciding our next step.''

The Urban Development Boundary, or UDB, is a demarcation running along the western and southern edges of the county that limits development to one dwelling per five acres outside its borders.

The UDB was moved only twice during the 1990s but has been under increasing pressure in the past decade from suburban builders seeking more land for industrial parks, malls, offices and homes.

In the past seven years, county commissioners have voted to move the line five times.

Opponents—including urban planners, civic leaders and environmentalists—have fought back, advocating for more infill and urban redevelopment while highlighting the costs of far-flung development, like traffic-clogged roadways.

Lowe's sought to expand the boundary to build a store at the intersection of Tamiami Trail and Northwest 137th Avenue on a 52-acre parcel. Separately, a development group led by David Brown wanted to expand the boundary on 42 acres at the western end of Kendall Drive to build shops and offices.

Miami-Dade's Department of Planning and Zoning urged denial of both applications last year, saying there was plenty of available space inside the UDB.

But in April last year county commissioners voted to approve both proposals, overriding a veto by Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez.

In July the state's Department of Community Affairs objected, agreeing with county planners that there is enough land to build inside the line.

That set the stage for a trial before administrative law Judge Bram D.E. Canter in Miami.

In his ruling, Canter said it is ''beyond fair debate'' that there is ''no need for more commercial land, and no need for a home improvement store, in the area of the Lowe's site.'' The judge cited the fact Miami-Dade planners said there is enough commercial land in the county to last through 2023.

Canter said the Brown application complies with state law—but added that the site is relatively small, oddly shaped and wedged between a big residential development and an arterial roadway that limit the property's agricultural value.

''These factors . . . diminish the precedent that the re-designation of the Brown site would have for future applications to expand the UDB,'' the judge wrote.

DCA will now issue a final order, which can be appealed.

The focus now shifts to what the ruling will mean for the massive proposed project, Parkland, where builders want to construct a suburb of nearly 19,000 residents with homes, shops and offices on 961 acres outside the UDB.

Jose Cancela, spokesman for the Parkland developers, declined to comment on the Lowe's/Brown case but said the group is moving forward with its application and ``hope to have it before the commission this year.''

Critics say the amount of available land has increased in the last year amid record foreclosures.

''With stores and homes going vacant inside the UDB, why do we need to expand the line?'' asked Miami Lakes Mayor Michael Pizzi, who has long fought moving the boundary. ``This decision sends a message to Parkland that you may well get the votes at the Miami-Dade Commission but you will lose in court.''

Cutler Wetland Information

Click for information about wetland preservation in the Cutler area.

Video from Cutler wetlands.

Miami Herald

Advocates concerned for bay amidst budget cuts

By LAURA MORALES

At least $10 million for water managers to buy endangered Biscayne Bay wetland is gone, and more than $140,000 has been slashed from the Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas program.

As Laura Reynolds sees it, Biscayne National Park's fragile ecosystem is suffering a slow ``death by a thousand cuts.''

During an update Wednesday on the state of Biscayne Bay restoration programs, Reynolds, who heads the Tropical Audubon Society, asked members to press county and state officials to protect the bay and South Miami-Dade's freshwater supply. ''We want people to connect the dots on what's happening with Biscayne Bay,'' she said of the huge Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan. ``These projects are what can make a difference.''

Read More...