MIAMI – On Tuesday during a subcommittee meeting, Miami-Dade County Commissioners heard a range of views on the fourth proposed site to build an incinerator.
But who is making the pitch?
According to the state’s Division of Corporations, the name TAF Okeechobee Solutions, LLC was filed on Aug. 19; the authorized person is listed as Jason Gilg, Terra Group’s senior vice president of development and construction.
The developer, Terra Group, released a statement to Local 10 News Tuesday on the land swap proposal, which you can read below.
“Terra is focused on unlocking solutions to our community’s challenges through responsible and thoughtful partnerships. This proposal provides an opportunity for Miami-Dade County to locate its waste-to-energy facility further away from residential communities, while opening the door to new multifamily housing and flexible industrial and logistics space near Doral. Terra would complete all the required permitting and pre-development work on the waste-to-energy site in northwest Miami-Dade, at which point the County will be in position to commence development of its new modernized facility.
In exchange, the County will provide Terra with County-owned land near Doral which is now underutilized with truck parking and maintenance operations. Terra will develop this site with a blend of multifamily as well as industrial space – meeting critical needs within the urban development boundary. This land exchange amounts to the County receiving shovel-ready land which is well-suited for a waste-to-energy facility, and Terra receiving land which is better suited for residential and commercial development.”
Speaking at the meeting on behalf of TAF Okeechobee Solutions, LLC was Joe Jimenez, principal of JMZ Group, and Kerri Barsh, Co-Chair of Greenberg Traurig’s Environmental Practice, working on behalf of the LLC’s proposal.
Watch the pitch below:
On the county land, located inside the urban development boundary, TAF Okeechobee Solutions wants to build a mixed-use project, housing and warehouses.
Then, on its land currently cleared for rock mining, located west of Hialeah Gardens, TAF Okeechobee Solutions said the county can build its incinerator.
Environmental activists say that location is still too close to the Everglades and a regional aquifer.
It’s also close too close to Miramar’s border, according to Mayor Wayne Messam. The Broward city also opposes the former Opa-locka West Airport site.
“Both sites share the same environmental profile, pose the same exact risk,” said Messam.
Additional sites the county has explored after a massive fire torched Miami-Dade’s incinerator have included Medley and the existing site in Doral.
“Right now what we are hoping for is that the county commission will take up the fourth site as a potential option,” said Messam.
The county commissioner who sponsored the discussion item is the former founding mayor of Doral, Juan Carlos Bermudez.
A deeper discussion on site locations is expected during the commission’s meeting on Sept. 17.
Official statement from Terra Group:
“Terra is focused on unlocking solutions to our community’s challenges through responsible and thoughtful partnerships. This proposal provides an opportunity for Miami-Dade County to locate its waste-to-energy facility further away from residential communities, while opening the door to new multifamily housing and flexible industrial and logistics space near Doral. Terra would complete all the required permitting and pre-development work on the waste-to-energy site in northwest Miami-Dade, at which point the County will be in position to commence development of its new modernized facility.
In exchange, the County will provide Terra with County-owned land near Doral which is now underutilized with truck parking and maintenance operations. Terra will develop this site with a blend of multifamily as well as industrial space – meeting critical needs within the urban development boundary. This land exchange amounts to the County receiving shovel-ready land which is well-suited for a waste-to-energy facility, and Terra receiving land which is better suited for residential and commercial development.”