MIAMI – Longtime residents of Coral Gate, a close-knit Miami neighborhood, are voicing concerns about a potential surge in large-scale development driven by Florida’s Live Local Act.
The law, designed to incentivize developers by easing local zoning rules in exchange for affordable housing units, is raising fears among neighbors about the future of their neighborhood.
“We have a strong sense of community in Coral Gate,” said Daniel Amador, a 12-year resident. “It’s hard to imagine how this will affect us.”
Pilar Padilla, another resident, echoed those sentiments. “I was practically raised here — my children, my grandchildren,” she said when speaking about the neighborhood’s deep roots.
At the heart of their concerns is a nearby eight-acre property at 3655 SW 22nd St., previously home to a Sears store, now slated for potential development.
Local residents, including Bob Valledor, who has lived in the area since 1952, gathered to share their worries.
“What they are saying now is it’ll be twice as big as our neighborhood,” Valledor said. “There was a struggle to preserve what we have, and now we can’t even have a voice in what’s going on.”
Under the Live Local Act, developers can build larger and taller structures, potentially transforming neighborhoods.
According to Ralph Rosado, a city planner, the law allows for much denser development, far beyond what residents are used to.
“He can actually do a Brickell-type project, so instead of 150 units per acre, you can now do 1,000 units per acre,” Rosado said.
Miami is already seeing the effects of the legislation, with about a dozen Live Local Act development site plans submitted, including high-rise projects that could reshape the cityscape.
“The law passed and then the game changed completely for the neighborhood,” Rosado added.
The developer’s website shows the former Sears property is now available for lease, but it’s just one of about a dozen Live Local Act development site plans currently under review by the city of Miami.