
Dear Editor:
You may have received a big postcard urging you to ‘Vote yes for Watson Island’. You can expect more ads like that before the election.
The November 5th ballot (the same ballot as the Presidential election) has two questions, “Miami Referendums” 2 and 3, which deal with two private development deals on Watson Island.
Don’t be fooled – it’s a horrible deal. There are two important things that postcard doesn’t tell you:
1. Watson Island was originally zoned P-R, Parks and Recreation, and named “Watson Park”. Yes, that’s right. A public park. All of it. The entire island:
2. They want you to vote to allow the construction of 375 and 535 foot-tall high-rise condos there!
Their propaganda postcard has pretty pictures of a baywalk and a family sitting on a seawall by the bay, but it doesn’t show the high-rise condos that are the real reason behind this scam. Why do you suppose that is?
As this article in Miami Today tells us, “The two towers were approved for different heights. The “lifestyle” tower is approved for 375 feet and the “luxury” tower is approved for 535 feet.” That’s on land that was intended to be a public park.
Yes, it’s that awful. It’s like the old saying goes, if you’re not outraged it’s because you’re not paying attention.
Don’t be fooled by the so-called “public benefits” they’re using to manipulate public opinion:
A New Public Baywalk? Baywalks are already required by law: Miami 21 City Code, Appendix B, Waterfront Design Guidelines. A baywalk is not an extra benefit, it’s a requirement.
New Funding for important priorities like public safety? We already pay taxes to pay for that, and to maintain our parks. We don’t need to sell off our waterfront parks for safety.
Zero Cost to taxpayers? We’re giving up precious public waterfront land forever, and they’re saying that has zero cost. Do they really think we’re that stupid?
New Jobs? That’s the standard BS propaganda line used when special interest groups want the public to vote for a bad deal. That’s what they said about the sleazy Marlins Stadium deal. It’s just not worth it.
Nine million dollars in funding for housing affordability? That’s a drop in the bucket. But no matter what the amount, public park land, especially waterfront park land, is precious and should be protected and preserved forever, not sold off to well-connected developers and their lobbyists. We need more parks, not less.
Building a park? Watson Island was a park when it was given to the City of Miami by the State of Florida in 1919. Then a previous, ethically-challenged City Commission decided to lease out some of it to developers, putting it on a ballot, which the voters unfortunately approved – a big mistake, as voters sometimes do.
Now the City wants to change the previous deal to make it even worse, with a permanent sale, not just a long-term lease. A portion of the land would be gone forever, with high rise condos, with no chance of the public ever owning all of it again.
They’re trying to convince us how wonderful it is that we’re going to get back some of what should never have been taken away from us, and not notice the high-rises they’ll get to build.
The City has the wrong values. What should be on the ballot instead of this horrible question is an action to revert that leased land back to permanent public ownership as a true public park when the current lease expires. Those leases should never have happened in the first place.
Where will this end? If this passes, will the City of Miami be emboldened to do it again? Why wouldn’t they? Will any City of Miami park be safe?
How can you help?
Please forward this letter to any caring friends and neighbors who don’t want to see any of our parks, be it Watson Island, Peacock, Kennedy, Wainwright, Bayfront, Bicentennial, Margaret Pace, Albert Pallot, Morningside, Baywood or any other waterfront or even land-locked City of Miami park get turned into high-rise condos.
And be sure to vote NO, to protect Watson Island and all of our parks.
The park you save might just be your own.
Elvis Cruz
Morningside
Absolutely 100% spot on with this article. I can’t believe they are going to pull the wool over the citizen’s eyes. Typical Miami developer and politician behavior. Another eyesore that only the rich will be able to enjoy and the locals continue to get pushed out. What a shame!