Spotlight 123-250722

Good morning. What we’re covering in today’s Spotlight:

A Final Vote on Miami’s Zoning Rules
A Move to End Playhouse Litigation
Miami Loses Bid to Move Election
A Drop in Crime Across the City

Miami Poised to Approve Sweeping Zoning Overhaul

A trio of proposals headed to the City Commission Thursday could dramatically reshape development across half of Miami – doubling building heights and density near transit hubs and arteries, despite calls for more public input and long-term planning.

By David Villano

The Miami City Commission will vote Thursday on a far-reaching package of zoning amendments that promote taller buildings and far greater housing densities in neighborhoods surrounding transit hubs and the roadways that connect to them.

City officials say the changes – in the form of three separate legislative items – are a calculated bet that encouraging high-population clusters near fixed-rail lines, such as Metrorail stations, will encourage transit use – and reduce automobile reliance.

Roughly half of the City of Miami will be impacted by the new rules.

Thursday’s votes would authorize city planners to apply a new land-use designation — Transit Oriented Nodes – to properties up to a mile from fixed-rail lines; and would

County Moves to Dismiss Playhouse Lawsuit

Miami-Dade County lists seven reasons why the latest legal salvo by preservationists should be tossed. Reason #6: The lawsuit is “confusing and internally inconsistent.”

By Don Finefrock

Miami-Dade County fired back at its critics last week with a motion to dismiss the latest lawsuit that seeks to block its much-maligned plan to revive the Coconut Grove Playhouse as a smaller theater with adjacent parking, retail shops and restaurants.

In seeking to dismiss what the motion describes as “the latest in a series of challenges,” the county notes that its plans have been tested – and upheld – in court before.

“The County was ultimately successful in each of those appeals, including three times before the Third District Court of Appeal,” the motion to dismiss states.

This time around, preservationists are asking a circuit court judge to halt the project, saying the county failed to win final approval for its playhouse plan from the city, and failed to submit that plan to state officials for review.
Critics are also challenging the county’s use of bond money to fund the project.

City Can’t Move Election, Judge Rules

A Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge ruled Monday that the Miami City Commission cannot move its general election from 2025 to 2026 without first asking Miami voters to change the city’s charter. The City Commission voted 3-to-2 by ordinance last month to delay the November 2025 election and grant each commissioner and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez an extra year in office. Miami City Attorney George Wysong had argued that the City Commission had the power to do so under three Florida statutes. The judge disagreed. “A careful review of those statutes, however, reveals that they do not individually or collectively grant the City the authority to enact the ordinance,” the judge wrote, ruling in favor of Miami mayoral candidate Emilio Gonzalez who had sued the city to reinstate the 2025 election. In deciding the case, Judge Valerie Manno Schurr said Miami is bound by its charter, which stipulates that elections for mayor and city commissioners shall be held in odd-numbered years. To push the 2025 election to 2026, Miami must first change its charter, which only voters can do, the judge ruled. The city said it will appeal the ruling to the Third District Court of Appeal.

Crime Is Down Across Miami, Police Say

The City of Miami Police Department reported a significant decrease in violent crimes across Miami so far in 2025 – a trend reflected in the numbers reported earlier this year in Coconut Grove.

By Jenny Jacoby

The drop in crime reported in Coconut Grove last month was not an isolated event according to numbers released last week by the City of Miami Police Department.

Crime is down citywide, including a 20% decrease in homicides, 17% decrease in robberies, 19% decrease in aggravated assaults and 23% decrease in auto thefts in comparison to the first half of 2024.

“We’re not here to do a statistical victory. This is a community triumph,” Miami Police Chief Manuel A. Morales said Thursday at a Miami City Hall news conference.

The citywide numbers reflect a trend that was previously reported in the Grove.

“Behind every percentage point there’s a potential life saved, crime prevented and neighborhoods made safer,” Morales added.