Developers Lead Push Against Zoning Next To Everglades NP

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Now, to the dismay of some farmers like Radice, housing developers are snapping up Miami-Dade County’s dwindling open land in hopes of persuading local politicians to push the development line toward the threatened “River of Grass.” While some farmers favor the proposal because it would allow them to sell their land for a high price, Radice says new residents would “change the character of the area, and they’ll want the area to change with them.”

Plans by major developers such as Lennar Corp. and D.R. Horton call for more than 16,000 homes to be built in high-density neighborhoods on land that is now outside the line, known as the urban development boundary. Unless the line is moved, development on that land will continue to be restricted to one structure for every five acres — not what the developers want. Horton’s proposal, a planned community called “Providence,” envisions more than 5,000 homes, office and retail space, schools and parks on 854 acres.

Battles over urban sprawl are increasingly common around the country, especially in areas where cities have erected no-growth boundaries such as that in Miami-Dade County. What makes the South Florida debate unique is the area’s history as America’s key winter vegetable growing area and its location between the environmentally sensitive Everglades — currently undergoing a 30-year, $8.4 billion federal-state restoration — as well as Biscayne Bay to the southeast and Florida Bay to the south.

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The boundary, first created in 1975, has been moved in mostly small segments several times, most recently in 2002 for a 435-acre industrial park. The question for local politicians this time is whether the Miami area’s explosive population growth warrants moving it again. Miguel De Grandy, an attorney representing Texas-based developer Horton, said the proposed developments are needed to meet demand, especially with real estate prices soaring in South Florida. He said the project is aimed squarely at middle-class people who are increasingly priced out of owning a home."

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http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7600251/

Yeah, I especially like that last bit - it's all about affordable housing for the squeezed middle class! :eyes: :puke:

and old multi-family complexes into new affordable housing. Old apartment complexes could be redeveloped into condominiums. Current fire codes would need to be met but R13 residential sprinkler systems can be easily retrofitted into older buildings. Just a thought. Think of all the old abandoned K-Mart and WalMart sites that could be redeveloped. Add a second story of housing above existing retail spaces, plenty of parking, already near roads, add trees and landscaping and Voila!