Tony Garcia eventually gets to talking about Ludlum Trail at about 7 minutes.
Showing posts with label Ludlam Trail. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ludlam Trail. Show all posts
Friday, February 05, 2016
Friday, December 11, 2015
Friends of Ludlum Trail reach out for help ... "Make Miami Great"
Join Friends of Ludlam Trail on December 12 between 4pm to 7pm for our next Ludlam Days event:
LudlamLights
Meet up at dusk on the trail next to South Miami Senior High School for a fun filled evening. We will light up the trail with luminaries to provide a captivating visual event on the trail!
Special performances by the South Miami Senior High School Chorus and string ensemble.
Bring flash lights and other light-up gear with you as we leisurely walk along the glowing trail.
Monday, June 29, 2015
Remember the Epicure! how the story of US 1 and LeJeune Road, Coral Gables illuminates the struggle for Ludlum Trail ... by gimleteye
So here is the thing about the closing of the Coral Gables branch of the Miami Beach fixture, Epicure Market: it was a death foretold. Epicure opened its store in the ground floor of a Jeffrey Berkowitz development in 2013, a stone's throw from the Village of Merrick Park.
I've lived nearby -- roughly defined as the intersection of US 1 and Lejeune Road -- for more than twenty years.
Fifteen years ago, I was civically involved in trying to keep the Rouse company from converting the old Coral Gables bus maintenance depot into a major mall. That mall, the Village of Merrick Park, has never found its footing, through some unbalanced combination of high rental rates and low consumer demand.
On August 24th, 1998 at the Omni Collonade in Coral Gables, the Rouse Company offered a public view of its project. The controversial development pitted then Mayor Raul Valdez Fauli, the Latin Builders Association lobby, and the Rouse Company against many, many Gables citizens who mounted a Coral Gables referendum to block the project. When I got up to the podium, lobbyists booed and hissed. Rouse won the referendum in November and measured by cost per vote it was the most expensive in Florida history.
The Miami Herald printed an OPED I wrote in September 1999. I know, it seems a century ago. "There is no hope for improving traffic because the scale of the development absolutely will worsen traffic in adjacent neighborhoods and U.S. 1 intersections."
The whole of South Gables empties out onto US 1 at LeJeune, so from a purely demographic point of view -- which is what retailers and their consultants look at -- the intersection ought to be a winner.
Except that it is defeated by single driver, traffic-driven density.
This is, naturally, the same observation why the FEC railroad right of way must be converted, in its entirety, to a linear public park: because of existing traffic congestion, there is no place to fit commercial building without destroying economic opportunities already in place.
I kept my notes from the 1998 public meeting. "David Plummer, the project’s traffic consultant, began his presentation by describing a “series of meetings held by the developer” which none of the objectors in the audience had received invitations to. Traffic is the Achilles Heel of the Rouse Mall—whose ramifications were ignored by city commissioners last year when Mayor Valdez Fauli bulldozed approvals through the local permitting process without requiring the developer to disclose the devastating traffic impacts. The August 24th meeting verified points raised by citizens a year ago, although it scarcely matters since necessary approvals were issued before the facts were in. The Rouse Mall will worsen, absolutely, traffic in neighborhoods and the intersections on US Route 1 that are already the worst in the area."
Way back in 2013, an owner of Epicure, Jason Starkman, said he wanted to expand to Coral Gables for a long time. "We always knew the Gables was the place for us for year-round business. And I know people in the neighborhood will enjoy shopping here." They did, except for the traffic and that is the best argument for local public officials to deny commercial building permits for what should become Ludlum Trail.
Remember the Epicure!
I've lived nearby -- roughly defined as the intersection of US 1 and Lejeune Road -- for more than twenty years.
Fifteen years ago, I was civically involved in trying to keep the Rouse company from converting the old Coral Gables bus maintenance depot into a major mall. That mall, the Village of Merrick Park, has never found its footing, through some unbalanced combination of high rental rates and low consumer demand.
On August 24th, 1998 at the Omni Collonade in Coral Gables, the Rouse Company offered a public view of its project. The controversial development pitted then Mayor Raul Valdez Fauli, the Latin Builders Association lobby, and the Rouse Company against many, many Gables citizens who mounted a Coral Gables referendum to block the project. When I got up to the podium, lobbyists booed and hissed. Rouse won the referendum in November and measured by cost per vote it was the most expensive in Florida history.
The Miami Herald printed an OPED I wrote in September 1999. I know, it seems a century ago. "There is no hope for improving traffic because the scale of the development absolutely will worsen traffic in adjacent neighborhoods and U.S. 1 intersections."
The whole of South Gables empties out onto US 1 at LeJeune, so from a purely demographic point of view -- which is what retailers and their consultants look at -- the intersection ought to be a winner.
Except that it is defeated by single driver, traffic-driven density.
This is, naturally, the same observation why the FEC railroad right of way must be converted, in its entirety, to a linear public park: because of existing traffic congestion, there is no place to fit commercial building without destroying economic opportunities already in place.
I kept my notes from the 1998 public meeting. "David Plummer, the project’s traffic consultant, began his presentation by describing a “series of meetings held by the developer” which none of the objectors in the audience had received invitations to. Traffic is the Achilles Heel of the Rouse Mall—whose ramifications were ignored by city commissioners last year when Mayor Valdez Fauli bulldozed approvals through the local permitting process without requiring the developer to disclose the devastating traffic impacts. The August 24th meeting verified points raised by citizens a year ago, although it scarcely matters since necessary approvals were issued before the facts were in. The Rouse Mall will worsen, absolutely, traffic in neighborhoods and the intersections on US Route 1 that are already the worst in the area."
Way back in 2013, an owner of Epicure, Jason Starkman, said he wanted to expand to Coral Gables for a long time. "We always knew the Gables was the place for us for year-round business. And I know people in the neighborhood will enjoy shopping here." They did, except for the traffic and that is the best argument for local public officials to deny commercial building permits for what should become Ludlum Trail.
Remember the Epicure!
Monday, April 13, 2015
Learn About Ludlam Trail Tonite at Sierra Club Meeting… by gimleteye
FREE PARKING is available at the sailing club.
Date: Monday, April 13, 2015
Time: 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM
Location: 2990 South Bayshore Drive, Miami, FL 33133
Doors open around 7:15 pm, appetizers and drinks are served. We start our meetings off with with Hot Topics at 7:30 pm, our update on local environmental issues, and the main program will begin at 8 PM
Please attend the Sierra Club-Miami Group general meetings April 13 beginning at 7:30pm. The speaker will be Peter Rabbino, a founder of the Ludlam Trail project.
The Friends of the Ludlam Trail is a non-profit coalition dedicated to the implementation of the Ludlam Trail, a 6.2-mile iconic linear park through the heart of Miami-Dade County within the partially abandoned Florida East Coast railway right-of-way. The park will contain community gardens, arboretums, natural spaces and a trail that will provide a safe dedicated and direct route for cyclists and pedestrians to schools, parks, work and shopping. The trail will connect more than 34,000 people within a half-mile, walkable service area to five greenways, five schools, four parks and two transit hubs.
Friday, March 06, 2015
Help send a message to the state legislature: support the buyout of FECI properties and create Ludlam Trail the way residents want … by gimleteye
If you have time and interest this weekend, check out efforts by citizens, civic activists and land use planners to create a unique linear park in one of the most under-served areas of the county. Their plan depends on cooperation by one of America's biggest hedge funds, Fortress Capital whose top shareholders will never fume, stuck in rush hour traffic on Bird Road, or Coral Way, or Kendall Drive.
Fortress is the owner of FECI (Florida East Coast Industries, Inc.) with plans to turn long-dormant properties into the same sprawl quagmire that defines the ring suburbs of Miami-Dade.
Note the family picnic this weekend at AD Barnes Park and the Monday, March 9th charrette meeting at South Miami High School at 6PM.
Residents -- taxpayers, too -- are hoping that the state legislature will understand the importance of investing for citizens by buying out the entire Ludlam Trail property. E-N-T-I-R-E. Message to state legislators? Do something good for a change.
Friday, February 27, 2015
This weekend: Information on upcoming Ludlam Trail Charrette
From: Friends of The Ludlam Trail
In anticipation to the upcoming charrettes beginning this Saturday, Friends of the Ludlam Trail would like give you some more information on what exactly will be going on and when.
This charrette process will give all of us in the community a chance to give our direct input on the design of the Ludlam Trail. Also in attendance will be Miami-Dade County staff as well as stakeholders. The recommendations made at these workshops will then carry on to studio days, also open to the public, where Miami-Dade Planning staff will be working on them to draw up a clear picture on what all the different parties would like to see happen. There will be two charrette dates as well two sets of studio dates where this will happen and we hope to see you all there throughout this process:
The first charrette will be held this Saturday, February 28, in District 6 at West Miami Middle School located at 7525 Coral Way Miami, FL 33155 at 9:30am. Click here for information on District 6.
This meeting will be followed by studio days for District 6 on March 2-4, at A.D. Barnes Park located at 3401 SW 72 Ave Miami, FL 33155 from 2pm-8pm.
The second charrette will be held on Monday, March 9, for District 7 at A.D. Barnes Park located at 3401 SW 72 Ave Miami, FL 33155 at 6pm. Click here for information on District 7.
This meeting will be followed by studio days for District 7 at Gibson-Bethel Community Center 5800 SW 66 Street Sunset Drive, South Miami, FL 33143 on March 10-12, 2pm-8pm.
The Friends of the Ludlam Trail, along with the Ludlam Trail Neighborhood Association, will be hosting a picnic at A.D. Barnes Park on March 8, 12pm-4pm. There will be food, games for the whole family as well as information on how this process is supposed to work. We hope to see you all there as well! Again, this is your chance to have your voices heard and have a direct effect on the FUTURE of the Ludlam Trail.
For more information, please call (305) 375-2513
In anticipation to the upcoming charrettes beginning this Saturday, Friends of the Ludlam Trail would like give you some more information on what exactly will be going on and when.
This charrette process will give all of us in the community a chance to give our direct input on the design of the Ludlam Trail. Also in attendance will be Miami-Dade County staff as well as stakeholders. The recommendations made at these workshops will then carry on to studio days, also open to the public, where Miami-Dade Planning staff will be working on them to draw up a clear picture on what all the different parties would like to see happen. There will be two charrette dates as well two sets of studio dates where this will happen and we hope to see you all there throughout this process:
The first charrette will be held this Saturday, February 28, in District 6 at West Miami Middle School located at 7525 Coral Way Miami, FL 33155 at 9:30am. Click here for information on District 6.
This meeting will be followed by studio days for District 6 on March 2-4, at A.D. Barnes Park located at 3401 SW 72 Ave Miami, FL 33155 from 2pm-8pm.
The second charrette will be held on Monday, March 9, for District 7 at A.D. Barnes Park located at 3401 SW 72 Ave Miami, FL 33155 at 6pm. Click here for information on District 7.
This meeting will be followed by studio days for District 7 at Gibson-Bethel Community Center 5800 SW 66 Street Sunset Drive, South Miami, FL 33143 on March 10-12, 2pm-8pm.
The Friends of the Ludlam Trail, along with the Ludlam Trail Neighborhood Association, will be hosting a picnic at A.D. Barnes Park on March 8, 12pm-4pm. There will be food, games for the whole family as well as information on how this process is supposed to work. We hope to see you all there as well! Again, this is your chance to have your voices heard and have a direct effect on the FUTURE of the Ludlam Trail.
For more information, please call (305) 375-2513
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
At Ludlam Trail, Big Corporation tries arm twisting and intimidating neighbors … by gimleteye
Neighbors of the proposed Ludlam Trail -- who are seeking to convert an unused swath of land owned by Florida East Coast Industries and its parent company, Fortress Investments -- are being pressured by the company and its lobbyists, including former top Codina executive, Rafael Rodon.
Over the years, FECI held this property, stretching from Dadeland roughly to Miami International Airport, as a fallow asset. Around the same time that neighbors began organizing to lobby for the conversion of the property into a unique and sorely needed linear park, serving the community, FECI accelerated development plans that require important zoning changes from the local governments.
When the company went to the county commission recently, with its rezoning request to the county, the matter was put on hold for a brief period to give residents and the company some time to work together on a way forward. For the neighbors and Ludlam Trail organizers, the optimal outcome is an eventual buyout of the entire property. The company, in advance of a planned design charrette, has its own ideas and its own motivation: realize as much commercial potential as quickly as possible before the current building boom burns out.
Its objective is to do through government zoning what Jorge Perez did on the Miami River: minimal public access in exchange for maximal development footprint. That's the Miami Way and there is nothing illegal about it.
To ratchet up pressure on neighbors, the company has sent out a demand letter to abutting property owners who chose, over a period of decades, to enclose their property where it meets the abandoned railway line.
One Ludlam Trail supporter forwarded me the following email message. It is perfectly legal and it is meant as a message, too, for county commissioners. It says, "Don't delay our request. We want, what we want and when we want it and do-good'er neighbors who think we will patiently sit through a charrette and endlessly negotiate with them, may have other neighbors' pain to answer for."
In a few months, county commissioners will have the opportunity to state whose side they are on. Maybe for once, at Ludlam Trail, the county commission draw a line in the sand and show "the Miami way" is also about quality of life.
Over the years, FECI held this property, stretching from Dadeland roughly to Miami International Airport, as a fallow asset. Around the same time that neighbors began organizing to lobby for the conversion of the property into a unique and sorely needed linear park, serving the community, FECI accelerated development plans that require important zoning changes from the local governments.
When the company went to the county commission recently, with its rezoning request to the county, the matter was put on hold for a brief period to give residents and the company some time to work together on a way forward. For the neighbors and Ludlam Trail organizers, the optimal outcome is an eventual buyout of the entire property. The company, in advance of a planned design charrette, has its own ideas and its own motivation: realize as much commercial potential as quickly as possible before the current building boom burns out.
Its objective is to do through government zoning what Jorge Perez did on the Miami River: minimal public access in exchange for maximal development footprint. That's the Miami Way and there is nothing illegal about it.
To ratchet up pressure on neighbors, the company has sent out a demand letter to abutting property owners who chose, over a period of decades, to enclose their property where it meets the abandoned railway line.
One Ludlam Trail supporter forwarded me the following email message. It is perfectly legal and it is meant as a message, too, for county commissioners. It says, "Don't delay our request. We want, what we want and when we want it and do-good'er neighbors who think we will patiently sit through a charrette and endlessly negotiate with them, may have other neighbors' pain to answer for."
In a few months, county commissioners will have the opportunity to state whose side they are on. Maybe for once, at Ludlam Trail, the county commission draw a line in the sand and show "the Miami way" is also about quality of life.
Dear Lisa:
I have attached a letter I received today from LR 13-18 LLC. The letter was delivered as certified return receipt…
As it turns out, LR 13-18, LLC. is a subsidiary of FECI. Both of these entities share the same addresses and legal personal. Therefore, I will refer to them both as FECI.
This is a very aggressive Cease and Desist Letter. It is demanding that I remove a small encroachment from my boundary abutting the FEC corridor. I happen to own one of the properties zoned RU-1, one acre, close to SW 80th Street.
My parents bought this house in 1954. I returned to live in this house and take care of my parents. In 1998, I errected the fence referenced in this letter. I have a large dog that needs to be fenced in. This is not a small fence by any means. The encroachment is
minor. It is a wedge approximately 12" to 2" by 225 feet long.
In view of the fact that FECI is applying for up-zoning, and the Ludlam Trail proposal is entering its charrette phase, I have no intention of removing my fence within the next 60 days as demanded in this letter.
FECI is being very insensitive to neighbor concerns. This is not what I expected from them.
Of course, I will eventually remove the fence. But if they intend to develop this land, they will surely request a variance from me and they
will be required to build a fence or wall of their own. This demand is a hardship for nothing!
I understand that I have no right to adverse possession of FEC property. However, they could have simply sent a letter putting me on notice of the encroachment. It would have been legally sufficient. Why are they giving me a deadline and threatening legal action if I don't act within 60 days.
Please forward this letter to your Neighborhood Assoication and Community Leaders. A lot of people are in the same situation and I know they feel very threatened.
Thank You, 1-13-2014
Friday, December 05, 2014
For Friends of the Ludlam Trail: the good, the bad and the ugly … by gimleteye
The most controversial land use decision of 2014 -- at least the one generating the most public interest and scrutiny -- involves property owned by powerful Flagler Development, stretching along a former rail corridor from the edge of Miami International Airport to Dadeland. It is a possible 6.2 mile linear park instead of an abandoned rail line owned by Florida East Coast Industries.
Community and neighborhood activists are calling it: Ludlam Trail. Flagler Development, an FECI subsidiary, calls it an imminent planned increase in its asset portfolio.
The process through which the future of Ludlam Trail will be decided branches in several directions but begins with the county's land use planning ordinance, in conformity with state regulations.
That this thorny public process drew hundreds of neighbors and citizens to a cause is testament to the power of a good idea: creating an exemplary linear park in a traffic clogged, dense urban area where people are shuttered in cars from one place to another.
So count it a good result that at the conclusion of yesterday's hearing before the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners, Flagler Development withdrew its application to give some time to work with neighbors and activists on a suitable park plan, including funding.
Count it a bad result, that the county commission voted to require the neighbors and activists to have its plan in place by May 2015. It is impossibly short time line. For the county, top land planner Mark Woerner said as much. Too bad commissioners didn't listen.
Lastly, count it an ugly result that the county commission voted to accept Flagler Development's application as its own, going forward.
To try to condense a complicated matter: the county commission voted in effect; that instead of a private application from Flagler Development to the state of Florida for its requested land use change, we (taxpayers) would accept responsibility for the application. As a county and not a private application, whatever emerges from talks between neighbors, advocates and activists and Flagler can be included in the Nov. 2014 cycle of land use amendments.
Flagler, of course, wants the time pressure to be put on the community but, in addition, it asked for and received the substantial benefit of having the county embrace its application, without any details attached.
It didn't have to turn out this way, and for a moment, it appeared some daylight had penetrated to the dais.
The discussion by commissioners was revealing. Pepe Diaz was the lead mouthpiece for the developer; his mantle since Natacha Seijas was booted off the commission by voters and Joe Martinez retired to run for Congress.
Although the deal had been worked out in advance of the meeting -- exchanging the withdrawal of the Flagler Development application in exchange for being included in the Nov. 2014 amendment cycle -- there was a point of near breakdown when it seemed that the county commission might embrace simplicity (KISS, in Xavier Suarez' comment) with Flagler Development: come back to us when you have worked out a deal with the neighbors. Period.
Flagler Development explained: if you (county commission) make us wait a whole year -- instead of four months -- then we will do whatever we have to do to maximize the value of our assets: ie. break up the property and destroy the dream of a Ludlam Trail. Sword of Damocles, appear!
That was the threat for which the county commission exchanged a reduced development application fee, four months time for the neighbors and Flagler to come to an agreement, including a funding plan, and -- in order to comply with its own municipal rules -- accepting the application as its own.
Only Commissioners Barbara Jordan and Xavier Suarez expressed how this deal wasn't a very good one at all. But, apparently, not persuasively enough. These two ought to have stuck to their guns and drawn out the discussion.
The gist of it: Flagler had agreed to withdraw its amendment before the commission voted to deny it, so why cut a bad deal now? (Jordan, Suarez, and Levine Cava voted "no", in the end.)
In a terse exchange, Commissioner Jordan said, "My concern is the public perception that we are taking over the responsibility for a private entity. It needs to come back as a private application. I don't want this to look like the county is allowing a private entity to come back and looks as though we are filing on their behalf." Suarez, "I agree with what you just said."
Although Chairwoman Rebeca Sosa ran a calm and organized hearing, the weight of thousands of dollars of Flagler Development and related corporate campaign contributions cast an invisible shadow on the proceedings.
Staff made clear, under prodding by the no-votes, that the county HAD NEVER before accepted an application from a private developer as its own during the land use planning process. Chairwoman Sosa was simply not credible when she claimed she had never known that her motion would set a precedent.
What would that precedent do? Commissioner Jordan didn't need to say, but her tone belied that every lobbyist in Miami-Dade County will be ringing doorbells to get county commissioners to accept their clients' land use applications to become county applications "for the public good". That will be a three-ring circus through which even larger gobs of money will pass through lobbyist hands: a make-work project for insiders on a grand scale.
At the end of the day, Flagler Development and its lobbyist, Joe Goldstein, won more than they gave up. By putting such a tight timeframe on "negotiations" with the neighbors -- from two community charrettes to a coordinated appeal to the state legislature for funding through Amendment 1 moneys, recently approved by 78 percent of Florida voters -- they shifted the burden of process. Or the county commission did. Plus, they got the county commission to make it, in effect, a county application.
The net result is not only a bad precedent from the public point of view, but it will also make it very difficult for county staff down the road, if and when a substantive plan materializes, to challenge Flagler Development. The clock is ticking toward May 2015, including community council meetings and the planning advisory board.
In sum, yesterday the county commission gave the community that wants Ludlam Trail a breath of hope. For that breath, it surrendered leverage and established a lousy precedent. Thumbs up, for Barbara Jordan, Xavier Suarez, and Daniella Levine Cava. Thumbs down, for the rest.
Community and neighborhood activists are calling it: Ludlam Trail. Flagler Development, an FECI subsidiary, calls it an imminent planned increase in its asset portfolio.
The process through which the future of Ludlam Trail will be decided branches in several directions but begins with the county's land use planning ordinance, in conformity with state regulations.
That this thorny public process drew hundreds of neighbors and citizens to a cause is testament to the power of a good idea: creating an exemplary linear park in a traffic clogged, dense urban area where people are shuttered in cars from one place to another.
So count it a good result that at the conclusion of yesterday's hearing before the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners, Flagler Development withdrew its application to give some time to work with neighbors and activists on a suitable park plan, including funding.
Count it a bad result, that the county commission voted to require the neighbors and activists to have its plan in place by May 2015. It is impossibly short time line. For the county, top land planner Mark Woerner said as much. Too bad commissioners didn't listen.
Lastly, count it an ugly result that the county commission voted to accept Flagler Development's application as its own, going forward.
To try to condense a complicated matter: the county commission voted in effect; that instead of a private application from Flagler Development to the state of Florida for its requested land use change, we (taxpayers) would accept responsibility for the application. As a county and not a private application, whatever emerges from talks between neighbors, advocates and activists and Flagler can be included in the Nov. 2014 cycle of land use amendments.
Flagler, of course, wants the time pressure to be put on the community but, in addition, it asked for and received the substantial benefit of having the county embrace its application, without any details attached.
It didn't have to turn out this way, and for a moment, it appeared some daylight had penetrated to the dais.
The discussion by commissioners was revealing. Pepe Diaz was the lead mouthpiece for the developer; his mantle since Natacha Seijas was booted off the commission by voters and Joe Martinez retired to run for Congress.
Although the deal had been worked out in advance of the meeting -- exchanging the withdrawal of the Flagler Development application in exchange for being included in the Nov. 2014 amendment cycle -- there was a point of near breakdown when it seemed that the county commission might embrace simplicity (KISS, in Xavier Suarez' comment) with Flagler Development: come back to us when you have worked out a deal with the neighbors. Period.
Flagler Development explained: if you (county commission) make us wait a whole year -- instead of four months -- then we will do whatever we have to do to maximize the value of our assets: ie. break up the property and destroy the dream of a Ludlam Trail. Sword of Damocles, appear!
That was the threat for which the county commission exchanged a reduced development application fee, four months time for the neighbors and Flagler to come to an agreement, including a funding plan, and -- in order to comply with its own municipal rules -- accepting the application as its own.
Only Commissioners Barbara Jordan and Xavier Suarez expressed how this deal wasn't a very good one at all. But, apparently, not persuasively enough. These two ought to have stuck to their guns and drawn out the discussion.
The gist of it: Flagler had agreed to withdraw its amendment before the commission voted to deny it, so why cut a bad deal now? (Jordan, Suarez, and Levine Cava voted "no", in the end.)
In a terse exchange, Commissioner Jordan said, "My concern is the public perception that we are taking over the responsibility for a private entity. It needs to come back as a private application. I don't want this to look like the county is allowing a private entity to come back and looks as though we are filing on their behalf." Suarez, "I agree with what you just said."
Although Chairwoman Rebeca Sosa ran a calm and organized hearing, the weight of thousands of dollars of Flagler Development and related corporate campaign contributions cast an invisible shadow on the proceedings.
Staff made clear, under prodding by the no-votes, that the county HAD NEVER before accepted an application from a private developer as its own during the land use planning process. Chairwoman Sosa was simply not credible when she claimed she had never known that her motion would set a precedent.
What would that precedent do? Commissioner Jordan didn't need to say, but her tone belied that every lobbyist in Miami-Dade County will be ringing doorbells to get county commissioners to accept their clients' land use applications to become county applications "for the public good". That will be a three-ring circus through which even larger gobs of money will pass through lobbyist hands: a make-work project for insiders on a grand scale.
At the end of the day, Flagler Development and its lobbyist, Joe Goldstein, won more than they gave up. By putting such a tight timeframe on "negotiations" with the neighbors -- from two community charrettes to a coordinated appeal to the state legislature for funding through Amendment 1 moneys, recently approved by 78 percent of Florida voters -- they shifted the burden of process. Or the county commission did. Plus, they got the county commission to make it, in effect, a county application.
The net result is not only a bad precedent from the public point of view, but it will also make it very difficult for county staff down the road, if and when a substantive plan materializes, to challenge Flagler Development. The clock is ticking toward May 2015, including community council meetings and the planning advisory board.
In sum, yesterday the county commission gave the community that wants Ludlam Trail a breath of hope. For that breath, it surrendered leverage and established a lousy precedent. Thumbs up, for Barbara Jordan, Xavier Suarez, and Daniella Levine Cava. Thumbs down, for the rest.
Tuesday, December 02, 2014
Friends of The Ludlam Trail … by gimleteye
On Dec. 4th, the Miami Dade County Commission will re-open a public hearing on the zoning change sought by a major property owner, Flagler Development, for an abandoned rail right-of-way that local activists aspire to convert to an important purpose: a bike-path and community asset.
Click here to view the website of Friends of The Ludlam Trail.
In an attenuated hearing over a week ago, it was clear from the leadership of chairwoman Rebeca Sosa that the preference of commissioners was to do what the developer wanted. On Dec. 4th, a new chairman of the commission, Jean Monestine, will have the gavel. (Correction: the gavel remains with Chairwoman Rebeca Sosa.)
What the county commission ought to do, is to defer, delay or reject the application. Commissioners ought to recognize that this property has been abandoned for decades. The rezoning sought by Flagler Development would instantly increase the property value and make it far more difficult for a deserving community to achieve what it needs.
There is nothing lost and everything to gain by a commission decision that pushes the developer to work closely with the Friends of the Ludlam Trail to find the funding necessary to place this property in public ownership.
Click here to view the website of Friends of The Ludlam Trail.
In an attenuated hearing over a week ago, it was clear from the leadership of chairwoman Rebeca Sosa that the preference of commissioners was to do what the developer wanted. On Dec. 4th, a new chairman of the commission, Jean Monestine, will have the gavel. (Correction: the gavel remains with Chairwoman Rebeca Sosa.)
What the county commission ought to do, is to defer, delay or reject the application. Commissioners ought to recognize that this property has been abandoned for decades. The rezoning sought by Flagler Development would instantly increase the property value and make it far more difficult for a deserving community to achieve what it needs.
There is nothing lost and everything to gain by a commission decision that pushes the developer to work closely with the Friends of the Ludlam Trail to find the funding necessary to place this property in public ownership.
Thursday, November 20, 2014
The Ludlam Trail needs an angel: Armando Codina … by gimleteye
Yesterday's public hearing at the county commission on the request by Flagler Development (alternately, Florida East Coast Industries) to rezone the former rail line to what the public would like to create from its property, a linear public park, was cut short by travel schedules of commissioners.
For advocates of Ludlam Trail, that was a bit of good news if not a ray of hope.
The well-attended meeting happened on the same day as a hedge fund billionaire, John Paulson, announced a gift of $100 million to New York City's Central Park; the largest in the nation's history for an urban park.
Advocates for turning the entire Flagler property into a community asset hope Armando Codina was paying attention.
Codina's life story, from a poor Cuban immigrant to an acclaimed, successful developer and board member at the highest ranks of corporate America, parallels the rise of Miami from an insular southern city to a sprawling megalopolis. He charted his own financial course through the tangle of local developers who created great wealth from condos (ie. Jorge Perez) or zero lot line housing (ie. Latin Builders Association) to a position of unparalleled influence. Codina is a top shareholder of Flagler Development and FECI.
In the case of the future of Ludlam Trail, he is also the most influential.
Listening to yesterday's testimony by Flagler's lobbyist team, what emerged was a very complicated -- too complicated -- plan to develop its linear 67 acre property stretching from Blue Lagoon near Miami International Airport all the way southeast to US 1.
The 6.2 mile stretch is unique in Miami-Dade county, and partly in various municipalities along the way. In addition to nodes for intense development, there is a plan for secondary construction, and despite its claim that traffic won't be an issue because the development is matched to existing infrastructure, no one should believe it.
The net effect of the plan would be to increase its development potential from 1345 units to more than double that number while retaining some 25% of the property, or about 18 acres, for a "trail". The 1345 units is calculated by the Miami Dade planning department from the current zoning category for the former rail line right-of-way, as narrow as fifty feet in some spots.
Flagler and the county counter claims that neither evinced any interest in developing the property until neighborhood residents and leaders began discussing the great value of this unique vacant parcel as connector, in the form of a community path, in one of the areas of the county least served by public parks.
Whatever the case, the fact remains that elected officials who are inclined to do what their contributors want do not like being pushed to change their minds and usually come up with many arguments -- supplied in advance of public meetings by lobbyists -- to point away from the public interest and toward private profit.
But all is not lost with Ludlam Trail.
First of all, it is clear from the position of local community councils that the public does not want more development in this area. The Planning Advisory Board -- always more friendly to developers -- is predictably on the other side (isn't it time to clean house and have a PAB more representative of the public interest?).
Although the Flagler lobbyists and county both note that there is no funding for outright purchase of the property, this is a negotiating position.
If Flagler, the county, and neighbors came together to petition the state of Florida, the Ludlam Trail acquisition could be a top candidate for Amendment 1 funding, newly available through a percentage of the documentary tax stamp in real estate transfers.
The main obstacle is the weight of bad past precedents with right-of-ways to benefit the public; namely, the Miami River.
In the 1990's, Miami insiders, property owners, and their lobbyists (ie. Greenberg Traurig) spurned the opportunity to create the kind of park space that would have defined a vibrant commercial and residential center by allowing condos to dominate the landscape. (I recall trying to talk to Art Teele, at the time the county mayor, about this and he just shook his head. "Marty Fine would never agree.")
The thinking that prevailed treated public access as an orphan who could be starved because he was too little to complain effectively. The result was tragic for Miami, notwithstanding the bulging net worth of its creators through the boom, bust, then boom again.
Now Ludlam Trail and its environs are different. Residences and taxpayers are solidly middle class. You can't gild that lilly like Perez, a board member of FECI, did at the Miami River.
The logic of buying out Flagler's entire property for the benefit of the community is just too powerful.
But it won't happen if, on December 4th -- when the CDMP hearing continues -- should the county commission fold and simply votes to "transmit" the Flagler development/zoning request to the state.
By denying the application, the commission would point Flagler to work with the advocates for moving the state legislature and Gov. Scott to appropriate funds. It would take a couple of years, but the former rail line has been sitting idle and unused for nearly 30 years. Plus, securing the needed approvals from various municipalities along the route is uncertain and would also take years and even more lobbyist and planning expense.
If the commission votes to "transmit" the application, the burden moves onto the shoulders of Ludlam Trail advocates who probably lack the resources to mount an effective campaign in Tallahassee without Flagler's support.
That is why the involvement of Armando Codina is decisive. He understands perfectly well the community's need. He has made a fortune enough for one lifetime. Will he take the dismal course of past precedent and use a "public access trail" as a fig leaf for shoe-horning a development plan that has many obstacles of its own to surmount, or will he consider lasting legacy of an "Armando Codina Trail", support full acquisition or at least give it a fighting chance, and still come out right for Flagler shareholders?
It is something for Codina to consider, because after all is said and done, you can't take it with you.
For advocates of Ludlam Trail, that was a bit of good news if not a ray of hope.
The well-attended meeting happened on the same day as a hedge fund billionaire, John Paulson, announced a gift of $100 million to New York City's Central Park; the largest in the nation's history for an urban park.
Advocates for turning the entire Flagler property into a community asset hope Armando Codina was paying attention.
Codina's life story, from a poor Cuban immigrant to an acclaimed, successful developer and board member at the highest ranks of corporate America, parallels the rise of Miami from an insular southern city to a sprawling megalopolis. He charted his own financial course through the tangle of local developers who created great wealth from condos (ie. Jorge Perez) or zero lot line housing (ie. Latin Builders Association) to a position of unparalleled influence. Codina is a top shareholder of Flagler Development and FECI.
In the case of the future of Ludlam Trail, he is also the most influential.
Listening to yesterday's testimony by Flagler's lobbyist team, what emerged was a very complicated -- too complicated -- plan to develop its linear 67 acre property stretching from Blue Lagoon near Miami International Airport all the way southeast to US 1.
The 6.2 mile stretch is unique in Miami-Dade county, and partly in various municipalities along the way. In addition to nodes for intense development, there is a plan for secondary construction, and despite its claim that traffic won't be an issue because the development is matched to existing infrastructure, no one should believe it.
The net effect of the plan would be to increase its development potential from 1345 units to more than double that number while retaining some 25% of the property, or about 18 acres, for a "trail". The 1345 units is calculated by the Miami Dade planning department from the current zoning category for the former rail line right-of-way, as narrow as fifty feet in some spots.
Flagler and the county counter claims that neither evinced any interest in developing the property until neighborhood residents and leaders began discussing the great value of this unique vacant parcel as connector, in the form of a community path, in one of the areas of the county least served by public parks.
Whatever the case, the fact remains that elected officials who are inclined to do what their contributors want do not like being pushed to change their minds and usually come up with many arguments -- supplied in advance of public meetings by lobbyists -- to point away from the public interest and toward private profit.
But all is not lost with Ludlam Trail.
First of all, it is clear from the position of local community councils that the public does not want more development in this area. The Planning Advisory Board -- always more friendly to developers -- is predictably on the other side (isn't it time to clean house and have a PAB more representative of the public interest?).
Although the Flagler lobbyists and county both note that there is no funding for outright purchase of the property, this is a negotiating position.
If Flagler, the county, and neighbors came together to petition the state of Florida, the Ludlam Trail acquisition could be a top candidate for Amendment 1 funding, newly available through a percentage of the documentary tax stamp in real estate transfers.
The main obstacle is the weight of bad past precedents with right-of-ways to benefit the public; namely, the Miami River.
In the 1990's, Miami insiders, property owners, and their lobbyists (ie. Greenberg Traurig) spurned the opportunity to create the kind of park space that would have defined a vibrant commercial and residential center by allowing condos to dominate the landscape. (I recall trying to talk to Art Teele, at the time the county mayor, about this and he just shook his head. "Marty Fine would never agree.")
The thinking that prevailed treated public access as an orphan who could be starved because he was too little to complain effectively. The result was tragic for Miami, notwithstanding the bulging net worth of its creators through the boom, bust, then boom again.
Now Ludlam Trail and its environs are different. Residences and taxpayers are solidly middle class. You can't gild that lilly like Perez, a board member of FECI, did at the Miami River.
The logic of buying out Flagler's entire property for the benefit of the community is just too powerful.
But it won't happen if, on December 4th -- when the CDMP hearing continues -- should the county commission fold and simply votes to "transmit" the Flagler development/zoning request to the state.
By denying the application, the commission would point Flagler to work with the advocates for moving the state legislature and Gov. Scott to appropriate funds. It would take a couple of years, but the former rail line has been sitting idle and unused for nearly 30 years. Plus, securing the needed approvals from various municipalities along the route is uncertain and would also take years and even more lobbyist and planning expense.
If the commission votes to "transmit" the application, the burden moves onto the shoulders of Ludlam Trail advocates who probably lack the resources to mount an effective campaign in Tallahassee without Flagler's support.
That is why the involvement of Armando Codina is decisive. He understands perfectly well the community's need. He has made a fortune enough for one lifetime. Will he take the dismal course of past precedent and use a "public access trail" as a fig leaf for shoe-horning a development plan that has many obstacles of its own to surmount, or will he consider lasting legacy of an "Armando Codina Trail", support full acquisition or at least give it a fighting chance, and still come out right for Flagler shareholders?
It is something for Codina to consider, because after all is said and done, you can't take it with you.
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Leverage: why the county commission should not accept FECI's zoning change request tomorrow … by gimleteye
Florida East Coast Industries is one of the largest, if not the largest, property owner in southeast Florida. At issue, tomorrow, is whether the county commission will accede to the company's plan to rezone the former rail line stretching near Ludlam Road, from approximately the airport in a straight, uninterrupted line to US 1.
FECI evinced no interest, other than land-banking, this property until citizens began thinking what a good idea it would be to create a huge linear park, turning the rail line into a unique feature that could be used daily by hundreds if not thousands of nearby residents. It is an area of the county desperately lacking public amenities like parks.
Suddenly, FECI began moving toward a plan to rezone and thus increase the value of the property.
It is hard, of course, to find money for public parks. In this case, however, the case will be made that the by bonding a purchase price, the park will smartly pay for itself through increases in property values nearby and, hence, tax revenues.
In other parts of the United States, there would be leadership and a spirit of cooperation to bring together community aspiration (raise your hand if you want more development in your neighborhood!), private property owners, and funding.
The missing ingredient, here, isn't money. FECI would get its money, if it helped push for funding allocations from the recent Amendment 1 victory (a portion of the documentary stamp tax will be allocated to land acquisition). The missing ingredient is leadership.
Unfortunately -- except in one recent case, the removal of incumbent Linda Bell from the commission (this will be, by the way, her final commission meeting) -- have not held county commissioners accountable at the polls. Two good examples of the tendency of local elected officials to abdicate: how commissioners surrender to Florida Power and Light. Whatever the corporation wants, it gets, and routinely bulldozes straight through expert recommendations of planning staff. The better example: the Miami River where a vision for using the waterway as the Central Park of Miami was crushed by land use lawyers, lobbyists, and developers like Jorge Perez (a board member of FECI) eager to use "public access" as little as possible to achieve their maximum profits.
FECI is not going to lose anything, by the commission refusing to vote and to delay on tomorrow's zoning decision. On the other hand, the public's dream for Ludlam Trail will be badly compromised if the commission accepts FECI's plan. Instead of cooperation, the Ludlam Trail advocates will be in an adversarial relationship with a powerful developer in a hostile political climate.
By denying or delaying the vote, the county commission could use its leverage for a better outcome.
Tuesday, October 21, 2014
A reader was worried about 157th Avenue LLC but it Appears Ludlam Trail is worse. By Geniusofdespair
After my post yesterday, one reader was worried about 157 Avenue LLC. I gathered what information I could.
157th Avenue LLC a Delaware Corporation
Date Formed 4/28/2014
Title VP SWARTZ, RON 4042 PARK OAKS BLVD., SUITE 300 TAMPA, FL 33610 Title CFO SWARTZ, RON 4042 PARK OAKS BLVD., SUITE 300 TAMPA, FL 33610
Ron Schwartz also in involved with Foundation for Adult Living 401K Plan.
Lobbyist hired the end of July: Hugo Arza, Michael Freire, Joseph G Goldstein, Brian D. Kenyon, Alan Krischer, Ines Marrero-Priegues, Juan Mayol, Richard A. Perez, Tracy Slavens, Alberto Torres
The address in Tampa houses Rasmussen College and Greystone Health Networks. I called planning they are not going for a Comp Plan Change. Anyone know what is going on with this 157th Avenue LLC? I could find nothing in Property Appraiser search. This was all I could find for this company:
Ludlam trail: (We wrote about this previously Sept. 30th). The Flagler Corp. wants to build over 2,000 residential units (wouldn't accept those numbers they want more). The people want a linear park but can't afford to pay Flagler for the land. It is 6.2 miles going from South Miami to the Miami International Airport. Flagler wants homes but it is zoned for transportation. There is a article in the Miami Herald today that the Planning Board moved the application forward:
Members of the Miami-Dade County Planning Advisory Board voted Monday to push forward a controversial land-use amendment application involving a stretch of abandoned railroad land known as the Ludlam Trail.
157th Avenue LLC a Delaware Corporation
Date Formed 4/28/2014
Title VP SWARTZ, RON 4042 PARK OAKS BLVD., SUITE 300 TAMPA, FL 33610 Title CFO SWARTZ, RON 4042 PARK OAKS BLVD., SUITE 300 TAMPA, FL 33610
Ron Schwartz also in involved with Foundation for Adult Living 401K Plan.
Lobbyist hired the end of July: Hugo Arza, Michael Freire, Joseph G Goldstein, Brian D. Kenyon, Alan Krischer, Ines Marrero-Priegues, Juan Mayol, Richard A. Perez, Tracy Slavens, Alberto Torres
The address in Tampa houses Rasmussen College and Greystone Health Networks. I called planning they are not going for a Comp Plan Change. Anyone know what is going on with this 157th Avenue LLC? I could find nothing in Property Appraiser search. This was all I could find for this company:
 |
| From the above description I got this location |
Ludlam trail: (We wrote about this previously Sept. 30th). The Flagler Corp. wants to build over 2,000 residential units (wouldn't accept those numbers they want more). The people want a linear park but can't afford to pay Flagler for the land. It is 6.2 miles going from South Miami to the Miami International Airport. Flagler wants homes but it is zoned for transportation. There is a article in the Miami Herald today that the Planning Board moved the application forward:
Members of the Miami-Dade County Planning Advisory Board voted Monday to push forward a controversial land-use amendment application involving a stretch of abandoned railroad land known as the Ludlam Trail.
"The board recommended that the County Commission approve the application, which would carry out a longstanding vision for the 6.2-mile corridor to become a bike and pedestrian trail running from Dadeland Mall to the Miami International Airport.
But to sustain the trail, Flagler, the company that owns the land, wants to build homes and commercial buildings along the corridor, which runs through neighborhoods, industrial malls and parks.
For residents, that’s where the controversy comes in.
Many are worried that the application doesn’t assign enough priority to the trail. Most want the company to withdraw the application and start from scratch with more resident involvement.
“I think that this community and this company, if we work together, could do better than that,” said Victor Dover, a local urban designer and board member of the Friends of the Ludlam Trail, a nonprofit group formed to support creation of the bike and pedestrian path."
Tuesday, September 30, 2014
Friends of Ludlam Trail Ask You to Please Attend Ludlam Trail Meetings! Guest Post
Reminder: Meetings to Decide Fate of Ludlam Trail:
September 30, 6:30 p.m. Westchester Community Council (10); Ruben Dario Middle School, 350 NW 97 Avenue
October 20, 2 p.m. Planning Advisory Board; County Commission Chamber, 111 NW 1 Street
Email Commissioner Suarez, Commissioner Sosa, and Mayor Gimenez, and let them know we want a linear park and trail!
First Community Council Voted to Transmit with Recommendation of DENIAL! Two more to go!
Friends of the Ludlam Trail urges you to attend one of the upcoming Community Council meetings (listed to the left) where the future of the Ludlam Trail may be in question. FECI is seeking an amendment to the Comprehensive Development Master Plan (CDMP) that will upzone the land and allow over 2,300 residential units to be built directly on the corridor. If this actually gets built it will have substantial impacts on traffic, community services, and the environment.
Despite seeking a significant bonus to their development capacity, there has been NO public planning process, nor has any plan been presented publicly that explains the project!
The proposal leaves many questions in the minds of FOLT members. What happened to the rail-to-trail and linear park that was proposed by Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Department? How can the land be rezoned with no master plan or public process? Review the proposal by following this link and let us know what you think. 190 pages...really!
GENIUS SAID: I think it is great, but I am not going to read 190 pages, I am just going by those I know who are supporting it.
September 30, 6:30 p.m. Westchester Community Council (10); Ruben Dario Middle School, 350 NW 97 Avenue
October 20, 2 p.m. Planning Advisory Board; County Commission Chamber, 111 NW 1 Street
Email Commissioner Suarez, Commissioner Sosa, and Mayor Gimenez, and let them know we want a linear park and trail!
First Community Council Voted to Transmit with Recommendation of DENIAL! Two more to go!
Friends of the Ludlam Trail urges you to attend one of the upcoming Community Council meetings (listed to the left) where the future of the Ludlam Trail may be in question. FECI is seeking an amendment to the Comprehensive Development Master Plan (CDMP) that will upzone the land and allow over 2,300 residential units to be built directly on the corridor. If this actually gets built it will have substantial impacts on traffic, community services, and the environment.
Despite seeking a significant bonus to their development capacity, there has been NO public planning process, nor has any plan been presented publicly that explains the project!
The proposal leaves many questions in the minds of FOLT members. What happened to the rail-to-trail and linear park that was proposed by Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Department? How can the land be rezoned with no master plan or public process? Review the proposal by following this link and let us know what you think. 190 pages...really!
GENIUS SAID: I think it is great, but I am not going to read 190 pages, I am just going by those I know who are supporting it.
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