The following letter submitted on behalf of Friends of the Everglades outlines concerns about the application filed by Aligned Real Estate Holdings and South Dade Industrial Partners.
The application is scheduled for consideration at the Sept. 9 Miami- Dade County Commission meeting.
Reports, comments and recommendations of the County’s own staff have detailed why this proposal would be a bad public policy choice for the County for this location and at this time. As the County works along with state and federal agencies in the herculean effort to protect the County’s existing public and private investments from sea level rise and salt water intrusion, and restore the health of Biscayne Bay, replacing 800 acres of flood prone natural land outside of the Urban Development Boundary with concrete and substantial new public and private investment makes no sense.
As a member of the Hold the Line Coalition, Friends of the Everglades join other voices in the community that believe this proposed amendment would have detrimental impacts on Miami-Dade County’s environment and infrastructure. Friends asks the Board of County Commission to support the findings and recommendations of the County’s professional planning and environmental staff, and deny, and do not transmit this application.
