Ordinance 2020-4332 Definition of Floor Area
ORDINANCE NO. 2020-4332
AN ORDINANCE OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF
THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, AMENDING SUBPART
B OF THE CITY CODE, ENTITLED "LAND DEVELOPMENT
REGULATIONS," CHAPTER 114, ENTITLED "GENERAL
PROVISIONS," SECTION 114-1, ENTITLED "DEFINITIONS," TO
MODIFY FOR CLARIFICATION PURPOSES THE DEFINITION
OF "FLOOR AREA"; AND PROVIDING FOR REPEALER,
CODIFICATION, SEVERABILITY, APPLICABILITY, AND AN
EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, City Code Section 114-1 sets forth explicit definitions of the technical terms
"floor area" and "floor area ratio," and provides specific requirements for the measurement and
calculation of floor area; and
WHEREAS, the City relies upon the terms "floor area" and "floor area ratio" as objective
intensity standards for the control of population densities, building intensities, and for
comprehensively planning the necessary public infrastructure to support orderly growth and
development; and
WHEREAS, one purpose of the City's regulation of a property's maximum floor area
and/or floor area ratio("FAR") is to provide a quantifiable and objective mechanism to control both
the size and intensity, as well as the overall mass, of a building; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to City Code Section 114-1, the term "floor area" means "the sum
of the gross horizontal areas of the floors of a building or buildings, measured from the exterior
faces of exterior walls or from the exterior face of an architectural projection, from the centerline
of walls separating two attached buildings"; and
WHEREAS, Section 114-1 enumerates ten elements of a building that are excluded from
the definition of"floor area"; and
WHEREAS, if a building element is not listed as an exclusion from the calculation of"floor
area," then the element is deemed to be included in the calculation of"floor area"; and
WHEREAS, the City has consistently counted elevator shafts, stairwells, and mechanical
chutes and chases as "floor area" for more than 48 years; and
WHEREAS, on two prior occasions in 1994, the Planning Director was formally asked to
determine whether the definition of floor area includes voids in floors to accommodate elevator
shafts, voids in floors to accommodate mechanical/ventilation/trash shafts, and stairwells; and
WHEREAS, on both occasions, the Planning Director concluded that voids in floors to
accommodate elevator shafts, voids in floors to accommodate mechanical/ventilation/trash
shafts, and stairwells were included in the definition of floor area; and
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WHEREAS, on both occasions, the Board of Adjustment affirmed the administrative
determinations of the Planning Director; and
WHEREAS, on July 10, 2019, the Planning Director issued a determination concluding
that the following elements are included within the definition of floor area: (1) voids in floors to
accommodate elevator shafts; (2) voids in floors to accommodate mechanical/ventilation/trash
shafts; and (3) voids in floors to accommodate stairwells, including voids to accommodate
stairwells within accessory garages; and
WHEREAS, in a clear departure from its limited quasi-judicial authority, the Board of
Adjustment voted on November 1, 2019, to reverse the July 10, 2019 determination, and
effectively amend the Land Development Regulations—without the authority to do so—to create
a new exclusion from the definition of Floor Area for the elements identified in the immediately
preceding recital; and
WHEREAS, the Board of Adjustment's decision is not consistent with the plain text of the
definition of Floor Area, not consistent with the legislative intent of the City Commission, and not
consistent with the intent and purpose of the land development regulations; and
WHEREAS, the Mayor and City Commission now desire to codify and re-affirm the
Planning Director's longstanding interpretation and declare that no exception to the definition of
Floor Area exists other than those exceptions explicitly defined in the Land Development
Regulations. For the avoidance of doubt, the following building elements are – and always have
been -- included in the calculation of floor area: stairwells, stairways, covered steps, elevator
shafts at every floor (including mezzanine level elevator shafts), and mechanical chutes and
chases at every floor(including mezzanine level).
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF
THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA.
Section 1. Chapter 114 of the City Code, entitled "General Provisions," is hereby amended as
follows:
CHAPTER 114–GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 114-1.-Definitions
The following words, terms and phrases when used in this subpart B, shall have the meanings
ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
Floor area means the sum of the gross horizontal areas of the floors of a building or buildings,
measured from the exterior faces of exterior walls or from the exterior face of an architectural
projection, from the centerline of walls separating two attached buildings. For the purpose of
clarity,floor area includes, but is not limited to, stairwells, stairways, covered steps, elevator shafts
at every floor (including mezzanine level elevator shafts), and mechanical chutes and chases at
every floor(including mezzanine level).
Page 2 of 4
•
-e - - , -- °-- - -- - - -- - e - - - -- -- - - - For the avoidance of
doubt, unless otherwise provided for in these land development regulations, floor area excludes
only the spaces expressly identified below:
(1) Accessory water tanks or cooling towers.
(2) Uncovered steps.
(3) Attic space, whether or not a floor actually has been laid, providing structural headroom
of less than seven feet six inches.
(4) Terraces, breezeways, or open porches.
(5) Floor space used for required accessory off-street parking spaces. However, up to a
maximum of two spaces per residential unit may be provided without being included in
the calculation of the floor area ratio.
(6) ' Commercial parking garages and noncommercial parking garages when such
structures are the main use on a site.
(7) Mechanical equipment rooms located above main roof deck.
(8) Exterior unenclosed private balconies.
(9) Floor area located below grade when the top of the slab of the ceiling is located at or
below grade. However, if any portion of the top of the slab of the ceiling is above grade,
the floor area that is below grade shall be included in the floor area ratio calculation.
Despite the foregoing, for existing contributing structures that are located within a local
historic district, national register historic district, or local historic site, when the top of the
slab of an existing ceiling of a partial basement is located above grade, one-half of the
floor area of the corresponding floor that is located below grade shall be included in the
floor area ratio calculation.
(10) Enclosed garbage rooms, enclosed within the building on the ground floor level.
Volumetric buildings, used for storage, where there are no interior floors, the floor area shall
be calculated as if there was a floor for every eight feet of height.
When transfer of development rights are involved, see chapter 118, article V for additional
regulations that address floor area.
Floor area ratio means the floor area of the building or buildings on any lot divided by the
area of the lot.
8 n
0
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-11 100%Coverage 50%Coverage 10%Coverage
Each example illustrated above has a floor area ratio of 1.0.
Page 3 of 4
SECTION 2. Repealer.
All ordinances or parts of ordinances and all section and parts of sections in conflict
herewith are hereby repealed.
SECTION 3. Codification.
It is the intention of the.City Commission, and it is hereby ordained that the provisions of
this ordinance shall become and be made part of the Code of the City of Miami Beach as
amended;that the sections of this ordinance may be renumbered or relettered to accomplish such
intention; and that the word "ordinance" may be changed to "section" or other appropriate word.
SECTION 4. Severability.
If any section, subsection, clause or provision of this Ordinance is held invalid, the
remainder shall not be affected by such invalidity.
SECTION 5. Applicability.
The provisions of this Ordinance shall not apply to the development site that is the subject
of an appeal granted by the Board of Adjustment prior to the effective date of this Ordinance that
(i) authorized the exclusion from floor area calculations of elevator shafts,
mechanical/ventilation/trash shafts, and stairwells; and (ii) does not result in a change to the
height or floor plate of the residential tower of the proposed development.
SECTION 6. Effective Date.
This Ordinance shall take effect ten days following adoption.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this h2 day of /c'�rya1.. 2020.
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Dan Gelber, M.
/irf?cItRafael E. Granado, Clty Clk '-���'�'',
., AORAT t APPROVED AS TO FORM
INCORP ORATED;,
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:`? ANp FOR EXECUTION
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City Attorney Date
First Reading: January 15, 2020 �L
Second Reading: February 12, 2020 IV
Verified By:
Thomas R. Mooney, AICP
Planning Director
(Sponsored by Mayor Dan Gelber, Commissioner Michael Gongora, and Commissioner Mark
Samuelian)
T:\Agenda\2020\02 February 12\Planning\FAR Clarifications-Second Reading ORD.docx
Page 4 of 4
Ordinances - R5 D
MIAMI BEACH
COMMISSION MEMORANDUM
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Commission
FROM: Jimmy L. Morales, City Manager
DATE: February 12, 2020
2:30 p.m. Second Reading Public Hearing
SUBJECT: DEFINITION OF FLOOR AREA
AN ORDINANCE OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY
OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, AMENDING SUBPART B OF THE CITY
CODE, ENTITLED "LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS," CHAPTER
114, ENTITLED "GENERAL PROVISIONS," SECTION 114-1, ENTITLED
"DEFINITIONS," TO MODIFY FOR CLARIFICATION PURPOSES THE
DEFINITION OF "FLOOR AREA"; AND PROVIDING FOR REPEALER,
CODIFICATION, SEVERABILITY, APPLICABILITY, AND AN EFFECTIVE
DATE.
RECOMMENDATION
The administration recommends that the City Commission adopt the subject ordinance.
BACKGROUND/HISTORY
On July 10, 2019, the Planning Director issued a determination pertaining to the definition of 'floor
area' in chapter 114 of the Land Development Regulations of the City Code. The determination
reaffirmed that the following elements are included within the definition of floor area: (1) voids in
floors to accommodate elevator shafts; (2) voids in floors to accommodate
mechanical/ventilation/trash shafts; and (3) stairwells, including stairwells within accessory garages.
On November 1, 2019, the Board of Adjustment, by a 5-2 vote, reversed the Planning Director's July
10, 2019 determination. On December 4, 2019, the Planning Director and the City, through outside
counsel, appealed the decision of the BOA by filing a petition for writ of certiorari in circuit court.
Pursuant to City Code Section 118-9, the filing of this appeal operates to stay the BOA order and all
"work on the premises and all proceedings in furtherance of the action appealed from."
On December 11, 2019, at the request of Mayor Dan Gelber, Commissioner Mark Samuelian, and
Commissioner Michael Gongora, the City Commission referred the proposed ordinance to the
Planning Board for review and recommendation (item C4K).
ANALYSIS
PLANNING ANALYSIS
The maximum square footage (intensity) of a building is regulated by the Floor Area Ratio (FAR) for
the applicable zoning district, which standard applies to all zoning districts except for single-family
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districts. The maximum floor area for a property is determined by multiplying the lot size by the FAR
of the zoning district.
Covered stairwells, elevator shafts, and mechanical chutes have been treated as floor area in the
City of Miami Beach since 1971. In this regard, under Ordinance 1891, the Zoning Ordinance in
effect from 1971 to 1989, the definition of floor area specified which areas of the floors of a building
are included in the calculation of FAR. These areas expressly included stairwells, elevator shafts,
and mechanical equipment.
Beginning in 1988, the Zoning Ordinance Review Committee (ZORC) performed a comprehensive
review of Ordinance 1891 and recommended that the definition of floor area be restructured and
consolidated to include all "areas of the floors of a building," without listing specific inclusions, and
that only a list of enumerated "exclusions" would apply. Ordinance No. 89-2665, adopted in 1989,
amended the definition of floor area, in accordance with the stylistic recommendation of ZORC. This
definition, except for the addition of new explicitly defined exclusions, which have not changed the
meaning of the term, has remained in place up until today.
Section 114-1 of the Land Development Regulations (LDRs), which was adopted in 1989, defines
Floor Area as follows:
Floor Area means the sum of the gross horizontal areas of the floors of a building or
buildings, measured from the exterior faces of exterior walls or from the exterior face of an
architectural projection, from the centerline of walls separating two attached buildings.
The definition then enumerates specific portions of the building that may be excluded from the
calculation of floor area, which include the following:
(1)Accessory water tanks or cooling towers.
(2) Uncovered steps.
(3)Attic space, whether or not a floor actually has been laid, providing structural headroom
of less than seven feet six inches.
(4) Terraces, breezeways, or open porches.
(5) Floor space used for required accessory off-street parking spaces. However, up to a
maximum of two spaces per residential unit may be provided without being included in the
calculation of the floor area ratio.
(6) Commercial parking garages and noncommercial parking garages when such structures
are the main use on a site.
(7) Mechanical equipment moms located above main roof deck.
(8) Exterior unenclosed private balconies.
(9) Floor area located below grade when the top of the slab of the ceiling is located at or
below grade. However; if any portion of the top of the slab of the ceiling is above grade, the
floor area that is below grade shall be included in the floor area ratio calculation. Despite the
foregoing, for existing contributing structures that are located within a local historic district,
national register historic district, or local historic site, when the top of the slab of an existing
ceiling of a partial basement is located above grade, one-half of the floor area of the
corresponding floor that is located below grade shall be included in the floor area ratio
calculation.
(10) Enclosed garbage moms, enclosed within the building on the ground floor level.
Page 527 of 1185
The inclusion of stairwells, stairways, covered steps, and elevator shafts in the definition of floor area
has been and continues to be an important component of the City's building and land development
regulations. The reason the inclusion of these elements is important is three-fold:
1. These elements are part and parcel of the bulk, mass and intensity of a building. FAR
regulates the bulk, mass and intensity of a building.
2. The inclusion of these elements provides for the highest level of accuracy, objectivity, clarity,
and consistency from the perspective of the public administration of the land development
regulations. The clear and objective standard promotes uniformity in terms of the staffs review
of plans for consistency with the LDRs and building permit review.
3. Every building constructed in the City since 1971 has followed the same set of regulatory
requirements regarding FAR, and that includes counting these elements in the overall FAR.
On July 10, 2019, the Planning Director issued a determination reaffirming that stairwells, stairways,
covered steps, and elevator shafts at every floor count towards the maximum floor area. In addition
to reconfirming the plain and unambiguous definition of floor area as noted above, the July 10, 2019
determination was consistent with nearly 50 years of code administration and precedent, including
two previous determinations of prior Planning Directors, both of which were previously affirmed by
the Board of Adjustment(BOA).
The July 10, 2019 determination was appealed to the BOA, and on November 1, 2019, the BOA
overturned the Planning Director's determination. The BOA order is not final due to the pending
petition for writ of certiorari in the circuit court. The decision of the BOA, should it go into effect,
would have major impacts to the City and overturn nearly 50 years of zoning precedent. Additionally,
it would create significant ambiguity and inconsistency in the way land development applications are
reviewed by staff for compliance with the LDRs. The current definition is free of ambiguity and has
allowed for consistent and effective administration and review.
Staff has reviewed the floor area calculations for nine recent development projects (see attached
chart). If these projects were to exclude stairwells, stairways, covered steps, and elevator shafts from
the floor area calculations, the overall square footage and intensity would increase from between 7%
and 16%, for an average increase of 9.5%.
It is important to note that the analysis in the attached chart is a snapshot of a sample of projects with
varying sizes and does not represent all development projects currently in the development review,
permitting or construction process. An analysis of every project would yield a much higher amount of
additional square footage than that noted above.
•
Also, Planning staff performed a geographic information systems (GIS) analysis to estimate which
apartment (non-condominium) and commercial buildings have available floor area in the City. This
GIS analysis utilized the Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser's data on building size. While the
building size calculations from the Property Appraiser may not be identical to the City's floor area
calculations, they provide a good estimate of the impact that an across-the-board increase in floor
area would have City wide. Additionally, the analysis does not consider unified development sites,
which may have additional impacts on the allowable FAR in some zoning districts and the movement
or aggregation of floor area between lots.
•
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Under this GIS analysis, each parcel was analyzed individually, taking into consideration the
increase from the currently available floor area, if any, and the estimated increase. Some properties
that currently have no floor area available may suddenly have floor area available. Currently there is
an estimated 22,979,726 square feet of floor area available in the City of Miami Beach within
properties containing apartments and commercial buildings. If the maximum floor area of lots were
increased by an additional 9.5%, there would be an estimated 27,122,711 square feet of floor area
available to properties containing apartments and commercial buildings. This represents a potential
estimated increase of 4,142,985 square feet. Such an indiscriminate increase in floor area could
have significant impacts on levels of service in the City including water, sanitary sewer, solid waste,
storm water sewer, and transportation facilities.
The aforementioned analyses are important as they begin to quantify the potential increase in
available floor area, City wide, resulting from the conversion of currently included areas of a building
into excluded areas. They also clearly show that such increases are not trivial or minimal in any way.
Even this initial analysis confirms the importance of evaluating increases in FAR on a more limited,
strategic basis.
The proposed ordinance effectively overrules the Board of Adjustment order. It clarifies the areas of a
building that count towards the maximum floor area limitations and reaffirms the definition of floor area
that the City has consistently and uniformly applied to every building for nearly 50 years. The
ordinance affirms that the definition of floor area includes stairwells, stairways, covered steps,
elevator shafts at every floor (including mezzanine level elevator shafts), and mechanical chutes
and chases at every floor(including mezzanine level). The proposal is consistent with how floor area
ratio (FAR) limitations have been calculated since the adoption of Zoning Ordinance 89-2665 in
1989, as well as the previous ordinance that was in effect from 1971 to 1989 (Ordinance 1891).
The proposed amendment does not affect single family home districts (RS-1, 2, 3, & 4). Single
family districts are regulated by unit size limitations, lot coverage, and height limits, and are not
subject to FAR restrictions.
Finally, it is important to note that a separate discussion pertaining to potential strategic FAR
increases/incentives related to resiliency and other defined policy benchmarks has been placed on
the January 15, 2020 City Commission agenda for referral to the Land Use and Sustainability
Committee and Planning Board. If this item is referred, it would allow for a broader, more
comprehensive discussion regarding potential FAR increases. Given the potential impacts to the built
environment and City infrastructure, any FAR increase or incentive must be effectuated in a
deliberate and thoughtful manner and must be supported by a thorough planning analysis.
PLANNING BOARD REVIEW
On December 17, 2019, the Planning Board held a public hearing and transmitted the Ordinance to
the City Commission with a favorable recommendation by a vote of seven to zero(7-0).
UPDATE
The subject ordinance was approved at first reading on January 15, 2020, with no changes to the
ordinance text. Additionally, the following applicability section was approved by the City Commission,
and is included within the draft ordinance for second reading:
The provisions of this Ordinance shall not apply to the development site that is the subject of an
appeal granted by the Board of Adjustment prior to the effective date of this Ordinance that (i)
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authorized the exclusion from floor area calculations of elevator shafts, mechanical/ventilation/trash
shafts, and stairwells; and (2) does not result in a change to the height or floor plate of the
residential tower of the proposed development.
CONCLUSION
The administration recommends that the City Commission adopt the subject ordinance.
Applicable Area
Citywide
Is this a Resident Right to Does this item utilize G.O.
Know item? Bond Funds?
Yes No
Legislative Tracking
Planning
Sponsor
Mayor Dan Gelber, Commissioners Michael Gongora and Mark Samuelian
ATTACHMENTS:
Description
o Chart
❑ Ordinance
Page 530 of 1185
FAR calculations for nine recent development projects:
Project Additional Percent Total SF
SF Increase
Flamingo RM2 Addition 11,518 SF 12% 99K SF
1733-59 Purdy 6,098 SF 9% 67K SF
7140 Collins Avenue 10,769 SF 6% 174K SF
7145 Carlyle 20,275 SF 8% 255K SF
Monad Terrace 16,520 SF 9% 193K SF
57 and Collins 13,208 SF 7% 190K SF
68 and Indian Creek 8,225 SF 9% 95K SF
1344 15th Terrace 771 SF 10% 8K SF
14 Ferrey Lane 932 SF 16% 7K SF
If the above noted projects were to exclude stairwells, stairways, covered steps, and elevator
shafts from the floor area calculations, the overall square footage and intensity would increase
from between 7%and 16%,for an average increase of 9.5%.
It is important to note that this analysis is a snapshot of a sample of projects with varying sizes
and does not represent all development projects currently in the development review,
permitting or construction process. An analysis of every project would yield a much higher
amount of additional square footage than that noted above.
Page 531 of 1185