BIE - Alton Beach Bayfront Overlay District - Comp Plan Amendments (5/23/2025)
City of Miami Beach, 1700 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, Florida 33139, www.miamibeachfl.gov
TO: Mayor Steven Meiner and Members of the City Commission
FROM: Eric Carpenter, City Manager
MEETING DATE: June 25, 2025
SUBJECT: BUSINESS IMPACT ESTIMATE
ALTON BEACH BAYFRONT OVERLAY DISTRICT – COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AMENDMENT
AN ORDINANCE OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI
BEACH, FLORIDA, AMENDING THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH YEAR 2040 COMPREHENSIVE
PLAN PURSUANT TO THE SMALL SCALE PROCEDURES IN SECTION 163.3187, FLORIDA
STATUTES, BY AMENDING GOAL RLU 1, “LAND USE,” OBJECTIVE RLU 1.1,
“ESTABLISHMENT OF FUTURE LAND USE CATEGORIES,” POLICY 1.1.7, “HIGH DENSITY
MULTI FAMILY RESIDENTIAL (RM-3),” TO CREATE THE ALTON BEACH BAYFRONT
OVERLAY LAND USE CATEGORY, PROVIDING FLOOR AREA RATIO BONUSES FOR
DEVELOPMENTS THAT INCLUDE CERTAIN PUBLIC BENEFITS; AND PROVIDING FOR
INCLUSION IN THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, TRANSMITTAL, REPEALER,
SEVERABILITY, AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
Is a Business Impact Estimate Required?
X Yes ☐ No (If no, please check one of the boxes below)
If one or more boxes are checked below, this means the City of Miami Beach has
determined that a Business Impact Estimate for the above-referenced Ordinance is not
required by State law.
☐ The proposed Ordinance is required for compliance with Federal or State law or
regulation; ☐ The proposed Ordinance relates to the issuance or refinancing of debt; ☐ The proposed Ordinance relates to the adoption of budgets or budget
amendments, including revenue sources necessary to fund the budget; ☐ The proposed Ordinance is required to implement a contract or an agreement,
including, but not limited to, any Federal, State, local, or private grant or other
financial assistance accepted by the City; ☐ The proposed Ordinance is an emergency ordinance; ☐ The Ordinance relates to procurement; or ☐ The proposed Ordinance is enacted to implement the following:
a. Private applications for comprehensive plan amendments and land
development regulation amendments;
b. Development orders, development permits, and development agreements;
c. Sections 190.005 and 190.046, Florida Statutes, regarding community
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Business Impact Estimate
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development districts;
d. Section 553.73, Florida Statutes, relating to the Florida Building Code; or
e. Section 633.202, Florida Statutes, relating to the Florida Fire Prevention Code.
If none of the above exceptions apply, this Business Impact Estimate is hereby provided
in accordance with Section 166.041(4), Florida Statutes.
1. Summary
A summary of the proposed ordinance and its purpose is more fully set forth in the
Commission Memorandum accompanying the ordinance, as well as in the recitals
to the ordinance itself, provided at First Reading and attached hereto.
2. An estimate of the direct economic impact of the proposed Ordinance on private, for-
profit businesses in the City of Miami Beach, if any:
(a) An estimate of direct compliance costs that businesses may reasonably incur;
The proposed ordinance does not apply to existing, legally established
businesses.
(b) Any new charge or fee imposed by the proposed Ordinance or for which businesses
will be financially responsible;
The proposed ordinance does not apply to existing, legally established
businesses.
(c) An estimate of the City’s regulatory costs, including estimated revenues from any new
charges or fees to cover such costs.
The proposed ordinance would generate no more than nominal additional
regulatory costs, which may be associated with administration activities by
applicable City departments.
3. Good faith estimate of the number of businesses likely to be impacted by the proposed
Ordinance:
The proposed ordinance does not apply to existing, legally established
businesses.
4. Additional comments:
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COMMISSION MEMORANDUM
TO:Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Commission
FROM:Eric Carpenter, City Manager
DATE:April 23, 2025 5:01 p.m. First Reading Public Hearing**
TITLE:ALTON BEACH BAYFRONT OVERLAY DISTRICT - COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
AMENDMENT
AN ORDINANCE OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, AMENDING THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH YEAR 2040
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN PURSUANT TO THE SMALL SCALE PROCEDURES IN
SECTION 163.3187, FLORIDA STATUTES, BY AMENDING GOAL RLU 1, “LAND
USE,” OBJECTIVE RLU 1.1, “ESTABLISHMENT OF FUTURE LAND USE
CATEGORIES,” POLICY 1.1.7, “HIGH DENSITY MULTI FAMILY RESIDENTIAL
(RM-3),” TO CREATE THE ALTON BEACH BAYFRONT OVERLAY LAND USE
CATEGORY, PROVIDING FLOOR AREA RATIO BONUSES FOR
DEVELOPMENTS THAT INCLUDE CERTAIN PUBLIC BENEFITS; AND
PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION IN THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, TRANSMITTAL,
REPEALER, SEVERABILITY, AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
RECOMMENDATION
The Administration recommends that the Mayor and City Commission (City Commission) open
and continue First Reading of the subject ordinance to May 21, 2025.
The Administration does not recommend that the proposed Comprehensive Plan amendment be
approved at First Reading at this time. Consistent with the recommendations for the companion
LDR amendment, the Administration is recommending that the maximum intensity bonuses in the
comprehensive plan not exceed 2.0, resulting in a maximum allowable intensity not to exceed
4.75. Additionally, the proposed development agreement has not been properly vetted and may
not be commensurate with the extent of development regulation incentives proposed. As such,
the Administration recommends that the proposed Comprehensive Plan amendment be opened
and continued to May 21, 2025.
BACKGROUND/HISTORY
The subject application was submitted on August 11, 2024, by 1250 West Ave Owner LLC with
respect to the property located at 1250 West Avenue. This is a private application submitted
pursuant to Sections 2.4.1 and 7.1.10 of the Resiliency Code. The applicant is proposing to create
the Alton Beach Bayfront Overlay District within the City’s Future Land Use Map, the text of the
City’s 2040 Comprehensive Plan, and the City’s Resiliency Code.
ANALYSIS
The applicant is proposing to create a new overlay, entitled the Alton Beach Bayfront Overlay
district, as well as amend the RM-3 development regulations specific to the overlay. The proposal
includes amendments to the Comprehensive Plan, as more specifically noted in the attached
ordinance.
The proposed amendments to the Comprehensive Plan and the Land Development Regulations
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of the City Code (LDRs) would enable the construction of a luxury housing development, with an
accessory restaurant, at 1250 West Avenue. The proposal includes an increase in maximum FAR
from 2.75 up to 5.75, as well as a building height increase from 150 feet to 330 feet. The applicant
is also proposing to modify requirements pertaining to minimum setbacks and allowable
encroachments within required yards, as well as provisions pertaining to the review of mechanical
parking systems.
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AMENDMENT AND REVIEW PROCESS
The proposal requires an amendment to Policy RLU 1.1.7 of the Resilient Land Use and
Development element of the Comprehensive Plan for the proposed increase in the maximum
intensity requirements within the proposed overlay. The following is a summary of the proposed
intensity increases specific to the Alton Beach Bayfront Overlay in the attached comprehensive
plan amendment:
The base floor area ratio in the Alton Beach Bayfront Overlay shall be 2.75.
New construction limiting density to a maximum of 75 units per acre shall receive a floor area
ratio bonus of 0.25; and
A property owner who elects, at the owner’s sole discretion, to voluntarily execute a restrictive
covenant running with the land, in a form approved by the city attorney, affirming that, in
perpetuity, that no residential unit on the property shall be leased or rented for a period of less
than six months and one day, shall receive a floor area bonus of 0.25. The covenant shall
expressly provide that an affirmative vote of six-sevenths of all members of the City
Commission shall be required in order to release the covenant or to modify the covenant in
such a manner as to impose a less stringent restriction after it is executed; and
A property owner who enters into a development agreement for capital improvements along
the West Avenue corridor, defined as the area bounded by 5th street on the south, 17th Street
on the north, Alton Court on the east, and Biscayne Bay on the west, and other public benefits
that could be applied on a City-wide basis, shall receive a floor area ratio bonus of up to 2.5,
based on the following improvements or public benefits:
1. Acquisition of property containing a transient use within the West Avenue corridor and
conveyance of the property to the City: up to 2.0.
2.Design, permit, and construct the portions of the Bay Walk located at 800 West Avenue
1228 West Avenue, and 1450 Lincoln Road, or, in the event the requisite easements from
upland owners cannot be obtained, contribute funds to the City for construction of the Bay
Walk or any other lawful public purpose: 0.50.
Under Section 163.3187(1), Florida Statutes, this amendment qualifies as a small-scale
amendment as the proposed North Beach Oceanfront Overlay is approximately 1.94 acres. This
process requires a public hearing by the local planning agency (Planning Board) and a final
adoption public hearing before the City Commission. The ordinance shall take effect 31 days
after adoption if no challenge is filed.
PLANNING BOARD REVIEW
On October 29, 2024, the Planning Board reviewed the proposed ordinance and continued it to
the January 7, 2025, Planning Board meeting. On December 19, 2024, a public workshop was
held after the first review of the Planning Board and additional input received from the participants.
On January 7, 2025, the application was continued to a date certain of February 4, 2025, at the
request of the applicant, with no substantive discussion by the Planning Board. On February 4,
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2025, the application was continued to a date certain of March 4, 2025, at the request of the
applicant, with no substantive discussion by the Planning Board.
On March 4, 2025, the Planning Board held a public hearing and transmitted the proposed
ordinance to the City Commission with an unfavorable recommendation (4-3).
SUMMARY
The proposed amendments to the LDRs and the Comprehensive Plan are tethered to a separate
development agreement, which is anticipated to be considered by the Land Use and Sustainability
Committee (LUSC) on April 15, 2025. The earliest this development agreement can be considered
by the City Commission is on May 21, 2025. For all three of these components to be considered
for adoption together, the applicant has requested that the City Commission waive the annual
zoning cycle restriction for the proposed LDR amendment, pursuant to Section 2.3.2 of the LDRs.
If the City Commission were to approve the proposed development agreement on May 21, 2025,
the applicant would be requesting that Second Reading for the LDR and Comprehensive Plan
amendments be set for June 25, 2025.
The Administration does not recommend that the proposed Comprehensive Plan amendments
be approved at First Reading at this time. Consistent with the recommendations for the
companion LDR amendment, the Administration is recommending that the maximum intensity
bonuses in the comprehensive plan not exceed 2.0, resulting in a maximum allowable intensity
not to exceed 4.75. Additionally, the proposed development agreement has not been properly
vetted and may not be commensurate with the extent of development regulation incentives
proposed. As such, the Administration recommends that the proposed Comprehensive Plan
amendment be opened and continued to May 21, 2025.
FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT
No Fiscal Impact Expected
Does this Ordinance require a Business Impact Estimate? No
(FOR ORDINANCES ONLY)
If applicable, the Business Impact Estimate (BIE) was published on:
See BIE at: https://www.miamibeachfl.gov/city-hall/city-clerk/meeting-notices/
FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Not Applicable
CONCLUSION
The Administration recommends the following:
1. The City Commission open and continue First Reading of the subject ordinance to May 21,
2025.
2. The ordinance shall be revised for the May 21, 2025 meeting with the following amendments
to policy RLU 1.1.7 noted in bold:
Alton Beach Bayfront Overlay - The City Commission acting in a legislative capacity may
adopt land development regulations that provide for the following intensity bonuses within the
Alton Beach Bayfront Overlay:
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i. The base floor area ratio in the Alton Beach Bayfront Overlay shall be 2.75.
ii. New construction limiting density to a maximum of 75 units per acre shall receive a floor
area ratio bonus of 0.25; and
iii. A property owner who elects, at the owner’s sole discretion, to voluntarily execute a
restrictive covenant running with the land, in a form approved by the city attorney, affirming
that, in perpetuity, that no residential unit on the property shall be leased or rented for a
period of less than six months and one day, shall receive a floor area bonus of 0.25. The
covenant shall expressly provide that an affirmative vote of six-sevenths of all members of
the City Commission shall be required in order to release the covenant or to modify the
covenant in such a manner as to impose a less stringent restriction after it is executed;
and
iv. A property owner who enters into a development agreement for capital improvements
along the West Avenue corridor, defined as the area bounded by 5th street on the south,
17th Street on the north, Alton Court on the east, and Biscayne Bay on the west, and other
public benefits that could be applied on a City-wide basis, shall receive a floor area ratio
bonus of up to 2.5 1.5, based on the following improvements or public benefits:
1. Acquisition of property containing a transient use within the West Avenue corridor and
conveyance of the property to the City: up to 2.0 1.0.
2. Design, permit, and construct the portions of the Bay Walk located at 800 West Avenue
1228 West Avenue, and 1450 Lincoln Road, or, in the event the requisite easements
from upland owners cannot be obtained, contribute funds to the City for construction
of the Bay Walk or any other lawful public purpose: 0.50.
Applicable Area
South Beach
Is this a “Residents Right to Know” item,
pursuant to City Code Section 2-17?
Is this item related to a G.O. Bond
Project?
Yes No
Was this Agenda Item initially requested by a lobbyist which, as defined in Code Sec. 2-481,
includes a principal engaged in lobbying? No
If so, specify the name of lobbyist(s) and principal(s):
Department
Planning
Sponsor(s)
Private Applicant
Co-sponsor(s)
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Condensed Title
5:01 p.m. 1st Rdg PH, Alton Beach Bayfront Overlay Dist-Comp Plan Amendment. (Private
Applicant) PL
Previous Action (For City Clerk Use Only)
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