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The Ocean Terrace Debate: Get All The Facts

November 3rd is a big day for North Beach. In addition to voting in new City commissioners, a voter referendum is on the ballot regarding Ocean Terrace. An ordinance approved by the City Planning Board

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November 3rd is a big day for North Beach. In addition to voting in new City commissioners, a voter referendum is on the ballot regarding Ocean Terrace. An ordinance approved by the City Planning Board and on first reading by the City Commission creates an overlay district which will pave the way for a mixed-use residential, retail and hotel development along North Beach’s Ocean Terrace. Currently, the developer Sandor Scher has spent more than $60 million buying up buildings with the goal of revitalizing the area.

The overlay district hopes to increase the maximum floor area ratio (FAR) between 73rd and 75th Street and Ocean Terrace and Collins Avenue. In the approved ordinance the maximum height allowance in the overlay district was increased to 250 feet or 22 stories for residential uses, and 125 feet for hotel uses from the current 75 feet, or eight stories. What remains is for voters to approve the FAR increase from 2.0 to 3.0 which requires a city wide referendum for approval.

Both sides of the controversial ordinance have launched public campaigns and websites supporting their respective sides. The developer has launched www.ForABetterNorthBeach.com and the preservationists have created www.SaveOceanTerrace.com as platforms to get their messages across. One thing is for sure, both URL handles aim to tug at the emotional heartstrings of the voters. Each side has a vision to ‘save’ North Beach in their own unique ways.

“For me it’s not about being on the developer’s side or the preservationist’s side,” said President of Urban Resource, Daniel Veitia. “It’s about what’s best for North Beach. It’s about the future of North Beach. I just want to make sure people know what they are voting for.”

Indeed. Before you go out and vote on this ordinance, North Beach News want you to be as informed as possible. It’s vital that voters get the facts because any development of Ocean Terrace is important to the overall advancement of North Beach.

For this story, we spoke to Scher and Miami Dade Preservation League’s (MDPL) Chair Steve Pynes to get their opinions. Also, you can reference past stories we have written about the issue for added information before you hit the polls and vote!

 

The Developer

Before we delve into the specifics about the ordinance, you should know a little about the developer and his stewardship in the community. Principal of Claro Development, Sandor Scher is responsible for developing some of the most well-known properties in Miami Beach, which includes Soho Beach House, the Raleigh Hotel, the Shelborne Hotel, and the new UNIDAD building, to name a few. A very passionate individual, it was evident while speaking to him that he puts his heart and soul into every project he puts his name on.

Claro Development Projects - Ocean Terrace Debate North Beach

Past Miami Beach projects by Sandor Scher and Claro Development

“I’ve spent the last 12 years of my life bringing life back to beautiful structures in Miami Beach,” said Scher. “I’m not someone talking about historic preservation…I’m doing it. I know historic preservation; I know the process and I value it. We have to hold on to these buildings because they define our past and help us shape our future.”

Existing Condition of Ocean Terrace North Beach Mimo Structures

Existing Condition of Ocean Terrace

North Beach News asked why he was drawn to the project, which he even classifies as a huge risk.

“Four years ago, what I saw in Ocean Terrace was this incredible diamond in the rough,” he said intensely. “I looked at this building, in a dilapidated state with safety issues and even health issues, and thought ‘how could this be?’ ‘How could there be this incredible piece of real estate in Miami Beach that’s in this state?”… And after some thought and consideration, it became clear that it represented a new frontier. It was like painting on a blank canvas, which is much different than buying property in South Beach on Collins Avenue. This is a complete urban renewal or complete transformation of an area. It’s uplifting an area.”

 

The Debate

According to some preservationists, as part of the developer’s proposed plan, “prominent MiMo structures” will be destroyed. While Scher plans on demolishing some of the structures along Collins Avenue, he uses the term “blight” and “sick” to describe them. MDPL says there are other solutions to the issue and reference Ocean Drive as an example of an area that has been responsibly developed.

Ocean Terrace Development Map vote no 53 vote yes 54

Potential Redevelopment Map

“At MDPL, we are against any FAR or height increase in any historic district,” said Pynes. “In general, we are against it but specifically in historic districts. We feel like it contributes to the erosion of the district and potentially the loss of historic buildings.

Pynes also has some concerns with some of the terminology that the developer used to win public opinion.

“Developers often use the word ‘blight’ to describe a neighborhood,” Pynes said. “We are all for improving the area but there are different ways to do that. It’s always presented as there is ‘blight’ there now and this is how you need to fix that and we don’t agree with that. There are many ways to fix an issue. If we believed an increase in FAR was the only solution, nearly 40 years ago, we would have lost all the historic buildings on Ocean Drive. During that time, developers wanted to do something similar to that area and if we didn’t preserve it, we wouldn’t have the Ocean Drive we have today.”

Scher disagrees and showed North Beach News images of the buildings that were being demolished that looked in a distraught condition.

Ocean Terrace buildings in disrepair

7410-7420 Ocean Terrace Existing Condition

“Considering my pedigree and background, it frustrates me to hear people say that we are going to knock down all the buildings,” Scher said. “Historic preservation is a huge part of this plan. Imagine spending 12 years of life doing something well and someone trying to make you out to be something you are not.”

Additionally, Scher says he is adding to the historic fabric of the area not diminishing it.

“If you look at the historic designation report of this area, it says that the buildings together create a historic fabric of the neighborhood, which is low scale, walkable and includes vibrant retail. That is exactly what we want to create. We look to the past to decide where we want to go in the future. Maybe that was my folly, to tell the world that I didn’t want to keep these buildings? I wanted to make sure, as a developer, I told the world our plans because I feel like the imagination could be worse than reality; we have a really beautiful vision.”

Existing vs Potential Ocean Terrace Renderings copy

Ocean Terrace View

Community members point out that the current laws, which have been in effect for years, haven’t helped in developing Ocean Terrace.

“For 20 years there has been a policy in place on Ocean Terrace and, for better or for worse, that policy has not been effective,” Veitia said. “No developer, preservationist, or even the City, has made any progress to change the existing conditions along Ocean Terrace. As a resident, I have experienced the negative impacts that exist and have been advocating, since 2006, to ease the policies on Ocean Terrace and incentivize redevelopment so it can be a prosperous area for all.”

 

Overdevelopment, Congestion and Parking Concerns

‘The Save Ocean Terrace’ home page, which MDPL does not fund, cites concerns regarding over-development and congestion that will stem because of the project. They worry about the major strain that the new structure will cause for local residents, and how they will be forced to compete with, potentially thousands of new residents and their cars.

“I’m creating 230 new parking spaces where there are none today and reducing traffic,” Scher said. “Based on studies, we will create less traffic and will reduce the density of the area by half.”

Scher gets upset when opponents call the project overdeveloped, or even suggest that he is greedy.

“This process has been the opposite of greed,” Scher said. “We have taken a huge risk financially with the belief that, if you address every plausible concern like density, traffic and parking, then why shouldn’t you succeed? Why would it be controversial or greedy?”

His opposition has said that he only wants the FAR increase so he can make more profit. They say the building could be viable using existing FAR.

“It’s insane,” Pynes said. “My impression is that the hotel would work without an increase in FAR and it could be viable.

Scher adamantly disagrees with statements he has heard that are similar to Pynes’.

“That’s simply not true,” Scher said. “We can’t make profit under the current restrictions. It’s sad because the real value of what’s being done is overshadowed by lies. I mean, if you are going to increase FAR, this is the way to do it, the public knows exactly where the FAR is going towards, why we need it and how this is going to make sure that a beautiful mixed use development is created.”

Existing vs Potential Ocean Terrace Overlay Collins Ave Renderings copy

Collins Ave View

Bait & Switch Argument

The developer wants to drive home that he has had a transparent and open process. He has gotten letters of support from many of the neighborhood associations and has the support of the Miami Beach Chamber of Commerce. He also wants to stress that, what he has shown to these groups, community members, and organizations, will be the final project.

“This isn’t a bait and switch,” Scher said. “We signed a restrictive covenant that basically holds us to everything we said we were going to do. We are never going to have more residential units than what we have stated, we are not going to have more hotel rooms than what we have stated, and we won’t have outdoor entertainment past 11 p.m., for example. We have signed those documents and at the end of the day, that’s us being responsible for our statements and actions. This document would not exist if we didn’t work closely with the community and activists.”

 

Keeping Locals In

With any influx of development, residents become concerned about the impact that new development will have on their neighborhood. Some North Beach residents are worried they will be pushed out the neighborhood, which is one of the only areas in Miami Beach that has stayed affordable to live.

Scher says that he hopes to encourage economic development in the area and create more of a sense of community.

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“We are going to take these marginal hotels that have 30 full time employees and we are going to put a beautiful, full-service boutique hotel and vibrant retail that will create at least 400 new, full time jobs,” Scher said. “And guess what? People who work at hotels, typically, don’t drive to work, they take a bike or walk because they live nearby. This creates more of a sense of community. These employees will walk to work from the affordable and available workforce housing that is only blocks to the west. If you work and live in the same neighborhood, you care about the neighborhood. That’s the transformation we are talking about here.”

Additionally, Scher says he is enhancing the community and creating activation that will ultimately make locals proud of their neighborhood. In his plan, he has reserved hundreds of feet of activation and has a clear vision.

“We are offering something that is completely unique and unlike anything that Miami Beach has seen,” said Scher.

He hopes to have an activated hotel lobby that will include food and beverage that will activate the street. He is including activated terraces and is creating a pass through breezeway from Collins Avenue to Ocean Terrace, which he calls a “game changer.”

“We are looking at hundreds of feet of activation and the way to bring Collins and Ocean Terrace together is through a breeze way,” said Scher. “Walking around the block is not a good experience. To be able to walk-through a beautiful courtyard to get to Ocean Terrace will be amazing. We want it to be easy for people to get to Ocean Terrace and create an enjoyable overall experience. We want this to be a destination were you can sit with friends, overlooking the Ocean and enjoy life. We want to change the way people socialize and interact in this amazing location.”

 

The Sunshine and Beach Discussion

One reason many residents move to Miami Beach is the easy access to the beach AND the sun. Naturally, many individuals are concerned about the developer making access to the beach more restrictive. Additionally, the “Save Ocean Terrace” side has been distributing images showing a large shadow that will be caused by the structure on the beach.

Ocean Terrace St Tropez North Beach View NBN BrandedScher addressed that communication and showed us multiple sun studies that were conducted.

“Our studies conclude that a shadow will be cast on the beach only during Winter solstice at 4 p.m.,” Scher said. “A majority of locals don’t go in the water in the middle of winter during the afternoon. We are warm blooded.” Essentially the sun studies show that the proposed development will not block the sun from the beach until the sun bathing hours are over.

Additionally, Scher wanted to clarify that access to the beach would be in no way restricted.

“The beaches belong to Miami Dade County and no one can take it away from them,” he said. “The beaches are public. This is just another a scare tactic and another misrepresentation.”

Scher has also done studies to research the impact the building would have on the view of the beach for the residents of the St. Tropez located next door.

“I’ve explained to them [St. Tropez residents] that the buildings would be 180 feet apart and their view wouldn’t be obstructed,” he said. “I’ve showed them renderings and explained to them that their Northern Ocean beach view wouldn’t be restricted one bit.”

Pynes disagrees and says that plenty of locals go to the beach in the winter to sun bathe but not necessarily go into the water. However, he did not have the benefit of the sun study that Scher provided.

Ocean Terrace St Tropez North Beach

A Slippery Slope

The “Save Ocean Terrace” group is concerned about the precedent that will be set if we allow the “upzoning” on Ocean Terrace. They are advocating that a dangerous precedent would be set for the future of Miami Beach development if the FAR is approved. Additionally, they worry about this project opening the door for careless over-development. Pynes says, this is an important case in terms of precedent because if it passes then every developer will try this same tactic and could become problematic.

“This will not set a dangerous precedent if we increase the FAR,” said Scher. “Cities change their zoning all of the time as a tool to encourage high quality development or to influence the direction of an area.  Any increase in FAR has to go to the electorate; that is an extremely high bar to pass.  The city needs this tool in its toolbox as a useful element to change different areas.  This has gone through almost a year of intense public meetings and scrutiny to finally get on the ballot. In fact, this is a down-zoning. We are building less residential and hotel rooms than currently exist but bringing the quality way up. That’s why we need the FAR; we are exchanging a substandard 200 square foot hotel room with a high quality 400 square foot hotel room. Additionally, we are exchanging a substandard 350 square foot apartment with a 2,000 square foot apartment.”

Scher then asked us, “If you owned a property that you could build ten houses on and the city changed the zoning so you could build only five houses, did you get up-zoned or down-zoned?” He answered by saying, “Of course you got down-zoned.”

 

Conclusion

Scher ended our conversation stressing the importance of this development in North Beach.

“When you have a private developer that is willing to go to a bad situation and improve it – it’s a risky move,” Scher said. “We are going into a challenging situation and trying to improve the community. This is like when Tony Goldman invested in Wynwood in the 90s. This is a big, big, move. The neighborhood needs this.”

While Scher said he doesn’t know what will happen if the resolution doesn’t pass, he has said numerous times in public meetings, “There is no plan B. We believe that we are preserving the unique character of Miami Beach, restoring historic structures and that the community, especially North Beach, is really behind making this happen.” Many in the community like Veitia, have their opinions.

“In my opinion, if we don’t get the FAR increase, we will still get a condo tower but without the benefits of the hotel and the economics it would bring, because he [the developer] won’t have the square footage to build it,” Veitia said. “If you vote “NO” it will not change the fact that the developer already has the ability to build a condo tower at a 2.0 FAR and a height of 250 feet. The floor plate restriction included in the Ocean Terrace Overlay Ordinance would force the additional FAR into the hotel tower which is restricted to 12 stories.”

Even if the FAR increase is approved by voters, the developer will still have the hardship of obtaining Planning Board and Historic Preservation Board approvals for the design of the planned development. This is the process which will ensure any new development proposal introduced would be compatible with the existing architectural fabric of the district. This is also where residents’ participation will help steer compatibility and usher in a new era for Ocean Terrace.

Ocean Terrace preserved buildings

Ocean Surf and Days Inn Hotel

As a past board member of the City of Miami Beach Planning Board and active community member, Veitia solidly states, “I have confidence in the process ahead and believe the 3.0 FAR can be compatible. He explains the existing historic and architecturally significant buildings being preserved (Days Inn and Ocean Surf) are both at, or above, a 3.0 FAR as they stand today.”

As for Pynes, when asked what his vision would be regarding Ocean Terrace, he hopes for a new vision. “We see Ocean Terrace as what Ocean Drive was like 35 years ago.  If we had not been able to save Ocean Drive then, it would now look like the proposed development on Ocean Terrace.  The unique character of our City would be lost forever.”

 

Please remember to vote on November 3 and have your voice heard. If you vote NO, you will be voting against the FAR increase. If you vote YES, you are voting in favor of the FAR increase.

Some North Beach polling locations include: North Shore Branch Library, North Shore Park Youth Center, Norman Shores Golf Club and North Beach Elementary School.
All questions concerning voting and absentee ballots should be directed to the Miami-Dade County Elections; Telephone: 305.499.VOTE (8683) or TTY: 305.499.8480.

danieldiaz03@yahoo.com

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8 COMMENTS
  • MBBornandraised October 30, 2015

    Fool me once….If we continue to believe developers’ lies, we are simply fools.

    They do not have the community’s interests at heart. I am not interested in what makes the site more profitable for the developer. If allowed, developers would have destroyed every bit of what makes our city interesting in the name of “progress.”

  • MBBornandraised October 30, 2015

    Fool me once….If we continue to believe developers’ lies, we are simply fools.

    They do not have the community’s interests at heart. I am not interested in what makes the site more profitable for the developer. If allowed, developers would have destroyed every bit of what makes our city interesting in the name of “progress.”

  • Matis Cohen October 31, 2015

    Those who are against , want to keep North Beach in Blight, & care nothing about historic preservation… Otherwise they would have embraced this project that preserves the truly historic properties . The NAY SAYERS of this project are holding North Beach Hostage for their POLITICAL GAIN to further push their political agenda ! And stir up more conflict with radical rhetoric….

  • Matis Cohen October 31, 2015

    Those who are against , want to keep North Beach in Blight, & care nothing about historic preservation… Otherwise they would have embraced this project that preserves the truly historic properties . The NAY SAYERS of this project are holding North Beach Hostage for their POLITICAL GAIN to further push their political agenda ! And stir up more conflict with radical rhetoric….

  • MBBornandraised October 31, 2015

    Mr. Cohen, it is certainly very generous of you and the others who stand to benefit financially from this zoning change to be so concerned for the community. I stand corrected. You are right. The best way to preserve the character of the neighborhood is to destroy it and build generic condominium towers. We should leave it in the hands of those who stand to profit to determine what is truly historic. The way to avoid more traffic is to build more units. New hotels certainly will not bring additional traffic. How could we be so blind? And as such concerned citizens, I am certain that should this measure pass all additional profits that result will be donated to community organizations to continue the betterment of our neighborhood that you are so worried about.

  • MBBornandraised October 31, 2015

    Mr. Cohen, it is certainly very generous of you and the others who stand to benefit financially from this zoning change to be so concerned for the community. I stand corrected. You are right. The best way to preserve the character of the neighborhood is to destroy it and build generic condominium towers. We should leave it in the hands of those who stand to profit to determine what is truly historic. The way to avoid more traffic is to build more units. New hotels certainly will not bring additional traffic. How could we be so blind? And as such concerned citizens, I am certain that should this measure pass all additional profits that result will be donated to community organizations to continue the betterment of our neighborhood that you are so worried about.

  • chris March 4, 2016

    I am not really for more high rise condos on the beach, but PLEASE MAKE SOMEONE CLEAN UP, REMODEL, IMPROVE THOSE AWFUL GHETTO LOOKING 3 OR 4 OR BUILDINGS THAT LINE THE BEACH AREA!!! THEY LOOK LIKE COMPLETE TRASH EYESORES!!! THEY ATTRACT CRIMINALS AND BUMS!!! UNBELIEVEABLE THEY ARE ALLOWED TO EXIST IN SUCH DECAY???!!!

  • chris March 4, 2016

    I am not really for more high rise condos on the beach, but PLEASE MAKE SOMEONE CLEAN UP, REMODEL, IMPROVE THOSE AWFUL GHETTO LOOKING 3 OR 4 OR BUILDINGS THAT LINE THE BEACH AREA!!! THEY LOOK LIKE COMPLETE TRASH EYESORES!!! THEY ATTRACT CRIMINALS AND BUMS!!! UNBELIEVEABLE THEY ARE ALLOWED TO EXIST IN SUCH DECAY???!!!

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