Miami-Dade County Zoning Board Meeting – February 22, 2024

The Miami-Dade County Zoning Board met on Thursday, February 22, 2024, to hear and decide a variety of zoning applications, including charter schools, a construction and debris (C&D) landfill appeal, residential variances, and rezonings. Several items were deferred, and all votes taken were unanimous (9-0).

Deferred Items

• Item 1A (Z2022000148, South Dixie and 122, LLC – rezoning for group residential facility) was deferred to March 21, 2024.
• Item 3A (Z2022000216, Miami Country Day School, Inc. – school expansion) was deferred to March 21, 2024.
• Item 3B (Z2022000324, Garcia's Oasis, LLC – lot area and setback variances) was initially deferred but later reconsidered and heard (see Discussion Items).
• Item 3D (Z2023000185, Masjid Ul Mumineen, Inc. – cemetery) was indefinitely deferred.
• Item 3E (Z2023000233, RRPVII BBI Biscayne, LLLP – zoning public hearing) was deferred to March 21, 2024.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Item 1B (Charter Venture Eureka, LLC): One registered speaker, Dr. Mary Leto, indicated support but waived her speaking time. The applicant noted that the sole previous opponent (Grace Baptist Church) had withdrawn opposition after a meeting.
• Item 1C (Atlantic Civil, LLC – C&D landfill appeal): The public hearing had been closed at the prior meeting; therefore, no additional public testimony was allowed, despite some attendees having signed up.
• Item 3G (Richwood Farms, LLC – rezoning): A resident, Dunia Marquez, expressed concerns about speeding traffic and lack of sidewalks/lighting in the neighborhood. She requested speed bumps and improved lighting to mitigate safety hazards. The board directed staff to connect her with the appropriate department for a traffic study.

Discussion Items

• Item 1B – Charter Venture Eureka, LLC (Z2023000043): The applicant sought approval to convert a previously approved private school into a charter school for 1,200 students (PK-12), with modifications to UDB spacing and parking setbacks. After a prior deferral to address opposition, the applicant reported that the nearest neighbor (Grace Baptist Church) had withdrawn its opposition. Commissioner Higgins moved approval with staff conditions; motion carried 9-0.
• Item 1C – Atlantic Civil, LLC (Z2023000452): This was a de novo appeal of the Planning Director’s determination that a C&D landfill on the property (in Florida City, outside the 10,000-foot airport restriction zone) was inconsistent with the Comprehensive Development Master Plan (CDMP). The applicant argued the facility is not a landfill but a C&D processing/recycling facility, that it is a public necessity given impending closure of the nearby Atlas facility and county-wide solid waste capacity issues, and that no suitable site exists outside the agricultural area. County staff did not identify specific CDMP inconsistencies but maintained the proposal was inconsistent. Commissioner Bell (District 9) moved to deny the appeal, sustaining the Planning Director’s finding. The motion carried 9-0, effectively blocking the landfill.
• Item 3B – Garcia's Oasis, LLC (Z2022000324): After reconsideration of an earlier deferral, the board heard the applicant’s request for variances to allow a single-family home on a 1.53-acre lot zoned AU (agricultural, minimum 5-acre lots) and to permit an existing pond closer to the front property line. Staff recommended denial because the property was not abutted on three sides by legally parcelized lots under 5 acres (a CDMP rule). Applicant showed surrounding lots were similarly sized and many had homes, and all adjacent property owners except one (unreachable) had signed waivers. Commissioners discussed that strict application of the rule did not align with common sense, given the neighborhood’s character. Commissioner Cohen Higgins moved to approve inconsistent with staff recommendation, with conditions from the staff report; motion carried 9-0.
• Item 3C – Iglesia Cristiana El Buen Samaritano, Inc. (Z2023000129): The applicant sought approval for a charter school for 1,500 students (K-12) with UDB spacing and parking encroachment variances. Over 500 signed support waivers were submitted; no opposition was registered. The district commissioner moved approval with staff conditions and a scrivener’s error correction (phasing schedule: 900 students phase one, 600 phase two). Motion carried 9-0.
• Item 3H – Ivan Tupusov (Z2023000403): The applicant requested a variance for a lot with less area and frontage than required. The property is in an area with many similarly sized lots; 10 support waivers were received. Staff recommended denial on similar grounds as 3B. Commissioner McGee (District 9) moved to approve; motion carried 9-0.
• Item 3F – Redland Investment, LLC (Z2023000276): A rezoning from AU to EU-S to allow more residential units on a lot in District 8. No protests or waivers. Staff recommended approval. Commissioner Regalado moved consistent with staff; motion carried 9-0.
• Item 3G – Richwood Farms, LLC (Z2023000290): A rezoning from EU-1C to EU-M with a lot frontage variance. No protests, no waivers. Staff recommended approval. The district commissioner moved approval after hearing the resident’s traffic concerns. Motion carried 9-0.

Key Outcomes

• All seven items decided (1B, 1C, 3B, 3C, 3F, 3G, 3H) were approved or denied by votes of 9-0. The only denial was Item 1C (Atlantic Civil landfill appeal), sustaining the Planning Director’s finding of CDMP inconsistency.
• Item 3B was approved despite staff’s denial recommendation, reflecting the board’s view that the “rule of three” should be applied with common sense in areas surrounded by similar residential uses.
• For Item 3G, the board directed staff to follow up with the resident’s request for traffic calming measures.
• Five items were deferred: 1A, 3A, 3D (indefinitely), 3E to March 21, 2024. Item 3D (cemetery) has no future hearing date set.
• The meeting adjourned at the conclusion of the agenda.