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Related Urbanplanet.org topics: [ South Florida Projects & Construction | South Florida P&C Index ]
Thread covering South Miami, and areas between Coral Gables and Kendall.
Communities covered:
South Miami
Sunset Drive
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This looks really nice, and will complement the neighborhood well...
http://www.community...s/local1_sm.htm
South Miami Corporation is banking on a big new project for the city
By Frances Dubson
For several weeks now rumblings about the next big project heading to South Miami have stirred up speculation as to what exactly it will be. Now it’s official-plans are on file with the city and an application has been submitted for review and approval.
Pictured in this architect’s
rendering is the new
building that will house the new First National Bank of South Miami.
The applicant, South Miami Corporation, which owns three city blocks and is owner of the city landmark bank, First National Bank of South Miami, is planning a mixed-use development on more than four acres at and around 5750 Sunset Drive.
“The Hometown Plan is the vision of Downtown South Miami and this project literally embraces the Hometown Plan,” said Tucker Gibbs, Attorney for the South Miami Corporation. “We are going to be the first major project in South Miami that actually does what the plan says to do, and that is to bring residents into downtown which will truly make it a live, work and shop development.”
The four story project will have nearly 90,000 square feet of commercial space including four restaurants, offices, retail shops and residences. Its boundaries will extend from 57th Court to 58th Avenue on 72nd Street (Sunset Drive), and from 57th Court to 58th Court from 73rd to 74th Street.
First National Bank of South Miami will be staying where it is so loyal bank customers do not have to worry about finding a new bank. There is also a plan in place to keep an operating bank lane throughout the construction phase.
The project is also expected to provide two parking garages and a surface parking lot. Parking requirements will be met as the size of such a project requires 606 total spaces and there are 653 total spaces on the plans.
“We will have the required parking for retail and office space and a separate parking area for the residential part of the project and we will be above and beyond the required parking needs plus extra parking,” Gibbs said.
A major concern of South Miami citizens is what such a project will do to traffic in the already congested area. A traffic study will be conducted and presented publicly.
Victor Dover, of Dover, Kohl & Partners, is heading the planning and design.
“We are conducting a traffic study, but we are not concerned that it will cause a problem because we are building under the Hometown Plan threshold,” said Dover.
“We want the traffic analysis to make sure we have positioned the entries of the garages in a way that will optimize the operation of all of the intersections, which is where traffic congestion becomes most apparent. We’ve given the traffic engineer a special task to make sure our design is best for the neighborhood.”
According to the plans, the residential density is estimated at 24 units per acre. There will be 106 diverse residential dwelling units with studios as small as 420 square feet to almost 900 square foot one bedroom/one bath, two bedroom/two bath units ranging from 770 to just more than 1,500 square feet of living space and three bedroom/three bath units from 1,008 square feet to just more than 2,400 square foot units.
There will be Town Homes as well as Row Houses similar to those you would see along the French Quarter in New Orleans.
Residents won’t have to worry about looking at three city blocks looking like they came out of one mold.
“The idea is to take what sounds like one big project and break it down into a great deal of architectural variety,” said Dover. “There will be several architecture firms working on this development because the goal is to maintain the character of the historic, old time South Miami, which was created by adding up buildings.
Such an approach is advocated by the Hometown Plan so for us it’s a dream come true.”
It all sounds wonderful so far, but before this project gets the green light, the developer will have to iron out all of its needs and requests with the City Planning Board.
They’ll need the commission’s approval on two requests for Special Exceptions as well as approval for a Special Use for its planned 13,000 plus square feet of restaurant space.
The Special Exceptions requested are to get approval to permit four bank lanes rather than the two allowed according to the city code. Currently the bank has eight lanes which are there because they are grandfathered in since the bank has been on the premises for nearly fifty years. The bank lanes have also been designed inside one of the parking garages.
The second Special Exception request is for permission to build more lot coverage than what’s allowed.
Sandy Youkilis, Consultant for the City’s Planning and Zoning Department agrees that such a project would not only meet the Hometown Plan, it would help the city a great deal.
Youkilis said, “It would be a major investment for our downtown and bringing people to live downtown is extremely positive for any urban area. It will add life and it will also significantly contribute to the tax base of the city.”
What’s interesting is that this project is right across from the Shops of Sunset Place who have been having financial trouble for several years however the First National Bank Project will be nothing like their neighbor across the street.
Dover said, “The two couldn’t be more different – if one wants to find something good is that it provides us with an easy example of what not to do so quick. This project is not introverted, its extroverted, Shops of Sunset is introverted and turns its back on its neighbors and that type of development doesn’t make healthy streets. In our project the edges of our streets will have doors, windows, balconies and human presence.”
Ground breaking is projected for early 2006.
No cost estimates have yet been released.
A public hearing for this project before the Planning Board is scheduled for January 11th.
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