Judge dismisses SkyRise lawsuit; activist appeals | Miami Herald

A Miami-Dade Judge on Wednesday denied an activist’s push to quash a voter referendum on a 1,000-foot tower on Biscayne Bay.

In his ruling, Judge Jorge Cueto sided against Coconut Grove architect Charles Corda, who aimed to strike an Aug. 26 ballot question seeking voters’ approval of both a lease extension and expansion of Bayside Marketplace and the erection of SkyRise Miami.

Corda argued in a petition he filed last month that the Bayside lease and SkyRise project were unrelated, and therefore legally should have been placed before voters as separate ballot questions. Cueto disagreed, saying that SkyRise, as a sublessee of Bayside, is indeed connected to the marketplace.

Corda, who named the city of Miami and the supervisor of elections in his suit, swiftly filed a notice of appeal.