Development hubs ready to rise along Ludlam Trail after Miami-Dade approval
The commercial and residential developments planned for where major roads cross the new Ludlam Trail park won zoning approval Thursday from Miami-Dade commissioners, clearing the way for the mid-rises that were at the heart of the complex land deal.
Some nearby residents warned of disruption from the mixed-use complexes planned by developer Florida East Coast Industries, the Brightline parent that owned the nearly six-mile former railway that Miami-Dade bought last year for the biking and walking path known as the Ludlam Trail. It runs north and south near Southwest 70th Avenue, dividing residential neighborhoods where residents have been wary of what the new project will bring.
“My major concern is having a six- or eight-story building behind my home,” Garine Berberian, who lives along the trail near Bird Road, told commissioners before the zoning vote. “The idea of the trail is appealing as a homeowner. ... However, having our single-family home suffer from that congestion ... I don’t look forward to that.”
The trail connects land outside Miami International Airport with the area around Dadeland Mall. That’s home to two Metrorail stations, Dadeland North and Dadeland South, so the planned trail is designed to offer a bucolic pedestrian route to public transit.
FECI’s effort to develop the railway land sparked outrage four years ago when the county began convening town halls on potential construction along the abandoned tracks. FECI scaled back the development plan to limit construction along several “nodes” on the trail, where major roads intersect with the planned park.
“What we have in front of us is what the public asked of us,” said Commissioner Rebeca Sosa, whose district includes much of the trail. She has been the project’s primary advocate on the 13-seat commission, including efforts to win state funding for the park component. “It’s time to move on.”
On Thursday, commissioners unanimously approved the zoning rules allowing for more intense development where the trail crosses Bird Road (Southwest 40th Street), Coral Way (Southwest 22nd Street) and Tamiami Trail (Southwest Eighth Street).
FECI still needs to obtain building permits to start construction, but the zoning changes clear the way for the projects. Commissioners had already approved the framework of the plan.
“Really, this is the last step of implementing that vision,” said Jose Gonzalez, an FECI vice president and lobbyist.
He said the company plans to launch the Bird Avenue complex first. That’s also planned to be the first phase of the county park that will become the Ludlam Trail. Miami-Dade has secured about $30 million for a project expected to cost nearly $100 million once the trail is fully built.
FECI has agreed to incorporate the trail into its complexes, with elevated crossovers allowing pedestrians and cyclists to bypass the roads that intersect the railway corridor. A rendering provided by FECI shows an asphalt path running along ground-floor retail and plazas in an imagined complex, allowing the company to promote the Ludlam Trail as an amenity to tenants and residents.
Neighbors have pushed back against efforts to make Ludlam anything more than just a grassy pathway for people to walk and ride bikes between neighborhoods. “Whenever we proposed something that is more like a park than a trail, we’ve gotten all kinds of opposition,” said Commissioner Xavier Suarez, whose district includes part of the trail. “They don’t even want benches.”
This story was originally published January 24, 2019 at 6:15 PM.