Miami commission approves plan for ‘Wynwood 2.0’

The Miami Commission on Thursday endorsed an unconventional zoning plan drawn up by Wynwood property owners to guide the fast-changing former industrial zone’s transformation into an urban mixed-use neighborhood.

By a 3-0 vote, the commission approved a series of resolutions and zoning and land-use changes to create the Wynwood Neighborhood Revitalization District, a new planning tool that city planning director Francisco Garcia said can be replicated in other areas of Miami seeking to shape their own redevelopment.

The Wynwood plan, if approved by the commission on second reading, will, among other features, increase housing density with some strict height caps to bring residents to the sparsely populated district while maintaining its modest scale; discourage warehouse teardown by allowing owners to sell unused development rights to other Wynwood property owners; and create a local design-review committee to help ensure new development is compatible with the neighborhood’s funky aesthetics.

It also allows developers to reduce the amount of required parking in a project by paying into a fund that would finance construction of centralized parking. Backers say the density increase and parking reductions will foster development of small live-work apartments suitable for the millennials now flocking to Wynwood.

This story was originally published July 23, 2015 at 9:08 PM with the headline "Miami commission approves plan for ‘Wynwood 2.0’."