After Clevelander lawsuit, Miami Beach ordered to restore two-way traffic to Ocean Drive
A judge is ordering Miami Beach officials to restore two-way vehicle traffic to Ocean Drive, meaning the removal of a pedestrian plaza at the northern end of the street and possibly the elimination of a bicycle lane.
Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Beatrice Butchko Sanchez made the ruling after a hearing Wednesday afternoon, mandating the end of a configuration that has been in place for three years along the iconic South Beach strip: one lane of southbound traffic from Fifth to 13th streets, a pedestrian plaza closed to cars from 13th Street to 14th Place, and a two-way bike lane along the entire east side of the road.
The decision stems from a lawsuit by the owners of hotel and nightlife hotspot Clevelander, who argued that the current setup creates a safety hazard and has harmed the business.
Butchko Sanchez said the city has long been in violation of Miami-Dade County’s authority to regulate the road by keeping the pedestrian plaza intact and maintaining one-way traffic further south, all without proper permits.
“The city presently does not have a valid permit and does not have authority from the county to continue to block off the entire sections of the road,” Butchko Sanchez said. “The public interest is served by the people in the community having confidence that the laws on the books are being followed and that nobody can arbitrarily block access to someone’s real estate property.”
The judge gave the city one week to implement the changes, setting a deadline of 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 15.
A city spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the ruling and whether the city plans to comply. The city could appeal the ruling and seek to delay the deadline to impose the changes.
Matthew Gultanoff, the founder of transit and pedestrian advocacy group Better Streets Miami Beach, said in a statement that he was “shocked” by the order to remove the two-way bicycle lane on Ocean Drive.
“For the past three years, Ocean Drive has been a model of multimodal urban design,” Gultanoff said. “Together with the backdrop of the famous Art Deco buildings, the two-way protected bike lane has allowed thousands of people every day to safely travel to, from, and along this iconic street, enjoying the wonderful public space.”
Gultanoff urged the city to work with county officials to expedite approval of the current one-way configuration north of Fifth Street ahead of the judge’s Jan. 15 deadline.
Ocean Drive was closed to cars entirely from Fifth to 15th streets in May 2020 during the COVID pandemic, a change that was well-received by pedestrians and bicyclists but challenged by hotel owners who said it was preventing guests from accessing their properties.
When the road partially reopened to cars in January 2022, one southbound lane opened from Fifth to 13th streets, and a two-way bike lane replaced public parking spaces on the east side of the street, closest to Lummus Park and the beach. A new two-block pedestrian plaza was created between 13th Street and 14th Place.
While Miami-Dade officials granted temporary approval for those plans, the county has since raised repeated concerns about safety and traffic flow, particularly in connection with the pedestrian plaza.
On Tuesday, county officials sent a letter to Miami Beach City Manager Eric Carpenter that directed the city to remove the barriers around the pedestrian plaza and open it back up to vehicle traffic “in a safe and controlled manner.”
Regarding the one-way flow of traffic further south, the county said it encourages Miami Beach to pursue an application for approval of the setup, saying the “concept was temporarily approved by [the county] with conditions that have not been met to date, including a post-implementation traffic analysis of the one-way operation.”
An attorney representing the city of Miami Beach, Eric Hockman, argued at Wednesday’s hearing that the courts lack jurisdiction to intervene in discussions between the city and county over the configuration of Ocean Drive.
The Clevelander’s legal team disagreed and said the setup restricts access to the hotel for guests, deliveries and emergency vehicles.
“What’s happened here is wrong,” said attorney Steven Ebner. “We can’t properly operate a business on Ocean Drive.”
The Clevelander and the city of Miami Beach have been at odds for years. The venue successfully sued the city in 2021 over the city’s attempt to impose a 2 a.m. last call for alcohol in the South Beach entertainment district — a ruling handed down by the same judge, Butchko Sanchez.
In addition to its arguments about the configuration of Ocean Drive, the Clevelander is also pursuing claims that the city has illegally sought to block its application to turn the hotel into a workforce housing tower under Florida’s Live Local Act. City officials have rejected parts of the Clevelander’s plans and imposed new zoning restrictions in South Beach to try to prevent Live Local projects.
Miami Beach officials have long sought to change the hard-partying reputation of South Beach and Ocean Drive, citing unruly crowds that reach their peak during spring break weekends in March.
A 2018 general obligation bond program approved by voters included $20 million for the design and reconstruction of Ocean Drive that would feature limited or no vehicular traffic, but that project has yet to move forward.
This story was originally published January 8, 2025 at 6:27 PM.
