Supporting the waterfront plan

Here is the response from Michelle Niemeyer, who was chair of the Coconut Grove Waterfront Working Committee during the planning process, which was a committee of residents from all over the Grove. It later became a subcommittee of the Village Council. 

Michelle is currently a member of the Coconut Grove Waterfront Plan Implementation Committee, which is an advisory committee appointed by the City Manager related to the master plan.

The only reason Michelle is responding is because she was approached by some people who had attended the Village Council meeting and they wanted answers as to why the Village Council is in favor of the project.

Michelle's response:

I strongly support the plan proposed by The Harbour for the Grove Key / Scotty's / Chart House properties. I've received emails from a small number of people complaining about "development" on the waterfront. They are complaining about improvements to an already-developed property which is a small  part of the Coconut Grove Waterfront Master Plan and which was supposed to be redeveloped after the lease ended in 2012.

The Harbour's proposal meets the plan's goals and significantly improves pedestrian connections, adds green space, and includes a better baywalk and a park on the water under and around the banyan tree by Scotty's. It also keeps a casual outdoor restaurant and live music venue by the water, similar in pricing and menu to Scotty's, as is required by the master plan. 

The parking garage in The Harbour's plan is also in the master plan, but is narrower than the master plan envisioned, allowing for more green space. The parking garage will be needed when the Expo Center location and acres of surface lots around it are turned into a park and Sailing Center. In my opinion, if more spaces are needed I'd rather see it taller and keep the green space than wider with no green space. That will be the Miami Parking Authority's decision. 

The retail in the proposal is also part of the master plan, and should be limited to retail related to the waterfront uses. The City didn't specify that in its RFP, but The Harbour's proposal did express that intent. The Village Council's resolution adds a recommendation that the parking garage wraparound retail could serve park users (adding retail uses that would also serve cyclists, runners, walkers, and other non-boaters who use our waterfront parks).

For those who don't know the history, the master plan was created over a three-year period with a great deal of community involvement. Its purpose was to plan the long-term uses of City-owned properties from Peacock Park to Kennedy Park, taking into consideration existing leases and renewals, the need for waterfront land to be used for water dependent uses, the creation of connections to the Center Grove, and the need for improved public access to the water. Lots of competing needs were considered: boating access, passive park space, locations for active sports like cycling and running. Sasaki came up with a really great long-term plan that addressed all of those needs.

For those who are complaining, I hope they will read Sasaki's final report for the master plan and see what a great improvement it will be for our waterfront as it is implemented. Perhaps with an understanding of the bigger picture they will understand what a great design The Harbour has come up with for the small piece of the project they have agreed to build, at great expense, for our waterfront.  

In the end, the lease for their proposed project will have to go to a public referendum, and I hope it gets our support.