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Residents get chance to air concerns about Florida City development
BY TRAVIS JAMES TRITTEN
Citizen Staff Writer
Regional
planners will hear residents' concerns Monday over a 6,000-unit
development planned at the entrance to the Florida Keys.
The proposed
Atlantic Civil Inc. development would be just south of Florida City and
also could include 390,000 square feet of commercial space, a theater,
hotel and school.
Opponents say
such a project could slow hurricane evacuation and dwindle the Keys'
aquifer water supply, and the same arguments likely will be fielded by
the South Florida Regional Planning Council during the public meeting at
Hawk's Cay Resort on Duck Key.
"There seems
to be a groundswell of grassroots opposition to this plan," said County
Commissioner George Neugent, who sits on the regional planning council.
"Hopefully, we will have a good turnout from people who can voice their
opinions."
The Miami-Dade
County development, about 18 miles north of Key Largo, could create some
much-needed housing for the Upper Keys, Neugent said, but also could
have dramatic effects on housing elsewhere in the Keys.
Keys growth is
closely related to hurricane evacuation times and a bottleneck in
Florida City could mean a future reduction in home building in the
islands, he said.
Water supply
also could be an issue if the development feeds off the Biscayne
aquifer, the primary source of water for the Keys. During dry periods,
Keys residents have been directed to restrict water usage and the
development could further stress the supply.
Neugent said
the proposed development — no development application has been filed —
appears to be incongruous with Everglades restoration.
According to
World Wildlife Fund, the Atlantic Civil project would impact more than
1,400 acres being considered for conservation through the state's Save
Our Rivers program.
"Development
of this land would seriously undermine the ability to restore the
ecology of this sensitive area and would create serious adverse
impacts," according to the environmental group.
The Regional
Planning Council will review the sufficiency of the corporation's
Development of Regional Impact application for the project.
"The stage we
are in now is we are waiting for them to submit the application," said
Javier Betancourt, regional planner for the council.
Atlantic Civil
has until February to apply and the Development of Regional Impact
process typically takes about a year, Betancourt said.
Such
applications often undergo intense scrutiny and often are approved by
the council under conditions, he said.
Local
governments can either follow the council's recommendations or ignore
them, but the group has the power to lobby the state Department of
Community Affairs for an appeal, Betancourt said.
ttritten@keysnews.com
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