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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLetter of IntentmoiI WEISS SEROTA HELFMAN PASTORIZA COLE & BONISKE, P.L. ATTORNEYS AT LAW ok-10 1 20-7 6 C MITCHELL BIERMAN,P.A. NINA L. BONISKE, P.A. MITCHELL J. BURNSTEIN, P.A. JAMIE ALAN COLE, P.A. STEPHEN J. HELFMAN, P.A. GILBERTO PASTORIZA, P.A. MICHAEL S. POPOK, P.A. JOSEPH H. SEROTA, P.A. SUSAN L. TREVARTHEN, P.A. RICHARD JAY WEISS, P.A. DAVID M. WOLPIN, P.A. DANIEL L. ABBOTT GARY L. BROWN LYNN M. DANNHEISSER IGNACIO G. DEL VALLE ALAN L. GABRIEL DOUGLAS R. GONZALES MATTHEW H. MANDEL BRETT J. SCHNEIDER LORIADELSON* LILLIAN M. ARANGO» SHAWNTOYIA N. BERNARD JEFF P.H. CAZEAU ARYE P. CORBETT I RAQ U EL ELEJABAR R I ETA VIA HAND DELIVERY Ms. Teresita Fernandez City of Miami 444 S.W. 2" d Avenue, 7th Floor Miami, Florida 33130-1910 Re: Public Hearing Applications Dear Ms. Fernandez: Our firm represents Niclas and Lisanne Pierre and Napoleon Real Estate Group, LLC who are the owners (the "Owners") of the properties located on NE 2" d Avenue between NE 70 and 71 Streets (the "Property") which is the subject of the Lisanne Subdivision plat (the "Plat"). In conjunction to the Plat, the Owners are proposing and land use and zoning change for certain lots and the closure of the alley running parallel to NE 2" d Avenue. The land use, zoning change and closure of the alley will allow for a unified development site for a proposed commercial project with ground floor retail uses. The Owners are proposing a change to the Miami Comprehensive Neighborhood Plan from Duplex and Medium Density Residential to Restricted Commercial and a zoning change from R-2 and R-3 to C-1 Restricted Commercial with SD -29 Historic Lemon City/Little Haiti Village Special Overlay District for certain lots as further described in the enclosed documents. The land use and zoning changes are logical extensions of the abutting district boundary lines and will provide a commercial opportunity at a major commercial intersection in the Little Haiti section of the City of Miami. These changes will provide the necessary land use and zoning designations for the commercial development. CHAD S. FRIEDMAN A PROFESSIONAL LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY MACADAM J. GLINN INCLUDING PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS R. BRIAN JOHNSON JOHN J. KENDRICK III MIAMI-DADE OFFICE HARLENE SILVERN KENNEDY KAREN LIEBERMAN* 2525 PONCE DE LEON BOULEVARD JOHANNA M. LUNDGREN SUITE 700 KATHRYN M. MEHAFFEY HARRIS S. NIZEL CORAL GABLES, FLORIDA 33134 ALEXANDER L. PALENZUELA-MAURI* MATTHEW PEARL DIANE P. PEREZ TELEPHONE 305-854-0800 JOHN J. QUICK FACSIMILE 305-854-2323 ANTHONY L. RECIO WWW.WSH-LAW.COM SCOTT A. ROBINDANIEL A. SEIGEL GAIL D. SEROTA* BROWARD OFFICE JONATHAN C. SHAMRES 200 EAST BROWARD BOULEVARD • SUITE 1900 ESTRELLITA S. SIBILA FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA 33301 ANTHONY C. SOROKA TELEPHONE 954-763-4242 • FACSIMILE 954-764-7770 EDUARDO M. SOTO MICHAEL L. STINES NANCY STUPARICH" "OF COUNSEL BLANCA M. VALLE GLORIA M. VELAZOUEZ-MEITIN CHRISTOPHER J. VOLK LAURA K. WENDELL* JAMES E. WHITE October 7, 2008 City of Miami 444 S.W. 2" d Avenue, 7th Floor Miami, Florida 33130-1910 Re: Public Hearing Applications Dear Ms. Fernandez: Our firm represents Niclas and Lisanne Pierre and Napoleon Real Estate Group, LLC who are the owners (the "Owners") of the properties located on NE 2" d Avenue between NE 70 and 71 Streets (the "Property") which is the subject of the Lisanne Subdivision plat (the "Plat"). In conjunction to the Plat, the Owners are proposing and land use and zoning change for certain lots and the closure of the alley running parallel to NE 2" d Avenue. The land use, zoning change and closure of the alley will allow for a unified development site for a proposed commercial project with ground floor retail uses. The Owners are proposing a change to the Miami Comprehensive Neighborhood Plan from Duplex and Medium Density Residential to Restricted Commercial and a zoning change from R-2 and R-3 to C-1 Restricted Commercial with SD -29 Historic Lemon City/Little Haiti Village Special Overlay District for certain lots as further described in the enclosed documents. The land use and zoning changes are logical extensions of the abutting district boundary lines and will provide a commercial opportunity at a major commercial intersection in the Little Haiti section of the City of Miami. These changes will provide the necessary land use and zoning designations for the commercial development. Ms. Teresita Fernandez October 7, 2008 Page 2 The Property is located within a census tract qualified under the New Markets Tax Credit Program as a "distressed" qualified census tract due to the poor economic conditions of the area. The New Market Tax Credit program was developed by the US Congress in 2000 in order to encourage investment in low-income and distressed communities and promote economic improvements. This "distressed" qualification is reserved for only the most economically challenged areas of the nation. This particular census tract is economically depressed having a poverty rate of 49.3%, a median family income ratio of 36.6% of the national average, and an unemployment rate of 23.1% where the national average is 5.8%. In addition to being recognized nationally as an area of critical concern, the City of Miami has also identified the Property as being located within a Neighborhood Development Zone, within the boundaries of an Enterprise Zone and within the FEC Corridor Initiatives Area. The identifying characteristics of this area make this an ideal location for a commercial project that will create economic development opportunities, new jobs, an increased tax base, and a catalyst for future development in a currently depressed area. The general public no longer uses the alley, including public service vehicles such as trash and garbage trucks, police, fire and other emergency vehicle. The alley is not improved or paved. The Owners own both sides of the alley, and accordingly, there are no other users. The proposed Plat provides ample access to the proposed development for fire, police, emergency vehicles, and trash collection which will occur internally. The Property is bordered on three sides by public rights of way: NE 71 Street to the north, NE 2" d Avenue to the east and NE 70 Street to the south. The vacation and closure of the alley will have a favorable effect on pedestrian and vehicular circulation in that the proposed development is pedestrian oriented and will provide ground level retail opportunities along the NE 2"d Avenue corridor. Additionally, eliminating the alley will decrease the likelihood of illegal trash dumping and crime in the alley and its vicinity while facilitating replacing the alley with a development that can make a positive contribution to the area and its residents. In order to maintain an on going commitment to the socio-economic development of the area and meet the needs of the area residents, the Owner is working closely with Ms. Lisa Mazique and Mr. Marcus James of the Department of Economic Development. The Owner is proposing a state of the art community room that will be available for meetings of community, civic and non-profit organizations. This community room will also be used to provide community services on an as -needed basis such as credit counseling, tax preparation and job skills training by such organizations and interested parties. The Plat and Street Committee has reviewed the tentative Plat and has determined that all technical requirements contained in the Miami City Code Subdivision Regulation have been met and has approved the tentative plat. The members of the Plat and Street Committee have further considered the request for vacation and closure of the alley with respect to Miami City Code requirements and have voted unanimously in favor of the proposed vacation and closure request. WEISS SEROTA HELFMAN PASTORIZA COLE & BONISKE, P.L. Ms. Teresita Fernandez October 7, 2008 Page 3 For the reasons stated herein, we believe that the land use, zoning change and alley closure are justified and provides a public and socio-economic benefit to the surrounding community. Thank you for your consideration of this matter. Please call me if you have any questions or require additional information. ESS/ms 1518001 cc: Mr. Niclas Pierre LTA EstAllita Sibila WEISS SEBOTA HELFMAN PASTORIZA COLE & BONISKE, P.L.