Fight over West Dade development heats up
Two South Miami-Dade County residents and a pair of environmental groups joined state regulators Friday in an attempt to halt expansion outside the county's Urban Development Boundary line.
Last month the Florida Department of Community Affairs found county commissioners violated state land-use regulations in April by voting against the recommendation of its own staff and allowing a Lowe's home improvement center and a commercial complex to be built in deep west Dade.
The commission then overrode a veto by County Mayor Carlos Alvarez.
State regulators and county attorneys will try to reach a settlement. If not, the community affairs agency can fight county lawmakers in court, contending that plenty of land inside the UDB remains for development.
Friday, Michael Hatcher, Barry White, Friends of the Everglades and the Urban Environmental League jumped into the fray, intervening in the legal process and guaranteeing the group a say at the table.
The two planned projects are the Lowe's center at Southwest Eighth Street and 137th Avenue, and a shopping center at Southwest 167th Avenue and Kendall Drive.
-- CHARLES RABIN
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
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