Planning and Zoning Meeting - Regular Meeting

Test one, two.

Test one, two.

Community room, is you guys? Yes, you guys.

Test one, two.

I'll get some stuff. Thanks, Joe. Thank you.

Okay.

Recording in progress

The date is June 17, 2026. Call in the meeting to order. All of you, if you can, please silence all your phones and beepers.

I think that was a beeper.

Good evening. This board is comprised of seven members. Four members of the board shall constitute a quorum, and an affirmative vote of four members shall be necessary for the adoption of any motion. If only four members of the board are present, an applicant may request and be entitled to a continuance to the next regular scheduled meeting of the board. If a matter is continued due to lack of quorum, the chairperson or secretary of the board may set a special meeting to consider such matter. In the event that four votes are not obtained, an applicant, except in the case of a comprehensive plan amendment, may request a continuance or allow the application to proceed to the City Commission without a recommendation. Pursuant to resolution number 2021-118, the city board has established the ability for public to provide comments virtually. For those members of the public who are appearing on Zoom and wish to testify, you must be visible to the court reporter to be sworn in. Otherwise, if you speak without being sworn in, your comments may not have evidentiary value. Lobbyist registration and disclosure. Any person who acts as a lobbyist must register with the city clerk as required pursuant to the city code. As acting chair, I now officially call the city of Coral Gables Planning and Zoning Board meeting of June 17, 2026 to order. The time is 6.02. Jill, please call the roll.

Ignacio Alvarez.

Present.

Robert Behar.

Present.

Alice Bravo. Present. Shane McGlashan.

Present.

Felix Pardo. Here. Gonzalo Sanabria. Here. Alex Bucelo.

Here. Notice regarding ex parte communication. Please be advised that this board is a quasi-judicial board, which requires board members to disclose all ex parte communication and site visits. An ex parte communication is defined as any contact, communication, conversation, correspondence, memorandum, or other written or verbal communication that takes place outside a public hearing between a member of the public and a member of the Quasi-Judicial Board regarding matters to be heard by the board. If anyone made any contact with the board member regarding any issue before the board, the board member must state on the record the existence of the ex parte communication and the party who originated the communication. Also, if a board member conducted a site visit specifically related to the case before the board, the board member must also disclose such visit. In either case, the board member must state on the record whether the ex parte communication and or site visit will affect the board member's ability to impartially consider the evidence to be presented regarding this matter. The board member should also state that his or her decision will be based on substantial competent evidence and testimony presented on the record today. Does any member of the board have such communication and or site visit to disclose at this time?

No. I went to the site yesterday. I just went myself. I stepped down and inspected the neighborhood.

Thank you. Swearing in. Everyone who speaks this evening must complete the roster on the podium. We ask that you print clearly so that the official records of your name and address will be correct. Now, with the exception of attorneys, all persons physically in the city commission chamber who will speak on the agenda items before us this evening, please rise to be sworn in. Zoom platform participants, I'll ask any person wishing to speak on tonight's agenda items to please open your chat and send a direct message to Jill Menendez stating you would like to speak before the board and include your full name. Jill will call you when it's your turn, and I ask you to be concise for the interest of time. Phone platform participants, after Zoom platform participants are done, I'll ask phone participants to comment on tonight's agenda item. I also ask you to be concise for the interest of time. Can I have approval of last month's meeting?

Motion to approve.

Second.

All in favor?

Aye. Aye. Aye.

Procedure we'll use tonight. Identification of agenda item by Mrs. Suarez. Presentation by applicant or agent. Presentation by staff. Then I'll open it to public comment, first in chamber, then in Zoom, followed by phone. I'll close public comment. We'll have board discussion. Then we'll entertain a motion discussion and second of the motion, and then board's final comments, and finally vote. Mrs. City Attorney, can you please read the first item?

Yes, so we have four items on today's agenda that we will consolidate for purposes of the public hearing. My apologies, dealing with some technical issues here. So we have four items on today's agenda. E1, and I'll read them all together so that we can consolidate them for purposes of the public hearing and discussion. E1 is an ordinance of the City Commission of Coral Gables, Florida, amending the future land use map and mixed use overlay district map of the City of Coral Gables Comprehensive Plan. Pursuant to Zoning Code Article 14, Process Section 14-213 Comprehensive Plan, text and map amendments, and small-scale amendment procedures from religious institutional to commercial mid-rise intensity and to include within the boundaries of the North Ponce Mixed-Use District Overlay Block 21 Revised Plat at Coral Gables-Douglas Section, Coral Gables, Florida, providing for repealer provision, severability clause, and effective date. E2 is an ordinance of the City Commission of Coral Gables making zoning district boundary changes pursuant to zoning code article 14 process section 14-212 zoning code text and map amendments 1 from special use to mixed use 2 and 2 to include within the boundaries of the North Ponce mixed use overlay district mixed use district overlay. Block 21 revised plat at Coral Gables Douglas section 110 Phoenicia Coral Gables Florida providing for repeated provision severability clause and an effective date. E3 is a north of the City Commission of Coral Gables, Florida, granting approval of a planned area development pursuant to zoning code article 14, process section 14-206, general procedures for planned area development for a mixed-use project referred to as Crystal Residences, including a private school and property legally described as block 21, revised plat at Coral Gables, Douglas section 110, Phoenicia, Coral Gables, Florida, superseding ordinance number 1909 and ordinance number 2962, including required conditions, providing for repeated provision, severability clause, and providing for an effective date. E4 is a resolution of the City Commission of Coral Gables, Florida, requesting mixed-use site plan review and an encroachment agreement pursuant to Article 14, process section 14-203, conditional uses. for a proposed mixed-use project referred to as Crystal Residences, including a private school and live-work units on property legally described as Block 21, revised plot at Coral Gables-Douglas section, 110 Phoenicia Avenue, Coral Gables, Florida, superseding Ordinance Number 1909 and Ordinance Number 2962 to permit the current accessory school as a principal use, including required conditions, providing for repeated provision, severability clause, and providing for an effective date.

Presentation by staff. Or are we gonna hear more the applicant or I'm sorry up correct Mr..

Chair board members good evening George of our with offices at 333 South the 2nd Avenue we have a PowerPoint presentation if We could have it placed on the screen A way of intro, joining me this evening, we have Mary Palacio from Crystal Academy, Serena Sorrentino, and Tony Talbert, who are the project principals. Our lead project designer, Albert Cordavez, is here, as well as our planning consultant, Bob Chisholm. We're excited to be here this evening to present what is truly a unique and important mixed-use project, a project that has been five years in the making. It's a mixed-use project that includes residential, live, work, and open spaces, but it's not your traditional mixed-use project. This project is anchored by a new permanent home for Crystal Academy. I'll discuss this project in greater detail shortly, but I think it'd be helpful to provide a little bit of background of how we got here today. Here we go. So this process began in 2021. That's when we first started working with Crystal Academy. It has undergone an extensive historical, architectural, and public review process. As illustrated in this timeline, This project was carefully evaluated and it's been refined through a historical review and architectural review process that went on for many years. And after years of hard work, we're here before you this evening to request the zoning approvals that are needed in order to make this project a reality. The request before you, as was mentioned by your city attorney, is a change of land use from religious institutional to commercial mid-rise intensity and to add the property within the boundaries of the North Ponce Mixed Use District. It includes a rezoning from special use to mixed use two, a planned area development, and a conditional use for our proposed site plan. For many years, this property was owned by a church and it was leased to Crystal Academy. For those of you that may not be familiar with Crystal Academy, it's a non-profit school here in Coral Gables that has served more than 600 families for more than 16 years. It is actually the only school in Coral Gables that provides specialized therapeutic treatment and education for kids with significant development and learning disabilities. When the church decided to sell the property in 2021, Crystal Academy faced the real possibility that it would lose its home and its ability to serve the families and the children that depend on it. My client made a commitment at that time to preserve the school on site and to invest in its future by dedicating a 5,000 square foot space within its project and to provide a 4,000 square foot outdoor recreational area for these children. This is being built by the applicant, fully funded by the owner, and leased back to Crystal Academy for 99 years rent free. This commitment is especially important given the growing need for these services, and the lack of available institutions that provide it. While Coral Gables is home to many outstanding educational institutions, Crystal Academy is the only one that provides this specialized care. This project will provide Crystal Academy with a permanent home where it can continue its missions for generations to come. And before we get into the specifics of this project, I'd like to invite Mary Palacio up so she can tell you a little bit more about this important organization and what this project means to them. Thank you.

Good evening and thank you for your time here today. My name is Mari Palacio, as George said, and I've been a resident of Cora Gables for more than 25 years. Over the years, I've always been standing in this room and city hall because I have served in several boards advocating for inclusion and opportunities for residents with disabilities and students with disabilities. But tonight I'm talking from a mother perspective and a founder of a school for children with special needs. Twenty years ago, one of my sons was diagnosed with severe autism. And I was trying to look for a place here where I lived that I could find the services for my son. And I couldn't find that. And I had to travel. That's how Crystal Academy was founded 17 years ago because we had a need in this city for the families that live here, for the families that live nearby to find a center and a school that would serve their children. Today, Crystal Academy serves the most vulnerable children in the autism spectrum. Most of our children are nonverbal. They had feeding tubes. they use wheelchairs and they have extreme behavioral challenges that require a one-to-one intervention. They do get better, but they start that way. I'm grateful to be here again today. This is the first time that this project comes to this board because having a rent-free and a new building is just transformational for generations to come. Our building is aging, and I don't know if you've been there, but it's just the amount of money that we spend, instead of spending it in community-based instructions, in tools, in specialized staffing, it's what just... It's a burden. And the fact that five fuel companies has honored the agreement that Century Builders did five years ago we are very grateful for them having to do that. So here I am humbling, just asking to see if you can move this project forward so we can continue providing these children and these families with the services that they need, that they can learn, they grow in a place that they call home because this is where they live. Thank you so much.

Having discussed the community mission that started this project, I'd like now to turn into the planning context and the design considerations that we took into consideration when we first started designing this project. I think it's important to understand the context of this area and where this project is. At a high level, the project has 184 residential units, 16 ground floor live work units, a new educational facility for Crystal Academy, and it also includes a 5,000 square foot publicly accessible courtyard, and a 4,000 square foot outdoor recreational playground that will be used by Crystal Academy during school hours and open to the public in the afternoons and on weekends, which is, you know, being a father, that's usually when you take your kids to these types of spaces. So in terms of location, the property is located right on East Ponce Boulevard, which is the main arterial roadway that connects Ponce into Douglas Entrance and Southwest 8th Street. The property serves really as a transitional area in the North Ponce area. And to take a step back as to what the intent of the North Ponce area was when it was created, it was a undertaking that took many years to come across. Many workshops and community meetings were done, planning exercises. It was adopted at that time to try to promote the revitalization of this area of the city by encouraging new housing, for young families and young professionals, create a walkable environment. Cities saw this area as an area that was ripe for growth because of its proximity of transit, its proximity to commercial uses, and nearby employment centers. And the idea was really to create a walkable community. Bring in residential so it could be walkable to commercial. Bring in residential so it could be walkable to education. Bring in commercial so it could be residential so it could be walkable to all the different office uses in the area. And that's really what this project accomplishes. And we believe it's very consistent with the intent of the North Ponce area. And as you can see in this map, this property is directly adjacent to one of the overlays in your North Ponce area, which is the North Ponce Mixed Use District, which is highlighted in blue in this exhibit. And directly to the west and to the south, you see that under the existing North Ponce framework that exists today, to the south and to the west, you could have 190-foot building with 125 dwelling units per acre. To the east of this property is what we call the Neighborhood Conservation District. And this area, this overlay was created really to encourage existing garden-style apartments to have additional development incentives to preserve them, but it also simultaneously increased the development capabilities in this area by increasing the density and the building height to 100 feet and 100 units per acre. So this property essentially serves as a transition in this area between the high-intensity commercial and mixed-use corridor to the west and the mid-rise multifamily residential corridor to the east. Our request for MX2 and mid-rise commercial is intended to create an appropriate transition between these two areas, between these two overlays. while still maintaining the mid-rise character of the area and not exceeding the allowable height that you have there today, which is 100 feet in height, but also having a zoning that allows us to maintain and enhance this existing school that's on site. From a use perspective, the project's fully compatible with the area. It preserves the existing educational uses, and it integrates them and introduces residential uses, which are already permitted within the broader overlay today. From a high perspective, and this gives you a context of the area, you can see the project there in the middle, but here's a better area. From a high perspective, the way we designed this building was to try to respond to the location. This was as a result of a lot of feedback and conversations with area residents over the last three, four years, we incorporated a tier massing approach that Albert will explain that scales down the height of the building from nine stories and approximately 93 feet on the western edge of the property that abuts the existing North Ponce mixed-use district and transitions as it goes west into the mid-rise multifamily area to eight stories, 83 feet, which is well below the 100 feet that's allowed today. Equally important, if you can see from this aerial compatibility image, is that the project's height and massing are very consistent with both existing and recently approved projects in the immediately surrounding area. The architecture and design of this project, including its proportions, scale, and massing, was heavily reviewed by multiple different levels and boards. It was approved by the Board of Architects. IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY UPHELD BY THE SPECIAL MASTER BOARD, AND IT WAS ALSO UPHELD BY THE CITY COMMISSION BOARD. SO THIS IS A PROJECT WHOSE ARCHITECTURE HAS GONE THROUGH A VERY STRANEOUS AND VERY DETAILED REVIEW PROCESS. WITH THAT CONTEXT, I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE ALBERT CORDOVAS SO HE COULD WALK YOU THROUGH THE PROJECT IN GREATER DETAIL.

Thank you, George. Mr. Chair, good evening. Board members, Albert Cordovas with Coralwood Architects at 4210 Laguna Street, Coral Gables, Florida. First and foremost, I want to thank you for your time this evening in reviewing our application. We are extremely happy to finally be here before this board. This is a project that we've been working for quite some time with city staff, our clients, the ex-clients, but more importantly with the Board of Architects, which we had numerous meetings with and a true collaboration to what I think culminated with an incredible project, a beautiful project for the city and for this community. And since the onset of design, since the onset of design, I think we found ourselves with an amazing opportunity to, create something beautiful in a small city block in a beautiful area of this incredible city. And of course, one of our main goals was to take that existing pedestrian realm to truly another level. And in doing this, I think one of the main design goals was to start with the ground floor active spaces within the project. And in doing this, we actually, as you can see in our ground floor plan, We anchor the main, what we think and believe is the main visual corner of the project of East Pond and Antigua with our main entrance to the project. We also have within the 200 units, 16 live work units that are anchoring a very active use and space at ground floor. And again, the goal was to maximize the true active spaces throughout the realm. We also have the 5,000 square feet school, special needs school, as Maddie mentioned, one of our pride and joys of this project. And again, anchoring with another beautiful green space on the northeast corner of the project. we felt it was important that not only anchoring the realm with the active use spaces, but also providing additional landscape areas, which we have given this project throughout basically all the frontages, additional spaces from that of the minimum required setbacks. And it was not enough to do that. We also wanted to bring that green and quality of life spaces to the interior of the project. We created a, More than 5,000 square feet courtyard, which is going to be part of the green elements and the open space of the project. We also flanked it by a pass-through paseo from north to south to just expand on that connectivity for the entire project. As we said before, we have 200 units. One of the things that we are very proud also is that our 301 parking spaces, as you can see, are essentially fully liner from the visuals from the street levels itself. Most of the floors are typical, creating that openness in the courtyard. Articulation throughout each floor varies a little bit to create the elevations that we have presented. And then we culminate at the top floor with the eighth level being lower. That's one of the ways that George mentioned before that we essentially provided a an 8 level to 9th level transition from East to West as you can see here this floor houses are poor or many area and the additional units that we have us the penthouse units. These are some of the elevation designs, but I want to, before we leave you, I want to leave you with some of the renderings of a project that are part of your package. Again, everything designed with meeting the Coral Gables Mediterranean Standards approved by the Board of Architects with many of the features that we find in the true Mediterranean Coral Gables design. This is a view of the courtyard that I was mentioning before, bringing in that quality of life again to the inside of the project. Another view from above. All in all, we're again extremely happy to be here, open for any questions and answers you might have. But this is one that we worked long and hard again with the board of architects, with city staff, with our client. to, again, as I said before in the beginning, truly feel that it's an amazing project for the city and for the community itself. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Albert. So as Albert mentioned, the PAD request, which is one of the requests before you this evening, is what makes many of the project's most significant design and community benefits possible. This includes the integration of Crystal Academy into the project, the use of active liners to fully line the entire parking garage. expanded open space amenities that would otherwise not be allowed under the existing regulations. For example, just to give you an idea, we're providing three times the amount of open space that's required by the North Pond's overlay regulations and 55% more than what your traditional PAD regulations require. So we are exceeding the open space standards on all counts. And as Albert mentioned, the reduced building height and envelope with tiered building heights well below the allowable 100-foot height limits that are currently in place for the North Ponds Conservation District. I'd like to take credit for many of these design features, but they actually came as a result of a lot of conversations and meetings with area residents and city staff over the last several years. The proposal before you reflects that feedback that you're seeing this evening. Some of the changes that we've made was obviously reducing the building heights. We reduced the project's overall FAR by more than 10,000 square feet. We incorporated a dedicated pickup and drop-off area within the paseo, as was requested by some of the residents across the street in order to minimize impacts. on adjacent streets, and we made a commitment not to include any ground floor retail on the ground level. They're fully lined, fully activated with live work units, and that was really to help with the transitional nature of the project. I'm happy to say that as a result of these changes, we've been able to obtain more than 500 petitions from area residents. These aren't residents in the other part of town. These are residents within eight blocks of this project. And I have a map here. Hopefully, they'll pop up. But we have met with many residents in this area over many years. And we've spoken to a lot of them. And their feedback, maybe not all their feedback, but a lot of their feedback has gone into this project here. I'll give you a That's our project identified in red with all of the petitions in favor of this project and its mission highlighted in green. Your planning staff has also done a very detailed review of this application. They've prepared a very detailed staff report that's part of your record outlining how this project complies with each and every criteria in your code for approval and is recommending approval subject to certain conditions which we are in agreement with. We agree with the staff report. We believe this project contributes positively to North Ponce area and achieves a lot of the goals and initiatives that were thought of when this overlay was first created by delivering new housing opportunities, open spaces, and most importantly a meaningful community benefit to the preservation of crystal Academy for the next 99 years and we ask for your support here this evening in accordance with the staff recommendation, Mister chair, thank you for your time I would simply like to request 5 minutes of rebuttal at the conclusion of the public comment.

Thank you. Presentation by staff.

Good evening, Jennifer Garcia, Planning and Zoning Director. Thank you. So we are here for four requests, a small scale map amendment to the future land use map comprehensive plan, the zoning code map amendment, plan area development or PAD designation, and then conditional use. So as you know, this is the entire block 21 of the Douglas section in between East Ponce and Galliano and south of Venetia and Antia to the south side. This is an aerial. As you can see, it is St. James Church right now, the structure. It's home to Crystal Academy. I believe a church is renting there currently right now as well. As far as landmarks, it is south of the Women's Club and to the east of Chateau Bleu. To the east side of the subject site is a multifamily building, so different scale. This is a view looking south from the applicants in the middle. You can see the proposed building there in the middle, the light colored. The proposed, sorry, the approved project that's just north is in the foreground. You can see the Douglas entrance to the right side and Ponce de Leon on the right side and Douglas entrance on the left side. So the school was approved as a change of zoning back in 1967 as an accessory school to the church at the time. That was amended then later in 1971 to allow that kindergarten to expand, I believe, to third grade. And then again in 1991 to allow it to fifth grade, again, still as an accessory to the school, as a land use, again, as religious institution . So the request, again, is comprehensive plan, feature land use map amendment, zoning code map amendments, planned area development of the nation, and then a conditional use. The conditional use has four parts to it. It is the mixed-use site plan approval, because that is exceeding the required threshold for a public hearing for the site plan approval. The private school is a conditional use as well. Live work units on the ground floor is conditional use as well as an encroachment on the Galliano side where the entrance to the school is. So currently the land use is religion institutional as you can see there. And what's proposed is a commercial mid-rise intensity. To the north you can see the women's club. To the south and to the east you can see multifamily medium density. And then directly west is the commercial high rise that's bordering, framing along Ponce de Leon. So looking at the context, existing buildings are shown in white. And the subject site is the middle green block. So as you can see that there are a mix of different scales of buildings. Most of the larger buildings are on and there are a few that are within a block at the allowed height of 97 feet directly south. and to the east. But looking to the future land use map of what's allowed for the height with existing zoning and land use, the height for those multifamily buildings is 97 feet or 100 feet as Mr. Navarro alluded to for the residential inforegulations or the RIR overlay. What's shown here actually is the six stories of the 97 feet of the MF2 without the RIR overlay. So you can see the red that's along Ponce Leon to the left of the slide. And again, so those brown buildings are the existing land use and zoning allowed to have. So if they're proposed, they're proposing to change that land use of that site from institutional land use to be mid-rise, commercial mid-rise. As you can see, also, there are some buildings, such as 911 Ponce building, sorry, 911 East Ponce is the address, the condo building, it is exceeding the allowed height. You can see that at the top of the slide here. So the zoning code map amendment is including the change of zoning from special use to MX2 and also moving the line between the mixed use overlay district and the conservation overlay district. So the Conservation Overlay District, or its formal name is North Ponce Neighborhood Conservation District Overlay, is really geared towards the preservation and conservation of these older apartment buildings that are in the North Ponce area. So it includes additional uses that are allowed only in this area for MF2 properties, and additional conditional uses for these designated historic properties. There is a historic preservation benefits program when it comes to parking, TDR ascending sites, and signage. And there's a garden apartment conservation benefits program as well that allows for a variance request and also some flexibility with parking if you add on to an existing structure that's built before 1964. That's the criteria to be considered a garden apartment in this area. And then for any new construction, there's landscape requirements for the front yard. So there's no walls or fences permitted. There's limitations on the driveway widths, as well as a parking setback to have a huddle space facing the sidewalk for those front yards. Again, there's no other limitations in the conservation overlay for new construction that limits height, that limits FAR or density or setbacks. All that still applies with MF2 underlying zoning. The third request is a planned area development, or the PAD as a nation. So their main benefit for this project is the Crystal Academy, and I'll get to that in just a second. There is a publicly accessible park that's going to be in the northeast corner. accessible after hours after the school is out. Crosswalks, internal drop-off and pick-up to make sure that all that activity of the school is happening inside the building and not along the streets. Internalized circulation such as that pedestrian paseo, the courtyard, and some public plaza on the southwest side. So, as you know, the pad allows for code deviations or deviations from the requirements of the zoning code in response to public benefit. So there are two identified code deviations that they have. They are proposing to have nine stories on East Ponce when eight stories is allowed. That's only along the East Ponce de Leon Boulevard side. And as he said, it scales down to eight stories along the east side of the project. And their code deviation is the ground floor transparency. They're only providing 27% along the north side, which is Venetia. So in response to that, they are offering 5,000 square feet of space on the ground floor for Crystal Academy or a future nonprofit, such as Crystal Academy, which seems to exist. The school would be able to be built there by the applicants at no cost to the school and then there for rent-free for 99 years. The 4,000 square foot park on the corner, that northeast corner of the property, would be for daytime outdoor learning space for the school, and then public use through a public easement after school hours, as well as a public easement for the pedestrian paseo and the courtyard on the property. And the last request is the conditional use. This is the site plan. Again, the park, the school on the east side of the property, vehicular entrance off the south as to not impact the neighbors to the south of Antigua. If you'd be entering into the driveway on that side, the public plaza on the southwest corner, live works along the ground floor, 84 units above the courtyard again, and the exit of vehicular traffic would be on the north side to not impact the neighborhood. So the site is 1.49 acres. The FAR proposed would be 3.5, or 26,000 square feet. The maximum building height allowed per the MX2 zoning would be 97 feet. They are at 93 feet, so just below the allowed height. Again, eight stores allowed per code. They're proposing to have nine stories on East Ponce Leon through the pad. They're allowed to have 186 units per acre. Sorry, 186 units total. Proposing to have 184 just below the allowed density. Again, 16 units on the ground floor. 5,000 square feet of the project will be the school. And then total parking they're providing is 301 parking spaces. and a total of 20,000 square feet of open space. This is another rendering looking on the east elevation. This was reviewed by staff at the DRC, the Development Review Committee, back in January of 2022. Board of Architects reviewed it in 2022 and 2023, and then they came back for a neighborhood meeting earlier this year. Here we are for Planning and Zoning Board. This would have to be reviewed by the City Commission for two hearings for those ordinances. Letters were sent out to property owners within 1,500 feet, and I'm happy to see that it worked. We have plenty of people here. So I'm happy that people got their notice, and they're here to express their concerns or comments. So that was sent out for neighborhood meeting earlier this year, as well as for this meeting tonight. Property was posted eight times, and the website was posted eight times, and the newsletter advertisement was once for this meeting for tonight. So staff has determined it is consistent with the comp plan as it is providing housing in an area that has been identified as an area for increased housing as well as progressing our mobility goals and policies of our comp plan. Recommend approval with conditions. Those conditions are listed at the end of your staff report. But here is the highlight. Maximum height of nine stories, or 93 feet. 5,000 square feet of space for Crystal Academy. A cap of 75 students, which is consistent with the existing ordinance that allows the school to be an accessory use right now. The removal of the arcade along the frontage of the south frontage and the west frontage. Provide for front yards be more consistent with the conservation overlay district and replace those arcades with stoops or porches Incorporation of a landscape setback on the north side on Phoenicia And then a public easement required for courtyard and a covered walkway in the park after hours And then of course the off-site improvements of intersection improvements pedestrian crosswalks and the streetscape That's it. Thank you Thank you

I guess we'll open it to public comment. And before we do, I just ask that everyone who's speaking here today, if they could be concise. It seems like we have a lot of speakers both here and on Zoom. So if we can keep it to three minutes, if we have to go over, that's fine. But let's just try to keep it to the three minute mark. With that said, Joe, if you can call the first speaker.

Carol Smith.

Good evening. My name is Carol Smith. I live at 824 Galliano Street. It's two blocks away from the Crystal Academy, and I've lived there for over 20 years.

Mr. Chair, can we ask the speaker to speak into the microphone, please? Okay.

So, before I, oh, my goodness. Before I begin, I would like to say that I'm a retired teacher, and have worked in both private and public schools. And my grandson went to Crystal Academy for classes. And at the same time, I'm very concerned about losing the green space in our neighborhood. And because of my experience working in schools, I have an idea of how they change over time, how boards change, enrollment changes, funding changes, and all kinds of reasons that are unanticipated that even though a school plans to be there for generations, they may need a larger space or a different space. And in generations to come, I wonder what will happen with the 99-year lease. So with that in mind, I'd like to read this. If the educational component is being cited as a public benefit supporting this rezoning, what ensures that benefit remains if the school relocates, ceases operations, or is no longer in that space? How does the board evaluate the durability of a public benefit used to support a permanent land use decision? Is that benefit intended to be permanent and enforceable or contingent on circumstances that may change over time? Once the zoning change is granted, what remains if the public benefit no longer exists? Thank you.

Thank you. Jill.

Carmen Diaz. And following speaker will be Ms. Carbonell.

Good evening. My name is Carmen Diaz Padron, and I've been a resident of Cora Gables for nearly 60 years. I currently serve as president of the Villagers, a historic preservation organization. I respectfully urge you to deny this proposed nine-story development. The project is inconsistent with the property zoning. The site is designated special use religious and permits a maximum height of four stories. A nine-story building is more than double the allowable height. and a major departure from the regulations governing this property. This property is also, this project, I'm sorry, is also incompatible with the surrounding neighborhood. The area is characterized by one to four story buildings with four single family homes directly adjacent to the site. A building of this scale would overwhelm nearby residences and permanently alter the neighborhood's character. This is a historically sensitive area. Six designated historic structures are located on Phoenicia Avenue and three on Antia Avenue. And the neighborhood is currently being considered for historic district designation. Approving a project of this magnitude would undermine preservation efforts and threaten character that makes this area unique. Residents made their views clear during the community vision workshop recommending development limited to two to four stories and even identifying this site as a possible potential park space. This proposal will completely ignores the community's vision. The impacts on infrastructure are equally concerning. Narrow residential streets were never designed to accommodate a nine-story building and an over 300-car garage. Increased traffic, congestion, noise, and safety concerns will directly affect nearby residents. So for all these reasons, it's conflict with zoning, incompatibility with the neighborhood, impact on historical resources, infrastructure concerns, and lack of general public benefit, we respectfully ask you to deny this application. We thank you for your consideration.

Thank you.

CARELIA MARTINEZ- Good afternoon, everyone. Good evening.

My name is Carelia Martinez-Carbonel, and I'm here representing the Historic Preservation Association of Coral Gables. I'm president of the organization. On behalf of the Historic Preservation Association, please accept this as an opposition to the project as presented. The key points are these. There's zoning violation. The block is zoned special use religious with a four story max height. A nine story building clearly exceeds this. It is incompatible with the neighborhood. Surrounding structures are one to four stories tall. Four single family homes are directly adjacent. There's historic sensitivity. Six historically designated structures on Phoenicia, three on Antigua, and the neighborhood is being studied for historic district designation. violates section 1-103. The zoning code requires new development to be compatible with the surrounding architecture and protect residential neighborhoods from incompatible uses. It violates two additional ordinances. the North Ponce Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District, which is Section 2-404, and the Coral Gables Historic City Plan, which is Ordinance 201-13, both call for low-rise development in scale with the neighborhood. It contradicts the community vision workshop. The city's own planning process called for two to four story limits and converting the site into a park space. Infrastructure cannot support it. Narrow residential streets are not equipped for a nine story building with a 300 plus car garage. And the pad is quite misleading because we had heard that the public benefit would be a green space, which really wouldn't be accessible when, would only be accessible when the adjacent school wasn't in session. But this should never be accepted as a qualifying green space. But now we understand that it's Crystal Academy. And with all due respect, my niece is on the spectrum. But that's not a public benefit. It's a private school with tuitions over $41,000, very limited population, and it's not open to the public. So again, I... absolutely respectful of what the school offers, but as a public benefit, it does not fit that definition. And I'm sure other people will have that definition when they come up. So in closing, please understand this area is under a commission-funded study, which is in consideration for historic designation. And the project will directly affect the preservation of the Garden of Our Lord. And if you haven't been in that area, please go and visit because it's a beautiful green space. Second, the project is an encroachment into the North Ponce neighborhood. The developer bought the parcel as institutional religious and seeks a variance to build its mixed-use development. This area is under a commission-funded study consideration for historic designation third the neighborhood is protected under the zoning code section 2-404 North Ponce neighborhood conservation district excuse me it's a long long word there district overlay This code was passed to preserve and enhance the garden apartment character of the North Pond's residential neighborhood properties. George Merrick's historic city plan, and again, if you haven't read it, I encourage you to read it, refers to this area as the Douglas section, and it specifically states on page 17 and page 33 how this neighborhood and this section should be preserved and developed, but it should have its restrictions. And fourth, the proposed project's density will have an adverse impact on the quality of life and wellness of the residents living on the abutting streets and the historic landmarks surrounding the area, specifically the nationally recognized Coral Gables Woman's Club and the Douglas Entrance. And finally, the proposed project will not only raise the Garden of Our Lord, deemed a cultural landscape by two nationally recognized prominent UM School of Architecture professors, but will remove the historic green canopy and heritage trees surrounding the property. If you saw the rendering, there's hardly any trees, and the trees around that area are all 100 plus years old. And then, I'm sorry, I lost my, and heritage trees surrounding the property, they're original to Merrick's Garden City Plan neighborhood. The garden is also a memorial to World War veterans and a burial site. So respectfully, I ask that you deny this proposed project as presented. Thank you.

Thank you.

Through the chair. Yes.

Yeah, if we could limit the clapping after every speaker.

Through the chair. Joe, how many speakers are there? Because we're going to terminate. I got a hard stop at 930. Okay, so the question is how many speakers? Because I want to make sure that everybody has an opportunity to come up.

We have over 25.

I think my suggestion is try to keep it to make sure that everybody has an opportunity to come up. Otherwise, we're not going to be able to sit through this tonight.

Should there be a set time limit for each speaker?

There is a three-minute time cap, but I know some speakers go over by a few.

So what I plan to do is call at least two speakers up, so we kind of keep the speakers moving.

I think it's important that everybody comes up, but I want to make sure that the time is allowed correctly. All right.

Mr. Chairman, I agree with Robert as far as listening to every speaker. And the chair, three minutes times 25, that's about an hour and a half. It's 7 o'clock now, 8.30, hard stop. I just want to make sure, Felix, that everybody... No, I agree 100%. But, I mean, the due process, I really... So far, we've had three speakers, and I've learned something from each one of them. I don't want to stop that. So I want to make sure that that gets into the record. And respecting the hard stop at 9.30 from our board member, I just want to make sure that we get everything on the record and that we look at All the sides, we've already heard almost an hour's worth of presentation from staff and from the applicant. So right now we're into three speakers, and I think it's important that we do this in a very fair process. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you.

The following three speakers will be Bonnie Bolton, Maria Longo, Maria Cruz.

Ms. Bolton, I think she was calling, she was just saying the next three, so you could be ready to come up, but I think you were next, Ms. Bolton.

If you don't mind, I have to leave. So my name is Maria Cristina Longo, and I live at 16 Fenisha Avenue, at the same street where the proposed project is, and I own this house, and this is one of the historic significant houses that they're talking about. I support preserving the school, and I appreciate the effort to retain an educational use on the site. Keeping a school that serves children with autism is a worthwhile objective. However, the issue before you today is not whether the school is worthy. The issue today is whether this application meets the requirements for a planned area development, or PAD. The applicant is requesting a PAD. which provides flexibility from the underlying zoning regulations. In exchange for that flexibility, a pad is intended to provide a significant public benefit to the community. I do not believe the required significant public benefit has been demonstrated. The school serves an important purpose. But the majority of the students and families who attend do not live in the immediate North Ponce neighborhood. I do. I live on the same street. The school provides a valuable regional service, but it is not by itself a significant neighborhood public benefit. proportional to increase in high density, intensity, and development rights being requested. The project's courtyard, like Mr. Navarro showed, or the architect showed, is an interior courtyard. It's inside the building. It is not A public space, it is an open space. There is a difference between public and open. It is not public. An interior courtyard primarily serves the residents of the development, not the surrounding neighborhood. If the board is inclined to approve this part, I respectfully ask that the approval be conditioned upon the creation of a true public benefit. One way to accomplish this would be to redesign the project by flipping the courtyard and opening it to the public. creating a visible, functional, and publicly accessible green space that directly serves the surrounding neighborhood. If the city grants extraordinary development rights through a PAD, the public should receive an equally meaningful benefit in return. I just want to end by telling you this. The project has been in the process for five years. It didn't pass with flying colors. It went through a very rigorous process because it was not well designed. As a matter of fact, the revision of the MedBonus happened and were triggered because of the design of this project and the potential impact. I'm asking you to please look at the facts, improve the project by giving it a real public benefit. Thank you for your time.

Thank you.

Hello, good evening. I wanted to start off by mentioning that there are over 160 unique letters from residents of the North Ponce Garden Apartment District. And I also want to mention that the letters submitted by the developer.

Before you start, if you can give your name and address.

My name is Bonnie Bolton. I live at 42 Phoenicia Avenue, and my apartment overlooks the site. The form letters that the developer presented, a vast majority of them are from Little Havana neighborhood. Okay. The proposed zoning changes for the Garden of Our Lord must be denied. The project violates numerous laws in our zoning code and contradicts the very principles this city was built upon. The site sits in a residential neighborhood. Four single family homes are right next door. The block is currently zoned special use religious with a four story height maximum. And if you look at the surrounding streets, They're primarily one- and two-story buildings and two three-story structures and one four-story building. And it's also very important to remember that this neighborhood is being studied to potentially be designated a historic district. I'm going to cite section 1-103 of the zoning code because it's there to implement George Merrick's original vision for Coral Gables and ensure that new development doesn't steamroll existing residential neighborhoods. New projects must be compatible with surrounding architecture and they must protect residential areas from incompatible uses. And they must preserve the low intensity character that defines these neighborhoods. It also contradicts the North Ponce Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District Ordinance, which the City Commission created specifically to preserve the character of the North Ponce Garden Apartment District. And it contradicts the Historic City Plan. Quote, and this is from the historic city plan, multi-family residences were to be low in height and remain in the same scale as the single family homes. In fact, Some multi-family residences were designed to look like single-family homes from the street, unquote. That's from the historic city plan. It also goes on to state that steps will be taken to, quote, save from destruction of full-grown trees when new buildings are erected all of the full-grown trees and old foliage will be kept intact and utilized in arranging the landscaping of the newer buildings and that Specifically from our historic city plan, which is a landmark landmark ordinance also It contradicts the North Ponce Community Vision Workshop, which identified the garden and the playground as two sites which the city needed to purchase to convert to public park space. And the PAD request. Under the terms of PAD, it says that A project must provide substantial public benefit. What's being offered here is not substantial public benefit. It's a highly specialized small school of 40 students. It only serves a very small segment of the population that has severe autism and is very wealthy. And also they're supposed to be providing 20% landscaped open space, which they're not doing. So I'm urging the board to please reject the zoning changes requested by the developer for different changes. I think it's I'M WAY TOO MUCH THANK YOU SO MUCH.

THANK YOU.

JUST A REMINDER PLEASE KEEP IT TO THREE MINUTES PLEASE THANK YOU.

MS. MARIA CRUZ 1447 MILLER ROAD IN CASE YOU'RE WONDERING I care about the whole city, not just a section of the city, not just a portion of the city. Coral Gables belongs to all of us. And when a section of the city is affected, all of us are affected. Several things have been repeated already, so I've been taking notes. And I think some of the stuff that the developers and Ms. Palacio have said contradict what they're trying to do. For example, she said that this is for residents with disabilities. Well, most of the students are not residents. She also said that there's a need in this city for families that live here. Well, if they don't live here, there are other places too. I've also heard, not tonight, but I've also heard that moving the children from this property will affect them. They're going to have to move for the building. So instead of moving them twice, out of here, someplace else, and back to here, they could just find some property. If the property owners... are so good that they want to help these children, I'm sure that they could provide something that would be just for the school and not use the school as an excuse to be able to build nine stories. We discussed the public accessible park. Obviously, it's not a park accessible to everybody. because it's only partial. Most of the little children that will go to parks do not go in late afternoon. They go in the morning because that's when they're home. The little kids that go to parks do not have to wait till after school hours to go to the park. That's a fallacy right there, okay? I was impressed by the picture that Mr. Navarro showed, beautiful building. but I couldn't see the women's club there. You know, it would have been nice to have, to show the building and the women's club, so we could really get the idea of what we're proposing. It is a real shame that we're considering this a compatible project when it doesn't fit there. The building is beautiful, but there are better places to build it, and there are better places if they really want to help the school, But also, it caught my attention that there is a caveat on the 99-year lease. It says for Crystal Academy or another nonprofit. Another nonprofit doesn't have to be a school. It could be anything that is nonprofit. And there are several nonprofits that are not schools, many of them. Okay, so my last comment is going to be about how If you looked at what they presented, they claimed that there was a neighborhood meeting May 4th. I happened to be there. And it was not a meeting. It was a way for the developers to show us what they were proposing, but we, all the people that were there, we couldn't talk. We could only talk to one-on-one so they could explain what they were showing, but we couldn't hear what the sense of the whole community was. That is not a community meeting. That is a sales pitch. That's like going to a developer and looking at what they're proposing and putting your deposit down. Obviously, we and the people that live there in those guarding apartments do not see the purpose for this. And they are here, most of them. A lot of them are here. And from the other side of Coral Gables, I'm here to tell you this is not what is proposed to be. This is not a public benefit. To the contrary, it doesn't benefit the public that lives there. When you look at the map and you see the big buildings on the other side of Ponce, there's a reason for that. There was a reason for the overlay to protect this site, not the other side. So the big building, their properties on the other side, they could build it on the other side of ponds where the big buildings are and not on this side. Thank you.

Next speaker.

Omar Packard, Maria De Leon, Mariana Fleites.

Good evening. My name is Omar Packard. I live in 911 East Ponce de Leon Boulevard. I am a lifelong Coral Gables resident who has spent more than 40 years living in the North Ponce area. I have to say I am absolutely disgusted by the proposed development at 110 Phoenicia Avenue. The design is nothing more than a giant concrete box with a few cheap token Mediterranean details painted over it. the kind of building that has no business being in our historic low-rise neighborhood. But my disgust goes far beyond aesthetics. What truly concerns me is what approving a project like this does to our city. Laws exist for a reason. They are what differentiate Coral Gables from every other part of Miami. the tree canopy over our streets, the scale of our neighborhoods, the fact that a residential block feels like a residential block. None of that happens by accident. It is a result of decades of planning and ordinances that were put in place to protect the city from exactly what is being proposed here tonight. And yet, here we are, watching those laws be pushed aside for a wealthy developer from out of state who couldn't care less about us or our community. Let's talk about what's being asked of us tonight. This block allows for four stories. This project wants nine, double that amount. The streets around it are lined with one, two, and three story buildings. Four families live in single family homes right next door. There are ordinances that exist specifically to protect this neighborhood from exactly this kind of development, and this project violates every one of them. As for Crystal Academy, before Crystal Academy, there was a school on the same property called Guardian Shepherd, a school I attended. Some of my fondest memories are running around on the field catching grasshoppers. If you look online, there are countless studies showing the positive effects of teaching autistic children around a nature-based environment. I've yet to see one study showing the positive effects of teaching children in a nine-story building. Crystal Academy can exist with or without this development. There is no good reason for them to support a project that ruins our community, except for one. The developer financially incentivized and purchased their support by offering them free rent. In closing, I want to make a plea to this board. Do not destroy our community. For once, show the residents of this city that their voices matter more than a developer's checkbook. Show us that a wealthy developer cannot simply come in from out of state, violate every rule we have, ignore everything this community has asked for, and walk away with an approval because of their money and connections. The people who live on these streets have trusted the city to protect them. Tonight, You have an opportunity to honor that trust. Please do the right thing. Deny this project.

Good evening. My name is Maria De Leon Fleites. I live at 825 Messina Avenue. I'm an architect. I'm also an adjunct at the University of Miami. I don't live directly in this neighborhood, but my daughter does live catty corner. So I am in this neighborhood all the time. I just ask you, you've heard, I sent you a letter with all of the technical reasons why I believed that this was not an appropriate building for this neighborhood. I'm sure you have it. But I'm just here again just asking you to listen to the people who walk their dogs in the morning before work, after work, who walk to Tintin Cafe in this beautiful tree-lined building streets with a lot of pedestrians and this building would just Realistically just destroy the historic character and the scale. It is very incompatible with the existing buildings that are there And miss Palacio. I'm sorry that you've been placed in this whole situation I think she's running a lovely school. It's a lovely mission. And I honestly feel that there are other ways that they can be accommodated on this site that would not destroy the historical character of this block. And I have spoken to the architect and the attorneys about this before at that community meeting. So I really hope that you take all of these comments into consideration, and we ask that you consider rejecting these applications. Thank you.

Thank you. If we can stop with the clapping altogether after every speaker, please. Thank you.

Hello. I need to be sworn in. Sorry.

I swear.

My name is Mariana Fleites. I currently reside at 49 Phoenicia Avenue. I have a big statement, but I have heard a lot of what I'm about to say already, so I will skip for the sake of time. I will say that I am an architect and I currently work at Joanie Plater Zeitburg. We work a lot with codes and urban planning. But specifically, I wanted to talk about the Women's Club. Directly next door, as you all know, is the Coral Gables Women's Club, completed in 1936, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. and one of the last surviving examples of this architectural style in all of Florida. If we decide today that the NPCO overlay is negotiable for 110 Phoenicia, what stops a future developer from making the same arrangement against the Women's Club? A National Register's listing does not protect a property from local rezoning. The precedent set here matters. The Garden of Our Lord is one of only three biblical gardens in the United States. Once it is gone, it cannot be replicated. Once this overlay is compromised, every parcel in this district is more vulnerable. I urge this board to deny the rezoning. The overlays and conservation districts written into the city's code must be enforced or they mean nothing at all. I have grown up in Coral Gables my whole life. I was living in West Miami while I attended the University of Miami, and I specifically moved back recently within the year because of the beautiful canopy and because of the wide setbacks, the wide sidewalks. I love being able to walk my dog in a shaded canopy. And I think that this project directly violates that reason. And I think it will be detrimental to the historic overlay. Thank you for your time.

Thank you. Next speaker.

Alexis Santos, Judith Packard.

Before we go to the next speaker, can we take a three-minute break? This gentleman needs to use the restroom. Sure, I have to use the restroom. Do you have a motion for a three-minute break?

Where is the restroom?

Three-minute break.

Let's do make it a break.

Recording stopped.

Morning. I'd like to welcome all of you to the city commission meeting.

Recording in progress.

We can take our seats.

I can go ahead.

If you could just wait. We're missing two board members. Two minutes.

Hi, how are you guys? My name is Alexis Santos and my address is 1300 Ponce de Leon Boulevard, apartment 308. You may remember me from coming here and reading a letter from my friend. I helped collect approximately 500 signatures in support as well. Well, now I've recently moved here, I fell in love with the neighborhood and couldn't think of a better place to be. And being here to support this project as a neighbor of Crystal Academy is just priceless. So I'm happy to tell you that I am not only collected 500 signatures, now I can sign my own and I have it here and I also have a friend of mine that signed hers today as well. Thank you. Do you want me to turn it into you?

You can turn it into Jill. Okay. Thank you so much.

Judith Parkett.

The following will be Maria Maria.

Through the chair, can we read the letter to the record?

Yeah.

We don't know what it says.

Yeah.

In support again.

If you want to pass it around, Jill, we can.

If you want, we can pass it around in the interest of time.

That would work.

And these were, I believe that these were attached to the, these are part of the record.

Okay, that was new. I'm sorry.

Good evening. My name is Judith Packard. I live at 911 East Ponce de Leon Boulevard. I've lived in the North Ponce neighborhood for over 43 years. I'm here tonight because this project concerns me deeply as a resident and as someone who cares about the future of Coral Gables. I walk down these streets every day. I know the tree canopy that covers them, the quiet of the blocks, the way this neighborhood has maintained its character over the decades. That character exists because this city has rules to protect it, rules that this project violates. Not one person I have spoken to in this area supports this development, not one. This project would change everything about what makes this neighborhood what it is, and the people who actually live here do not want it. I also want to speak to the Crystal Academy argument because as a retired teacher, it is something I feel strongly about. I've spent my career studying how children learn and what environments help them thrive. The research is clear. Children, especially those with special needs, benefit enormously from access to nature, open space, and low-stress environments. A nine-story building is not that. Green fields and open skies are. Crystal Academy students deserve better than that, and so does this neighborhood. In closing, I'm asking this board to uphold the rules that were created to protect this community and to listen to the residents who live here and will be affected by this decision long after tonight's meeting's over. Please vote no.

Thank you.

Maria? Maria Eisenwagon. Following will be Lisette Arango and Vanessa Salas.

Good evening. My name is Maria Eisenwanger. My address is 800 Douglas Road, 608 Coral Gables, 33134. Okay, I'm here to support this project. One second, sorry, because I'm trying to, my English is not good. Okay, I'm here to voice my support for this proposed project. I believe it represents a thoughtful investment in our community, and I will have a positive impact on this neighborhood. New housing opportunities can help and support this continued growth. I am in favor of this project and respectfully encourage its approval. Thank you.

Thank you.

Good afternoon. My name is Vanessa Salas. My address is 1300 Salcido Street, Coral Gables, 33134. I really want to support this project because I think it's a great opportunity to help others, especially with the Crystal Academical School for our kids, and they go to building beautiful apartments here at the Gables. I say yes for a beautiful building and a beautiful community at Gables. Thank you so much.

Thank you.

Jerry Ackerman, Christopher.

Hi, good afternoon. My name is Lisette Arango. I live at 4152. I'm sorry? Oh, sorry. Lisette Arango, 4152 Southwest 13th Street, apartment 3, Coral Gables. Good afternoon, by the way. I've been reading about people saying this project is incompatible with the neighborhood. I don't think a neighborhood is defined by across the street. A neighborhood is the place people call home.

Excuse me, can you speak into the mic, please?

Lower the mic.

The mic.

Yeah, you can lower it.

Oh, okay, thank you. Should I read? I start?

No, no, go ahead. Keep going.

Oh, okay, okay. Okay, a neighborhood is the place people call home. Live, raise children. These things are happening all around here in buildings just like this one. Doesn't mean that people who don't live in a house don't belong in this neighborhood. I live in an apartment and it's my home. I am proud of it. I am proud of my neighborhood. I like to be proud and I would love to live here. Thank you so much for your time.

Thank you.

Cheryl Ackerman, and then you could follow. Thank you.

Good evening, and thank you for your time on this project. I am against the nine-story building since it would be incompatible with the neighborhood.

If you could give your name and address before you continue.

Cheryl Ackerman, 816 Zerola Avenue. It's in North Gables, but I do believe that this project is not going to be consistent with the study for the historical designation, the North Ponce District Ordinance, and the historical city plan. It's located next to the Women's Club, and that will place a burden on the neighborhood. And please vote no. Thank you.

Thank you.

Christopher, please, after Christopher Thomas Mooney and Scott Pearson.

Good evening. My name is Christopher Saez. I live at 10630, excuse me, 10630 Northwest 88th Street in Doral. However, my son does attend the Crystal Academy, and I'm here to speak for him because he cannot My son is one of those students that Ms. Maria Palacio spoke of that is nonverbal. And, excuse me, frankly, I believe that this project is good for the public here. I love this neighborhood as well. Sure, I don't live in the immediate vicinity. However, my son does. And my wife and I come to this neighborhood all the time to drop him off at school and everything. We followed in love with it also. And well, to be frank, hopefully we could move into this development at one day and be able to drop off our son going down the elevator, for example, instead of having to do this long drive and whatnot. Long story short, excuse me. The need exists. It may not be needy for everyone. However, a good 4% of the population does show that appear on the spectrum. So quite frankly, statistically speaking, one of your grandchildren would probably need this school one day. And frankly, it's changed my son in ways that I'd never dreamed of. I thought he would never speak, and hearing him say daddy just last year, again, melted my heart all the way to my soul. Excuse me, sorry, sorry. I've heard arguments about this place being for only the wealthy, and I can guarantee you, is not I am going into that trying to get my son to be able to get the education and therapies that he needs and this was the only place in the entire county that I felt comfortable and well that he is attending and growing in ways again like I never ever imagined that he would be growing I can see him growing into a into a man that is going to be lovely and be able to communicate, which, again, was my ultimate dream for this. And as for the arguments for, again, I apologize. I need to stop. Thank you.

Mr. Mooney.

Good. I normally say good afternoon, but good evening. First off, Thomas Mooney, and my address is 601 Navarre Avenue. I'm a longtime resident of Coral Gables. I've been a resident since 2000, and I live in North Gables. And I'm speaking to you tonight wearing two different hats. The first and probably the most important is I'm a parent of a son who is on the autism spectrum. And just by way of reference, he attended the Crystal Academy from 2010 when it was first opened up until about a month ago. He actually finished the upper school program and he's going to start a new program in the fall. And the Crystal Academy actually has become part of the fabric of that North Gables area. And I've seen the school grow personally, not just in terms of the number of attendees. My son first started attending Crystal for therapy purposes and then began attending the school full time in 2016. But the school has grown in terms of its mission and in terms of its relationship to the city. And this is important because an institution like Bristol that has become part of the fabric over the last 16 years will continue to grow and become a more permanent part of the fabric of the community. But in terms of the experience and the public benefit, my wife and I tried a number of options in the public school for my son through kindergarten and first and second grade. and the public schools just were not able to offer him the type of education that he needed. And so we had to put him in a learning experience where he had one-on-one, otherwise he never would have flourished and blossomed the way that he has. And so from a public benefit standpoint, I can't underscore enough how important Crystal has been over the last 16 years and how they will continue to be that major contributing institution to this community. I also think it's important to point out that while it would be great if Crystal Academy owned the property that it was occupying, they don't. And they simply don't have the financial resources to purchase the property, and they're struggling just to simply keep basic maintenance and basic upkeep. And so it's very, very difficult for specialized schools like this to make it on their own. Lastly, and this is my second hat, professionally, I've been an urban planner for almost 40 years. I've been practicing in the field since 1989. And I can tell you that within this area, The code changes and the land use changes that are being proposed are fully consistent with the built context of the area and the future context of the area. This is a property that is located between two major transit corridors, one on Douglas Road, one on Ponce de Leon Boulevard. It's a very walkable area that's close to a supermarket. It's close to a commercial area. And this has actually benefited the school because all of their students, and my son included, have become very adept at using transit, using the trolley, and be able to have those type of life skills that are associated with an urban environment, which is very, very beneficial. So with that, I fully support the staff's recommendation, and I would encourage you to transmit the proposal to the commission with a favorable recommendation. Thank you.

Mr. Chair, before he goes, Mr. Mone, what is your professional today, what do you do?

Currently, well, for the next two weeks, I'm the planning director for the city of Miami Beach, and I've been the planning director for over 12 years, and I've been with the city of Miami Beach and the city of North Miami Beach collectively since 1989 in the field of urban planning.

Okay.

Thank you very much.

My name is Scott Pearson. I live on 4111 Santa Mara Drive. I moved to the Gables in 1974. And I've seen the past governments of our city preserve our city and the beauty of the city and the quality of life of the residents. But in the last few years, I've seen more and more large buildings going up and traffic getting worse and worse. Great cities have great green spaces. We need more green space, not less. The longer we wait to get more green space, the harder it is to get it because it's all gonna be built up. The city government is supposed to protect its people. It's citizens. It's not supposed to be working for developers. And we need this garden, this beautiful garden, to be preserved and green space expanded. Great cities like Paris and London have height limits and vast areas of their city that they have protected for over 100 years. Why can't a wealthy city like Coral Gables do the same thing? I see no reason why we should bow to the pressures of developers when we have the resources to fund good things like Crystal Academy and increase our green spaces. Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Following Art. After will be Nicolás Cabrera, Zully Pardo.

Good evening. My name is Art Kozyrowicz. I live at 24 Phoenicia Avenue. We own a historic designated home there. I've sent the letter with lots of detail, and a lot has been said here. So I just want to reiterate in summary. So again, we're residents of a historically designated home just about a block, you know, half a block away from the proposed development. And we, you know, really strongly oppose and have been, you know, through all the stages that it has gone through because the way it's currently designed, you know, it really doesn't fit the neighborhood and, you know, again, a lot has been said about that. Again, we are not against development. And we don't oppose thoughtful and contextual development that fits well and brings beautiful architecture. And having the school there is definitely a plus. And it should remain on site. But in order to approve this project, it needs to be significantly redesigned to really match what the neighborhood is. And basically, the project as it is, it violates, as many people already mentioned, many existing zoning and legal protections. It also is not... It's not compatible with the surroundings of the neighborhood. The setbacks are really extreme and unacceptable. The building, the way it was shown, also encroaches on streets around it. And definitely the infrastructure of the neighborhood cannot handle and support the density that's coming. There are more things happening. So, you know, there's a median on ponds that now changes all the traffic flow. There are other developments approved that are coming up. If we add this building and the way that it's scaled and the mass that it's proposed, there's no way it's not going to negatively affect the whole area. you know, also, you know, again, you know, a lot of things were said about PAD and the public benefit. Again, I really think closed, you know, courtyard and is really not a significant public benefit that is required for that type of approval. I think what really would make this project acceptable is, again, if the building height is reduced, consistent with the existing neighborhood and surrounding context, that the setbacks are significantly increased, again, to allow for more pedestrian walks. that the density is reduced, the number of units. And I think we really need to preserve, like the speaker before me said, the green space and the canopy that's there. The project right now does not incorporate any of that in its design. Basically, everything is removed. This massive building goes up, and that's it. Again, I think if it's designed pedestrian friendly, if it protects the trees, the oak trees on East Ponce and Antilla, there are ways to do this project thoughtfully and well. So again, we're opposing the project the way that it stands. But definitely, you could write a lot of conditions to make sure that it meets Zoning and legal protections of the neighborhood. Thank you.

Thank you And David Winker thereafter Yes

Good evening, members of the Planning and Zoning Board. My name is Nicholas Cabrera, and I reside at 45 Antia Avenue, Coral Gables, Florida. For context, my building is located directly across the street from the proposed project on Phoenicia. I have made comments similar to these before, and I'll be reiterating some of those points. I'd like to express my support for this project in all aspects. As a neighbor, I'm witnessing firsthand the value of this project and others like it are bringing to my neighborhood. There are many reasons why this project is compatible in this neighborhood, but most importantly, the following. The northeast quadrant of Coral Gables, this neighborhood, is probably the last most ideal area for development in our city. And here are four reasons why. It has little to no historical significance. I hear you, I hear you. That doesn't mean that there are not historic structures, like the Women's Club. Number two, it is the most accessible area with Southwest A Street, Douglas Road, and Lejeune Road as its perimeter and accessible roadways. Number three, it is also the most transient section of our neighborhood, of our city, with mostly rental apartment buildings and very few single family homes. Number four, this developer has worked hand in hand with the city to ensure their project is smart development, not development for the sake of development. This is more of a reminder to my neighbors and fellow residents. There's an incredible opportunity before us to bring the appropriate type of growth to our city and to create a bright future for the students, families, faculty, and staff at Crystal Academy. Additionally, staff's findings very specifically state that this project results in public benefits, including, and I quote, enhanced open space, improved pedestrian circulation, and the integration of residential and educational uses. This can be found quoted on page 14 of the staff's report. I'd also like to make a couple notes on some of the points of opposition. Somebody stated that we're losing green space. Let's be very clear. The green space is not currently publicly accessible. It's private property that belongs to Crystal Academy through their lease. The green space, however, proposed by the new project is publicly accessible. And if I'm not mistaken, that's 5,000 square feet. Number two. The project is compatible with the surrounding neighborhood. There are other projects currently in development that are similar in size and density. An image was presented by the applicant which shows all other buildings that are much larger than the two to three story apartments already in this neighborhood. If that's not evidence about the compatibility of this project, I don't know what is. I'd also like to make a, perhaps, I can't make a correction on the record, but I'd like bring something up. Ms. Bolton stated that letters in support came from residents of the Little Havana area. This is a very harsh accusation to make, particularly if it is untrue. If it is untrue, it must be appropriately corrected on the public record. With that, I'd like to submit my own signed letter in support at this time, as a resident of Coral Gables that lives directly across the street from this project. Thank you all for your time this evening. We appreciate your service to this community.

Thank you.

Good evening, David Winker, 4720 South Lejeune Road. I have a PowerPoint that I'd like to quickly go through.

Here we go again.

Another developer wanting to build an out of scale project by getting the city to grant its special concessions. Now, an out of town developer is before you asking the city to relieve it from its obligations under our city code. Obligations, it was aware of when it bought the property to build more than twice what they otherwise would be allowed to build. And this is a problem that keeps happening in Coral Gables. This is a problem that residents are consistently expressing concern about because it begs the question, What are we getting in return for these concessions to these developers to build projects that have significant impacts on our neighborhood? I'm going to go through the city code, and I think I can show you that legally they do not meet the requirements to allow them to do this. Neighborhood context matters the property sits within an established residential neighborhood or single family homes directly, but this project. Remember the comprehensive plan has this currently zoned as special use religious. That's what people rely on when they look at the future of the city. The current height is limited to four stories, and the surrounding development, as you saw on the maps, is predominantly one- and two-story structures. I'm not going to belabor this. We've gone through this, specifically put on the record the historic resources that are at risk. I want to get into the code provisions. Section 1.103 of the zoning code states that the purpose is to implement the comprehensive plan. protect Coral Gables' historic and architectural character, preserve George Merrick's vision, protect residential neighborhoods from incompatible use, and requires compatibility with the surrounding architecture and development. This project clearly, on its face, conflicts with the requirements of Section 103. 200,000 square feet of development, 184 units, 93 foot out of scale height. It also conflicts with the North Ponce conservation overlay. The overlay district was adopted to preserve the neighborhood character, to preserve the garden apartment fabric. This is not what's happening. It's being ignored. And there's no reason, there's no justification for not complying with the overlay. It conflicts with the Coral Gables Historic City Plan. Calls for the preservation of neighborhood character. Supports maintaining low-scale development patterns. Nine stories is consistent with the objectives of the Historic City Plan. It conflicts with the North Ponce Community Vision. The Vision Workshop recommended preserving the garden apartment character, recommended maintaining two to four stories, encouraged preservation of scale, supported exploration of public park and open space opportunities. We're going to get into that, how this doesn't do that. Comprehensive planning consistencies. Remember, this was bought as religious institutional site. You're hearing a lot of talk about, oh, Crystal Academy. Crystal Academy does great things in our community. No one's against Crystal Academy. That's what this is zoned for. They should be able to continue to do that. The developer is the one that's undermining their mission and putting what they're doing at risk. The compatibility analysis is clear. It's not compatible. Traffic and concurrency problems. I think this is one of the biggest areas. The traffic study does not take into account the recent changes Coming now, you see the changes on ponds, you see the development, none of that's been accounted for in what they've been done. They should be sent back to the drawing board to bring that report and get that done properly. Infrastructure concerns. These neighborhood streets simply cannot, cannot deal with the traffic that is gonna come off of this parking garage. The most important, and I think the reason that makes it clear that you should recommend denial is the failure to meet with our code concerning PAD public benefits. The PAD process is intended to reward exceptional public benefits. Applicant is seeking flexibility beyond ordinary zoning standards in exchange for public benefits. What exactly does the code say? 3-section 501 says, A PAD can allow additional development rights only when the project provides, quote, substantial additional public benefit. It's been a little bit of a moving target for us. At first it was, oh, we're giving some green space in this interior space with limited access. Now we're being told the benefit is the Crystal Academy. Crystal Academy exists. It's not a substantial additional public benefit. Apparently the benefit is they're not going to get rid of the school. That does not meet the requirements of the PAD. The city must find equivalent public benefits. So it must be at least equivalent to what is there. The question is what Are we, the taxpayers and residents, getting an exchange for additional height, additional density, increased intensity, and the departure from the otherwise applicable zoning requirements? If the benefit is not equivalent, the pad must be denied. Again, claim benefit, Crystal Academy. Private school, tuition of $40,000 a year. It calls for 70 students. That's $3 million a year in tuition that this entity is receiving, not open to the general public, accessible only to a limited number of families. The PADD code is simply not met. It requires benefits to the broader community, not just people paying $40,000. Finally, I want to bring your attention to Section 3-502C6, which requires at least 20% of landscaped open space. The courtyard, if that's what the benefit's going to be, does not meet that requirement, and it does not satisfy the code. This is a bad deal for taxpayers. We rely on our city government to negotiate with these developers. They want something from you. Please make them give something of value. Please make them do the hard work to make our community better. It sets a terrible precedent. You've heard other people talk about it. What's gonna happen to this area if you do this? We're asking for a recommendation of denial of all four of the special exceptions that they're asking for to allow them to build this project. Thank you for your time and service.

Andres Jimenez, Lucila Jimenez.

Good evening, everyone. My name is Andres Jimenez. I live at 888 South Douglas Road. And I have been a resident of Coral Gables since 1978. I want to quote something here from an old friend. Where is it? Where is it? Right. The quote basically indicates that this is what's happening here today. Two groups of people trying to protect what they value. The residents are protecting a neighborhood deliberately chose that they deliberately chose. The developer is trying to increase the economic value of the land it has assembled. And then My friend says the zoning board's job is to decide where the balance lies. We have then to remember that the zoning board is appointed by the city and the name of the residents in order to protect the best interest of the residents of this city. I also like to point out that the residents of this city, the current residents of this city, many of whom you heard speaking in here, have the right and the obligation to maintain the benefit, the city, in the state in which it was intended to become. And this is what I see here, that the residents are opposed by a group from, somebody mentioned that they are from out of town, the company is from Chicago, and it's not that anybody in this country has a right to come here do what they want. But, you know, there have been several situations in Chicago in which they were named and the situation was exactly the same. One of them was in. Well, I lost it anyway. So what I'd like to point out to you is that, you know, the foxes are getting closer to our hen house. And basically, you know, these foxes are very smart. And the way I see it, they have made a very, very interesting, how should I say, strategy in selecting a small entity that provides very good service, I am sure, to a small number of people, but they have used it as a sort of like a bone for us to accept and approve their project. So again, I do hope that you look after the residents of Coral Gables by whom you were appointed and make the right decision, one that you can go to sleep at night. Good night. Thank you.

Lucila Jimenez? Gaines Swain? And Anna?

Good evening. My name is Catherine Swain. I've lived in the Gables since 1969. I grew up here. I teach at Coral Gables Prep Academy. I'm a member of the Coral Gables Women's Club who has a completely free children's dental clinic that does service Crystal Academy. I'm opposed to this proposition and I have a few questions. Number one, who's the realtor that didn't tell this group that bought the property that there is a height restriction. You're welcome to buy the property, but it's in a historical area that's been designated by George Merrick, whose wife was part of the Coral Gables Women's Club. So therefore, why did all of a sudden this person or group who decided to buy the property say, Ooh, We're going to make a nine-story building even though there's a restriction because we have it in our pocket or somebody else's pocket that we can change people's minds. And I'm so sorry if I'm boring you. I know you've been on your phones. I know you've been on your watches. But this is important to the people of Coral Gables. We live here because there is a design Yes, I have watched a lot of wonderful things happen in our city. Growth, number one, but I'm really concerned about how people are not paying attention to the guides. If there are rules, why are people breaking them? If a realtor says, here's a property, You can develop it up to four stories, or let's look somewhere else. We have so many places that developer can go. Not only that, why are we using a company that doesn't employ the people from Coral Gables? Why are we going to Chicago? That boggles me. We have the University of Miami. They have an awesome school of architecture. We have engineers that you are personally aware of. I mean, some of them helped build a building at 1109 Almeria that the person took down a little bit every day. And you guys worked on that. But as I'm looking at some of the notes that I made, If nothing changes, if you allow the proposal to stand as it is, you're hurting the city.

Well, let me rephrase that.

Let's look at George Merrick's plan. If we keep George Merrick's plan, Crystal Academy is still there. They can still be serviced by the Coral Gables Women's Club. People can still walk the streets and be comfortable under the shade and everybody wins because that company that wants to buy the property can follow the rules that you already set up, that George Merrick set up, that you are following. If in my classroom I told somebody, these are the rules, but you know what, I'll change them for you. What is that saying? Are you being wishy-washy? Are you not following the rules that you're supposed to follow? I'm not trying to be your mother. I'm just saying, look at the rules that are in front of you. Follow them. Follow the people who have put you here. There's no reason that we can't follow these rules. Why do we have realtors? They take classes in ethics. They should be the ones saying this property has a limit. I'm sorry I'm taking your time, but please, I'm voting against this. I love my city. I live, work, and play here. I volunteer, but this is not a good proposal. Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Anna?

Anna? Hermann Tinoco.

Good evening, everyone. My name is Germán Tinoco. I live in 888 Douglas Road. It's just a couple blocks apart from the building project that we are discussing today. It's also a seven-story building, just to let you know. And this project, I really support it because it brings not only the opportunity to bring the stability to the Crystal Academy, It also brings more opportunity for housing and it opens also the possibility for more projects in the area that is already built with office buildings that is in Ponce de Leon and also residential areas that Miami is lacking of, lacking of houses and buildings. This is a very good opportunity for Coral Gables to grow up and also bring more people, good people, to our community. I appreciate your time. Thank you. Thank you.

So we have two more speakers, and these are on Zoom. They must open up their camera, if I'm not mistaken.

Yes, to be sworn in.

Laura Olivos.

Hello. I can switch off my video for some reason.

So if you cannot appear on the video, then you can't be sworn in. But you can make your public comment. It just cannot be considered testimony.

Can you try one more time, please?

Trying here, but bear with me. My apologies.

Would you like me to go to the next speaker who's on camera and gives you a few minutes?

Yeah, if possible, so that I can try to figure out this technicality. My apologies to everyone.

Catherine cow.

Hi, good evening. Can you hear me?

We can hear you can't see you.

Give me one moment. Now. Can you see me now?

We can. Yes. Okay.

You'll need to be sworn in. One moment, please.

Will you raise your right hand? Do you swear or affirm the testimony you're about to give shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?

I swear. So good evening. My name is Catherine Gao. I live at 14944 Southwest 59th Street, nowhere near the Gables, but I have worked there and dedicated more than 12 years of my life to Crystal Academy and the children that we serve. I'm here tonight, not only as an employee, but as somebody who has witnessed firsthand the impact that the school has had in the community and vice versa. While we are a private school, we are also a nonprofit, and every decision that we have made is driven by the mission to serve the children with specialized needs and provide programs tailored to reach their fullest potential. Our focus has always been creating opportunities, independence, and meaningful outcomes for the families and the children. I would like to address the suggestion that was made that we only serve wealthy families. That statement, I believe, has no merit. The reality is while raising a child with profound needs comes with very large financial, emotional, and logistical challenges, many of our families have spent many years fighting insurance companies for medically necessary services only to face denials, reductions in care, and lengthy delays. As a nonprofit, part of our mission is also to work to raise funds to provide scholarships and financial assistance to children that do attend our school in multiple ways, not only for tuition, but also for the specialized therapeutic services that they need. For years, our families have worked around an aging building. While we consider it very charming, also requires a lot of repairs, has many leaks. And we really look forward to having an environment where we can focus more on serving the children instead of really worrying about what the next problem the building might bring. To be honest, this process has been truly frustrating over the last few years because we have often felt that we have help right around the corner, but that has been difficult and has not happened. The building proposed, I believe, is consistent with the character and quality of Coral Gables, but ultimately my objective and my goal is that we want to better serve our children. Being part of this community does allow us to utilize the urban environment and all the city has to offer, which provides valuable teaching opportunities for many of our students who go and walk to Target, who go to Publix to shop for their groceries and meal plan. Most importantly, Crystal Academy is not just a building. It really is a community. It's a place where our children feel accepted, where our families have found hope, and where our staff, many who drive an hour or two, have dedicated their lives to helping others. For many of us, this is not simply where we work. This is our home. So even if many of us do not reside in Coral Gables, This is, again, our home. At the end of the day, we're not asking for anything extravagant. We understand that there is conflicting opinions about this, but we ask for the opportunity to continue serving our children in this environment that really does meet their needs. On behalf of the students, families, and staff, I ask for your support. Thank you for your time.

Thank you.

Laura Olivos?

Good evening, everyone. Sorry about those technical difficulties earlier. My name.

So you could be sworn in, please.

Will you raise your right hand to be sworn? Do you swear or affirm the testimony you're about to give shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

So help you God.

Amen.

So good evening, everyone. My name is Dr. Laura Olivos. I'm a child psychologist, and I'm also privileged to serve as a current board member for Crystal Academy. I do not come to you to pretend I have any real expertise in zoning, planning, or architectural studies. However, I am considered an expert in the field of autism and developmental disabilities. In our clinical community, Crystal is known as the school that takes the children with the most complex and layered profiles that other schools reject. This is the only school of its kind in this community. I know it because I live it as an aid to Coral Gable's families in finding the right placements and educational environments for their children all over South Florida. I wonder for those that have spoken against this project if they have ever stepped foot inside of the school, communed with the staff, children, and families therein. You speak about how Crystal does not provide any substantial public benefit. Has anyone ever heard of the unparalleled contributions Crystal and their families have done to create an atmosphere and culture of inclusion for our city? How many families and children can finally feel seen, heard, and they finally matter to their city because of the work they've pioneered? Is that not enough of a substantial benefit for you? You talk about green spaces, but what are green spaces worth if not accessible for every child or family? Take, for example, Salvador Park. It's an unparalleled green space for children and their families designed to be ADA compliant and friendly, made possible because of the tireless advocacy and contributions of dedicated city officials, but also Crystal children and their families advocating for it. Because of Crystal and their tireless work, CG, Coral Gables, is known as a beacon of what inclusion can do for a city. Research shows inclusion benefits society in so many ways, including economic growth. It cultivates empathy and makes all of us more connected and understanding of one another. It is the ultimate example of what being a good neighbor is, whether you live in a high rise apartment or home. For those saying it is a school for the wealthy, They are a school that takes Medicaid, where families use scholarships to receive quality care. It is a school that is accessible for various reasons. We are continuously at the mercy of begging for donations to stay afloat. We hold our breath every year. A neighborhood made from the heart, a heart that has room for every child and their family, regardless of where they come from or how their minds work. I also heard residents arguing that a child learns best in green spaces, especially neurodivergent ones. Valid, however, 1 of the biggest agents of positive change in a child's education and therapeutic process is the relationship that they have with their educators and therapists. If 1 does not feel safe or have predictability in their life, they cannot learn and they cannot thrive. This is not just a theory. This is neurology. Moving them creates unpredictability and risks regression. It risks employees and valuable trained clinicians and educators leaving this job to find something more predictable and perhaps less of a commute if moved elsewhere. What good is a green space if a child is stripped from their usual routines, neighborhoods, and potentially the familiar faces that sit in the trenches with them day in and day out? I cannot stand before you and argue the nuances of zoning and planning, but I can stand before you and provide a voice for the voiceless, hear their plea, keep them in their home. Thank you for your time.

No more public comment?

No more public comment.

Then let's close public comment at this time.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. If the IT department could put the PowerPoint up. I'm not going to wait for it to go up. I know you've had a very lengthy public hearing. I'd just like to take a few minutes to correct and clarify some of the statements that were made, as well as answer some of the questions that were asked. The first question was, well, you know, what is the commitment or what is the surety that Crystal Academy will continue to operate here? And we've entered into a private agreement with Crystal Academy as soon as the property was sold to ensure that they could remain operating. Obviously, their facility is not up to the standards that it needs to provide the specialized care that they need. That building requires an infinite amount of repairs, and they have been waiting five years for this new facility. But we also have a private covenant, but we also have a covenant with the city And that covenant provides that Crystal Academy can't remain in this space if this project moves forward until they no longer pursue their mission. In the event that they don't, and we anticipate that will be a very, very long time from now, we hope they never do stop because what they do is truly special. But we have a provision in the covenant that says that we will work with the city to select another nonprofit that does a very similar mission than Crystal Academy does. So this space is earmarked, it's reserved for generations to come for this important need that this community has and is the only institution in the city that does this. You heard a lot about the garden of our Lord this evening and the garden on site. This is an issue that we dealt with for two years. And I want to address this is a private garden. It's not accessible to the public. There is also mention of a pending historical study that is underway for this area, and there is. That study is looking at sites in this area that could meet historical designation criteria to make sure that a site that warrants historical designation that this city values very much are protected. And that is a study that we're in support of. But I would like to tell you something that's very important that has not been mentioned. The historical significance of this site has been reviewed by your historical preservation officer, your historical preservation board, your city commission. They've all considered whether this site meets the criteria for historic designation, and they've all concluded that it does not. Those determinations were subsequently upheld in court after various appeals by Ms. Bolton, who you heard from tonight. So we have four separate authorities that have reviewed the historical eligibility of this property, the garden, and all have unanimously concluded that this property is not historic and that current study will not change that fact. Also, the characterization, and one thing I'd like to mention is The existing garden is a private green space. There are no public green spaces on this property. This project will actually increase the amount of publicly available open spaces, publicly available open spaces by 9,000 square feet. And in terms of open space, this project provides 30% open space where your code requires 20% for a PAD, of which almost 70% of it is open to the sky. So this project is delivering, in fact, public open space benefits. And that is a public benefit. And it's been accepted in other PADs in the past. It's important to clarify that also the PAD does not require that the landscape space you provide is public. A PAD allows you to provide both private and public open spaces. So there's no requirement that this be only public in order to qualify. And that's an important distinction. Another item I want to address is the characterization of the North Ponce overlay by Mr. Winker as a low rise area is factually and legally inaccurate. And I'll leave, and I'll put up a picture here while I go through this, because I think a picture paints a thousand words. Um, This is the context that we're talking about here. This is the context that your board of architects reviewed in looking at the design of this project for architectural compatibility with the neighborhood. I think you could tell in this picture that this is not a single family neighborhood. This is not a low-rise neighborhood. This is an area that is planned for mid-rise residential buildings. That is what the North Ponce area was created for. You could see here that There are already many buildings, residential, office, and mixed use buildings that greatly exceed the height that we are proposing. So our project is very much in context with not only the planned framework for this area, but the existing development framework in this area. And with that, I'd like to introduce Bob Chisholm, who is our urban planner with many years of experience, to just talk a little bit about the North Ponce area and how this project fits into its context. And then I'll say a few words and we'll conclude our rebuttal. Thank you.

Thank you.

Good evening, Mr. Chairman and members of the committee. My name is Robert Chisholm. I'm the founder and managing principal of RA Chisholm Architects, located at 782 Northwest 42nd Avenue, Suite 650. I've been a resident of Coral Gables since 1975. And we do some projects in Coral Gables. My latest project just went into the permitting process last week. And we have another couple of projects that we're working on. So I'm involved in the area. I've known the area for many, many years. And I frequent this area constantly. The city of Coronado Gables is blessed by what they've done in the past and what they're doing in the present and what they're planning for in the future. And I think that the outcome of this process that we're going through is exemplary. And everyone is to be commended, the citizens, the staff, and the professionals. I've only been given a minute by George to talk about this thing. I hope I can do it quickly, certainly under three minutes, Mr. Chairman. But I have a master's degree in urban planning. I have a bachelor's degree from the University of Florida. architecture I've been practicing since 1973 all aspects and I find my company since 1978 and I continue to practice accordingly I was head of historic preservation for Miami-Dade County at one time I organized the official office and I was also in charge of the handicap access program back in the 70s so I've as a planner I was involved A LOT IN CONSENSUS WITH THE CITIZEN INPUT, AND THAT'S THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT THAT WE HAVE TO DO. BUT I THINK THE FACT THAT, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT THE TEAM HAD TO GO THROUGH FIVE REVIEWS BY THE BOA IS A COMPLIMENT TO BOTH THE BOA AND THE TEAM FOR THE COMMITMENT TO MAKE SURE THAT THIS PROJECT WAS EXEMPLARY IN EVERY WAY. think from I analyzed it clearly from an architectural point of view and in terms of just about every textbook aspect of how this project has been put together in terms of Architectural design is an example. Yeah, I can go into detail Whenever the committee requests if you if you do so and and I just think that the neighborhood context in terms of how this projects will contribute the public benefit is not only the Academy my opinion the public benefit is the quality of providing residential components which are critical to the social environment of any community and any neighborhood and the way it's been laid out the way it's been articulated by Corwell architects. Again, I'm not a hired gun by any. Yes, I'm getting paid for this, of course, because my knowledge and my time requires that. But when five-year-old contacted me, I told him, let me think about it. Let me take a look to see if it was worth and had any merit and value. And what the city has done, what the team has done, and the citizens have every right to express their concern. The future is always an unknown, but the example we have here in the city of Coral Gables as to what has been accomplished over the years is an example to everyone in our country. And everybody knows about the city of Coral Gables, so on and so forth. I don't want to belabor the point, but I think there's been professionals here who know the context. And I have told you that this project will work, and it will work to the benefit of our community. Thank you very much. Thank you.

So in terms of, I know that there was comments about the substantial public benefit that the PAD requires. I think we've mentioned there are open space enhancements. There are Significant streetscape enhancements. We have created very large and well landscaped sidewalks. We've committed to installing 16 foot trees at the time of planting. But we all know we need schools. We're very much in need of schools, especially schools that serve children with disability. And if that's not a public Benefit that provides an essential service to our community then I don't know what is Just to give you a monetary value of what this public investment in Crystal Academy means over the term of this 99 year lease That would be six million dollars, which is probably the largest public benefit contribution ever made by any PAD that's been requested Developers usually give a park after we've taken the density out of it This is an actual financial contribution that's taking a very significant spot in this building, and it's being fully built out by this developer, and maintained that way for 99 years. I'll close by saying that every community makes decisions about the places that it wants to create. Coral Gables is known as a city beautiful, and we often speak, and you've heard tonight, about preserving what makes the city beautiful. But what makes Coral Gables beautiful is not just its tree-lined streets or its world-class architecture or its art or its parks or its rich history. What truly makes this community beautiful is a set of values we share as a community and the high quality of service and excellence that Coral Gables delivers to his residents. These values are the reasons why so many people, including myself, choose to call Coral Gables home. This project reflects those true core Coral Gables values. The city is known for some of the best educational institutions in the state and nation and that's because Coral Gables realizes that investing in public education and private education is an important public benefit and public need that's worth investing in. And this principle should extend to every child with no exceptions. This project does more than just deliver new residential housing opportunities to activate an area or beautify and activate a site with a new Mediterranean project, as you've seen before. It preserves and strengthens the only school in Coral Gables that services our most vulnerable kids, a resource that's impossible to replace and impossible to duplicate if lost. So tonight, we have the opportunity to do something truly special and truly beautiful. We have the opportunity to create a project that reflects the very best in Coral Gables, a city that values excellence, inclusion, education, and service, a city that recognizes that every child matters and that every family that lives in the city deserves to have access to the resources they need. Your staff has done a very detailed presentation. You've heard a lot of evidence on the record this evening. Your staff found that this application meets all the applicable criteria of approval and warrants approval and we ask for your approval in accordance with the staff recommendation Thank you so much for your attention your time this evening. Our entire team is here answer any questions.

Thank you so much I'm gonna open it to board discussion and I'm gonna start with miss Bravo.

I

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I've been looking at the agenda package that included the architectural plans. Would it be possible to pull those up on the screen?

You mean, you don't mean the PowerPoint presentation, you mean from the... One of the attachments in the agenda package.

The robust agenda package.

It is the applicants. Yeah.

Yeah, in the attachment A, applicants submittal. Sorry to put the technical team on the spot like this.

Maybe I can ask a few questions.

There you go. That's it. Could you flip to page 30 in that PDF? Well actually if it's gonna be hard to scroll through 30 Yeah But if you want to stop on 24. I think she's looking for the ground floor plan. Ground floor plan?

It's probably A30, A30.

Actually, page 24, if you want to stop there first.

I could ask a few questions about that.

If you got there, sorry to put everybody on the spot. Could you just walk us through, A, does this reflect the most current design, the one that went through various iterations with the Board of Architects? Is this the current iteration? Sure.

The previous iterations, what changed?

No, I want to know. A little bit more about this. Is this the most current approved version? It is, this is the most current. After going through all the.

Yes, correct.

All right, so could you walk us through.

Absolutely.

The design?

So as I mentioned before, the primary goal was to provide active spaces throughout, almost throughout the entire perimeter of a small city block. As you can see there, we have the liner units in blue, We have the main entrance of the project out on access with what we consider the main focal point, which is that artery. That's the corner of East Ponce and Antilla. And then we circle back all around on Galeano. We have the school. We have the park. uh on the very north east corner um and then obviously we have the internalized courier but one of the things we did also we wanted to make sure that the complete circulation of this the pedestrian uh was was unique in all in every sense notice that in the front setbacks on east bonds and on antia we provided more than the required setback just to increase the landscaping somewhat and feel more of a beautiful pedestrian realm. Today, the sidewalks that are currently there don't have that. You have the actual existing property abutting right to the inside portion of the sidewalk. These are wider. These have more landscaping. We wanted to bring more larger trees into the site as well. And ultimately, also, we created the centralized paseo. We didn't have to do that, but we wanted to make sure that that courtyard, which is also set aside for public use, had a very direct connection from the south and from the north, extending to it with a really nice, beautiful white pastel. The last thing we did is also we want to make sure that the vehicles and the entrance and the drop-off areas to the school were totally internalized. We created a second lane. It's a one-way direction from south to north, but we created a second lane to be able to have the pass-through of vehicular cars coming into an internalized entrance to the parking garage, which works in a clockwise direction, not affecting the drop-off areas as well. And ultimately, we internalize the loading facilities, which have direct access to one of the elevator cores for move-ins and move-outs. So again, all in favor of creating a beautiful pedestrian realm with minimizing the curb cuts and enhancing the pedestrian quality and the connectivity.

And then on the north side of Phoenicia, that's where you have the women's clubs.

On the north side is where we have across the street. And we look at the elevations of that, where even though we have a small amount of back of house areas there that are required by code, like the FPL vault and some of those items, we dressed it up in a way that they look in complete harmony with the building. It's a residential appearance throughout.

And does that street also have the increased setbacks?

Everything has, yes. Correct. Including the park, which really anchors our corner really beautiful, which it does not provide. It provides a relief of the massing in the corner.

And that park is completely open to the public.

It is open to the public after hours, after the school closes, it is open to the public.

So is it fenced in?

It's dual use, right.

Right. Could you, you're on 30, could you go back to 24? Page 24 of the PDF. Yeah, you're very close. All right. I found this view interesting in terms of putting things into context. On the lower left-hand corner, that's the Douglas entrance property.

Correct.

How tall are those buildings? Do we know the height of those buildings, how many floors?

The height of those buildings is probably, including the ones across ponds, are 16 stories, 14 stories, 10 stories, higher than us for sure.

Okay. Yeah.

The entire overlay, if we look at the map also as well, it is essentially allowing the height that we have and even a few more feet than we have proposed here.

And then on ponds, we can see that there's two tall buildings. There's the glass one, the one behind it. And then after that, there's like two smaller properties. I think one of them is a motel. Correct. But those are allowed to be, and maybe this is a question for the director, those two properties south of the tall buildings on ponds, the zoning there would allow those to be the same height?

No, that could go up to 190 feet.

Thank you, Mr. Director.

Yeah, so all the properties you see on Ponce de Leon are zone MX3. They're allowed to be 150 or 190.5 with Mediterranean bonus.

Right, so like that first glass one that we see, is that representative of what's allowed there? That's probably 150 because it's not Mediterranean. And we're allowed to go up how high?

To 190 with Mediterranean bonus.

All right. And then there's the subject property And then you can see, I guess, other buildings here that have been approved. You know, so I think this gives some context that what you're proposing here is not on a scale with that area.

We created that slide for that same reason, because it's very telling. If we look at one specific little property here and there, yeah, they're scattered, smaller. But the entire area is destined for that. It was sewn for that. And it starts being exactly what we're looking at. It's right in context with a lot of the buildings out there, which are even taller than us.

And I imagine, when I look at this, and there's that motel property south of the two tall buildings on Ponce, I imagine it's only a matter of time before something.

It probably is. I believe it's on the market. Very valuable property.

Okay, I think this is an interesting area, especially when you look at the context of Douglas entrance and the volume of office space that's there, you know, in terms of reducing traffic, having habitable spaces that complement those office uses. That seems to me like smart planning for this area. So I have a question to our staff.

um you know there there were different issues raised um during the public comment period is did you hear anything that that wasn't addressed or reviewed by staff in providing the recommendation well i heard i heard concerns about traffic and we have a traffic study um we had the consultant here as well i heard concerns about the historic and we went through the historic process and beyond other concerns i i heard about was the city plan which wouldn't be applicable here because that's really dealing with the right-of-way and changes to the right-of-way and those are the way we amend them as well um our historic uh officer of the city did not deem this change to be a change to the city plan so we didn't go through that process um i'm trying to get any other concerns but again this has been through a long lengthy review process with the city staff with the boards with the city commission even so

Is this a typical timeline for a project in the city of Coral Gables?

This is pretty expanded.

OK. So in order to summarize what you said, is it safe to say that then the comments you heard here were vetted and considered and stopped, the issues that were made in the comments?

Yes.

OK. Right. Well, you mentioned somebody's here that prepared the traffic study?

Yes, we had the consultant. We have city staff here from Public Works Transportation who reviewed the traffic study. All right. Any questions for them?

I just, in terms of your review and the capacity of the network, we're close to A Street, we're close to Lejeune. I'd like to talk about transportation.

All right. Well, hi, my name is Sherry Menendez. I'm a transportation engineer for the city. So, we did review in 2022, October 2022, a traffic impact study for this development. They took into consideration the Ponds Phase III median project along Ponce de Leon Boulevard. That was something that was taken into consideration. Also, there were two FDOT projects along Southwest H Street. One was a resurfacing project, and that's already been completed, and then the other one's lighting. The study showed that it wasn't gonna have a negative impact to the neighborhood. And basically it was approved at the end of October 2022. A technical memorandum was sent out and that was already reviewed. Most recently we looked at PONS 8.

Yes, so the PONS 8 project did not trigger enough trips to require a traffic study based on the existing land use versus the future land use. There was a net gain of 26 trips in the peak hours.

And also recently due to the changes that were in the site plan, we also reviewed for the Crystal Phoenicia development their revised trip generation letter to see if it would negatively impact the neighborhood and also if they would need to update their traffic impact study. After review, it actually created less trips because they removed the office. space from the site plan um and we use our it engineering manuals to verify that so we didn't have them revise their traffic impact study so they were good to go from there as well thank you thank you uh charles hart thank you through through the chair can i ask them one question i'm sorry just one question

I'm on, the map is off, Almeida and Ponce. And one block south of there, it looks like they're doing the center lane and we're doing the sidewalks. Looks like it's gonna go down on one lane.

Which one, I'm sorry?

Ponce.

Ponce, like by 999 Ponce. Yeah. Right off of 8th Street, they're median.

South of 8th Street? From 8th Street to... Menores to 8th. Correct.

The center median is being done today.

Yes, yes. That's the Ponce 3 project. Is that going to be one lane or two lanes?

No, it is two lanes. It looks like it goes into the one lane. There's no way you can fit two lanes in there. It is a two lane. What they're doing is, for the work now, they're putting the barriers, the temporary barriers, but it will be a two lane.

No, it's not a temporary barrier. They're doing the curb barrier.

Because those cars are going to become parallel parking. Instead of angle parking, they're going to become parallel.

They'll be less parking.

Yeah, parallel parking instead of angle parking, which is dangerous backing up onto Ponce de Leon. But it's going to be a two-lane with parallel parking. That I know. Because I'm doing a project. I finished a project across the street. So I had to adhere to those plans.

I'm eager to see how they're going to put two lanes there. Because that curb comes straight out.

What I don't like is that every other street, they limit the left turn. They limit the left turn.

So just a reminder, the court reporter can only take down when one person is speaking. Sorry. Sorry, sorry.

So that was my only question, how it was going to affect, because I thought it was going to go down on one lane.

I assure you it's going to be two lanes with a parallel parking. And we are going to lose some parking spaces. All right, I'm sorry. Go ahead.

Okay.

Mr. Chairman, or I'm sorry.

Go ahead.

Well, whenever you're done, I'd like to ask them a question so they don't have to sit down and come back up.

I don't have any other questions. I think, you know, the Ponce Corridor has a jagged edge in terms of modifying the zoning to capture this property. I think this is a smart development. I'll be in support of it.

You have a question for them, or can I move on to another board member? Oh, go for it, please.

OK.

Thank you. So I read the Kimley Horn traffic analysis, and it's almost like building a ship in a bottle. It doesn't take anything else into account. The quote unquote improvements that are being built now on ponds, every time you have a limited access highway, if you will, you have less of an ability of people using more of those arteries, and they've used less arteries. Today, in my single-family home on Kadima, it took me 10 minutes to be able to back out of my driveway onto the street because everybody on Google is getting all of the traffic go down Kadima because if they go down University, they have a traffic light on Lejeune. And they're being rerouted that way. So our traffic has increased maybe 400% in the last three months. And that's with school being out. What is the level of the FDOT level of service on the trail right now?

On 8th Street? Yes. If it's, well, I have to triple check. I know the level of service on Lejeune is F. It's probably close to F or dear F on 8th Street.

Yeah, I think you're right. Lejeune is F. Yes. 8th Street is F. And I would not be surprised if Douglas is close to that. So when you have a glass of water And it's filled all the way to the top. You just have to add one drop for it to spill. And I think that Emily Horn, being a very large firm with a very large traffic component to their firm, when they give the analysis, it's almost like Everything around it is not being taken into account so when people drive and you see backups at any time of day adding one parking trip or one traffic trip rather becomes a problem and every time I hear that because It doesn't warrant a traffic study because the site does not project enough trips. You're using it as a vacuum, and it's a disservice to the citizens of Coral Gables that have to then not only accept the fact of that particular project and all the other projects when you add them, but also the cross traffic that goes through our city Every single day, east to west and west to east. I mean, I think that it is wrong for this to be glossed over this way. We have an enormous traffic problem. We have a trip problem. And it's not being resolved by adding medians on the north-south corridor of Ponce that way.

Well, the Pond Street 3 project was, the design was ongoing prior to the traffic impact study in October 2022. The reason why you see median closures is typically because there's a high number of crashes. So those east-west movements, and I've seen it myself as I drive down every day down ponds, a lot of people throw their cars across. And sometimes there are severe accidents. So that's why those median closures took place.

I know. I know. And it's the same thing as Lejeune. And it becomes a problem. I mean, we're in the police station, right? And it becomes an enforcement issue when it comes to speed. So you can't even assume 30 miles an hour, 25 miles an hour when people are flying through there 50 miles an hour. That's part of the crashes that you do get. But what I'm saying is right now it's becoming a funnel effect. on not just one street, but many of them. And then when you take out all the parking that we're going to lose, that becomes a problem.

We need to extend before the 9 o'clock so we could continue. Mr. Chairman, can we make a motion?

A motion for 30 minutes? 30 minutes?

Motion to extend to 9.30. 9.30.

Second. You moved it, second. All in favor? Aye. Aye.

Sorry, go back. No, no, Robert, I don't have any other questions. Mr. Chairman.

What does F mean?

If you will allow me, Mr. Chairman. Let them finish and I'll call it a day. The levels can be explained by our vice chair, you know, because FDOT has a rating. You know, you get an A, you get a B, you get a C. F is the worst when it comes to traffic volume. That means that the road cannot take the amount of volume there. So we're surrounded by F. But then the part that's not in there is all of our little side streets, if you will, all of our little residential streets, which are, it becomes a tsunami when it is early morning or late afternoon. going to work, picking up kids, coming back at the end of the day. So what happens is that our little collector streets, residential streets, are flooded with that. The worst part now is that because now the city is putting in this median, putting in parallel parking, as we did many years ago on Miracle Mile, we're going to lose a certain percentage of that parking. So your business on Ponce and everybody else's, they're going to have to now bleed parking into these residential areas. So there'll be less parking, which is created by many things, but based on some of the decisions that have been made of the improvements that are being built now.

And I just wanted to add, for the traffic impact study, the original one did consider the Ponds Phase 3 project and its analysis. And then the reason, well, the revised trip generation letter was compared to that study.

Right, and that came up with fewer trips than the original forecast.

So we were just using an analysis that was already done and then using a trip generation letter that it showed less trips to determine whether or not any changes had to be done or if a revised traffic impact study needed to be done. But it wasn't that we did not consider The ponds phase three I don't mean to pounce no no I understand.

I just want to make sure it's corrected on there I'm just saying that we have a very serious problem, and then when we look at projects in a vacuum it just makes Everything else worse. It's the same thing as looking at the site plan And you're not seeing you know what the what the driveways and the uses are across the street and

Well, we do take that into account. And we also have to submit anytime we do any closures or anything, we have to submit our plans to Miami-Dade County for them to look at it as well, for them to take it as a whole, because it's a whole network. Like it's our city. We want to make sure that we don't negatively impact our city, but all the roads in Miami-Dade County are networked. So we're not in a vacuum.

Mr. Chairman.

I would like to have a moment to speak, please. I'll call the next board member.

Let Felix finish one second. And I'm sorry. I think this is so important for every project that we're looking at. But it becomes very complex. And by the way, the next natural outlet going north-south is this street right here, Zalzito. And that is, right now, except for a couple of exceptions, That is a very residential street with parallel parking right now. People fly through there where they have built at least, from here to 8th Street, at least 8 to 10 speed humps to try to slow people down. So it is becoming more and more of a problem. And I think that really staff should do a more holistic job in presenting the information to this board for our decision.

Thank you. Gonzalo? Thank you, Mr. Chairman. You can sit down now, please.

Okay, thank you.

Mr. Chairman, we have heard endlessly, repetitively, pointing at the heartstrings of Crystal Academy as if it was the most important thing that we are looking at today. Truth is, fact is, reality is, the project we're talking about is 226,000 plus square feet. The promise to Crystal Academy is less than that. than 2% of that total build-out. 5,000 feet. A minimal contribution versus what the impact of that building is. So let's be totally clear about this. A very small contribution. I know that was mentioned numerous times, and the applicant has competent staff at all levels, and I admire that. But let's be frank, and let's be real. This is a massive development. And I would just like to have Bonnie come up for a second and just give me a history again of the Garden of Our Lord. with the benefit of the information we could use. Bonnie, if you would, are you in the area here, are you still? Come on up.

Before she come to the city, can we?

Yes, you mean the process that involved the request for historic designation?

The history of the Garden of Our Lord. Yeah. The Garden of Our Lord.

So that's not before the board today. What's before the board today is the applicant's application for the proposed development. I hear you.

They could also switch out the green space that they have on the northeast corner of the property with the garden, and I would stop fighting. But yes, I'm very happy to talk about the garden of our Lord.

Just tell us what year it started and the tradition, please. It was built in 1951.

1951. By Robert Fitch Smith, a renowned South Florida architect whose many of his projects have been designated historic. It's a cemetery. It's one of the first three biblical gardens in America. Some of the trees and bushes that grow there at this minute came as seeds from Gethsemane. That's the garden where Jesus was the night before his crucifixion. It's also a war memorial, medical memorial, and community memorial.

Mr. Chairman. And city attorney, why are we, this is not part of this application. I don't believe this is relevant. I'm sorry, I don't think this is relevant. I'm sorry, I don't think it's applicable here.

I have it to agree as well. Okay. Gonzalo, if you can wrap up your comments and then Ms. Bonnie.

I appreciate Bonnie's comment. Thank you. So, the balance sheet here is that we have a project coming to that square block. 1.4 acres. And also, caveat emptor, the Century Group are very, very savvy investors and developers from years back. They did not buy this property on the blind. I'm sure they did the due diligence. They knew exactly what they were buying and the development that they could do in place. However, something happened, and now They're seeking a small-scale amendment, a radical change from the current zoning. And the thing that everybody here on this board and the colleagues and everybody that's listening to this is, this is not a Crystal Academy application. This is a developer's application. Crystal Academy's footprint on this is 2% of the build-up. So with that said, I'd also like to say a few other things here. The normal setback under the current zoning for building on this property varies from 25 feet to 15. The proposed project setback is Eight inches, nine inches, basically zero setback. So this open space dialogue that we have been listening to is an internal patio area for the development. It is really in Congress what we've been hearing. So I hope my colleagues understand that what we're dealing with here is a major impacting development in a very cherished, open, green space area. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you.

Shane, any comments?

I just have a few quick questions, maybe for staff, if possible, or the applicant, whoever's best suited for the question. I know earlier we looked at page 24 of the applicant's package, and that was an image of the subject property. And I just want to make sure I have this right just because it's a predicate to my next question, but it looks like we have digitally filled in the construction for the subject property as well as a few other properties that have been approved, right?

Correct.

Okay. So I've seen in the papers and in conversation that this is called a transitional property and that it's an inappropriate transition. And my question is what, maybe this is a simplistic question, but what makes it transitional? When I go to the property, for example, when I saw it yesterday, to me, it looked like it fit appropriately in the conservation district. So what makes this a transitional property as opposed to other properties on that area that's within that conservation district? And I think the second part to that question is what stops the precedent from all those properties being upzoned?

I'll take the question we obviously have your planning zoning director who also did their own independent analysis of this request, but. Just taking a step back, I know we're all looking at this property like it's special use district right and I'll get your question I promise I think this context is important when the North ponds area was studied. Created 2 areas it created. The North ponds mix use district which allows as you're playing is only director said between a 150 and 190 feet in height and then it created the residential infill district which is known as the North ponds conservation district which allows a 100 feet in height and a 100 units. there were properties that were not studied at that time because they had existing schools and churches. If you look at the North Plan, North Ponce Corridor Plan today, the only properties that aren't MF2 or MX in the entire area are the religious and schools. And that's because from a planning perspective, you leave those institutions in place because they are existing educational uses. What makes this property a transitional property is that East Ponce Boulevard currently has three properties on the west side, one of them already approved for I believe 165 feet, which is the Regency on the Park, and it has 190 feet directly across the street from it. East Ponce is a corridor that basically is the main arterial corridor in that area other than Ponce. It connects Ponce directly to Douglas Entrance, which is one of the largest retail and office destinations outside of probably downtown and Merritt Park in this area. So it is a main roadway and you have right now you have directly to the north of this property, the North Ponce MXD already extends. So what makes this a transitional site is that this is not half a block or a portion of a block. It is an entire block that basically sits between 190 feet in height and 100 feet in height. And what this project tries to do is to keep the mid-rise, keep it at 100 feet, but create a mixed-use project that transitions from this very high intense, actually the most intense zoning and land use that you have in this city to a mid-rise residential. It's creating a buffer between these two areas, and that's why there's a transitional site. I don't think there's another site in this whole area that sits between these two that's an entire city block and that sits on a main arterial roadway.

And is that last part essentially the distinguishing factor for other properties on that same area from all being upzoned?

Correct, yeah. And I think what would be interesting is if we could take a time machine and go back in time, how the North Pond Charette would have treated that particular property because it was not studied. It was just left as it's a school, it's a church, we're gonna leave it just as institutional.

Mr. Chairman? Yes. If I may, I'm probably the last living member of the North Ponce apartment district. It wasn't a charrette. It was a committee, and I sat on it. And what you just said is not correct. What you are referencing is something that happened many years afterwards. And we did an analysis of every historic building that was in that area. And as many studies, it was shelved. But was it studied? Yes. Was there an intent? Yes. And I speak from a historical standpoint because I was there. And what was just said now is not correct.

But Felix, I wasn't involved as you were maybe, but I was involved in the sense that in 2015, the city took it upon to change that area and allow, can you pull up the map, the zoning map? Because maybe what you did was, 20 years before that, but that evolved to something else. So that has to be put in the past and the present today. Look at the zoning map to see what is allowed because you allowed 100 feet in that area.

Oh, that's because it became an urban infill.

But that was passed through commission. It went through the approval. I understand that. It went through approval, so that's what we're looking at today.

I understand that, but what I'm saying is that it was not done in a haphazard way.

No, but what was done that is in place today was done correctly, and it was looked at every property. What Mr. Navarro stated is correct, that institutional property were not taken into consideration, which they should have been done as well, because unfortunately a lot of those institutional churches are...

Going away every single one of them.

As in special as a special because there was a special zoning for that not anticipating that in the future they could become something else.

Through chair if I could just yes finish answering. The question so. Interesting case is actually directly to our north at the time of the 2015-2016 Charette which I was a part of There is a site just north of this you can't see it on this map But you could see it on the map that we had that shows the land use there the East Ponce corridor was being studied And they just decided to say there was a site they wanted to include but they didn't include it they wanted to see the project that was gonna go in there and that's Regency on the park and THAT SITE WAS RECENTLY INCLUDED IN THE NORTH PONTS MIXED USE DISTRICT EXPANDED UNDERSTANDING THE CHARACTER OF EAST PONTS BOULEVARD TODAY. ANOTHER IMPORTANT POINT IS THAT THIS SITE WAS NOT ALWAYS RELIGIOUS. IN 1971 THIS SITE WAS REZONED TO RELIGIOUS TO PERMIT THE CHURCH. in George Merrick's plan and then the old zoning code where we have the height maps that show what this property was designated for and we have our planning and zoning director here who could confirm this. This block is actually a transitional block because half of the block in the height map that was created for this district allowed 150 feet in height and that was the western portion of the block. The eastern portion of this block allowed 60 feet. That's how this area, way back when, before we started talking about North Ponce or North Ponce Charettes or anything, that's how this area was planned for. This site actually has a site-specific zoning in place today that allows 150 feet in height and allows for residential. Obviously, there's been a change in policy with the creation of North Ponce District, But those site-specific standards date back all the way to when George Merrick planned this town. So this is a transitional block today. It was a transitional block back then. And the reason is because it is a block that sits between your most intense commercial areas on a commercial corridor that is used to get to 8th Street and the Douglas entrance, and that sits between Mid-Rise Residential.

Two last very quick questions. WHAT HAPPENS TO THE PROPERTY IF THIS DOESN'T PASS? I JUST WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS TO THE PROPERTY AND WHAT HAPPENS TO CRYSTAL ACADEMY.

SO THE WAY THAT THIS DEAL CAME ABOUT WAS IN 2021 WHEN THIS PROPERTY WAS PURCHASED FROM THE CHURCH. This deal has to make a certain amount of financial sense in order to say we are going to give free space for 99 years that could have been for live work units valued at 6 million bucks. There has to be something so if if this project does not move forward, unfortunately, our agreement with crystal is no longer effective and I know Mister Sanabria mentioned that this property was owned by century. It was sold. And no one needs to honor this commitment, but Fifield has come in and said, we are going to honor it. They've been to that school. They know what this school means. And I think anybody that has been in that school understands how important it is. They made the commitment and decided to keep it. But unfortunately, if this project doesn't move forward, Crystal's future is not bright. But so then who would own the property, though? Just so I... I'M CLEAR. SO THERE WOULD PROBABLY HAVE TO BE A CHANGE IN THE PLAN AND THAT CHANGE WOULD BE TO NOT HAVE CRYSTAL AS PART OF THIS PROJECT AND, YOU KNOW, I DON'T THINK ANYBODY REALLY WANTS TO SEE THAT. BUT WHAT COULD HAPPEN, IT REMAINS UNDEVELOPED, YOU KNOW, GETS SOLD AGAIN, NEW PROPOSAL COMES IN. EITHER WAY, I THINK WE COULD ALL AGREE WHETHER YOU'RE in favor or against this project that if this property did not have a school or a church in 2016 when the Charette was created, at a minimum, bare minimum, this property would be MF2. What would that allow? 100 units an acre and 100 feet in height. What does this project propose instead? 93 feet in height, that transitions to 83 feet in height and 125 units an acre, plus the preservation of Crystal Academy for 99 years. And in a brand new facility with new classrooms, new art rooms, new therapeutic rooms, and a brand new outdoor recreational area. So we can't say, oh, we're going from special use to MX2. If the whole area of North Ponce was planned for 100 units an acre, 100 feet in height, that's where we start.

Okay, and just last question. Why does the building have to be nine feet as opposed to eight?

So, well. I'm sorry, nine stories. Nine stories.

Stories.

I heard feet.

I heard nine feet as well. I see feet.

So, the request for the PAD, and I know you've had a long night, I'm gonna try to say this quickly, just to address it. It is nine stories, but it is within an eight story building envelope, and I know we have some very, you know, very knowledgeable architects on this board, but what we have done is we have taken nine stories and put it into an eight-story envelope. That is what the PAD designation that we're requesting for this property allows us to do. You're allowed eight stories within 97 feet in height. We are asking for nine stories within 93 feet in height, and what that allows us to do is the massing. It allows us to reduce it, and it allows us to create these wide sidewalks that we've worked with city staff on for quite some time.

OK, well, I want to thank all the residents for being here tonight. Thank you so much. I want to thank the applicant for an amazing presentation. I think this is a tough decision one way or the other. I want to hear the rest of my colleagues talk about it before I make a decision, but I can see both sides. But thank you all very much.

No, and thank you so much.

Felix, you want to?

HP for beauty. You say you were historical. OK.

Only surviving person.

It's better distinguished than extinguished. So the point is that we're talking about this proposed zoning like if that's what's existing on the site, as it's not. And Mr. Sanabria made excellent points. It becomes a point of What becomes realistic for the redevelopment of this property? There are points of contention. One of the areas there, it was said that if it would just be flipped to another corner, this open space, which is inside of a building, that would work better. The four things tonight is that we're taking, again now, not just zoning, but we're taking the master plan and throwing it out the window. The master plan has limits, and the limits that the master plan has goes back mathematically to what the levels of service allows for those particular uses. When you look at that as a small-scale amendment, it's because we're in an urban area. And that's why it's called a small-scale amendment based on just the area, the size. But it is a huge impact. The second thing is that the zoning, again, is going from special use to something other. This is not MX2. Right now, it's S. And everything you get one foot above S is more than what you're allowed today. The third point is that the funny part about it is, just from a historical point of reference, the reason the pad was created was because of the Douglas Center. The Douglas Center, which was a historic building, was going to be torn down. And a group of architects purchased it, and they made it their home for many, many years. And then they developed the rest of it to be able to compensate for the makeup of what was there. So the planned area development was designed, the pad, as a tool to be able to have a special, significant neighborhood public benefit, and in that case, was saving a historic building. There is no special neighborhood public benefit here. Finally, the mixed-use site plan review. Going beyond the limits where now we could have an 18-inch setback compared to whatever the minimum setbacks are today. I think that we have reached the point in this city that at the end of the day, we've gone from what I consider urban planning to hostile development. And I think we've reached that point. in many parts of the city, and for me as an architect, it depends on development. There are certain limits. I think that this project could be reduced in height, in volume, in size, and still keep Crystal Academy there as a tenant. But I think that being an economist, Mr. Sanabria said it right the first time. That particular use is 2% of the total square footage of this project. And that's not even considering the 300 and some odd square feet or 300 and some odd parking spaces there in an area where none of those right-of-ways are going to grow. And you have incredible examples when you go down south on Segovia where new developments are popping up And the streets are becoming not wider, they're becoming narrower. What use are wide sidewalks when you can't get people in cars because that's the way we travel here from point A to point B? That's all I have to say. Mr.

Chair, before you go, this is too important. I know we had a hard stop at 9.30. I think we should extend a little bit more because I think we're getting to the end. I want to be part of the vote. So I'll make another motion to extend another 30 minutes. Okay. So moved.

All in favor?

Aye. Can we take a two-minute bathroom break? Half a minute. Half a minute. All right, so off the record? Off the record, yep. All right.

RECORDING IN PROGRESS.

ALL RIGHT. BACK ON. IGNACIO, SORRY.

THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. I HAVE A COUPLE QUESTIONS. FIRST OF ALL, GONZALO WAS TALKING ABOUT 8 INCHES. WAS IN THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE GABLES THAT IT WAS GOING TO CHANGE? based on the recommendations that you wanted more?

Yes, we do. So currently they have an arcade. That arcade I believe is eight inches from the sidewalk in certain locations and that's where the eight inches is coming from. Staff is recommending to remove the arcade and have a front yard of 10 feet. It's consistent with the conservation overlay district. So you have a frontage that's consistent with the area around it and that would be increased obviously to a more landscape area. That's part of the commissioner approval.

So that would be our recommendation, if we do pass this, that we incorporate your recommendations as well.

That's the board, but yes, staff recommending that we do remove those arcades so that we have front yards with stoops or small porches.

Okay, this barrier site keeps on coming up. Is this a cemetery or?

There's no public comments, public comments are closed. Unfortunately, I know very much of this.

I just want to answer the question. No, this site was alleged to be a cemetery four years ago. The state of Florida came and certified that it is not a cemetery.

Ma'am, please. Thank you.

I know Robert said we can't ask this question today, but what's going to happen with these trees and with this garden? You talk about trees over 100 years old and gardens. What's going to happen with all that?

So... I'd be happy to answer that. So the city arborist, Dina Bell, has been out to the property. It is well documented. There is, from five years ago, when the Garden of Our Lord designation process began, there are no historical biblical trees in that garden today. And five years ago, there were none. There is a large specimen oak on the property, and we have... Michael McCoy here, our tree expert, which, and I know it may not be part of these proceedings, we have committed to relocate to the outdoor plaza that sits right on the intersection of Phoenicia and East Ponce. There is also another large tree on the northwest corner of this property that we have carved the building back in order to preserve. So there are two trees on site that we are preserving. The trees that Ms. Bonnie is referring to do not exist on the property.

Ma'am, please.

Okay, a lot of my questions were asked and answered already by my prior colleagues, but I want to be honest. I'm also torn on this decision for two reasons. One, my office is on Almeida and Ponds, a block from H Street. I've been told that Shoma Construction Company is going to build a huge complex between 37 and Ponce on 8th Street. And there's going to be another huge residential complex going up on 747 Ponce, maybe? 707 Ponce? 716 Ponce?

But it's not a huge development.

But it's going to be another development of a couple hundred more cars. I can't get on 8th Street now. I'm sorry? Okay, I can get on H3 now, so traffic is a major concern for me. Versus the autistic school, Crystal, there's not enough schools of autism in Dade County. Even though my four month old is perfectly healthy, I have a lot of friends with autistic kids, but for they work 80 hours a week to be able to pay their care. There's no services out there for autistic kids. So I'm torn between Crystal and I can't get on A Street now. Imagine all these three projects now jumping out and you can't drive on A Street. That's where I'm torn in right now.

Thank you. Thank you.

Jennifer, can we put up that zoning map again, please. And while you do that, because I want to make a, I want to make a, see a correction based on one of Maria Cruz's comment that only the taller building, the height is west of Ponce de Leon. And I think that that was incorrect, or it is incorrect, because you allowed, and it was proven that the zoning on both sides of Ponce de Leon allowed for up to 150 feet, up to 190 feet, six inches, with the Mediterranean bonuses. So can you put up that map a second? Because I think that height... It is definitely permitted on both sides of ponds.

Robert, do you mean the present zoning or the comp plan?

They're both, both. Okay. And then because once we put that up, I want to do the address the compatibility of the area. Go to the other map that you had. You had side-by-side with the existing and the comp and the proposed. And then also, I don't know, and I'm going to ask the applicant to show me or somebody where exactly is the location of the Garden of the Lord, you know, when it comes to the site, the specific exact location of that.

Over on the northwest side.

Because, okay.

Northwest corner, north is up.

Okay. For the classes. There was another one that, maybe it was the applicant who put it up. Or because, I mean, we could use that. Because the, you could zoom that. Because that shows that to the east, zoom in there, to the east of the site, all around the site, at a minimum, you have the MF2 zoning, which allows 100 feet and 100 units per acre. Is that right or not? Everything around the property to the east is MF2. Is that right?

Yes, everything around there is MF2.

And that currently allows 100 feet and 100 units per acre.

For large properties that are 20,000 square feet or more, yes.

Okay. So it's not like what is there now is the zoning that only allows one and two-story. There are one and two-story structures, but the zoning currently allows up to 100 feet. But when you have 1.7 acres you're gonna meet when you have 60 something thousand square feet you can exceed it by three times Okay so comparability is clearly demonstrated that it is comparable and compatible to the immediate surrounding properties No question about it If we go one block to the south, there's already an existing, which I was looking on my phone on Google Earth, seven-story building. Is it not? Or eight-story building to the south. To the east, immediately adjacent to the property, you have what appears to be 12 to 14-story buildings and ponds. On East Ponce, East Ponce, as you go, because there is two buildings already on just immediately to the northeast that are far higher than this property.

Mr. Behar, would you like me to pull up the PowerPoint that I had?

Yes, please.

With the massing?

Yes, please. And when you do that, the reason that this property, in my opinion, was not, like Mr. Navarro stated, it was not made or rezoned back then in 2015, 2016 to the MF2 because it had a school, had a church. But this is one that property that will be consistent. And on this exhibit, as you go north on East Ponce, at the end you have a building that is like 12 stories.

That one? Yes. Okay. The 911 East Ponce.

Okay, then to the south of that one, you have another structure.

Seven or eight stories, yes.

When you show that green to the block on Santee Lane and East Ponds, there's a building there that's coming, which I believe is 10 stories.

Yes.

Approved, ready to start construction.

Where at?

The building, Jennifer, where's... There you see the green area there. There's a building that's starting construction there.

That is 10 story And they just closed off East ponds on ponds that intersect there if you're going South then you can't cross over. That's right.

Okay. I mean it's that that's something else. That's a difference which makes it worse That's a different but those are the projects that already so that come to be The comparability on this is there already. It's not like they're introducing something new. On this project, you have a eight-story component at 83 feet and a nine-story at 93, which is not far less, but it's a little less than what you're allowed to have. If I would have been doing, and this is not against the architect, and it's a very good architect, I would have probably started placing that green space more or that park more in an area to try to preserve those trees. Maybe the planning would have been a little bit different, but six of one, half dozen of the other. I would have also... Your part can you go to the site plan or the ground floor plan? and this is something that maybe could be looked at and do it as you go through the process Maybe that park instead of running north and south you go east and west so give the The Women's Club a little bit more openness without Can we please hold on? So maybe that's a possibility that just rotate the park, doesn't lose any density, any square footage or anything. It's just a matter, it would be good if we could show that ground floor plan. And I think that could be, in my opinion, a good compromise.

There you could see the tree.

If you see there, and if I, where you have, where you have the, which I had a PowerPoint, On the top, what is on the north side of that ramp? That's a ramp to go up to the garage, correct? What is on that side of the ramp? The FBO vault? The FBO vault.

Okay.

And what happens, because if you were to change it a little bit and you put the park on the north side, going east and west, I think it's going to serve the same thing because you're going to have the school that you could open it. And it could relieve a little, you know, more openness to the women's club with the mature trees.

And honestly, it's a great idea. We started that way, exactly that way, exactly how you're describing. But what happened, Robert, was that the width of the parking rendered us a very thin sliver between the liner units on the south and the parking itself.

Can you go up to the upper floors?

When we turned it around, we wanted to make sure that we had liners on both sides. So if I kept the liners to the women's club, which was really important, when I turned it, we had a very, very thin sliver on the side. But that's how I originally wanted to plan it out. But it's...

I think that, you know... We could review it. You could look at it. I think... I would think it would be more... appropriate to give that setback to the women's club than the way it is today obviously i want to make sure that the project works right it's functional i appreciate your thoughts i am not one you know one bit uh against the project i i think it's it's going to be good there's a lot of things one of the comments that that um that one of the speaker made about the location of the interior courtyard. Is that courtyard really accessible to the public?

It is, and we also have it on Covenant accessible to the public. That's what we created, that north-south paseo to be able to, and it's not a small paseo, it's a pretty wide paseo.

I think, Albert, I mean, it may be, but... For me, as a public, to access that through the Paseo, it's not calling to me and says, welcome. It could be there for the public, but it doesn't appear to be that's the case. I think that if you did a couple of those, if you tried to implement a couple of these Minor, I don't think they're major You know solutions.

I think it would be everybody will be happier Particularly when it comes to that green space to the park and and if the parking were oriented instead of north-south east-west and take the 5,000 square foot and then simply make it a little further or larger on the on the Southwest corner then all of a sudden you've got your liner You took the 5,000 square feet.

Not the southwest corner, because the southwest corner is, it will be. No, I'm just. You're saying the northwest corner.

I meant the northwest corner.

I think the northeast corner, because I like what he's doing on the northeast corner. Because I don't want to lose the liner units.

No, no, without a doubt. But what I'm saying is that the 5,000 square foot of the open space, which is really inside, accessible only through the paseo, then would become irrelevant because it would be moved to the northeast corner. And it would be much better.

It'd be much better, and you'd preserve. I just want you to look at it, study it.

I appreciate the comments, and we will absolutely do. We've been working almost five years on this project, on and off, and if there's something that we can do internalized, that does not... What's another 30 days?

Exactly.

That's where I was going, that we'd be happy to look at it and study it, and if there's a possibility, why not? It's not going to affect the exterior at all.

And before I, you know, because I'm prepared to make a motion. Can we, on the zoning, both side of east, side of Ponce de Leon, you allowed to go up to 190 feet, right?

On Ponce de Leon?

On Ponce de Leon.

Yes, between H Street pretty much and CBD.

Because that, just want to make sure for the record that, because I understood Maria Cruz's comments said that it's only on the west side of Ponce. No, both sides. But in fact, it's on both sides. Okay. I have no more questions. Thank you.

Thank you, and I just, I have a few comments and questions. One of the speakers made a comment that they live in the neighborhood and parking is an issue. In regards to the staff, and I think this is a question for the applicant, in regards to the staff and the faculty for Crystal Academy, is there parking within the building?

Yes, there is, yeah. We've accommodated a dedicated pick-up and drop-off area, and we also have dedicated parking for Crystal within the garage. For the employees for the employees and yet and staff One thing I like to mention is you've also been working with the neighborhood I know we've talked about parallel parking and all sorts of things We've been working with staff to also preserve the spaces on these ponds that are used by both The Women's Club and some of the area residents I know a couple of the rest of the residents and some of my colleagues mentioned compatibility.

I think I Ms. Bravo did an incredible job. I, myself, work in 999 Ponce. And right behind my building, I guess going east, there's a development going in. I don't know any details of that development, but it's a monster project. I mean, the land has just been completely wiped out. So I think it's more than compatible. I think you have buildings that are just as tall, if not taller. One of the questions I had is someone mentioned that their public space and the green space, is the green space that's there now Open to the public at all, at any point? No, it is private. It's not accessible.

But it can be. But it easily could be. Not now. No, not now. Yeah, but yes. And we're going to look into it, yes. If you reconsider.

Yeah.

And then the only last question I had, because you hear Gardener of the Lord, and this is something that I guess I've heard when I was campaigning four or five years ago, there's nothing historic about that property, correct? No. It's been fully deemed non-historic. That's not something, because you heard about the historical neighborhood, so on and so forth.

And I know that's been a concern, and it's been a big topic of conversation. It has gone through every review board that the city has, and it has gone to court and has exhausted all the appellate remedies. And that issue is concluded. Yeah.

And just by way of reference, not that this has to do with what's today, I've had the pleasure of visiting Crystal Academy in 2021. And what they're doing there is absolutely incredible. I mean, it's really special. I think someone said it's worth visiting because it leaves you floored. So I have no further comments in the interest of time. I'm in favor of this and accepting as the staff recommends.

I'll make a motion to approve. With staff recommendation conditions and with my suggestion, not going to make it a condition, but very close, okay, that you look at turning that green space along east and west versus north and south on the northeast corner.

Robert, wouldn't it be better to Pardon me. Wouldn't it be better to ask for a deferral or rather recommend a deferral now? I'm sorry. Recommend a deferral to be able to get this because, remember, there are four conditions. One is the comp plan. One is the zoning. You have the PUD. And the PUD carries a site plan approval. So if they change the site plan,

It would be better. But it's a minor, it's a minor modification. If they do, it's not a substantial modification.

Well, I would just feel more comfortable seeing, because it would be a...

I'm sure, and the applicant could, you know, confirm, but you're not tight that you need to get a commission?

Yeah, I mean, this project is critical for the school. Also, we have been five years working on this project. It has been a long time coming. We, as you can see, have been very open to working to make changes to this project. That's something that we will strongly consider. You know, we will try to make it work if it's feasible. Definitely, I think, in terms...

I'm really... I hate to do it, but I think it may become a condition. Okay? Yeah. that you turn that. And if you do, if you commit to do it, and I think you can, you know, you got my full support on it.

We will definitely start studying it ASAP. And what I would love to do is share the studies with the planning department so that they can see how it's being developed. It's all interior. I agree. It should be a minor, but we need to see it.

This is the 4,000 square foot area, green space that you have. A portion of it already going to the corner. It's really, at the end of the day, it's moving, from what I saw, moving your vault to one side. I mean, relocate it.

Correct.

You know, and put the school, which I think the school could front the park completely also.

Be more than happy to study that, Robert.

What is the motion?

I would say a deferral. So, Mr.

Chair, there are four items. So, there would be, we would need four separate motions. And remember, the first one is on the land use. So, I don't know if you want to come up.

Okay, I'll make a motion to approve the land use. To recommend approval. Approval, with staff recommendation.

I second the motion.

Well, I'm sorry, Mr. Chairman. Just need to understand this because we're going down a slippery slope here One is the master plan then it's a zoning and Then what do you do with the well right now is the zoning? No, no, but I need to understand what the game would put a condition which is We turn the park to incorporate

to incorporate the comment. The garden of the? Yeah, I mean, that's where we could put the condition, not on this one.

On what, which one?

On the third and fourth items, on the pad and on the site plan.

Correct. But let me ask you a question, Robert, and if they're unable to do so, is that condition? If they're unable to do that, like, or I don't, I live in my area, I'm an attorney, so I don't know.

Or is it delegated to staff to work with it and maximize that effort?

And it obviously should come back to this board to see.

That's my concern. I'm making a condition. I'd rather make it a recommendation. Okay. That's my biggest concern. I'm making a condition.

For them to work with us. Correct.

I definitely think we should implement it in the motion, just not make it a condition.

We're not there yet.

We're not there yet. We have a motion for zoning. I want to add an amendment to it.

Sorry, it's for the first item, which is the land use change.

That's correct. We have a first and a second.

Friendly amendment. Friendly amendment. I have a major concern with traffic. I can't get an A Street now. We have to do some type of traffic study to figure out how to fix that mess on A Street. Especially, we're going to have three major projects. Now, a fourth one, I didn't know about the one just north of it you just mentioned. But that's four projects. If you can't get on 8th Street now, Colgate needs to do a traffic study to address that problem.

And I don't want to speak for South, but they did do a traffic study.

No, they say they did it.

No, they said that they did what they required to.

No, they talked about a different project. And maybe we could just have you ask. And 8th Street is a state road, so there's much more to it than...

There's a traffic say that's completed for this proposed project. I think what they're saying is that there wasn't an update when they changed a unit or two There was an update that was required.

No, I heard that they didn't meet the threshold Those what they testified that's a different project with this chairman Let's just hear from them first

So, there was a traffic impact study that was conducted in 2022. They recently had submitted a revised trip generation letter when they revised their site plan and their development plan. And it was still found that they were under the trips, they actually had less trips than was proposed in the original traffic impact study, because they took out an office space. What I would do as a recommendation would be the new developments that come in have to do, you know, go through the process. which is first they submit a trip generation letter to us, and if they have 50 or more peak hour trips, a change in peak hour trips, then they have to do the traffic impact study. My personal or professional opinion, I don't think it's the best idea to have them redo their study, and then if it gets delayed, then they're gonna have to redo every time a new development comes in. It probably should be the next Development that comes in has to incorporate this one into their in their background study.

Yeah Yeah, let's let's let's try to well, but we only got five minutes 15 minutes 15 minutes. Can I get a motion?

I'll get my motion to go to 1015 All in favor aye Mr.. Chairman, but but wait These projects have already been approved THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED.

THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APPROVED. THE PROJECT HAS BEEN APP

That concept is not going to work.

It's just if you keep doing that every time a new development comes up, they're going to have to redo their study is my thought process. So they'll never finish because more developments come up.

The norm is for future projects to take this project into account as an existing condition in the background trips that they're starting with.

Mr. Chairman.

Yes.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. So we haven't heard from opposing counsel. I would like to have opposing counsel come up and say some statements as well, since the applicant has basically taken up most, if not all of the time. I think we have a motion.

Gonzalo, I think we have a motion. What's the protocol?

Do you need a motion? I haven't heard a second.

I don't know if there's been a second. There is a second. Oh, there is a motion and a second.

Yeah, so we should... Can I get...

Alice Bravo?

Yes.

Shane McClashen?

Yes.

Felix Pardo?

No.

Gonzalo Sanabria?

Yes.

Ignacio Alvarez? No. Robert Behar? Yes. Alex Buscello?

Yes.

I'll make a motion. Item E2 for approval with staff recommendations.

Which one's E2?

E2 is the zoning change.

The zoning change.

What did we just vote on? I'm sorry, Mr. Chairman, one moment, please.

Mr. Chairman, hold on one moment. What did we just vote on?

Land use.

My vote is no. I want to retrace my vote to no. Thank you.

Okay, we have a motion, do we have a second?

Second. No, no.

Jill, oh, I'll give you a second.

And so on E2 there is a motion and a second.

And a second.

I'm sorry, for E2?

For E2. Motion to approve was Stafford, yeah.

Motion by, I'm sorry?

By Behar, second by Mrs. Bravo.

Can I? Can I? Just do it. We should have started with three and four because that's what's in the site plan. We could put a condition.

I thought we were going to.

Robert, let's just finish this.

Yeah, let's just go. Let's just go. If you can call roll, Joe, please.

And why are we calling the roll on pre-smiths? What is the motion, please? The zoning. Which one?

Number two, zoning.

So it's item E2. There is a motion to approve with staff's recommendations, and it's the zoning change from the special use to mixed use two, and also to include within the boundaries of the North Ponce mixed use district overlay.

Over.

Jay McGlashan?

Yes.

Felix Pardo?

No.