FYI Miami: December 11, 2025

BRICKELL LAND CHANGES: Three more Brickell area properties were brought under county land use controls last week, including two that are pivotal to the development of the $2.5 billion, 58-story Citadel office tower at 1201 Brickell Bay Drive. County commissioners last week unanimously approved the changes without discussion. The vote is part of a county policy to promote higher use densities and transit-oriented developments near transit hubs. In the cases of 170 and 186 SE 12th Terrace and 238 SW 13th Street, the sites’ owners all sought the change in property controls and the increased densities that they allow. All three properties are within a five-minute walk of a Metromover station, county legislation says. 

MITIGATION BANK STUDY: Miami-Dade will study using park lands as a county-owned wetlands mitigation bank that could sell scarce mitigation credits to developers who need them to meet regulatory requirements. Commissioners voted 11-0 last week without discussion to direct Mayor Daniella Levine Cava to evaluate park use for a mitigation bank and report back within 60 days. In mitigation banking, environmental enhancement and preservation to mitigate for wetlands impacts within a defined region earn credits that can be used elsewhere. Florida has more than 160 mitigation banks, yet mitigation credits are scarce here, and developers often wind up on waiting lists to buy them. 

LIGHTING UP THE KEY: The 200th anniversary of the first lighting of the Cape Florida Lighthouse on Key Biscayne will be celebrated Dec. 17 with a broad-based birthday party. The Coast Guard plans a fly-over, the director of Florida’s state parks and Miami-Dade County Commissioner Raquel Regalado are to speak, the Juggerknot Theater Company will present an immersive theater experience, celebrants will have a champagne toast and more. The celebration is from 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the lighthouse in Bill Baggs State Park, organized by the Friends of Cape Florida. Details: (786) 367-6829. 

THEMATIC ZONING PLAN: Legislation by Danielle Cohen Higgins seeking a process to develop a thematic zoning district in her South Dade commission district passed 11-0 last week with no discussion. Her legislation noted that in a Jan. 29 memo Mayor Daniella Levine Cava had recommended that such thematic zoning districts in unincorporated areas be developed through neighborhood planning to recognize their unique characters. The first community meeting on such a district is to be held within 90 days after her resolution passed.

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