- Revisions to Florida’s Live Local Act could allow demolition of Miami Beach’s iconic art deco buildings to make way for high-rise residential towers.
- Supporters argue the changes are essential to ease housing shortages and traffic congestion, while preservationists say the city’s architectural heritage is at risk.
- The updated law bypasses local historic preservation hearings, raising alarm in other historic cities like St. Augustine.
Historic Charm VS. Housing Crisis
Florida’s affordable housing shortage is running headlong into Miami Beach’s architectural history, reports WSJ. Proposed revisions to the state’s Live Local Act would allow developers to replace some of the city’s historic art deco buildings—many just a few stories tall—with towers up to 50 stories high.
A Preservation Flashpoint
Miami Beach has the world’s largest concentration of art deco buildings, including landmarks like the Raleigh and Tides hotels. Critics of the proposed law warn that losing these structures would be akin to demolishing globally recognized monuments.
City Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez described the buildings as “our Leaning Tower of Pisa, our Eiffel Tower, our pyramids,” emphasizing that the Art Deco District is second only to Disney World in generating Florida tourism revenue.
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Developers Call For Pragmatism
Developers, facing soaring demand and limited housing stock, argue that not all buildings are salvageable. Miami Beach developer Russell Galbut says affordability and traffic are at their worst, and changes are essential to fix long-standing issues.
Law With Teeth
The Live Local Act, passed in 2023, already gave developers broad leeway to bypass local zoning if projects included workforce housing. The latest revisions go further by eliminating public hearings for demolitions of historic buildings. Municipalities must now approve such requests administratively.
A Broader Impact
Historic cities beyond Miami Beach are watching closely. St. Augustine, the oldest continuously inhabited European-established city in the US, voiced concerns about irreversible damage to its historic fabric. “Once a historic building is demolished, there’s no putting Humpty Dumpty back together again,” said City Attorney Isabelle Lopez.
Middle Ground Possible?
Architect Kobi Karp, known for blending preservation with modern development, says a balanced solution is achievable. His work on the Raleigh Hotel and Four Seasons Surf Club shows new towers can complement, not replace, historic facades.
Why It Matters
Florida’s population boom has created one of the nation’s most urgent housing crises. In 2023, 59% of renters in the state were cost-burdened—spending more than 30% of their income on housing, according to Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies. The Live Local Act aims to address this with incentives for developers, but the risk is the erasure of Florida’s cultural and architectural landmarks.
What’s Next
With the law awaiting the governor’s signature, developers and preservationists prepare for mounting legal and public clashes.
Florida’s effort to balance housing demand with historic preservation is becoming a closely watched national case study.
