Local
Virginia Key marina proposal draws challenge under Miami-Dade charter
Two residents are asking a court to require a countywide vote on a plan for more than 300 boat slips at the former Miami Seaquarium site. The developer says its proposal complies with the county charter and can proceed if approved by Miami-Dade County.
Two Miami-Dade residents have sued over plans for a marina at the former Miami Seaquarium site on Virginia Key, arguing that county voters—not only commissioners—should decide whether the project can move forward.
Aaron Stauber and Gregory Frankel filed suit under Article 7 of the Miami-Dade County charter, a citizen enforcement provision. They contend that the planned development goes beyond the existing Seaquarium property and into Biscayne Bay, including more than 300 boat slips that are not there now.
The Seaquarium is exempt from Article 7, but the residents argue that the proposed marina is a separate expansion and should be subject to the charter’s requirements. Stauber said the lawsuit would not have been filed over a modernization confined to the existing site. Frankel described the dispute as a question of process and residents’ role in redevelopment decisions.
Resilient Aquarium LLC, the developer, said its plans were designed to comply with the property’s permitted uses and Article 7. The company said it expects to proceed with transforming the site if Miami-Dade County approves the plans.
County Commissioner Raquel Regalado, whose District 7 includes Virginia Key, held an evening webinar with the developer on Wednesday. The lawsuit puts public participation in the redevelopment of the waterfront site at the center of a dispute over how the marina proposal should be reviewed.