Bal Harbour Shops lawyer: Village leaders do not want affordable housing in their backyard
BAL HARBOUR - A lawyer for Bal Harbour Shops claims village leaders do not want affordable housing in their backyard and have a history of blocking it.
"Bal Harbour Shops has attempted to expand and bring in additional development for some time and it's constantly been met with resistance," Ian DeMello, an attorney representing Bal Harbour Shops told CBS News Miami in an exclusive interview.
DeMello's clients filed a lawsuit against Bal Harbour Village Tuesday. It claims the village is stalling an application to develop a new high-rise hotel and 600 apartment building, which will including affordable housing units. The state of Florida's new Live Local Act allows such applications to avoid public hearings if 40% of the homes are reserved for affordable housing tenants.
"They haven't kept any of their promises to us," Cassie Wuollet, a Bal Harbour homeowner said.
Wuollet is no fan of the Shops' current owners and claims that people in the village do not welcome housing that servers, teachers and first responders can afford.
"I'm absolutely offended and disgusted by the accusation," she said.
Wuollet said growing strains on village roads and infrastructure makes her wonder what new development means for emergency response times.
"The debris (from construction for separate development ongoing at Bal Harbour Shops), the noise, pollution, the traffic, it's just untenable," Wuollet said.
Three years ago, village voters shot down a referendum to change zoning in order to allow taller buildings on Collins Avenue to accommodate Bal Harbour Shops' desire to expand.
Last spring, Florida lawmakers passed the Live Local Act.
January 9th, the Shops' owners submitted a blueprint with its application to bring high-rises to it's luxury shopping center. One week later, a ballroom full of homeowners urged the council to fight.
"(Council) also promised to prevent and protect the village against affordable housing at really any and all costs," DeMello said.
When asked why his client believes village leaders and homeowners oppose the project because of the affordable housing component, DeMello said, "Refusal to allow the application to move forward and the administratively approve it and to have a public meeting and impose a moratorium to prevent this development is in direct conflict of the Live Local Act."
Mayor Jeffery Freimark disagreed.
"We want to protect ourselves against bad development," Freimark said. "What they're talking about in terms of that description is make-believe. It is just not factual."
"If you look at the zoning districts within the village of Bal Harbour, right across the street is the oceanfront district," DeMello said. "That district itself is designated for luxury high-rise development. So to say that the village is opposed to height really doesn't hold any water."
"They couldn't care less about building affordable housing," Wuollet said. "They're just putting it in the proposal to try to shove through an initiative to build multi-million dollar apartments. I think the only consideration is how to maximize the value of that property there without any consideration for the community whatsoever."
Wuollet showed CBS News Miami around apartments wedged between homes and the Shops property.
"We just can't handle more (development)," Wuollet said. "Our infrastructure is inadequate on this barrier island."
"We view this as an incredible opportunity for the village and the shops to really fill a void and provide attainable workforce housing to not only Bal Harbour Shops but to Miami-Dade (County)," DeMello said.
While the village has no affordable housing guidelines, Mayor Freimark said no one has submitted a proposal for such a project until now.
"(The Shops) are the business district essentially here in Bal Harbour," he said. "They have had multiple opportunities to do that. Never once have I heard them say anything about affordable housing, workforce housing, however you want to define it or describe it. The village recognizes the need to have collaboration with the business district. Bal Harbour Shops are an important element of Bal Harbour and we seek to work cooperatively with them.
Freimark said the village does not oppose affordable housing.
"The residents of the is community have spoken loud and clear about the protection of development and density and height," Freimark said. "There are ways to accomplish affordable housing within the confines of the business district in a much more appropriate manner without placing the burden on the infrastructure."
The village is seeking the best representation possible to fight the lawsuit.