Virginia Key has a long and storied history, rooted in ecological beauty and enormous potential, recreation and entertainment, misuse and even Jim Crow, from its segregated-beach days. Now the next chapter of this fragile, 1,000-acre piece of land is being written. City of Miami leaders should ensure that it's one that balances competing interests, keeping public access a priority while attracting the kind of private enterprise that works in harmony, and not to the detriment, of this ecologically threatened key.
Commissioners can take a long-delayed first step on Thursday by agreeing to appoint a Virginia Key Oversight Board. Its mission? To ensure a smart, safe and ecologically sound future for the key.
Virginia Key sits within the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Preserve and is a Critical Wildlife Area. But don't be fooled by the designation. It hasn't stopped Virginia Key from having to withstand a tremendous amount of pressure: Blasting from the PortMiami dredge was poised to do damage to the bay's flora and fauna, Virginia Key included. A recent settlement between environmentalists, the state, Miami-Dade County and the Army Corps of Engineers now includes money to restore coastal dunes on the north section of the key. Last year, heavy equipment destroyed 40 mangroves and a wide swath of wetlands during digging for the port tunnel. Leaky sewage pipes — that end up at a smelly treatment plant on the key itself — pose a danger to the key and far beyond.
On drier land, developers and other commercial interests perpetually have had their sights set on the barrier island. The proposed renovation of Miami Marine Stadium has attracted most of the official attention during the past year. But it should not be allowed to overshadow the overarching needs of the entire key.
To do what's best for the key, smart and sensitive long-term planning must take all of the competing interests into account. Commissioner Marc Sarnoff, whose district includes Virginia Key, has not warmed to the idea of an oversight board. He says that there already is a similar board looking into the marine stadium rehab — and that Virginia Key's future already is dealt with in the city of Miami's master plan. He also says, commendably, that at some point, elected officials just have to take responsibility for the city's stewardship of public land.
He's right. Accountability starts and ends on the commission dais. And the master plan, indeed, outlines that Virginia Key needs thematic integration, smart connectivity to transportation , recreational areas and several other elements — including some development — to make it an attractive venue for residents throughout the county, and for tourists, too.
Who will dispassionately help fill in the broad outlines when specific projects are proposed? How best to ensure that the vision of cohesiveness comes to fruition? Miami already has experience with willy-nilly development. (Imagine a performing arts center staging outdoor performances by the bay instead of hemmed in by traffic-clogged urban streets. And a basketball arena, with its captive indoor audience, could have created fewer traffic hassles farther west.
Any board will only be as effective as the people who sit on it. Diverse in expertise and interests? Yes. Populated with members looking to hijack the process solely for one or another industry's gain? A recipe for trouble.
Virginia Key warrants caretakers who will help city leaders make the most informed decisions about its next chapter.
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