Resia Looks To Leverage Live Local Act For Swift Approval Of 948-Unit Project
Miami-based multifamily development firm Resia is asking Miami-Dade County for administrative approval of a 948-unit workforce housing project in Medley, citing rules under Florida’s new Live Local Act that the developer says allow it to skip the public approval process.
The application marks one of the first instances in South Florida of a developer seeking administrative approval under the law.
Resia is planning to build four 12-story buildings on 6 acres owned by the Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation next to the Palmetto Metrorail Station. In its May 18 application, a lawyer representing Resia said the project was subject to administrative approval under the Live Local Act because all of its units were planned to be offered as workforce housing.
The law, which goes into effect July 1, requires local governments to approve projects without a public hearing if they meet certain requirements. Developments seeking approval under the project must have at least 40% of units set aside for tenants making no more than 120% of the area median income.
In addition to putting rules in place to streamline development, the law provides $711M in first-year funding and $1.5B over the next 10 years for existing affordable housing loan programs.
A lawyer from Holland & Knight representing Resia wrote in a letter of intent accompanying the development application that the project should be approved because all of its 948 units would be for tenants making under 120% of AMI. A Miami-Dade resident earning up to $81,960 annually could qualify for housing at the project, according to data from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Resia is partnering with MagicWaste Youth Foundation on the development at 7701 Northwest 79th Ave. The nonprofit was founded in 2017 and is dedicated to mentoring and providing support for youths who have “aged out” of the foster care system and eligibility for continued services.
Miami-Dade County commissioners approved a ground lease at the site in September 2022 with several stipulations. It was approved for up to 1,030 units with at least 258 units set aside for members of the military and their families, 125 units set aside for Metrorail and Metrobus operators, and 40 rent-free units for children who have aged out of foster care.
The development is also expected to include a parking garage with 1,290 spaces, and Resia has agreed to make $1M in improvements to the Palmetto Metrorail Station. The project is expected to bring in $178M in rent for the county over the 90-year term of the ground lease, according to the commission resolution approving the deal in September.
The project falls under the authority of the county instead of the town of Medley because it is located in a Rapid Transit Zone, according to the application.
Resia’s application is a sign of what’s to come when the Live Local Act goes into effect on July 1. In addition to simplifying the approval process and funding affordable housing loans, the law also opens up land zoned for commercial or industrial use for multifamily development and changes how height and density limits are calculated.
The law has generated tremendous interest in the development community, and several developers are preparing proposals they plan to submit in early July.
“There's people out there that are looking into it a bit more now to see if they can get incentives at the property they've been looking at and see if they get the zoning they want with the bill,” J.C. de Ona, the Southeast Florida president at Centennial Bank, told Bisnow last week. “A deal that was not financeable before, we can make them financeable because there’s more equity available.”
The intense interest has led to some fears in the development community that the $711M in first-year funding could be quickly depleted, which has led developers to get proposals ready to submit.
“You have to be ready to go now,” de Ona said.
