§ 33-303. Exclusive procedure for zoning in the unincorporated areas or where the County retains zoning jurisdiction in incorporated areas; exception for approval of governmental facilities.
(a)
Applicability of zoning procedures. The procedures provided in this chapter shall be exclusive in the unincorporated area of the County and for any airport or seaport properties and other areas where the County retains zoning jurisdiction in incorporated areas of the County. No application for a district boundary change, appeal of administrative decision, special exception, unusual or new use, variance, or other zoning action shall be considered or granted by the Board of County Commissioners or by any County Board except as provided for by this chapter, and shall only be conducted in accordance with the procedure and method so provided.
(b)
Exception; procedure for governmental facilities. Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the contrary, unless a governmental facility is authorized as a designated permitted use in a zoning district, Miami-Dade County and its agencies and authorities shall not be bound by the procedures contained in this chapter in constructing or operating any governmental facility listed below in the unincorporated area of Miami-Dade County or where the County retains zoning jurisdiction in incorporated areas. In the event of a conflict with this Board's Rules of Procedure, the provisions of this subsection shall control.
(1)
Governmental facilities enumerated. The Board of County Commissioners may establish any of the following governmental facilities operated by or on behalf of Miami-Dade County where the Board may direct, without regard to the zoning or use classification of any particular site or location: public parks, playgrounds and buildings, and structures supplementary and incidental to such uses; domestic violence centers; fire stations; police stations; public auto inspection stations; public water and sewer treatment and distribution facilities; public libraries; public buildings and centers; public housing; public hospitals, nursing homes and health facilities; homeless shelters; public auditoriums, arenas, museums, art galleries and convention halls; maximum and minimum detention facilities; solid-waste collection and disposal facilities; public maintenance and equipment yards; public bus stations and Rapid-Transit stations and facilities; and other governmental facility uses as determined by the Board of County Commissioners.
(2)
Notice and public hearing required. The Board of County Commissioners may only authorize the construction or operation of the governmental facilities enumerated in paragraph (1) above by resolution following public hearing.
(i)
The said public hearing shall be held upon at least 15 days' notice of the time and place of such hearing published in a newspaper of general circulation in Miami-Dade County, which publication shall include the time and place of hearing before the Board of County Commissioners.
(ii)
A courtesy notice containing general information as to the date, time, and place of the hearing, the property location and general nature of the application may be mailed to the property owners of record, within a radius of 300 feet of the property described in the application, or such greater distance as the Director may prescribe; provided, however, that failure to mail or receive such courtesy notice shall not affect any action or proceeding taken hereunder.
(iii)
To provide additional notice to the public, the property shall be posted by a sign or signs indicating the action desired and the time and place of the public hearing thereon. Failure to post such property shall not affect any action taken hereunder.
(iv)
At the public hearing the Board of County Commissioners shall consider, among other factors, the type of function involved, the public need therefor, the existing land use pattern in the area, alternative locations for the facility and the nature of the impact of the facility on the surrounding property. After considering these said factors, the Board of County Commissioners shall take such action as is necessary to provide for and protect the public health, safety and welfare of the citizens and residents of Miami-Dade County.
(3)
Posting of property. In the event the Board of County Commissioners authorizes the construction or operation of a governmental facility in accordance with the procedures delineated above, or in the event the Board otherwise determines that County-owned property or property operated by or on behalf of the County should be utilized by the County for a particular public purpose, the property shall be posted by a sign or signs conspicuously located thereon indicating the governmental facility or use authorized for the property. Such sign or signs may be removed upon the commencement of construction. The County Mayor or designee shall periodically check the property to ensure that the signs provided for in this paragraph remain in existence and accurately depict the proposed use of the subject property. This paragraph shall be construed as directory only and failure to comply with the provisions hereof shall not affect the validity of the County Commission's action authorizing the use of the property for the designated purposes.
(4)
Domestic violence center. Any facility which is designated as or intended to be operated as a domestic violence center at the time of consideration, planning, construction, or acquisition, shall be exempt from the notice and public hearing provisions set forth in this subsection.
(5)
Deferral by Commissioner. A County Commissioner may request a deferral of any item processed in accordance with this subsection for up to two meetings the first time the item appears on a Board agenda, or the first time the item is raised at a Board meeting, if the impacts of the proposed construction or operation of the governmental facility would be felt exclusively or predominantly in that Commissioner's district. Upon the Commissioner's invoking this right, discussion upon that item shall cease, and the Board shall move to another item of business. The provisions of this paragraph shall be deemed waived unless asserted by a Commissioner before the Board takes action on the resolution in question.
(6)
Administrative Approval of Non-Substantial Change. For governmental facilities plans approved in accordance with this section, the Director is hereby authorized to approve changes that the Director determines to be non-substantial, as demonstrated by the following factors:
(i)
Development density and intensity have not materially changed;
(ii)
Design has not materially changed, provided that:
1.
Relocation of roadways, including ingress and egress, is determined not to create traffic obstructions and is approved by the Department of Transportation and Public Works or its successor department;
2.
Relocation, reconfiguration, or reduction of the parking area and its spaces does not impact adjoining properties, and the Director determines that sufficient spaces for the use are retained;
3.
Modification of building setbacks from perimeter property lines does not negatively impact adjoining properties, or the modification is mitigated to a minimize the impact;
4.
Reconfiguration of the landscaped open space does not diminish any previously approved buffering or separation from surrounding properties;
5.
Modification to walls or fences does not diminish previously approved buffering or separation from surrounding properties;
6.
Conversion of a use, facility, or element to another use, facility, or element remains within the scope of the previously approved plan;
7.
Addition of uses, facilities, or elements not shown in the previously approved plans either: do not increase lot coverage, or decrease required open space, by greater than 10 percent; or (ii) consist of uses, facilities, or elements that were described in the resolution, site review committee memo, report, or study presented to the Board in the governmental facility hearing; and
8.
Relocation or modification of signage remains consistent with the intent of the approved plan in size, height, and class of sign.
(iii)
Modifications shall not be eligible for administrative approval in any of the following circumstances:
1.
The amount of impervious surfaces approved in the original plan would be increased; or
2.
Infrastructure in the public right-of-way or on other properties could be affected, whether the effect is major or minor; or
3.
Green space would be significantly depleted; or
4.
The proposed modification does not adhere to the original intent of the approved plan.
(Ord. No. 60-14, 4-19-60; Ord. No. 61-30, § 1, 6-27-61; Ord. No. 66-66, § 1, 12-20-66; Ord. No. 74-68, § 1, 9-3-74; Ord. No. 75-94, § 1, 11-4-75; Ord. No. 79-30, § 1, 4-17-79; Ord. No. 81-113, § 1, 10-6-81; Ord. No. 87-29, § 1, 5-19-87; Ord. No. 93-11, § 1, 2-16-93; Ord. No. 95-215, § 1, 12-5-95; Ord. No. 97-12, § 2, 2-25-97; Ord. No. 17-84, § 2, 11-7-17)