In yet another race against the clock, under the gun of yet another looming deadline that could have been completely intentional, Miami-Dade commissioners on Tuesday got into the real estate 
business and approved a land assemblage deal that is the first necessary step in development of a megamall/tourist attraction in the northwest corner of the county.
Basically, the county will now act as a go between — or “a pass through,” as the mayor called it — for a developer to buy 80 acres of land at the sweetheart price of $12.3 million. That’s $153,750 an acre. Who wouldn’t love that deal? And you can bet your bank that it’s less than what the land would sell for if the state would take it to a public auction. Something that would benefit all Floridians, including us 305 residents.
But Miami-Dade gets first dibs — or first right of refusal — before the land goes on the block. And Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos “Mr. Giveaway” Gimenez couldn’t let that happen. That’s why the rush to act now — everything is always an emergency — on behalf of this Canadian millionaire family that developed the Mall of America to develop American Dream Miami, a 200-acre mega mall with ski slope, submarine tours, water park, skating rink and more.
By the way, Mr. Mayor: It’s Mall of America, not Mall of the Americas. That one is already built, on Flagler Street by the Palmetto. You should check it out.
Gimenez said that the state put the land on the surplus list Feb. 23. Ladra wants to know if there was any communication between the county and the state about doing that — you know, since the county was approached more than a year ago. A public records request for emails on the land has not yet been answered. But let’s just say that for argument’s sake that, for whatever reason, without prodding by the county, the state suddenly — by pure happenstance! — put 80 acres that developers need for the mega mall project — and without which the project can’t exist — on the surplus list. Que suerte!
Read related story: Carlos Gimenez’s ‘mega mall’ on fast track with shell company
That set the clock in motion for a 40-day window, Gimenez said. Tuesday was the last time the commission would meet before the property goes to public sale, possibly by auction, April 3. “We will not have another meeting until April 21,” Gimenez said, adding that the Florida cabinet would vote on the sale on April 14th.
God forbid the private Ghermezian family would have to bid for the land like anybody else on a level playing field in a free and open marketplace.
So this is why the vote was pushed through only two weeks after the mall — planned behind closed doors for a year — became 
public and less than 24 hours after commissioners got the 107-page item on the land deal with changes and amendments. To give the Ghermazian’s private project access to government prices for government land.
“That is why time is of the essence,” Gimenez said, immediately turning into the project’s chief cheerleader, because that seems to be what he thinks his job is lately. That and assembling land for private developers with pet “game-changer” projects.
“This is the beginning of a long thoughtful process. If approved and if all goes as planned, what is called American Dream Miami could bring an investment of between $3 million and $5 million to Miami, create thousands of jobs,” Gimenez said, although that number has been reduced drastically from 20,000 to 7,500 full and part-time jobs by Year 15.
The mayor also likes to say that there will be no county funds directed to the private development that adds value to our tax rolls where it did not as state land (of course, it could have added more value had they, or anyone else, purchased the land at auction). And there are going to be no fewer than five public meetings to get public input. If they’re anything like the budget townhall meetings, I am sure they will be very productive (um, not).
Oh, and after first saying that the complex would not be able to get water and sewer service from Miami-Dade — having to go to Hialeah, which is still
There’s more. Please press this “continue reading” button to “turn the page.”
Pages: 1 2
Mega mall gets its public land on rushed timeline added by Ladra on
View all posts by Ladra →
