Miami-Dade school board gives mega mall its blessing

Developer Triple Five has passed another obstacle in its plan to build the nation’s largest mall in Miami-Dade County.

The county’s school board voted unanimously Wednesday to break its lease on a portion of state-owned land that the developer wants for its massive 200-acre project.

In exchange, Triple Five will pay the school board $7.2 million along with $1 million for internships and academic programs. The developer will start paying once a building permit is issued, a publication reported.

The school board started leasing the property in 2004 as a fallback in case it needed to build a school in the area. But since the land is now zoned for commercial instead of residential development, the district won’t need to build a school there, the Miami Herald reported.

Dubbed American Dream Miami, the mall would have four million square feet of space and would include a theme park with an indoor ski slope, water slides and submarine tours.

Triple Five passed its first hurdle with an 11-2 vote on Tuesday from county commissioners approving a $12 million land deal that got the developer closer to owning the 200 acres it wants to build the project. The state owns 82 of those acres, but the county has agreed to act as an intermediary for Triple Five to purchase the land. [Miami Herald] — Sean Stewart-Muniz