Developer proposes 112-unit Live Local Act rental project in Model City

A developer wants to build a 112-unit apartment building under the Live Local Act in Model City, marking a continued uptick of proposals tied to the affordable housing law. 

The proposal is for an 11-story building with ground-floor retail on a 0.7-acre vacant site on the northwest corner of Northwest 27th Avenue and Northwest 46th Street in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, according to an application filed to the county this month. 

Alberto Fernandez Falcon and Rene Sanchez own the site, according to records. Sam Jazayri also manages one of the entities that owns a portion of the development site. 

At least 40 percent of the apartments would be for households earning no more than 120 percent of the area median income, which is consistent with the Live Local Act requirements, the application shows. Fernandez could not be immediately reached for comment. 

Florida lawmakers approved the Live Local Act last year to incentivize construction of affordable and workforce housing. Under the legislation, developers can get major tax breaks, build much larger projects than site zonings allow, bypass public hearings and receive administrative project approval, as long as they include below-market-rate apartments. 

This week, the Senate and House amended the Live Local Act to further benefit developers by giving them wiggle room on counties’ and cities’ floor area ratio restrictions. Previously, the law only lifted local governments’ height and density restrictions.  

Developers have seized on the Live Local Act with proposals throughout South Florida, though some municipalities have been angered by the state’s preemption of city development regulations. 

One of the most heated battles is playing out in Bal Harbour. Whitman Family Development, owner of the Bal Harbour Shops, wants to build up to 275-foot tall towers with 528 apartments, 40 percent of them affordable, as well as a members club and retail on the shopping mall site. Village officials are advancing a series of ordinances that could hinder the project. 

Another Live Local battle, in Doral, settled last year when developer Apollo Companies agreed to lower its project height from 12 stories to eight stories. 

In other recent proposals, NuRock Companies applied for approval of the 11-story, 130-unit Residences at West View Landing apartment building on the southeast corner of Northwest 27th Avenue and Northwest 123rd Street in unincorporated Miami-Dade County. The site is near Opa-locka. 

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