Historic labels on buildings may limit sea rise protection

A property owner in a flood-prone Miami Beach neighborhood is challenging the city’s decision to designate the area as historic, arguing that officials ignored the threat of sea level rise and the impact the designation would have on property owners’ ability to prepare for risingwater.

The Tatum Waterway in North Beach is home to dozens of postwar “Miami Modern” buildings, but it’s also one of the island’s lowest lying neighborhoods. The City Commission designated the area part of a historic district in May over the objections of some property owners concerned about flooding, including purely tidal flooding that soaks streets on some sunny days.

Now, a company that owns nine buildings in the area is asking a judge to overturn the city ordinance establishing the designation. The company, Ytech, argues that the City Commission “disregarded” the threat posed by sea level rise because of a pre-existing political agreement and failed to give property owners a “fair opportunity” to make their case.

As South Florida grapples with the impacts of climate change, which the Southeast Florida Climate Compact predicts will cause one to two feet of sea level rise by 2060, questions about what to preserve and what to rebuild have sparked controversy, especially inMiamiBeach, where roughly a third of the homes are historic.

An expert panel from the Urban Land Institute, in reviewing Miami Beach’s resilience strategy, recently cautioned the city to be choosy in designating historic buildings because “everything may not be able to be saved.”

Historic designation, which protects buildings from demolition and requires property owners to get permission from the city’s Historic Preservation Board for major renovations, will make it harder for owners to prepare for the impacts of climate change, Ytech argued in its petition. The company said the designation will also affect its ability to get property insurance and sell the properties, ultimately reducing their value.

Although demolition and renovation requests are evaluated on a case by case basis, and all land use boards, including the Historic Preservation Board, are required to consider the impacts of climate change when making a decision, the historic designation typically sets a higher bar for demolition. That could make it harder for some property owners to build more resilient structures.

“There are buildings in excess of 50 years old sitting in water,” said Joni Armstrong Coffey, an attorney with the Akerman lawfirm, which is representing Ytech. “If you are a regular property owner and your basement flooded, you’d probably knock down the building and build something highly resistant to sea level rise,” she added.

Armstrong Coffey saidYtech hadn’t yet decidedwhatitwants todowith its Tatum Waterway properties, but hopes to have various development options available.

One Tatum Waterway property owner, who isn’t affiliated with Ytech, bought a waterfront apartment building last year in the hopes of demolishing it and building a new structure with MiMo characteristics. However, the floor collapsed in one apartment because of years ofwater damage, and the historic designation could make it harder for the owner to tear down the apartment and rebuild.

But preservationists argue that the Tatum Waterway is home to historic MiMo gems that are worth the effort to save. The neighborhood, spanning both sides of the waterway between 77th and 87th streets, is also listed on the National Register District of Historic Places, a federal designation that does not provide any local protections.

Preservationists also stress that the Historic Preservation Board evaluates each case individually, considering many factors including sea level rise.

“Historic designation is not a death sentence,” said Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez. “We’re willing to work with developers. We justwant to make sure that everything remains in scale and we preserve the aesthetic of the neighborhood.”

Preservationists also argue that saving historic buildings and preparing for the impacts of climate change don’t have to be mutually exclusive. TheMiami Design Preservation League, the nonprofit that pushed for the historic designation of the Tatum Waterway, has hostedworkshops onhowtomake historical buildings more resilient and has a Center for Resiliency and Sustainability to study the issue.

“We are alwayswilling towork with everybody on an individual basis,” said JackFinglass, vice chairof theHistoric Preservation Board. “Everything is looked at individually so when somebody says being designated means you can’t do anything, that’s not true.”

Miami Beach is working to add resiliency criteria into the historic planning board’s approval process, said Laura Weinstein-Berman, a consultant for Vagabond Group Consultant who wrote her 2017 Columbia University thesis on the balance between historic preservation and sea rise readiness in Miami Beach.

“It is the exact opposite of blocking the adaptation of historic resources,” she said.

Some Miami Beach commissioners did question whether such a low-lying, flood-prone area should be designated historic. The Tatum Waterway was initially going tobe included inthe original North Shore historic district, butwas removed from the proposal in 2016 over flooding concerns.