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Rapid Transit Zones

  • Overview
  • Meet the Team
  • Experience
  • Insights
  • Practices

Miami-Dade’s County’s first mass transit ordinances for Rapid Transit Zones (RTZs) were developed in the 1970s. Bilzin Sumberg’s Chair of Land Development & Government Relations, Stanley Price, served as a principle draftsmen for these laws, which gave Miami-Dade County jurisdiction over rapid transit development within its borders. Over the last several years, as Miami and its environs have grown rapidly due to rising immigration and inbound investment, Rapid Transit Zones, and the transit-oriented developments within their boundaries, have taken center stage among real estate investors and developers.

With a scarcity of developable land, mixed-use and transit-oriented development within such specially regulated Rapid Transit Zones represent the future of sustainable development in Miami-Dade County. As Rapid Transit Zones have grown in importance for accommodating urban growth, Bilzin Sumberg has become the go-to firm for investors seeking to develop within RTZs. In addition to deep familiarity with the zoning laws, regulations, and incentives unique to RTZs, the firm’s attorneys possess the key relationships at the county and local level, and the business insights on investment trends shaping RTZs, to counsel investors and developers both strategically and at the project level as they consider developing within Rapid Transit Zones.

Meet the Team
Javier F. Aviñó
Practice Group Leader, Land Development & Government Relations, Land Development & Government Relations
Anthony De Yurre
Partner, Land Development & Government Relations
Albert E. Dotson, Jr.
Chief Executive Officer & Managing Partner , Public-Private Partnerships, Government Contracting
Andrés T. Rivero
Associate, Land Development & Government Relations
Eric Singer
Partner, Public-Private Partnerships, Government Contracting
Experience
  • Experience
Amendment to Rapid Transit Zone Ordinance
Counsel to All Aboard Florida in connection with the strategic analysis for securing zoning and site plan approval for a downtown station. Drafted an amendment to the County's Rapid Transit Zone Ordinance and created site plan criteria for adoption by ordinance, as well asan inter-local agreement wh...
  • Experience
Development of MiamiCentral Rail Station
Lead counsel on the development of the MiamiCentral station, whichincluded assisting the client in securing the award and contract to purchase public property to develop the station, development approval modifications, working with county and city staff on permitting related issues including plattin...
  • Experience
Large Transit-Oriented P3 Development in Miami-Dade County
Representation of a local non-profit organization and its development partner in connection with the $200 million transit-oriented redevelopment of a public lot adjacent to a major mass transit node, which will include more than 1,000 new residential units, including workforce housing, military hous...
  • Experience
Unsolicited P3 Proposal to Develop Bus Rapid Transit System
Representation of transportation systems developer in its preparation and submission of an unsolicited P3 proposal to a Florida public transportation agency to design, build, finance, operate, and maintain a bus rapid transit system, including the design and manufacture of vehicles and the developme...
  • Experience
Extension of Miami-Dade Metrorail
Represent consortium in pursuit of the development of the north corridor of the Miami-Dade County SMART Plan. Advise the consortium throughout the procurement process and on local transactional matters.
  • Experience
P3 Transit-Oriented Development Including Workforce Housing
Representation of RUDG, LLC, a prominent affordable-housing developer, through all phases of a Miami-Dade County procurement process relating to a mixed-use, mixed-income transportation-oriented development adjacent to a rapid-transit station on County-owned land in the City of Hialeah. Assisted cli...
Insights
  • Lawcast Podcast
  • May 5, 2021
Transit Oriented Development & Rapid Transit Zones in Miami-Dade County
Transit-Oriented Development
Javier Aviñó, Practice Group Leader for Bilzin Sumberg’s Land Development & Government Relations Group, discusses the historic evolution, current state, and future prospects of transit-oriented development in Miami-Dade County. He addresses the economic, social, and political...
  • Blog
  • March 09, 2021
Rapid Transit Zones: Essential to the Future of Miami-Dade County’s Development
New Miami Blog
Bilzin Sumberg’s annual South Florida Redevelopment Conference brings together in- and out-of-state developers looking to explore new concepts and innovative approaches for achieving business success in South Florida’s real estate sector, as well as engineers, architects, planners, and governm...
  • Development Conference
  • March 3, 2021
Shifting Lines: How the Historical Evolution of Transit Authority Has Shaped Mia...
Bilzin Sumberg
Anthony De Yurre discussed and explored at Bilzin Sumberg’s South Florida Redevelopment Conference the history of Rapid Transit Zones in Miami-Dade County, the effects of the municipal devolution, and future trends for the development of RTZs. Miami-Dade’s County’s first mass trans...
  • Podcast
  • April 14, 2020
Transit-Oriented Development in the 305
Land Development in the 305
Land use and zoning attorney, Albert E. Dotson, Jr., talks about transit-oriented development in South Florida and the impact of public transportation on a community.
  • Podcast
  • January 29, 2020
Rapid Transit Zones in Miami-Dade County
Land Development in the 305
Land use and zoning attorneys, Stanley B. Price and Anthony De Yurre, explore the history of rapid transit zones in Miami-Dade County and what challenges developers face in the expansion of rapid transit impact zones today.
  • Publication
  • January 24, 2019
The Case of Miami-Dade County’s Rapid Transit Zone
Meeting of the Minds
Eric Singer discuss the challenges of planning a mass transit system and how Miami-Dade County's Rapid Transit Zone ordinance is beneficial to the future of the Miami area's transit system.