Kendall, Florida, has a new urbanist master

Kendall, Florida, has a new urbanist master plan for a new downtown (see January/February 2000 issue) and an ordinance to turn the plan into reality. But the fate of Dadeland Mall, the thriving enclosed mall which lies at the heart of the Downtown Kendall plan, is now the object of a heated debate. On one side of the issue are Dadeland’s owners, who call the mall “a community landmark in peril” and are campaigning to exempt Dadeland from the ordinance. They argue that the ordinance would force the destruction of the mall by opening streets through the buildings and effectively stop any plans for expansion. On the opposing side is a small group of residents who have served on the Downtown Kendall Steering Committee. They maintain that the mall owners sat at the table throughout the two-year planning process and raised no objections to the plan by Dover Kohl & Partners and Duany Plater-Zyberk & Co. The group’s spokesman Albert Harum-Alvarez says the ordinance does not specify any street locations and adds that Dadeland could have proposed an amendment instead of seeking an exemption. Harum- Alvarez’ group won a temporary victory on October 19, when the County Commission deferred Dadeland’s request and sent the ordinance back to staff for more review. See the websites SaveDadeland.com and DadelandSprawl.com for more on the controversy.