Some Miami neighbors are reportedly already pledging to fight the team's plan for the Overtown siteGETTY IMAGES
The group heading the new MLS club in Miami will "face some daunting regulatory hurdles" if it sticks with its Overtown stadium plan, including "land-use changes, rezonings and the permanent closure of a busy thoroughfare," according to a front-page piece by Viglucci & Hanks of the MIAMI HERALD. The group also will have to deal with "environmental review and potentially contentious public hearings before appointed boards and elected officials." The area is "located in the City of Miami," which means "plenty of opportunity for opponents of the privately financed stadium to block or delay approvals." Some neighbors are "already pledging to fight the plan." Those opponents cite some of the "usual flashpoints, such as noise from games and concerts and the impact on local traffic, but also some singular elements of the announced plan, including the lack of on-site parking." In addition, local land owner and activist Bruce Matheson is "suing Miami-Dade County over its decision to sell the Beckham group a 3-acre truck depot yard" for $9M without seeking competing bids. Matheson also "effectively forced" the ATP/WTA Miami Open to "move out of Key Biscayne by blocking a planned expansion" of the county’s Crandon Tennis Center in court proceedings. Though Matheson’s initial suit on the Beckham stadium was "dismissed," he has appealed. David Beckham's group "does not yet own its chosen stadium site." The group pourchased six acres of privately owned land for about $19M in '16, and now has until June to close on its pending $9M "purchase of three acres of county land" (MIAMI HERALD, 2/28).
