Miami Relaxes Alcohol Sale Rules Surrounding New Marlins Stadium

By Jacquelyn Weiner
Bar hopping may be coming to Little Havana, and not on Eighth Street.

To encourage development of a restaurant row or bar district near the future Marlins stadium in Little Havana, Miami commissioners Tuesday approved 4-0 establishing an Orange Bowl District in which rules regulating the distance between alcohol-serving establishments would be relaxed.

Francis Suarez was absent for the vote.

"I’m trying to look at it as a [Community Redevelopment Agency] for that area," said district Commissioner Frank Carollo.

The Orange Bowl District is bounded by Northwest Sixth Street to the north, Northwest 16th Avenue to the west, Northwest Fourth Street to the south and Northwest 14th Avenue to the east.

Alcohol-related establishments in the district won’t face regulations on proximity to other alcohol-servings businesses, churches and residential areas imposed in the rest of the city.

The rule-relaxation will also aid tenants at the city-owned Marlins stadium parking garages.

Miami has 50,000 square feet available, said Assistant City Manager Alice Bravo.

Leasing agency Terranova Corp. is marketing the space "broadly within the local community and also across the county," Ms. Bravo said.

"Discussions so far are to attract businesses that will add a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day flavor to the district."

Mr. Carollo said that some of the space will probably be filled by businesses that serve alcohol.

"We’re going to be entering in leases with various retail organizations that we’ll have selling beer and so forth," he said.

He added that he wants retailers "that wouldn’t normally be there" to fill the space and to maximize city revenue.

"I want to work towards revitalizing that whole area," Mr. Carollo said.To read the entire issue of Miami Today online, subscribe to e -Miami Today, an exact digital replica of the printed edition.