Planning Board Approves Mechanical Parking System For 1826 Collins Amid Neighbor Opposition In Miami Beach

The Miami Beach Planning Board has approved a conditional use permit for the mechanical parking system at 1826 Collins, a proposed 15-story mixed-use development planned for 1826 Collins Avenue in Miami Beach. The 213-foot-tall project is being developed by an entity tied to Crescent Heights’ Russell Galbut and Lefferts’ Mendy Chudaitov, with Built Form Architecture serving as architect. The proposal is being pursued under Florida’s Live Local Act and will contain 29 residential units, including 12 workforce housing apartments.

The approval centered specifically on the project’s valet-operated mechanical car elevator system, which is required to accommodate parking on the site’s constrained footprint. City filings indicate the property spans approximately 9,567 square feet and narrows to roughly 50 feet in width at its narrowest point along Collins Avenue.

Credit: Built Form Architecture.

The tower is planned to include approximately 38,040 square feet of residential space, 3,500 square feet of office space on the sixth floor, rooftop amenities, and 35 enclosed parking spaces served by mechanical vehicle elevators. Floors three through five are planned to contain workforce housing units integrated alongside parking levels, while floors seven through fourteen will contain market-rate condominium residences. A penthouse unit will occupy the uppermost residential floor beneath an amenity roof deck with outdoor terrace space and a rooftop pool.

Credit: Built Form Architecture.

The site is currently occupied by a three-story commercial building completed in 2012 featuring a glass curtain wall facade and an automated parking system that, according to land use attorney Graham Penn, representing the applicant during the hearing, never functioned properly. The proposal would demolish the existing structure and replace it with a substantially taller mixed-use tower.

Existing building at 1826 Collins Avenue.

Because the project qualifies under the Live Local Act, much of the development is eligible for administrative approval rather than discretionary public review. However, the mechanical parking component required a conditional use permit from the Planning Board.

The proposal drew opposition from residents of neighboring Tower 1800, an adjacent 19-story condominium at 1800 Collins Avenue. Residents submitted letters and public comments requesting a minimum 10-foot setback for portions of the building exceeding the height of the existing structure, citing concerns related to reduced light and air, privacy impacts, increased shadowing, and the proximity of the tower to adjacent units.

Credit: Built Form Architecture.

During the hearing, Penn reminded board members that the scope of their review was limited to the mechanical parking system rather than the broader massing or setback configuration of the development.

“I am sure you have received a lot of emails from our neighbors to the south suggesting we set back the building 10 feet,” Penn said during the meeting. “This will neither work nor is this issue within the board’s purview.”

Some neighboring residents also raised concerns regarding construction impacts and referenced the 2021 Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside, noting past complaints about vibrations associated with nearby construction projects. Penn stated that the development team and representatives of Tower 1800 were continuing discussions regarding construction procedures and potential easements between the properties.

Board member Jonathan Freidin suggested delaying the vote for additional discussions between the neighboring parties, though the proposal ultimately advanced without support for a deferral. Several board members reiterated during deliberations that their authority under the Live Local framework was limited primarily to the mechanical parking request.

The Planning Board ultimately voted in favor of the conditional use permit, allowing the project to proceed through the city’s approval process.

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