Special Municipal Election

Special Municipal Election
May 2, 2023

On February 21, 2023, the Bal Harbour Village Council passed Resolution 2023-1540 providing for submission to the Village electors of a proposed Charter amendment allowing for the height of structures, used for municipal purposes, to be measured from the highest minimum elevation provided by the State or Federal law.

Ballot Information

Ballot Question

Measure Height of Structures for Municipal Purposes
Shall the Charter be amended to allow the height of structures that are used for municipal purposes to be measured from the highest minimum elevation required by state or federal law?
Yes      80
No      81

Charter Amendment

That pursuant to Section 6.03 of the County Charter, the Village Charter of Bal Harbour Village, Florida, is hereby amended by amending Section 80, “Building Height,” to read as follows:

Sec. 80. Building Height
Building height allowed on any property shall not exceed the permitted height for that property set forth in the Village’s comprehensive plan or municipal code, in effect the date this amendment is approved, whichever provisions are most restrictive Notwithstanding the foregoing;
(a) the height of single-family dwellings may be measured from the highest minimum elevation provided by state or federal law, and
(b) the height of structures that are used for municipal purposes may be measured from the highest minimum elevation provided by state or federal law.
Unless otherwise specified in the comprehensive plan or municipal code in effect the date this amendment is approved, each building “story” shall mean 11 feet in height.

The current height for structures used for municipal purposes does not take into account changing State or Federal requirements for the Base Flood Elevation (BFE) of buildings.

The current BFE for Bal Harbour is eight feet above mean sea level, with the Florida Building Code currently requiring that the first habitable floor of most structures be built at least one foot above BFE in order to mitigate the effects of climate change and rising sea levels, and critical structures like Village public safety facilities to be built at least two feet above BFE. Therefore, most structures in Bal Harbour Village must now be at least nine feet above mean sea level, and critical structures must now be ten feet above mean sea level.

The proposed question on the Special Election ballot for May 2, 2023 would allow Bal Harbour Village to build municipal structures to their available height without being impacted by the base flood requirements, now, or in the future should they be changed. This proposed change would only apply to structures for municipal purposes in the Village.

Voter Information

For voter information, including voter registration, vote-by-mail, and election-day information, visit balharbourfl.gov/election.

The proposed charter amendment will ask residents to vote ‘YES’ or ‘NO’ to allow the height of structures that are used for municipal purposes to be measured from the highest minimum elevation required by state or federal law.

 

Public Workshop

Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Bal Harbour Village will host a second workshop to provide information and answer questions on the upcoming election. Residents and the general public are invited to attend to learn more about the ballot question.

Wednesday, April 19 at 6:30 PM
Public Workshop: Special Election
Sea View Hotel, 9909 Collins Avenue

If you are not able to attend the workshop, a recording of the April 3 Public Workshop is now available online at balharbourfl.granicus.com.