DIRECTING CDMP AMENDMENT RE VERTICAL FARMING

Recreation, Tourism, and Resiliency Committee · 2026-07-14 · resolution

Resolution directing the County Mayor or designee to consider recommendations in the Agriculture Report and file an application to amend the Comprehensive Development Master Plan (CDMP) to provide for or encourage greater allowances inside urbanized areas for high-intensity, closed agricultural production systems such as vertical farming, provided such uses are compatible with surrounding residential or commercial development. The resolution was introduced on 6/23/2026, forwarded to the BCC with a favorable recommendation by the Recreation, Tourism, and Resiliency Committee on 7/14/2026, and is scheduled for the BCC agenda on 9/1/2026 as item 11A3. The prime sponsor is Roberto J. Gonzalez. The document does not state a specific project site, address, parcel, acreage, or applicant. It references a report projecting a minimum of 64,800 acres needed for agricultural use by 2030 and 56,300 acres by 2050, and states the 2017 USDA Census reported 78,543 acres of farmland. It also notes that 93 percent of County farms are under 50 acres and 73 percent under 10 acres. The document states that over 70 stakeholders interviewed for the Report expressed frustration with overlapping regulations and lack of County support for agriculture, with many citing the need for more flexible policies such as enabling vertical agriculture in urbanized zones. It also states that those involved in the vertical agricultural sector in the County, mostly concentrated in urban areas, reported substantial growth in the last few years to meet growing demand, especially in Miami's restaurant scene.