Court upholds Miami boat show permit
The Miami International Boat Show won another court victory this week with the Third District Court of Appeal upheld a state environmental permit allowing the construction of a temporary marina at Virginia Key, the Miami Herald reported.
“We are pleased this latest challenge is behind us and look forward to yet another exciting Miami International Boat Show at Miami Marine Stadium this February,” said Thom Dammrich, president of the National Marine Manufacturers Association, which runs the show. “This show has such a far-reaching positive impact—from creating thousands of jobs throughout South Florida to providing hundreds of millions of dollars in economic activity. With lessons learned in 2016, we are going to even greater lengths in 2017 and are thrilled for what the future holds for Miami and boating.”
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s issued a five-year permit for a temporary 830-slip marina before last year’s show, the first held at Miami Marine Stadium Park & Basin. The village of Key Biscayne, which has fought the presence of the show at the park, had sought to block the permit.
An earlier request by the village for an administrative hearing was dismissed by a lawyer for the state on the grounds that the village had no standing to challenge the permit. The village appealed the lawyer’s decision, but a Third District Court of Appeal panel said the decision was in line with Florida law.
“We find no fundamental error in the conduct of the agency in this case,” stated the opinion, written by Judge Frank A. Shepherd, the Herald reported. “However, as we have noted in the past, ‘the system,’ as it presently exists, ‘is hazardous to those who want to request an administrative hearing.’”
