BENEFITS OF THE GREEN BARRIER

A dense green buffer (shown here in part on the Coral Gables Canal near the University of Miami, abutting the Doctors Hospital parking leased from the City of Coral Gables) provides significant community, environmental and ambient benefits to residents and homeowners in the City of Coral Gables.

The many community benefits of the green area:

• Provide wildlife habitat (birds, fish, reptiles, manatees…) diversity
• Traffic calming and noise mitigation
• Impeding views of car traffic, valet parking, buses and ambulances
• Impeding view of Doctors Hospital buildings
• Mitigate Doctors Hospital lighting
• Wind and temperature mitigation in storms and hurricanes
• CO2 capture
• Favor canal users’ recreational boating and fishing
• Bolster local property values

The City of Coral Gables is negotiating the sale of the parking lot land to Baptist Health (Doctors Hospital). This could lead to a reduction in the green environmental buffer for the local residents and visual invasion of Doctors Hospital into the quiet neighborhood.

It is hoped that the City of Coral Gables will fortify the residents by setting clear limits on future land use. Otherwise, this raises questions about the sale of the property.

The city should prohibit the construction of structures (buildings, walls..) of any kind on the land and guarantee the future maintenance and sustainability of landscaping just as dense and beneficial as the existing green buffer. A mechanism to regularly review the maintenance and sustainability of the green area should be considered.