The Unveiling Of Miami 21

"After months of delay, Miami officials on Saturday will unveil a partial draft of Miami 21, their grandly ambitious zoning overhaul, giving the general public its first look at a sweeping plan that could remake the look and feel of the city for decades to come.

But they must override deep public skepticism if they are to persuade residents that the city is looking after the interests of its neighborhoods, some of them long besieged by development generated, in part, by the current zoning code.

One thing is clear: Everyone will have to learn a new set of rules -- the results of which are, for the moment, still difficult to predict.

'City staff are going to have to suck their brains out and learn something completely new,' said Allyson Warren, a neighborhood activist who got a preview of Saturday's presentation.

By the time it is finalized, about two years hence, Miami 21 would constitute a detailed development road map prescribing everything from building heights, shapes and uses to the width of sidewalks and the type of shade trees on specific city blocks, according to previews given to small, invited focus groups in the past two weeks."