Miami-Dade water park project won’t move forward – NBC 6 South Florida

After months of debate and opposiotion from activists, a proposal for a water park on Zoo Miami property will not be going forward, it was announced Tuesday.

The announcement came at a Tuesday meeting where Miami-Dade commissioners had been expected to vote on whether to extend the lease agreement with the developers of the proposed Miami Wilds project.

But it was announced Tuesday afternoon that Commissioner Kionne McGhee, who had brought forth the item, was withdrawing it.

“The required environmental study still needs to be done. Don’t ask me I’m not an attorney, but it seems to me this was basically killed without the data, without the science,” said Bernard Zyscovich, one of the project’s developers.

Earlier at the meeting, residents had been allowed to voice their opinions on the proposed project and many expressed their opposition, saying they were concerned about environmental impacts.

Miami Wilds had been described as a “family-friendly leisure destination.” The proposed project would have been built on 27.5 acres of existing county-owned parking lots adjacent to the zoo.

Plans for the attraction included a water park, a family-friendly boutique hotel, and a small number of unique small retail shops and restaurants.

While some had argued for the economic benefits of the project, others like Zoo Miami’s Ron Magill had spoken out against it, saying it would threaten the wildlife living in the surrounding habitat.