The University of Miami is seeking changes to its Coral Gables campus development plan that could pave the way for a future hospital along the Ponce de Leon Boulevard corridor.

The university submitted an extensive application to the city in June requesting amendments to its development agreement, campus master plan, comprehensive plan and zoning regulations. Together, the proposed changes would establish a new framework for campus growth over the next 30 years.

Of particular interest to South Florida’s healthcare real estate market is a provision permitting hospital development on the Coral Gables campus. The university has not submitted plans for a particular facility and has not determined publicly whether the property would become a full-service hospital, specialty hospital or another type of healthcare center.

The potential development area is across from the University Metrorail Station on Ponce de Leon Boulevard, near a campus parking area known as the yellow lot. UM is requesting that the property be designated as a University Use Multi-Use Area, which would accommodate a broader range of institutional development.

The location’s proximity to Metrorail could provide patients, employees and students with direct public transportation access. A hospital there would also extend the physical presence of UHealth—the university’s academic health system—onto its primary undergraduate campus.

The proposal would replace the campus’s existing fixed development limit with a floor-area-ratio system. An FAR of 1.0 would generally allow the university to construct one square foot of building space for every square foot of land, excluding certain mechanical and service areas. The change would provide UM with greater flexibility in determining where and how future facilities are built.

Other requested amendments would increase the permitted undergraduate enrollment from 13,000 to 17,500 students and bring three nearby properties into the university campus district. Additional facilities identified in the master-planning documents include a football operations building, an architecture school expansion, a theater and a new STEM building. Several older academic and residential buildings are marked for eventual demolition.

In exchange for the expanded development rights, UM would transfer approximately 5.5 acres known as the Lee Lincoln site to Coral Gables. The land would become Centennial Park and be preserved primarily for recreational uses. The university would also pay the city $1 million annually, with the payment increasing 4% each year.

The application has moved through the city’s Development Review Committee and still requires consideration by the Planning and Zoning Board. The Coral Gables City Commission would make the final decision.

If approved, the agreement would not guarantee that a hospital will be constructed. It would, however, remove a significant land-use obstacle and reserve the option for UM to add a major healthcare component to its Coral Gables campus as its academic and clinical programs grow.

Source: The Miami Hurricane