2 Miami-Dade residents sue to require countywide vote on Miami Seaquarium marina development plan

Two Miami-Dade County residents are suing to require a countywide vote on whether a new marina can be built at the Miami Seaquarium site on Virginia Key, arguing that voters, not just county commissioners, should decide.

Aaron Stauber and Gregory Frankel filed the lawsuit under the county charter's citizen enforcement provision, specifically Article 7. They say the future of the Seaquarium site should be up to every county resident.

"If they were simply going to go ahead and modernize that… we wouldn't be here today, but that's not what's on the table," Stauber said.

The Seaquarium itself is exempt from Article 7 of the county charter. The suit claims the development extends beyond the existing Seaquarium site and into Biscayne Bay, where Resilient Aquarium LLC plans to build more than 300 boat slips that do not currently exist.

The developer said in a statement that the plan follows the rules.

"The plan was very carefully designed to be consistent with the property's allowable use, and with Article 7 of the County Charter," the developer said. "We are confident we will be able to move forward with transforming the site once our plans are approved by Miami-Dade County."

Frankel said the lawsuit is about process.

"Really, this is about process. It's about good governance. It's about the citizens, residents of Miami-Dade County having a voice in the redevelopment process," Frankel said.

County Commissioner Raquel Regalado, whose District 7 includes Virginia Key, hosted a webinar with the developer into the evening on Wednesday.