A proposal to build a large industrial headquarters on 246 acres outside Miami-Dade County’s Urban Development Boundary is set to return for a commission vote on Thursday, despite ongoing controversy over its impact on local wetlands.
The project, led by Kelly Tractor, would create a 2.2 million-square-foot facility with offices and space for storage and repairs near Sweetwater. The site is located at the northwest corner of Northwest Sixth Street and a Dolphin Expressway ramp in unincorporated Miami-Dade. Environmental groups have raised concerns about building outside the Urban Development Boundary (UDB), which was established to limit development sprawl onto farmland, wetlands, and toward the Everglades. They argue that paving over wetlands threatens wildlife habitats and undermines water quality and flood mitigation efforts in the area.
After commissioners initially approved the project in January, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava vetoed it last month. Instead of seeking to override her veto, commissioners allowed Kelly Tractor to revise its application. The company submitted a new site plan last week that preserves 44.5 acres of wetlands and maintains the 18.6-acre Bayhead Preserve.
Environmentalists say these changes are insufficient. According to Hold The Line Coalition, an existing covenant requires Kelly Tractor to preserve at least 63 acres of wetlands due to previous unpermitted work on the land. The coalition also notes that the Bayhead Preserve does not count toward wetland preservation because it must remain intact regardless of development plans; a 2023 report designates it as an archeological and cultural preserve due to human remains found there.
Chris Kelly, president of Kelly Tractor, said preservation details are still being negotiated: “We are not land speculators. We are not looking to buy and flip and get a return. … We are a long-term holder of the property and have a long term vision of the business.” He added that expanding operations would support working-class residents by providing well-paying jobs amid Miami-Dade’s affordable housing crisis.
Opponents have also criticized Kelly Tractor’s use of a text amendment rather than following the traditional UDB expansion process, which involves multiple layers of county and state review. In January, Hold The Line wrote to Mayor Levine Cava calling the project “incompatible, intensive industrial activity” that weakens county growth planning as “a uniform, rules-based framework.”
The outcome remains uncertain as county staff have yet to issue recommendations on the revised plan ahead of Thursday’s meeting.
