Miami 21, the city’s current zoning code, was adopted in 2009, on the cusp of local environmental awareness. There is no mention of sea-level rise and no provision for rezoning higher density to higher ground. Ironically, the higher elevations are home to some of the poorest neighborhoods, such as Little Haiti and Liberty City (location of the Oscar-award-winning Moonlight). The city should quickly redesignate the most sustainable areas for new development, but also protect the interests of local property owners—a challenging proposition.

The second document is the City of Miami’s Preservation Ordinance, which aims to accomplish “the protection, enhancement, perpetuation, and use of  ” Miami’s built and natural landmarks. Preservation departments, however, do not focus solely on perpetuating individual buildings but entire neighborhoods, a difficult goal. I’d suggest creating a commission to consider, on a citywide basis, the challenges of protecting landmarks in an era of sea-level rise.

Before the destruction of Hurricane Andrew in 1992, Florida’s municipalities had their own building codes; 10 years later, the state adopted the Florida Building Code “based on national model building codes and consensus standards which are amended where necessary for Florida’s specific needs.” But the current version does not address “specific needs” such as sea-level rise. Instead, a whole chapter addresses snow loading on roofs. Moreover, the code principally deals with standard types of construction: high-rise condos and single-family homes. It lacks critical imagination in terms of what may be new solutions to elevated-water conditions: Floating buildings? Buildings over expressways? Canals as infrastructure?

Each of these three documents took years to negotiate; revisions to address Florida’s impending crisis need to be expedited. Hopefully, Ariza’s work will serve as a clarion call for timely action.