Russell Galbut Pulls Three Live Local Towers in Miami Beach, Including a 519-Foot Plan for the Firestone Site

Developer Russell Galbut, a co-founder of Crescent Heights, has withdrawn three Live Local Act applications in Miami Beach. In an email Monday night to City Manager Eric Carpenter, he pulled a 519-foot tower at the historic Firestone site, 1575 Alton Road, a 383-foot tower at 740 Alton Road and a 225-foot tower at 880 71st Street, according to Commissioner Alex Fernandez, as reported by the Miami Herald. The Real Deal put the three original plans at nearly 400 units combined.

The three sites

• 1575 Alton Road, the former Firestone site in South Beach. 163 residences, including 72 workforce units, per Florida Politics. Galbut told The Real Deal he had cut the plan to 19 stories and 63 units the week before.
• 740 Alton Road, South Beach. A 28-story building that city files now list as “Withdrawn.”
• 880 71st Street, on Normandy Isle in North Beach. A proposed Lefferts and Crescent Heights partnership where the ordinary height limit was 50 feet, per Florida Politics.

None of the three had final approval. Citing city records, Florida Politics reported that staff had denied the Firestone application and stopped review of the other two over height or density. Outlets differ on floor and unit counts for the smaller two, so I left those out.

What Galbut said, and who disagrees

Galbut credited “many constructive conversations” with Fernandez and Miami-Dade Commissioner Vicki Lopez, whose district includes South Beach. He wrote that he has “always believed in the original intent of the Live Local Act” but that “the conversation surrounding this legislation has moved away from that intention.” He added: “This decision reflects my commitment to collaboration, not my retreat from the need for more housing.” He told The Real Deal he still believes in the law, calling it “the salvation of Miami Beach.”

Commissioner David Suarez sees it differently: the withdrawals, he said, “happened after we started fighting back and raising the prospect of independent legal review and litigation.” On Wednesday the commission backed Mayor Steven Meiner's push to work with other Florida mayors on amending or repealing the law, and authorized the city attorney to coordinate on legal options with the City of Miami, which voted in June to explore its own challenge.

Live Local, in plain English

The Live Local Act passed in 2023 and was amended in 2024, 2025 and 2026. On land zoned commercial, industrial or mixed use, a city must allow apartments if at least 40% of the units are rentals kept affordable for at least 30 years, for households earning up to 120% of area median income. The city then cannot hold the project below the highest density allowed anywhere in the city, or below the tallest height allowed for a commercial or residential building within one mile. Approval is administrative, with no commission vote, and since July 1 cities cannot trim that height with setbacks either (my breakdown of the 2026 rewrite). The provision expires October 1, 2033.

The Firestone plan's 519 feet matches the benchmark Suarez is now challenging. He says developers are using the Five Park tower near the MacArthur Causeway as a 519-foot height benchmark across South Beach, though Five Park got site-specific approvals, and he wants outside counsel to review it. The statute does not count the height of buildings that got a bonus, variance or other special exception as a development incentive.

My read

For neighbors, the key fact is that none of these towers was approved, so nothing came off the near-term construction pipeline. What went away, for now, is the risk of a 225- to 519-foot building at these addresses. Nothing about the zoning or the statute changed this week, and the law runs until 2033, so a new filing from Galbut or a future owner is possible. If you own near Alton Road or 71st Street, treat this as a pause, not a rezoning.

On values, I would not expect a quick bump nearby. Buyers price what can legally rise next door, and the statute has not changed. For owners of commercial land, Live Local eligibility in Miami Beach clearly comes with time, opposition and politics attached, so underwrite it that way, not off the statute alone.

On supply, both sides have a point. Residents are protecting the scale and historic character that drive Miami Beach values. The law's backers say it is meant to make a dent in Florida's need for workforce and affordable housing, and each of these plans included workforce units. Fewer projects means fewer new rentals, which keeps pressure on rents. I am watching the Five Park review, the joint legal effort with Miami and the next legislative session.