A controversial development proposal in Miami-Dade is ruffling the feathers of urban sprawl opponents.

The tides seemed to have changed. After operating under a 30-year growth management plan known as “Smart Growth,” Florida, under the urging of its governor, greatly reduced the law’s reach, claiming that greater freedom would spur growth in local municipalities.

Housing affordability was the big draw of the legal relaxations, but now, some are speaking out against the first major enforcement of the new rules – the use of 9.9 acres of agricultural land for commercial real estate development.

In a 7-5 vote, Miami-Dade commissioners voted to expand the Urban Development Boundary, or UDB, which separates agricultural land from commercial land. By expanding the boundary to include those 9.9 acres, the land would be viable for commercial development. The expansion is subject to state approval, after review by state regulators.

One of the expansion’s biggest supporters is Miguel Diaz de la Portilla, a state senator who has emphasized the extensive corporate interest in the land from such businesses as Publix, Walgreens and Sedanos, according to the Miami Herald. As the Herald points out, though, Portilla does have a personal interest in the development – he works as a lobbyist for Ferro Investment, the company that originally submitted the development’s plans.

The proposal, however, has generated far more opposition than it has support, a big reason being the 16,140 acres of undeveloped land that already exists in the UDB.

Anthony Garcia, writing for the Huffington Post, put the land into perspective in a blog entry.

“16,140 acres is approximately 25 square miles,” Garcia wrote. “The island of Manhattan – from Battery City Park to 218 street – is only 22.96 square miles. I would say that we have more than enough development capacity to last the next 100 years and beyond without having to touch the UDB – and that’s just with our undeveloped land. Take into account underdeveloped land and we should never expand the UDB again.”

The expansion, Garcia notes, would amount to nothing more than unnecessary urban sprawl, and Miami-Dade is the last county that should flirt with further experiments in such expansion.

“Apparently, some county commissioners didn’t get the memo that their love for suburban sprawl over the past decade led to the real estate market tanking, and to the bloated county government that they now seek to reign-in,” Garcia notes.

Along with economic concerns, the Herald also notes that advocacy groups are protesting the expansion for environmental reasons. The Tropical Audubon Society, for instance, is opposing the expansion for the sake of both the Everglades and the agricultural potential of the land.

“Laura Reynolds, its executive director, said after the vote that she anticipates even with the weakened state law that ‘the state will weigh in, because of the Everglades. It will not be as strong as before, but they will give us comments,'” the Herald piece states.

State regulators must review the commissioner’s proposal, and the state of Florida will most likely make a decision in early spring.