The Board of County Commissioners (BCC) created community Councils in 1996. Each council serves one of ten geographic areas in unincorporated Miami-Dade County and is comprised of six members elected by the community and one appointed by the BCC. All members must be registered voters and reside in the area that they represent.

Councils usually meet once a month at 7 p.m. to discuss zoning matters and every other month to entertain non-zoning issues. All meetings are advertised in the "Neighbors" section of the Miami Herald at least 10 days in advance. In addition, they are listed in the Miami-Dade County Calendar.

To obtain general information regarding community councils, you can contact Team Metro at 305-375-1661. Questions pertaining to zoning and land use issues should be directed to the Zoning Agenda Coordinator at 305-375-1244 or visit the Planning and Zoning website.

Community Councils were primarily created to make zoning and land use decisions in a setting more accessible to the community. Community Councils also serve as advisory liaisons from their communities to the Board of County Commissioners and County staff, relaying relevant information and recommendations on selected concerns of the council area. Community Councils make recommendations to the County Commission on capital, programming and operational priorities for municipal services such as police, parks, fire and roadway maintenance in their area as well as relaying other concerns and needs of local residents.

The Board of County Commissioners designed the membership of each Community Council to consist of six members elected by local unincorporated area residents and one member appointed by the County Commission. All members must be registered voters in Miami-Dade County. The elected members must be registered voters residing in the Community Council area they serve.

Community Councils, sitting as Community Zoning Appeals Boards (CZABs), make virtually all zoning decisions in unincorporated Miami-Dade County. Community Councils decide, for example, whether to allow a new residential development, a shopping center, a church, or requests to vary technical specifications for zoning uses such as the required number of parking spaces or building setback distance.

Community Councils also may make recommendations about their areas to the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners on long-term, future land use plans and on Miami-Dade County public facilities such as parks, police stations, and libraries. They may also make recommendations on local municipal type services and on the unincorporated area budget.

Community Councils meet on a monthly basis as Community Zoning Appeals Boards, depending upon the number of requests for public hearings.

They also meet every other month to discuss and to advise the County Commission on matters of concern to local residents, including local municipal services, programs and land use issues relating to the Comprehensive Development Master Plan.

Calendars for both the zoning and non-zoning meetings are posted elsewhere in this web site. The Councils meet in local public facilities. The meetings begin at approximately 7:00 PM, though some Councils may elect to meet earlier in the evening. All council meetings, by County Ordinance, must end no later than 11:00 PM in the evening or earlier if the public facility closes before that time.

General questions may be made to Team Metro staff at 305-375-1661. Questions relating to the Councils’ Community Zoning Appeals Board meetings, agendas, procedures or decisions may be made to the Zoning Agenda Coordinator’s staff at 305-375-1244.

Community Councils members are required to discuss all issues and render their decisions "in the sunshine," during public meetings. By law, Council members may not receive any written or spoken communications about any pending or potential zoning matter that may come before them. All information concerning such matters is required to be aired at a duly advertised public meeting.

All Community Council meetings are advertised in newspapers of general circulation in the area. They are also listed in the Miami-Dade County Calendar and on this web site. Residents are encouraged to attend and participate in all Community Council meetings to voice their opinions and express their needs.