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Planning Board gives Lincoln Road restaurant two months after rooftop DJ violation
Summary
Miami Beach Planning Board set a 60-day progress report for a Lincoln Road restaurant after a rooftop DJ played above permitted ambient levels; staff recommended a revocation hearing because the incident violated the conditional use permit and followed earlier violations.
Miami Beach Planning Board on May 6 gave a Lincoln Road restaurant two months to demonstrate full compliance after a rooftop DJ played louder-than-allowed music, a violation staff says breached the establishment's conditional use permit.
Staff told the board the restaurant — which operates under a conditional use permit (CUP) that bars outdoor entertainment and allows only interior live performance with no sound audible outside — had multiple violations. The most recent, on March 27, involved a DJ on the rooftop that exceeded ambient levels; previous violations included performers outside and tables in the right-of-way. Planning staff recommended setting a revocation/modification hearing for the July 1 meeting.
The board instead voted to continue the matter as a progress report and asked the operator to return July 1. Planning Board Chair (speaking from the dais) said he did not want an immediate revocation hearing and preferred another progress report to allow the operator to correct course. Jose Atschke, identified at the meeting as the restaurant's vice president and general manager, told the board staff had distributed a one-page summary of CUP conditions to every employee and said, "It's it's not gonna happen again." The applicant team, represented by attorney Michael Yannopoulos, said the March incident occurred during Miami Music Week and stemmed from a misunderstanding about permits; Yannopoulos said the establishment stopped the music immediately when notified and paid the fine.
Why it matters: the CUP conditions for the rooftop explicitly prohibit outdoor entertainment and require that any interior performance not be audible from outside. Repeated violations can lead to formal enforcement up to revocation of the permit; several board members described the March incident as at least a second strike on the property's record and warned that future violations could prompt more severe action.
Board action and next steps: the board moved and approved continuing the matter for a progress report in 60 days (the board recorded the continuance to the July 1 planning board meeting). The board instructed staff and the applicant to report back; if no additional violations are issued before July 1 the item may be removed from the agenda, but any further violations would bring the item back for formal action.
Details from the meeting: staff pointed to the final order conditions in the CUP (noting rooftop entertainment is limited to background interior audio, and that outdoor entertainment was prohibited). The applicant team said the March DJ occurred the same week as Miami Music Week and that other neighborhood venues were hosting outdoor music; they said the event was an isolated mistake, corrective actions were taken immediately, and fines were paid. Board members repeatedly emphasized the presence of nearby residents and the need to follow the CUP's limits on rooftop and interior sound.
The board's recorded motion continued the property's progress report; the motion passed with all voting members saying "Aye." The board scheduled the next check-in for July 1.
