Miami City Manager Emilio Gonzalez ordered the closure of Melreese golf course, Miami’s only city-owned golf course, at the end of the day Tuesday, one day after an environmental analysis revealed high levels of arsenic and other pollutants in the soil where David Beckham plans to build a stadium to host his upcoming Major League Soccer team Inter Miami.
“The purpose of this action is to allow outside experts to analyze the results of substantial new environmental testing conducted at the course,” Gonzalez said in a statement. “The golf course will be reopened pending a favorable analysis.” Gonzalez said he did not know how long the analysis would take. The testing was conducted by environmental company EE&G, a consultant hired by Beckham’s partners Jorge and Jose Mas.
While Gonzalez said he closed Melreese in an abundance of caution to do more analysis, one skeptical commissioner suspects environmental concerns are being used as an excuse to drum up support for Miami Freedom Park. The proposed $1 billion complex could replace Melreese with a soccer stadium, mall, office and 58-acre public park.
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