The Ghost of Old Smokey

For decades, the City of Miami’s “Old Smokey” incinerator burned trash just west of Coconut Grove, sending plumes of ash into a historically Black neighborhood shaped by segregation. Long after the smokestacks went quiet, residents say the fallout never left.

Now, a judge has cleared the way for that claim to be tested at scale.

On June 16, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Spencer Eig issued his order granting class certification to hundreds of property owners in West Coconut Grove, allowing the case to proceed as a sweeping environmental lawsuit against the city. The ruling transforms what had been a patchwork of complaints into a coordinated legal challenge that ties together race, land use, public health, and property rights.

Eig certified the class action status in March after five days of public and expert testimony in the case.

West Grove residents Yvette Styles, Beverly Gibson, Daisy Bailey-Copeland, Sandra
Elaine Martin, Bennie Cooper-Chapman, Melinda Matheson, N.S., Kentron Poitier,
Kayveon Poitier, Thaddeus Scott, and Capus Deloney filed the lawsuit in 2017.

Here are five key takeaways from Eig’s order.

Eig’s ruling places Old Smokey squarely within the legacy of Jim Crow-era zoning and land-use decisions. The incinerator operated for decades in what the judge described as a “formerly segregated community,” raising questions about whether city officials intentionally concentrated pollution in Black neighborhoods.

According to the order, the facility released significant amounts of toxic ash containing dioxins, arsenic, and other hazardous substances. That material, Eig found, spread into surrounding residential areas.

One of the hurdles in environmental litigation is proving how far contamination traveled. In this case, Eig accepted expert analysis mapping a defined “Class Area” based on soil sampling, air modeling, and chemical signatures tied to incinerator waste.

The result: roughly 2,220 residential properties fall within the contamination zone.

Judge Eig also approved two subclasses:

A testing subclass for properties that have not yet been sampled but may require soil analysis.

A broader property subclass for owners claiming diminished value and loss of use, regardless of whether contamination has been confirmed on each parcel.

That distinction allows the case to move forward even as testing continues.

Eig rejected the city’s position that homeowners could not claim harm without confirmed contamination.

Relying on testimony from economist Randall Bell, the order recognizes “stigma” damages, or the idea that properties lose value simply by being associated with a known contamination zone.

In practical terms, that means a home can be devalued by perception alone. Eig noted the city did not present an expert to counter that analysis.

Beyond property claims, the lawsuit seeks court-supervised medical monitoring for residents exposed to toxins.

To certify that class, plaintiffs had to meet a seven-part standard by the state of Florida, which requires showing exposure, increased risk, and the need for specialized screening beyond routine care.

Eig found those thresholds were met, citing an elevated cancer risk tied to dioxins and arsenic. The order identifies nine cancers associated with that exposure, including lung, breast, prostate, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Four of the named plaintiffs have already been diagnosed with cancer, underscoring the stakes behind the request.

Central to the ruling is the city’s duty to disclose what it knew, or lack thereof.

Under Florida law, governments can be held liable when they create a hidden danger and fail to warn the public. Eig found evidence that the risks posed by Old Smokey were not readily apparent—ash settling on homes resembled ordinary soot.

Despite that, the city neither remediated the contamination nor warned residents, according to the order. The incinerator produced tons of ash annually, yet the hazards remained largely undisclosed for decades.

The certification does not resolve the case, but it significantly raises the stakes. By allowing claims to proceed collectively, the ruling increases potential liability and gives residents more leverage as the case heads toward trial.

For West Coconut Grove residents, it is the first time the full scope of Old Smokey’s legacy will be tested in court as a unified claim tied to the city’s past decisions.

The broader question now is whether this case is an outlier or a blueprint. Across South Florida and beyond, similar sites sit buried beneath neighborhoods built in another era. This case may determine how long those histories remain legally—and politically—unexamined.

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