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GOOD AFTERNOON AND WELCOME TO THE JULY 9TH LAND USE AND SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE MEETING.THANK YOU TO MY COLLEAGUES WHO ARE HERE, AND FOR THOSE OF YOU TUNING IN, WONDERING WHY I AM SITTING HERE AND NOT CHAIR FERNANDEZ, HE WILL TAKE OVER MOMENTARILY, BUT WE'RE GONNA TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY
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TO, UH, TO DO A PROCLAMATION FOR JOE GOMEZ, OUR PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR, WHO ISSO THERE'S, THERE'S A LOT OF INFORMATION IN THIS PROCLAMATION, AND I'M ACTUALLY NOT GONNA READ IT.
AND THIS IS PROBABLY A CUE IF I DON'T READ FROM A PROCLAMATION, IT MEANS I'M GONNA SPEAK FROM THE HEART.
'CAUSE I KNOW ENOUGH ABOUT YOU AND WORK CLOSELY ENOUGH WITH YOU TO SPEAK FROM THE HEART.
UM, YOU HAVE, WHEN DID YOU JOIN? THREE YEARS AGO.
IT SEEMS, IT SEEMS MUCH LONGER.
YOU'VE BEEN SUCH A, LIKE A DECADE, SIR.
YOU'VE BEEN SO INSTRUMENTAL AND SO PIVOTAL IN OUR CITY.
AND YOU KNOW WHAT, WHAT'S INTERESTING THAT THIS PROCLAMATION FOLLOWS, AND I KNOW IT'S A COINCIDENCE, BUT WE JUST HAD A MEETING DISCUSSING OUR NEXT CITY MANAGER AND THE WHOLE PROCESS.
AND REALLY ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS OUR CITY MANAGER DOES, AND THERE'S MANY IMPORTANT THINGS, IS FINDING GOOD TALENT AND BRINGING PEOPLE IN.
AND SOMETIMES IT'S GROWING FROM WITHIN AND COMING UP THROUGH THE RANKS, OR IN YOUR CASE, A LATERAL MOVE.
UH, AND I, I LITERALLY REMEMBER WHEN ALINA HUDAK, AND I'LL GIVE ALINA THE CREDIT, OBVIOUSLY, FOR BRINGING YOU IN AND IDENTIFYING, UM, BUT I REMEMBER WHEN SHE CALLED ME AND SHE'S LIKE, I GOT THIS FANTASTIC CANDIDATE, AND I'M JUST NERVOUS, LIKE, WE'RE NOT GONNA BE ABLE TO CLOSE THE DEAL.
AND, UM, IT LIVED UP TO THE BILLING AND YOU HAVE AS WELL.
AND, UH, I GUESS THE ONE THING THAT IT SAYS IN HERE, YOU WERE BORN IN CUBA, UH, WHICH IS GREAT.
UM, AND YOU'VE BEEN LIVING IN SOUTH FLORIDA SINCE 1961.
BUT, UM, NO, BUT REALLY, TRULY A PLEASURE.
I I, I, I AM ACTUALLY VERY SADDENED THAT YOU'RE, THAT YOU'RE LEAVING AND, UH, I IT'S PROBABLY TOO LATE AT THE END THAT WE'VE GIVEN YOU PROCLAMATIONS, BUT IF THERE'S ANYTHING WE COULD DO COLLECTIVELY TO CHANGE YOUR MIND, UM, I WOULD, I WOULD DO THAT.
SO OBVIOUSLY I WANNA GIVE YOU THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK MAYBE EVEN, UH, RAQUEL WILLIAMS, OUR INTERIM CITY MANAGER, IF YOU WANT TO SAY SOMETHING AS WELL.
BUT BEFORE WE DO THAT, LET'S, LET'S ACTUALLY READ THE LAST LINE OF THIS PROCLAMATION.
NOW, THEREFORE DO WE AS MAYOR AND THE COMMISSIONERS OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH HERE BY PROCLAIM JULY 9TH, 2024, AS JOE GOMEZ DAY.
DO YOU WANNA SAY SOMETHING OR LET YOUR, UH, BOSS SAY SOMETHING FIRST?
YEAH, I GOTTA CATCH MY BREATH.
CAN I, BEFORE OUR WONDERFUL INTERIM CITY MANAGER STEPS UP TO THE PLATE? 'CAUSE SHE'S A TOUGH ACT TO FOLLOW.
IF I COULD JUST SAY A COUPLE WORDS, UM, JOE, YOU KNOW HOW I FEEL ABOUT YOU, HUGE FAN.
UM, JOE HAS BEEN INCREDIBLY PATIENT WITH MY INCREDIBLY STUPID QUESTIONS ABOUT THINGS THAT HE'S HAD TO EXPLAIN TIME AND TIME AGAIN LONG BEFORE I EVEN HAD A TWINKLING IN MY EYE ABOUT RUNNING FOR OFFICE.
UM, I AM VERY SORRY, JOE, THAT I DID NOT THINK AHEAD TO BRING WHAT WE SHOULD HAVE BROUGHT FOR YOU TODAY, WHICH IS A GREATEST HITS REEL OF YOUR FIRST STREET MEETINGS.
BUT WE DON'T, WE STILL HAVE A LAND USE COMMITTEE MEETINGS AND WE DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO DO BOTH.
UM, I THINK WE ALL SHARE THE MAYOR'S SENTIMENTS THAT HAD THERE BEEN ANYTHING WE COULD HAVE DONE TO CHANGE YOUR MIND TO KEEP YOU HERE, WE WOULD'VE, BUT I KNOW IT'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY AND, UH, DON'T LOSE OUR NUMBER.
SO IT WAS MENTIONED THAT ONE HUAC BROUGHT JOE HERE, AND I GOT A FEELING ANOTHER HUAC HELPED HIM LEAVE
I JUST GOTTA SAY THAT JOE HAS BEEN A TREMENDOUS ROCK IN OUR SENIOR MANAGEMENT TEAM, JOE.
HE IS SELFLESS, HE HAS MUCH INTEGRITY.
HE'S PATIENT AND HE IS A PROFESSIONAL IN EVERY SENSE.
JOE, WE ARE GOING TO MISS YOU AND THE TALENT AND LEADERSHIP THAT YOU BROUGHT TO OUR TEAM, TO THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT, WE KNOW THAT YOUR LEGACY WILL LIVE ON BECAUSE OF ALL OF THE TREMENDOUS THINGS YOU'VE DONE FOR OUR CITY.
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UH, I'M GLAD THAT YOU'RE ABLE TO LEAVE WITH CERTAIN PROJECTS BACK ON TRACK AND WE ARE VERY PROUD OF YOU.SO WHEREVER YOU GO, YOU'LL ALWAYS HAVE A HOME IN MIAMI BEACH.
AND AS WAS MENTIONED EARLIER, IF THERE'S ANYTHING WE NEED TO DO TO KEEP YOU HERE, THE DOOR IS ALWAYS OPEN.
AND I, I DON'T KNOW IF ERIC WANTS TO SAY SOMETHING.
THIS ONE, I, I WAS SO SURPRISED I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WE WERE DOING THIS PROCLAMATION.
SO GREAT, GREAT SECRET KEEPING.
UM, I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT JOE HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE CONSUMMATE PROFESSIONAL.
AND I'VE KNOWN JOE FOR PROBABLY 20 YEARS AT THIS POINT.
UM, HE HAS BEEN AN AMAZING PART OF THE TEAM HERE AT THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH.
AND HE IS ALWAYS LED FROM THE FRONT, BUT WITH NO THOUGHT OF HIMSELF.
IT'S ALWAYS BEEN ABOUT THE CITY.
UM, AND I JUST WANT TO PERSONALLY THANK, UH, JOE, YOU ARE LEAVING ON SUCH A HIGH NOTE FROM OUR CITY.
UM, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF TIMES US AS ELECTED OFFICIALS, WE TAKE PRIDE SPONSORING ITEMS, HELPING PUSH AGENDAS, HAVE HELPING ADVANCE PROJECTS.
BUT WE CAN'T DO ANYTHING WITHOUT THE SUPPORT OF PROFESSIONAL STAFF, THE, THE STAFF TO HAVE THE EXPERTISE, THE KNOWLEDGE, BUT NOT JUST THE EXPERTISE AND THE KNOWLEDGE, BUT THE CARING TO SIT DOWN WITH THE COMMUNITY, TO LISTEN TO THE COMMUNITY, TO LISTEN TO THE RESIDENTS, TO WORK WITH THEM, AND TO WORK WITH US AND TO HELP FIND GOOD MIDDLE GROUNDS TO ADVANCE PIVOTAL PROJECTS FORWARD.
AND THAT'S WHY WE ALL THIS BODY CARRIES, UH, GREAT SUCCESS OF HAVING BEEN ABLE TO RESTART, UH, WEST AVENUE RESTART, UH, FIRST STREET.
UH, BUT IT'S BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO WORK WITH, UH, WITH, WITH GREAT STAFF.
AND I JUST WANNA HIGHLIGHT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IT MENTIONS IN THIS, IN THIS PROCLAMATION THAT IT'S WORTH NOTING, IS THAT YOU, JOE, YOU'VE LED THE THIRD LARGEST DEPARTMENT IN OUR CITY WITH OVER 360 EMPLOYEES AND A CAPITAL AND OPERATING BUDGET OF APPROXIMATELY $500 MILLION.
AND NOW, JUST EARLIER, WE WERE TALKING ABOUT INDIVIDUALS TO LEAD THE FUTURE OF OUR CITY.
AND THERE'S INDIVIDUALS THAT DIDN'T EVEN, THAT HAVEN'T EVEN, YOU KNOW, HAD THAT EXPERIENCE.
AND YOU'VE BEEN DOING THAT FOR US FOR THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS.
AND YOUR LOSS, YOUR, YOU LEAVING SUCH A GREAT LOSS TO US, TO OUR COMMUNITY, TO, TO OUR RESIDENTS.
BUT WE'RE SO GRATEFUL FOR THE WORK YOU HELPED ADVANCE, THAT'S GONNA LIVE FOR DECADES AND FOR GENERATIONS, FOR THE FUTURE AND THE RESILIENCY OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH.
YOU CHOOSE TO FILL PUBLIC WORKS, SANITATION, ENGINEERING, OPERATIONS, GREEN SPACE COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH, JOE, FOR THE LEADERSHIP THAT YOU PROVIDED, THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT FOR YOUR PATIENCE FOR THE MANY ROUNDS OF MEETINGS THAT YOU TOOK WITH RESIDENTS AND WITH ME.
YOU ALWAYS TAKE THAT PHONE CALL AND I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT.
I WISH YOU THE VERY BEST, UM, IN YOUR NEW CITY AND HAS LIKE, HAS ALREADY BEEN SAID, UH, YOU'RE ALWAYS WELCOME IN MIAMI BEACH.
JOE, IT'S BEEN AN ABSOLUTE PLEASURE.
UH, WHEN YOU STARTED HERE, UH, I WASN'T INVOLVED IN OUR CITY GOVERNMENT, BUT I'D ALSO, UH, OFTEN BE SITTING IN THE AUDIENCE.
AND SO I DIDN'T KNOW YOU JOINED AS THE HEAD OF PUBLIC WORKS.
AND I'D SEE YOU COME UP AND SAY, MAN, THAT GUY MUST BE A REALLY WELL-PAID LOBBYIST.
UH, I GO, HE'S JUST DRESSED WAY, WAY TOO WELL FOR A GOVERNMENT WORKER AND, UH,
SO THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU'VE DONE.
I, UM, YOU KNOW, I, I DIDN'T, I DIDN'T REALLY APPRECIATE THE LOSS UNTIL, UM, UNTIL THE FLOODING THAT WE HAD ON THE 11TH AND 12TH AND 13TH.
AND WHEN I CAME INTO YOUR OFFICE, UM, YOU WERE SO BUSY DEALING WITH RESIDENTS, DRAINAGE PROBLEMS, UM, YOU KNOW, AND AT THAT POINT I REALIZED, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE REALLY LOSING SOMEONE.
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UM, IT'S A SHAME, UH, BECAUSE I KNOW AT THAT POINT YOU REALLY CARED ABOUT MY BEACH AND IT'S RESIDENTS.SO, SO I WISH YOU THE BEST OF LUCK, OKAY? UM, AT LEAST COMING FROM ME.
THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR, VICE MAYOR DOMINGUEZ, HONORABLE COMMISSIONERS, MADAM CITY MANAGER, DEPUTY CITY MANAGER, ESTEEMED COLLEAGUES.
I, IT'S BEEN, IT'S BEEN AN EMOTIONAL COUPLE OF WEEKS FOR ME AS I'VE STARTED TO WIND DOWN AND TOOK THE THINGS OUT MY OFFICE.
UM, MET WITH MY ENGINEERING TEAM TODAY AND SOME OTHER FOLKS FROM PUBLIC WORKS.
UM, AND I THINK I'VE SAID THIS TO ALL TO YOU BEFORE THAT, OUT OF MY FOUR, ALMOST 48 YEARS IN THIS PROFESSION, THE LAST THREE HAVE BEEN THE MOST REWARDING IN MY PROFESSIONAL CAREER.
BUT I ATTRIBUTE THAT NOT JUST TO ME, BUT A MANNERS OF SOME OF HIS PARTS.
AND THE PARTS HERE ARE MANY, AND THEY'RE HERE IN THIS AUDIENCE.
THE AMAZING MEN AND WOMEN OF PUBLIC WORKS ARE BEYOND WORDS.
AND, UM, LEAVING THEM IS HARD, BUT I KNOW THEY'RE IN GREAT HANDS.
AND, UM, I WANNA THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT.
I KNOW THERE WERE MANY CHALLENGING ISSUES ALONG THE WAY, BUT THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT.
THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING OUR PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT.
THEY'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT SEXY DEPARTMENT.
WE DON'T WEAR FANCY UNIFORMS, BUT WE GET THE JOB DONE,
I ALSO WANNA THANK MY COLLEAGUES, UM, IN THE OTHER DEPARTMENTS WHO WORKED SIDE BY SIDE WITH ME.
UM, THEY WENT THROUGH MANY OF MY CHALLENGES AND SUPPORTED ME.
THEY WELCOMED ME WITH OPEN ARMS WHEN I CAME TO THE CITY.
AND I CAN TRULY SAY MIAMI BEACH IS A, IS IS MY FAMILY.
WHAT I NEED YOU TO UNDERSTAND WHY MIAMI BEACH IS SO SPECIAL TO ME.
UH, MY LATE FATHER, JUAN JOSE, LIVED ON MIAMI BEACH FOR 13 YEARS AT SEVEN 10 WASHINGTON AVENUE.
EVERY MORNING I DRIVE BY THE PLACE HE USED TO LIVE.
EVERY SUNDAY I WOULD COME, AND WITHOUT EXCEPTION, FOR THOSE 13 YEARS, WE WOULD GO WALK FROM THE APARTMENT TO PER PUERTO TO SAGA, HAVE LUNCH AT THE COUNTER, AT THE SAME TWO SPOTS, HAVE A COUPLE OF LO BROWS OR HEINEKENS, AND THEN WE WOULD WALK TO OCEAN DRIVE.
AND LIKE TWO PROPER CUBAN GENTLEMEN, WE WOULD JUST TALK ABOUT LIFE WHEN DRIVE.
EVERY MORNING MY PATROL, I GO THROUGH OCEAN DRIVE.
I THINK ABOUT THAT TIME WITH MY DAD AND HOW MUCH IT MEANS TO ME.
SO YEAH, MIAMI BEACH IS MORE THAN JUST A PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT.
NOW THAT WE'RE ALL TEARY-EYED, LET'S TAKE A PICTURE.
WE NEED PEOPLE TO BALANCE THIS SIDE.
FIRST, WE'RE OKAY RIGHT HERE, PLEASE.
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IT'S NICE TO SEE THE HUMAN SIDE OF POLITICS EVERY SO OFTEN.AND NOW I'M GONNA TURN IT OVER TO COMMISSIONER AND CHAIR OF THE LAND USE MEETING.
GOOD AFTERNOON AND WELCOME TO THE JULY 9TH MEETING AT THE LAND USE AND SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE.
THANK YOU COLLEAGUES FOR, FOR JOINING US.
AND THANK YOU TO THE MEMBERS, UH, THE CITY CO COMMISSION WHO ATTENDED, WHO ARE NOT PART OF THE, OF THE COMMITTEE, BUT IS PROPER TO HONOR, UH, JOE FOR HIS SERVICE.
UM, MR. PLANNING DIRECTOR, ARE THERE, ARE THERE CHANGES TO TODAY'S AGENDA AS PRINTED? UH, THERE ARE NO CHANGES TO THE, UH, PRINTED AGENDA, MR. CHAIR.
SO WITHOUT CHANGES, WITHDRAWALS, DEFERRALS, IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE TODAY'S AGENDA? IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE TODAY'S AGENDA? I'LL MAKE A MOTION.
IT'S BEEN MOVED BY COMMISSIONER BONDS, SECOND BY THE CHAIR WITHOUT OPPOSITION, THAT SHOW THE AGENDAS ADOPTED.
MR. ATTORNEY, IF YOU'D READ, UH, FOR THE RECORD, THE VIRTUAL PARTICIPATION ANNOUNCEMENT ON THE AGENDA? SURE.
TODAY'S MEETING OF THE LAND USE AND SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE WILL BE CONDUCTED IN A HYBRID FORMAT WITH MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE PHYSICALLY PRESENT IN THE COMMISSION CHAMBERS AT MIAMI BEACH CITY HALL AND STAFF AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC APPEARING EITHER IN PERSON OR VIRTUALLY VIA ZOOM.
TO PARTICIPATE VIRTUALLY THE PUBLIC MAY DIAL 1-888-475-FOUR 4 9 9 AND ENTER THE WEBINAR ID, WHICH IS 8 5 0 5 9 9 2 3 0 3, OR LOG INTO THE ZOOM APP AND ENTER THE WEBINAR ID, WHICH IS 8 5 0 5 9 9 2 3 3 7.
ANYONE WISHING TO SPEAK ON AN ITEM? MUST CLICK THE RAISE HAND ICON IN THE ZOOM APP OR DIAL STAR NINE IF THEY'RE PARTICIPATING BY PHONE.
JUST FOR THE RECORD, UH, WE DO HAVE A FOUR 30, UH, TIME SERGEANT.
UH, THOSE ARE TRANSPORTATION ITEMS THAT I BELIEVE THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS WILL BE ATTENDING.
UH, MR. DIRECTOR WITCH ARE THOSE ITEMS, UH, MR. CHAIR, THAT'S ITEM NUMBER 12 REGARDING I 3 95 MACARTHUR CAUSEWAY.
AND ITEM NUMBER 13, DISCUSSION REGARDING I 1 95, JULIA TITLE CAUSEWAY.
AND JUST FOR THE RECORD, I WANNA RECOGNIZE WE HAVE OUR STATE REPRESENTATIVE, FABIAN BASA IN THE AUDIENCE.
THANK YOU MR. REPRESENTATIVE FOR, FOR ATTENDING.
[1. REQUEST FOR THE ADMINISTRATION TO EXPLORE AND PROVIDE OPTIONS FOR ESTABLISHING NEW RESILIENCY BEST-PRACTICE PARAMETERS TO ENSURE THAT POROUS CONCRETE/PAVERS AND BIOSWALES ARE USED IN NEW DEVELOPMENT TO HELP MITIGATE “NEW NORMAL” FLOODING EVENTS.]
MR. DIRECTOR, LET'S CALL ITEM NUMBER ONE.ITEM ONE IS A REQUEST FOR THE ADMINISTRATION TO EXPLORE AND PROVIDE OPTIONS FOR ESTABLISHING NEW RESILIENCY BEST PRACTICE PARAMETERS TO ENSURE THAT POROUS CONCRETE PAVERS AND BIO SLAS ARE USED IN NEW DEVELOPMENT TO HELP MITIGATE NEW NORMAL FLOODING EVENTS.
IS THERE A MOTION TO BRING THE ITEM BEFORE THE TABLE SECOND BY THE CHAIR? COMMISSIONER BON, THIS IS YOUR ITEM, YOU'RE RECOGNIZED.
UM, UNLIKE IN AN EARLIER CONVERSATION WHERE I WAS NOT TRYING TO, UM, IMPACT OR ENGINEERING OF ANYTHING IN THIS CASE, I AM, UM, I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO, UH, THE COLLEAGUES WHO, WHO ACTUALLY KNOW A LOT ABOUT THIS.
BUT I WILL TELL YOU, I'VE LIVED HERE 21 YEARS IN COUNTING.
AND AS WE SEE OUR HOUSING STOCK CHANGE, WHETHER IT'S SINGLE FAMILY HOUSING OR MULTI-FAMILY HOUSING OR APARTMENT BUILDINGS, CONDOS BEING BUILT, UM, AND AESTHETIC PREFERENCES CHANGE, WE ARE SEEING INCREASING USE OF CONCRETE PAVERS TAKING OVER, UM, GREEN SPACE, WHETHER THAT IS A, A SWALE ON THE STREET, OR, UM, IN THE CASE OF THE HOUSE WHERE I RAISED MY CHILDREN, UM, THE ENTIRE FRONT YARD, WHICH USED TO BE GRASSY, AND WE HAD FERAL CATS THAT WE TRAPPED IN SPADE AND RELEASED, UM, IS NOW, UM, GIANT CONCRETE PAVERS WITH A LITTLE BIT OF GRASS IN BETWEEN.
IF THE GRASS CAN LAST, I'M NOT SUGGESTING THAT WE SHOULD BE, UM, TELLING PEOPLE THEY CAN'T USE THAT.
I'M SUGGESTING THAT WE HAVE VERY STRICT STANDARDS OF WHAT IS PERMITTED SO THAT IF WE ARE LOSING, UM, GREEN SPACE, WE ARE REPLACING IT WITH THE BEST AVAILABLE ENGINEERING, UM, TO MAKE UP FOR IT.
SO WHETHER IT'S POROUS PAVEMENT OR, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT KINDS OF OPTIONS THAT I DON'T EVEN KNOW ABOUT, I KNOW A LOT OF WORK IS BEING DONE ON THIS TYPE OF, UM, PRODUCT AROUND THE WORLD.
I SEE, UH, VIDEOS AND READ ARTICLES ABOUT
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IT ALL THE TIME THAT PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO DO THIS BECAUSE IT'S NOT A PROBLEM THAT IS SPECIFIC TO MIAMI BEACH.UM, AND IT SEEMS LIKE A SMALL STEP, BUT YOU KNOW WHAT THOSE SMALL STEPS ADD UP.
AND SO BETWEEN, UM, USING NEW TECHNOLOGY, IT LETTING PEOPLE UNDERSTAND THAT IT'S OUT THERE INCENTIVIZING THE USE OF THAT NEW TECHNOLOGY AND ENCOURAGING, UH, RETAINING OR EXPANDING GREEN SPACE, UM, I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE SHOULD BE DOING.
WITH THAT, UH, IS THERE, IS THERE A PRESENTATION FROM STAFF? IS THERE ANYONE FROM STAFF YOU'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE? DO YOU HAVE A PROPOSAL BEFORE THE COMMITTEE? UH, SURE.
I, I'D LIKE TO HAVE, UH, THE, THE RELEVANT FOLKS, I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S GONNA BE ERIC OR OR JOE TO TALK ABOUT WHAT'S AVAILABLE AND, AND WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN TO GO FORWARD.
UM, BUT THE, THE REQUEST WOULD BE FOR US TO, UH, ADOPT THIS AND, UH, MOVE FORWARD FROM A LEGAL PERSPECTIVE TO MAKE IT A, SOMETHING THAT WE CAN, SOMETHING THAT IS ACTIONABLE SO THAT WHEN YOU ARE APPLYING TO BUILD A NEW DRIVEWAY OR BUILD A NEW DEVELOPMENT OR DO SOME NEW LANDSCAPING, IT ADHERES TO THESE BEST PRACTICES AND STANDARDS USING THE BEST AVAILABLE, UH, RESOURCES THAT ARE KNOWN TO US.
THANK, THANK, THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR.
UM, VICE CHAIR, UM, INTERESTING OF YOUR, UH, THE PROJECT.
YOU ALWAYS TALK TO ME ABOUT FIRST STREET, UH, ON FIRST STREET, UH, AS AN EXAMPLE, UH, FOR THE, BOTH THE VALLEY LANE AND THE PARKING LANE ON THE RESIDENTIAL SIDE, WE ARE PROPOSING, UH, POROUS PAVEMENT, UH, FOR THOSE AREAS.
EVEN THOUGH IT'S IN THE PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAY, IT, IT HAS LESS AMOUNT OF TRAFFIC.
SO IT'S, IT'S MORE SUITED FOR THE, UH, POROUS PAVEMENT TYPE PARKING.
UH, LOTS AS, AS MENTIONED IN THE MEMO, ARE ALSO A, A GREAT AREA TO, TO CONSIDER POROUS PAVEMENTS.
UM, THEY HAVE THEIR LIMITATIONS, OF COURSE, IN TERMS OF MAINTENANCE, UH, AND, AND TRAFFIC LOADS.
THE MORE LOADS YOU HAVE, UH, TRAFFIC WISE, UH, THE MORE DIFFICULT BECAUSE THE, THE POROSITY OF THE PAVEMENT STARTS TO GO AWAY.
AND AT THAT POINT IT JUST BECOMES A VERY RIGID SURFACE.
BUT NEVERTHELESS, IT'S SOMETHING THAT OUR, OUR ENGINEERING TEAM HAS, UH, CONTINUED TO EXPLORE.
AND WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO EXPLORE NEW, UH, ME METH METHODS THAT ARE OUT THERE, NEW TECHNOLOGIES, AND WE CERTAINLY, WHATEVER WE CAN GET MORE PERVIOUS AREA TO BE ABLE TO DRAIN, UH, MUCH BETTER, IF I MAY.
SO WHAT, WHAT I'D LIKE TO SEE IS, UM, AND, AND TOM, MAYBE THIS IS A QUESTION FOR YOU AND YOUR STAFF.
YOU KNOW, IF SOMEBODY COMES TO US WITH AN APPLICATION TO, UH, WE NEED TO REPLACE A DRIVEWAY OR BUILD A DRIVEWAY, GO RIGHT AHEAD.
LIKE WHEN PEOPLE SAY TO US, WE WANNA PAINT OUR HOUSE, WE'RE LIKE, GREAT, BUT HERE ARE THE PARAMETERS.
AND SO, UM, HOW DO WE MAKE THAT A THING? HOW DO, WHAT, WHAT'S THE ACTION THAT IS NEEDED TO MAKE THAT PART OF OUR CODE? I I CAN ADDRESS THAT.
UM, COMMISSIONER, AS YOU'LL NOTE IN THE MEMO, WE PROVIDED SOME BACKUP FROM THE APPLICABLE SECTIONS OF THE RESILIENCY CODE.
UM, AND IT GOES INTO A LOT MORE DETAIL THAN, THAN JUST, UM, DRIVEWAYS AND WALKWAYS.
BUT TO THAT POINT, WE HAVE A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT REQUIREMENTS THAT ARE SPECIFIC TO PARKING LOTS.
THEY MUST CONTAIN EITHER CONSIST OF A HIGH ALBEDO SURFACE FOR, UM, WHICH IS A DURABLE MAT MATERIAL THAT'S MEANT TO MINIMIZE THE IMPACTS OF HEAT OR POROUS PAVEMENT.
THE OTHER THING THAT'S IMPORTANT TO POINT OUT IS THAT WITHIN SINGLE FAMILY DISTRICTS, THERE'S A 50%, UM, LANDSCAPE OPEN REQUIREMENT, UM, WITHIN FRONT YARDS AND SIDE YARDS FACING A STREET, UM, AS WELL AS A MINIMUM REQUIREMENT OF 70 SPACE, 70% OPEN SPACE IN REAR YARDS.
AND SO WHAT WE'RE FINDING WITH NEW SINGLE FAMILY CONSTRUCTION IS WITH THESE HIGHER NUMBERS, YOU'RE SEEING SIGNIFICANTLY MORE LANDSCAPING AND, AND THE PAVEMENT HAS BEEN MORE MINIMIZED.
UH, WE ARE SEEING A MIX OF BOTH CONCRETE AND PAVER SET IN SAND, BUT WITH THESE HIGH MINIMUM OPEN SPACE REQUIREMENTS, UH, WE'RE FINDING AND WITH HOMES THAT ARE BUILDING AN UNDERSTORY THAT ALLOWS FOR EVEN, UM, BETTER WATER RETENTION, UM, AND KEEPING THE WATER AWAY FROM, FROM THE HABITABLE AREAS OF THE FLOOR OF, OF THE HOME, THAT THAT ALSO ALLOWS FOR PARKING UNDERNEATH THE BUILDING, WHICH, UH, AGAIN, INCREASES THE PERVIOUS OPEN SPACE AREA THAT IS WITHIN THE REQUIRED YARD.
SO IF, IF, IF, IF I MAY, UM, IF, IF THE ITEM BEFORE US WAS FOR THE ADMINISTRATION TO EXPLORE AND PROVIDE OPTIONS, UH, FOR ESTABLISHING NEW BEST P BEST PRACTICES TO ENSURE THAT POROUS CONCRETE AND PAVERS, UH, AND BIO BIOSWELLS ARE USED IN NEW DEVELOPMENTS, UH, DOES THE ADMINISTRATION AT THIS TIME HAVE A RECOMMENDATION FOR THE BODY,
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UH, AS IT RELATES TO THE INTENT THAT THE SPONSOR HAS BROUGHT BEFORE US? I'M ASKING THE ADMINISTRATION, UM, NOT BEYOND WHAT WE'VE LISTED IN THE MEMO IN TERMS OF WHAT THE EXISTING REQUIREMENTS ARE.WE DIDN'T DEVELOP ANY NEW RECOMMENDATIONS, UM, PURSUANT TO THAT.
TO THE EXTENT THAT THE COMMITTEE WANTS TO CONTINUE THIS TO THE SEPTEMBER MEETING, WE COULD COME BACK WITH SOME RECOMMENDATIONS THAT, UH, WOULD BE BASED ON THE PARAMETERS THAT ARE SET.
SO IT'S, IT'S NOT THANK YOU, UH, MR. CHAIR.
IT'S NOT JUST NEW DEVELOPMENTS, IT'S EXISTING STRUCTURES THAT ARE UPGRADING.
UM, I THINK WE NEED TO DO EVERYTHING IN OUR POWER TO MAKE THIS, UM, MORE ENTICING.
MAKE IT, I'M SORRY, UM, TO, TO, TO DO EVERYTHING WE CAN AS A CITY TO PROTECT OUR INFRASTRUCTURE, OUR ROADWAYS, OUR RESIDENTS HOMES BY REQUIRING THEY GO AN EXTRA STEP.
AND I KNOW THAT THE SHORT TERM PAIN IS, WELL, IT'S A LITTLE MORE EXPENSIVE, OR I WANTED TO HAVE MY FIFTH CAR IN FRONT OF MY HOUSE, UM, NOW I'M GONNA HAVE TO FIND ANOTHER PARKING SPOT FOR MY FIFTH CAR.
WHATEVER THE ISSUE IS, AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW MANY NICE CARS YOU HAVE IN FRONT OF YOUR, YOUR SPOT, IF THEY'RE FLOATING AWAY IN WHAT IS INCREASINGLY BECOMING THE NEW NORMAL, AND I DON'T WANNA SOUND LIKE CHICKEN LITTLE, BUT THE FACT THAT WE'VE HAD THREE, I THINK A HUNDRED YEAR STORMS IN THE LAST 18 MONTHS, UM, IS NOT AN ANOMALY.
THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT THIS IS GOING TO BE LOOKING LIKE.
AND SO LET'S TAKE A, A VERY HARD LOOK AT WHAT WE CAN DO TO MAKE THIS STRONGER, MORE EXIGENT, MORE DEMANDING, SO THAT WE CAN ALL ENJOY THIS BARRIER ISLAND FOR THE NEXT A HUNDRED YEARS.
INSTEAD OF GETTING WASHED OUT TO SEA COMMISSIONER BON, I WOULD SUPPORT ANY EFFORT THAT YOU HAVE, UH, TO BRING IN MORE PERS UH, SURFACES, UH, TO HELP MITIGATE, UM, FLOOD EVENTS THAT WE'RE DEALING WITH.
I WANT TO UNDERSTAND BILE SWELLS.
'CAUSE MY UNDERSTANDING OF BILE SOILS IS THAT THEY, THEY'RE GOOD BECAUSE THEY HELP WITH THE WATER QUALITY.
CORRECT? UM, BUT THEY DON'T NECESSARILY, IT'S NOT THAT THEY NECESSARILY HELP WITH MITIGATE FLOODING, BUT THEY HELP WITH WITH WATER QUALITY.
SO A A BIO SOIL IS REALLY TO TREAT THAT FIRST FLUSH THAT COMES FROM A, A RAINSTORM.
IT'S, IT'S FOR WATER QUALITY PURPOSES, RIGHT? IT'S NOT VOLUMETRIC.
AND SO WITH, UM, WITH POROUS CONCRETE AND WITH, AND WITH PAVERS AND THAT TYPE OF TECHNOLOGY, IS THE MAINTENANCE DIFFERENT THAN WITH BIOS, SOILS FOR IT? IT, IT, UM, TYPICALLY POROUS PAVEMENTS, UM, UH, OBVIOUSLY STREET SWEEPING IS, IS, IS AN IMPORTANT COMPONENT OF IT, RIGHT? TO MAKE SURE THAT THE SURFACE AREA IS FREE OF DEBRIS AND OILS THAT COULD DO THAT.
THE PARKING LANES ARE, ARE GREAT AREAS BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE THE CONSTANT TRAFFIC.
YOU KNOW, CARS COME IN, THEY PARK, AND THEN THEY'LL, THEY'LL ROLL OUT, AND SOMETIMES YOU'LL HAVE, BUT, UM, IN, IN, IN ROADWAYS IT'S A LITTLE MORE COMPLICATED BECAUSE AGAIN, UH, THE, THE, THE IMPACT OF THE TRAFFIC, THE LOADS OF THE TRAFFIC, UM, JUST AREN'T, AREN'T REALLY SUITED FOR THE TYPE OF TECHNOLOGY THAT WE HAVE TODAY.
THERE ARE NEW METHODS THAT ARE BEING LOOKED AT, UM, AND I'M SURE THAT AT SOME POINT IN THE, IN THE VERY NEAR FUTURE, THERE WILL BE POROUS PAVEMENTS THAT ARE MORE SUITABLE TO HIDE, UH, VOLUME TRAFFIC.
UM, BUT RIGHT NOW, I THINK STAYING THE COURSE WITH, UH, PARKING LANES, UM, UH, PARKING LOTS, UM, DRIVEWAYS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, I THINK WOULD BE A, A, A SUBSTANTIAL HELP.
SO WHAT I'M, I WANT TO SUPPORT, UH, THE, THE, THE EFFORTS OF MY COLLEAGUE.
THE ONLY THING I WANT TO BE MINDFUL OF IS THE POTENTIAL MAINTENANCE, UH, BURDEN THAT WE PLACE ON PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNERS, UH, WITH THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY THAT'S USED IN BIOSWALES.
UM, I JUST WANT TO BE MINDFUL OF THAT BECAUSE THAT COULD BE, YOU KNOW, QUITE ONEROUS ON, ON A, UH, ON A, UH, PROPERTY OWNER.
UM, I THINK, YOU KNOW, FROM MY RESEARCH, YOU KNOW, IT INCLUDES, YOU KNOW, SEDIMENT REMOVAL, YOU KNOW, IS A GREATER LEVEL OF MANAGEMENT OF, OF VEGETATION.
IT'S A GREATER MONITORING OF, OF CLOGGING AND, AND EROSION.
SO IT'S THE TYPE OF STUFF I WANT US TO BE MINDFUL OF, BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO PUT TOO MUCH OF A BURDEN ON, YOU KNOW, HOMEOWNERS, PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNERS.
BUT I DO WANT US TO CERTAINLY, UH, LOOK INTO THE TECHNOLOGY THAT WE COULD USE AS IT RELATES TO PORES, SURFACES BESIDES BIOSWALES.
UH, SO LET I, IF WE COULD FIND THAT BALANCE SO THAT WE DON'T PLACE AN OWNERS ON PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNERS AS IT RELATES TO MAINTENANCE.
[00:30:01]
SO, THROUGH THE CHAIR, IF I MAY.SO JOE AND I WENT BACK AND FORTH LIKE, COMMISSIONER, YOU KNOW, A BIOSWALE IS NOT ABOUT VOLUME OF WATER.
I'M LIKE, I KNOW JOE, I ACTUALLY LISTENED WHEN YOU TALK.
HE'S LIKE, ARE YOU SURE YOU UNDERSTAND THIS? I'M LIKE, YES, I GOT IT.
MY THOUGHT WAS, AND I THINK ACTUALLY NICK, YOU JUMPED ONTO THAT ONE AS WELL.
UM, MY, MY THOUGHT ON THIS WAS SINCE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HOW TO, UM, INCENTIVIZE BETTER PRACTICES GOING FORWARD, THEY ARE NOT, THEY ARE NOT PAIRED NECESSARILY, BUT IF SOMEBODY IS PUTTING IN A REQUEST TO DO SOMETHING TO A HOME OR TO BUILD A NEW STRUCTURE, THERE IS ONE SET OF PARAMETERS FOR, UM, POROUS CONCRETE AND WHATEVER NEW TECHNOLOGY COMES, AND THERE'S ANOTHER SET OF, UM, PARAMETERS FOR BIOSWALES OR WHATEVER THE RIGHT GREEN SPACE WATER MANAGEMENT TOOL IS AVAILABLE TO US.
AND IF IT'S NOT LITERALLY A, TECHNICALLY A BIOSWALE, BUT IT'S SOMETHING ELSE, AND IT IS NOT TO NECESSARILY CONTAIN THE WATER, BUT IT'S, I, I UNDERSTAND THAT.
BUT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE DOING THIS KIND OF LITTLE BITES AT THE APPLE.
AND SO THESE WERE TWO BITES THAT I THOUGHT WE COULD PACKAGE TOGETHER, EVEN THOUGH THEY FUNCTION DIFFERENTLY.
COMMISSIONER SUAREZ, THANK YOU, CHAIRMAN.
UM, AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, ONE OF MY BIG ISSUES IS WATER QUALITY GETTING INTO THE BAY.
AND, YOU KNOW, THE MORE WE CAN PUT THAT FORWARD TO REALLY CLEANSE THAT FIRST FLUSH, UM, I THINK THAT'S GONNA GO A LONG WAY TO PREVENT ANY MORE FISH KILLS THAT WE'VE ACTUALLY JUST SAW A COUPLE WEEKS AGO BECAUSE OF THE FLOODING.
SO, UM, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THING, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT MIAMI BEACH SHOULD BE A LEADER IN IS, IS, IS, IS AN ENVIRONMENTALISM, RIGHT? UM, IT'S NO SURPRISE THAT THE STATE OF FLORIDA PASSED A BALLOON BAN NOT TOO LONG AGO, AFTER WE WERE THE FIRST CITY TO, TO DO THAT.
AND I, I TRULY BELIEVE THAT IT'S BECAUSE OF THIS BODY, UM, THAT IT WAS, THAT MADE NEWS THAT MADE NA THAT ACROSS THE COUNTRY, I MEAN, WE EVEN HAD A LOBBYIST COME FROM PARTY CITY TO LIKE LOBBY AGAINST IT, WHICH IS RIDICULOUS.
BUT, AND, AND IN THE PAST, AND, AND LO AND BEHOLD NOW THE STATE OF FLORIDA TOOK, TOOK THE LEAD ON THIS.
AND SO, UM, YOU KNOW, THINGS, LITTLE THINGS LIKE THIS ACTUALLY TRANSCEND BEYOND MIAMI BEACH INTO OTHER, UH, MUNICIPALITIES AND, AND DAY AND HOPEFULLY ALL OVER THE STATE OF FLORIDA WHERE, YOU KNOW, WE, WE CAN BE THE LEADER IN, IN REALLY TAKING CARE OF OUR ENVIRONMENT.
SO IF THIS IS GONNA HELP, I THINK THAT'S A GREAT STEP.
SO YOU SECOND CO COMMISSIONER BOT'S MOTION TO HAVE, UH, STAFF WORK ON AN ITEM YES.
HOW MUCH TIME DOES STAFF NEED, UH, TO, UH, BRING THIS, UH, BACK TO THE BODY? WE CAN BRING SOMETHING BACK ON SEPTEMBER 4TH IN, IN SEPTEMBER, AND I JUST, YOU KNOW, I WANT TO COMMEND COMMISSIONER BOND'S LEADERSHIP BECAUSE ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO TO COLLECT POLLUTED STORM, UM, STORM WATER RUNOFF, UM, SOAKING INTO THE GROUND AND FILTER OUT THAT POLLUTION, I THINK, I THINK AS YOU MENTIONED, COMMISSIONER SUAREZ IS SOMETHING THAT WE'VE BEEN ENDEAVORING ON.
WHEN YOU LOOK AT OUR BLUE GREEN STORM WATER, UH, MANAGEMENT INFRASTRUCTURE CONCEPT PLAN, UH, 40% OF MIAMI BEACH IS COVERED BY IMPERVIOUS SURFACES.
AND BEFORE US IS A, IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO WORK ON ENHANCING THOSE PERVIOUS SURFACES, HELPING WITH OUR FLOODING, BUT ALSO HELPING, UH, WITH, UH, FILTRATION AND THE QUALITY OF, UH, OF, OF OUR WATER.
SO, UH, SO WITH THAT, I THINK BY ACCLIMATION, WE CAN CONTINUE THIS ITEM TO SEPTEMBER SO THE STAFF CAN, UH, WORK ON, UH, ON A PROPOSAL.
[Items 2 & 3]
DON'T GO TOO FAR AWAY BECAUSE THAT'S, UH, CALL UP ITEM NUMBER TWO AND THREE.UH, MR. CHAIR, I'LL READ ITEM TWO AND THREE INTO THE RECORD.
ITEM TWO IS A REVIEW OF INVEST 90 L AND AN ASSESSMENT OF THE IMPACTS TO ONGOING INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS, INCLUDING POTENTIALLY REPRIORITIZING PROJECTS.
ITEM NUMBER THREE IS TO REVIEW INVEST 90 L AND ASSESS THE IMPACTS TO PALM ISLAND, HIBISCUS ISLAND, SUNSET HARBOR, SUNSET ISLANDS, AND INDIAN CREEK AREAS AS PART OF THE FIRST PHASE OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENT PLANS.
AND THE REASON WHY I'VE PLACED, UH, THIS ITEM ON THE, ON THE AGENDA, AND I WANT TO THANK COMMISSIONER BOT WHO JOINS ME AS A, AS A CO-SPONSOR.
YOU KNOW, DURING THIS MULTI-DAY INTENSE, UH, RAINFALL EVENT, WE EXPERIENCED SIGNIFICANT FLOODING IN CERTAIN AREAS OF OUR CITY ON LOCAL ROADWAYS AND ON PROPERTIES, UH, YOU KNOW, NOT JUST IN MIAMI BEACH, QUITE FRANKLY, IT WAS THROUGHOUT MIAMI-DADE COUNTY.
[00:35:01]
UH, THAT WE HAD CERTAIN AREAS OF OUR CITY, UH, EXPERIENCED OVER 22 INCHES OF RAIN, UH, DURING THE SPAN OF THOSE TWO DAYS.AND I THINK BASED ON THE INFORMATION THAT'S BEEN SHARED WITH ME IN SOUTH BEACH, UH, WE GOT 44, UH, CALLS FOR FLOOD SERVICE, MID BEACH 129, AND IN NORTH BEACH 77.
AND THE AREAS THAT ARE MOST SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACTED BY THE RAINFALL, UM, WERE MAINLY THOSE AREAS THAT ARE LOW LYING IN OUR CITY AREAS LIKE LAGO, AREAS LIKE LAKEVIEW, OTHER AREAS, UH, SUCH AS THE UPPER, UH, AREAS IN, IN NORTH BEACH, UH, IN DICKENS, AND IN THE, AND THE EIGHTIES.
UM, THOSE ARE THE AREAS THAT PRIMARILY HAVE THE, UH, GRAVITY DRAINAGE SYSTEMS WITH, UH, OUTFALLS AND NO STORM WATER PUMPS.
AND I SEE WE HAVE JOE GOMEZ, UH, WITH US, OUR OUTGOING PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR.
I WANNA RECOGNIZE, UH, JOE, TO WALK US ABOUT, TO WALK US THROUGH HOW THOSE AREAS THAT WE'VE IMPROVED, UM, HOW WE'VE IMPROVED THROUGH THE FIRST PHASE OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENT PLANS, HOW THEY FERT OUT AND THOSE AREAS THAT WERE MOST AFFECTED DURING INVEST 90 L UH, THOSE AREAS THAT WERE MOST AFFECTED WITH HIGH LEVELS OF FLOODING.
WHAT ARE THE PLANS FOR THOSE AREAS? SO, JOE, WELCOME.
SO, SO TO TO YOUR FIRST POINT, UM, THE, THE AREAS, UM, WE, WE DID OBVIOUSLY, UH, IN THE MIDDLE OF, OF, OF, UH, UH, TAKING CARE OF ALL THE, THE FLOODING THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
UH, WE ALSO CONDUCTED, UH, SEVERAL PATROL PATROLS, JURY AND, AND POST, UH, THE NINE INVEST 90 L WHAT WE FOUND IS THAT AREAS SUCH AS SUNSET HARBOR, UH, THE INDIAN CREEK PROJECT, UH, THE INDIAN CREEK DRIVE PROJECT THAT WAS COMPLETED A COUPLE YEARS AGO, UM, PALM HIBISCUS, UM, THOSE AREAS FARED VERY WELL IN COMPARISON TO OTHER AREAS OF THE CITY THAT HAVE NO, UH, THAT, THAT HAVE NO INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS.
UM, I CAN TELL YOU THAT, YOU KNOW, I WAS OUT, UH, FOR THOSE FOR, FOR FROM JUNE 11TH TO THE 13TH.
I WAS OUT, UM, UH, IN THE CITY, UH, MOST, MOST OF THE TIME.
AND, UM, IT, IT WAS INCREDIBLE, UH, AND VERY, UH, REWARDING TO SEE THAT THOSE PROJECTS THAT HAD INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS WORK AS INTENDED.
UM, SO I THINK THE MORAL OF THE STORY IS THAT THOSE, THE, THE RESILIENCY PROJECTS, THE STORMWATER IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS DO WORK.
THEY, THEY, THEY, THEY DEFINITELY PROVIDE AND PROVIDED OUR, OUR RESIDENTS A A LEVEL OF RELIEF.
NOW TO, TO YOUR NEXT, UH, QUESTION, UH, MR. CHAIR, I I, IN TERMS OF WHAT PLANS, UM, DO WE HAVE FOR THOSE AREAS MORE MOST AFFECTED? SO I THINK IT WOULD BE IMPORTANT, PJ, IF YOU COULD, COULD YOU PUT UP THE, THE HEAT MAP? SO THIS MAP IS A REPRESENTATION OF THE SERVICE CALLS THAT WE GOT FROM JUNE THE 11TH THROUGH THE 13TH.
THE COLOR, THE OBVIOUSLY FROM LIGHT BLUE TO RED INDICATES THE, THE, THE SEVERITY OF, OF, OF THE FLOODING.
UM, AS YOU CAN SEE, THE AREAS THAT WERE MOST AFFECTED, YOU'LL SEE THE YELLOW AND THEN THE YELLOW AND THE RED IS THE NORTH BAY ROAD.
THE AREA CONNECTING NORTH BAY ROAD TO ALTON ROAD, AS WE ALL KNOW, UH, MOST OF NORTH BAY ROAD, UH, NORTH OF 47TH STREET, UH, UH, WAS SEVERELY AFFECTED.
HMM, WHAT'S THE, WHAT DOES IT REPRESENT? SERVICE CALL, THE, THE, THAT'S JUST WHERE THE, THE, THE SERVICE CALL WAS, WAS, UH, LOCATED.
SO THE COLORS INDICATE, AGAIN, SERVICE CALLS.
AGAIN, THIS AS, AS THE, THE CHAIR MENTIONED, WE HAD IN TOTALITY, WE HAD OVER, UM, TWO CLOSE TO 300, UH, SERVICE CALLS, UH, OVERALL IN THE CITY.
BUT THE, THE BULK, THE MAJORITY OF THE CALLS WERE IN THE MID BEACH AREA.
AND SPECIFICALLY, IF YOU LOOK AT THE CONCENTRATION, UH, AGAIN, OF, OF THE FLOODING, AND IT WAS ASSOCIATED WITH THE MOST VULNERABLE AND LOW LYING AREAS, WHICH ARE NORTH BAY ROAD AREA.
UM, WHEN WE LOOK AT THIS MAP, THE AREAS THAT ARE RED, DOES THAT MEAN WHEN, IS THAT, THAT THERE WERE MORE CALLS? OR WAS IT THAT THERE WERE EXTREMELY HIGH LEVELS OF FLOODING? THAT'S THE, THE, THERE WERE SERVICE CALLS, BUT ALSO THE INTENSITY OF THE FLOODING.
SO IT'S THE DEGREE OF FLOODING.
SO FOR EXAMPLE, UM, THE, THE RED INDICATES ANYTHING MORE THAN 12 INCHES, YOU KNOW, WHICH WE CONSIDER, UH, A SEVERE FLOODING THAT'S A FOOT OF WATER, UH, STANDING.
UM, AND THEN I CAN TELL YOU IN,
[00:40:01]
IN THE, IN THE CASE OF 59TH STREET AND, AND ALTERED ROAD, UH, I HAD WATER UP TO MY KNEES, UM, AT THREE O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING, ON, ON THE EVENING OF JUNE 11TH, THE 12TH.SO RED IS EXTREMELY HIGH AND YELLOW INDICATES, UH, IT, IT'S A LITTLE LESS SEVERE, BUT STILL IT'S SIX TO 12 INCHES.
UH, THE, THE BLUE THEN AND GOES FROM THREE TO SIX AND, AND THEN THREE ZERO TO THREE INCHES.
COMMISSIONER SUAREZ, THANK YOU FOR RECOGNIZING ME.
YEAH, IT JUST, HOW COME SOUTH FIFTH DIDN'T HAVE ANY? WELL, THERE'S, THERE'S NOT A, THERE'S NOT A DOT THERE.
AND, AND, AND THAT'S A GREAT OBSERVATION, COMMISSIONER.
THE REASON FOR THAT IS WE DIDN'T RECEIVE, WE HAVE DOCUMENTATION THAT THERE WAS EXTENSIVE FLOODING.
WE HAVE VIDEOS AND WE ACTUALLY DROVE THROUGH THE AREA, BUT IF PEOPLE DON'T CALL THE SER SERVICE CALL IN, IT'S, IT'S NOT RECORDED AS A SERVICE CALL.
SO, LIKE COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ, UM, ASKED, IS IT BA, IS THAT CHART BASED ON INCHES OF RAIN OR IS IT BASED ON FLOODING? I MEAN, OR IS IT BASED ON CALLS OR BOTH? IT'S, IT'S, IT'S BOTH.
SO THERE, THAT, THAT HEAT MAP HAS ALL THE SERVICE CALLS THAT WERE DOCUMENTED DURING THAT TWO DAY PERIOD.
AND THEN THE SERVICE CALL THAT, UH, UH, HAS, UH, NEXT TO IT, THE, THE DEPTH OF FLOODING THREE TO SIX, SIX TO 1212 OR MORE.
AND THAT, THAT, THAT INDICATES THE, THE, THE SEVERITY OF FLOODING.
SO TO, SO, SO I GUESS TO COMMISSIONER SUAREZ'S POINT, WE THERE, THERE MAY HAVE BEEN FLOODING IN THE CITY.
PERHAPS IT'S NOT SHOWN IN THIS MAP, UH, BECAUSE THERE WAS NOT A CALL FOR SERVICE.
SO THE, THE WE IN, IN THE SOUTH, SOUTH OF FIFTH NEIGHBORHOOD, FOR EXAMPLE, YOU DON'T TYPICALLY GET AS MANY CALLS.
UH, AGAIN, IT'S MORE, UM, UM, YOU HAVE, UH, MULTI-FAMILY, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE, UH, HIGH, UH, APARTMENT BUILDINGS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO IF YOU'RE ON THE SIXTH FLOOR OF AN APARTMENT BUILDING, YOU MAY NOT, YOU KNOW, YOU MAY SEE THE FLOODING, BUT YOU MAY NOT CALL.
WHEREAS IF YOU LIVE IN A SINGLE FAMILY HOME OR IN A DU OR IN A, IN, IN, IN A TWO STORY, YOU'RE GONNA BE MORE AFFECTED BY THAT FLOODING.
SO YOU'RE DEFINITELY BOUND TO CALL IT IN.
ARE THERE OTHER AREAS IN OUR CITY THAT YOU ARE AWARE OF THAT MAY HAVE EXPERIENCED FLOODING OR, YOU KNOW, A CERTAIN LEVEL OF HIGH OR EXTREMELY HIGH LEVELS OF FLOODING THAT ARE NOT REFLECTED IN THIS MAP? UM, I, I, I KNOW THAT THE FLAMINGO AREA, FOR EXAMPLE, UH, CAN, CAN WE GO BACK TO THAT MAP? PJ DID I, DID I DO SOMETHING? THERE WE GO.
SO IN THE, IN THE FLAMINGO AREA, I THINK YOU CAN SEE THAT THERE ARE, UH, THERE ARE, UM, DOTS THERE THAT INDICATE THERE WAS A DEGREE OF, OF, OF FLOODING.
UM, YOU'LL SEE SOME, A COUPLE OF SPOTS IN YELLOW AND, AND, AND, AND SO FORTH.
BUT, BUT THE ONE AREA THAT WE KNOW FOR SURE THAT WE HAD EXTENSIVE FLOODING, BUT WE DIDN'T GET SERVICE CALLS IS THE SOUTH OF FIFTH.
AND WE HAVE, AGAIN, DOCUMENTATION FROM OUR OWN FOLKS TAKING VIDEO AND, AND DRIVING THROUGH IT.
I DROVE IT THROUGH THERE MYSELF.
SO, SO LET ME, AND, AND ITS SOUTH OF FIFTH.
WE ALREADY HAVE A PROJECT THAT'S UNDERWAY THAT'S BEEN APPROVED YES.
BY THE CITY COMMISSION THAT'S MOVING FORWARD.
SO, SO AS IT RELATES TO THE PURPOSE OF THIS DISCUSSION OF IDENTIFYING AREAS THAT WERE MOST SEVERELY AFFECTED BY THE FLOODING, UM, AND WHERE WE ARE IN TERMS OF ADVANCING IMPROVEMENTS FOR THOSE AREAS, UM, SOUTH OF FIFTH IS ALREADY PROGRAMMED, CORRECT.
UH, WITH A NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENT, UH, PROJECT.
FOR, FOR THAT AREA, THE AREA THAT, UM, THAT IS MOST BOLD IN, IN RED HERE IS A LOW LYING AREA OF LAGO A AND LAGO C UH, MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT YOU HAVE A CRITICAL NEEDS YES.
TWO SEPARATE CRITICAL NEEDS PROJECTS FOR, FOR, FOR APPROVED IN THAT AREA.
BASED ON THE, ON THE STONEWATER MASTER PLAN THAT THE COMMISSION ADOPTED IN MARCH OF, OF, OF THIS PAST YEAR, UH, WE IDENTIFIED 20 CRITICAL NEEDS PROJECTS.
THE, THE TWO THAT YOU MENTIONED ARE, ARE WILL, WILL BEGIN DESIGN IN, IN 2025 AND GO TO CONSTRUCTION IN 2027.
SO THAT'S, THOSE ARE TWO AREAS OF OUR CITY WHERE WE EXPERIENCED CRITICAL FLOODING.
UH, EXTREMELY HIGH LEVELS OF FLOODING ACCORDING TO THIS MAP.
SO THERE WE HAVE, UM, A CRITICAL NEEDS PROJECT THAT IS INITIATING DESIGN NEXT YEAR AND SHOULD BE IN CONSTRUCTION BY 2027.
AS WE LOOK FURTHER SOUTH, THERE'S THAT LAGOS LAKEVIEW AREA YES.
THAT ALSO EXPERIENCED, UH, HIGH LEVELS OF FLOODING.
WHERE ARE WE IN DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION FACING FOR, FOR, FOR THAT AREA IN THE DESIGN FOR THE LAGO? UM, THE LAKE VIEW, UH, THERE, THERE'S TWO SEPARATE, THE LAKE VIEW IS A LOWER RANK
[00:45:01]
PRIORITY THAN, THAN LAGO SEA, BUT, UM, IT, IT, ONE OF THEM IS SCHEDULED TO START DESIGN IN 2027, UH, CONSTRUCTION IN, UH, 2029.AND THEN THE OTHER ONE I THINK IS A, A A YEAR, UH, AFTER THAT.
AND, AND THEN LAKEVIEW A, IS THERE ANYTHING THAT COULD BE DONE TO, BECAUSE MY, FROM MY UNDERSTANDING WITH, WITH LAKEVIEW A, UH, WHICH IT'S AN AREA THAT, AGAIN, WHEN YOU LOOK AT, AT THE MAP, EXPERIENCED, EXPERIENCED HIGH LEVELS OF FLOODING, YOU KNOW, WE'RE NOT LOOKING AT CONSTRUCTION THERE TILL NOW, 2032.
UM, AND THAT'S CONCERNING, UH, IN MY OPINION.
IS THERE ANYTHING THE STAFF COULD DO? COULD YOU GUYS GO BACK, LOOK AT, LOOK AT THE PLANNING AND SEE IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT COULD BE DONE TO REPRIORITIZE SO THAT PERHAPS WHILE YOU'RE DOING LAGOS C WHICH EXPERIENCED, UH, HIGH LEVELS OF FLOODING, PERHAPS YOU COULD DO BOTH CRITICAL NEEDS PROJECTS AT THE SAME TIME.
COULD THAT BE ANALYZED AND BROUGHT BACK FOR CONSIDERATION? ABSOLUTELY.
AND, AND I THINK, UM, REMEMBER THE, THE HEAT MAP THAT WE SHOWED YOU JUST RECENTLY? IT, IT WAS A, A, A, A MOMENT IN TIME, ESSENTIALLY TWO DAY PERIOD WHERE THE DATA THAT WE DID FOR THE, FOR THE CRITICAL NEEDS, WE LOOKED DATA BACK OVER A TWO YEAR PERIOD.
UH, THAT, AND LAKEVIEW IS NUMBER 15.
NUMBER 15, THAT RIGHT, EXACTLY.
BUT THERE'S, I, FROM MY UNDERSTANDING, AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, THERE'S TEMPORARY PUMPS YES.
THAT ARE USED IN THAT, IN, IN THAT AREA THAT CREATES, UH, FILTRATION AND WATER QUALITY ISSUES THAT THEN ALSO NEED TO BE ADDRESSED.
AND I THINK THAT PROJECT DROPPED DOWN TO NUMBER 15 BECAUSE AT THE TIME THERE MAY HAVE BEEN RESIDENT CONCERNS.
AND IT WASN'T THAT THERE WASN'T THE NEED FOR IT, BUT IT WAS RESIDENT CONCERNS THAT DROPPED IT DOWN TO THE YES TO THE LIST.
I THINK GIVEN THE STORM, THE AMOUNT OF EMAILS THAT I HAVE RECEIVED FROM RESIDENTS WANTING TO SEE THIS PROJECT REPRIORITIZE IS OVERWHELMING.
AND I THINK IT GIVES US THE OPPORTUNITY TO GO BACK AND SEE IF YOU'RE DOING THE NEIGHBORING NEIGHBORHOOD, IT MIGHT BE THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO THAT NEIGHBORHOOD AS AS, AS WELL.
SO I WOULD LIKE TO INCUR LAKEVIEW THE, UH, LAKEVIEW AREA, UM, IN, IN TOWN CENTER IN NORTH BEACH.
SO, UM, IN, IN THE MAP, I SEE THAT, UH, WE EXPERIENCED HIGH LEVELS OF FLOODING THERE, BUT MY UNDERSTANDING, UM, IS THAT WE ARE IN DESIGN ALREADY FOR TOWN CENTER.
WE, UH, DESIGN IS FULLY FUNDED.
UH, SO THE TEAM IS ACTIVELY WORKING ON THAT.
AND, UM, IF A CONSTRUCTION FUNDING BECOMES AVAILABLE, A BEST CASE SCENARIO, WE COULD CONCEIVABLY START CONSTRUCTION IN THE NORTH BEACH TOWN CENTER AREA, SOMETIME IN THE LATTER PART OF 2026 OR 2027.
AND HOW ABOUT IN NORTH SHORE? NORTH SHORE, UH, BNC, THAT'S ANOTHER AREA.
UH, THE AREA UP IN NORTH BEACH IN DICKENS THAT I RECEIVED.
UH, ALSO A LOT OF COMPLAINTS ABOUT, UH, IT WAS A RIVER IN, IN THAT AREA.
AND, AND THINK PROBABLY A LOT OF US HEARD FROM, FROM FROM RESIDENTS THERE.
COMMISSIONER BOT, I KNOW YOU LIVE CLOSE TO, TO THAT AREA.
I MEAN, WE, WE HAD IN SORT OF THE, THE WESTERN MOST PARTS OF, OF NORMANDY, WE HAD PEOPLE WHO HAD THREE FEET OF WATER AND, YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE YOU TEAM WAS OUT THERE SLOGGING THROUGH IT.
SO, UM, A AS I SAID IN THE EARLIER ITEM, THIS IS, THIS IS NOT, UM, A ONCE IN A HUNDRED YEARS EVENT.
IT'S, AND WE NEED TO REALLY THINK DIFFERENTLY ABOUT HOW WE CAN BE MORE INCLUSIVE AND GET AT LEAST SHORT-TERM MEASURES ON OUR WAY TO LONG-TERM FIXES TO ALLEVIATE SOME OF THIS AND SOME OF THE ITEMS THAT ARE GONNA BE PRESENTED LATER.
LIKE UNC CLOGGING THE DRAINS, WHICH SEEMS LIKE A NO-BRAINER WILL HELP, BUT THAT'S NOT, UM, THAT'S NOT EVERYTHING.
UH, IF THROUGH THE CHAIR, IF I MAY, YES, OF COURSE.
I, I NEED TO APOLOGIZE TO EVERYBODY, TO EVERYBODY LISTENING, I NEED TO LEAVE UNEXPECTEDLY.
I'M GOING, I'VE JUST DELEGATED SOME STUFF TO THE CHAIR.
UM, UH, HOPEFULLY SOME OF YOU GUYS CAN PRESENT SOME OF MY STUFF AND, UM, I'LL BE BACK.
UM, AND I TRUST THAT ALL OF MY ITEMS ARE IN EXCELLENT HANDS WITH EVERYBODY.
UM, SO, UH, JOE, AS, AS IT RELATES TO, UH, NORTH NORTH SHORE, WHAT IS THE TIMELINE FOR NORTH SHORE B AND C? UM, WHICH I BELIEVE IS PROJECT NINE.
[00:50:09]
NORTH BEACH TOWN CENTER IS PART OF NORTH SHORE D SO RIGHT NOW WE ARE WORKING ON THE DESIGN FOR, UM, FOR THE, FOR ALL OF NORTH SHORE D.SO, OKAY, SO BNC IS INCLUDED WITH THAT AREA THERE, WHICH IS CONSTRUCTION 2026.
NO, THE BC NUMBER NINE CRITICAL.
NORTH SHORE, DBMC IS NUMBER NINE IN THE CRITICAL NEEDS.
SO WE'RE GONNA ADDRESS THAT IN THE CRITICAL NEEDS.
NORTH SHORE D IS BEING ADDRESSED AS PART OF THE NORTH BEACH TOWN CENTER DESIGN.
THAT'S CURRENTLY ON THE WAY THIS YES, THIS MAY HAVE BEEN MS. WHAT, WHERE IS NORTH BAY ROAD ON THE PRIORITY LIST? I'M SORRY? WHERE IS NORTH BAY ROAD? NORTH BAY ROAD ON THE PRIORITY LIST IN, ARE YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT UPPER NORTH BAY ROAD? MM-HMM.
IT'S NUMBER THREE AND FOUR ON THE CRITICAL NEEDS.
SO DESIGN WILL START NEXT YEAR AND CONSTRUCTION IN 2027.
AND HOW DOES THAT DOVETAIL WITH THE FDOT PROJECT ALONG ALTON, THE FDOT? SO THE EARLIEST THAT FDOT IS GOING TO BEGIN, ALTON ROAD IS 2028 BECAUSE OF THE PROTECT GRANT THAT THEY RECEIVED.
THAT'S THE EARLIEST THEY'RE GONNA START, BUT THEY'RE GONNA START FROM SOUTH TO NORTH.
SO THEY'RE GONNA START FROM, FROM MICHIGAN TO 43RD.
SO BY THE TIME THAT THEY GET UP TO SEGMENT THREE, THAT, THAT WOULD BE SEGMENT THREE, WHICH IS FROM 47.
FROM 47TH TO 63RD WILL BE COMPLET THAT THAT WORK WILL HAVE ALREADY BEEN COMPLETED.
BUT YOU DON'T WANT TO HAVE, YOU DON'T WANT TO HAVE BOTH ROADS ON THE CONSTRUCTION AT THE SAME TIME.
BUT ARE WE GONNA BE CO COORDINATING WITH FDOT? OH, ABSO A ABSOLUTELY.
WE HAVE, WE HAVE, DOES ONE PROJECT NEED TO HAPPEN BEFORE THE OTHER FOR FDOT BETWEEN FDOT AND, AND OUR RESILIENCY PROJECT? NO.
BE THE, THE SEGMENTS TWO AND THREE OF ALTON ROAD, WE HAVE COMBINED DRAINAGE WITH FDOT.
THAT WILL TAKE PORTIONS OF THAT.
SO WE'RE WORKING WITH THEM THROUGH THAT.
AS COMMISSIONER, UH, DOMINGUEZ, YOU'RE RECOGNIZED.
UH, AND REGARDING UPPER NORTH BAY ROAD, I'VE HAD MULTIPLE MEETINGS WITH, UM, UH, THE PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR AND HIS DEPARTMENT AND, UH, THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION AND THE RESIDENTS THAT LIVE THERE, UM, TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE PUT AS PRIORITY AS POSSIBLE.
AND I'VE ALSO TALKED TO YOU ABOUT, UM, IF IT CAN BE DONE SOONER, THEN LET'S DO IT.
AND THOSE, AND THE THING IS, YOU NEED TO DO DESIGN.
UH, THE DESIGN AND PERMITTING TYPICALLY TAKES TWO YEARS FOR STORMWATER PROJECTS.
AND I BELIEVE WITH, UH, WITH, WITH LAGOS C, WHICH IS WHERE THAT UPPER NORTH BAY ROAD AREA IS, YOU'RE AT 60% CORRECT DESIGN, WHICH IS PRETTY ADVANCED.
I'M VERY CONCERNED, UH, FRANKLY, WITH, WITH LAKEVIEW A, UH, WHERE WE EXPERIENCED SO MUCH FLOODING, SEEING THAT THAT WON'T BE UNDER CONSTRUCTION TILL 2032 IS A LONG, UH, LONG WAIT.
UH, AND I THINK WE NEED TO DO WHATEVER WE CAN TO REPRIORITIZE THAT.
I LIKE FOR THIS COMMITTEE TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION, UH, BACK TO THE CITY COMMISSION WHERE WE, UH, REQUEST THE ADMINISTRATION TO, UH, AND THE, AND THE CHAIR WILL SECOND IT.
UH, ASKING, ASKING THAT THERE WILL BE REPRIORITIZATION OF LAKEVIEW A, UH, SO THAT PERHAPS IT CAN, UM, YOU KNOW, TAKE PLACE WHEN WE'RE DOING SOME OF THE OTHER, UH, PROJECTS.
MR. PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR, ANYTHING ELSE AS IT RELATES? DO WE NEED TO VOTE ON THAT? YEAH, UH, I THINK BY ACCLAMATION, CAN WE ADOPT THAT? BY ACCLAMATION? BY ACCLIMATION? GREAT.
UM, ANYTHING ELSE AS IT RELATES? WHAT I LIKE ABOUT WHAT YOU'VE PRESENTED TO, TO ME, IT SEEMS THAT THE CRITICAL NEEDS PROJECTS THAT WE HAVE, WHICH ARE THE SHORT TERM, UH, REMEDIATION PROJECTS THAT WE DO, BUT THAT SERVE THE NEEDS OF THE LONG TERM NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS.
BUT THESE CRITICAL NEED PROJECTS, THEY KIND OF MATCH THE AREAS OF MOST NEED IN OUR CITY, BUT NOT JUST THE AREAS OF MOST NEED BASED ON A STUDY, BUT BASED ON THE REAL LIFE FLOODING THAT WAS MOST EXPERIENCED.
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
AND HOPEFULLY THOSE ANTS SHOULD BE EXPERIENCING, UH, SOME RELIEF SOON.
WOULD THAT BE AN ACCURATE STADIUM STATEMENT? YES.
[00:55:01]
OTHER QUESTIONS FOR THE PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR AS IT RELATES TO FLOODING AND THESE PROJECTS? COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE? NO.WITH THAT, WE CAN, UH, CLOSE THESE TWO ITEMS AND WITH THAT MOTION THAT WE'VE SENT TO THE CITY COMMISSION.
I'M GONNA GO AHEAD AND, UH, OUT OF RESPECT TO THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, UH, CALL UP, UH, MR. DIRECTOR, WHICH WAS THE TIME CERTAIN, UH, ITEMS 12 AND ITEMS 13, ITEMS NUMBER 12 AND 13.
WE HAVE, UH, MEMBERS OF THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, UH, PRESENT FOR THESE ITEMS. GOOD AFTERNOON, MR. CHAIR.
JOSE GONZALEZ, TRANSPORTATION AND MOBILITY DIRECTOR AND INTERIM PARKING DIRECTOR.
SO WE HAVE REPRESENTATIVES FROM FDOT ATTENDING VIRTUALLY, UH, THEY SHOULD BE ALREADY, UM, ONLINE.
UM, AND I BELIEVE DANIELLE IGLESIAS WILL, UH, BEGIN THE, THE PRESENTATION AND THE UPDATES ON THESE TWO PROJECTS.
THEN WE HAVE MR. IGLESIAS ON THE LINE.
AND WE'RE HAVING TECHNICAL DI DIFFICULTIES.
I DON'T, WHY DON'T WE CONTINUE THE ITEM.
WHY DON'T WE CALL A SEPARATE ITEM? MM-HMM.
AND SO THAT WE CAN SOLVE THE, UH, COMMUNICATION ISSUE, UH, WITH FDLT.
UH, WITH THAT, UH, LET'S, COMMISSIONER
[Items 8, 10, 14, & 20]
BOND REQUESTED THAT WE CONTINUE A NUMBER OF HER ITEMS FOR THE JULY MEETING.ITEMS NUMBER EIGHT, ITEMS NUMBER 10, NUMBER 14, AND NUMBER 20.
UM, NUMBER 14 IS MY ITEM, BUT I DON'T MIND CONTINUING IT TO THE JULY MEETING SO THAT COMMISSIONER BOD CAN PARTICIPATE IN THE DISCUSSION.
UM, NOT TO JULY, IT WOULD BE TO SEPTEMBER EIGHT, EIGHT.
IS THERE A MOTION TO, UH, CONTINUE THESE, UH, FOUR ITEMS TO THE SEPTEMBER MEETING? EIGHT, 14, AND 20.
IT'S BEEN MOVED BY COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, ITEMS NUMBER 8, 10, 14 AND 20, UH, TO MOVE THEM TO THE SEPTEMBER MEETING, UH, SECOND BY THE CHAIR BY AFFIRMATION.
LET'S SHOW THOSE ITEMS CONTINUED, UH, TO THE SEPTEMBER MEETING.
[4. DISCUSS A POSSIBLE ORDINANCE TO REQUIRE PROPERTY OWNERS TO PROPERLY DISPOSE OF YARD TRIMMINGS/LEAVES TO AVOID CLOGGING OF STORMWATER DRAINS.]
DIRECTOR, LET'S CALL UP ITEM NUMBER FOUR.UH, MR. CHAIR, ITEM NUMBER FOUR IS A DISCUSSION REGARDING A POSSIBLE ORDINANCE TO REQUIRE PROPERTY OWNERS TO PROPERLY DISPOSE OF YARD TRIMMINGS AND LEAVES TO AVOID CLOGGING OF STORMWATER DRAINS.
COMMISSIONER SUAREZ, UH, YOU'RE WELCOME TO PRESENT THIS ITEM.
I BELIEVE THIS WAS, UM, CO-SPONSORING TANYA, UH, COMMISSIONER BOTS ITEM.
UM, LOOK, YOU KNOW, IT'S PRETTY CLEAR FROM THE LAST FLOODING EVENT THAT WE HAD, UM, ON THE 11TH, 12TH, AND 13TH THAT A LOT OF THE ISSUES THAT WE'VE SEEN WITH, UH, THE FLOODING WAS SIMPLY A DRAINAGE PROBLEM.
AND I THINK I PRESENTED AT THE LAST COMMISSION MEETING THAT MOST OF THE FLOODING HAPPENED DURING LOW TIDE.
AND SO CERTAINLY WASN'T A SEA LEVEL RISE ISSUE, IT WAS SIMPLY A DRAINAGE ISSUE.
AND I'VE HAD RESIDENTS REACH OUT.
EVERYONE HERE KNOWS THAT WE'VE HAD RESIDENTS REACH OUT, SEND VIDEOS OF THEMSELVES, THEIR, THEIR CHILDREN GOING INTO THESE DRAINS AND PULLING OUT LEAVES AND, AND DEBRIS SO THAT, THAT IT, IT COULD, IT COULD DRAIN.
UM, YOU KNOW, I WAS OUT THERE PULLING TARPON OFF OF ALTON ROAD AND PUTTING THEM IN BISCAYNE BAY, AND ONE THING I REALIZED WAS ALL THE DRAINS WERE CLOGGED.
UM, AND AS SOON AS THE, I THINK IT WAS FDOT TRUCKS THAT CAME BY AND VACUUMED ALL THE DEBRIS, UH, IT WORKED MIRACULOUSLY.
AND SO I THINK WE'VE ALSO HAD A LOT OF COMPLAINTS WHERE, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE LANDSCAPERS THAT COME BY AND THEY JUST BLOW ALL THE TRIMMINGS OUT ONTO THE STREET, AND THAT CAUSES A LOT OF, A LOT OF THE ISSUES.
SO, UM, YOU KNOW, I'D LOOK TO SEE WHAT WE CAN EXPLORE
[01:00:01]
HERE AS A COMMITTEE TO PERHAPS MAKE A, UH, A CODE AME, UH, ENFORCEMENT, UM, OR PERHAPS DOVETAILING WITH, UM, IN, IN CERTAIN SPOTS WHERE WE KNOW DRAINAGE IS AN ISSUE.UH, PERHAPS COME UP WITH A PILOT PROGRAM THAT HAS DRAINAGE, UM, GRATES THAT ARE DESIGNED TO, UH, ACCOMMODATE FOR LARGE TREE TRIMMINGS, UH, ET CETERA.
SO, UH, I'D LOVE TO HEAR WHAT MY COLLEAGUES HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THAT.
I'D LOVE TO HEAR FROM STAFF UNLESS COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, DO YOU, YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS ON THE ITEM? NO, I REALLY LIKE THE ITEM.
I THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT AND I TOO WOULD LIKE TO HEAR STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION.
HARD AND CARDENA FOR CODE COMPLAINTS.
SO WE ALREADY HAVE LEGISLATION ON THE BOOKS REGARDING TREE CLIPPINGS AND, UH, YARD, UH, DEBRIS BEING BLOWN INTO OUR STORMWATER DRAIN.
I THINK WE NEED TO DO A BETTER FOCUS OF, UH, ENFORCEMENT IN OUR NEIGHBORHOODS.
WHAT WE HAVE BEEN, UM, ENFORCING OF THE LATES, UH, AND I WANNA SAY WITHIN THE LAST 12 MONTH PERIOD, OVER 120 VIOLATIONS IS OUR SEDIMENT CONTROL, WHICH IS THINGS THAT RUN INTO OUR STORM DRAINS ALSO FROM CONSTRUCTION SITES PRIMARILY.
BUT, UM, I THINK THERE'S ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT TO DO, UH, THE, UH, LAWN VEGETATION THAT'S BEING BLOWN INTO OUR, OUR DRAINS.
AS YOU KNOW, UM, OUR NEIGHBORHOOD CODE OFFICERS ACTUALLY HAVE TO WITNESS THIS VIOLATION, UM, IN ORDER TO, UM, ISSUE THE VIOLATION TO THE VENDORS, TO THESE LANDSCAPING COMPANIES.
UH, JOE, I KNOW YOU'RE LEAVING, UM, BUT WHAT HAS THE CITY EVER EXPLORED, UH, SPECIALIZED GRATES IN THE DRAINING SYSTEM TO POSSIBLY ACCOMMODATE FOR SOMETHING MAYBE SET UP LIKE A, A SYSTEM OF, OF BEAR, OF FILTERS, UM, THAT, THAT ARE BETTER FOR DRAINAGE? UM, I, I'M NOT, YOU KNOW, I'M NOT TOO FAMILIAR WITH THE, THE NEWEST TECHNOLOGY ON, ON DRAINAGE AND PUBLIC WORKS.
MAYBE YOU CAN SHED SOME LIGHT ON THAT.
UM, UM, COMMISSIONER, WE, WE DID A PILOT PROJECT A FEW YEARS AGO ON OCEAN DRIVE, UH, WHERE WE INSTALLED SPECIAL BARRIERS, UM, UH, ON THE INLETS, ON, ON OCEAN DRIVE TO SEE HOW, AND WHAT HAPPENED WAS OCEAN DRIVE HARDLY EVER FLOODS IT, IT HAS A REASONABLY GOOD DRAINAGE AND IT'S ON THE HIGHER SIDE OF, OF, OF THE BEACH.
UM, AND WHAT WE FOUND WAS THAT THE DEBRIS JUST COLLECTED IN THESE BARRIERS AND WOULD NOT LET THE WATER GO THROUGH.
THE CHALLENGE WITH DRAINAGE IN, ESPECIALLY IN THE RESIDENTIAL AREAS WHERE YOU HAVE THE, THE GRATE LIKE THIS, IS THAT THE WATER IS FLOWING THIS WAY AND IT PICKS UP EVERYTHING AS IT COMES INTO THE GRATE.
AND IT JUST, THEN WHAT HAPPENS IS IT GETS LODGED IN THERE AND IT CREATES A BARRIER.
SO YOU, INSTEAD OF GETTING A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE CAPACITY OF THAT GRATE TO TAKE THE WATER, YOU MAY BE GETTING 60%, 50% OF IT.
SO OBVIOUSLY IT'S GONNA TAKE A LOT LONGER FOR THE WATER TO GO THROUGH.
AND AGAIN, YOU GOTTA CLEAR THAT.
UM, WHAT ABOUT, FOR EXAMPLE, WHAT ABOUT LIKE, UM, LIKE A FLOAT SWITCH FOR EXAMPLE, WHERE ONCE IT'S TRIPPED, IT SENDS A MESSAGE TO STAFF SAYING, HEY, THIS DRAIN IS CLOGGED AND THE STAFF SENDS OUT A, A TRUCK OR A VAC TRUCK TO, TO SERVICE THE DRAIN, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, AS SIMPLE AS THAT COULD GO A LONG WAY.
I, I, I THINK IN, IN, IN TERMS OF A FLOAT, A FLOAT SWITCH WORKS AS THE WATER RISES.
SO, BUT I THINK SOME SORT OF, UH, MAYBE SOME SORT OF TRIGGER WHERE IT SHOWS THAT THE INLET IS NOT TAKING THE WATER AS MUCH AS IT SHOULD ITS CAPACITY AT THAT POINT.
MAYBE THAT'S SOMETHING THAT, THAT, THAT TECHNOLOGY CAN BE EXPLORED.
I'M, I'M SURE THERE'S SOME PILOT OF, UH, TECHNOLOGY OUT THERE THAT WE CAN PROBABLY LOOK AT AND, AND SEE IF IT'S POSSIBLE TO, TO DO THAT AND TRY TO, IN A FEW HOT LOCATIONS THAT ARE, YEAH.
CON CONSTANTLY SUBJECT TO THAT.
WOULD, WOULD THE CHAIR AND THE REST OF THE BODY BE INTERESTED IN SOMETHING SIMILAR? MAYBE WE PICKED THREE OR FOUR LOCATIONS SIMILAR TO THE, TO THAT HEAT MAP WE SAW WHERE IT WAS COMPLETELY RED AND, AND PUTTING A FLOAT SWITCH OF SOME SORT.
AND, AND LOOK, THIS WOULD BE A GREAT PROJECT FOR STAFF TO COME FORWARD AND, AND PUT SOMETHING.
I DON'T THINK IT'D BE VERY MUCH, I MEAN, A FLOAT SWITCH IS PRETTY, PRETTY CHEAP.
I JUST, MAYBE THE, THE, THE SIGNAL TO SEND TO STAFF MIGHT DO.
WE HAVE TO FIND A WAY TO, TO BE ABLE TO DETERMINE WHEN THAT INLET IS CLOGGED AND NOT TAKING THE WATER IN, WHEN IT SHOULD BE TAKING THE WATER IN.
AND I THINK WE JUST NEED TO LOOK AT WHAT'S AVAILABLE OUT THERE.
BUT, BUT I, I, I WILL ALSO SAY, UH, COMMISSIONER, THAT I THINK IT'S
[01:05:01]
IMPORTANT, YOU KNOW, AND WE NEED OUR RESIDENTS TO HELP US TOO.BECAUSE WHAT HAPPENS IS MANY TIMES THEY'LL JUST PUT THE, THE, THE LOAN, THE, THE PALM FRONTS OR WHATEVER, RIGHT THERE ON, ON, ON THE S SOIL.
WHAT HAPPENS IS YOU GET THAT FIRST RAIN THAT'LL CARRY IT THROUGH, AND THEN IT GETS CLOGGED.
SO I, I, I THINK LOOKING AT OTHER MUNICIPALITIES, FOR EXAMPLE, I MEAN, I LIVE AT THE CITY OF MIAMI.
THE CITY OF MIAMI, YOU CANNOT, YOU ALL, ALL, UM, UM, LONG, UM, GARBAGE, ESSENTIALLY ALL TRIMMINGS AND EVERYTHING MUST BE DISPOSED BY THE GARDENER OR BY THE, BY THE, BY THE RESIDENT.
YOU CAN'T PUT IT OUT THERE SO THAT IT FLOATS AWAY.
AND, AND IT CLOGS INLETS THOSE WHO DO GET VIOLATED.
AND, AND, AND, AND I THINK WE JUST, THIS IS GONNA BE A IT, I THINK TO EXPECT THAT THAT JUST TECHNOLOGY ALONE IS GONNA SOLVE THE, I THINK WE, IT'S, IT'S A COMBINATION OF BOTH THINGS, IN MY OPINION.
WELL, YOU KNOW, UNFORTUNATELY WE'RE LEFT WITH, WHEN THERE'S A STORM, YOU HAVE RESIDENTS PULLING, PULLING, DRAINS OUT.
YOU KNOW, DEBRIS OUTTA THE DRAINS.
UH, BUT BACK TO, I GUESS, CODE HERNAN, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT WOULD YOU RECOMMEND AS FAR AS A CODE PROVISION WHERE WE MAKE IT QUOTE UNQUOTE ILLEGAL TO, TO LEAVE TREE TRIMMINGS? I MEAN, IS THAT RIGHT NOW? IS THAT, IS THERE ANY SORT OF LAW AGAINST THAT? UH, YEAH.
UH, COMMISSIONER, UH, THROUGH THE CHAIR.
SO, UH, SECTION 46 92 ACTUALLY DEFINES, UH, LITTER AND IT TALKS ABOUT, UM, LAWN AND VEGETATION.
UM, AND THEN IT TALKS ABOUT 46 THROUGH 2224 GOES INTO, UM, WHEN THESE, UH, PALM FRONTS AND LAWN DEBRIS GETS BLOWN INTO OUR, UH, STORM DRAINS, THESE VIOLATIONS ACTUALLY START AT A THOUSAND DOLLARS EACH.
SO YOU'RE TELLING ME THAT THERE'S ALREADY LAWS IN THE BOOKS? THERE IS.
AND THEN THERE'S THE THIRD ONE THAT I TALKED TO YOU ABOUT THAT WE'VE BEEN REALLY CONCENTRATING ON RECENTLY, WHICH IS A SEDIMENT CONTROL AND MR. CHAIR.
UM, IT SEEMS THAT WE ALREADY HAVE LAWS IN THE BOOKS.
UM, I'M WILLING TO EXPLORE A VERY TINY PILOT PROGRAM, MAYBE FOUR OR FIVE DRAINS WHERE WE, WE SET UP A SYSTEM OF LIKE A FEEDBACK LOOP WHERE WE KNOW THAT, HEY, LOOK, THIS IS FLOODING REALLY BAD.
IT MAY NOT BE A FLOAT STITCH, MAYBE IT'S JUST A CAMERA.
AND, AND PUBLIC WORKS CAN TIE INTO THAT CAMERA AND SEE, HEY, LIKE, LOOK, IT'S FLOODING.
I LIKE THE FLOAT SWITCH IDEA BECAUSE IT, IT, IT DEFINITELY TELLS YOU THAT THERE'S A FLOOD GOING ON INSTEAD OF HAVING TO LOOK AT A CAMERA AND SEEING HOW BAD THE FLOOD IS.
UM, 'CAUSE YOU CAN, YOU CAN SET A TOLERANCE ON THE FLOAT SWITCH BECAUSE, UM, BUT YOU KNOW, IT'S SIMILAR TO LIKE THE PAVERS.
LIKE, IT'S JUST REALLY THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX ON HOW TO SOLVE A PROBLEM.
UM, AND, AND IF THAT WORKS, YOU KNOW, WE CAN, WE CAN CERTAINLY MOVE IT TO OTHER NEIGHBORHOODS THAT HAVE DRAINAGE PROBLEMS WITH DEBRIS AND, AND TREE TRIMMINGS.
SO I THINK, I THINK ONE OF THE KEY THINGS IS MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE ENFORCING THIS CODE.
WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DO A THOROUGH, UM, INSPECTION OF OUR DIFFERENT AREAS, ESPECIALLY THOSE MOST PRONE TO FLOODING AND MAKING SURE THAT, UH, THAT, THAT THIS CODE IS, IS BEING FOLLOWED.
ARE YOU MAKING A MOTION, UH, FOR THE COMMITTEE TO, TO CONSIDER? YEAH, I'D LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION FOR A VERY SMALL PILOT PROGRAM.
LET'S PERHAPS DO FIVE LOCATIONS WHERE WE KNOW THE FLOODING HAS BEEN SEVERELY BAD AND HAS BEEN AFFECTED, UM, AND HAVE STAFF, UH, PUT TOGETHER A PROPOSAL FOR WHAT THAT WOULD COST, WHAT WOULD, WHERE WOULD IT BE AND, UH, HOW IT WOULD WORK.
UM, AND THEN WE BRING IT TO THE COMMISSION OR COME BACK TO, IT CAN COME BACK TO THE COMMITTEE.
LET'S LET, LET'S BRING IT BACK TO THE COMMITTEE SO THAT COMMISSIONER BOND CAN BE A PART OF, OF THAT DISCUSSION.
PERHAPS WE CAN BRING THIS BACK FOR THE SEPTEMBER COMMITTEE.
IS THAT, UH, DOES THAT PROVIDE EVERYONE WITH SUFFICIENT TIME FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS, UH, PILOT? YEAH.
UH, COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS? NO.
COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE? ANY COMMENTS? NO.
SO THIS ITEM, UH, WE'LL COME BACK IN, UH, SEPTEMBER.
[12. DISCUSSION REGARDING I-395/MACARTHUR CAUSEWAY.]
LET'S GO BACK TO OUR TIME CERTAIN OF, UM, FOUR 30 FOR ITEMS NUMBER 12 AND 13.JOSE, IF YOU WANNA COME BACK TO THE PODIUM TO DISCUSS, UM, THE, UM, THE, THE, THE ISSUE OF THE ACCIDENT LANE AT THE MACARTHUR CAUSEWAY AND TO DISCUSS THE, UH, JULIA TADO CAUSEWAY.
SO FOR ITEM 12, YES, JEAN WITH FDOT IS ON THE LINE.
[01:10:01]
GOOD AFTERNOON.UH, UH, CHAIRMAN FERNANDEZ AND GOOD AFTERNOON.
I AM A PROJECT MANAGER FOR THE FDOT ON THE, I TOOK 95 SIGNATURE BRIDGE PROJECT.
UM, I'M GONNA BE PRESENTING, UH, ON BEHALF OF THE DEPARTMENT.
AND, AND, AND THE REASON WHY, WHY WE'VE INVITED YOU TO JOIN US TODAY, AND WE APPRECIATE THAT YOU'RE, THAT YOU'RE HERE IS TO SPEAK SPECIFICALLY, UH, AS IT AS IT RELATES TO THE EXIT OF THE MACARTHUR CAUSEWAY TO BISCAYNE BOULEVARD AND WHAT COULD BE DONE, UH, AS PART OF THE PROJECTS THAT FDOT HAS UNDERWAY, UH, TO FACILITATE AN EXIT LANE FOR THE WESTBOUND TRAFFIC ONTO BISCAYNE BOULEVARD.
RIGHT NOW, UM, OUR, OUR RESIDENTS AND, AND RESIDENTS FROM OTHER PARTS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY ARE EXPERIENCING HIGH LEVELS OF CONGESTION WHEN HEADING WESTBOUND ON THE MACARTHUR CAUSEWAY.
UH, AND PART OF IT IS, UM, IS COST BY, BY, BY THE LIMITED CAPACITY THAT THERE IS, UM, HEADING OFF ONTO BISCAYNE BOULEVARD.
IT DOES FDLT HAVE ANY PLANS TO, TO, TO, TO PROVIDE PERHAPS AN EXTRA LANE OF, OF TRAFFIC HEADING OFF THE MACARTHUR CAUSEWAY ONTO BISCAYNE BOULEVARD.
SO I, I HAVE, UH, I HAVE PUT TOGETHER A PRESENTATION AS TO, UM, AND IT, IT TOUCHES UPON THE, THE TEMPORARY CONDITION THAT WE HAVE IN THIS AREA RELATED TO OUR CONSTRUCTION, BUT IT ALSO TOUCHES UPON THE PERMANENT CONDITION.
AND PERHAPS THIS WILL HELP YOU, YOU GUYS UNDERSTAND WHAT, WHAT IT'S, WHAT IT'S THERE NOW, AND WHAT WOULD, WHAT, WHAT WE'RE PLANNING TO DO FOR, UH, IN THIS AREA IN THE FUTURE AND WHAT WE'VE, WHAT AND WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO IN THE INTERIM.
HOW MUCH TIME DO YOU, ARE YOU GUYS ABLE TO SEE? HOW MUCH TIME DO YOU NEED FOR YOUR PRESENTATION, SIR? ABOUT 10 MINUTES.
IS THERE A WAY THAT WE COULD, IS THERE A WAY THAT YOU COULD DO THE PRESENTATION IN FIVE MINUTES? THAT THE, SO THERE'S, AS PART OF THIS PRESENTATION, THERE'S, THERE'S A VIDEO OF FIVE MINUTES THAT, THAT, THAT TOUCHES UPON THE, THE MAIN BENEFITS OF THE PROJECT.
AND IT ACTUALLY HIGHLIGHTS THE, WHAT WE'RE WE'RE DOING AS PART OF THIS PROJECT, WHICH IS, UH, WE'RE CREATING DIRECT ACCESS TO THE COMMUNITY ON THE BEACH AND, UM, AND THE COMMUNITY, UH, WATSON ISLAND.
I MEAN, I COULD, UH, UH, I MEAN, I COULD, UH, GO OVER IT.
UH, INSTEAD OF PRESENTING THIS, I COULD GO STRAIGHT INTO MY PRESENTATION FOR THE ROUND.
IF, IF, IF WE, IF, IF, IF YOU COULD SPECIFICALLY ADDRESS THE ISSUES.
WE'RE VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE SIGNATURE BRIDGE PROJECT.
UM, YOU KNOW, THIS, THIS ITEM IS VERY NARROWLY TAILORED, UH, TO THE, TO THE ISSUE OF THE ACCIDENT, THE ACCIDENT, UH, FROM 3 95 ONTO BISCAYNE BOULEVARD.
AND WE'RE SO GRATEFUL THAT YOU'RE HERE, AND WE'RE SO GRATEFUL FOR THE WORK THAT FDLT, UH, IS, IS DOING, AND THE ATTENTION THAT THE DISTRICT IS PROVIDING TO, TO, TO, TO OUR CITY.
UNFORTUNATELY, WE HAVE A, A VERY HEAVY AGENDA.
UM, SO I SEE YOU'VE PULLED UP THIS SLIDE TO SPEAK SPECIFICALLY ON THIS, UH, ON THIS ACCIDENT.
SO, THE, THE EXISTING CONDITION DURING, DURING CONSTRUCTION IS, UH, THERE'S ONE LANE, UH, FROM THE TOP OF THE, THE RAMP ALL THE WAY TO, UH, BAYSHORE DRIVE.
AND THIS IS SPECIFICALLY TO ALLOW FOR THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE RAMP AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF, OF THE BRIDGE IS ADJACENT TO IT.
AND SO IT'S IMPORTANT NOT TO THE, NOT TO COMPARE THIS EXISTING CONDITION TO THE PERMANENT AND IMPROVED CONDITION THAT WE'LL HAVE AT THE END OF OUR CONSTRUCTION.
SO AT THE END OF OUR CONSTRUCTION, UM, WE'RE GONNA ENHANCE, UH, STORAGE AND CAPACITY IN THIS AREA.
AND, AND WE'RE GONNA ALSO ENHANCE THE, THE FLOW OF TRAFFIC.
SO IF YOU'RE, IF YOU'RE SEEING THIS ILLUSTRATION THAT WE PUT TOGETHER, WE'RE ADDING ADDITIONAL STORAGE ON THE RAMP, UH, BEYOND SO TO THE EAST OF BAY SHORE DRIVE, WE'RE ADDING 300, UH, LINEAR FEET OF ADDITIONAL STORAGE.
AND THIS WILL IMPROVE, UH, CONGESTION IN THIS AREA.
WE'RE ALSO ADDING, UH, A FREE FLOW RIGHT TURN LANE THAT IT'S GONNA CATER EXCLUSIVELY, EXCLUSIVELY TO THOSE THAT ARE, ARE LOOKING TO GO TO HEAD NORTH ON BAYSHORE DRIVE.
AND, AND THAT'S ABOUT 20% OF THE TRAFFIC.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, AHEAD OF, UH, AHEAD OF, UH, THIS INTERSECTION, WE'RE OUT IN THE FOURTH LANE,
[01:15:02]
AND WE'RE SYNCHRONIZING THE TIMING FOR BACA BOULEVARD AND, AND NORTH BAY SHORE DRIVE.WHAT THIS MEANS IS THAT WHEN THE SIGNAL AT NOR BAY SHORE DRIVE GOES GREEN, THE SIGNAL AT THE SCALE WILL ALSO BE GREEN, AND THIS WILL ALLOW FOR A CONTINUOUS FLOW OF TRAFFIC.
I WANT TO THANK YOU ADDITION, I, I WANNA THANK YOU FOR SHOWING THIS, THIS GRAPHIC OF WHAT THE PERMANENT CONFIGURATION WILL, WILL, WILL BE, BECAUSE I BELIEVE THIS RIGHT HERE ADDRESSES WHAT IS THE CONCERN THAT I HAVE RECEIVED FROM RESIDENTS AS IT RELATES, UH, TO THIS PROJECT.
AND, AND, AND THE FUTURE OF THIS PROJECT, AS YOU SEE HEADING WESTBOUND, UH, TOWARDS THE RAMP TOWARDS MSCA BOULEVARD, IT'S ONE LANE, BUT THEN AS YOU GET CLOSER TO THE TRAFFIC LIGHT, THAT ONE LANE EXPANDS TO THREE LANES AND ONE RIGHT TURN LANE, YOU END UP WITH FOUR LANES OF TRAFFIC.
AND IT'S UNDERSTOOD WHY, UH, WHEN YOU EXPERIENCE THE, UH, TRAFFIC, THAT'S, THAT, THAT'S THERE, YOU REALLY NEED THAT CAPACITY.
MY CONCERN IS THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE ULTIMATELY, YOU KNOW, ONE TURN LANE AND THREE LANES OF, OF, OF TRAFFIC, BUT THE RAMP, THE EXIT IS ONLY, IS ONLY ONE NAME.
AND WHAT POTENTIAL DO YOU HAVE OR DOES THE DEPARTMENT HAVE AT THIS POINT IN, IN, IN THE PROJECT TO ACCOMMODATE PERHAPS AN EXTRA LANE AT THAT EXIT? AND I DON'T KNOW IF YOU COULD GO BACK TO THAT, TO, TO THAT SLIDE WHERE YOU HAVE, UM, YOU KNOW, YOU SEE WHERE YOU HAVE SOME GREEN SPACE THERE, YOU'RE GOING FROM ONE LANE, AND THEN IT OPENS UP TO THREE, PERHAPS A MINIMUM.
YOU KNOW, IT WOULD BE GREAT IF THE DEPARTMENT COULD CONSIDER SOMEHOW BEING ABLE TO ACCOMMODATE AN EXTRA LANE, UH, BECAUSE IF, IF NOT ALL THAT, ALL THOSE CARS THAT END UP IN THREE LANES OF TRAFFIC AND A FOURTH, UH, RIGHT TURN LANE, ARE GONNA BE BACKING UP ONTO THE CAUSEWAY.
SO ONE, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID NOW DURING CONSTRUCTION IS THAT WE ELIMINATED A SIGNAL AT NORTH BAY SHORE DRIVE.
SO THIS, THIS ONE LANE, IT'S A, IT'S A, IT'S A FREE FLOW, UH, FREE FLOW LANE.
AND THEN WE WE'RE USING THIS AREA BETWEEN BACAN AND, AND, AND, AND NOR BAY SHORE DRIVE AS, AS STORAGE.
AND, AND, AND WE ARE ADDING THE CAPACITY IN THAT WAY DURING CONSTRUCTION.
NOW, IN REGARDS TO THE, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, THE REQUEST TO ADD A, A SECOND LANE AT THE, AT THE ENTRANCE OF THE RAMP, WHICH IS BACK HERE, UM, SO WE, WE HAVE, UH, WE, WE, WE, WE'VE DONE STUDIES TO, TO SEE IF IT'S POSSIBLE.
AND AT, AT, AT THE END OF THESE STUDIES, UH, UH, WE DID A FEASIBILITY STUDY.
AND, AND WE DON'T HAVE, UH, WE HAVE TWO CONSTRAINTS THAT WON'T ALLOW US TO EXPAND OR WIDEN THE ROAD IN THIS AREA.
THE FIRST ONE, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S THE, THE LOCATION OF THE METRO OVER PIER, UH, ADJACENT TO THE NORTH, NORTH SIDE OF THE RAMP.
AND THE SECOND ONE IS, IS THE LIMITED RIGHTWAY THAT THE DEPARTMENT OWNS IN THIS AREA.
SO, SO DUE TO THE PHYSICAL BARRIERS, THAT'S THE POINT THAT THE DEPARTMENT OWN.
SO LET ME, LET ME INTERRUPT YOU THERE.
THAT'S LIMITED RIGHT OF WAY THAT THE DEPARTMENT OWNS THERE IS RIGHT OF WAY THEN, BUT RIGHT OF WAY THAT THE DEPARTMENT DOES OWN THAT PERHAPS MIGHT BE OWNED BY OTHER JURISDICTIONS.
I UNDERSTAND THIS, THIS PROPERTY BEYOND OUR PROPERTY IS PRIVATE PROPERTY.
THAT, THAT PROPERTY IS OWNED BY RESORTS WORLD INTERNATIONAL.
I, I, I THINK THIS IS AN ISSUE THAT'S OF CONCERN NOT JUST TO US, UH, TO RESIDENTS IN THE CITY OF, OF, OF MIAMI BEACH AS THEY'RE HEADING TOWARDS THE MAINLAND, BUT IT'S ALSO A CONCERN TO RESIDENTS IN THE CITY OF MIAMI AS THEY'RE LEAVING MIAMI BEACH AND GOING BACK TO THE MAINLAND.
IT'S, IT'S AN ISSUE THAT BOTH, UH, CITIES, UH, SHARE.
UH, I DON'T KNOW, JOSE, IF YOU, IF YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS ON THIS, UH, BUT YOU KNOW, THERE'S, THERE'S THIS MAJOR CONSTRUCTION PROJECT GOING ON RIGHT NOW.
UH, AND IF WE DON'T SEIZE ON THIS OPPORTUNITY TO, TO ADDRESS THIS BEFORE THE PERMANENT SOLUTION IS BUILT, WE'RE GONNA MISS THE OPPORTUNITY TO FIX THIS.
UM, AND WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE EXPERIENCING, UH, BACKUPS ON, ON THE MACARTHUR, UH, CAUSEWAY, IS THERE ANYTHING THAT COULD BE EXPLORED? IS THERE ANY SOLUTIONS, UH, THAT BETTER USE OF THE EXISTING RIGHT OF WAY THAT COULD YIELD AN EXTRA LANE? MR. CHAIR, I BELIEVE THAT FO IS TRYING TO MAXIMIZE THEIR RIGHT
[01:20:01]
OF WAY, BUT IT IS LIMITED, AS WAS MENTIONED.UH, IN, IN THESE TYPES OF SITUATIONS.
THERE'S ALWAYS THE OPTION OF EMINENT DOMAIN, BECAUSE I THINK THE CONSTRAINT HERE IS PRIVATE PROPERTY.
I'M NOT SURE IF THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN EXPLORED BY, BY THE DEPARTMENT FOR THIS SITUATION, OR IF THAT'S SOMETHING THAT THEY WOULD BE OPEN TO EVEN EXPLORING AT THIS POINT.
I KNOW IT'S A VERY LONG DRAWN OUT PROCESS THAT, OF PURCHASING PRIVATE PROPERTY FOR A PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION PROJECT.
COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, YOU'RE RECOGNIZED.
I HAVE BEEN ON A FEW CALLS WITH, UH, PALM HIBISCUS AND OSCAR FROM FDOT, UM, REGARDING THIS.
UH, SO I JUST WANTED TO SHARE THAT WITH YOU, COMMISSIONER, THAT THE RESIDENTS THAT LIVE RIGHT THERE HAVE BEEN INVOLVED WITH FDOT AND GIVEN THEIR FEEDBACK AND, UM, OSCAR THERE HAS BEEN VERY RECEPTIVE.
THANK YOU, UH, COMMISSIONER SCHWARZ.
I'M GONNA OPEN UP THE FLOOR TO PUBLIC COMMENT.
WE HAVE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WITH THEIR HANDS RAISED ON ZOOM.
UH, THERE ARE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ATTENDING IN PERSON THAT WOULD LIKE TO, UH, SPEAK ON THIS ITEM.
YOU'RE WELCOME TO APPROACH THE PODIUM.
UM, I SEE WE HAVE ALEXANDER, UH, HAS HIS HAND RAISED ON ZOOM, UH, AND THERE'S ANOTHER, UH, RESIDENT BY THE NAME OF COLOR, USER TWO THAT HAS HER HAND RAISED.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME.
UH, MY CONCERN AGAIN IS THE EXIT OF BISKINE BOULEVARD.
AND AS YOU MENTIONED, UH, IS BOTH THE CONCERNS OF RESIDENTS OF MIAMI BEACH AND MIAMI, AND ESPECIALLY DURING, UH, LET'S SAY EVENTS, UH, BEING HELD AT, UH, THE ARENA, OR WHETHER IT'S THE MUSEUM OR BOAT SHOW OR WHATEVER.
UH, WE STILL HAVE THAT ONE LANE ISSUE EXIT.
AND DURING PEAK TIMES AND DURING EVENTS, THE CONCERN IS THAT WE'LL HAVE TO STACK UP AGAIN INTO THE ONE LANE, UH, EXIT.
AND THAT CAUSES, AS WE'VE SEEN IN THE PAST, UH, TWO, THREE YEARS OF CONSTRUCTION, THE, UH, YOU KNOW, THE CONSTANT MERGER IN AND OUT OF CARS, UH, YOU KNOW, GOING INTO THE, THAT EXIT OR SWERVING OUT OF THAT EXIT ONTO ONCOMING TRAFFIC.
SO, UM, AGAIN, THE, MY CONCERN IS THAT, UH, PRIMARILY AND, UH, YOU KNOW, I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO SEE IF THERE'S AN POSSIBILITY TO, UH, UH, MAYBE USE THE, UM, THE BIKE LANE THAT IS BEING ADD, UH, ADD ADDED TO, TO THAT, TO THAT SPACE, AND ALSO THE, UH, PEDESTRIAN TO MAYBE EXPLORE THE IDEA OF DOING A FLYBRIDGE FOR PEDESTRIANS AND, AND, UH, AND BIKE BIKING, YOU KNOW, BIKERS, SO THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, THEY CAN ACCOMMODATE A SECOND LANE.
AND, UH, I'LL TAKE MY, UH, ANSWER OFF.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION.
UH, I SEE WE HAVE A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC BY THE USERNAME, COLIN CHU, WHO HAS HER HAND RAISED.
UH, YOU'RE RECOGNIZED, AND PLEASE, PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD BEFORE YOU SPEAK.
HI, YES, GOOD AFTERNOON, PLEASE.
MY NAME IS MATT MATTHEW ALOFF.
I'M A RESIDENT MIAMI BEACH, AND ACTUALLY, THIS IS, THIS COULDN'T BE ANY MORE FITTING.
I AM RIDING MY BIKE ON THE MACARTHUR CAUSEWAY RIGHT NOW, HEADING DOWNTOWN.
AND SO THE PREVIOUS CALLER WHO WAS TALKING ABOUT, UM, POTENTIAL WAYS TO WIDEN THE EXIT LANE, UH, VERY FITTING, UH, I, I CERTAINLY DO UNDERSTAND, UH, THE IDEA BEHIND POTENTIALLY WIDENING THAT EXIT LANE, ALTHOUGH I DO UNDERSTAND WHAT THE PERSON FROM, UH, FDOT WAS SAYING, HOW THERE'S A LOT OF STORAGE IMMEDIATELY, UH, TO THE WEST OF THE SINGLE LANE.
UH, BUT I DO WANNA BRING UP ANOTHER TOPIC.
AND, UH, IN ADDITION TO, TO COMMISSIONER MEYER DOMINGUEZ, I'VE ALSO BEEN WORKING WITH OSCAR GONZALEZ FROM, UH, FROM THE PUBLIC RELATIONS TEAM AND SOME OF THE MEMBERS OF THE, OF THE TEAM TO SEE IF THERE'S A WAY IN WHICH THE BICYCLE LANE AS AN EXITS DOWN THAT RAMP TOWARDS THIS KING BOULEVARD, IF THAT COULD ALSO BE IMPROVED IN SAFETY, UH, BECAUSE AS HE MENTIONED, UH, AS MENTIONED ABOUT THAT FREE FLOW, UH, EXIT LANE THAT WILL CROSS OVER THE BLANK LANE.
UH, SO I JUST WANNA SEE AND PUT ON THE RECORD AS WELL, IF THERE'S A WAY IN WHICH, AS THERE'S A POTENTIAL CONTEMPLATION AND REDESIGNING THIS EXIT LANE, IF WE COULD ALSO LOOK AT IMPROVEMENTS FOR THE BIKE LANE AT THE EXIT RAMP, AND AS IT GOES THROUGH THE INTERSECTION OF NORTH FACE, NORTH BAY, UH, NORTH BAY SHORE DRIVE AS WELL.
AND AGAIN, IT'S NOT ONLY, YOU KNOW, I'M ON THE BIKE LANE RIGHT NOW, HEADING DOWNTOWN, AND, AND WHENEVER IT CAN BE DONE TO MAKE IT EVEN SAFER, IS ALWAYS APPRECIATED
[01:25:01]
AND OPENS THE OPPORTUNITY FOR MORE PEOPLE TO CHOOSE THIS MODE.THANK YOU SO MUCH, COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ CHAIR, AND EVERYONE ELSE WHO'S ON THIS CALL TODAY.
MATTHEW, SAFE RIDING ON THE, ON THE MACARTHUR CAUSEWAY.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR DILIGENCE IN PARTICIPATING IN OUR MEETING, UH, WHILE WRITING, ARE THERE ANY OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ATTENDING, EITHER IN PERSON OR VIA ZOOM, WISHING TO SPEAK? IF YOU'RE IN PERSON, FEEL FREE TO STEP UP TO THE PODIUM.
UH, LOLA, BEIT, YOUR HAND IS RAISED ON ZOOM.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK.
UM, I'M, I'M ALSO WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION.
I JUST WANTED TO ADD, UM, WHAT, UH, TO JEAN'S PRESENTATION THAT, UM, WE, OBVIOUSLY, AS PART OF THE PROJECT, WE DO FORECAST, DO A PROJECT TRAFFIC FORECASTING UP TO 2045 OR 2050, I THINK.
UM, SO WE HAD ACCOUNTED FOR ALL THE TRAFFIC INTO OUR MODELING.
AND, UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IS GONNA FLUSH OUT MOST OF THE TRAFFIC IS THAT FREE FLOW MOVEMENT, UM, ON THE RIGHT TURN ONTO THECA, UH, SPECIAL DRIVE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION, LOLA, AND FOR YOUR INPUT.
UH, WE APPRECIATE, UH, THE FEEDBACK OF THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION.
UH, CHAD FABRICANT, UH, YOU HAVE YOUR HAND RAISED ON ZOOM.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK.
I, I JUST WANTED TO SAY, AS A RESIDENT OF HIBISCUS ISLAND, CHAD FABRICANT, TWO 50 NORTH HIBISCUS, YOU KNOW, THIS SITUATION NEEDS A BETTER RESOLUTION.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE RESOLUTION IS, BUT I CAN TELL YOU, LIVING ON HIBISCUS ISLAND, AND I'M IN HIBISCUS, WE DON'T HAVE ANY CHOICE BUT TO TRAVEL TO MACARTHUR CAUSEWAY, WHETHER IT BE TO GO RIGHT TO DOWNTOWN OR LEFT TO MIAMI BEACH, THE MACARTHUR CAUSEWAY IS OUR ONLY WAY IN AND OUT.
AND THE SOLUTION THAT CURRENTLY EXISTS THAT IS PLANNED FOR THE EXIT TO THIS GAME, AND THE TRAFFIC AND THE BOTTLENECK THERE IS SOMETHING THAT AFFECTS OUR DAILY LIFE.
SO I DON'T THINK WE'VE FOUND THE RIGHT SOLUTION YET, BUT I THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE NEED TO WORK TOWARDS AND WE CAN WORK QUICKLY TOWARDS.
I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, THIS DIRECTLY IMPACTS MIAMI BEACH RESIDENTS.
AND THANK YOU FOR PLACING THAT ON THE, ON, ON THE RECORD.
THE REASON WHY, WHY I PLACED THIS ITEM ON THE, ON THE AGENDA, BECAUSE THIS IS A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT, UH, TO OUR, UH, RESIDENTS, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU SEE THE AMOUNT OF DENSITY BEING DEVELOPED ON THE MIAMI SIDE.
UH, AND WHEN THOSE PEOPLE COME TO MIAMI BEACH, WHEN THOSE RESIDENTS OF THE CITY OF MIAMI COME TO THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH AND THEN GO BACK TO THE CITY OF MIAMI, THE BOTTLENECK THAT FORMS THERE IS TREMENDOUS.
UM, I DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW THERE'S FOUR LANES OF TRAFFIC, ONE RIGHT TURN LANE THREE GOING STRAIGHT ONCE YOU GET ONTO ON OFF THE, OFF THE RAMP, BUT ONLY ONE LANE ON THE RAMP.
TO ME, IF YOU, IF YOU, WHEN ONE LANE BECOMES FOUR LANES, IT'S AN INDICATOR THAT YOU HAVE A HIGH VOLUME OF TRAFFIC, IT'S, IT WON'T BE A SURPRISE THAT, THAT, THAT YOU'RE GONNA HAVE A BACKUP OF TRAFFIC.
AND SO, JOSE, PUT US IN THE PROPER POSTURE, HOW CAN WE PRODUCTIVELY MOVE FORWARD SO THAT SOMETHING POSITIVE CAN COME AS AN OUTCOME OF THIS DISCUSSION TO SEE HOW DO WE SOMEHOW WORK WITH FDLT ON A PRODUCTIVE SOLUTION THAT ADDRESSES THEIR NEEDS, BUT ALSO ADDRESSES THE CITY'S NEEDS FOR, FOR ADDED CAPACITY TO FACILITATE OUR RESIDENTS ACCESS TO THE CITY OF MIAMI? SURE.
MR. CHAIR, WHAT I WOULD PROFFER IS REENGAGING FDOT TO POTENTIALLY REACH OUT TO THE PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNER.
IT SEEMS THAT THAT IS THE CONSTRAINT AND FDOT IS LIMITING THEIR IMPROVEMENTS TO THEIR RIGHT OF WAY, WHAT STRICTLY WHAT'S IN THEIR RIGHT OF WAY.
SO I'M NOT SURE IF, UH, AND I KNOW I THOUGHT IS ON THE LINE, BUT I'M NOT SURE IF THEY HAVE HAD ANY DISCUSSIONS WITH THE ABUTTING PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNER TO SEE IF SOME ARRANGEMENT COULD BE, UH, ARRIVED AT TO, TO, TO USE, UH, PART OF THAT, A PORTION OF THAT PRIVATE PROPERTY, EITHER ON A TEMPORARY OR ON A PERMANENT BASIS.
AND I DON'T KNOW IF FDT WOULD LIKE TO RESPOND TO THAT.
UM, I, I JUST WANNA REITERATE THAT IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOT COMPARE WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW WITH WHAT THE FINISHED, UH, ENHANCEMENT AND, AND IMPROVEMENTS ARE GONNA BRING TO THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH AND THE CITY OF MIAMI.
[01:30:01]
CONSTRUCTION, THERE ARE CONSTRAINTS.UH, WE'RE BUILDING A, A MAJOR, UH, PROJECT.
UM, AND THERE HA YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO TAKE SOME SPACE TO BE ABLE TO BUILD THE PROJECT.
SO THERE ARE CONSTRAINTS IN THE NUMBER OF LANES THAT WE CAN PROVIDE.
UH, IN TERMS OF THE RAMP, I HAVE, I HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU.
UH, ONCE YOU EXIT THE RAMP, AND, AND JUST FOR THE RECORD, I'M CLOSING THE PUBLIC HEARING, THE PUBLIC HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE HEARD, SO I'M CLOSING THE, UH, PUBLIC HEARING.
UM, ONCE YOU EXIT THE RAMP, HOW MANY LANES OF TRAFFIC DO YOU HAVE RIGHT NOW? ONE, WHEN YOU, WHEN YOU EXIT, EXIT THE RAMP, THERE'S ONE ON THE PERMANENT LANE.
ON THE PERMANENT SOLUTION, ON THE PERMANENT DESIGN, ONCE YOU EXIT THE RAMP, HOW MANY LANES OF TRAFFIC DO YOU HAVE? THERE WILL BE FOUR LANES, OPEN TRAFFIC, OPEN UP LANES OF FOUR LANES LANE.
ONCE YOU EXIT THE RAMP, HOW MANY LANES OF TRAFFIC WILL YOU HAVE ON THE RAMP? ON THE RAMP THERE WILL BE ONE LANE.
IF ONE LANE BECOMES FOUR LANES, WHY IS IT THAT YOU HAVE FOUR LANES? IF YOU DON'T EXPECT TO, FOR THERE TO BE THE NEED FOR, FOR, FOR FOUR LANES, IF THE VOLUME IS NOT THERE, YOU, YOU BUILD FOUR LANES BECAUSE YOU ANTICIPATE THAT YOU'RE GONNA HAVE THAT LEVEL OF VOLUME NO UNDER UNDERSTOOD.
BUT THAT VOLUME IS BEING, CAN BE, IS PROJECTED TO BE HANDLED BY THE, BY THE OPENING UP INTO THE FOUR LANES.
THE FREE FLOW RIGHT TURN LANE, THAT PROCESS THAT WAS, IS EXPECTED TO PROCESS OVER 20% OF THE VEHICLES GOING INTO THE LANE.
THEN THE SYNCHRONIZATION OF THE TIMING, THE SIGNALS THAT, UM, WILL ALLOW, UH, MORE VEHICLES TO FLUSH THROUGH BOTH INTERSECTIONS.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE'RE ADDING LANES WEST OF, UH, BISCAY BOULEVARD ON NORTHEAST 13TH STREET.
THAT, AGAIN, WILL PROCESS MORE VEHICLES EV THROUGH EVERY SIGNAL PHASE.
NOW, THE POINT I WANNA MAKE IS THAT RIGHT NOW THERE'S, THERE'S ONE LANE ON THE, ON THE RAMP, AND IT CONTINUES TO BE ONE LANE UNTIL BAY SHORE DRIVE.
SO AT THIS POINT, WE DON'T HAVE THE BENEFIT OF THOSE OTHER THREE LANES, INCLUDING THE FREE FLOW RIGHT TURN, RIGHT, WHICH ALL STUDIES, UM, AS LOLA ALI BEIT HAS MENTIONED, INDICATE THAT WE'LL HANDLE THE FUTURE TRAFFIC VOLUME.
SO IT, IT'S, IT'S, WE CANNOT COMPARE WHAT'S HAPPENING RIGHT NOW TO WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN WHEN WE'RE COMPLETED.
AND THEN IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE DON'T HAVE THE FULL CAPACITY THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE ON 3 95 WESTBOUND AND EASTBOUND.
RIGHT NOW, WE HAVE ALL THE TRAFFIC ON WHAT'S GONNA BE THE FUTURE COLLECTOR DISTRIBUTOR ROAD, UH, IN THE WESTBOUND AND EASTBOUND DIRECTION.
WE HAVEN'T EVEN BUILT THE, THE MAIN LINE 3 95 YET, WHICH IS GONNA GREATLY ENHANCE CAPACITY AND FLUSH OUT EVEN MORE, MORE VEHICLES THROUGH THAT AREA.
SO RIGHT NOW, WE ARE, WE'RE CONSTRAINED IN THE NUMBER OF LANES THAT WE CAN PROVIDE, BUT THAT'S GONNA INCREASE GRAMMA DRAMATICALLY WHEN THE PROJECT IS COMPLETED.
UH, WHAT I'D LIKE TO REQUEST IS JOSE, UM, I, I'D LIKE TO REQUEST, UM, ON BEHALF OF THE, OF THE COMMITTEE, UM, FOR YOU FOR STAFF TO CONTINUE WORKING WITH WITH FDLT.
UH, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, I, I HEAR EVERYTHING THAT, THAT THE DEPARTMENT IS, IS, IS MENTIONING.
UM, WE ALWAYS WANNA TRUST THE STUDIES.
UM, BUT, BUT WE ALSO NEED TO, YOU KNOW, ACKNOWLEDGE THE CONCERN THAT OUR RESIDENTS, UH, HAVE.
UM, AND, UH, AND, AND YOU KNOW, CLEARLY, YOU KNOW, I FEEL BASED ON WHAT'S BEEN PRESENTED HERE, UM, THERE ISN'T GREATER CAPACITY BEING PROVIDED ON THIS RAMP AS A RESULT OF SPACE, BUT IT'S NOT AS A RESULT OF A LACK OF NEED.
UM, AND THAT, AND THAT TO ME IS EVIDENT WHEN YOU GET ONE LANE BECOME FOUR LANES, UH, ONCE YOU GO WEST OF, OF, OF THE RAMP.
UH, SO IF YOU COULD CONTINUE WORKING, UH, WITH FDOT ON SOLUTIONS, DO YOU THINK, UH, IT'D BE FEASIBLE FOR YOU TO PRESENT BACK TO US AN UPDATE IN SEPTEMBER? UM, AS TO, AS TO, YOU KNOW, POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS TO, TO, TO ADDRESS THIS? I BELIEVE SO, MR. CHAIR, I'LL WORK WITH OSCAR AND THE FO TEAM.
AND, AND, AND THANK YOU F-D-L-T-I, I APPRECIATE YOU TAKING TIME TO BE HERE.
AND I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU GUYS, UH, FIND YOURSELF, UH, PRESSED FOR SPACE AND DEALING WITHIN A CERTAIN AREA IN A, A VARIETY OF WAYS.
UH, BUT I, I, I DO BELIEVE, YOU KNOW, WE NEED TO TAKE ADVANTAGE
[01:35:01]
THAT THIS HASN'T BEEN BUILT YET TO BE ABLE TO MITIGATE CHALLENGES THAT WE WILL ENCOUNTER, UH, ONCE, ONCE WHAT IS, UH, BEING PROPOSED IS BUILT.SO, THANK YOU, UH, FOR YOUR PRESENTATION ON THIS ITEM, MR. PLANNING DIRECTOR.
[13. DISCUSSION REGARDING I-195/JULIA TUTTLE CAUSEWAY PROJECT]
CALL UP ITEM NUMBER 13.UH, MR. CHAIR, ITEM NUMBER 13 IS A DISCUSSION REGARDING THE I 95, JULIA TOTAL CAUSEWAY.
AND JUST FOR A CLARIFICATION, ITEM 12 IS BEING CONTINUED TO THE SEPTEMBER 4TH LUSC MEETING BY ACCLAMATION.
WITH A REQUEST FOR, UH, FOR THE DEPARTMENT TO CONTINUE WORKING WITH FDLT.
HO JOSE, UH, WOULD YOU PRESENT, WOULD YOU, UH, KIND OF BRIEF US ON WHAT IS BEING PROPOSED, UH, BY FDLT ON THE JULIA TOTAL CAUSEWAY? UH, SURE.
SO, UH, THROUGH THE CHAIR, UH, ITEM 13 PERTAINS TO A FUTURE FDOT PROJECT ALONG THE JULIA TUTTLE CAUSEWAY FROM ALTON ROAD ON THE MIAMI BEACH SIDE TO BISCAYNE BOULEVARD ON THE CITY OF MIAMI SIDE.
THE PROJECT IS CURRENTLY IN, UH, WHAT'S CALLED A PD AND E PHASE PROJECT DEVELOPMENT AND ENVIRONMENT PHASE.
THE PROJECT MANAGER FOR THE PD D AND E STUDY IS ATTENDING VIRTUALLY.
HE'S WITH METRIC ENGINEERING, AND HE CAN SPEAK ON BEHALF OF FDOT ON THIS PROJECT AND THE STATUS OF THE PD D AND E STUDY.
UH, GOOD E GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONER, UM, AND COMMITTEE, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY.
I ALSO HAVE WITH ME, I'M THE CONSULTANTING PROJECT MANAGER.
I ALSO HA ALSO HAVE WITH ME YVETTE EZ, WHO'S THE DEPARTMENT PROJECT MANAGER, AS WELL AS SOME ADDITIONAL TEAM MEMBERS.
I KNOW THAT YOU'RE PRESSED FOR TIME.
SO, YES, THIS IS, THIS IS SIMILAR TO THE PREVIOUS PRESENTATION ABOUT A 10 MINUTE PRESENTATION.
IF THERE'S ANY AREAS THAT YOU REALLY WANT US TO FOCUS ON, COMMISSIONER, WE CAN KIND OF DRILL DOWN TO, TO THAT AREA.
UH, IF, IF, GIVE US AN OVERVIEW OF WHAT IS BEING PROPOSED ON THE, UH, JULIA TUTTLE, UH, COSTWAY.
NEXT SLIDE, CAITLIN, IF YOU WANT, LET'S, LET'S, YEAH.
THE LIMITS OF THE PROJECT ARE FROM I ONE, FROM I 95, ALL THE WAY ACROSS TO, TO, TO ALTON ROAD.
I, I, I DON'T WANT TO TAKE TOO MUCH OF THE TIME.
I WANT TO THE, THE BIG OVERVIEW.
SO IN ESSENCE, NEED FOR THE PROJECT, RIGHT? UM, BASED ON EXISTING OPERATIONAL DEFICIENCIES, CRASHES, UM, ALL ALONG THE I 1 95, AND SPECIFICALLY IN THE AREA BETWEEN I 95 AND BISCAYNE BAY.
AND THEN, OF COURSE, THE ISSUES ONCE YOU GET ON THE MIAMI BEACH SIDE, UH, WITH ALTON ROAD AND 41ST STREET, UH, THE DEPARTMENT SAW THE NEED TO PERFORM THIS PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT ENVIRONMENT STUDY TO NOT ONLY ADDRESS KIND OF THE, SOME OF THE CURRENT ISSUES THAT ARE BEING EXPERIENCED, BUT WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE DESIGN YEAR TRAFFIC OF 2050, UH, FOR THE AREA, UH, TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU KNOW THAT WE ADDRESS A LOT OF THE OPERATIONAL AND SAFETY ISSUES.
SO, IN ESSENCE, THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT ARE BEING BROUGHT FORTH.
NEXT SLIDE, CAITLIN, FOCUS ON A NUMBER OF MAJOR ELEMENTS.
UH, NUMBER ONE, THIS PROJECT WILL PROVIDE FOR NEW EXPRESS LANE CONNECTIONS, UH, TO AND FROM I 1 95, AGAIN, PROVIDING THAT CRITICAL CONNECTIVITY THAT MIAMI BEACH CURRENTLY DOES NOT HAVE FROM I 1 95.
THIS PROJECT WILL PROVIDE, UH, DIRECT LANES FROM, UH, I 95 TO A NEW ELEVATED SECTION THAT'S BEING PROPOSED, UH, ON TOP OF I 1 95.
THAT NEW ELEVATED SECTION THAT YOU SEE IN THIS CROSS SECTION WILL PROVIDE UNINTERRUPTED FLOW FOR THE TRAFFIC THAT'S ACCESSING THOSE RAMPS FROM I 95 TO MIAMI BEACH.
UH, AND ESSENTIALLY THOSE RAMPS, THAT OVERHEAD STRUCTURE WOULD NOT GO ALL THE WAY TO MIAMI BEACH.
ONCE YOU GET TO BISCAYNE BAY, IT STARTS, UH, COMING BACK DOWN, UH, AND MERGING INTO THE CAUSEWAY.
THE MAIN REASON THAT THIS STRUCTURE IS BEING, UH, CONTEMPLATED, IS TO SEPARATE THE TRAFFIC THAT'S GETTING ON AND OFF AT MIAMI AVENUE AND AT US, ONE BISCAYNE BOULEVARD.
A LOT OF THE OPERATIONAL AND SAFETY ISSUES IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE EXIT MOVEMENTS AND THE ENTRANCE MOVEMENTS COMING OFF IN THIS AREA.
SO BY SEPARATING THE TRAFFIC, THAT TRAFFIC THAT IS NOT INTENDED TO GO LOCAL, BUT WANTS TO GO TO AND FROM MIAMI BEACH, IT'S GONNA SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVE THE OPERATIONS AND SAFETY, UH, IN THIS AREA.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE'RE LOOKING AT A, UH, INTERCHANGE, IMPROVEMENTS AT US, ONE IN BISCAYNE BOULEVARD, AND ALSO THE BEGINNING OF A DEDICATED SHARED USE PATH, UH, BETWEEN THE CITY OF MIAMI, UH, AND MIAMI BEACH.
THAT WILL BE SEPARATED FROM TRAFFIC ON A SEPARATE STRUCTURE.
[01:40:01]
SO, ONE OF THE CONCERNS, UM, UNDERSTANDABLY, IS, YOU KNOW, THERE'S LIMITED AMOUNT OF CAPACITY AND IMPROVEMENTS THAT CAN TAKE PLACE ON ALTON ROAD ON 41ST STREET.SO ANY PROJECT THAT IS DEVELOPED, WE HAVE TO BE MINDFUL OF THAT.
SO THE REALITY IS THAT A LOT OF THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT ARE TAKING PLACE THAT I JUST DESCRIBED ARE REALLY OPERATIONAL AND SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS, UH, MUCH MORE THAN CAPACITY IMPROVEMENTS.
HAVING SAID THAT, THE INTENT IS TO MATCH BACK UP TO THE EXISTING CAUSEWAY CONFIGURATION.
IF YOU SEE THAT CROSS SECTION THAT'S LABELED AS A, WE WOULD BE PROVIDING THREE CONTINUOUS LANES SIMILAR TO WHAT'S THERE TODAY IN EACH DIRECTION.
UH, THE IDEA IS TO ALSO PROVIDE A, UH, CONCRETE BARRIER SEPARATION, UH, PROVIDE FULL WIDTH SHOULDERS TO, FOR THE CONTINUATION OF THE BUS ON SHOULDERS.
UM, AND THEN YOU SEE ON THE OUTSIDE WHERE WE'D HAVE THE SHARED USE PATH, UM, UH, ALONG THE CAUSEWAY, UH, AS WELL.
AND THEN ONCE YOU GET TO, UH, TO THE MIAMI BEACH, UH, CONNECTION AGAIN, UNDERSTANDING THAT THERE'S ONLY SO MUCH WE CAN'T PROVIDE THE SUPER WIDE AND THEN MERGE DOWN AT, AT ALTON ROAD.
SO WHAT WE'VE DONE TO IMPROVE OPERATIONS IS IN THE EASTBOUND DIRECTION YOU CURRENTLY HAVE, AND AGAIN, THESE ARE ALL PROPOSED ALTERNATIVES.
YOU CURRENTLY HAVE A CHOICE LANE WHERE YOU HAVE THREE LANES THAT KIND OF SPLIT INTO TWO, TWO, UH, WHETHER YOU'RE GOING TO, YOU KNOW, NORTHBOUND ON ALTON OR ON 41ST, OR IF YOU'RE GOING SOUTHBOUND.
WHAT THIS PROJECT DOES IS THAT IT ACTUALLY BRINGS IN, UH, AS YOU'RE APPROACHING THE, THAT CAUSEWAY BRIDGE, IT OPENS THINGS UP.
SO YOU HAVE TWO LANES SO THAT YOU BETTER DISTRIBUTE THE TRAFFIC THAT HAS LESS OPERATIONAL ISSUES AND ALSO IMPROVE ON SAFETY.
AND THEN IN THE WESTBOUND DIRECTION, UH, WE'VE ALSO MODIFIED THINGS WHERE THE EXISTING ON RAMP, UH, FROM ALTON ROAD WESTBOUND IS NOW SEPARATED, DOES NOT MERGE IMMEDIATELY WITH THE I, UH, 1 95 WESTBOUND TRAFFIC, BUT MERGES WITH THE OTHER ENTRANCE RAMPS COMING FROM THE HOSPITAL, UH, AND FROM SOUTHBOUND ALTON.
AND THOSE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO MERGE.
WE'RE WIDENING THAT SECTION, THEN WE PROVIDE A MUCH LONGER MERGE, AND THEN BRING IT BACK AND CONNECT TO THE EXISTING TYPICAL ALONG THE CAUSEWAY.
AND THEN LASTLY, WE'RE ALSO INTRODUCING, UH, TRIPLE LEFT TURNS INTO THE HOSPITALS.
WE UNDERSTAND THAT'S, UH, THAT'S A MAJOR MOVEMENT.
AND WE'RE ALSO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION THAT WE KNOW THAT THERE'S FLOODING ON A NUMBER OF THESE RAMPS AND STREETS.
AND WE HAVE IDENTIFIED, UH, ALREADY SOME OF THESE ROADWAYS THAT ARE UNDER THE DESIGN HIGH WATER.
UH, SO AS PART OF THIS PROJECT, WE WOULD BE LOOKING TO, TO RAISE THOSE, UH, TO RAISE THOSE ROADWAYS AS WELL WITH REGARDS TO, UH, SPECIFICS.
WITH THAT, I CAN PASS IT OVER TO, TO TOMMY WHO CAN BRIEFLY TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE DRAINAGE ISSUES AS WELL AS, UH, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE DESIGN HOT HOT WATER ISSUES AS WELL.
IF, IF I MAY, UH, IF, IF I MAY JUMP IN HERE WHILE YOU HAVE THIS SLIDE UP.
UH, SO YOU MENTIONED THAT THERE'S GOING TO BE, UH, AN EXPANSION OF LANES AVAILABLE, I GUESS, WHEN YOU'RE HEADING SOUTH ON ALTON ROAD TO ENTER THE JULIA TUTTLE CONWAY.
IS THAT CORRECT? SAY HERE, ESSENTIALLY, CURRENTLY THIS ALL MERGES INTO ONE.
WE'RE GONNA MAINTAIN TWO LANES, AND THEN THE, THE RAMP COMING FROM NORTHBOUND ALTON, THAT'S GONNA GO WESTBOUND.
'CAUSE I'M NOT CONTROLLING THE
SO ALL THESE LANES ARE GONNA BE SEPARATED BY A BARRIER.
THERE'S GONNA BE A BARRIER IN BETWEEN THE WESTBOUND THROUGH LANES AND THE WESTBOUND RAMPS THAT ARE COMING ON.
AND THEN THAT'S GONNA HAVE ADDITIONAL LANES EXTENDING ALL THE WAY ONTO THE RAMP TO THE BRIDGE, CAUSEWAY BRIDGE.
AND THEN IT'S GONNA MERGE BACK DOWN TO THE EXISTING THREE LANE SECTION.
SO YOU'RE ADDING, THAT SHOULD HAVE, YOU'RE ADDING MORE WESTBOUND LANES, UH, FROM 41ST STREET ONTO THE JULIA TOTTLE.
WE'RE, WELL, I WANNA SAY IT'S, IT'S NOT A COMPLETE, IT'S NOT A THROUGH LANE COMMISSIONER, IT'S JUST WE'RE RIGHT NOW THAT ALL MERGES, YOU KNOW, WITHIN A VERY SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME AND ONTO THE EXISTING.
SO WE'RE PROVIDING FOR, YOU KNOW, A BETTER, SAFER CONDITION OPERATIONALLY, WHERE EVENTUALLY IT DOES TAPER DOWN TO THE EXISTING TYPICAL SECTION, UH, ON THE CAUSEWAY.
BUT YES, IN THIS AREA, WE ARE PROVIDING ADDITIONAL LINEAGE AND MERGING AREAS, UH, TO, TO BETTER ACCOMMODATE THE, THE TRAFFIC.
AND, AND THAT'S, AND, AND THAT'S IMPORTANT.
'CAUSE CURRENTLY, AND I'M GONNA RECOGNIZE COMMISSIONER SUAREZ, UH, NEXT, RIGHT NOW WE'VE, WE'VE, WE FACE, UH, WE FACE TREMENDOUS, UH, TRAFFIC WESTBOUND ON 41ST STREET.
UH, AND, AND IT SEEMS, YOU KNOW, IT HEADS TOWARDS, TOWARDS THE JULIA TU AND A LOT OF TIMES, UM, SOMETIMES IT'S CAUSED BY BACKUPS ON, ON I 95.
A LOT OF TIMES, YOU KNOW, SOME PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, WOULD SAY IT'S BECAUSE THEY CAN'T ACCESS THE EXPRESS LANE.
YOU'RE PROPOSING HERE SOMETHING THAT WOULD, THAT WILL HELP ADDRESS THAT.
[01:45:01]
IS BACKUP ON 41ST STREET HEADING WESTBOUND, IT CLEARS UP ONCE YOU ENTER THE TUNNEL AND THERE'S SOME SORT OF CONGESTION, SOME SORT OF FLOW ISSUE AT THAT, AT THAT, AT THAT JUNCTURE WHERE 41ST STREET OUTER ROAD, YOU KNOW, MEET THE JULIA TUTTLE, THAT NEEDS TO BE FIXED.AND HOPEFULLY, UM, YOU KNOW, THAT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU'RE TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION AS YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE LANES AND, UH, AND THE RECONFIGURATION.
YOU'RE, YOU'RE, UM, YOU'RE PROJECTING HERE, COMMISSIONER SUAREZ, YOU'RE RECOGNIZED.
YEAH, I'M JUST TRYING TO DECIPHER.
SO RIGHT NOW ON 41ST STREET, WE HAVE HOW MANY LANES GO WEST AND COME ON EAST.
WHEN THEY GET TO 41ST STREET, IT'S TWO.
YOU HAVE TWO WEST, TWO LANE LANES AND ONE TURNING LANE.
AND SO IS THIS GONNA EXPAND IT? UH, SO HOW DO THEY ACCOMMODATE FROM, THEY'RE GONNA GO DOWN FROM THREE TO TWO, JUST LIKE IT IS NOW? WELL, THEY'RE, THEY'RE, THEY'RE GO AS, UH, ROBERT MENTIONED, THEY'RE GOING TO BE ADDING, ADDING LANES, ADDING CAPACITY TO THE SECTION BETWEEN ALTON ROAD AND WHERE THE, AND MAINLINE, UH, JULIA TOTTLE.
'CAUSE RIGHT NOW, ALL THOSE MERGES ARE HAPPENING IN A VERY SHORT SPACE.
SO THEY'RE GOING, GOING TO BE, UH, EXTENDING THAT A BIT AND ADDING LANES.
BUT, UH, ROBERT, FEEL FREE TO CHIME IN.
NO, THAT, THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT.
AND ALSO, ANOTHER KEY FRICTION POINT THAT CAUSES IS THAT EXISTING LOOP RAMP THAT MERGES RIGHT ONTO THE WESTBOUND JUST RIGHT AFTER THE 41ST STREET INTERSECTION.
SO THAT'S BEING REMOVED AND THAT'S BEING SEPARATED WITH A BARRIER SEPARATION.
IT'S NOT GONNA MERGE UNTIL MUCH FURTHER, UH, MUCH FURTHER DOWN ALONG THE CAUSEWAY
SO FROM YOUR ANALYSIS, UH, RIGHT NOW IT'S THE MERGE THAT'S HAPPENING FURTHER EAST THAT MAY POTENTIALLY BE CAUSING CHALLENGES AND AND YOU'RE PUSHING THAT TO BE FURTHER WEST SO THAT THERE'S MORE CAPACITY ADDING ADDITIONAL AS WE'RE CLOSER TO THE CITY? CORRECT.
WE'RE ADDING ADDITIONAL LANES TO BETTER FLUSH OUT ALL THE TRAFFIC WITH ALL THESE MOVEMENTS KIND OF COMING IN FROM DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS IN A VERY SHORT, UM, AREA.
AND THAT, AND, AND THAT, I BELIEVE, AND JOSE, AS YOU KNOW, WE'RE, AS YOU KNOW, WE'RE IN PD AND E AND WE'RE, AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THE TRAFFIC REPORT AND THE ANALYSIS WHERE WE'RE GONNA DOCUMENT AND ACTUALLY HAVE TO VER, YOU KNOW, SHOW YOU AND, AND SHOW THE, UH, STAKEHOLDERS EXACTLY THE BENEFITS AND HOW THESE PROPOSED IMPROVEMENTS ARE BENEFITING TRAFFIC, OBVIOUSLY.
WE'LL, YOU KNOW, MORE THAN HAPPY TO SHARE THOSE, THOSE REPORTS WITH, YOU KNOW, ONCE THEY'RE REVIEWED BY DOT, UH, WITH THE CITY AS WELL.
AND, AND SO YOU'RE ADDRESSING PART OF THE CONCERNS THAT I HAD, WHICH IS HOW, HOW DO WE, YOU KNOW, USE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS A LOT OF THE CONGESTION THAT WE HAVE ON 41ST STREET? AND I THINK SOME OF WHAT YOU'RE PROPOSING, UH, COULD POTENTIALLY, UH, ADDRESS THAT.
ONE OF THE OTHER ISSUES THAT WE, UM, EXPERIENCE IN AS, AS, AS IT RELATES TO THE JULIA TOTAL CAUSEWAY, UM, HAS TO DO WITH ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES.
UH, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE BISCAYNE BAY, UH, HEALTH STATUS AND THE REPORT CARD PUT OUT BY MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, THERE CONTINUES TO BE A DECLINE OF, UH, OF THE SEA GRASS AND SEA GRASS DIE OFF, UH, THAT IS HAPPENING ON BISCAYNE BAY.
AND IN LARGE PART, UM, BECAUSE YOU REALLY DON'T HAVE ADEQUATE FLOW OF WATER ON BISCAYNE BAY, UH, IN LARGE PART BECAUSE WE HAVE THE STRUCTURE THAT IS THE MACARTHUR CAUSEWAY.
UM, WHAT IS BEING DONE TO CONSIDER RAISING, UM, RAISING JULIA TUTTLE SO THAT WE HELP FACILITATE THAT FLOW OF WATER AND HELP IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF SEA GRASS AND MARINE LIFE ON BISKIN BAY.
AND, AND JUST, AND I WANNA MAKE SURE I, COMMISSIONER, I'M UNDERSTANDING YOUR QUE YOUR QUESTION ARE, ARE YOU SAYING IN TERMS OF THE EXISTING, REMOVING THE EXISTING CAUSEWAY ISLANDS OR WHAT, IN, IN TERMS OF IMPROVING FLOW? UM, WELL, WELL, AT, AT, AT, WHEN YOU LOOK AT, UH, BI AT, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE JULIA TUTTLE RIGHT NOW, THE ROAD, YOU KNOW, IN LARGE, IN LARGE PART INTERRUPTS THE FLOW OF WATER ON BISCAYNE BAY.
IT YOU'VE CREATED AN ISLAND ON, ON BISCAYNE BAY.
ONE OF THE ISSUES THAT, THAT MIAMI-DADE COUNTY HAS BEEN FOCUSED ON, WE'VE BEEN FOCUSED ON AS THE CITY IS, IS WATER QUALITY, WHAT IS BEING DONE, UM, TO RESTORE WATER FLOW, UH, AS PART OF THIS, UH, JULIA TUTTLE PROJECT.
SO TOMMY, CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT KIND OF WATER QUAL WHAT WE'RE DOING FOR WATER QUALITY, AND THEN CAITLYN, YOU CAN ADD ON TO THAT IN TERMS OF SOME OF THE RESILIENCY FEATURES
[01:50:01]
AND, AND, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE COORDINATION THAT'S HAPPENING ON, ON THAT FRONT.UM, SO WE'RE ADDRESSING WATER QUALITY.
UM, I, I WANT TO TOUCH BASES REAL QUICK JUST BECAUSE OF THE ORDER OF THE SLIDE.
THIS SLIDE IS ABOUT THE, UM, SEA LEVEL RISE.
UH, THIS PROJECT IS TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT SEA LEVEL RISE BY, UM, FOLLOWING THE FDOT, UH, DRAINAGE MANUAL, WHICH REQUIRES US TO, UM, TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE MEAN HIGH TIDE AS WELL AS THE, UH, THE SEA LEVEL RISE.
SO, UM, JUST JUST FOR THE RECORD, WE'RE TAKING THAT INTO ACCOUNT.
WE'RE, WE'VE GOT A, UM, DESIGN HIGH WATER OF 1.47.
THERE ARE 13 BASINS, UH, STORMWATER BASINS IN THIS PROJECT.
UH, BASINS EIGHT THROUGH 13 HAVE DIRECT DISCHARGE INTO BISCAYNE BAY.
UM, THAT'S A TOTAL OF SIX BASINS, SO BASINS 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, AND 13.
UH, AS YOU KNOW, BISCAY BAY IS CLASSIFIED AS AN OUTSTANDING FLORIDA WATER BODY.
UH, SO AS A RESULT, WE WILL NEED TO PROVIDE AN ADDITIONAL 50% TREATMENT OF WHAT, UH, IN ADDITION TO NORMAL, UH, WATER QUALITY.
SO WHATEVER EVERYBODY ELSE HAS TO PROVIDE, WE'VE GOTTA DO 50% MORE.
UM, AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, THE, THE, UH, THE CAUSEWAY, THERE'S NOT A LOT OF SPACE FOR PONDS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
SO WHAT WE'RE PROPOSING THERE IS, UM, SOMETHING KNOWN AS AN, AN ADVANCED VORTEX SEPARATOR.
WE'VE GOT, UH, WE'RE ANTICIPATING USING 25 OF THEM.
IF YOU LOOK DOWN AT THE IMAGE, YOU CAN SEE THE, THE AERIAL IMAGE, YOU CAN SEE THE LITTLE YELLOW, UH, DOTS.
THAT'S, UH, BASICALLY WHERE WE'RE ANTICIPATING THESE, THESE STRUC THESE, UM, STRUCTURES TO BE.
AND THESE STRUCTURES WORK A LOT.
UH, IF YOU LOOK AT THE IMAGE TO THE RIGHT, THESE STRUCTURES WORK A LOT LIKE THOSE BAGLESS VACUUM CLEANERS WHERE THE, UH, SEDIMENT CO THE RUNOFF COMES IN, IT GETS WHIRLED AROUND JUST BY, UM, CENTRIFUGAL FORCE.
AND, AND I DON'T, I DON'T, I DON'T MEAN TO, I DON'T MEAN TO INTERRUPT.
UH, AND I, AND I APPRECIATE, UH, WHAT YOU ARE PRESENTING, UH, HERE TO DEAL WITH, UH, WITH THE TREATMENT OF WATER THAT IS COLLECTED, ESPECIALLY STORM WATER THAT'S, THAT'S COLLECTED FROM, FROM, FROM THIS PROJECT.
I GUESS WHAT I'M TRYING TO INQUIRE IS HOW, HOW DOES, UM, HOW THIS PROJECT COULD MORE DIRECTLY BENEFIT BISCAY BAY, UH, IF, IF THIS MOVES FORWARD, IS, HAS FDLT STUDIED THE POSSIBILITY OF RAISING, UH, RAISING THE PORTIONS OF THE JULIA TUTTLE CAUSEWAY THAT RIGHT NOW ARE ISLANDS, UH, THAT ARE, THAT ARE PRETTY MUCH BLOCKING THE FLOW OF WATER ON BISQUE BAY AND AFFECTING, UH, YOU KNOW, THE SEA GRASS AND, AND, AND THE MARINE LIFE AND THE WATER QUALITY, UH, IN THESE AREAS OF BISCAYNE BAY? UM, MAY I, YES, COMMISSIONER SWAR.
UM, I THINK WHERE THE CHAIRMAN'S GETTING AT IS, YOU KNOW, THERE'S, THERE'S ESSENTIALLY AN ISLAND IN THE MIDDLE YEP.
AND THAT PREVENTS, UH, THE FLUSHING, UH, AND WATER FLOW OF THE NORTHERN PART OF MIAMI BEACH, UH, DURING THE HIGH TIDE, LOW TIDE.
UM, AND IS THERE ANY APPETITE TO POSSIBLY REALLY ENVISION, UH, THAT JULIA TOTTLE TO, TO, I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE PERHAPS RAISE IT AND HAVE MORE OF A BRIDGE INSTEAD OF A FLAT ISLAND? UM, THAT'S, I KNOW THAT'S VERY LONG TERM VISIONARY PLANS, BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD A LOT OF WATER QUALITY ISSUES ON THE NORTHERN PART OF MIAMI BEACH, AND WE BELIEVE THAT'S A DIRECT RESULT OF, OF, OF THE, THE FLUSHING FROM DURING THE, THE TIDES.
UM, AND HAVING A BIG IMPEDIMENT OF A MANMADE ISLAND IN THE, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE BAY KIND OF PREVENTS THAT FROM HAPPENING.
SO IS THERE ANY SORT OF APPETITE TO TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION? I MEAN, I, I GUESS I CAN LEAD THAT.
AND THEN IN TERMS OF RIGHT NOW, WHAT'S BEING LOOKED AT FOR THIS PROJECT, REMOVAL OF THAT ISLAND AND, AND KIND OF MAKING, YOU KNOW, ELEVATING THAT AND MAKING IT ALL ONE CONTINUOUS BRIDGE IS NOT SOMETHING THAT'S BEING CONTEMPLATED.
I CAN SAY, AND, AND CAITLYN CAN TOUCH ON THIS, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF BENEFITS THAT ARE ASSOCIATED, AND THERE'S A NUMBER OF AGENCIES THAT ARE LOOKING AT THESE ISLANDS, UM, FROM A LIVING SHORELINE STANDPOINT AND, AND SOME OF THE BENEFITS ASSOCIATED WITH THAT, UH, THAT WE'RE TRYING TO FIND OPPORTUNITIES ON HOW WE CAN PARTNER WITH THOSE AGENCIES AND KIND OF USE THIS PROJECT,
[01:55:01]
UH, TO HELP, UH, BUILD OFF SOME OF THE PLANS THAT A NUMBER OF THESE STUDIES ARE LOOKING AT, THAT THEY'RE, THAT THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, THESE STUDIES THAT ARE TAKING A, A HARD LOOK AT BIS GAME BAY ARE ACTUALLY CALLING OUT AS BENEFICIAL TO THE BANK.UM, AND SO FAR, I DON'T BELIEVE ANY OF THOSE HAVE CALLED FOR THE REMOVAL.
THEY'VE CALLED FOR SOME LIVING SHORELINES AND SOME OTHER ELEMENTS.
BUT CAITLYN, I THINK YOU'RE BETTER.
MAYBE YOU CAN TOUCH ON, ON SOME OF THAT.
I MEAN, WE'VE BEEN, LIKE ROBERT WAS SAYING, WE'VE BEEN TRACKING DIFFERENT STUDIES.
OBVIOUSLY SOME OF THESE STUDIES HAVE CHANGED A LOT IN THE TYPES OF PROJECTS AND ALTERNATIVES THAT THEY'RE CONSIDERING, SPECIFICALLY THE ARMY CORPS BACK BAY COASTAL STORM RISK MANAGEMENT FEASIBILITY STUDY.
UH, BUT YEAH, A LOT OF THE PROJECT DESIGNS THAT WE'VE BEEN TRACKING, TRYING TO IDENTIFY OPPORTUNITIES FOR SHORELINE STABILIZATION AS WELL AS ROADWAY ELEVATION THAT TOMMY ALREADY DISCUSSED, THAT WE'RE ALREADY LOOKING INTO, THAT THE DEPARTMENT MORE FREQUENTLY USES FOR RESILIENCY.
WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO IDENTIFY POTENTIAL PROJECTS IN THE AREAS.
THE BACK BAY DID IDENTIFY LIVING SEAWALL, HYBRID SEAWALL DESIGNS AND POTENTIAL MANGROVE RESTORATION ON CAUSEWAY ISLANDS.
BUT NO, WE HAVEN'T ANY OF THE STUDIES WE'VE BEEN TRACKING SO FAR.
PLEASE, IF THE COMMITTEE IS FAMILIAR WITH ONE, PLEASE LET US KNOW.
WE HAVEN'T SEEN ANY THAT WE'RE STUDYING OR RECOMMENDING OR EVALUATING THE, THE REMOVAL OF, OF CAUSEWAY ISLANDS.
IF ANYTHING, WE SAW KIND OF A RESTORATION OR MANGROVE PLANTING OF, OF CAUSEWAY ISLANDS CONSIDERED IN SOME OF THESE.
YOU KNOW, I, TO THE CHAIR, YES.
I THINK, YOU KNOW, IF YOU CAN GO BACK TO THAT SLIDE, UM, THAT YOU JUST HAD OF YEAH.
YOU KNOW, THAT'S A, THAT'S, THAT'S, THAT'S MO THAT, THAT'S MOST OF, UH, A CROSS SECTION OF BISCAYNE BAY THAT IS BLOCKED OFF.
AND, UM, YOU KNOW, IT, I'M NOT SAYING REMOVE THE WHOLE ISLAND AND MAKE THE WHOLE JULIA TUTTLE, UM, A FREE FLOATING STRUCTURE, BUT MAYBE, MAYBE PARTS OF IT, MAYBE WE OPEN UP TWO OR POSSIBLY THREE SECTIONS WHERE WATER CAN FLOW THROUGH, UM, VERY, VERY SHORT, SHORT BRIDGES.
UM, YOU KNOW, THAT PERHAPS MAYBE A KAYAKER OR, OR PADDLE BEARS CAN GO, GO UNDER.
UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, HOLISTICALLY, LOOKING AT MY BEACH AS A WHOLE, WE, WE'VE HAD SOME SERIOUS WATER QUALITY ISSUES IN THE NORTH.
AND AGAIN, I THINK THAT'S, IT'S DIRECTLY CORRELATED WITH THE FLUSHING OF, UH, YOU KNOW, FROM THE TIDES.
SO, UM, YOU KNOW, IF THERE COULD BE AN APPETITE FOR THAT, I MEAN, THAT WOULD, THAT WOULD BE PHENOMENAL.
AND, AND, AND JUST, YOU KNOW, WE'RE LAY PEOPLE ON THIS, ON THIS COMMITTEE, UH, AND WE APPRECIATE THE LEADERSHIP OF THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, UH, WITH THIS PROJECT.
I THINK JUST AS, AS RESIDENTS THAT SERVE IN THIS ELECTED CAPACITY AND A STEWARD OF OUR ENVIRONMENT, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IS, YOU KNOW, HOW THIS COULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY TO RESTORE WATER QUALITY, UH, IMPROVE ISSUES, UH, WITH THE BUILT UP OF NUTRIENTS LIKE PHOSPHORUS AND, AND NITROGEN AND CHLOROPHYLL, UH, THAT WE'VE SEEN IN BISCAY BAY, THE BACTERIAL GROWTH THAT WE'VE SEEN THERE, THE DETERIORATION IN WATER QUALITY, THE LOSS OF MARINE LIFE LIKE SEA GRASS AND SPONGES THAT USED TO FLOURISH IN THIS, IN THIS AREA, AND HOW WE'VE CONTINUALLY YEAR AFTER YEAR, UH, SEEN THAT CONTINUE AND HOW THIS COULD PRESENT AN OPPORTUNITY, UH, DISINVESTMENT THAT THE STATE IS LOOKING TO, TO, TO MAKE, TO ADDRESS, UH, SOME, SOME OF THESE ISSUES.
UM, AND, AND SO WHETHER, WHETHER, WHETHER IT BE, UH, THROUGH, UH, THROUGH MANGROVE RESTORATION, CERTAINLY THAT, THAT, UH, THAT COULD BE, UH, A, A WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY OR WHETHER IT COULD BE SOMETHING MORE, MORE, MORE, YOU KNOW, MORE BOLD LIKE WHAT COMMISSIONER SUAREZ HAS MENTIONED, AND LOOKING AT PORTIONS WHERE YOU CAN RAISE, UH, SOME PARTS OF THIS, OF THIS ISLAND.
IT'D BE GREAT, UH, IF, UM, IF, IF YOU COULD USE THE OPPORTUNITY OF THE STAGE THAT YOU'RE CURRENTLY IN THIS PDNE STAGE, UH, TO, UH, TO STUDY THAT, UH, AND SEE IF, IF THERE'S ANY POTENTIAL TO, TO, TO MAKE SOME OF THESE IMPROVEMENTS.
I THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT MIAMI BEACH, UH, THAT, UH, IS SO FOCUSED ON, ON THE ENVIRONMENT THAT MIAMI-DADE COUNTY IS SO DEPENDENT ON ECOT TOURISM.
WE WANNA MAKE SURE, UM, THAT, UH, WHERE WATER QUALITY CONTINUES TO BE STRONG, BISQUE BAY IS A BIG PART OF THAT, AND WE CAN'T AFFORD TO CONTINUE TO SEE THE LEVEL DETERIORATION OF WATER QUALITY THAT WE'VE SEEN IN BISCAYNE BAY.
THIS PROJECT COULD PUSH US IN THE, IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
AND IF FDLT COULD STUDY, UH, SOME OF THESE OPPORTUNITIES AND PERHAPS REPORT BACK TO, TO US IN, IN THE NEAR FUTURE, UM, IT COULD BE APPRECIATED BY THIS COMMITTEE.
[02:00:01]
ALRIGHT.UH, SO HO JOSE, UM, WHEN DO YOU THINK, UH, WHAT DO YOU THINK PUT US IN A PROPER POSTURE SO THAT WE CAN MOVE IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION WITH THIS ITEM? UH, WITH REGARD TO THE JULIA TUTTLE? YES.
UM, WELL, LET ME BACKTRACK WITH REGARD TO THE MACARTHUR.
WE, WE SAID WE'D COME BACK TO THE SEPTEMBER LAND USE MEETING ON THAT RIGHT OF WAY ISSUE CONSTRAINTS WITH REGARD TO THE, UM, THE JULIA TUTTLE PD AND E UH, I'M GONNA NEED FDOT TO, DEPENDING ON WHERE THEY ARE IN THEIR ANALYSIS AND WHEN THEY'RE GONNA FINISH, TO, TO MAYBE GIVE ME SOME GUIDANCE AS TO WHEN WE CAN COME BACK WITH SOME MORE INFORMATION ON THIS TOPIC OF WATER QUALITY.
ON HOW, ON HOW WE CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS PROJECT TO, TO, TO IMPROVE WATER FLOW AND WATER QUALITY.
MR. CHAIR, DO YOU WANT TO SHOW THAT ONE AS CONTINUED TO A FUTURE DATE? YEAH, TO NO DATE, SIR.
AND THANK YOU FDOT FOR, FOR, FOR PRETENDING.
BEFORE WE MOVE ON, ON THIS ITEM, JUST IN CASE THERE'S MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC, AND I, AND I APOLOGIZE EARLIER ON, WE, WE TOOK ON ITEMS AND WE DIDN'T OPEN UP TO, TO MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC, BUT THERE'S ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC PRESENT THAT WISH TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM? SEEING NONE ON ZOOM, UH, EITHER.
I'M GONNA CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING ON THIS ITEM.
WITH THAT, MR. DIRECTOR, LET'S
[5. DISCUSS A PROPOSAL TO REVITALIZE THE 200-300 BLOCKS OF LINCOLN ROAD (BETWEEN WASHINGTON AVENUE AND COLLINS AVENUE), INCLUDING PEDESTRIANIZATION OF THE CORRIDOR, OTHER STREETSCAPE IMPROVEMENTS, AND AMENDMENTS TO THE LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS]
CALL UP ITEM NUMBER FIVE.MR. CHAIR, ITEM NUMBER FIVE IS DISCUSS A PROPOSAL TO REVITALIZE THE TWO TO THREE, 200 TO 300 BLOCKS OF LINCOLN ROAD BETWEEN WASHINGTON AVENUE AND COLLINS AVENUE, INCLUDING PEDESTRIANIZATION OF THE CORRIDOR, OTHER STREETSCAPE IMPROVEMENTS AND AMENDMENTS TO THE LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS.
UH, AND I WANNA, UH, THANK, UH, COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE FOR, FOR JOINING ME AS A, AS A CO-SPONSOR ON THIS, ON THIS ITEM, COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE.
UH, SINCE I'M CHAIRING, WHY DON'T YOU TAKE THE LEAD IN PRESENTING THIS ITEM? THANK YOU.
COMMISSIONER CAUGHT ME OFF GUARD A LITTLE BIT
UH, BUT THIS REALLY, UM, REALLY, UH, HELPS FACILITATE THE GOAL.
A LOT OF US HAVE TALKED ABOUT BRING MORE RESIDENTIAL HOUSING, WHICH IS REALLY REDUCING THE TOLL ON OUR INFRASTRUCTURE.
IT ALLOWS PEOPLE TO WORK IN OUR CITY.
IT HELPS LEAD TO THE REVITALIZATION THAT IS BADLY NEEDED OF LINCOLN ROAD BECAUSE WE, WE THINK ABOUT IT, WE HAVE ALL THESE PARKING GARAGES AROUND ALL THESE SURFACE PARKING LOTS.
WHY IS THAT? IT'S TO BRING CUSTOMERS TO A, UH, SHOP PEDESTRIAN SHOPPING CENTER.
WELL, WHAT BETTER WAY TO BRING CUSTOMERS THAN ACTUALLY HAVING PEOPLE THAT LIVE RIGHT THERE, THAT LIVE, WORK AND PLAY IN THE AREA, THAT CARE ABOUT THE AREA? SO IT'S REALLY SOLVING MANY MULTIPLE GOALS.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE TWO TO 300 BLOCKS, IT'S, UM, IT, IT, IT'S NOT PUTTING OUR BEST FOOT FORWARD FOR MIAMI BEACH.
AND IN MANY WAYS, THIS IS THE GATEWAY AREA, ONE OF THE MOST, WHAT SHOULD BE ONE OF THE MOST ICONIC INTERSECTIONS OF MIAMI BEACH.
UH, AND, AND THIS PLAN REALLY GOES A LONG WAY TOWARDS GETTING THAT THERE.
IT'S GOING TO ESSENTIALLY EXTEND THE PEDESTRIAN BOULEVARD ONE BLOCK FURTHER EASTWARD.
SO, WHICH ACTUALLY CUTS OFF RIGHT NOW, UH, I, I BELIEVE AT WASHINGTON, IT EXTENDS THAT ONE BLOCK EASTWARD TO COLLINS AVENUE.
UH, AND THEN IT'S GOING TO BRING MUCH NEEDED RESIDENTIAL HOUSING THERE.
UM, THAT'S GOING TO HELP REVITALIZE THAT AREA, UH, BEAUTIFY IT.
UM, THE AREA RIGHT NOW IS, UH, LIKE I SAID, I'M, I'M NOT GONNA BEAT IT UP, BUT IT, IT'S NOT PUTTING OUR BEST FOOT FORWARD.
AND I THINK THIS REALLY STARTS TO DELIVER ON A PLAN THAT WE'RE ALL PROUD OF.
THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE.
AND I WANNA ECHO S SOME OF YOUR, UH, COMMENTS.
UH, CERTAINLY THIS IS AN AREA OF OUR CITY THAT NEEDS ATTENTION, UH, THAT NEEDS IMPROVEMENT.
UH, I CAN'T SEE ANY BETTER WAY TO IMPROVE AN AREA THAN TO HAVE FULL-TIME RESIDENTS, PEOPLE INVESTED THERE, UH, WHO GO OUT TO WALK, WHO SEE, WHO SEE SOMETHING, AND WHO REPORT SOMETHING, WHO TAKE PRIDE AND OWNERSHIP IN, IN, IN AN AREA.
OUR CITY HAS ALREADY, UH, STARTED ADVANCING ON EFFORTS TO PEDESTRIANIZE AND REVITALIZE, UH, AT CERTAIN AREAS ON LINCOLN ROAD, UH, ESPECIALLY THE, UH, CORRIDOR EAST OF WASHINGTON AVENUE.
THOSE 102, 200 AND 300 BLOCKS OF, UH, OF LINCOLN ROAD IN DECEMBER OF LAST YEAR.
THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION BOARD APPROVED A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS, UH, SPECIFICALLY FOR PEDESTRIANIZATION IMPROVEMENTS, UH, IN THIS PART OF, OF LINCOLN ROAD.
BUT IT DOES PRESENT THE OPPORTUNITY.
WE REALLY DO WANT TO SEE THIS AREA IMPROVE.
WE, WE REALLY WANT TO SEE THIS AREA FLOURISH.
UH, IT PRESENTS THE OPPORTUNITY OF, OF IDENTIFYING IT AS AN AREA TO PROMOTE RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT AND NOT JUST RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT.
IT'S SOMETHING THAT I WOULD LIKE FOR US TO FOCUS ON.
IT'S NOT JUST RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT, BUT WITH A FOCUS ON THE FORGOTTEN MIDDLE.
[02:05:01]
UH, THAT'S NOT, UH, ELIGIBLE FOR WORK, FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING OR WORKFORCE HOUSING, BUT THEY'RE BEING PRICED OUT OF OUR CITY.YOUNG PROFESSIONALS WHO, YOU KNOW, WORK, UH, WORK JOBS, AND, YOU KNOW, JUST BECAUSE OF THE MARKET IN MIAMI BEACH, WE'RE LOSING THEM.
WE'RE LOSING THEM TO, TO, TO OTHER AREAS IN THE CITY OF MIAMI.
WE'RE LOSING THEM TO BROWARD COUNTY, AND WE NEED TO RETAIN THIS TALENT.
WE SHOULD BE AIMING TO, TO, TO, TO RETAIN THIS TALENT IN OUR CITY BECAUSE THEY'VE BEEN PART OF THE FABRIC OF MIAMI BEACH.
AND WE CAN'T, UH, LOSE, UH, THAT, UH, THAT, THAT CHARACTER THAT WE HAVE THE FABRIC OF, THE WARMTH OF THE, OF THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN PART OF OUR COMMUNITY.
I BELIEVE THIS PRESENTS AN OPPORTUNITY.
IF WE CAN FIND, UH, THE PROPER DEVELOPMENT INCENTIVES TO INCREASE OUR RESIDENTIAL POPULATION AND HELP KEEP A SEGMENT OF OUR POPULATION THAT'S BEING PRICED OUT, THIS WOULD BE A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO, UH, TO, TO ACHIEVE THAT.
COMMISSIONER SUAREZ, YOU RECOGNIZED, THANK YOU, CHAIRMAN.
UM, I WANT TO ECHO THE SAME, THE SAME SENTIMENT.
YOU KNOW, UM, IT'S VERY SIMILAR TO THE WASHINGTON AVENUE PROPOSAL THAT THIS, UH, COMMITTEE HAS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED WHERE WE WANT TO INCENTIVIZE RESIDENTIAL, UH, DEVELOPMENT FOR, FOR THAT MISSING MEDAL.
UM, I HAVE AN ITEM THAT WAS REFERRED THE LAST COMMISSION MEETING TO NOT JUST LIMIT IT TO THE TWO 300 BLOCK, BUT ALL OF LINCOLN ROAD.
UM, I'M MORE THAN HAPPY TO BIFURCATE THAT, UM, UH, IF, UH, MO MOVING FORWARD.
UM, BUT I THINK, I THINK, YOU KNOW, NOT, LET'S NOT LIMIT IT TO JUST A COUPLE BLOCKS.
I THINK IF WE'RE GONNA TAKE A REAL BOLD STEP IN, UM, IN RE RETHINKING HOW LINCOLN ROAD IS FOR THE NEXT 20, 30, 40 YEARS, UH, LET'S THINK OF IT.
LET'S, LET'S, LET'S, LET'S DO IT.
THE WHOLE THING, UM, YOU KNOW, LINCOLN ROAD IS PERFECT BETWEEN LINCOLN ROAD AND WHAT WE WANNA DO ON WASHINGTON AVENUE.
YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE TRADER JOE'S AT THE END OF LINCOLN ROAD.
YOU HAVE THE BEACH ON THE OTHER.
UM, YOU HAVE ALL SORTS OF CAFES, UM, THAT YOU COULD EVER ASK FOR.
UM, AND IF YOU WORK HERE, IT, IT'S PARADISE.
UM, AND SO I'M GONNA BE FULLY IN SUPPORT OF THIS, UM, FOR MANY OF THE COMMENTS BEING MADE.
AND, AND, AND, AND I THINK IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE THE HISTORIC CHARACTER.
UH, THERE ARE A LOT OF, OF HISTORIC ASSETS, UH, IN THIS PART OF, OF LINCOLN ROAD PROPERTIES THAT HAVE, UH, RICH ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE, UH, THAT, THAT WE NEED TO BE VERY MINDFUL OF.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I LIKED BEFORE, UH, RECOGNIZING COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, IS THAT, UH, PERHAPS, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER WE EXPLORE HERE, NUMBER ONE, PRIORITIZES THAT THAT IS THE CHARACTER WE CAN'T AFFORD TO, TO, TO, TO, TO LOSE OUR HISTORY, OUR HISTORY AND ARCHITECTURE, BUT OUR HISTORY IN THE, IN THE FABRIC OF OUR COMMUNITY.
WE WANNA PRESERVE BOTH THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE MADE MIAMI BEACH THIS COMMUNITY.
AND WE CAN'T FORGET ABOUT THEM.
THEY'RE BEING, THEY'RE, THEY'RE MOVING AWAY.
AND WE NEED TO SEE HOW WE CREATE RESIDENTIAL OPPORTUNITIES TO KEEP THEM IN OUR CITY, BUT ALSO THE HISTORIC CHARACTER, THE HISTORIC CHARACTER THAT MAKES US UNIQUE, THAT MAKES US SPECIAL.
AND ANY POLICY THAT WE CRAFT NEEDS TO PRIORITIZE THOSE TWO ELEMENTS.
WE CAN'T SACRIFICE THE HISTORIC CHARACTER OF OUR COMMUNITY, UH, BUT WE CAN'T SACRIFICE, UM, OUR RESIDENT BASE AND, AND, YOU KNOW, ANY POLICIES THAT WE CRAFT AND BRING FORWARD, NEED TO MARRY AND PRIORITIZE.
UH, BOTH COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, YOU'RE RECOGNIZED.
UM, SO THAT AREA DEFINITELY HAS SOME SECTIONS OF IT THAT LOOK BLIGHTED AT TIMES, AND IT'S, UH, JUST AWFUL.
AND I MET WITH THE DEVELOPER AS WE ALL DID, I'M SURE.
AND, UM, THEY SHOWED RENDERINGS OF WHAT THE VISION IS FOR THAT AREA, AND IT DOES LOOK ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL.
IT'S SOMETHING THAT WILL ELEVATE OUR CITY AND THAT PARTICULAR AREA.
THEY WERE ALSO VERY RECEPTIVE THAT THERE HAS TO BE SOME PARKING, BECAUSE IF THE PLUMBING BREAKS, IF THE ELECTRICIAN NEEDS TO COME, IF THE FLOOR PERSON, LIKE, THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME PLACE FOR THESE SERVICE PEOPLE, UH, TO PARK.
BUT IF WE REIMAGINE LINCOLN ROAD AND BRING RESIDENTIAL, I THINK IT WILL HELP, UM, GIVE IT A SHOT IN THE ARM.
BECAUSE IF YOU LOOK AT LINCOLN ROAD NOW, IT'S JUST, UH, MORE AND MORE VACANCIES AND, UH, IT'S TIME TO REIMAGINE.
UM, AND, AND, AND, AND YOU'RE RIGHT, THERE IS A DEVELOPER OUT
[02:10:01]
THERE THAT, THAT HAS THEIR OWN IDEA OF THIS.BUT THE REALITY IS THAT I THINK, YOU KNOW, WHILE ONE PROPERTY OWNER MIGHT HAVE A VISION FOR THIS, AS MULTIPLE PROPERTY OWNERS, I THINK US AS, AS A CITY GOVERNMENT NEED TO LOOK AT THIS, UM, WITH THE BIGGER VISION, UH, OF SEEING, OKAY, HOW CAN WE IMPROVE THIS AREA? HOW CAN WE PROVIDE FOR HOUSING OPPORTUNITIES FOR RESIDENTS BEING PRICED OUT? AND HOW DO WE PRESERVE THE DETERIORATING HISTORIC ASSETS THAT WE'VE RISK LOSING UNLESS WE HELP MAKE THEIR PRESERVATION FINANCIALLY VIABLE? WITH THAT, I'M GONNA OPEN THE FLOOR TO PUBLIC COMMENT.
IF THERE'S MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ATTENDING IN THE CHAMBERS WISHING TO SPEAK, PLEASE APPROACH THE PODIUM.
I SEE ON ZOOM, WE HAVE DANIEL ERALDO WITH HIS HAND RAISED.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK.
IT IS A VERY INTERESTING CONVERSATION.
DANIEL SERATO WITH MIAMI DESIGN PRESERVATION LEAGUE.
UM, IT, IT ALL SOUNDS VERY INTERESTING, ESPECIALLY THE PART ABOUT ENSURING THAT WE'RE FOCUSED ON THAT MIDST MIDDLE.
I THINK UNFORTUNATELY, IN THE LAST 10 YEARS, THE CITY LEADERS HAVE ALWAYS SAID THAT THEY WANT THIS MISSING MIDDLE.
AND SO WE'VE HAD UP ZONINGS IN NORTH BEACH, AND WE'VE HAD COLLINS AVENUE, UPZONING AND ALL TO ENCOURAGE RESIDENCES.
AND UNFORTUNATELY, WE'RE FINDING OUT THE DEVIL'S REALLY IN THE DETAILS.
UM, I DID HAVE A LOOK ON THIS AGENDA ITEM.
I DON'T SEE ANY PLANS, ANY ZONING CHANGES IN ANY RENDERINGS OR PRESENTATIONS.
I HEARD THAT THE COMMISSIONERS SAID THEY WERE, UH, THEY HAD SOME MEETINGS, OBVIOUSLY.
I THINK THIS SHOULD HAVE VERY PUBLIC MEETINGS AND, UH, DEFINITELY GET ALL THE DIFFERENT STAKEHOLDERS INVOLVED, BUT CERTAINLY SOMETHING INTERESTING WITHOUT ANY DETAILS.
I'LL LOOK FURTHER TO HEARING MORE AND REALLY HAVING THE, THAT ROBUST PUBLIC INPUT TO ENSURE THE OUTCOME THAT WE ALL WANT, NOT JUST ULTRA LUXURY.
THAT'S THE ONLY THING GETTING BILLED NOW, BUT TRUE, MISSING, MIDDLE.
UH, YOU HAVE YOUR HAND RAISED ON ZOOM.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK, JOHAN.
WITH THAT, UH, IC, WE HAVE A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC, UH, WELCOME.
YES, WELCOME, JOHANN, YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK.
UM, I ACTUALLY HAD HAD MY HAND UP VERY BRIEFLY BEFORE IN ORDER TO PRAISE, UH, YOU YOUR PURSUIT OF INCREASED TITLE FLUSHING.
UH, I JUST WANT TO ECHO WHAT DANIEL SAID ON, ON THIS, UH, ITEM.
I DID NOT, IN FACT HAVE MY HAND UP FOR THIS ITEM.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION, MR. MR. LARKIN.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK.
GOOD AFTERNOON, MR. CHAIRMAN, COMMISSIONERS MICHAEL LARKIN TO IN SO KING BOULEVARD HERE REPRESENTING PETER CANVA WITH THE RITZ CARLSON OWNERSHIP GROUP.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR SPONSORSHIP OF THIS LEGISLATION, MR. CHAIRMAN, COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE.
I THINK THIS COULD BE TRANSFORMATIVE FOR THESE TWO BLOCKS.
SO YOU THINK ABOUT IT, THIS, THIS IS THE EPICENTER OF THE CITY CENTER, AND THERE ARE NO RESIDENTIAL USES FROM, I WOULD SAY, THE HADDEN HALL PROPERTY TO THE SOUTH, WHICH IS ABOUT 15TH STREET SHOOTING NORTHWARDS 16TH STREET.
IF YOU THINK ABOUT GOING ALL THE WAY TO 17TH STREET WITH WASHINGTON AND COLLINS AS THE BOUNDARIES, THERE ARE NO RESIDENTIAL USES.
SO THE SCARCITY RESIDENTIAL USES THAT I FEEL HAS LED TO THE, THE DOWNSIDE AND THE BLIGHTED CONDITION OF THESE ROADS.
IT WOULD BE AN ABSOLUTE CURE TO INTRODUCE RESIDENTIAL USES HERE.
AND THE MISSING MIDDLE IS AN APPROPRIATE WAY TO DESCRIBE IT.
IT'LL APPEAL TO YOUNG PROFESSIONALS FROM DOWNTOWN APPEAL TO PERHAPS FAMILIES, SINGLE MOMS WITH KIDS.
IT'LL BE A GREAT WAY TO, UH, REJUVENATE THESE TWO BLOCKS.
AND I APPRECIATE YOUR LEADERSHIP.
WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU ALL TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN.
UM, AND, AND I WANNA JUST, UM, YOU KNOW, HIGHLIGHT AGAIN, THE, UH, MISSING, MISSING MIDDLE OR THE FORGOTTEN MIDDLE, BECAUSE I'M GONNA BE, I'M WORKING WITH OUR CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE WITH OUR PLANNING DEPARTMENT, UH, AND OTHERS ON POLICY THAT I'M GONNA BE BRINGING FORWARD, UH, IN THAT SEGMENT OF OUR POPULATION.
YOU KNOW, WE, WE HEAR A LOT ABOUT AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
WE HEAR ABOUT A LOT ABOUT WORKFORCE HOUSING.
THE REALITY IS THAT, YOU KNOW, THOSE, THOSE DEFINITIONS ARE GETTING LOST, ARE GETTING LOST IN OUR COMMUNITY BECAUSE WE HAVE A BIG RESIDENT BASE THAT DON'T QUALIFY FOR THAT TYPE OF HOUSING.
AND WE ARE LOSING THEM, AND WE'RE LOSING THEM IN DROVES TO OTHER AREAS OF OUR, OF, OF OUR REGION.
AND, AND THESE ARE YOUNG PROFESSIONALS.
[02:15:01]
ARE PEOPLE THAT HAVE ESTABLISHED THEMSELVES IN MIAMI BEACH, AND THE MARKET IS NO LONGER ALLOWING THEM TO CONTINUE LIVING IN MIAMI BEACH.UM, AND, AND WE REALLY WANT TO CONTINUE BEING A, THE VIBRANT COMMUNITY WE'VE BEEN, WE CAN'T LOSE, UH, THIS FABRIC OF OUR COMMUNITY.
AND SO, AND SO WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND OUR PLANNING DEPARTMENTS AND STAKEHOLDERS IN, IN THE COMMUNITY, I'LL BE BRINGING IN THE NEAR FUTURE LEGISLATION, UH, ABOUT, YOU KNOW, TO HELP THOSE PEOPLE THAT MAKE BEYOND ONE 20 OF THE A MI OR REDEFINING, UH, WHAT'S, WHAT, WHAT THE A MI ACTUALLY REPRESENTS.
BECAUSE THE, THE A MI OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY MIGHT NOT REFLECT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE REALITIES IN MIAMI BEACH.
THE MARKET IN MIAMI BEACH IS VERY DIFFERENT THAN WHAT IT IS IN KENDALL OR IN OTHER PARTS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY.
AND WE, AND, AND WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT THESE POLICIES FOR HOUSING THAT WE PUT FORWARD REFLECT THAT.
WITH THAT, UH, DOES THIS COMMITTEE BY ACCLIMATION SUPPORT, UH, ASKING THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT TO, TO WORK ON POTENTIAL, UH, LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS TO BRING FORWARD AT THE SEPTEMBER MEETING SO THAT WE CAN DISCUSS THE, UH, THOSE POLICIES, UH, FOR RESIDENTIAL USES ON LINCOLN ROAD? YES.
SO BY ACCLIMATION, LET'S CONTINUE THIS, THIS ITEM TO SEPTEMBER, WE'RE GONNA ASK OUR PLANNING DEPARTMENTS LOOK AT THE AREA, BRING FORWARD WHAT YOU BELIEVE WOULD BE APPROPRIATE POLICIES FOR US TO CONSIDER.
I DON'T WANT THIS TO BE POLITICALLY DRIVEN POLICIES.
I WANT THEM TO BE PROFESSIONALLY DRIVEN, THAT ARE IN CONTEXT WITH THE CHARACTER OF THE AREA THAT RESPECT THE HISTORIC, UH, CHARACTER OF, OF LINCOLN ROAD.
AND THAT HELPS, UH, FACILITATE THE NEED FOR HOUSING IN THE AREA.
WITH THAT, LET'S CONTINUE THIS ITEM TO SEPTEMBER.
[6. DISCUSS PROPOSED 6TH STREET OVERLAY]
SIX.ITEM NUMBER SIX IS DISCUSS THE PROPOSED SIXTH STREET OVERLAY.
ALRIGHT, COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, THIS IS YOUR ITEM.
SO I HAVE BEEN WORKING, THIS ACTUALLY IS, UH, MAYOR MINOR'S ORIGINAL ITEM, AND I AGREED TO BE A, A CO-SPONSOR.
AND I'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THE FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION AND ALSO WITH, UM, THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT ON THIS ITEM.
AND I'LL LET, UH, TOM MOONEY TEE IT UP, PLEASE.
UM, THIS IS AN ITEM THAT'S HAD A FAIRLY LENGTHY HISTORY.
UM, IT ACTUALLY STARTED BACK IN 2021 AND ACTUALLY MADE ITS WAY THROUGH LAND USE TO THE PLANNING BOARD.
AND THEN WHEN IT GOT TO THE CITY COMMISSION FOR FIRST READING IN OCTOBER OF 23, IT WAS REFERRED BACK TO THE LAND USE COMMITTEE FOR FURTHER DISCUSSION.
UM, FOR THE SAKE OF BREVITY, I'LL JUST GET RIGHT TO WHAT THE UPDATES ARE.
UM, THE REVISED VERSION OF THE ORDINANCE THAT'S BEEN PREPARED FOR DISCUSSION HAS BEEN MODIFIED, UM, AND IS MORE CONSISTENT WITH, UM, A NUMBER OF THE USE RECOMMENDATIONS PUT FORTH BY THE FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION.
THIS INCLUDES THAT OUTDOOR BOUND MUSIC AND TELEVISION SETS WOULD BE PROHIBITED WITHIN 200 FEET OF THE SOUTH SIDE OF SIXTH STREET.
OUTDOOR RESTAURANT SEATING WOULD BE LIMITED TO 100 SEATS WITHIN 200 FEET OF THE SOUTH SIDE OF SIXTH STREET.
OUTDOOR SEATING ABOVE THE GROUND FLOOR OR ROOFTOP SEATING, UM, WITHIN, UM, 200 FEET OF THE SOUTH SIDE OF SIXTH STREET WOULD BE PROHIBITIVE.
SOME OF THE AREAS THAT, UM, WE STILL HAVE NOT REACHED CONSENSUS WITH SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF INGLE PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION INCLUDE THE MAXIMUM HEIGHT PERMITTED FOR, UM, THOSE PORTIONS OF LOTS FRONTING ON SIXTH STREET.
THE ADMINISTRATION IS RECOMMENDING THAT THE MAXIMUM HEIGHT WITHIN THE FIRST 100 FEET OF A PROPERTY SOUTH OF SIXTH STREET, UM, SHALL BE, UH, UP TO 50 FEET.
UM, AND WE'VE ALSO RECOMMENDED THAT, UM, SOME OF THE POTENTIAL EXCEPTIONS THAT HAVE BEEN PROPOSED WITH REGARD TO, UH, PROPERTIES ON LENNOX AND, AND PROPERTIES ON, ON, UM, JEFFERSON AVENUE BE DESIGNED IN A WAY SO THEY DON'T CREATE LEGAL, LEGAL CONFORMING USES.
LASTLY, WITH REGARD TO, UH, TRANSIENT USES, UM, AT THIS TIME, THE ADMINISTRATION'S NOT RECOMMENDING AN OUTRIGHT PROHIBITION ON HOTELS.
PERHAPS THE TYPES OF HOTELS COULD BE FURTHER FINE TUNED TO MAKE SURE IT'S THE TYPE OF HOTEL THAT SHOULD BE USED.
UM, WE DO HAVE A CONCERN THAT BY PROHIBITING HOTELS OUTRIGHT, YOU COULD ACTUALLY BE ENCOURAGING MORE SHORT-TERM RENTAL OF APARTMENT UNITS, SINCE WE ARE PREEMPTED FROM BEING ABLE TO REGULATE SHORT-TERM RENTAL, UM, IN THIS AREA.
[02:20:01]
WITH THAT SAID, WE BELIEVE THAT, UM, THE ORDINANCE HAS BEEN DEVELOPED ENOUGH WHERE IT COULD GO BACK TO THE CITY COMMISSION FOR A NEW REFERRAL TO THE PLANNING BOARD.UH, BASED UPON THE DIRECTION OF THE LAND USE COMMITTEE AT TODAY'S MEETING, ARE THERE STILL OUTSTANDING DISCREPANCIES? I KNOW WE HAVE FLAMINGO PARK HERE, WE HAVE A PROPERTY OWNER HERE.
HAS EVERYTHING BEEN IRONED OUT BETWEEN THE TWO? SO, THERE'S THREE AREAS THAT I THINK WE STILL HAVE A LACK OF CONSENSUS.
ONE WOULD BE WHAT THE MAXIMUM BUILDING HEIGHT SHOULD BE WITHIN THE FIRST 100 FEET, UH, SOUTH OF SIXTH STREET.
THE ADMINISTRATION HAS RECOMMENDED THAT IT REMAIN AT 50 FEET.
CURRENTLY, YOU CAN GO UP TO 75 FEET IF YOU HAVE A HOTEL OR A RESIDENTIAL USE.
WE'RE RECOMMENDING THAT ON THE FIRST TWO LOTS, IT BE CAPPED AT 50 FEET.
THE REASON WE HAVE A CONCERN WITH GOING LOWER THAN THAT, AND THE FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION IS RECOMMENDED 28 FEET, IS THAT BECAUSE THE FAR IS 2.0, IT COULD CONSTRAIN THE ABILITY TO BE ABLE TO MAX OUT THOSE DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS.
CERTAINLY, IF IT'S A MUCH LARGER PROPERTY THAT HAS BEEN AGGREGATED WITH MULTIPLE LOTS SOUTH OF SIXTH STREET, YOU COULD EASILY PUSH THE HEIGHT BACK.
AND WE THINK THAT AT THAT POINT YOU COULD HAVE HEIGHT LIMITATIONS.
THE OTHER AREA WOULD BE THAT WE WOULD NOT RECOMMEND A TOTAL PROHIBITION ON HOTEL USES.
TO THE EXTENT THAT THE COMMITTEE WANTS TO RECOMMEND SOME TIGHTENING OF THE REGULATIONS TO ENSURE THE RIGHT TYPE OF HOTEL USE.
AND THEN LASTLY, WITH REGARD TO THE EXCEPTIONS, UM, WE BELIEVE THAT BECAUSE, UM, THE PROPERTIES IN QUESTION, I EITHER ALREADY HAVE A LAND USE BOARD APPROVAL OR WILL BE SEEKING SOME TYPE OF AFFIRMATIVE APPROVAL THAT ANY EXCEPTION BE BASED UPON THOSE APPROVALS AS OPPOSED TO EITHER CREATING A SEPARATE CARVE OUT OR CREATING A LEGAL CONFORMING USE.
DOMINGEZ,
SO, I'LL, I'LL LET, UH, FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, UM, COME UP AND, UH, ALSO THE PROPERTY OWNER COME UP AND, UM, SEE IF WE CAN IRON OUT THE DIFFERENCES.
I'M GONNA OPEN UP THE FLOOR TO, TO PUBLIC COMMENTS.
UM, AND IF THERE'S MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WISHING TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM, PLEASE, UH, APPROACH THE PODIUM.
AND IF YOU'RE ON ZOOM, PLEASE, UH, RAISE YOUR HAND.
UH, SCOTT NEEDLEMAN REPRESENTING THE RESIDENCE OF THE FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD.
UM, JUST, UM, I GUESS WE, WE, YOU ALL KNOW THE HISTORY OF THIS.
THIS HAS BEEN AROUND QUITE A BIT, UM, BACK AND FORTH.
UM, I JUST WANT TO TOUCH ON SOME OF THE THINGS THAT, THAT TOM MENTIONED AND, AND WHEN WE SPOKE, TOM, YOU DID, UH, YESTERDAY YOU DID SAY THAT WE'RE KIND OF ON BOARD WITH MOST OF THE THINGS I'LL TOUCH ON FIRST.
UM, WE ARE RECOMMENDING 28 FEET, UM, AND WE'D LIKE TO SEE THAT MOVE FORWARD.
THE REASON BEING IS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT WHAT WE CALL A WHOLE BLOCK DEVELOPMENT.
IF A DEVELOPER AGGREGATES A BUNCH OF LOTS THAT GO FROM SIXTH STREET DOWN TO FIFTH STREET, UM, THEN THERE'S NO ISSUE WHATSOEVER IN THAT DEVELOPMENT, GETTING THEIR FULL FAR BECAUSE THEY'LL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO, UM, PUSH MOST OF THAT DEVELOPMENT TOWARDS, UH, FIFTH STREET.
AND WHEN THEY'RE, THE PART OF THEIR DEVELOPMENT CLOSER TO SIXTH STREET, COULD BE LOWER, COULD BE 28 FEET OR, OR WHATEVER.
UM, IF WE TAKE THAT OUT NOW, THEN WE LOSE THAT, UM, THAT PROTECTION.
UM, SO FOR SOME OF THESE DIFFERENCES, SOME OF THESE DIFFERENCES, WE, WHAT WE'D LIKE TO SEE IS OUR, THE FP AND A'S VERSION, THE RESIDENT'S VERSION OF THE ORDINANCE MOVE FORWARD.
AND THEN AT PLANNING BOARD, THAT ISSUE CAN BE WORKED OUT.
WE CAN WORK OUT THE ISSUES WITH THE, WITH THE, UM, PROPERTIES THAT HAVE, UH, EXISTING, UM, UM, DEVELOPMENT ORDERS OR ONE THAT'S, UM, ANOTHER ISSUE THAT'S BEING, UH, ANOTHER POSSIBLE DEVELOPMENT OR PROJECT ON, UH, JEFFERSON AVENUE.
SO, UM, YOU KNOW, WE, WE THINK OUR ORDINANCE, UM, IS THE BEST THING FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD, FOR THE RESIDENTS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD.
WE DO KNOW THERE'S DISCREPANCIES, AND WE JUST WANT OURS TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT WE WILL BE WORKING OUT THESE ISSUES.
UM, WHETHER A PLANNING BOARD OR, YOU KNOW, IT'S KIND, IT, IT MAY COME BACK TO YOU, IT MAY GO TO FIRST READING, UH, DOWN THE LINE, BUT THAT'S WHAT WE'RE, THAT'S WHAT OUR INTENTION IS.
UH, MARK NEEDLE, YOU HAVE YOUR HAND RAISED.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK.
YES, I, UH, AM FULLY IN SUPPORT OF WHAT, UH, SCOTT, UH, NEEDLEMAN JUST SAID ON BEHALF OF THE, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION.
UH, I THINK THAT THE REASON FOR GOING FORWARD,
[02:25:01]
UH, WITH OUR ORDINANCE, UM, EVEN WITH THE DIFFERENCES THAT, UH, TOM MOONEY, UH, LEY STATED, UH, IS BECAUSE WE ARE LOOKING AT THE BIG PICTURE AND WE WANNA PRESERVE THE, THE BEST SCENARIO FOR THE LARGER SCALE DEVELOPMENTS.I THINK THE, UH, BY YOUR GIVING DIRECTION, UM, TO MOVE FORWARD IN THIS WAY, WE'LL GET THE STAFF EXPERTISE FOCUSED ON WHERE EXACTLY YOU DRAW THE LINE AND HOW WE CAN CREATE THE APPROPRIATE INCENTIVE INCENTIVES.
AND LIKEWISE, UM, AS IT RELATES TO THE PROPERTY, UM, UH, THE, THE PRIOR APPROVALS, UM, WE HAVE NO INTENTION TO STOP THOSE DEVELOPMENTS FROM HAPPENING.
IN FACT, WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH, UH, ONE THAT DOESN'T HAVE, UH, A CURRENT PROPOSAL ON JEFFERSON AVENUE BECAUSE WE'RE REALLY NOT LOOKING TO CHANGE, YOU KNOW, TO AFFECT ANYBODY'S EXISTING PLANS.
UH, SO IF YOU MOVE IT FORWARD, UH, WE PROMISE YOU BE VERY REASONABLE IN WORKING WITH, UH, ANY AFFECTED PROPERTY, UH, OWNERS, UH, AT THE PLANNING BOARD, AND HOPE TO COME, UH, UP WITH, UH, A CONSENSUS SOLUTION.
AND IF NOT, WE WILL, YOU KNOW, UH, YOU WILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE, UH, A DECISION WHERE THERE ARE DISAGREEMENTS AND WE'VE HAD A CHANCE TO EXPLORE IN SOME DETAIL.
THIS ISN'T THE BEST PLACE TO GO INTO THE WEEDS ON SOME OF THESE ISSUES.
UH, WE CERTAINLY APPRECIATE THE EFFORTS OF STAFF, UM, AND, UH, THE COMMISSION, UH, ON THIS AND, UH, LOOK FORWARD TO, YOU KNOW, I KNOW IT'S A LONG-TERM ISSUE, LIKE YOU WERE LOOKING AT SOME OF THESE LONG-TERM TRANSPORTATION ISSUES.
UH, BUT IT'S STILL GOING TO BE IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE DO THINK THAT FIFTH STREET CORRIDOR WILL BE DEVELOPED AND WE WANNA KEEP THE IMPACTS AWAY FROM THE RESIDENTS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE WHEN THEY'RE QUITE FORESEEABLE.
AND, AND, AND, AND I DO BELIEVE THAT THIS IS THE PROPER VENUE, IN FACT, TO LOOK AT THE DETAILS OF THESE MATTERS.
THAT'S THE PURPOSE OF THE LAND USE COMMITTEE.
UH, THANK, THANK YOU, MR. WELCOME.
AND, UH, COMMITTEE MEMBERS MITCH NOVIK.
I, UH, I'VE MANAGED A BUILDING AT SIX 10 JEFFERSON AVENUE FOR THE LAST 32 YEARS.
I TOO ECHO, UH, THE LANGUAGE THAT THE FLAMINGO PARK, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION CRAFTED.
MITCH JOHAN MOORE, YOU HAVE YOUR HAND RAISED ON ZOOM.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK.
AGAIN, JUST WANTED TO THANK, UH, SCOTT AND MARK FOR THEIR LEADERSHIP ON THIS ISSUE.
UH, THE OUTSTANDING ISSUES IN FACT CAN BE RESOLVED.
I BELIEVE, IN PARTICULAR, ANY ONGOING DISCUSSIONS IN, IN GOOD NEIGHBORLY FASHION, UH, CONCERNING PROJECTS THAT HAVE ALREADY COME BEFORE THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION.
THE HEIGHT IS REALLY, I THINK, UH, A KEY ISSUE.
AND IT'S A KEY ISSUE, NOT JUST ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF OUR NEIGHBORHOOD, BUT ON THE EAST SIDE.
I WANNA REMIND US OF THAT AS A HOLISTIC, UH, ASPECT OF THIS.
UH, WE WANT TO AVOID TOO HIGH.
BASICALLY, IT'S ONE OF THE MOST INTRUSIVE POSSIBLE FEATURES THAT THE COMMUNITY WORRIES ABOUT CONSISTENTLY.
UH, AND WHILE WE APPRECIATE GETTING INTO THE WEEDS, SUCH AS IT MAY BE USEFUL WITH THIS COMMITTEE, UH, THE NEIGHBORHOOD ALSO TRUSTS PLANNING BOARD, UH, TO, UH, FURTHER, UH, SORT THROUGH THOSE WEEDS.
ANY OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WISHING TO BE HEARD ON THIS ITEM? SEEING, YEP.
UH, RUSSELL GALBIT ON BEHALF OF THE PROPERTY OWNER THAT IS BEING AFFECTED BY PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT THE PROPERTY OWNER.
UH, FIRST OF ALL, I WANT TO SAY THAT I HAVE ENORMOUS RESPECT FOR THE FLAMINGO PARK ASSOCIATION AND TO, UH, ALL THE SPEAKERS EARLIER TODAY.
UH, HOWEVER, I DO TAKE EXCEPTION TO BE INCLUDED IN THIS OVERLAY.
UH, WHETHER THE OVERLAY IS APPROPRIATE OR PROPER, I DON'T EVEN WANT TO DISCUSS TODAY.
UH, OTHER THAN THE FACT THAT, THAT OUR PROPERTY SHOULD NOT BE INCLUDED, WE'RE VERY PRIVILEGED THAT THE FLAMINGO PARK ASSOCIATION, UH, UNANIMOUSLY SUPPORTED OUR PROJECT.
ANY TYPE OF INCLUSION IN AN OVERLAY, WHICH I THINK IS THE WRONG WAY TO DO ANY TYPE OF ZONING, WILL KILL THIS DEAL.
NO BANK WANTS TO LEND ON MIAMI BEACH, UM, AND NO BANK WANTS TO LEND FOR A HOTEL.
YOU JUST HAVE TO DEAL WITH REALITY.
HERE ARE PEOPLE TELLING YOU HOW YOU SHOULD AFFECT A PRIVATE PRIORITY'S PROPERTY, AND THEY'VE NEVER GOTTEN THE DIFFICULT TASK OF GOING OUT AND GETTING FINANCING TO BUILD A HOTEL IN MIAMI BEACH.
TODAY, MIAMI BEACH IS NOT THE SAME AS IT WAS BEFORE.
ANY LOCAL LENDER DOESN'T WANNA LEND ON A HOTEL, AND THEY CERTAINLY DON'T WANNA LEND ON A HOTEL IN MIAMI BEACH, THEY HAVE WHAT'S CALLED GOVERNMENT RISK, HOTEL RISK.
FORTUNATELY, WE BELIEVE THAT WE HAVE AN INCREDIBLE PROJECT.
WE BOUGHT THE PROJECT FOR OVER $4 MILLION.
WE'VE SPENT ALMOST A MILLION DOLLARS
[02:30:01]
BETWEEN GETTING APPROVALS, UNANIMOUS APPROVALS, GOING BACK AND FORTH, UH, AND IN FACT, ALMOST READY TO PULL A PERMIT AND PAY IMPACT FEES THAT ARE RIDICULOUS, THAT DON'T EXIST IN MIAMI, BUT ONLY EXIST IN MIAMI BEACH.AND HERE WE ARE A YEAR LATER TRYING TO INCLUDE A PROPERTY THAT WILL KILL THE PROJECT.
WHAT DOES THAT SAY TO PEOPLE WHO HAVE PROPERTY RIGHTS AND COME TO MIAMI BEACH AND WANT TO HELP IMPROVE MIAMI BEACH? SAVE THE HISTORIC DISTRICT? WHAT DOES IT SAY ABOUT AFFORDABILITY? WHAT DOES IT SAY ABOUT TRAFFIC? YOU KNOW, I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH AN OVERLAY THAT DOESN'T AFFECT MY PROPERTY.
MY PROPERTY'S ALREADY BEEN APPROVED.
ANY OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WISHING TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM? SEE, NONE IN PERSON, NONE IN ZOOM.
I'M GONNA CLOSE THE PUBLIC COMMENT.
COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, THIS IS YOUR ITEM.
SO, UM, I HAVE A QUESTION FOR TOM.
SO IF WE MOVE THIS ITEM FORWARD, CAN THE PLANNING BOARD WORK WITH THE PROPERTY OWNER AND, UM, FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION? IF THIS ITEM IS MOVED TO THE FULL CITY COMMISSION AND THE FULL CITY COMMISSION REFERS THE THE ITEM TO THE PLANNING BOARD, THEN WHAT THE PLANNING BOARD WOULD BE REVIEWING IS THE VERSION OF THE ORDINANCE THAT WAS REFERRED BY THE COMMISSION.
THE PLANNING BOARD CAN MAKE ITS OWN RECOMMENDATIONS AS CAN PLANNING STAFF.
SO WHATEVER COMES BACK TO THE COMMISSION AT FIRST READING, YOU'D BE ABLE TO, UH, SEE WHAT THE PLANNING BOARD WOULD BE RECOMMENDING, AS WELL AS WHAT STAFF WOULD BE RECOMMENDING.
AND THEN THAT'S WHEN YOU WOULD BE ABLE TO SHAPE THE FINAL VERSION OF THE ORDINANCE.
AND IF I MAY JUST ADD, THE, THE PROPERTY OWNER AND THE FLAMINGO PARK RESIDENTS WOULD HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT, UH, THEIR POSITIONS TO THE, TO THE PLANNING BOARD AS WELL.
SO MY UNDERSTANDING WAS THAT THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION WAS FAVORABLE TO MAKING AN EXCEPTION FOR A PREVIOUSLY PERMITTED PROJECT, UH, THE PROJECT AT LENNOX AVENUE AND SIXTH STREET.
IS THAT CORRECT? I, I BELIEVE SO.
THEY HAD, UM, UM, PROPOSED SOME EXCEPTION LANGUAGE.
I DON'T KNOW IF THE EXCEPTION LANGUAGE THAT THEY PROPOSED HAS BEEN ACCEPTED BY THE PROPERTY OWNER, BUT THE FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION DID PROPOSE THEIR OWN EXCEPTION LANGUAGE.
IF, IF, IF, IF I, LIKE, I LIKE TO RECOGNIZE, UM, SCOTT HAM, SCOTT HAM, AND, UM, WE, UM, YEAH, WE, AS MR. GALBIT STATED, WE, WE ENDORSE HIS PROJECT.
WE, WE, WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE PROJECT, UH, UH, BE DEVELOPED.
UM, BUT YOU DO REALIZE WHAT, WHAT HE'S MENTIONING THAT MAKING THIS PROPERTY ILLEGAL, NONCONFORMING, UH, WE HAD, BUT WE COULD, COULD POTENTIALLY, REGARDLESS OF WHATEVER KIND OF LANGUAGE IS IN THERE MOVING FORWARD, I UNDERSTAND WHAT HE'S STATING, BUT WE, AND AGAIN, DEPENDING ON THE LANGUAGE THAT'S IN THERE, UM, WE HAVE NO PROBLEM, UM, WITH LANGUAGE THAT WOULD STATE IF HIS BUILDING WERE, WOULD'VE BEEN KNOCKED DOWN BY A HURRICANE TO REBUILD IT BACK WITH THE SAME USE AND THE SAME HEIGHT.
UM, WE HAVE NO ISSUE IF IT BURNS DOWN FOR HIM TO REBUILD THE BUILDING, UM, UM, WITH THE SAME USES, SAME HEIGHT, AND SAME BASICALLY EVERYTHING.
WE'D LIKE THE BUILDING TO BE BUILT AND TO REMAIN THERE.
AND IF IT, FOR WHATEVER REASON, FOR ANY KIND OF CASUALTY, IT, IT'S DESTROYED, UM, FOR HIM TO BE ABLE TO BUILD IT BACK.
UM, SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT KIND OF LANGUAGE CAN EFFECTUATE THAT.
UM, IT'S BEYOND MY SCOPE, BUT WE'RE, WE WOULD BE FINE WITH THAT.
WE HAVE NO ISSUE WITH THAT WHATSOEVER.
UM, I WOULD, I WOULD SUGGEST, AND, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM MY COLLEAGUE, COMMISSIONER SUAREZ.
UM, YOU KNOW, I WOULD MAKE THIS IN, IN THIS PART OF, OF SIXTH STREET.
YOU KNOW, I'VE, WE DON'T WANNA GET IN THE WAY OF GOOD POLICY, BUT WE ALSO DON'T WANNA GET IN, IN, IN THE WAY OF A PROJECT THAT CAN HELP THE AREA.
RIGHT NOW, I DON'T THINK THERE'S ANY ACTIVITY HAPPENING ON THAT SITE.
I DON'T KNOW THE LAST TIME THAT THERE WAS ANY ACTIVITY HAPPENING ON THAT SITE.
UM, CERTAINLY I DON'T THINK WE WANT TO SEE, UM, MORE HOTEL DEVELOPMENT ON SIXTH STREET.
'CAUSE WE WANT TO PRESERVE THE RESIDENTIAL, UH, CHARACTER OF IT.
WE WANT TO LIMIT, UH, OUTDOOR RESTAURANTS, THE ROOFTOPS.
WE WANNA LIMIT ALL THESE OTHER ACTIVITIES, MUSIC AND, AND, AND TVS AND, AND THAT TYPE OF STUFF.
BUT I DON'T THINK WE SHOULD GET IN, IN, IN THE WAY OF PROJECTS THAT CAN HELP IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF THE, OF THE AREA.
[02:35:01]
THE GOOD THING ABOUT POLICY IS THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN ALWAYS EXPAND AN OVERLAY IF YOU, IF, IF, IF, IF YOU WANT, YOU CAN, YOU CAN STAND, YOU CAN START AN OVERLAY, YOU CAN ALWAYS EXPAND IT.BUT I DON'T THINK OUR POLICIES SHOULD GET IN THE WAY OF SOMETHING THAT'S ALREADY BEEN APPROVED.
AND THAT'S MY CONCERN WHEN I'M HEARING THAT THE POLICY THAT WE COULD POTENTIALLY PUT FORWARD COULD POTENTIALLY AFFECT THE FINANCING AND, AND, AND THE REALITY OF SOMETHING THAT WE'VE ALREADY APPROVED.
I WANNA RECOGNIZE NICK, AND THEN I'M GONNA RECOGNIZE, UH, COMMISSIONER SUAREZ, IF, IF I COULD MAKE A SUGGESTION, MR. CHAIR, BASED ON, BASED ON THIS DISCUSSION, IS, IS THE, THE BOUNDARIES OF THE PROPOSED OVERLAY COULD BE REVISED TO, TO EXCLUDE, UM, TO, TO EX EXCLUDE THESE PROPERTIES.
THERE'S, THERE'S ONE DEVELOPMENT THAT HAS ALREADY BEEN PERMITTED AND CONSTRUCTED, WHICH IS WHERE THE TARGET IS, AND THEN THE OTHER IS TO THE NORTH OF THAT PARCEL.
SO, SO THOSE PROPERTIES COULD BE EXCLUDED.
I THINK THAT WOULD BE THE BETTER COURSE.
I WOULD FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE.
UH, THIS AREA NEEDS INVESTMENT, BUT THIS AREA ALSO NEEDS TO BE PROTECTED.
WE DON'T WANNA SEE OUT OF SCALE DEVELOPMENT.
WE DON'T WANNA SEE LARGE DEVELOPMENT.
WE DON'T WANT TO SEE, UH, ROOFTOP USES.
WE DON'T WANT TO SEE, YOU KNOW, OUTDOOR ENTERTAINMENT AND THE, AND THE AILMENTS THAT HAVE AFFECTED OTHER, OTHER AREAS.
BUT I DON'T WANT US TO GET IN, IN, IN THE WAY OF PROGRESS.
I THINK WHAT YOU'RE PROPOSING SOUNDS LIKE PERHAPS, UH, ACCEPTING, YOU KNOW, THIS AREA WEST OF MICHIGAN COURT, UM, BETWEEN MICHIGAN COURT AND LENNOX AVENUE, UH, SO THAT, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S BEEN PLANNED CAN MOVE FORWARD, BUT THE POLICY THAT'S BEING PUT FORWARD BY THE NEIGHBORHOOD COULD ALSO MOVE FORWARD.
AND IF THE PLANNING BOARD FEELS THAT THAT SHOULD BE INCLUDED, THE PLANNING BOARD COULD ALWAYS, UM, YOU KNOW, RECOMMEND THAT.
UH, BUT I STRONGLY FEEL, YOU KNOW, THAT OUR POLICIES SHOULDN'T GET IN THE WAY OF, OF A PROJECT THAT'S ALREADY BEEN APPROVED.
AND THAT'S A SITUATION THAT WE'RE ENCOUNTERING RIGHT NOW.
COMMISSIONER SUAREZ, THANK YOU, CHAIRMAN.
UM, IF, IF YOU MAY, UM, WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE TO RECOGNIZE, UM, MR. GALBIT AND SCOTT AND BRING TO THE PODIUM? AND I, I, I WANT TO KNOW WHERE THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD AS FAR AS WHERE, WHERE EXACTLY IS THE ISSUE? UM, BECAUSE I CAN CERTAINLY UNDERSTAND THAT WE WANT TO IMPROVE THE NEIGHBORHOOD, AND I USED TO LIVE ON FOURTH FOR A DECADE, AND IT CERTAINLY SEEMS, YOU KNOW, WITH LIKE TAP TAP CLOSING DOWN AND THERE'S A COUPLE GAS STATIONS.
I MEAN, IT'S, IT'S CERTAINLY UNDERUTILIZED.
UM, AND LOOK, I'LL, YOU KNOW, WHEN I HEAR OF A HOTEL, I DON'T NECESSARILY WANNA SEE ANOTHER HOTEL.
AND WHAT I, WHAT I, I KNOW IT'S KIND OF ON THE FLY, MR. GALBIT, BUT WHAT I'D BE ASKING IS SIMILAR TO WHAT I'M DOING ON WASHINGTON AVENUE OR WHAT I'M PROPOSING, AND YOU MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE HEARD ABOUT THIS, BUT WHAT WOULD IT TAKE FOR YOU TO POSSIBLY MAKE A RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT AND WHERE WE WOULD, WHERE WE WOULD POSSIBLY GIVE YOU MORE FAR LEMME FINISH IT.
POSSIBLY, POSSIBLY A BETTER HEIGHT.
UM, WHERE, AND AS LONG AS THERE WAS NO PARKING, WHERE THERE WOULD BE NO CARS ASSOCIATED WITH IT, IT WOULD BE RESIDENTIAL, PERHAPS.
THERE MIGHT BE A CAP ON THE BROOM SIZE.
UM, AND IT WOULD BE MOST IMPORTANTLY, NON-TRANSIENT.
AND I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S, IF THAT'S EVEN POSSIBLE.
I MEAN, WE ARE THE LAND USE COMMITTEE, SO I FEEL LIKE WE CAN TALK ABOUT THAT.
AND THE, AND, AND THE OTHER ISSUE, I, I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO UNDERSTAND, AND IF THAT'S NOT A POSSIBILITY, WHAT I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO UNDERSTAND IS WHAT IS THE FEAR BETWEEN THE FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, UM, OF, OF THE USE THAT'S GONNA, THAT'S GONNA HAPPEN.
LIKE, I CAN CERTAINLY UNDERSTAND THAT YOU DON'T WANT YOUR PROPERTY TO BE LEGAL NON-CONFORMING FOR FINANCIAL REASONS.
UM, BUT I, I, I WANT TO JUST BETTER GET A GRASP OF, OF THE ISSUE BECAUSE LOOK, I MEAN, I'LL, I'LL BE HONEST, I HAVEN'T HEARD FROM RUSSELL ABOUT THIS.
NO ONE'S, YOU KNOW, THE ONLY PEOPLE THAT HAVE COME TO ME IS FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION.
THAT'S BE, AND THAT'S BECAUSE THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR YEARS.
THIS IS BEFORE I WAS EVEN ELECTED THAT I'VE KIND OF VERY LIGHTLY, UM, RESEARCHED THIS SUBJECT.
SO, UM, I'D LIKE TO FIRST START OFF WITH MR. GALVET.
WOULD THERE BE ANY CONSIDERATION TO ABANDON A HOTEL PROJECT IF WE WERE, IF WE AS A CITY, UH, COMMISSION WERE TO GIVE YOU PERHAPS
[02:40:01]
AN INCREASE, UH, INCENTIVE FOR NON-TRANSIENT USE? LET ME, LET ME ADDRESS THAT.UH, I ACTUALLY THINK THAT'S A VERY SMART THING ON A COMMISSION'S PART.
AND I THINK IT'S VERY SMART FOR MIAMI BEACH TO REALLY BE THINKING ABOUT IT, BECAUSE WE HAVE A REAL AFFORDABILITY ISSUE HERE THAT WAS ALLUDED TO BY, UH, THE OUTSTANDING CHAIR OF THIS COMMITTEE.
AND, AND NOT ONLY THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, TRAFFIC IS ALSO AFFECTED IN DIFFERENT WAYS AS WELL, BY DIFFERENT USES.
UM, SO I, I GIVE YOU A LOT OF CREDIT FOR THINKING OUT OF THE BOX, AND I ACTUALLY THINK IT'S SMART.
UH, WHAT I WOULD SAY TO YOU IS LIKE THIS, I FOLLOWED MY POLICY IN LIFE, IS THAT WHEN I TRY TO DO SOMETHING OF QUALITY AND SOMETHING OF IMPORTANCE, I STICK TO THAT PLAN, ESPECIALLY WHEN I'VE SPENT A MILLION DOLLARS DOING THAT PLAN.
OKAY? UM, THERE'S NO DOUBT THAT NEXT TO ME IS A SEVEN STORY PUBLIX WITH A PUBLIC PARKING GARAGE RIGHT NEXT TO ME, OKAY? WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WOULDN'T WANT MY BUILDING IN FRONT OF THAT, OR IN FRONT OF THE TARGET THAT'S BEHIND ME.
THE NEIGHBORHOOD EMBRACED MY PROJECT.
THE NEIGHBORHOOD WANTS THIS, USE, WANTS THIS PROJECT, AND I AM PROVIDING A BEAUTIFUL ART DECO PRESERVATION PROJECT WITH TWO OF THE ORIGINAL BUILDINGS ON THE PROPERTY, TWO OUTTA THREE ON THE PROPERTY.
EVERYBODY'S EMBRACED THIS PROJECT.
WHAT NO ONE UNDERSTANDS AND NO ONE'S GETTING TO IS THAT ANY TYPE OF AN OVERLAY THAT AFFECTS THIS PROPERTY IS GONNA MAKE IT UNFINANCEABLE.
THIS IS NOT A PROJECT OF, THIS IS A PROJECT OF LOVE.
I'M SORRY, MR. THIS IS A PROJECT OF LOVE.
THERE'S NO, THIS IS NOT TO MAKE MONEY THAT THE, THE ANSWER IS, IS THAT IT'S LIKE I DID THE SANCTUARY.
THERE'S NO REAL MONEY IN ANY OF THESE PROJECTS.
IT'S JUST, I LOVE THE INDUSTRY.
I LOVE CRUISING, I LOVE HOTELS, AND I LOVE BEAUTIFUL BOUTIQUE PROJECTS, AND I LOVE HISTORIC PRESERVATION, RIGHT? MR. I WOULD NOT CHANGE.
BUT WHAT I'M SAYING IS, YOU KNOW, LOOK, I I UNDER YOU MAY LOVE HOTELS.
I DON'T, RIGHT? NOT LIKE, I THINK WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE AT THE POINT NOW WHERE WE HAVE A LOT OF HOTEL ROOMS, UM, IN THE CITY, LIKE FIVE OR 6,000 COMING ONLINE.
YOU KNOW WHAT, YOU KNOW, WHAT COULD WE DO TO INCENTIVIZE AND MAKE IT SO PALPABLE FOR YOU? I, I THINK HEIGHT AND DENSITY ARE IMPORTANT THINGS, AND I THINK YOU SHOULD GIVE THEM ACROSS THE CITY, JUST LIKE LIVE LOCAL DID.
WE HAVE TO MAKE AFFORDABILITY, BUT FOR THIS PARTICULAR PROJECT, BUT THIS IS A HISTORIC DISTRICT.
THIS IS A, I I I, I AGREE WITH YOU.
WE NEED TO PROTECT OUR HISTORIC DISTRICTS.
THIS AREA OF OUR CITY IS UNDER THREAT BY THE STATE OF FLORIDA TO ALLOW FOR DEMOLITION OF HISTORIC ASSETS AND FOR PEOPLE TO BE ABLE TO, TO REBUILD WITH LITTLE REGULATION FROM OUR HISTORIC PRESERVATION BOARD.
AND THIS IS A PROJECT THAT'S BEEN VETTED THROUGH OUR HISTORIC PRESERVATION BOARD, AND IT'S BEEN APPROVED BY OUR HISTORIC PRESERVATION BOARD.
IF YOU PASS, PLEASE, MR. GAL, SORRY.
THERE WILL BE ORDER IN THIS MEETING.
UH, I SUPPORT THE IDEA OF US TRANSITIONING TO NON-TRANSIENT USES, BUT WE NEED TO PROTECT THE CHARACTER OF OUR NEIGHBORHOODS.
AND THAT IS THE INTENT OF THIS, OF THIS OVERLAY.
THE INTENT OF THIS, OF THIS OVERLAY IS TO SEE PROGRESS, BUT ALSO IS TO PROTECT THE, THE NEIGHBORHOOD FROM OUT OF CHARACTER HEIGHT, FROM OUT, OUT OF CHARACTER DENSITY.
FROM OUT OF CHARACTER USES AS, AS WELL.
AND I THINK THAT THIS IS WHERE WE NEED TO FIND THE MIDDLE GROUND AND THE BALANCE.
YOU KNOW, WE COULD GO ONE ROUTE THAT MY COLLEAGUE IS PROPOSING OF, YOU KNOW, INCENTIVIZING THE ELIMINATION OF HOTEL USES BY ADDING, UM, HEIGHT AND DENSITY, BUT THAT GOES AGAINST THE VISION OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD.
OR WE CAN TRY TO FIND A MIDDLE GROUND WHERE WE ALLOW SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN VETTED THROUGH OUR HISTORIC PRESERVATION BOARD THAT THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION BACKED UNANIMOUSLY TO MOVE FORWARD.
AND WE CAN STILL LET THE REST OF THIS OVERLAY MOVE FORWARD.
THAT STILL PROTECTS THE REST OF SIXTH STREET.
MO, YOU KNOW, I THINK WHEN YOU HAVE HISTORIC PRESERVATION BOARD OR A PLANNING BOARD THAT HAS GIVEN APPROVAL, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE DOING UNDER A VERY TIGHT GUARDRAIL WHERE THAT'S THE ONLY OPTION THEY CAN, THEY, THEY CAN, UM, YOU KNOW, HAVE PURVIEW OVER.
UM, BUT WHAT I'M SAYING IS, LOOK,
[02:45:01]
IN MY BEACH AS THE CHAIRMAN CAREFULLY PUT IN THE BEGINNING, AND I DON'T NECESSARILY WANNA RULE OUT WHERE WE CAN COME TO A MIDDLE GROUND BETWEEN FLAMINGO PARK AND THE PROPERTY OWNER TO MAKE SOMETHING THAT IS A LOT MORE PALPABLE.UM, AND PERHAPS HE DOESN'T, THE PROPERTY DOESN'T NEED TO BE PART OF THE OVERLAY.
YOU KNOW, THE BIG REASON I GOT INTO POLITICS WAS BECAUSE OF THREE, UH, BUILDINGS IN A HISTORIC DISTRICT THROUGH A, A LOOPHOLE BECAME HOTELS.
AND I CAN GUARANTEE YOU THAT EVERYONE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD DID NOT WANT THAT IN, IN, IN ORDER TO PRESERVE THOSE BUILDINGS BECAUSE THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE HAVING TO WAKE UP NEXT TO, UH, A, A PARTY SCENE AND TRASH ON THE FLOOR AND TRANSIENTS, WHO THEY HAVE NO IDEA WHO LIVE IN THEIR, IN THEIR QUIET LITTLE NEIGHBORHOOD, THEY DIDN'T WANT THAT.
AND SO, I, I JUST, I WANNA SEE IF THERE IS SOME SORT OF MIDDLE GROUND WHERE, WELL, LET ME ASK YOU, SCOTT, THROUGH THE CHAIR.
YOU KNOW, WE, I UNDERSTAND YOU GUYS HAVE ALREADY APPROVED THIS PROJECT.
I UNDERSTAND THE HISTORIC PRESERVATIONS HAS ALREADY SEEN IT.
I ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT RUSSELL HAS SPENT UPWARDS OF A MILLION DOLLARS IN, IN DESIGN FEES.
UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS THE, WHAT DO YOU THINK WOULD BE THE APPETITE FOR FLAMINGO PARK WHERE THERE IT WOULD, THE USE WOULD BE TRANS, UH, WOULD BE, WOULD BE TRANSLATED TO RESIDENTIAL, GIVEN THE FACT THAT THERE'D BE LIKE A VERY MINIMUM PARKING REQUIREMENT, MAYBE 10 OR 20%, UM, ROOM SIZE.
AND, YOU KNOW, THE CAVEAT WOULD BE, UH, A LITTLE BIT HIGHER.
I, I WOULDN'T SAY HIGHER THAN THE PUBLIC'S OR THE TARGET.
UM, AND, AND, AND, AND INCENTIVIZING THAT SORT OF DEVELOPMENT, AND I WOULD JUST, THROUGH THE CHAIR, I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THAT.
UM, IN TERMS OF INCENTIVIZING MARKET RATE DEVELOPMENT, WE'VE, UM, ALWAYS BEEN, IT'S ALWAYS BEEN ON OUR PLATE.
UM, IN OUR DISCUSSIONS WITH STAFF, WE, WE, UM, YOU KNOW, AS FAR AS THE, WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE 28 FEET ON, ON FIFTH STREET, UH, I'M SORRY, FRONTING SIXTH, WE SAID, WELL, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE WOULD, AN EXCEPTION TO THAT WOULD BE FOR MARKET RATE HOUSING.
UM, I'M NOT SAYING TO GO UP VERY HIGH, BUT MAYBE TO GO UP TO WHERE IT'S CURRENTLY ALLOWED NOW, WHICH, WHAT WAS IT, 50 OR I FIGURED IT'S 50 75.
EVEN THOUGH WE'RE ASKING TO, FOR IT TO COME DOWN, THERE WOULD BE THAT EXCEPTION FOR MARKET RATE HOUSING, WHICH SOMEBODY COULD DO THERE NOW ANYWAY.
UM, SO WE, WE, WE DO WANNA INCENTIVIZE MARKET RATE HOUSING.
UM, HOWEVER, ON, ON THAT PARTICULAR PRO, UM, ON THE, ON HIS, UM, PLOT ON LENNOX AVENUE, UM, I WOULDN'T WANNA SEE THAT GO ANY HIGHER THAN IT IS NOW.
I THINK THAT'S SEVEN OR EIGHT STORIES.
UM, BUT, BUT IN TERMS OF INCENTIVIZING MARKET RATE HOUSING, WE'RE OPEN TO A LOT OF, UM, UH, PRETTY MUCH ANYTHING THAT DOES THAT, UM, IN, IN OUR DISCUSSIONS WITH, UH, TRYING TO BRING THIS TO A CONCLUSION.
WELL LOOK, UH, LET, LET, LET, CURRENTLY WHAT'S THE CURRENT HEIGHT OF THAT'S APPROVED FOR THAT SITE? THE, THE ADJACENT PROPERTY IS 75 FEET, THE ADJACENT PROPERTY.
BUT THE, UH, BUT THE PROPERTY THAT YOU OWN ON LENNOX AND SIX, THE, THE APPROVAL IS FOR THE SAME HEIGHT, 75 FEET.
WELL, AND, AND JUST TO CHECK THROUGH THE CHAIR, JUST TO CHECK THE TEMPERATURE, WOULD YOU BE OPEN A HUNDRED FEET? BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING TO WASHINGTON AVENUE WHERE, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GIVING A A A A 25 FOOT INCENTIVE FOR ZERO PARKING.
AND ANOTHER THING WE DISCUSSED FOR A FULL BLOCK DEVELOPMENT FROM FIFTH STREET TO SIXTH STREET, WE WOULD BE OKAY WITH HIGHER, HIGHER HEIGHT LIMITS, AS LONG AS IT'S PUSHED CLOSER TO FIFTH STREET AND, AND IT'S STEPPING DOWN WHEN IT GETS TO SIXTH STREET.
THAT PART AGGREGATION, BUT NOT ON A, NOT ON LIKE, SAY A SINGLE LOT.
IF, IF, IF, IF, IF I MAY, BECAUSE YOU'RE ONTO SOMETHING GOOD.
COMMISSIONER SWAN, YOU'RE ONTO TRANSITIONING A USE THAT WE WANT TO BE OUT OF THE GENERAL BUSINESS OF DEVELOPING MORE OF MM-HMM.
WILL IT ALLOW US TO STILL MOVE FORWARD FROM, WITH THE GOOD POLICIES THAT THE LINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION HAS PRESENTED TO, TO US,
[02:50:01]
WHILE COMMISSIONER SUAREZ CAN STILL WORK ON INCENTIVES TOGETHER WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION WHERE, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, WHERE, WHERE SCOTT IS NOT PUT HERE, WHERE, YOU KNOW, HE HASN'T PROBABLY SPOKEN WITH THE REST OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION.UM, BUT TO DEVELOP THOSE INCENTIVES, HE GONNA CO-SPONSOR WITH ME, UM, TO DEVELOP THOSE INCENTIVES THAT COULD POTENTIALLY WORK, THAT COULD MAKE SENSE.
'CAUSE I DON'T KNOW, I DON'T KNOW IF, YOU KNOW, GOING FROM 75 FEET TO A HUNDRED FEET MAKES SENSE.
I DON'T, I DON'T FOR RESIDENTIAL, I DON'T KNOW IF THE NUMBERS, UH, WORK IN THAT SITUATION.
I DON'T KNOW IF THE NEIGHBORS WOULD FAVOR THAT.
I KNOW THE NEIGHBORS WANT TO PRESERVE THE CHARACTER OF THE, OF THE AREA.
I KNOW THE NEIGHBORS SUPPORTED THIS PROJECT.
I KNOW THAT THE BOARD THAT REVIEWED THIS PROJECT APPROVED THIS PROJECT.
BUT I DON'T KNOW IF THE RESIDENTS WHO WE REPRESENT FAVOR SOMETHING THAT COULD BE OUTSIDE OF THE HISTORIC CHARACTER THAT HAS BEEN PROPOSED HERE.
IF I MAY, YOU'RE TOTALLY RIGHT.
BUT FROM WHAT I, FROM WHAT I'VE HAD PERSONAL EXPERIENCE IN, IN, IN CANVASSING FOR A YEAR AND LIVING IN A NEIGHBORHOOD THAT HAD THE SAME EXACT PROBLEM, UM, IF YOU'RE TELLING ME THAT WHERE I LIVE, I HAVE TO EITHER LIVE NEXT TO A HOTEL OR A RESIDENTIAL BUILDING WITH JUST TWO EXTRA FLOORS.
AND I, I MEAN, I THINK THAT'S AN EASY, I THINK THAT'S AN EASY, UH, ANSWER, UH, TO, TO PULL.
BUT I MEAN, I'LL LET THE FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION THAT, AND I, I, I'M SURE RUSSELL YOU THROUGH THE CHAIR, YOU HAVE A COMMENT, MR. CHAIR, CAN I SAY A COMMENT? YES.
I, I GOTTA TELL YOU, I'M SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS CONVERSATION.
IT REALLY, IT REALLY HAS TURNED ME ON AND I DIDN'T REALLY KNOW WHERE IT WAS GONNA GO, HONESTLY.
UH, I I THINK THAT, UH, WHAT MIGHT WORK HERE, AND I I REALLY THINK IT MIGHT WORK, IS TO POSTPONE THIS MEETING FOR ONE MONTH AND ALLOW COMMISSIONER SUAREZ TO MEET WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION AND US AND REALLY TALK WHAT THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION WOULD LIKE TO SEE HAPPEN.
I'M REALLY, THIS IS, I DID NOT BELIEVE I'M EVEN SAYING THIS, BUT I, I, I JUST LOVE A COMMISSION THAT'S LISTENING AND TRYING TO FIGURE OUT A WAY TO MAKE OUR COMMUNITY BETTER.
AND THAT'S WHAT EACH OF YOU ARE DOING.
AND, AND, UH, I DON'T KNOW WHERE IT GOES.
I PROMISE YOU WE COULD BE BACK HERE NEXT MONTH IN THE SAME PLACE, BUT I THINK IT MIGHT BE WORTH THE, THE SHOT BECAUSE I THINK THINKING OUT OF THE BOX THANK YOU, IS BENEFICIAL TO EVERYONE.
LET ME RECOGNIZE COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ.
COMMISSIONER DO DOMINGUEZ, YOU'RE ONE OF THE SPONSORS OF, OF THIS ITEM.
AND WE NEED YOU TO, UH, GIVE US, UH, SOME FEEDBACK FOR THE LAST YEAR.
I'VE TRIED TO REACH OUT TO BOTH PARTIES, AND IT'S BASICALLY COMING DOWN TO FLAMINGO PARK WANTS TO INCLUDE THEM IN THE OVERLAY.
RUSSELL DOES NOT WANNA BE INCLUDED IN THE OVERLAY.
SO MY THOUGHT IS TO MOVE THIS TO THE FULL COMMISSION, UH, AS REQUESTED BY THE FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION.
SO THEN THE TWO PARTIES CAN GO TO THE PLANNING BOARD AND, UH, FIGURE ANY CONCESSIONS OUT THERE.
BUT, UM, I'D LIKE TO MOVE THE ITEM AS IS.
THERE'S, THERE'S, THERE'S, IS THAT A MOTION? YES.
THERE'S A MOTION, MR. CHAIR? YES.
UM, FOR CLARITY PURPOSES, UM, JUST SO THAT WE KNOW WHAT THE MOTION IS, IT'S TO MOVE THE, THE VERSION OF THE ORDINANCE WITH THE FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, UM, RECOMMENDATIONS ON BUILDING HEIGHT EXCEPTIONS AND TRANSIENT USES TO THE CITY COMMISSION FOR REFERRAL TO THE PLANNING BOARD EXCLUSIVE OF MY PROPERTY.
PLEASE, IF YOU'RE NOT SPEAKING AT THE MOMENT, PLEASE BE SEATED.
SO, COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, YOU HAVE A MOTION ON THE TABLE.
I WOULD LIKE TO SECOND YOUR MOTION, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO OFFER THE AMENDMENT THAT AT THE MOMENT WE EXCLUDE, UH, THIS PARCEL FROM THERE SO THAT WE CAN ALLOW COMMISSIONER SUAREZ TIME TO BE ABLE TO NEGOTIATE WHATEVER INCENTIVE, BECAUSE I THINK ULTIMATELY THE FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION ULTIMATELY DOESN'T WANT TO SEE HOTEL USES.
THAT'S THE PURPOSE OF THIS, OF THIS OVERLAY.
AND SO, AND SO, TO THE EXTENT THAT WE WANT TO ADVANCE THIS POLICY, BECAUSE IT'S, IT'S GOOD POLICY, I'M ABLE TO DO THAT, UH, PROVIDED THAT WE MAKE AN AMENDMENT THAT WE, UH, EXCLUDE THIS PARCEL JUST WEST OF MICHIGAN AVENUE, IF YOU WOULD ACCEPT THAT AMENDMENT.
BUT THAT'S NOT WHAT YOUR, YOUR MICROPHONE IS NOT ON, THAT'S NOT WHAT FLAMINGO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION WANTS.
SO, SO THERE'S, THERE'S, THERE'S A MOTION ON THE TABLE TO CO UH,
[02:55:01]
LET, LET ME, LET ME JUST SEE, OKAY.THERE'S A MOTION ON, ON THE TABLE TO REFER THIS BACK TO THE CITY COMMISSION TO BE REFERRED TO THE PLANNING BOARD AS PRESENTED.
IS THERE A SECOND ON THAT MOTION? I SPEAK LIKE, IS IT ON THE MOTION? NO, NO.
I MEAN, IT'S, IT'S ON THIS ITEM.
IS THERE, IS THERE A SECOND ON THAT MOTION? OKAY.
THAT MOTION IS LAID ON THE TABLE AT, AT, AT THE MOMENT.
COMMISSIONER SUAREZ, YOU'RE RECOGNIZED.
UH, I MEAN, I, I, I JUST HEARD THAT RUSSELL, THE PROPERTY OWNER WANTS
I, UM, I'M VERY SENSITIVE TO THE FACT THAT, UH, MY COLLEAGUE, COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ HAS WORKED ON THIS FOR A YEAR.
BUT, AND, AND BY THE WAY, I'M NOT TRYING TO DERAIL THIS PROJECT.
I'M JUST TRYING TO COME UP WITH A SOLUTION THAT BOTH PARTIES SEEM TO BE INTERESTED IN AND WOULD POSSIBLY BOTH BENEFIT FROM, AND IT'S A WIN-WIN.
I DON'T SEE THE PROBLEM IN JUST GIVING, UH, ANOTHER 30 DAYS TO SEE WHAT KIND OF SOLUTION THEY COME UP WITH AND, AND MOVE FORWARD WITH.
IS THAT A MOTION TO, AND THAT'S, YEAH, THAT'S A MOTION TO DEFER FOR, FOR UNTIL THE NEXT MEETING.
SO, SO IS THAT A MOTION TO DEFER TO THE SEPTEMBER MEETING? CORRECT.
THERE'S A MOTION TO CONTINUE TO THE SEPTEMBER MEETING.
UH, DO, ARE WE ALL IN FAVOR OF THAT, MR. CHAIR? CAN I, I JUST GIVE ONE QUICK CALL IS DEFERRED.
UM, I KNOW THAT ADMINISTRATION IS RECOMMENDING NOT EXCLUDING HOTELS.
AND, UH, WHERE I'M AT ON THE COMMISSION IS IF WE'RE GOING TO EXCLUDE THIS PROPERTY, BECAUSE IT'S ALREADY GOTTEN ITS APPROVAL, I THINK THERE WOULD BE APPETITE FROM OUR BODY TO EXCLUDE HOTELS, UH, ON THE REMAINDER OF THE OVERLAY, EXCLUDING NOT TO HAVE HOTEL USAGES, UH, SO, YOU KNOW, NOT GOING FULLY WITH THE ADMINISTRATION'S RECOMMENDATION.
UM, SO THIS OVERLAY WOULD NOT INCLUDE THE, UH, UM, THE POSSIBILITY FOR FURTHER HOTELS EXCLUDING THE ONE THAT'S ALREADY GOTTEN THIS LAND USE APPROVALS.
I, I, I HAVE THE SENSE THAT SOME OF MY COLLEAGUES WILL FEEL THE SAME, BUT AS WE'RE JUST KIND OF GOING THROUGH THIS PROCESS, UH, JUST WANTED TO LAY THAT OUT THERE.
ANY OTHER DISCUSSION ON THIS ITEM? SO I MADE A MOTION, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE WAS A SECOND.
YEAH, I THINK BY ACCLAMATION I HAVE A NO FOR ON DEFERRAL? NO.
'CAUSE I WANTED TO GO TO THE FULL COMMISSION.
SO, SO WE CAN SHOW THAT ADOPTED TWO, ONE.
UH, AND, AND I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE, SCOTT, YOU'RE OKAY WITH CONTINUING THIS ITEM FOR, TO THE NEXT MEETING? MM-HMM,
SO, SO, UH, SO, SO SEEING THAT, UH, WE'LL CONTINUE THIS TO THE SEPTEMBER MEETING AND LET'S SHOW THAT TO TWO ONE.
REALLY GREAT, GREAT COMMISSION.
[7. EXPEDITE THE OPENING OF THE BAYWALK AND MOVE THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE BAYWALK UP ON THE G.O. BOND PRIORITIZATION LIST; AND PRESENT THE BAYWALK PLAN TO THE LUSC COMMITTEE.]
THAT, LET'S GO TO MR. MOONEY.OKAY, MR. CHAIR, ITEM NUMBER SEVEN IS EXPEDITE THE OPENING OF THE BAY WALK AND MOVE THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE BAY.
WALK UP ON THE GEO BOND PRIORITIZATION LIST AND PRESENT THE BAY WALK PLAN TO THE LUSC COMMITTEE.
COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, THIS IS YOUR ITEM.
UM, SO DAVID GOMEZ AND I HAVE BEEN WORKING ON THIS FOR QUITE SOME TIME.
AND, UH, TRYING TO KEEP THE PROJECTS MOVING AND, UH, TIMELINES AND, UH, I WANNA HEAR WHAT'S HAPPENING BEHIND THE MADON
GOOD AFTERNOON, VICE MAYOR, UH, MR. CHAIRMAN, COMMISSIONERS, UH, DAVID GOMEZ, INTERIM DIRECTOR FOR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS.
WE DO ACTUALLY HAVE GOOD NEWS, UH, ON, ASIDE FROM A SLIGHT WEATHER DELAY IN LOADING SOME OF THE PILES.
THEY ARE SCHEDULED TO BE ON SITE BEHIND THE MADON BEFORE THE END OF THE WEEK AND INSTALLING PILES, SO THE COM, THE CONSTRUCTION WILL COMMENCE THIS WEEK.
WE'LL KEEP HOW'S, HOW ARE THINGS GOING WITH THE OTHER PROJECT? SOUTH BAY CLUB? UM, SOUTH BAY, WE HAVE, UH, WE HAVE ABOUT 75% COMPLETION ON THE BASIS OF DESIGN REPORT FOR THE SOUTH BAY CLUB.
WE'VE MET WITH BAY GARDEN MANOR AND BAYVIEW TERRACE.
WE WERE WAITING FOR SOME RESPONSE FROM THEM, AND WE HAVE ACTUALLY BEGUN SCHEDULING A SECOND ROUND OF MEETINGS WITH THEM.
THAT'LL PROBABLY TAKE PLACE IN AUGUST BECAUSE EVERYONE'S AWAY FROM FOR THE SUMMER.
UM, SO WE ANTICIPATE THAT IN THE NEXT MONTH OR SO, WE'LL HAVE MORE ADVANCEMENT THERE.
UM, EVERYTHING HAS BEEN POSITIVE SO FAR.
THEY HAVEN'T OBJECTED IN, IN ANY SIGNIFICANT WAY.
AND, AND WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO WORK THROUGH MOST OF THEIR CONCERNS.
AND THE BUILDING, THAT'S THE BUILDING THAT'S BEHIND, UM, THAT'S NEXT TO LINCOLN ROAD, THAT IS PART OF THE WEST AVENUE PROJECT, AND WE DO HAVE SOME DISCUSSIONS GOING ON WITH THE 1450 LINCOLN ROAD BUILDING.
UH, THEY'VE ASKED US TO MAKE SOME CHANGES, AND THE DESIGN BUILDER'S LOOKING AT
[03:00:01]
WHAT IMPACTS, IF ANY, THAT'LL HAVE ON THE DURHAM PERMIT, AND THEY SHOULD BE GETTING BACK TO US WITHIN THE NEXT 30 DAYS.AND THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ.
UM, AND THIS WILL BE MOVED TO SEPTEMBER FOR ANOTHER UPDATE? YES, PLEASE.
MR. MOONEY, UH, GOING BACK TO THE PREVIOUS ITEM THAT WE HEARD ON THE SIXTH STREET OVERLAY, COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ IS THE SPONSOR OF THAT ITEM.
I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THE ITEM ONLY COMES BACK ONCE SHE IS COMFORTABLE, UH, WITH, WITH WHAT IS NEGOTIATED BY THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION.
IS SHE, SHE IS THE LEAD ON, ON THIS ITEM.
COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ HAS BEEN WORKING ON THIS FOR A LONG TIME.
UH, AND I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, THAT, THAT IS RESPECTED AS THIS ITEM IS IMPROVED AND THINGS ARE, ARE, YOU KNOW, SOLVED, UM, ESPECIALLY WITH THE TRANSIENT USES.
SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE IT COMES BACK ONCE COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ, UH, FEELS COMFORTABLE, UH, THAT IT'S READY TO, UH, COME BACK.
[9. ORDINANCE TO MODIFY THE HEIGHT OF ALLOWABLE FENCING AND SHRUBBERY OF OCEANFRONT PROPERTIES FACING THE BEACHWALK TO IMPROVE SIGHTLINES FOR PEDESTRIANS (DUAL REFERRAL TO PLANNING BOARD).]
INTRODUCE ITEM NUMBER NINE.ITEM NUMBER NINE IS, UM, AN ORDINANCE TO MODIFY THE HEIGHT OF ALLOWABLE FENCING AND SHRUBBERY OF OCEAN FRONT PROPERTIES FACING THE BEACH WALK TO IMPROVE SITE LINES FOR PEDESTRIANS.
THIS WAS A DUAL REFERRAL TO THE PLANNING BOARD.
UM, MR. MOONEY, THIS IS COMMISSIONER BOTS ITEM UH, COM.
UH, I THINK DAVID MARTINEZ IS GOING TO BE PRESENTING ON THIS ITEM.
UH, PLEASE, UH, TELL US THE, UH, SPONSOR'S INTENT.
UH, GOOD AFTERNOON, MR. CHAIR.
DAVID MARTINEZ, INTERIM ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER.
UH, THE CONCERN HERE THAT THE SPONSOR HAD WAS WE, WE HAD SOME WALKTHROUGHS OF THE BEACH WALK SOME TIME AGO, AND WHAT'S WE ARE EXPERIENCING IS, UH, MANY OF THE CONNECTING STREETS, UH, AND PATH THAT CONNECT TO THE BEACH, WALK FROM WEST TO EAST.
AS YOU APPROACH THE BEACH WALK, THERE'S A LOT OF LANDSCAPING MATERIAL AND OTHER OBJECTS SUCH AS FENCES THAT ARE BASICALLY CREATING, UH, OR BLOCKING THE SI THE VISIBILITY AND SIDE TRIANGLES.
UH, YES, I WAS SAYING, UH, THE SPONSOR IS CONCERNED WITH VISIBILITY AND SAFETY AS, UH, SOME OF THE SIDE STREETS CONNECT TO THE BEACH WALK AT THOSE LOCATIONS.
SO THIS IS THE, AN ATTEMPT AT TRYING TO FIND, UH, IF THERE'S A WAY TO MODIFY ANY OF THE LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS TO HELP IN ENFORCING, UM, THOSE VISIBILITY TRIANGLES AND IMPROVING SAFETY AT CONNECTIONS AT BEACH WALK.
DO YOU HAVE AN OFFICIAL RECOMMENDATION? COULD I ADDRESS THAT? YES.
UM, SO WE'VE SUMMARIZED WHAT THE REGULATIONS ARE IN THE CURRENT CODE.
WHAT WE'VE RECOMMENDED IS THAT WE GET SOME DIRECTION FROM THE SPONSOR WITH REGARD TO AN ACTUAL CODE AMENDMENT.
IT COULD BE THAT WE MAY BE ABLE TO AMEND A SECTION OF THE CITY CODE IN ORDER TO TRY TO MAKE THIS RETROACTIVE, BECAUSE TYPICALLY IF YOU AMEND THE LDRS, IT'S ONLY A PROSPECTIVE.
SO I THINK THIS IS SOMETHING WHERE WE SHOULD PROBABLY SIT DOWN WITH A SPONSOR BEFORE THE NEXT MEETING, UM, AND COME UP WITH A STRATEGY THAT'S ACCEPTABLE TO SPONSOR.
SO LET'S CONTINUE THIS ITEM THEN TO THE SEPTEMBER, UM, MEETING.
CAN YOU SHOW THAT BY ACCLIMATION? YEP.
SO, UH, LET'S INTRODUCE ITEM NUMBER 11.
[11. DISCUSSION REGARDING FACILITATING POP-UPS FOR LOCAL CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS AND LOCAL START-UPS IN VACANT RETAIL COMMERCIAL SPACES.]
OKAY.ITEM NUMBER 11 IS THE DISCUSSION REGARDING FACILITATING POPUPS FOR LOCAL CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS AND LOCAL STARTUPS IN VACANT RETAIL COMMERCIAL SPACES.
THIS IS AN ITEM I'VE SPONSORED, UH, TOGETHER WITH COMMISSIONER BOND, WHO JOINS ME AS A CO-SPONSOR, AIMING TO REVITALIZE AT LEAST ON TEMPORARY BASIS UNDERUTILIZED PROPERTIES, UH, SUPPORT, UH, ARTISTS, UH, AND ENRICH OUR CULTURAL LANDSCAPE IN IN OUR CITY.
UH, MY HOPE WAS THAT BY PARTNERING, UH, WITH, UH, WITH PROPERTY OWNERS TO FACILITATE POPUPS, WE COULD TRY TO TRANSFORM SOME OF THESE EMPTY STOREFRONTS THAT SOMETIMES PROLIFERATE THROUGH SOME OF OUR MAIN CORRIDORS, TURN THEM INTO MORE DYNAMIC HUBS OF, OF ACTIVITY.
YOU KNOW, THESE POPUPS, YOU KNOW, THEY DRIVE, UH, FOOT TRAFFIC, THEY BRING EXCITEMENT, UH, ESPECIALLY, UM, WHEN IT HAPPENS DURING TIMES, LIKE DURING ART WEEK AND, AND, AND THAT TYPE OF STUFF.
AND SO I WANNA RECOGNIZE LIZETTE ANTE, UH, WHO, WHO JOINS US TODAY TO, TO TALK TO US ABOUT THIS CONCEPT I'VE PUT ON THE AGENDA AND THE POTENTIALS, UH, THAT WE HAVE TO DO THIS.
GOOD EVENING, MR. CHAIR AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS
[03:05:01]
ANTE, TISM AND CULTURE.UH, AS A MEMO STATES, WE HAVE, UM, THE CITY HAS, UH, ENTERTAINED A PROGRAM SIMILAR TO THIS CALLED OPEN HOUSE MIAMI BEACH.
IN YOUR MEMO, WE SHARED, UH, WHILE THIS IS A VERY FEEL GOOD TYPE OF PROGRAM, IT DOES COME WITH ITS CHALLENGES AND A SUCCESS OF A PROGRAM LIKE THIS IS DEPENDENT ON THE PROPERTY OWNER ENGAGEMENT.
SO ARTISTS ARE VERY EXCITED AT ANY OPPORTUNITY TO BE ABLE TO HAVE A SPACE TO SHOWCASE THEIR WORK.
SO THAT WAS ALWAYS SOMETHING THAT CAME VERY EASY.
THE DIFFICULTIES IS WITH THE PROPERTY OWNERS, UH, WITH THE OPEN HOUSE MIAMI BEACH PROGRAM.
UH, THE CITY INCENTIVIZED ARTISTS WITH UP TO $2,500 TO ACTIVATE A POP-UP FOR ABOUT 90 DAYS.
HOWEVER, THE PROPERTY OWNERS WERE NOT INCENTIVIZED AT THAT TIME.
UH, THE PROGRAM EVENTUALLY HAD TO BE DISCONTINUED.
YOU KNOW, THEY HAD, THIS IS PRIOR TO MY APPOINTMENT, BUT THEY HAD SIGNED UP ABOUT 70 ARTISTS, HALF OF, MAYBE LESS THAN HALF OF THOSE WERE ACTUALLY, UH, PLACED IN SPACES.
AND SO BEFORE YOU, SO, SO, AND, AND SO LET ME JUST UNDERSTAND, I'M SORRY.
SO WITH OPEN HOUSE MIAMI BEACH MM-HMM.
AND I WOULD IMAGINE CLEARLY $2,500 FOR AN ARTIST IS NOT SUFFICIENT TO GET A, A SPACE OR FILL ONE OF THESE, UH, SPACES TEMPORARILY.
BECAUSE WITH THE POPUP PERMIT, THEY NEED TO HAVE, UM, INSURANCE.
THE INSURANCE IS GONNA BE, IS WAS COMING ABOUT TO BE A THOUSAND DOLLARS PLUS FOR THE ARTIST.
SO WHATEVER WAS LEFT OVER WAS WHAT THEY WOULD USE THEN TO ACTIVATE THE SPACE.
SO THAT'S WHAT WE LEARNED, UH, FROM THE PAST, UH, PROGRAM.
SO DO WE HAVE AN IDEA OF, OR, OR POSSIBILITY TO ENCOURAGE, UM, OR TAKE ADVANTAGE OF ANY FUNDING OR ANY INCENTIVES WE MAY CURRENTLY HAVE AVAILABLE TO PERHAPS IF WE BRING BACK SOMETHING LIKE THIS ON A TEMPORARY BASIS TO PERHAPS MAKE IT MORE SUCCESSFUL THAN LAST TIME? UH, WE CURRENTLY DO NOT HAVE ANY FUNDING THROUGH THE TOURISM AND CULTURE DEPARTMENT.
THERE IS, UM, CURRENTLY THROUGH THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, AND OUR COLLEAGUE FROM ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS HERE TO DISCUSS, UH, POSSIBLY THE USING OF THE COMMERCIAL LEASE SUBSIDY PROGRAM THAT IS INTENDED MORE FOR LONG-TERM LEASE, NOT FOR A POP-UP PERMIT.
AND IT'S SPECIFIC TO THE M-X-C-A-D-C-D DISTRICT.
AND I SEE WE HAVE HEATHER SHAW FROM OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, UH, PRESENT.
ACTUALLY, IT SHOULD BE EVENING.
UM, AS MY COLLEAGUES STATED, HEATHER SHAW, UH, INTERIM DIRECTOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, AS MY COLLEAGUE STATED, UM, WE HAVE FUNDING FOR THE COMMERCIAL LEASE SUBSIDY PROGRAM, WHICH HAS JUST LAUNCHED THIS YEAR.
AND WE'RE STILL, YOU KNOW, PROMOTING THAT.
WE DO HAVE FUNDING FOR THAT, BUT THAT'S A TOTALLY DIFFERENT PROGRAM THAN THE POP-UP.
THE POP-UP IS VERY TEMPORARY IN NATURE.
AND THIS IS SUPPOSED TO, THE CLS OR COMMERCIALLY SUBSIDY IS SUPPOSED TO ATTRACT LONG-TERM TENANTS.
SO THEY HAVE A TENDENCY AND THEY STAY FOR A YEAR.
THIS IS A PROGRAM THAT IS SUPPOSED TO BE OVER THREE YEARS WHERE WE'RE GIVING INCENTIVES.
HOW MUCH INTEREST HAVE WE RECEIVED IN THE COMMERCIAL LEASE SUBSIDY PROGRAM? SO THE PROGRAM HAS BEEN UP AND RUNNING FOR ABOUT THREE MONTHS, AND IT TOOK US SOME TIME AND WE'RE STILL PROMOTING IT.
AND WE HAVE, UM, AT LEAST ONE, UM, APPLICANT SO FAR.
BUT AGAIN, IT TAKES A LOT OF, OF HITTING THE PAYMENT PAVEMENT AND, AND TALKING WITH LANDLORDS, WHICH IS, I THINK THE BIGGER ISSUE THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT FOR EVEN ACTIVATING, UM, THE AREA IS REALLY HAVING A, A, A, A REAL MEANINGFUL AND CONSTRUCTIVE CONVERSATION WITH THE LANDLORDS.
'CAUSE EVEN WITH, WITH, UM, WITH ETTE WAS SAYING ABOUT THE OPEN HOUSE, A LOT OF IT HAD TO DO WITH THE COST OF THE TENANCY.
EVEN THE SHORT TERM THREE MONTH TENANCY.
UM, THE ARTISTS THEMSELVES HAVE HAD DIFFICULTY, YOU KNOW, UM, PAYING THE RENT AND PAYING THE, THE UTILITIES AS WELL AS THE FIT OUT OF THE, THE ACTIVATION TO BRING PEOPLE IN, EVEN DURING, IF WE DO IT DURING ART WEEK OR EVEN SOME TIMES OF THE YEAR WHERE WE HAVE A LOT OF FOOT TRAFFIC.
SO IT, IT REALLY HAS TO BE A, A TRUE CONVERSATION FOR THE POPUPS TO SUCCEED WITH THE LANDLORDS, TO REALLY WORK WITH MAKING THAT HAPPEN AND KIND OF, UH, UH, WORKING ON THE COST OF DOING THAT.
DOES THE, DOES THE ADMINISTRATION HAVE ANY RECOMMENDATION? BECAUSE I DO FEEL THAT WE DO HAVE, UM, AND BY THE WAY, THANK YOU FOR THE UPDATE ON THE COMMERCIAL LEASE SUB SUBSIDY.
UM, I KNOW I, I, I RECALL WHEN WE BROUGHT THIS FORWARD, I WAS A SPONSOR OF THE SITE AND I WORKED WITH OUR INTERIM MM-HMM.
UH, AND I'M GLAD TO SEE THAT IN ITS EARLY STAGES, THERE'S, THERE'S SOME INTEREST.
BECAUSE THE IDEA IS TO TRANSITION, UM, NUISANCE USES INTO, INTO GOOD USES, UH, IN OUR CITY NOW WITHSTANDING THAT
[03:10:01]
A VACANT STOREFRONT CAN AT TIMES BE WORSE THAN A NUISANCE USE, A NUISANCE USE.YOU HAVE SOME ECONOMIC ACTIVITY HAPPENING.
THERE'S NOTHING WORSE THAN THAT ACTIVITY, THAN NO ACTIVITY THAN AN EMPTY STOREFRONT, THAN NO LIGHTS ON.
AND IF WE COULD FIGURE OUT A WAY, ESPECIALLY DURING THOSE TIMES OF THE YEAR WHEN WE HAVE HIGH FOOT TRAFFIC DURING SEASON OR DURING, YOU KNOW, DURING ART WEEK WHEN WE HAVE SO MUCH ACTIVITY TO SUPPORT OUR ART SCENE AND CONTINUE OUR DIRECTION BEING AN ARTS AND CULTURE COMMUNITY, AND BE A PLACE FOR ARTISTS TO BE ABLE TO, TO SUCCEED LOCAL ARTISTS, BE ABLE TO SUCCEED.
WE COULD FIND A MODEL THAT COULD POTENTIALLY WORK.
UM, IF, I DON'T KNOW, LIZETTE AND HEATHER, IF YOU GUYS COULD WORK TOGETHER, UH, IN BRINGING BACK A PROPOSAL, SEEING PERHAPS HOW WE COULD USE, UM, IF WE NEED TO MAKE AN AMENDMENT TO THE COMMERCIAL LEASE SUBSIDY PROGRAM, I'M WILLING TO, TO, TO, TO DO THAT OR SEE IF THERE'S OTHER ALTERNATIVES THAT ARE AVAILABLE OUT THERE TO HELP ADVANCE A PROJECT LIKE THIS.
I ALSO WANNA ADD THAT THERE CURRENTLY IS NO FUNDING TO INCENTIVIZE THE ARTISTS.
SO EVEN IF YOU WERE TO AMEND THAT PROGRAM, WE STILL WILL NEED TO FIND FUNDING TO INCENTIVIZE THE ARTISTS OR NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS.
AND PREVIOUSLY, HOW MANY ARTISTS DID WE HAVE INTERESTED? UH, ABOUT 70.
I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND THAT I'VE DONE THIS IN THE PAST.
I WOULD START FIRST WITH MAYBE EIGHT AND SEE AND KIND OF WORK FROM THERE.
UH, BUT SOMETHING THAT'S SMALL, THAT'S ACHIEVABLE, UH, 70 ARTISTS THAT WAS, UM, AMBITIOUS, PROPOSED BEFORE WAS TOO MUCH FOR THE STATE.
AND WHAT YEAR AND, AND WHAT YEAR WAS THAT PROPOSED? THIS STARTED IN 2020.
SO DURING, I GUESS, UH, DURING THE PANDEMIC.
THIS IS, UH, SOMETHING CREATIVE PLACEMAKING THAT WAS USED, UH, THROUGHOUT THE NATION TO DEAL WITH BLIGHT, UH, FROM COVID.
AND, AND, AND THIS IS SOMETHING I, I THINK, ESPECIALLY IN NORTH BEACH A LOT OF TIMES, UM, YOU KNOW, WHEN WHEN WE THINK ABOUT ARTS, UH, AND, AND CULTURE, AND ESPECIALLY DURING, DURING, YOU KNOW, OUR HIGH SEASON AND DURING AND DURING EXCITING TIMES, LIKE ART WEEK AND ART MA, WE FOCUS SO MUCH ON THE ACTIVITY HAPPENING IN SOUTH BEACH OR IN THE ACTIVITY HAPPENING IN SOME OF OUR LARGER HOTELS.
BUT WE FORGOT ALSO ABOUT NORTH BEACH.
AND WE WANT TO DRIVE SOME OF THIS EXCITEMENT AND, AND, AND SUPPORT THE ARTS SCENE UP IN NORTH BEACH AS WELL.
AND SO I WOULD LOVE FOR US TO, TO SEE HOW WE COULD, YOU KNOW, RESTART THIS PROGRAM IN A MORE MODEST WAY THAN WHAT WAS PROPOSED PREVIOUSLY.
NOT JUST FOCUS ON SOUTH BEACH, BUT FOCUS HOW WE CAN, YOU KNOW, SUPPORT THIS, YOU KNOW, CITYWIDE INCLUDING, UH, IN, IN NORTH BEACH.
HOW MUCH TIME WOULD YOU ALL NEED TO, UM, PUT SOMETHING TO, TO TOGETHER TO BRING BACK, UH, FOR OUR CONSIDERATION? HMM.
ANY THOUGHTS? I, I REALLY THINK THAT WE HAVE TO HAVE SOME MEANINGFUL CONVERSATIONS WITH THE LANDLORDS.
'CAUSE IT'S VERY, VERY, UM, THAT'S, THAT'S, THAT TO ME IS THE LINCHPIN OF, OF THE SUCCESS OR NOT, IS THAT THEY HAVE TO 'CAUSE THE RENT IS, IS, IS WHAT KEEPS THIS FROM BEING A SUCCESSFUL THING.
SO, I MEAN, HONESTLY, SIX MONTHS.
AND HOPEFULLY THEY WILL, YOU KNOW, WE CAN HAVE SOME MEANINGS OF THE MIND TO, TO UNDERSTAND THAT, THAT, THAT THAT IS ABSOLUTELY WHAT YOU JUST SAID.
IT COULD BE A COMPLETE CHANGE MAKER.
UM, AND IT'S HAPPENED IN OTHER AREAS WHERE, YOU KNOW, RENTS WERE, YOU KNOW, ABATED AND, AND, AND, UM, YOU KNOW, GIVEN A, YOU KNOW, A PAST FOR A FEW MONTHS.
AND THAT HELPS, UM, TO MAKE SOMETHING HAPPEN THAT BRINGS PEOPLE THERE.
I WANT, I, I WANT YOU GUYS TO GET THIS CONCEPT.
I WANT YOU GUYS TO FEEL AT LIBERTY TO PUT TOGETHER SOMETHING THAT YOU FEEL COULD BE SUCCESSFUL, THAT CAN HELP AREAS, THAT CAN HELP BRING EXCITEMENT BACK INTO AREAS.
PEDESTRIAN ACTIVITY THAT CAN HELP, UH, LOCAL ARTISTS AS, AS WELL.
AND NOT US DOING IT IN A VACUUM AS A GOVERNMENT, BUT AS YOU WELL MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, IN CONVERSATION WITH THE PROPERTY OWNERS, THAT'S, THAT'S, THAT'S KEY TO IT.
BUT I JUST DON'T WANT IT TO BE US IN CONVERSATIONS WITH THE PROPERTY OWNER.
SOMETIMES PROPERTY OWNERS OWN LARGE AMOUNT OF PROPERTY.
IF US DOING THIS HELPS 'EM TRANSITION NUISANCE USES TO NON NUISANCE USES.
IF IT, IF THEY COMMIT TO, OKAY, YOU KNOW, THE CITY'S GONNA HELP US WITH THIS POPUP, BUT THEN WE COMMIT TO FILLING SOME OTHER VACANCIES, WE SHOULD USE THIS AS AN INCENTIVE.
UH, WE'LL COME IN, WE WILL HELP AN ARTIST, YOU KNOW, COME INTO ONE OF YOUR PROPERTIES.
BUT, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE TO, YOU KNOW, HELP YOUR OWN PROPERTIES AS WELL.
SO IN SIX MONTHS, LET'S SHOW THIS.
LET, ACTUALLY, BEFORE WE DO THAT, LET ME, UH, IS, ARE THERE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC THAT WISH TO BE HEARD ON THIS ITEM?
[03:15:01]
SEEING NONE ON ZOOM? I SEE ELIZABETH LATON HAS HER HAND RAISED.UH, WELCOME, ELIZABETH, YOU'RE, YOU'RE RECOGNIZED.
I'M ACTUALLY ON THE ROAD, UM, LEAVING GEORGIA.
I'D LIKE TO UNDERSTAND, LIKE LISETTE WAS SAYING, I THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT, UM, WE PROBABLY NEED TO SET A BUDGET BECAUSE THAT THE RENT IS EXTREMELY HIGH IN A LOT OF AREAS.
UM, NORTH BEACH DEFINITELY NEEDS SOME, SOME LOVE.
UM, AND I KNOW THAT LANDLORDS CAN BE DIFFICULT, BUT THIS IS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY AND I'D LIKE TO, TO SEE THIS HAPPEN.
ANY OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WISHING TO BE HEARD ON THIS ITEM SAYING NONE.
I'M GONNA CLOSE THE PUBLIC OPPORTUNITY TO BE HEARD.
ARE THERE, IS, ARE THERE COMMENTS FROM THE DAUS? SEEING NO COMMENTS FROM THE DAUS? UH, WE WILL COME BACK TO THIS ITEM IN SIX MONTHS.
AND, UM, MR. CHAIR, JUST FOR CLARITY PURPOSES, NOVEMBER 25TH IS THE LAST SCHEDULED MEETING.
SO I'LL GO AHEAD AND CONTINUE IT TO THAT DATE, IF THAT'S OKAY.
SO LET'S, LET'S GIVE IT THEN TILL JANUARY.
WHAT I'M GONNA DO, UH, ITEM NUMBER
[15. PRESENTATION OF THE 41 STREET CORRIDOR REVITALIZATION PROJECT STATUS AND FUTURE DIRECTION]
15, I FEEL IS PROBABLY GONNA BE A LONG ITEM.UH, SO I, I ALMOST FEEL THAT ITEM 15, ALMOST, UH, WE SHOULD PROBABLY HAVE A LIGHTER AGENDA THE DAY THAT WE RESCHEDULE, UH, THIS ITEM ON 41ST STREET, UH, AND HAVE COMMISSIONER BOT HERE AS, AS WELL.
[16. RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, DIRECTING THE CITY ADMINISTRATION TO EXPLORE FEASIBLE STRATEGIES FOR CREATING AND EXPANDING "GREEN ROOFS", AS WELL AS INCORPORATING GREENERY AND LANDSCAPING ON CITY BUILDINGS, AND PRESENT ITS FINDINGS TO THE LAND USE AND SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE AND THE FINANCE AND ECONOMIC RESILIENCY COMMITTEE WITHIN 90 DAYS OF THE ADOPTION OF THIS RESOLUTION.]
PROCEED, UH, TO ITEM NUMBER 16.AND WE, AND WE WILL BE ENDING WITH ITEM NUMBER 16.
AND SO ITEM NUMBER 15, WE'RE GONNA JUST DEFER TO A FUTURE DATE.
UM, THIS IS A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, DIRECTING THE CITY ADMINISTRATION TO EXPLORE FEASIBLE STRATEGIES FOR CREATING AND EXPANDING GREEN ROOF, AS WELL AS INCORPORATING GREENERY AND LANDSCAPING ON CITY BUILDINGS AND PRESENT ITS FINDINGS TO THE LAND USE AND SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE, AND THE FINANCE AND ECONOMIC RESILIENCY COMMITTEE WITHIN 90 DAYS OF THE ADOPTION OF THIS RESOLUTION.
COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE, IS THIS YOUR ITEM? YOU'RE WELCOME TO PRESENT IT.
YOU KNOW, I DON'T WANNA OVERCOMPLICATE THIS.
UH, I THINK THIS HAS A MULTITUDE OF BENEFITS.
ONE IS THE COOLING OF OUR CITY AS WE UNDERTAKE HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS, IF NOT BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, UH, IN INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS AS A RESULT OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND RESILIENCY.
UH, GREEN ROOFS, UH, GREEN LANDSCAPING IS A WAY TO NATURALLY CO COOL OUR CITY.
UM, AND THEN FROM A MORE SELFISH, UH, PERSPECTIVE, UH, THE AESTHETICS OF OUR CITY.
I, I LIVE IN A CONDO, UM, AND, AND LOOK DOWN AT MANY ROOFTOPS.
AND, UH, THERE IS A NOTABLE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE ONES THAT HAVE SOME SORT OF GREEN, UH, LANDSCAPING ON THE TOP AND ONES THAT ARE JUST OUTDATED.
SO THE AESTHETICS OF OUR CITY COULD BE VASTLY IMPROVED.
I WOULD LOVE TO INCORPORATE THIS ON A BROADER SCALE WHERE IT'S, UH, IN PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT.
I ACTUALLY GOT THIS IDEA WHEN I WAS, UH, WATCHING SEVERAL OF OUR LAND USE BOARDS, UH, PART IN PARTICULAR THE DI DESIGN REVIEW BOARD.
AND THEY BROUGHT IT UP AS AN IDEA, BUT THERE'S REALLY NO, UH, UH, OOMPH OR MEAT BEHIND, UH, HAVING PROPERTY OWNERS DO.
SO WHILE WE'RE NOT THERE YET IMPOSING THIS ON PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNERS, I THINK A GREAT START WOULD BE LEADING BY EXAMPLE.
AND, UH, LOOKING AT WAYS TO INCORPORATE THIS IN, UH, CITY BUILDINGS.
UM, I'LL HAND IT OVER TO LIZ, OUR, UH, DIRECTOR OF, UH, ACTUALLY, I WON'T DO ANYTHING.
I WILL, UH, LEAVE THAT TO MY CHAIR.
GREEN ROOFS AND ALSO, UM, LIVING WALLS.
SO WE LOOKED AT A COUPLE OF CITY FACILITIES WHERE WE COULD POSSIBLY INCLUDE THE GREEN ROOFS.
UM, BUT IT'S BEST OBVIOUSLY TO TRY TO LOOK AT THIS WHEN WE'RE DEVELOPING PROJECTS.
SO WE'VE GIVEN YOU THREE PROPOSED, UM, BUILDINGS WHERE WE COULD POSSIBLY, POTENTIALLY DO THIS, AS WELL AS SOME POTENTIAL, UM, PROJECTS WHERE THEY'RE STILL ON THE DEVELOPMENTS.
AND WE CAN CONSIDER USING THESE AS, YOU KNOW, INCORPORATING THE GREEN ROOFS THERE.
SO FOR CITY BUILDINGS, WE'VE LOOKED AT THE FACILITIES AND FLEET MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT.
NO BETTER EXAMPLE,
WE'VE ALSO LOOKED AT THE SCOTT
THEY HAVE LARGE SURFACE AREAS FOR THE ROOFS, AND WE CAN POTENTIALLY USE A PORTION OF THAT ROOF TO CREATE GREEN ROOFS.
[03:20:01]
LIVING WALLS, WE ALSO LOOKED AT THE SEVEN SEVEN BUILDING.NOW, IN TERMS OF ACTUAL PRODUCTS THAT ARE CURRENTLY IN THE DESIGN PHASE, IT IS A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO LOOK AT INCORPORATING THAT BECAUSE WE'RE LOOKING AT LOADS, WE'RE LOOKING AT IRRIGATION.
AND SO WE CAN BUILD THAT AS PART OF THE DESIGN.
AND SO WITH THAT, WE'VE LOOKED AT THE ARC DECO WELCOME CENTER EXPANSION.
UM, IN ADDITION, THE BASS MUSEUM, THE BOTANICAL GARDEN, THE BYER IN CARLISLE AND FLAMINGO YOUTH CENTER, AS WELL AS THE OCEAN RESCUE, NO BEEF FACILITY.
SO IF GIVING YOU A COUPLE OF OPTIONS HERE, WE CURRENTLY DO NOT HAVE A COST OF WHAT THIS WILL LOOK LIKE BECAUSE THE, THE UNIT COST BASED ON INDUSTRY STANDARD IS SOMETHING LIKE $120 A SQUARE FOOT IF YOU'RE LOOKING AT GREEN ROOFS AND $160 A SQUARE FOOT IF YOU'RE LOOKING AT LIVING WALLS.
SO THE HITCH IS FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.
UM, I KNOW WE'LL BE LOOKING AT THIS AS WELL IN OUR FINANCE AND ECONOMIC RESILIENCY COMMITTEE.
AND, AND THROUGH THE CHAIR BACK OF THE ENVELOPE, UH, ESTIMATE ON WHAT THE SQUARE FOOTAGE OF THE ROOF AT, LET'S CALL IT BAPTIST HEALTH TOM, UM, ON, UH, SIXTH AND ALTON.
'CAUSE THEY HAVE A BEAUTIFUL GREEN ROOF FACILITY.
IS THAT, UH, 2000 SQUARE FEET? THAT'S A PRETTY LARGE PROJECT.
I BELIEVE THAT THAT'S SIX LOTS.
I WOULD SAY THAT THAT'S PROBABLY IN EXCESS OF, OF EIGHT TO 10,000 SQUARE FEET.
UM, JUST TO GET A BETTER SENSE FROM MY COLLEAGUE.
I DON'T KNOW IF THIS WAS FOR AESTHETICS REASONS OR UM, UM, NATURAL PRESERVE REASONS, BUT, UM, IF IT'S FOR AESTHETICS MAKE, PERHAPS WE CAN MAKE IT SIMPLE AND DO LIKE A TURF.
BECAUSE IF, IF YOU'RE IN A CONDO, BECAUSE I LOOK, I, YOU KNOW, I'VE SEEN ON A CONDO, YOU LOOK DOWN AND SOME OF THESE ROOFS ARE, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE JUST TAR ROOFS WITH TAR TILES.
UM, YOU KNOW, MAYBE MAKE A REQUIREMENT THAT, THAT, YOU KNOW, ANY NEW DEVELOPMENT HAS TO HAVE LIKE A GREEN TURF ROOF.
I THINK, YOU KNOW, THAT WOULD BE A LOT CHEAPER THAN $120 A SQUARE FOOT FOR A, UH, A REAL ROOF, WHICH IS GONNA REQUIRE LANDSCAPING.
AND, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU WANNA DO ON THERE, LIKE PUT SOME COWS OR CHICKENS,
BUT IT, IT CERTAINLY DOESN'T SEEM LIKE, UH, THE JUICE IS WORTH THE SQUEEZE.
UM, BUT I THINK IF IT'S, FROM AN AESTHETIC POINT OF VIEW, UM, I THINK JUST A TURF ROOF, IT REALLY MAKES A HUGE DIFFERENCE, UM, AS AESTHETICALLY FROM, FROM, UH, A HIGH RISE PERSPECTIVE.
SO LET ME JUST UN UNDERSTAND A LITTLE BIT BETTER, BECAUSE WHEN WE SPEAK ABOUT GREEN ROOFS, UM, I KNOW WE HAVE A RESOLUTION THAT WAS ADOPTED BY THE CITY COMMISSION, I BELIEVE, WHEN WAS IT? IN 2019? THAT WAS IN 2019.
AND THAT WAS, UM, THAT WAS OUR URBAN HEAT, HEAT ISLAND POLICY.
AND IT LOOKS AT, YOU KNOW, INCORPORATING SUSTAINABLE ROOFS, WHETHER THESE ARE SOLAR ROOFS, UH, WHITE ROOFS, UH, GREEN ROOFS, BLUE ROOFS.
THESE ARE ALL, UH, MATERIALS BE REFLECTIVE SO YOU DON'T HAVE THAT HEAT BEING ABSORBED BY THE BUILDINGS.
SO THAT, BECAUSE THAT'S, THAT'S THE POINT.
YOU KNOW, THE, THE IDEA IS TO HELP REDUCE, UM, THE, UH, HEAT ISLAND EFFECT.
AND SO I'M NOT SURE IF WE NECESSARILY ACHIEVED THE SAME, UH, BY, BY DISPLACING TURF.
UM, AND I DON'T KNOW, GUIDE ME ON THAT PLEASE.
SO IT DOES HAVE THOSE BENEFITS.
HOWEVER, WE HAVE ALSO DONE SOME PROJECTS WHERE WE'VE CHANGED OUT, UM, LIKE FOR INSTANCE, WHEN WE DID THE ROOF AT THE FILLMORE, THE VY BEACH, UM, UH, CITY BALLET, WE CHANGE THOSE OUT TO WHITE ROOFS.
SO, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE OPTIONS WHERE WE CAN, UM, BASICALLY DO THE SAME IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, LOWERING THE HEAT INDEX.
AND IF I COULD, MR. CHAIR, LIZ, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU, AND, UH, I APOLOGIZE ON BEHALF OF MY COLLEAGUE AT THE END DOWN THERE, MR. CHAIRMAN, UH, THE MULTITUDE OF BENEFITS WAS EXPLAINED WHEN THEY WERE ENGAGED IN SIDEBAR BANTER.
SO, YOU KNOW, UM, BUT ANYWAY, UH, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU KNOW SPECIFICALLY, BUT THE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER ON SEVENTH STREET.
AND THE DETERIORATING CONDITION HAS BEEN SO RAPID.
UM, I DON'T KNOW IF THAT IS A, A SYMPTOM OF THAT IN GENERAL OR IF IT'S A ONE-OFF.
UM, YOU KNOW, UH, WHEN, WHEN I WAS THINKING GRU ROOFS, IT WAS TO THE CHAIRMAN'S POINT OF NOT JUST FROM AN AESTHETICS PURPOSE, BUT ALSO, UH, IN EMISSIONS, KIND OF A COOLING OF THE CITY.
UM, IF YOU LOOK ON WEST AVENUE MONAD
[03:25:01]
TERRACE, WHERE THEY HAVE KIND OF THE GREEN LIVING WALLS, IT, IT JUST REALLY, REALLY STANDS OUT FROM THE REST OF THE CITY.AND WHILE I WOULDN'T BE, UH, COMFORTABLE IMPOSING THIS ON THE PRIVATE, UH, SECTOR YET, I DO THINK IT WOULD BE A GOOD LITMUS TEST TO SEE IF WE COULD DO SO, UH, WITH A COUPLE SELECTED CITY BUILDINGS.
YOU KNOW, I EVEN LOOK AT KIND OF THE ARCHITECTURE HERE IN CITY HALL.
IMAGINE IF WE WOULD INCORPORATE SOME SORT OF GREENERY ON THE SIDE, UH, WHEN, WHEN I'M LOOKING ACROSS THE CITY, UH, THE CONVENTION CENTER HOTEL, SOMETHING ALONG THOSE LINES.
SO, UM, JUST TO BE CLEAR, COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE, ARE YOU, WOULD IT BE A, A NATURAL GREEN ROOF OR A TURF GREEN ROOF? I MEAN, WELL, I, I WAS THINKING NATURAL FOR THE MULTITUDE OF BENEFITS.
RIGHT? SO, UM, BUT THIS ISN'T AN AREA WHERE I'M AN EXPERT IN.
UH, PERHAPS, YOU KNOW, WE COULD, UH, UH, ALSO INVOLVE AMY, UH, FROM THE ENVIRONMENTAL, AMY KNOWS FROM THE ENVIRONMENTAL DEPARTMENT.
UM, 'CAUSE LIKE I SAID, I, I WANTED TO REALLY KILL SEVERAL BIRDS WITH ONE STONE HERE.
NOT JUST USE THIS SOLELY FOR AESTHETICS OR SOLELY FOR EMISSIONS, BUT IF WE COULD DO A, A FEW, ACHIEVE A FEW OF THOSE GOALS, I THINK THAT'S THE NEEDLE I WAS TRYING TO THREAD.
THAT AND JUST BACK OF THE ENVELOPE, I, I THINK WHEN YOU MENTIONED THAT THE EXCESS OF 10,000, THAT'S $1.2 MILLION A ROOF.
I MEAN, IF WE CAN GET BETTER PRICING THAN $120 A SQUARE FOOT, YOU KNOW, YES.
CERTAINLY WE CAN DO A COST ANALYSIS.
AND THAT'S WHY WE PROPOSED THE CITY BUILDINGS.
WE'VE ONLY LOOKED AT A, A PORTION OF THEM.
LIKE FOR INSTANCE, THERE'S SOME OF THEM, THEY'RE VERY BIG, LIKE THE SCOTT BREAKOUTS OVER 8,000 SQUARE FEET.
SO WE WANNA LOOK AT A PORTION AND, YOU KNOW, PERHAPS DO THAT AS A PILOT EVEN.
SO WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? OKAY.
IS THAT A MOTION FINANCE? 'CAUSE IT'S DOOR REFERRAL
AND, UH, MAYBE WE CAN KIND OF HONE IN ON SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS.
UH, I'M NOT SURE IF THERE'S THE APPETITE TO SIT HERE AND GO THROUGH THESE ONE-ON-ONE.
UM, BUT MAYBE WE COULD ALL KIND OF REVIEW, UH, BRING THIS BACK MAYBE IN THREE MONTHS AND SIT THERE AND LOOK AT THE PROJECTS THAT WOULD PROVIDE THE MOST AMOUNT OF EXCITEMENT, UM, OF THE MULTITUDE OF OPTIONS THEY PROVIDED.
AND WE CAN GET SOME SORT OF, UH, FINANCIAL, UH, ESTIMATE AS WELL, IF THAT WOULD BE OKAY WITH THE CHAIR.
I, I THINK, YOU KNOW, WE SHOULDN'T ONLY BE LOOKING AT INSTALLATION COSTS OF, FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS, BUT POTENTIAL RECURRING COSTS, UH, THAT COULD POTENTIALLY OCCUR WITH THIS.
UH, WE SHOULD ALSO BE SEEING WHETHER THESE GREEN ROOFS INCREASE THE LIFESPAN OF, OF, OF A ROOF, UM, AND WHETHER, AND WHETHER SURE IT IT REDUCES ANY LONGER TERM BUILDING OPERATIONAL COSTS.
I, I, I THINK THERE'S, YOU KNOW, OTHER, OTHER THINGS THAT I THINK, YOU KNOW, CAN BE MORE PROPERLY, UH, VETTED AT THE FINANCE COMMITTEE.
CERTAINLY THERE IS LOTS OF BENEFITS TO THIS.
AND, UM, AND I THINK IN GENERAL, YOU KNOW, WE PROBABLY ARE ALL SUPPORTIVE OF WHAT'S BEING PRESENTED HERE.
UH, I THINK WE JUST NEED TO, YOU KNOW, LOOK, LOOK AT A LITTLE BIT BETTER AT SOME OF THE OTHER DETAILS.
SO THE SCOTT RICO HAS ACTUALLY 47,000 SQUARE FEET OF ROOF.
DID YOU WANT THIS TO COME BACK IN THREE MONTHS TO LAND USE FOR AN UPDATE? YES.
SO THAT'LL GIVE US TIME TO LOOK AT IT IN FINANCE, AND I LOVE THE IDEA, BUT IF IT'S 50,000 SQUARE FEET TIMES A HUNDRED DOLLARS PER SQUARE FEET, OBVIOUSLY IT'S SOMETHING THAT MAY NOT BE FEASIBLE.
UM, BUT WE CAN, UH, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE, WE HAVE, WE, THEY'VE, THEY'VE PUT FORWARD OTHER OPTIONS, YOU KNOW, FACILITIES BUILDING THE SEVEN TO SEVEN, SEVEN BUILDING, YOU KNOW, 7, 7, 7 BUILDING IS, WHAT WAS IT, 3,700 SQUARE FEET? CORRECT.
THE FACILITIES BUILDING IS 8,000 SQUARE FEET, SQUARE FEET, 8,000 SQUARE FEET.
AND SO, AND SO THERE'S OTHER MORE MODEST OPTIONS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE CAN TEST.
AND LIZ, CAN I ASK JUST ONE QUICK FINAL QUESTION AND I'LL, I'LL LET EVERYBODY GET OUT OF HERE.
IF WE'RE DOING NEW CONSTRUCTION, IS IT GOING TO BE $120 OF INCREMENTAL COST OR MAYBE ARE WE ONLY LOOKING AT $40? BECAUSE A NEW ROOF WOULD BE 80.
IF YOU USE A GREEN ROOF, IT'S ONE 20.
SO REALLY THAT INCREMENTAL COST WOULD JUST BE 40 USING, YOU KNOW, FAKE NUMBERS, BUT RIGHT.
I WOULD HAVE TO LOOK INTO THAT.
TO GIVE YOU A PRECISE ANSWER, JUST BECAUSE I KNOW THERE'S OTHER SYSTEMS THAT WE WANNA INTEGRATE THERE, LIKE IRRIGATION, UM, FOR GREEN ROOF,
[03:30:01]
SO THERE MAY BE OTHER HIDDEN COSTS.SO MY ACCLIMATION, THIS WILL GO TO THE OCTOBER 10TH MEETING.
COLLEAGUES, I WANT TO THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR HARD WORK, FOR YOUR DEDICATION, FOR YOUR COMMITMENT IN THIS MEETING.
AND I ESPECIALLY ONCE AGAIN, WANT TO END BY, UH, COMMENDING, UH, THE, UH, YEARS OF DEDICATION AND PUBLIC SERVICE THAT JOE GOMEZ DEDICATED TO OUR CITY AS A PUBLIC, UH, WORKS DIRECTOR.
IT CERTAINLY, IT'S BEEN A PRIVILEGE TO SERVE OUR PUBLIC ALONG HIS SIDE AT HERE AT CITY HALL.
THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SERVICE.
UH, AND, UH, WE WILL HAVE OUR NEXT MEETING IN SEPTEMBER.