* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. PLEASE STAND BY. [00:00:01] WE ARE GOING ON AIR IN 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. GOOD MORNING, EVERYBODY. MY NAME IS COMMISSIONER LAURA DOMINGUEZ, AND I'M THE CHAIR OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY AND NEIGHBORHOOD QUALITY OF LIFE COMMITTEE. MY MEMBERS ARE, UH, COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE AND COMMISSIONER ROSEN GONZALEZ. AND THANK YOU COMMISSIONER ALEX HERNANDEZ FOR BEING HERE AS WELL. ABSENT IS, UH, THE VICE CHAIR, UM, COMMISSIONER SUAREZ AND, UH, COMMISSIONER TANYA BUTT WILL BE JOINING US BY ZOOM LATER TO PRESENT HER ITEMS. AND ALSO WITH US ON THE DAY IS THE FABULOUS STEPHANIE RAY BROOKS, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, MARK TAXES AND DEPUTY CITY ATTORNEY ROB ROSENWALD. SO I THINK WE COULD TAKE IT AWAY WITH ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS. HI. SO WE HAVE ONE TIME CERTAIN ITEM, WHICH WOULD BE ITEM NUMBER NINE, DISCUSS POSSIBLE INSTALLATIONS OF BLUE STAR AND GOLD STAR MEMORIAL MAKERS AT CANOPY PARK. AND WE HAVE [17. DISCUSSION REGARDING BEACH CONCESSIONS, REGULATIONS, AND LAYOUT TO ENSURE THAT SUFFICIENT AREA REMAINS AVAILABLE AT ALL TIMES FOR PUBLIC ENJOYMENT OF BEACHES.] ONE ITEM THAT WILL BE DEFERRED, WHICH IS ITEM NUMBER 17, DISCUSSION REGARDING BEACH CONCESSIONS, REGULATIONS, AND LAYOUT TO ENSURE THAT SUFFICIENT AREAS REMAIN AVAILABLE AT ALL TIMES FOR PUBLIC ENJOYMENT OF THE BEACHES. SO WITH THAT, WE COULD START OUR MEETING. [9. DISCUSS POSSIBLE INSTALLATION OF BLUE STAR AND GOLD STAR MEMORIAL MARKERS AT CANOPY PARK.] THE FIRST ITEM WILL BE ITEM NUMBER NINE, DISCUSS POSSIBLE INSTALLATIONS OF BLUE STAR AND GOLD STAR MEMORIAL MARKERS AT CANOPY PARK. COMMISSIONER KIRK, COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ, THIS IS YOUR ITEM. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR, AND IT'S SUCH A PLEASURE TO BE AT YOUR COMMITTEE THIS MORNING. THANK YOU FOR ALWAYS LEADING THIS COMMITTEE WITH SUCH GREAT RESPECT TO OUR COMMUNITY. PLEASURE TO BE HERE. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ. THIS IS THE LAST ONE WITH THIS PARTICULAR GROUP, UH, BUT STARTING NEXT MONTH YOU'LL BE MY VICE CHAIR AND LOOKING FORWARD TO IT. AND COMMISSIONER ROSEN GONZALEZ, YOU'LL BE THE THIRD MEMBER OF THE GROUP AND WE'LL BE THE POWER TEAM. THERE YOU GO. WELL, WELL, IT IS A PRIVILEGE COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE. YOU'LL BE THE ALTERNATE . I DON'T EVEN THINK THAT'S THE CASE. CERTAINLY A PRIVILEGE TO BE AT THIS COMMITTEE THIS MORNING. UM, LAST MONTH I WAS CONTACTED BY THE MIAMI BEACH, UH, GARDEN CLUB TO DISCUSS A POSSIBLE INSTALLATION OF THE BLUE STAR AND GOLD STAR MEMORIAL MARKERS AT CANOPY PARK. UM, AND, UH, AND I PLACE AN ITEM ON, ON THE AGENDA TO BE REFERRED TO THIS COMMITTEE AS REQUIRED BY THE CITY CODE. THE BLUE STAR, UH, MARKER PROGRAM HAS BEEN IN EXISTENCE, UH, UNDER THE AUSPICE OF THE NATIONAL GARDEN CLUBS, UH, FOR MORE THAN 79 YEARS TO HONOR THE MEN AND WOMEN OF THE UNITED STATES ARMED TO SERVICES. UM, THEY WERE ADOPTED BECAUSE THEY HAD BECOME ICONS IN WORLD WAR, WORLD WAR II AND WERE SEEN ON FLAGS AND BANNERS AND HOMES AND CHURCHES AND BUSINESSES, UH, FOR SONS AND DAUGHTERS THAT WERE SERVING OUR COUNTRY AT AT WAR. UM, THE MARKER THAT THE MIAMI BEACH GARDEN CLUB PROPOSES TO INSTALL AT CANOPY PARK WAS ORIGINALLY DEDICATED TO KEY WEST, CORRECT? CORRECT. AT THE TERMINUS OF, UH, US ONE. AND IT WAS THE FIRST US UH, SORRY. IT'S THE FIRST BLUE STAR MARKER DEDICATED IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA. AND THEN IT WAS GIFTED TO YOU GUYS TO MY AB BEACH GARDEN CLUB IN 1980, INSTALLED HERE, UH, WHERE THE NEW BLUE STAR NOW LIES AT THE TERMIN, UH, TERMINUS OF JULIA TUTTLE AND, UH, STATE ROAD 9 0 7 ALTON ROAD. AND SO THE MIAMI BEACH GARDEN CLUB REFURBISHED, UH, UM, THAT MARKER AND THAT WAS PLACED AT JULIA AT ON ALTON ROAD, IS THAT CORRECT? 'CAUSE THERE'S TWO OF THEM. OKAY. SO WE, UM, PURCHASED A NEW MARKER, A NEW MARKER, RIGHT. DECO DECOMMISSIONED THE, UH, THE ONE FROM, UM, KEY WEST. AND NOW WE WANT TO RECOMMISSION IT AS A HISTORICAL MARKER, UM, AS IT IS THE, UH, OLDEST SURVIVING MARKER, UM, KNOWN IN AND ALSO THE FIRST ONE IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA. AMAZING. SO THERE'S A BRAND NEW MARKER ON ALTON ROAD. RIGHT. AND NOW WE HAVE TO FIND A HOUSE THAT'S ONE BY MY HOUSE WHEN I GO CORRECT. LET'S SAY, UH, FROM CHASE AVENUE TOWARDS ST. PATRICK'S OR TOWARDS THE TU. PEOPLE SEE IT THERE ON THE MEDIA AND IT'S A BEAUTIFUL MARKER. AND AT TIMES CERTAIN, DURING CERTAIN OCCASIONS IN THE YEAR, THE GARDEN CLUB PLACES BEAUTIFUL WREATHS, BEAUTIFUL FLAG, ABSOLUTELY MADE BY GARDEN CLUB MEMBERS. YES. AND FLAGS. WE, UH, WE HONOR IT, UH, THAT WAY EVERY, UH, PATRIOTIC, UM, HOLIDAY. AND SO TELL US ABOUT THE VISION ABOUT WHAT'S BEING PROPOSED AT CANOPY PARK. OKAY. SO, UH, THE VISION FOR CANOPY PARK WILL SERVE, UH, A DUAL PURPOSE. IT WILL HONOR THE, WE WILL FIND A HOME FOR OUR DISPLACED, TWICE DISPLACED, UM, BLUE STAR MEMORIAL MARKER. AND THE ORIGINAL ONE. THE ORIGINAL ONE, THE ONE FROM KEY WEST, CORRECT. UM, IT WILL FIND A HOME FOR IT. IT WILL BE, UH, DISPLAYED AS A HISTORICAL MARKER AND, UM, IT WILL HAVE A PLAQUE HONORING ALL OF THE SERVICE, THE, THE, THE SERVICE, UH, BRANCHES OF THE MILITARY. AND, UM, IT WILL ALSO INCORPORATE A GOLD STAR, THE GOLD STAR HONORS, AS [00:05:01] YOU MAY KNOW, THE, UM, THE FALLEN, UH, THOSE WHO HAVE GIVEN THEIR EVERYTHING, UH, FOR OUR, OUR FREEDOMS. SO, UM, WE WOULD HAVE THE OLD, THE HISTORICAL BLUE STAR, A GOLD STAR, AND THE, UM, A PLAQUE GIVING THE HISTORY OF THE GOLD STAR WITH THE, THE, IN INSANE OF THE SIX MILITARY BRANCHES. SO THAT'S OUR VISION. I WANNA THANK YOU FOR, FOR, FOR YOUR DEDICATION AND YOUR INTEREST IN KEEPING THIS IMPORTANT PART OF OUR HISTORY ALIVE. UH, IT'S SO PROPER FOR THIS TO BE IN THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, GIVEN OUR TIES TO THE ARMED SERVICES, ESPECIALLY DURING WAR WHEN THEY WERE, UH, TRAINING HERE. AND I WANNA RECOGNIZE OUR PARKS RECTOR JOHN REBAR, UH, TO GUIDE US THROUGH STAFFS RECOMMENDATION ON THIS, UH, REQUEST FROM THE MIAMI BEACH GARDEN CLUB. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER. UM, YEAH, THE STAFF IS FULLY SUPPORTIVE OF THIS. WE THINK IT'S GREAT. IT TIES IN WITH, YOU KNOW, THE MIAMI BEACH'S HISTORY WITH THE MILITARY AND WORLD WAR II, THE VFW VERY CL CLOSE TO THE PARK. UM, SO WE'RE FULLY SUPPORTED THIS, THIS PLAQUE HAS BE RECOMMENDED TO GO INSIDE THE PARK, NOT ALONG THE, THE FDOT RIGHT OF WAY. SO THIS IS SOMETHING THAT COULD BE HANDLED DIRECTLY BY THE PARKS DEPARTMENT AND WE, WE SUPPORT, UM, IF THE, IF THE COMMITTEE WOULD LIKE TO SUPPORT IT, WE SUPPORT TAKING THIS TO THE END. THERE'S A, THERE IS A, A, A, A FISCAL ASK BETWEEN AROUND $15,000. WHAT IS THAT FOR? THAT'S TO REFURBISH THE PLAQUES THAT THEY HAVE AND TO DO THE INSTALLATION, BUT THAT'S A VERY MINIMAL COST. YEAH. YES. WHEN WE CONSIDER THE SACRIFICE MADE BY THOSE WHO, WHO WE WILL BE HONORING WITH THIS MARKER, $15,000, IF I MAY ADD, UM, IT WOULD ALSO BE, UM, SO THERE'S GOLD STARS AND BLUE STARS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY. UM, HOWEVER, MIAMI DADE DOES NOT ACTUALLY HAVE A GOLD STAR DEDICATED. SO THIS GOLD STAR WOULD BE THE VERY FIRST ONE IN ALL OF, UH, DADE IN MONROE COUNTY. AND THAT IS SOMETHING OF SIGNIFICANCE THAT, THAT, THAT, AND THAT WOULD BE GREAT HONOR TO, TO, TO OUR CITY. MADAM CHAIR, I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR CONSIDERING THIS ITEM AS THE FIRST ITEM ON OUR, ON OUR AGENDA. AS OUR PARKS DIRECTOR REP MENTIONED THE TIME TO MIAMI BEACH, TO, TO, TO THE ROLE THAT MIAMI BEACH PLAYED, UH, DURING WORLD WORLD II, WHERE SO MANY SERVICEMEN WERE, WERE TRAINING. AND AT THIS LOCATION APPROPRIATELY SITUATED RIGHT ACROSS FROM THE VFW, UH, MAKES IT SO SYMBOLIC AND SO, AND SO APPROPRIATE. SO THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR FOR CONSIDERING THIS ITEM. I WOULD APPRECIATE THE COMMITTEE'S SUPPORT SO THAT WE CAN SEND THIS BACK TO THE CITY COMMISSION AND HONOR THIS LEGACY. THANK YOU COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ AND, UM, CITY ATTORNEY. I WOULD LIKE TO BE A CO-SPONSOR FOR THIS ITEM. IF I COULD BE LISTED, UM, I'M FULLY SUPPORTIVE. I'D LOVE TO HEAR FROM THE OTHER MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE. YEAH, YOU HAVE MY FULL SUPPORT. THIS IS A WIN ALL AROUND. THANK YOU. AND, UM, I THINK IT'S A WONDERFUL IDEA. THANK YOU COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ, FOR BRINGING IT FORWARD. AND IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MOVE THE ITEM, I'LL SECOND IT. I'M NOT A MEMBER OF THE COMMITTEE. OH, YOU'RE NOT. SO I'LL MOVE THE ITEM. I'LL SECOND. OKAY. AND IF I CAN BE ADDED AS A CO-SPONSOR, I THINK. WONDERFUL. AND JUST, UH, ONE QUICK QUESTION, IF I COULD, MADAM CHAIR, UH, FROM A LEGAL STANDPOINT, IF THERE WAS A PRIVATE DONATION, UH, TO BE MADE TO COVER THE COSTS, OBVIOUSLY, UH, UH, SMALL COSTS LIKE THAT WE CAN COVER AS A CITY BUDGET, BUT I HAD HAD SOMEBODY THAT JUST REACHED OUT ABOUT WANTING TO PARTICIPATE IN THERE. I'M NOT BANKING ON IT. UM, SO WE'LL KIND OF CONTINUE DOWN THE TRACK AS IS, BUT JUST ASKING FROM A LEGAL COMPONENT, WE CAN BRING A REST SOLUTION. WHO'S INTERESTED? WOULD THEY BE ABLE TO MAKE A PRIVATE DONATION TO COVER THAT? YES. THEY, YOU, WE TAKE PRIVATE DONATIONS AND THEY'RE APPROVED BY RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COMMISSION. OKAY. LET'S NOT BANK ON IT, BUT, UH, IN THE BACK POCKET. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE. I MAY ADD THAT THE VERBIAGE ON THE, UM, ON THE PLAQUE CURRENTLY IN ALTON ROAD DOES SAY THAT IT'S IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MIAMI BEACH. AND THIS ONE WILL ALSO SAY THE SAME THING. THE GOLD ONE, THE GOLD STAR WILL ALSO SAY THE SAME THING. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. THANK YOU COMMITTEE MEMBERS FOR YOUR SUPPORT. THANK YOU COMMISSIONER. SO MOVED BY ACCLIMATION AND WE'LL GO ON TO THE [5. DISCUSS REORIENTING THE CITY’S CODE DEPARTMENT TO ADOPT A MORE PROACTIVE RATHER THAN REACTIVE APPROACH TO ENFORCEMENT AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT] NEXT ITEM, C FOUR ZERO O NUMBER FIVE. IT IS DISCUSSED REORIENTING THE CITY'S CODE DEPARTMENT TO ADOPT A MORE PROACTIVE RATHER THAN REACTIVE APPROACH TO ENFORCEMENT AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT. AND CODE WILL BE PRESENTING THIS ITEM. MS. COMMISSIONER BOT ON ZOOM? SHE IS ON ZOOM. ALRIGHT, LET'S, UH, ALLOW HER THE OPPORTUNITY TO TEE THIS UP. PJ, IF WE CAN MAKE HER A PANELIST, PLEASE. GOOD MORNING. GOOD MORNING. UM, LET ME JUST TOUT THE WESTERN MEDICINE AND BETTER LIVING THROUGH SCIENCE MANTRA. NOT THAT THERE'S ANYTHING WRONG WITH OTHER MEDICINE, BUT FROM THE WAY I FELT YESTERDAY AT THIS TIME TO THE WAY I FEEL TODAY AT THIS [00:10:01] TIME IS LIKE 180 DEGREES DIFFERENCE. SO, UM, BUT I'M STILL, I HAVE ONE MORE DAY OF BEING CONTAGIOUS, SO THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME CALL IN TO DO THIS. I DIDN'T WANNA GIVE MY COOTIES TO ANYBODY, EVEN THOUGH THEY'RE ON THE, ON THE OUTS. UM, I WANTED TO BRING THIS ITEM. UM, I THINK WE HAVE A TERRIFIC CODE DEPARTMENT. UM, THEY DO INCREDIBLE WORK. UM, AND I WANTED TO, UM, HAVE THEM COME BEFORE US AND, AND REALLY TALK ABOUT GIVE A, A PUBLIC ACCOUNTING, UM, FOR THE WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING AND HOW MUCH IS INBOUND, HOW MUCH IS OUTBOUND PROACTIVE, IF THERE ARE ANY OPPORTUNITIES TO MAKE THINGS EVEN BETTER THAN THEY ARE. UM, I I, I FEEL LIKE, UM, DESPITE THE GOOD WORK THAT GETS DONE, THERE IS A LOT THAT STILL NEEDS TO BE DONE. AND I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE CAN MAKE THAT HAPPEN. UM, UM, IS IT CHANGING THE ORIENTATION OF WHAT THEY DO? IS IT POSSIBLY, UH, HIRING ADDITIONAL STAFF? IS IT CROSS TRAINING PEOPLE IN DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS AND EMPOWERING THEM TO, UM, UH, IF NOT ACTUALLY ISSUE VIOLATIONS, AT LEAST TO ENTER IT INTO A DATABASE SO THAT, UM, UM, CODE CAN GO VISIT THE SITE TO ADDRESS IF THERE'S A VIOLATION THAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN. YOU KNOW, WE HEAR FROM RESIDENTS ALL THE TIME THAT THEY'RE NOT, THEY DON'T SEE EVERYTHING. AND THAT MAY BE TRUE, IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT IT'S NOT GETTING DONE, BUT, UM, I KNOW I PERSONALLY HAVE USED THE E EGO APP SINCE IT WENT ONLINE TO REPORT ISSUES CONSTANTLY, UM, WHEN, WHEN I SEE THEM. AND THAT'S A REALLY PRODUCTIVE WAY OF DOING THINGS. BUT THAT'S NOT, UM, YOU KNOW, NOT EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT. UM, SO THAT'S WHY I WANTED CODE TO COME. I KNOW HERNAN, UH, THE DIRECTOR OF THE DEPARTMENT IS OUT OF TOWN TODAY, BUT HIS STAFF IS HERE TO PRESENT, SO I'LL TURN IT OVER. I'M, I'M NOT SURE WHO'S, WHO'S ON TAP FOR THAT, BUT LET'S TURN IT OVER TO THEM AND THEN TAKE SOME QUESTIONS AFTERWARDS. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER BOD. MM-HMM . AND I'LL LET CODE TEE IT UP. YES, THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING. UM, STEPHANIE NOAH, ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES MANAGER WITH THE CODE COMPLIANCE DEPARTMENT. SO OUR RESEARCH HAS FOUND THAT IN THE LAST TWO YEARS, ONLY 12%, UH, OF OUR CALLS FOR SERVICE WERE COMPLAINT DRIVEN. UH, IT IS A SIZABLE NUMBER, BUT IN FACT IT'S A MISNOMER THAT, UH, CODE IS, UM, REACTIONARY VERSUS, I'M SORRY. YEAH. REACTIONARY VERSUS PROACTIVE. AND AS FAR AS ADDRESSING, UH, COMPLAINTS OR, UM, HANDLING EVERYTHING THAT WE CAN, OBVIOUSLY OUR MAIN MISSION IS TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE. AND WE ONLY HAVE A SMALL NUMBER OF OFFICERS ON A DAILY BASIS, AND THAT'S WHY WE RELY ON OUR RESIDENTS TO, YOU KNOW, REPORT TO US THESE THINGS SO WE CAN ADDRESS THEM IMMEDIATELY AND ENSURE COMPLIANCE. UM, AND I MEAN, WE'RE OPEN TO SEE WHAT OTHER THINGS WE CAN DO TO TRY TO HANDLE ALL THE, UM, THINGS THAT WE NEED TO ADDRESS, UH, TO BEAUTIFY OUR CITY. UM, AND WITH THAT, I'LL, I'M AVAILABLE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU, STEPHANIE. IN LOOKING AT THE ANALYSIS THAT THE CO DEPARTMENT PROVIDED, IT WAS INTERESTING TO SEE THAT THE MAJORITY, 88% WAS, UH, PROACTIVE. AND, UM, YOU HAD OTHER STATISTICS THAT WERE IN THERE. UH, 12% WAS COMPLAINT DRIVEN. UM, I THINK THIS IS GOOD FEEDBACK TO HAVE. UM, I'D LIKE TO HEAR MORE FROM, UH, MEMBERS HERE ON THE DAY AND, UH, VISITORS, ANYBODY HAVE ANY COMMENTS BEFORE WE CHECK WITH THE SPONSOR? COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ? YES, THANK YOU. UM, SO I DO BELIEVE THAT THERE IS A PERCEPTION, UM, THAT CODE ENFORCEMENT IN GENERAL REGULATORY MATTERS, WHETHER IT BE BUILDING OR OTHER STUFF, YOU KNOW, IN GENERAL, THIS IS JUST A GENERAL PERCEPTION. IT'S NOT JUST ON CODE TENDS TO BE, UH, REACTIVE RATHER THAN PROACTIVE OF THE PROACTIVE ENGAGEMENTS THAT CODE HAS DONE. IS THERE A WAY TO GET A BREAKDOWN OF, YOU KNOW, ARE THOSE PROACTIVE ENG ENGAGEMENTS HAVING TO DO WITH NOISE? ARE THEY HAVING TO DO WITH OVERGROWN GRASS? IS IT, IS IT RELATED TO GRAFFITI? LIKE, WHAT IS, WHAT IS IT? BECAUSE FOR SOME REASON, OUR RESIDENTS FEEL AND PERCEIVE THAT IT'S RATHER REACTIVE AND THAT IT IS DEPENDENT ON THEM PLACING A CALL. AND PERHAPS, YOU KNOW, WHILE A A, YOU KNOW, A SIGNIFICANT PORTION OF OF ENFORCEMENT MIGHT [00:15:01] BE PROACTIVE, YOU KNOW, IT MIGHT BE AT A SEGMENT OF VIOLATIONS THAT ARE NOT REALLY, YOU KNOW, WHAT THE RESIDENTS AREN'T NECESSARILY FOCUSED ON. SO IS THERE A WAY TO SEE THAT BREAKDOWN? ABSOLUTELY. IT'D BE GREAT IF THAT COULD BE SHARED WITH THE COMMITTEE. MM-HMM . THANK YOU. OF COURSE. THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. UH, COMMISSIONER BOTT, UH, IS IT OKAY TO CLOSE THIS ITEM AND GET AN LTC FROM CODE, UH, WITH THE INFORMATION REQUESTED BY COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ? UM, WITH YOUR PERMISSION, I'D ACTUALLY LIKE TO CONTINUE IT'S NEXT MONTH. I HAVE A BUNCH OF QUESTIONS, UM, THAT I, I, UM, I DON'T WANNA PUT ANYONE ON THE SPOT BECAUSE I DON'T THINK THEY'RE PREPARED TO ANSWER NOW. SO I WOULD, UM, PREFER TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH, UM, HERNAN AND THEN HAVE HIM COME BACK AND, AND PRESENT IT TO THE FULL GROUP, IF THAT'S OKAY. SOUNDS GOOD. SO WE'LL CONTINUE IT. OUR NEXT, UH, PUBLIC SAFETY AND QUALITY OF LIFE MEETING IS FEBRUARY 12TH. UM, SO WE'LL CONTINUE IT TO THAT MEETING. AND WITH THAT, WE'LL MOVE ON TO THAT NUMBER TWO. UM, I'M SORRY, COULD YOU CONTINUE IT TO THE NEXT, THE NEXT MEETING AFTER THAT? I'M OUT OF TOWN THAT WEEK AND I WOULD LIKE TO BE THERE FOR IT. OKAY. UH, WHAT IS THE DATE OF THE MARCH MEETING? I'LL HAVE TO LOOK THAT UP AND I'LL PUT IT FOR THE MARCH. I'LL LET YOU KNOW. OKAY. IT'S ON MY CALENDAR. THANK YOU ALL. WHAT IS IT? IT'S ON MY CALENDAR THAT I MAILED . LET ME SEE IF I HAVE IT. UH, MARCH 12TH. SO WE'LL MOVE IT TO MARCH 12TH. THANK YOU. CONTINUE TO MARCH 12TH. OKAY. OKAY. ITEM NUMBER [2. DISCUSSION/TAKE ACTION ON RE-ESTABLISHING A NUISANCE ABATEMENT BOARD] TWO. ITEM NUMBER TWO IS DISCUSS, TAKE ACTION ON REESTABLISHING A NUISANCE ABATEMENT BOARD. AND THIS IS A SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER B AND COMMISSIONER BT UH, TEE IT UP. YES. THANK YOU. SO, UM, SORT OF A SIMILAR KIND OF VEIN. UM, THIS WAS RAISED TO ME, UM, BY A FEW DIFFERENT PEOPLE AND I THOUGHT WE SHOULD HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT IT, UM, TO SEE IF WE HAVE EVOLVED AS A CITY BEYOND WHERE THIS WAS WHEN IT WAS PUT INTO PLACE IN THE LATE EIGHTIES. WE HAVE DIFFERENT, BETTER MECHANISMS, OR IF THERE'S STILL A POSSIBLE ROLE FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS IN THE CITY. UM, AND I WANTED TO HAVE AN OPEN CONVERSATION WITH STAFF AND, AND OUR COLLEAGUES, UM, TO GET THEIR INPUT. SO, UM, AGAIN, THIS ISN'T FURTHERANCE OF TRYING TO SORT OF CLEAN UP OUR COLLECTIVE ACT AND HOLD PEOPLE ACCOUNTABLE. YOU KNOW, THE PEOPLE WHO ARE DOING A GREAT JOB AT RUNNING THEIR BUSINESSES, UM, YOU KNOW, THAT'S GREAT. WE LOVE IT. BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, THEY, THEY'RE BEING TARRED AND, YOU KNOW, WITH THE SAME BRUSH AS PEOPLE WHO AREN'T. AND I'M TRYING TO GET US COLLECTIVELY AWAY FROM THAT AND HOLD THE BAD ACTORS ACCOUNTABLE. UM, SO THAT'S THE GENESIS BEHIND THIS ITEM. AND I WILL TURN IT OVER TO STAFF. HI AGAIN, STEPHANIE. HI. GOOD MORNING, CHAIR AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS. STEPHANIE NOAH, ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES MANAGER WITH THE CODE COMPLIANCE DEPARTMENT. UM, SO IN THE MEMO, I WAS ABLE TO, UH, PROVIDE THE HISTORY OF, UH, A PREVIOUS NUISANCE ABATEMENT BOARD THAT WE HAD BACK IN 1987 UNTIL 2003, UM, FOR ABATEMENT OF CRIMINAL NUISANCES, UH, ADDRESSED, ADEQUATELY ADDRESSED. UM, AND I HAVE, UH, THE CITY ATTORNEY HERE THAT'S GONNA HELP ME WITH, UH, THIS ITEM. OKAY. CITY ATTORNEY ROTHSTEIN. HI, GOOD MORNING ALL. UH, MADAM CHAIR AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. UM, THIS, UH, WORK, UH, HAND IN HAND WITH, UH, CHIEF DEPUTY ROB ROSENWALD ON, UM, IT WAS DISBAND BACK IN 2003 AS IT WAS FELT AT THAT TIME THAT THERE WERE, UM, OTHER ADEQUATE MEASURES THAT, UH, CAN TAKE PLACE SUCH AS INJUNCTIVE RELIEF. OUR OFFICE AT LEAST, HAS BEEN SUCCESSFUL ON ONE RECENT OCCASION, UH, INVOLVING 1776, UH, BAY DRIVE, WHICH WAS A PARTY HOUSE AND SOME OTHER ACTIVITIES GOING ON IN THE HOUSE. AND WE SUED FOR INJUNCTIVE RELIEF. SO THAT'S ONE AVENUE, AND THAT'S WHAT WAS CITED IN THE MEMO AS THE REASON FOR DISBANDING IT. BUT CERTAINLY IF THIS, UH, COMMISSION HAS AN APPETITE TO GO AHEAD AND REINSTATE IT, IT WOULD BE REINSTATED PRETTY MUCH ON THE SAME MANNER THAT IT WAS INITIALLY CREATED IN 1997. I'M JUST NOT SURE THAT THERE'S A NEED AND NOT DEFERRED TO YOU GUYS, UH, FOR FURTHER DIRECTION. OKAY. SO THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE DOESN'T FEEL THAT THERE'S A NEED AT THIS TIME. UM, I'LL WEIGH IN WITH SOME OF MY OBSERVATIONS. USUALLY THESE KINDS OF BOARDS WHERE RESIDENTS SIT IN JUDGMENT OF EACH OTHER ARE NOT GENERALLY PRODUCTIVE. AND IT WAS DISBANDED FOR A REASON. THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE DOESN'T FEEL IT'S NECESSARY. I'D [00:20:01] LOVE TO HEAR FROM MY COLLEAGUES AND HEAR MORE FROM COMMISSIONER BOT, UH, ON THIS ITEM. COMMISSIONER BOT FIRST? YEAH. COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE. OKAY. UM, THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. I'LL, I'D LIKE TO HEAR FROM THE SPONSORING COMMISSIONER 'CAUSE I, I'LL OF COURSE DEFER TO HER. UH, BUT WITH CITY STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION, UM, YOU KNOW, OF COURSE ANY PLACE IS GOING TO GO THROUGH ITS EBBS AND FLOWS. I DO FEEL AS IF WE'RE IN A MATERIALLY DIFFERENT PLACE AS A CITY THAN WE WERE 18 MONTHS AGO. YOU KNOW, YOU, YOU, YOU DON'T HEAR THAT SCREECHING OF THE TIRES 24 7, THE, THE LOUD KIND OF ANYTHING GOES, UH, CROWD. AND IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE REMAIN FOCUSED ON THAT. UM, AND, AND BE NIMBLE IN THE EVENT THAT THAT STARTS PEAKING ITS HEAD OUT AGAIN. UH, BUT I, YOU KNOW, I, I THINK I'M COMFORTABLE WITH STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO, UH, YOU KNOW, DEFER TO MY COLLEAGUE, UH, THAT'S SPONSORING AND SEE WHERE SHE WANTS TO GO. OKAY. UH, COMMISSIONER, UH, FERNANDEZ. YEAH, SO I JUST HAVE A QUESTION. I'M LOOKING AT THE OLD ORDINANCE FROM 2003 WHEN THE COMMITTEE WAS DISBAND. AND SO A PUBLIC NUISANCE WAS DEEMED ANY PLACE OR PREMISE WITHIN THE CITY THAT MAY BE DECLARED A NUISANCE ACCORDING TO FLORIDA STATUTES, OR THAT HAVE BEEN USED ON MORE THAN TWO OCCASIONS WITHIN A SIX MONTH PERIOD FOR, AND THEN IT LISTS, OH, THERE'S THE DOG THERE THAT IS NOT SAMMY BARKING. . SORRY, THAT WAS ESME. I, THAT WAS ESME. THERE YOU GO. . SHE'S WITH US EVEN WHEN SHE'S NOT WITH US . AND, AND THEN IT LISTS SIX, SIX ITEMS THAT WOULD, UH, CLASSIFY AN ALLOCATION AS A PUBLIC NUISANCE. A SITE OF UNLAWFUL SALE OR DELIVERY OR STORAGE OF CON OF CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES, WHICH, WHICH WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO SHUT DOWN ESTABLISHMENTS FOR THAT IN OUR CITY. FOR EXAMPLE, I RECALL THERE WAS A RESIDENT THAT CALLED TO COMPLAIN ABOUT, UM, AN ESTABLISHMENT ON LINCOLN ROAD, TWO ESTABLISHMENTS ON LINCOLN ROAD, AND THROUGH AN UNDERCOVER INVESTIGATION CODE WAS ABLE TO GO IN, WE SHUT THEM DOWN, WE'VE REVOKED THEIR LICENSES. IN FACT, NOW I THINK, UH, WE, WE SPONSORED A COMMERCIAL LEASE SUBSIDY GRANT FOR A NEW TWO ROSE AND ICE CREAM PLACE IS GONNA BE GOING INTO ONE OF THOSE LOCATIONS. SO THEN ANOTHER CRITERIA IS BY, UH, BY A YOUTH OR CRIMINAL STREET GANG FOR PURPOSE OF CONDUCTING A PATTERN OF YOUTH AND CRIMINAL STREET GANG ACTIVITY, UH, FOR PROSTITUTION OR SOLICITATION OF PROSTITUTION FOR ILLEGAL GAMBLING, FOR ILLEGAL SALE, CONCEPTION OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES, OR FOR DEALING IN STOLEN PROPERTY. MY QUESTION IS THIS, ARE WE STUCK TO THESE TYPES OF ISSUES OR CAN WE CHANGE THE, CAN WE CHANGE WHAT THE VIOLATIONS ARE? IT, DOES THE STATE MANDATE WHAT THESE VIOLATIONS ARE? YES. IT GOES THROUGH BACK TO THE CHAPTERS THAT ARE CITED RIGHT IN THE PARAGRAPH RIGHT ABOVE THAT FLORIDA STATUTE 8 23 0.0 5 8, 23 POINT 10. AND DOES THE FLORIDA STATUTE ALLOW OTHER VIOLATIONS THAT ARE NOT INCLUDED HERE? I WOULD'VE TO GO BACK AND DOUBLE CHECK, BUT I DON'T THINK THAT THE LIST IS ALL INCLUSIVE, BUT IT IS LIMITED TO CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES. AND, UH, ONE THAT'S NOT MENTIONED IS LIKE ROW HOUSES. BUT THE BUILDING OFFICIAL CERTAINLY HAS THE AUTHORITY UNDER MIAMI-DADE CHAPTER, UH, EIGHT, FIVE OR 11 TO GO BEFORE THE MIAMI-DADE COUNTY BOARD TO SHUT DOWN A GROW HOUSE. UH, BUT IF AN ESTABLISHMENT IS DEEMED TO, OR IS FOUND TO, YOU KNOW, BE A NUISANCE IN OUR COMMUNITY, LET'S SAY WHILE YOU COULD GO THROUGH, YOU KNOW, THAT COUNTY PROCESS, WOULD THIS BE A MORE EFFICIENT PROCESS? WELL, RIGHT NOW WE HAVE SUSPENSION OF BTRS AND SHUTTING DOWN BUSINESSES. SO, FOR EXAMPLE, THE ILLEGAL GAMBLING, WE'VE HAD SEVERAL OF THOSE TYPE OF MACHINES, UH, FOUND IN VARIOUS AREAS OF NORTH BEACH AND, UM, SOUTH BEACH, THAT POLICE GOES IN WITH CODE AND THEN EVENTUALLY THEY GET SHUT DOWN. AND SO, SO WHY AFTER THAT'S A FASTER PATH THAN GOING THROUGH A NUISANCE ABATEMENT BOARD, HAVING, UM, YOU KNOW, CONVENE A BOARD, UM, FUND THE BOARD, UM, STAFF THE BOARD AND DO OTHER THINGS LIKE THAT. IT'S LIKE, FOR EXAMPLE, I KNOW, I, I RECALL, I BELIEVE MY MIAMI-DADE COUNTY MIGHT HAVE A NUISANCE ABATEMENT BOARD. CITY OF FORT LAUDERDALE DEFINITELY DOES. 'CAUSE I, CITY, CITY OF FORT LAUDERDALE. AND SO WHAT TYPE OF ISSUES, UH, DO THEY CRIMINAL SIM UH, CRIMINAL ONES THAT ARE ENUM ENUMERATED IN THE STATUTE? AND SO, AND SO, YOU KNOW, LIKE FOR EXAMPLE, WE'VE HEARD OF HISTORICALLY OF ESTABLISHMENTS, YOU KNOW, CERTAIN ESTABLISHMENTS ON CERTAIN COMMERCIAL CORRIDORS THAT, YOU KNOW, HAVE BEEN KNOWN TO BE A PLACE THAT, YOU KNOW, MIGHT ATTRACT GANG ACTIVITY, FOR EXAMPLE, MIGHT ATTRACT DRUG ACTIVITY. HOW, YOU KNOW, IF, IF WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO SHUT THEM DOWN NOW WITHOUT A NUISANCE ABATEMENT BOARD, WHY HAVEN'T WE BEEN ABLE TO, [00:25:04] UH, IT GOES CASE BY CASE. I MEAN, AS FAR AS I KNOW, EVERY TIME THAT THERE IS AN ISSUE WITH, UM, LIKE ILLEGAL GAMBLING, I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH GANGS. I'M NOT THAT IN, IN, INVOLVED IN ANYTHING OR, OR CURRENTLY PENDING THAT I'M AWARE OF THAT HAS GANG ACTIVITIES. BUT CERTAINLY THE GAMBLING MACHINES HAVE BEEN THE MOST RECENT ONES AND THE ONES . BUT I, BUT I THINK LIKE, BUT I THINK WE ALL KNOW, LIKE THERE'S CERTAIN ESTABLISHMENTS THAT WE'VE SEEN HISTORICALLY ON CERTAIN CORRIDORS THAT I DON'T WANNA NAME OUT. AND CERTAIN ESTABLISHMENTS THAT COME TO MIND THAT I DON'T NECESSARILY WANNA NAME OUT BECAUSE I DON'T WANNA PUT ANYONE ON THE SPOT. BUT THAT, YOU KNOW, IT IS JUST COMMON KNOWLEDGE. YOU KNOW, I WOULDN'T GO THERE JUST BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST KIND OF LIKE COMMON KNOWLEDGE. IT'S, IT'S, YOU KNOW, THERE'S PROBABLY DRUG ACTIVITY BEING DEALT THERE. THERE'S PROBABLY GANG ACTIVITY BEING, BEING, BEING DEALT THERE. AND THERE ARE AREAS WHERE WE'VE, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE AREAS OF THE CITY THAT WE'VE HIGHLIGHTED IN THE PAST AS NEEDING MORE POLICE VISIBILITY BECAUSE OF THE ACTIVITY GOING ON IN THESE COMMERCIALS AR COMMERCIAL AREAS. IT'S WHY WE'VE DEEMED CERTAIN BUSINESSES AS NUISANCE BUSINESSES. AND IT'S WHY THEN WE'VE CREATED THESE INCENTIVES TO REPLACE THESE NUISANCE BUSINESSES. BUT, YOU KNOW, EVEN WHEN WE DO DO THESE, UH, LEGISLATIONS TO DECLARE ESTABLISHMENTS AS NUISANCE BUSINESSES, YOU KNOW, THEY BECOME LEGAL NON-CONFORMING ESTABLISHMENTS. YOU KNOW, WOULDN'T THIS BE AN AVENUE TO HELP US WEED OUT SOME OF THESE PROBLEM ESTABLISHMENTS? IT WOULD BE, BUT WE ALSO HAVE A CIVIL FORFEITURE STATE STATUTE THAT OUR OFFICE PROSECUTES ON FORFEITURES IF THERE IS, UM, ILLEGAL ACTIVITY GOING ON IN, IN AN ESTABLISHMENT. SO WE'VE DONE THAT WITH HOMES, WE'VE DONE THAT WITH BUSINESSES. SO THERE ARE OTHER AVENUES. SO THE QUESTION JUST BECOMES, HOW, HOW DO YOU WANT THE CITY TO PROSECUTE THESE TYPE OF, UM, UNDER, UM, ACTIVITIES, WHETHER IT THROUGH CIVIL COURT, UM, CIRCUIT COURT, OR WHETHER IT BE THROUGH A NUISANCE ABATEMENT BOARD, THE MANAGER HAS THE AUTHORITY TO SUSPEND OR REVOKE LICENSES. SO IT'S REALLY JUST THE DIRECTION THAT THIS COMMISSION CHOOSES. KEEPING IN MIND THAT ALMOST A QUARTER OF CENTURY AGO, IT WAS DISBAND. YEAH. THANK YOU, MR. MR. ROTHSTEIN. OTHER, OTHER JURISDICTIONS ARE USING IT. I, IF I WERE A VOTING MEMBER OF THE COMMITTEE, I WOULD BE INCLINED TO TO, TO, TO SUPPORT IT BECAUSE WE DON'T LOSE ANYTHING TESTING ANOTHER TOOL. SO IT'S BETTER TO HAVE MORE TOOLS IN THE TOOLBOX. 'CAUSE IT DOESN'T TAKE AWAY, FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, ANY AUTHORITY OR ANY ABILITY TO FOLLOW ANY OTHER PROCESS. IT'S JUST AN ADDITIONAL TOOL IN THE TOOLBOX TO GO AFTER PROBLEM ESTABLISHMENTS. THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. UH, COMMISSIONER ROSE GONZALEZ. UH, I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS. WILL THIS ALLEVIATE SOME OF THE STRAIN ON, UM, THE SPECIAL MASTER? NO, BECAUSE THE SPECIAL MAGISTRATE DOESN'T DEAL WITH CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES. IT'S CIVIL INFRACTIONS CRIMINAL. OKAY. SO CIVIL AND CRIMINAL. AND COMMISSIONER BOT, MY QUESTION TO YOU WAS, UH, WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO RECONSTITUTE THIS BOARD? JUST SO THAT I UNDERSTAND WHERE IT'S COMING FROM, IAN? UM, MY GOAL IS TO, AND I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS THE RIGHT VEHICLE TO DO IT, BUT IT WAS SUGGESTED AS A POSSIBLE OPTION. UM, I, MY GOAL IS TO TRY TO, I MEAN, WE HAVE LOTS OF DIFFERENT AVENUES, BUT FOR INSTANCE, WHEN I ASK FOLKS ABOUT A PARTICULAR ESTABLISHMENT THAT IS KNOWN TO DEAL DRUGS, THE ANSWER IS, WELL, WE HAVE TO DO AN UNDERCOVER STING OPERATION AND THAT, AND THEN WE CAN'T DO ANYTHING UNLESS WE CATCH 'EM IN THE ACT. OR, YOU KNOW, AND THEY KNOW WE'RE COMING. AND SO IT, IT'S REALLY IMPOSSIBLE. AND I KNOW THERE ARE PLACES LIKE THAT, THAT HAVE BEEN OPEN FOR YEARS IN SOUTH BEACH AND NORTH BEACH. AND SO I, YOU KNOW, IF, IF THERE IS ANOTHER TOOL AVAILABLE TO US IN THE TOOLKIT, UM, THAT CAN LAYER ON TO WHAT WE'RE ALREADY DOING, THAT MAYBE, UM, IS JUST A DIFFERENT ANGLE OF A, OF ATTACK TO TRY TO CLEAN THINGS UP. I THOUGHT IT WAS WORTH HAVING A DISCUSSION ABOUT. UM, AND, AND YOU KNOW, MAYBE THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO, UM, YOU KNOW, TALK TO THE FOLKS IN FORT LAUDERDALE AND GET A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF HOW THEY'RE USING IT EFFICACIOUS. I MEAN, THEY'RE NOT, UH, A CITY TO SQUANDER THEIR RESOURCES EITHER. UM, I, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S, I'M SURE THERE'S SOMEBODY FROM THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, UM, UM, IN CHAMBERS WHO MIGHT BE ABLE TO, TO GIVE THEIR THOUGHTS ON THIS. UM, WOULD IT HELP TO, TO HAVE, UM, AN A AN ADDITIONAL AVENUE ADDITIONAL RECOURSE TO PURSUE SOME OF THE, UM, SORT OF LONG-TERM CONSTANT, UM, OFFENDERS? A FEW MORE QUESTIONS. WE, AND WHO WOULD SIT ON THIS BOARD? JUST SO THAT I UNDERSTAND THE CONSTITUTION OF IT? I'M TRYING TO FIND THAT HERE, BUT I DON'T SEE IT. SURE. I BELIEVE IT'S APPOINTED BY THE COMMISSION. [00:30:01] UM, I CAN'T FIND MY GLASSES. SO HOLD UP. SO WE EACH GET AN APPOINTEE. OH, SO IT'S RESIDENCE. IT'S RESIDENCE. UM, IT WAS, LET'S SEE, APPOINTMENTS TO THE BOARD, UM, SHELBY FOR TWO YEARS, ANY MEMBER MAY BE APPOINTED BY THE CITY COMMISSION FOR NOT MORE THAN THREE CONSECUTIVE TERMS APPOINTMENTS TO FILL A VACANCY SHALL BE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE UNEXPIRED TERM. ANY MEMBER WHO FAILS TO ATTEND TWO OR THREE SUCCESSIVE MEETINGS WITHOUT CAUSE AND WITHOUT PRIOR APPROVAL OF THE CHAIRMAN, SHALL AUTOMATICALLY FORFEIT HIS APPOINTMENT. AND THE CITY COMMISSION SHALL PROPERLY FILL SUCH VACANCY FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE TERM. SO IT'S APPOINTED BY THE CITY COMMISSION. SO IT WOULD BE RESIDENTS ON THE BOARD THAT ARE LOOKING AT THESE ESTABLISHMENTS THAT HAVE SEVERAL VIOLATIONS THAT RIGHT. AND THEY WOULD HAVE THE POWER TO SHUT THEM DOWN. UH, YES. YOU KNOW, ON ONE HAND IT DOES TAKE THE ONUS AWAY FROM CODE WHO ARE OFFICERS ARE OUT THERE , WHO MIGHT NOT WANNA SHUT THEM DOWN. MM-HMM . LOOK, WE HAVE SO MANY BOARDS IN THE CITY RIGHT NOW. I FEEL LIKE EVERY SINGLE AGENDA HAS MORE AND MORE AND MORE BOARDS. AND I DO KNOW THAT IT TAXES THE ADMINISTRATION. ON THE OTHER HAND, I'M NOT OPPOSED TO THIS TYPE OF BOARD BECAUSE I DO THINK THAT THERE'S CERTAIN ESTABLISHMENTS THAT WE COULD BE MORE PROACTIVE ABOUT SHUTTING DOWN. SO I'M, I'M, I'M NOT OPPOSED TO A NUISANCE ABATEMENT BOARD. I MEAN, THIS WOULD BE SHIFT THIS, WE SHIFT THE ONUS TO THE RESIDENTS. THE QUESTION IS, WILL THE RESIDENTS, ARE THEY GONNA FEEL SO PRESSURED TO, YOU KNOW, SHUT DOWN THESE ESTABLISHMENT OR OVER YEAH. I, I JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN WITH THAT, WITH THAT BOARD. SO THAT BOARD IS COMPRISED OF RESIDENTS WHO ARE MAKING DECISIONS ON OUR CODE TO SHUT DOWN BASIC BUSINESSES. AND, AND THE LIAISON TO THAT IS CODE COMPLIANCE IS GONNA SERVE ON THE BO BOARD, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT TOO. I MEAN, WHO, STEVE, WOULD YOU BE IN CHARGE OF THIS BOARD? THAT WOULD BE UP TO MY BOSS. . I, I, UM, THROUGH THE, I'M SORRY. I'M SORRY, KRISTEN, I THOUGHT YOU WERE DOWN. NO, I I, I'D LIKE TO HEAR WHAT YOU GUYS HAVE TO SAY. I, I DON'T HAVE A SUGGESTION AT THE RIGHT TIME. MM-HMM . COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ. YOU KNOW, JUST AS A SUGGESTION, IT MIGHT BE HELPFUL BECAUSE I, I LIKE THE IDEA OF THIS, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I SEE HERE, YOU KNOW, WITH, WITH CODE COMPLIANCE AND WITH, ONCE SOMETHING GOES TO, UM, TO THE SPECIAL MASTER, IT, IT ALL INITIATES WITH THERE BEING A VIOLATION. WITH THIS, THE PROCEDURE FOR ABATEMENT, IT COMMENCES WITH AN EMPLOYEE AND OFFICER, OR A RESIDENT WHO FILES A COMPLAINT OR REQUEST FOR PER FOR PROSECUTION WITH A CITY'S NUISANCE ABATEMENT BOARD REQUIRE REGARDING THE EXISTENCE ON PREMISE, ON PREMISES LOCATED IN THE CITY OF, OF A PUBLIC NUISANCE. SO IT, IT INITIATES AT THE TIME, BACK IN 2003, IT INITIATED WITH A COMPLAINT THAT COULD BE FILED BY THE RESIDENT. SO IT'S NOT SOLELY RELIANT ON, ON CODE ISSUING A VIOLATION AND SOMETHING GOING BEFORE THE, THE SPECIAL MASTER, WHICH I THINK WE SHOULD TEST. 'CAUSE I THINK A LOT OF TIMES THE FRUSTRATION THAT WE GET FROM OUR RESIDENTS IS THAT THEY'RE EXPERIENCING NUISANCES, THEY'RE WITNESSING THEM, THEY'RE CALLING THEM IN, THEY'RE ISSUING VIOLATIONS, AND THEN THE VIOLATIONS, YOU KNOW, GOT EASILY, YOU KNOW, MITIGATED DOWN. THEY GET, YOU KNOW, WAIVED, WHATEVER IT MAY BE. AND THE NUISANCE PERSISTS. AND SOMETIMES THE VIOLATION BECOMES A COST OF DOING BUSINESS. AND SO, YOU KNOW, TO THE EXTENT THAT PERHAPS COMMISSIONER BOND AS THE SPONSOR OF THE ITEM, YOU MAY WANT TO CONSIDER PUTTING TOGETHER DRAFT LEGISLATION OF WHAT THIS NEWLY RECONSTITUTED, UH, ABATEMENT BOARD WOULD LOOK LIKE. IT MIGHT BE PERHAPS IN THE INTEREST OF THE ITEM TO CONTINUE THE ITEM, TO GIVE THE SPONSOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO PUT TOGETHER DRAFT LEGISLATION OF WHAT THIS NEW, NEW, MORE, UH, MORE, MORE MODERN VERSION OF THIS, OF THIS BOARD WOULD LOOK LIKE. SO THAT PERHAPS THE COMMITTEE COULD CONSIDER THAT. JUST A SUGGESTION. THANK YOU. OKAY. UM, VICE MAYOR BOT, UH, WOULD YOU CONSIDER CONTINUING THIS TO THE MARCH 12TH MEETING? YEAH, I, I ABSOLUTELY WOULD. UM, I WILL ALSO REACH OUT TO FORT LAUDERDALE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HOW THEY'RE DOING IT AND WHAT THEIR, UM, PARAMETERS ARE. I WANTED TO POINT OUT TO EVERYBODY, UM, THAT IN THE, THERE ARE TWO THINGS I WANTED TO POINT OUT. ONE WAS A LITTLE BIT AMUSING THAT THE FINES, UM, FROM THE BOARD [00:35:01] THAT WAS CONSTITUTED IN 87 AND DISBANDED IN 2003 ARE BASICALLY APPROXIMATELY, UH, WHERE THE FINES ARE TODAY. SO I THOUGHT THAT WAS AMUSING. UM, SLIGHTLY DISHEARTENING, BUT AMUSING. UM, DO YOU THINK THE MORE SERIOUS THING IS THAT UNDER SECTION 72, 3 2 CONDUCT OF HEARINGS, THERE IS VERY CLEAR OUTLINING THAT THIS IS NOT GOING TO BE A GOTCHA BOARD. THIS IS GOING TO BE A BOARD CONDUCTED WITH DUE PROCESS, WITH PARTIES HAVING AN OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT EVIDENCE AND ARGUMENT ON ALL ISSUES INVOLVED TO CONDUCT CROSS THE EXAMINATION, SUBMIT REBUTTAL EVIDENCE, NEED BE REPRESENTED BY COUNSEL. UM, SO OF, YOU KNOW, IT'S GONNA BE LESS, UM, IGUANA REMEDIATION AND MORE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENTS IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, THE SERIOUSNESS AND, AND, UM, THE, THE RESPONSIBILITY, UM, OF, OF THE BOARD. AND I DO AGREE WITH MY COLLEAGUES THE CONCERN OF THE PROLIFERATION OF BOARDS AND, AND COMMITTEES AND ALL THAT. BUT I THINK IF THERE IS SOMETHING WHERE WE HAVE ANOTHER AVENUE TO DEAL WITH, UM, NUISANCE BUSINESSES OR BAD ACTORS WHO JUST PROCESS THEIR FINES AS, YOU KNOW, UM, COST OF DOING BUSINESS WHERE THEY DON'T REALLY CARE OR THEY DON'T UNDERSTAND THE PROCESS WELL ENOUGH TO EVEN KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON. THIS IS ANOTHER AVENUE TO DO BETTER BY OUR RESIDENTS. AND NOBODY KNOWS THEIR BE THEIR NEIGHBORHOODS BETTER THAN THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS WHO WALK THE STREETS EVERY DAY WITH THEIR KIDS OR THEIR PARENTS OR THEIR DOGS, OR GOING TO AND FROM WORK OR WHATEVER. UM, AND SO THERE ARE THINGS THAT EVEN THOUGH OUR, OUR CODE ENFORCEMENT AND POLICE DEPARTMENT ARE LOOKING OUT FOR, YOU KNOW, THEY DON'T LIVE THERE AND THEY DON'T SEE IT ALL THE TIME. AND OUR RESIDENTS CAN, UM, ELEVATE CONCERNS. AND THE GOAL IS NOT TO SHUT PEOPLE DOWN. THE GOAL IS TO GET THEM TO CLEAN THEIR ACT UP. WE DON'T WANNA PUT PEOPLE OUTTA BUSINESS, WE WANT PEOPLE TO DO BUSINESS CONFORMING TO THE LAWS LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE DOES. IT'S NOT THAT COMPLICATED. UM, SO THAT'S WHY I WANNA CONTINUE THIS, UM, THIS INQUIRY. I'M HAPPY TO CONTINUE IT TO MARCH AND, UH, I APPRECIATE THE SUPPORT FROM MY COLLEAGUES. OKAY. THANK YOU. AND NOW LET'S MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER THREE. [3. DISCUSS A PROPOSED ORDINANCE TO REQUIRE NOTICE TO NEIGHBORS OF IMPENDING TRAPPING AND EXTERMINATION SERVICES] OKAY. ITEM NUMBER THREE IS DISCUSS A PROPOSED ORDINANCE TO REQUIRE NOTICE TO NEIGHBORS OF IMPINGING, TRAPPING AND EXTERMINATION SERVICES. AND THIS RESPONDED BY COMMISSIONER ROSE GONZALEZ. OKAY. THE REASON WHY I BROUGHT FORWARD THIS DRAFT ORDINANCE IS BECAUSE, UM, THERE WAS AN ANIMAL TRAPPER IN MAYOR DAD'S NEIGHBORHOOD. I DON'T KNOW IF HE CALLED ALL EACH OF YOU TO LET YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENED, BUT WHILE THEY WERE TRAPPING AN ANIMAL, THEY TOOK SOMEONE'S CAT AND RELOCATED THE CAT. AND THE PERSON WAS DEVASTATED BECAUSE THEY TOOK THE WRONG ANIMAL. SO HE SAID, WHAT COULD WE POSSIBLY DO TO PREVENT SOMETHING LIKE THAT FROM HAPPENING AGAIN? SO THAT IS WHY THIS CAME UP, WHICH IS A ALLOWING NOTICE. AND I KNOW THAT THIS KIND OF, IT'S A COMPANION ITEM TO, TO THE ONE THAT I HAD. I'M FULLY SUPPORTIVE TO YOURS. I, I WOULD HATE FOR IF SOMEBODY STOLE MY CAT, I'D BE DEVASTATED OR MY, OR TRAPPED MY CAT BY MISTAKE OR, YOU KNOW, SO I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THESE COMPANIES COMING OUT AND JUST, THEY'RE GONNA HAVE TO REGISTER WITH THE CITY. WHAT IT SAYS HERE IS, ALL OWNERS OF HOUSES AND BUILDINGS WITHIN THE CITY SHALL PROVIDE NOTICE BY HAND DELIVERY OR US MAIL TO EVERY RESIDENCE WITHIN 500 FEET THREE DAYS PRIOR TO ANY PLANNED ANIMAL TRAPPING, TRAPPING, SO THAT THEY CAN PROTECT THEIR ANIMALS. I, I THINK IT'S BENIGN ENOUGH. IT ALLOWS FOR NOTICE SO THAT PEOPLE CAN KEEP THEIR ANIMALS INDOORS SO THAT THEY DON'T GET TRAPPED UNNECESSARILY OR STOLEN. APPARENTLY THE, THE CAP WAS TAKEN AND PLACED SOMEPLACE IN WYNWOOD OR SOMETHING, AND, AND, AND MAYOR DO'S, UM, PARTNER WAS SEARCHING FOR HER CAP FOR DAY. SHE STILL HASN'T RECOVERED FROM LOSING HER CAT. SO, UM, IF, IF YOU ARE SUPPORTIVE OF THIS, UM, THEN I WOULD JUST MOVE THE ITEM. OKAY. I'LL SECOND COMMISSION. YOU KNOW, WE COULD ADD THIS, WE SHOULD REALLY COLLAPSE THIS INTO YOUR ITEM AND JUST MAKE IT, WELL, I GUESS THEY'RE, THEY'RE COMPANIONS, BUT NOT, YEAH, IT'S FINE. IT'S FINE. OKAY. ALRIGHT. SO, UH, COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE, ARE YOU SUPPORTIVE? YEAH, OF COURSE. OKAY. SO WE'LL UH, MOVE THE ITEM TO THE FULL COMMISSION AND THEN WE WILL GO ON TO NUMBER FOUR. [4. DISCUSS AND TAKE ACTION ON THE DYING TREE POPULATION IN NORTH BEACH OCEAN SIDE PARK] ITEM NUMBER FOUR IS DISCUSS, TAKE ACTION ON THE DYING TREE POPULATION IN NORTH BEACH OCEAN SIDE PARK. OKAY. COMMISSIONER ROSA GONZALEZ GONZALEZ. OKAY. SO THIS ITEM WAS BROUGHT TO MY ATTENTION BY ELIZABETH LATON, WHO, AND SEVERAL OTHER PEOPLE ACTUALLY, UH, ALONG BEACH WALK. WE PLANTED TREES THAT THEN SUMMARILY ALL DIED, UH, WHICH IS VERY SAD. I DON'T KNOW WHY THEY DIED. I DON'T KNOW IF THEY WERE WATER, BUT WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO ABOUT THE, THE DEAD TREES? 'CAUSE SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE TEXTED ME, PICTURES OF THEM. GOOD MORNING, MADAM CHAIR COMMISSIONERS LINDSAY PRACTICE, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY DEPARTMENT. THE [00:40:01] NORTH BEACH OCEANSIDE PARK RENOVATION INCLUDED THE INSTALLATION OF BEACH WALK TREES AND THAT WAS REVIEWED BY CITY STAFF, UH, UPON PROJECT CLOSEOUT AT THE ONE YEAR MARK. SINCE THE PROJECT CLOSEOUT, MANY NEWER, UH, UH, BEACH WALK TREES THAT WERE INSTALLED HAVE NOT EXPERIENCED SUSTAINED GROWTH AS A REACTION TO THE CONSTANT SALT SPRAY THAT THEY EXPERIENCE BEING SO NEAR THE OCEAN. IT'S ALSO COUPLED WITH THE DUNES HOT AND DRY ENVIRONMENT. MANY OF THESE TREES HAVE EITHER DIED OR EXHIBIT MODERATE TO SEVERE SYMPTOMS OF DECLINE AS A NATURAL DEMARCATION LINE WHERE THE MOST VULNERABLE TREES RECEIVE CLOSE DIRECT SALT SPRAY. UM, THEY'RE ALSO NOT PROTECTED BY LARGER SEA GRAPES IN SOME OF THESE AREAS, OR THE HIGHER ELEVATION OF THE DUNE SYSTEM WITHOUT NATURAL PROTECTION, GUMBO, LIMBOS AND PIGEON PLUMS HAVE EXPERIENCED THE MOST SIGNIFICANT SIGNS OF DECLINE. THE ONLY SPECIES BESIDES SEA GRAPES THAT APPEAR COMPLETELY UNAFFECTED ARE THE SILVER BUTTON WOOD. URBAN FORESTRY HAS BEEN MONITORING THIS ITEM CLOSELY WITH THE PARKS AND RECREATION AND PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENTS. UM, AND THE CITY HAS REMOVED SEVERAL DEAD TREES IN THE INTERVENING YEARS SINCE PROJECT CLOSEOUT. UM, THE FIRST GROUPING OF TREES THAT WERE REMOVED WERE 38 TREES IN OCTOBER OF 2024. AND THEN STAFF ALSO DID AN, UH, SECONDARY INSPECTION IN NOVEMBER OF 2024 WERE 38. TREES WERE REMOVED ALONG THE EAST SIDE OF THE BEACH WALK IN THAT EVENT, AND 13 TREES ALONG THE PARK SIDE AS WELL. UM, A MULTI-DEPARTMENTAL WALKTHROUGH WAS ALSO CONDUCTED WITH VICE MAYOR B IN MID-DECEMBER, ONCE MOST OF THOSE TREES HAD BEEN MARKED AND REMOVED BY THE CITY CONTRACTORS. ACCORDING TO THE URBAN FORESTRY PERMIT, 376 TREES WERE INSTALLED UNDER THAT PERMIT ALONG THE BEACH WALK. AND THE SURVIVAL RATE OF THOSE TREES IS 300 OVER 376, WHICH IS 80%, UM, FOR THE TREES CLOSEST, UM, TO THE BEACH WALK IN THAT AREA. THE NEXT SCHEDULED EVALUATION FOR THESE TREES WILL BE THE END OF THE RAIN OR THE END OF THE DRY SEASON RIGHT BEFORE THE RAINY SEASON BECAUSE WE DO EXPECT SOME OF THESE TREES TO REBOUND AND HAVE NEWER GROWTH WITHIN THESE COMING MONTHS. UM, HOWEVER, AS OF RIGHT NOW THERE ARE 180 TREES THAT ARE CURRENTLY DEFOLIATED WITH APPROXIMATELY 70% LEAF LOSS, BUT NO OTHER SYMPTOMS OR COMORBIDITIES. SO THOSE TREES WILL BE, UM, THE MAIN SUBJECT OF THAT REINSPECTION IN MAY OR JUNE. UM, STAFF OBSERVATIONS AS A PART OF THESE INSPECTIONS AND GOING BACK OUT OVER THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS, INCLUDING USING SEA GRAPES AND SILVER BUTTONWOOD AS, UH, PROTECTIVE SPECIES TO PROTECT, UH, PROTECT SOME OF THESE LESS HARDY TREES LIKE GUMBO, LIMBOS, PIGEON PLUMS. UM, WE CAN ALSO USE THESE TREES AS BARRIER TREES. UM, CLUMP THEM CLOSER TOGETHER. INSTALL SMALLER, YOUNGER TREES THAT ARE MORE ABLE TO ADAPT AND ACCLIMATE. UM, MANY TREES IF THEY'RE INSTALLED AT OLDER OR MATURE, UH, AGE, THEY'RE USED TO BEING NURSERY STOCK AND THEY'RE NOT ACCUSTOMED TO THESE HARSH ENVIRONMENTS. UM, AND THEN WE ALSO RECOMMEND LONGER WATERING AND ESTABLISHMENT PERIODS FOR THESE TREES, UM, BECAUSE AGAIN, IT IS A VERY HARSH ENVIRONMENT. UH, WE WILL ALSO BE REVIEWING THE SOUTH BEACH TREE POPULATION ALONG THE BEACH WALK THAT DOES APPEAR TO BE DOING WELL TO TAKE SOME OF THOSE LESSONS LEARNED. SO 70% OF THE TREES HAVE LOST THEIR LEAVES APART FROM THE 76 THAT ARE DEAD. IT'S, UM, WHICH WOULD BE LIKE A 70% DEATH RATE. SO IT'S 180 TREES THAT HAVE APPROXIMATELY 70% OR MORE DEFOLIATION. THAT IS ABOUT 50% OF THE TOTAL TREES . OKAY. SO, UM, OBVIOUSLY WE PLANTED THE WRONG TREES. UM, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO PROBABLY REMOVE THEM. I KNOW YOU WANNA WAIT. UM, HOW LONG DO YOU WANNA WAIT BEFORE YOU REMOVE THE 50% THAT THAT DIED? WE'RE WAITING TO DO ANOTHER EVALUATION AT THE END OF THE DRY SEASON RIGHT BEFORE RAINY SEASON. IS THE LANDSCAPER AT ALL RESPONSIBLE FOR PLANTING THESE TREES THAT THEN DIE? THEY WERE ALL HEALTHY AT THE ONE YEAR PROJECT CLOSEOUT. SO EVERYTHING AT THE WARRANTY PHASE, UM, WAS AT THE APPROPRIATE HEALTH. AND WHO MADE THE DECISION TO PLANT THAT TYPE OF TREE THAT THEN DIED? 'CAUSE THIS WAS A HUGE INVESTMENT ON PAPER. THESE TREES SHOULD HAVE DONE WELL. ALL OF THE LITERATURE ON THE SPECIES THAT WERE SELECTED SHOW THAT THEY DO WELL IN HARSH ENVIRONMENTS. UM, BUT THE, IN THIS AREA, THEY PARTICULARLY WERE NOT PROTECTED BY SEA GRAPES AND SHOWED A DECLINE. AND WHAT WAS THE COST? I JUST WANNA, LET ME FINISH MY, MY QUESTIONS AND THEN WE'LL MOVE ON. NO. OKAY. WHAT WAS THE COST OF PLANTING? UM, ALL OF THOSE TREES? THAT WAS A CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT, SO I DO NOT HAVE THAT NUMBER IN FRONT OF ME. I CAN DEFINITELY LOOK IT UP AND BRING THAT BACK. THIS WAS PROBABLY LIKE A MILLION DOLLAR MISTAKE, . UM, I'M NOT LAUGHING ABOUT IT. IT'S, I WOULDN'T CALL IT A MISTAKE BECAUSE ON PAPER THE TREES SHOULD HAVE DONE WELL AND WITH CLIMATE, UH, DIFFERENT THINGS CAN HAPPEN WITH PLANT LIFE. UM, ON PAPER, THE PLANTS IN MY BALCONY SHOULD DO WELL, BUT I'M A BLACK THUMB AND THEY DON'T, SO I MEAN, THINGS HAPPEN. OKAY. UM, WELL WE KNOW [00:45:01] THAT THE SEA GRAPES GROW THERE. WELL, UM, WHAT I'D LIKE, I'D LIKE TO HEAR FROM, FROM ALL OF YOU ABOUT WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO. I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY WE HAVE TO WAIT A FEW MONTHS. YOU'RE RECOMMENDING WAIT A COUPLE OF MONTHS TILL LIKE WHAT, IN APRIL? THAT'S FOR THE NEXT INSPECTION. SO THE DRY SEASON CONCLUDES AT THE MAY OR JUNE PERIOD. SO WE WOULD GO BACK OUT AT THAT TIME. THIS ITEM, UH, THERE'S A SIMILAR ITEM THAT THE LAND USE AND SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE WHERE WE ARE PROVIDING MONTHLY UPDATES ON THE GEO BOND REFORESTATION. AND WE'RE INCLUDING THIS UPDATE AND THAT UPDATE AS WELL. UM, WE'RE ALSO HAPPY TO PROVIDE AN LTC ONCE WE COMPLETE THAT INSPECTION ON WHAT WAS FOUND. CAN YOU, DO THEY HAVE WATERING MECHANISMS OR WERE YOU JUST HOPING THAT THEY WOULD, YOU KNOW, THRIVE? IT DEPENDS ON THE AREA WHERE THEY WERE INSTALLED ALONG THE JUNE SIDE, YOU WANT THAT AREA TO BE AS NATURAL AS POSSIBLE. UM, SO THAT SIDE DID NOT INCLUDE WATERING THE TREES ON THE PARK SIDE DID INCLUDE A SPRINKLER SYSTEM. SO THE TREES ON THE PARK SIDE THAT WERE WATERED, DID THEY SURVIVE? MOST OF THEM, YES, THEY DID HAVE TREES THAT ALSO EXPERIENCED DECLINE. UM, MOST RECENTLY IN THAT NOVEMBER INSPECTION, 13 OF THE TREES ON THE PARKSIDE WERE REMOVED. SO IT'S PRETTY MUCH A QUESTION OF WATER, RIGHT? BECAUSE ONLY 13 TREES ON THE PARKSIDE WERE REMOVED VERSUS, I DON'T KNOW, 60 SOMETHING. THAT'S THAT'S ONE OF 'EM. UM, THEY ARE ALSO FARTHER AWAY FROM THE OCEAN ENVIRONMENT. THEY'RE MORE PROTECTED BY ADDITIONAL TREES. UM, SO IT'S, IT'S MULTIPLE, UH, ISSUES. OKAY. AS YOU KNOW, MANY PEOPLE HAVE COMPLAINED ABOUT THIS. YES. I KNOW THAT YOU MENTIONED THAT COMMISSIONER BOTT ONE. YEAH. VICE MAYOR BOTT IS ONLINE READY TO SPEAK. OKAY. YEAH. SO, UM, YOU KNOW, LET'S JUST, UM, REMEMBER THAT THE 70 TREES THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT REINSPECTING, UM, AT THE END OF THE, THE DRY SEASON ARE DEFOLIATED, BUT ARE NOT DEAD NECESSARILY. AND SO LET'S NOT BURY THEM BEFORE THEY'VE DIED. TO QUOTE A MONTY PYTHON LINE FROM ONE OF MY FAVORITE MOVIES, I'M NOT DEAD YET, . SO, UM, THAT'S, AND THAT'S FROM THE HOLY GRAIL IF ANYBODY WANTS TO PICK IT UP. UM, BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, SO THESE, THESE TREES, LOOK, THEY'RE, THEY'RE GENERALLY HEARTY AND HOPEFULLY THESE LITTLE GUYS WILL BE BOUND. THIS IS A VERY COMPLEX PLANTING ENVIRONMENT. UM, UH, IT IS A LESSON. YOU KNOW, LESSONS ARE LEARNED. UM, I THINK THE SUGGESTIONS THAT ARE MADE ABOUT, UM, HOW TO GROUP TREES, HOW TO BRING IN YOUNGER TREES, UM, TO, TO PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING IN THE FUTURE IS, UM, IS EXACTLY WHAT WE NEED TO KNOW. IT'S A SHAME WE DIDN'T KNOW IT COMING IN, AND THAT'S A DIFFERENT CONVERSATION FOR A DIFFERENT TIME. UM, UM, BUT, BUT YOU KNOW, WE TALK CONSTANTLY ABOUT, UM, THE FACT THAT WE ARE A HEAT ISLAND AND, AND WE HAVE HEAT ISLANDS WITHIN OUR HEAT ISLAND. AND THE IDEA OF MAKING SURE THAT WE PROTECT OUR NATURAL, UH, ENVIRONMENT AND PROVIDE ADDITIONAL SHADE WITHOUT, UM, BLOCKING VIEWS AND WITHOUT CHANGING THE, THE COMPLEXION OF, OF WHAT THE BEACH WALK LOOKS LIKE, UM, IS A VERY VALID AND WORTHY AND NECESSARY GOAL. UM, WE HAVE HAD POCKETS OF SUCCESS AND WE'VE HAD POCKETS OF, UM, OF LESSONS LEARNED AND WE WILL FIX THEM AND MOVE FORWARD. I THINK TO, UM, THROW THE BABY OUT WITH THE BATH WATER IS NOT IN ANYONE'S BEST INTEREST. AND I'VE, I'VE HAD MANY, MANY, MANY CONVERSATIONS AND EMAILS AND PHOTOGRAPHS SENT ABOUT THIS AS WELL, BUT JUST BECAUSE WE DIDN'T GET IT A HUNDRED PERCENT RIGHT, THE FIRST PASS DOESN'T MEAN THAT IT'S NOT WORTH, UM, WORKING TO, TO FIX UNTIL WE DO COMMISSIONER. OKAY. SO I, I THINK WE SHOULD LEAVE THIS ITEM ON AND COME BACK TO IT IN LIKE 90 DAYS AND SEE THE STATUS OF THE TREES. AND I MEAN, I'M NO ARBORIST OR TREE EXPERT, BUT I WOULD RECOMMEND IN THE FUTURE OF, BEFORE WE DO A MASS PLANTING OF 400 TREES LIKE THAT, THAT WE DO A TEST PERIOD, YOU KNOW, DURING ONE SEASON AND SEE HOW THEY THRIVE. YOU KNOW, MAYBE YOU WANNA LIKE TRY MAYBE BETWEEN NOW AND 90 DAYS YOU WANNA PLANT LIKE FIVE DIFFERENT TREES AND SEE WHICH ONES ARE THRIVING THE BEST, YOU KNOW, AND DO A TEST, DO A TEST RUN, UM, WHERE YOU REMOVE THE OTHER TREES JUST SO THAT IN 90 DAYS WHEN YOU KNOW, AS YOU'RE DOING THESE INSPECTIONS YOU CAN MONITOR SOMETHING ELSE. I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU GUYS HAVE PLANNED, BUT I WOULD GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD AND SEE BECAUSE MAYBE YOU PLANT SOMETHING THAT REALLY JUST STARTS TO GROW LIKE A WEED AND UM, YOU KNOW, AND I'M SURE THERE'S MORE NATIVE TREES THAT COULD POTENTIALLY GROW ON A SHORELINE. THAT WOULD BE MY RECOMMENDATION. OKAY. COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ. THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. I REMEMBER BACK IN AUGUST OF 2023, UH, BEING, UH, IN THE REDWOOD FOREST AND GETTING COMPLAINTS, UH, FROM OUR RESIDENTS ABOUT OUR BEAUTIFUL NORTH NORTH BEACH OCEANSIDE PARK, UH, BEING, [00:50:01] UH, YOU KNOW, IT, IT WAS SAD WHAT WAS HAPPENING THERE. IT WAS A NATURAL, A GROWN ENVIRONMENT. IT WAS MATURE. UM, SO I JUST, I JUST WANNA MAKE, I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THIS IS THE WORK THAT WAS DONE. THERE WAS PART OF, WHAT WAS IT? THE PHASE TWO, UH, CAPITAL PROJECT? I'M UNSURE OF THE EXACT PHASE. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. I THINK, I THINK IT WAS PART OF THE, OF THE PHASE TWO, UH, PROJECT THAT, UM, THAT, YOU KNOW, IT GARNERED A LOT OF CRITICISM DUE TO THE DESTRUCTION OF THE MATURE FOLIAGE. UH, AND I THINK AT THE TIME THE CONCERN WAS, YOU KNOW, WE WERE DESTROYING YOU, WE WERE RIPPING OUT OF THE GROUND SEA GRAPES, UH, MATURE SEA GRAPES. UH, LET ME ASK YOU SOMETHING. UH, WHICH IS THE TYPE OF PLANT THAT HAS SHOWN TO, TO HAVE THE MOST RESILIENCE IN THIS ENVIRONMENT. UH, THE TREES CLOSEST TO THE OCEAN THAT ARE EXPERIENCING THE FEWEST STRESS SYMPTOMS ARE SEA GRAPES AND SILVER COTTONWOODS, SEA GRAPES. SO WHAT WE'VE REMOVED, IN ESSENCE, WHAT WE'VE REMOVED IN ESSENCE THAT I ASKED THE CITY ADMINISTRATION BY PHONE AND IN A MEMO THAT I DISSEMINATED IN AUGUST OF 2023 TO NOT REMOVE FOR THE SEED GRAPES. AND THE ONES THAT NOW WE HAVE SEEN THAT HAVE HAD THE LESS STRESS ARE INDEED THE SEED GRAPES. WHAT WE REMOVED AND WHAT I HAD ASKED US NOT TO REMOVE. AND SOMETIMES, AND, AND I SAY THIS ALL THE TIME, SOMETIMES YOU KNOW, YOU LOOK AT MANUALS, YOU LOOK AT THINGS, WHAT THEY SAY ON PAPER, YOU LOOK AT WHAT ENGINEERS TELL YOU, YES. BUT THERE'S A VOID BETWEEN WHAT THINGS SAY ON PAPER AND THE REALITY OF A SITUATION. AND I THINK COMMON SENSE JUST TELLS US SEA GRAPES PERFORM WELL. IF, AND MY, AND MY WHOLE ISSUE AT THE TIME WAS THIS IS A BEAUTIFUL PARK. IT WAS, IT, IT HAD A COOLING EFFECT AND A HEATED AREA OF OUR CITY THAT'S SURROUNDED BY CONCRETE. AND I WAS SO SADDENED BECAUSE IT WAS ONE OF THESE BEAUTIFUL, CHARMING AREAS OF OUR CITY THAT WAS VERY OVERGROWN, THAT WAS VERY NATURAL, THAT WAS ALREADY MATURE. AND YET WE'RE COMING IN AND WE WERE, AND WE WERE, YOU KNOW, RIPPING IT OUT. AND UM, AND I HAD ASKED AND I BROUGHT FORWARD AN ITEM AND I ASKED THE ADMINISTRATION TO PUT TOGETHER A PLAN TO RESTORE, TO RESTORE WHAT HAD BEEN REMOVED. AND NOTHING HAPPENED WITH THAT. IT TOOK COMMISSIONERS ROSE GONZALEZ AND BOND TO BRING AN ITEM NOW ABOUT THIS SO THAT WE CAN DETERMINE THAT INDEED WHAT WE HAD THERE ORIGINALLY IS WHAT WORKED. WE FIXED SOMETHING THAT WASN'T BROKEN AND WE CREATED MORE DAMAGE. AND THAT IS REALLY WHAT IS SAT HERE. IT WAS FINE IN ITS ORIGINAL STATE. AND NOW, AND NOW WE SPENT NOT ONLY THE TAXPAYERS DOLLARS, BUT WE HURT A NATURAL ENVIRONMENT. AND SO, AND SO I, YOU KNOW, LET'S, LET'S GO BACK. LET'S, LET'S, LET'S FIX THIS, BUT JUST SOMETIMES IT'S SOMETHING BEING OVERGROWN AND BEING MATURE, IT'S FINE. AND IT WAS FINE AT NORTH BEACH OCEANSIDE PARK AND IT WAS SAD, UH, WHEN IT HAPPENED THERE. AND I THINK ANYONE CAN GO DRIVE BY THERE NOW AND SAY, YES, IT LOOKS BEAUTIFUL THE WAY THAT IT IS NOW. AND AN ARGUMENT CAN BE MADE ABOUT THAT. BUT THAT DIDN'T MEAN THAT IT WASN'T BEAUTIFUL AND GOOD THE WAY THAT IT WAS BEFORE. THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. THANKS. UM, SO I'M GONNA MAKE TWO SEPARATE MOTIONS HERE. MY FIRST MOTION IS THAT WE COME BACK IN 90 DAYS AND REVIEW THE STATE OF THE HUNDRED AND HOW MANY TREES ARE APPROXIMATELY 180 OF THE 180 TREES THAT ARE 70% LEAFLESS, WHAT DID YOU CALL THEM? UH, 70% OR MORE, UH, DEFOLIATION ON THE TREE. DEFOLIATED. OKAY. AND MY SECOND MOTION WOULD BE, AND I DON'T KNOW IF THIS HAS A COST BECAUSE IT MIGHT HAVE TO GO TO THE COMMISSION FOR YOU TO DO A PILOT PROGRAM COMMENCING AS SOON AS POSSIBLE PLANT, HOW MANY DIFFERENT TREES DO YOU THINK YOU NEED TO FIGURE OUT WHAT GROWS ALONG THE BEACH WALK AND WHAT DOESN'T GROW? SO WE DON'T, WELL WE KNOW THAT SEA GRAPES GROW, BUT YOU KNOW, MAYBE THERE'S SOME OTHER OPTION, BUT WE DON'T KNOW 'CAUSE WE HAVEN'T DONE ANY SORT OF TESTING OR PILOT PLANT. WHY DON'T YOU, IN THE SPACES PLANT FIVE DIFFERENT SPECIES OF TREES THAT ARE NATIVE THAT COULD POSSIBLY GROW ALONG THE BEACH WALK, AND THEN AT THE END OF 90 DAYS COME BACK AND ALSO TELL US THE STATUS OF THOSE FIVE TREES. DO YOU HAVE THE FUNDING TO PLANT THOSE FIVE TREES OR DO YOU NEED US [00:55:01] TO GO TO THE COMMISSION TO FUND SOMETHING LIKE THAT? SO AS PART OF THE GEO BOND REFORESTATION PROJECT THAT WE'RE PLANNING RIGHT NOW, AND WE'RE, WE'RE DOING THE COMMUNITY OUTREACH WITH BEACHFRONT PROPERTY OWNERS, THE FIRST PHASE OF THAT PROJECT WILL INCLUDE PLANTING ADJACENT TO CITY OWNED PROPERTIES WHERE WE CAN CHOOSE MULTIPLE SPECIES OF NATIVE TREES TO SEE WHAT WOULD WORK. UM, WE WOULD TAKE THESE LESSONS LEARNED AS I'VE OUTLINED CLUMPING TREES TOGETHER USING SEA GRAPES AND SILVER BUTTONWOOD AS BARRIERS. WE COULD DEFINITELY INCLUDE FIVE NATIVE TREES IN THOSE PLANTING PALLETS. UM, MY ONE RECOMMENDATION WOULD BE IS AS EVIDENCED BY THE NORTH BEACH OCEANSIDE PARK AT THE ONE YEAR PROJECT CLOSEOUT AND WARRANTY PHASE, ALL OF THOSE TREES APPEARED HEALTHY. UM, SO AT THE 90 DAY PERIOD, YOU MAY NOT SEE, UM, FULL RESULTS OF WHAT IS SUCCESSFUL OR NOT. UM, THAT'S A LONGER TERM, UH, STUDY, BUT YOU'RE, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, BUT IT'S VERY DIFFERENT TO PLANT THEM NEXT TO A STRUCTURE VERSUS PLANTING THEM ON THE BEACH WALK. NO, SO THESE WOULD BE AS PART OF THE BEACH WALK REFORESTATION, BUT THEY WOULD BE ADJACENT TO THINGS LIKE CITY OWNED PARKS, PARKING LOTS. UM, THERE ARE AREAS WHERE THESE CITY OWNED FACILITIES LEAD OUT ONTO THE BEACH WALK, SO THESE TREES WOULD BE PLANTED ALONG THE BEACH WALK. WELL, SO MY, MY SECOND MOTION, AND IF WE NEED MONEY TO, OKAY, I, I UNDERSTAND THAT THE SEA GRAPES AND SILVER BUTTONS WORK, BUT WHY DON'T YOU PICK FIVE OTHER SPECIES, PLANT THEM, AND LET'S, THE SECOND, DO YOU NEED, DO I NEED TO BRING THAT TO THE COMMISSION TO PLANT THOSE, TO GET THE FUNDING TO PLANT THOSE FIVE TREES? OR CAN YOU GUYS HANDLE THAT WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT AND IS THAT SOMETHING THAT I'M ALLOWED TO DO? AM I JUST, THIS IS KIND OF A STUDY. DOES THIS HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE COMMISSION? THE ADMINISTRATION, IF THEY WANT TO DO IT, CAN DO IT. THIS COMMITTEE CANNOT ORDER THEM TO DO ANYTHING. YOU CAN MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO THE CITY COMMISSION IF YOU WANTED TO MAKE SUCH AN ORDER, BUT, UH, IT SOUNDS LIKE, UH, WHAT LINDSAY IS TELLING YOU IS THAT THEY ARE WILLING AND ABLE TO DO WHAT YOU'RE ASKING SO IT, IT DOESN'T REQUIRE ANYTHING FURTHER. OKAY. SO WE'LL COME BACK IN 30 DAYS ON THE STATUS OF THOSE OTHER TREES AND WE'LL KEEP UP PENDING TO SEE THE STATUS OF THE OTHER FIVE TREES AT, YOU KNOW, THE SIX MONTH MARK TOO. OKAY. JUST FOR CLARIFICATION, UH, VICE MAYOR BOD HAS A COMMENT. YEAH, I, I DO THINK ALSO, YOU KNOW, WE DO HAVE A LOT OF LEARNING WITH WHAT HAS BEEN PLANTED OVER THE LAST YEAR AND A HALF. UM, SO WHILE I'M SUPPORTIVE OF MORE LEARNING ALWAYS, UM, I'M NOT SURE WHAT FIVE, YOU KNOW, FIVE DIFFERENT SPECIES SINCE, YOU KNOW, SPECIES WE'RE SELECTED, UM, BY EXPERTS USING SCIENCE BASED, YOU KNOW, DETERMINING WHAT WOULD THRIVE HERE. SO, UM, IT, TO ME IT FEELS LIKE WE'VE ALREADY DONE THAT AND WE, WE HAVE THE LEARNING, UM, LINDSAY DID AN ADMIRABLE JOB OF EXPLAINING, UM, THE THINGS THAT THEY'RE GOING TO BE DOING DIFFERENTLY. UM, I WOULD PERHAPS SAY THAT BEFORE WE START ANY FURTHER WORK ON BIG, UM, REFORESTATION PROJECTS THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT THAT IS, UM, YOU KNOW, THE SUBJECT OF ALL THE CONVERSATION WITH THE PROPERTY OWNERS. UM, WE MAKE SURE WE REALLY KNOW WHAT WE'VE LEARNED FROM THIS SEGMENT IN NORTH BEACH SO WE DON'T REPEAT THE MISTAKES, BUT I'M NOT SURE WE'RE GONNA GET THAT IN, YOU KNOW, 90 DAYS FROM NOW OR EVEN SIX MONTHS FROM NOW. I THINK IT'S A HOLISTIC REVIEW OF WHAT WE'VE LEARNED FROM THIS, THIS EXPERIENCE, AND THEN APPLY THAT BEFORE WE DO, YOU KNOW, ANYTHING ELSE IN, IN THE OTHER PARTS OF THE CITY AND MAYBE DO THEM, UM, MORE PHASED AS OPPOSED TO ALL AT ONCE. I'M SURE THAT AFFECTS THE COST A LITTLE BIT, BUT, UM, MAYBE THAT'S SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT AS WE CONSIDER THE IMPLEMENTATION STAGE OF THIS. AND ALSO WHOEVER WE GET OUR TREES FROM, I THINK A ONE YEAR WARRANTY IS INSUFFICIENT AND THAT SHOULD BE SOMETHING THAT WE, UM, THAT WE, UH, YOU KNOW, BRING TO THE FORE AS WE DISCUSSED WITH THEM. MM-HMM . I MEAN, RIGHT NOW WE KNOW OF TWO SPECIES. I WOULD LIKE THEM TO FIND FIVE DIFFERENT SPECIES THAT WE KNOW THRIVE ALONG THE BEACH WALK. AND I DON'T THINK THERE'S ANYTHING WRONG WITH LETTING THEM EXPERIMENT A LITTLE BIT MORE. AND BY THE WAY, I AM NOT ASKING THEM, I MEAN, I'M ASKING THEM TO APPLY MORE SCIENCE, YOU KNOW, LESSONS LEARNED. NO, I, I UNDERSTAND THAT. NEED LESSONS LEARNED, SO I UNDERSTAND, UM, THROUGH THE CHAIR. I'M SORRY. MOTIONS. UM, I DON'T THINK THERE'S, UM, ARE YOU OKAY WITH THOSE MOTIONS? YEAH, I HAVE. WAIT, COULD WE, COULD WE REPEAT THE MOTIONS? 'CAUSE WE'RE A LITTLE BIT UNSURE. WE, I, I HAVE THE FIRST MOTION TO COME BACK IN 90 DAYS TO REPORT ON WHAT? I WANT THEM TO COME BACK IN 90 DAYS TO REPORT ON THE STATUS OF THE 176 TREES THAT ARE 70% DEFOLIATED RIGHT NOW. OKAY. AND THEY SAID THAT THEY WERE GONNA RE CONDUCT A REVIEW [01:00:01] IN MAY OR JUNE. DO YOU WANT THEM TO DO SOMETHING EARLIER THAN WHAT THEY WERE PLANNING ON DOING IN FEBRUARY, MARCH, APRIL? YEAH. WHY NOT? IT'S JUST A QUICK STATUS UPDATE, SO JUST BRING IT BACK. AND THEN THE SECOND ONE IS TO TRY SOME DIFFERENT TREES. THIS IS JUST, YOU KNOW, AND IT'S THAT WE WE'RE NOT DOING, WE'RE JUST DOING THAT CONVERSATIONALLY AND WE'RE NOT DOING IT AND REPORT BACK ON THAT IN SIX MONTHS. I JUST, CAN I MAKE A COMMENT ON THIS MADAM CHAIR? OF COURSE. THANK YOU. I, YOU KNOW, I THINK THIS IS AN ENVIRONMENT THAT'S BEEN ESTABLISHED WAY BEFORE ANY OF US WERE HERE. WE KNOW WHAT WORKS HERE. WE, THERE IS JUST COMMON SENSE, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE, THERE ARE CERTAIN TREES AND PLANTS THAT HAVE BEEN EXISTING IN THIS AREA FOR DECADES, UPON DECADES, UPON DECADES, UPON DECADES. WE DON'T NEED TO TEST THIS AGAIN. TEST SOME, INTRODUCING SOMETHING NEW FOR WHAT, FOR IT TO DIE AGAIN. AND WE WASTE STAFF'S TIME AND MONEY. AND SO I, I THINK IT'S COMMENDABLE WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO DO. AND, AND I, I, YOU KNOW, I DON'T, I DON'T WANT, YOU KNOW, SAY IT'S A BAD IDEA. I JUST THINK, YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST COMMON SENSE. LOOK AT WHAT NATURE HAS ALLOWED TO PROSPER THERE AND BUILD UPON WHAT NATURE HAS DONE. AND WE DON'T NEED TO, WE DON'T NEED TO, YOU KNOW, REINVENT THE WHEEL HERE. PALM TREES ACTUALLY GROW REALLY WELL THERE. THE SEA GRAPES, YOU KNOW, GROW REALLY WELL THERE. AND THERE'S JUST A CERTAIN SET OF TREES THAT HAVE SHOWN TO PROSPER THERE. JUST BUILD UPON THAT. AND, AND, AND IT'S, AND IT'S NOT COMPLICATED. AND NEXT TIME, LET'S NOT DESTROY IT. YOU KNOW, WE, WE, WE SPENT THE TAXPAYER'S DOLLAR TO DEFOREST, DEFORESTED AN AREA THAT WAS MATURE AND WELL, AND I ASKED OUR CITY TO STOP IT, AND WE ONLY DEFORESTED IT THEN TO COME AND REFORESTATION WITH PLANS THAT THEN DRIED OUT AND, UH, AND LOST THEIR FOLIAGE. SO LET'S JUST BUILD UPON WHAT WE KNOW THE SUCCEEDS THERE. ALL RIGHT. WITH THAT, I'M DONE. . THANK YOU. ELIZABETH. LATON, IF YOU COULD PLEASE UNMUTE YOURSELF. YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES. YOU'RE STILL MUTED. I CAN YOU HEAR ME OKAY? I'M UNMUTED. YES. UM, I, I, FIRST OF ALL, I APPRECIATE YOU ALL, UH, ADDRESSING THIS BECAUSE IT IS A REALLY BIG PROBLEM. UM, AND, AND I AGREE WITH COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ. UM, ALSO, I'D LIKE YOU ALL TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE APPLICATION, UH, THE ORIGINAL APPLICATION THAT WAS SENT TO THE FORESTRY SERVICE FOR THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT. UM, I'M GONNA SEND THAT TO YOU ALL BECAUSE, UH, THERE ARE NOT ANY TREES TO BE PLANTED BETWEEN 41ST AND 74TH. UH, I THINK THAT THERE'S INFORMATION THAT, THAT PEOPLE ARE WORKING OFF OF. THEY DON'T HAVE THE FULL PICTURE, BUT I DID A FULL PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST GOING BACK ALL THE WAY TO THE HISTORY OF THIS, THIS WHOLE DEBACLE. AND I THINK I'M GONNA SEND THAT TO YOU ALL SO THAT YOU CAN STUDY IT BEFORE YOU PLANT ANY MORE TREES. UM, AND ALSO, I, I DON'T UNDERSTAND THE WHOLE NORTH SHORE OPEN SPACE PARK, CUTTING DOWN EVERY SINGLE THING UP THERE, AND THEN PLANTING, YOU KNOW, THE BUTTON WOODS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. EVEN IN ALLISON PARK, THEY'RE DYING. UM, WHICH NOBODY'S ADDRESSED. BUT I JUST, I WANTED TO SAY, I APPRECIATE YOU ALL TAKING THE TIME TO ADDRESS THIS, AND THANK YOU VERY MUCH. IS THERE AN ISSUE, MADAM CHAIR, WITH THIS VENDOR? LIKE, DID WE PROCURE THESE PLANS FROM A VENDOR THAT, YOU KNOW, FOR, FOR, FOR THIS AMOUNT OF TREES, EVEN IF IT'S, IF IT EXCEEDS THE WARRANTY, THE WARRANTY, IT'S ONLY A LEGAL TERM ON, YOU KNOW, ON A DOCUMENT THAT PLACES AN ONEROUS ON THE PROVIDER TO REPLACE 'EM IF THEY DIE. BUT IF AFTER THAT WARRANTY WE SEE A PATTERN OF THEM DYING, IT MIGHT THERE BE AN ISSUE BECAUSE NOW WE'RE HEARING FROM A RESIDENT THAT IN ANOTHER AREA OF OUR CITY, UH, IN ANOTHER PARK, SOMETHING SIMILAR IS HAPPENING. UH, ARE THESE BEING PROCURED FROM THE SAME VENDOR, THE TWO PROJECTS THAT WERE MENTIONED? NO, IT'S NOT THE SAME VENDOR. IT'S A DIFFERENT, IT'S A DIFFERENT VENDOR. YEAH. OKAY. SO MAYBE WE LEARN FROM THIS AND, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T CONTINUE PUTTING THESE ALONG THE COAST, ALONG THE, ALONG THE BEACH WALK. YEP. MADAM CHAIR, IF I COULD, YES. UM, I'M GONNA STAY IN MY LANE. I'M CERTAINLY NOT AN EXPERT HERE, BUT JUST I'M ASKING FOR MY OWN PERSONAL FEEDBACK. I GUESS, IF ANYTHING, WHAT IS IDIOSYNCRATIC OR UNIQUE ABOUT THIS SPECIFIC LOCATION? DID WE PLANT A DIFFERENT TYPE OF TREE OR PLANT THAT WE HAVEN'T PLANTED ELSEWHERE? UM, I GET WHAT YOU'RE SAYING ABOUT THE ROUGH ELEMENTS, [01:05:01] AND IT MAY HAVE LOOKED GOOD ON PAPER. UM, I, I GUESS, UH, I, I COULD LOOK GOOD ON PAPER AND BE A GOOD CATCH, BUT LOOK HOW THAT'S WORKED OUT, RIGHT? . UM, BUT, UH, , UH, FOR THIS, WHY IS THIS AREA UNIQUE, RIGHT? IS IT A DIFFERENT TYPE OF PLAN? UM, THERE COULD BE VERY SITE SPECIFIC ELEMENTS THAT ARE DIFFERENT IN NORTH BEACH THAN, LET'S SAY SOUTH BEACH, FOR EXAMPLE. NORTH BEACH IS AN ORIGINAL HOTSPOT. IT TENDS TO HAVE A NARROWER BEACH. IT HAS TO BE RENOURISHED MORE FREQUENTLY. WHEREAS SOUTH BEACH IS A VERY WIDE AL BEACH. IT HAS 20 FOOT TALL DUNES AND ELEVATION. SO THERE ARE MORE PROTECTIVE AREAS OF OUR BEACH. UM, SO THE TREES THAT ARE DOING WELL ON SOUTH BEACH COULD BE BETTER PROTECTED. UM, THIS AREA IS ALSO KNOWN TO BE A WIND TUNNEL, SO IT'S NOT AS IF WE WENT OUT AND TRIED SOME EXPERIMENTAL TYPE OF SPECIES. THIS IS A TYPE OF PLAN AND TREE THAT HAS WORKED ELSEWHERE, DIDN'T WORK. AND THIS ISN'T LIKE FINGER POINTING, BUT, YOU KNOW, MISTAKES. THIS, UH, THIS CONSEQUENTIAL, WE, WE, WE CAN'T MAKE THEM, YOU KNOW, SIMPLE AS THAT. UM, I DON'T KNOW OF A GOOD WAY TO MITIGATE THAT, BUT, UH, THAT'S NOT FINGER POINTING. THAT'S JUST ALL OF US COLLECTIVELY WANTING TO DO BETTER AND BE GOOD STEWARDS OF TAXPAYER MONEY. OKAY. UH, MR. CITY ATTORNEY, WHERE ARE WE WITH THE MOTIONS? CAN WE MOVE FORWARD? UH, I I, THE FIRST MOTION, YES, YOU CAN COME BACK WITH A REPORT ON THE CONDITION OF THE TREES MARCH 12TH IN 90 DAYS. THE SECOND MOTION TO, UH, I, I GUESS WOULD BE FOR THEM TO COME BACK IN SIX MONTHS AND REPORT ON THEIR AGREEMENT TO TEST FIVE, UH, PLANTINGS OF A TREE, IF I UNDERSTAND THAT'S WHAT THEY INTEND TO DO. OKAY. SO LET'S SEE HERE. UM, SHOULD WE BE PLANTING THESE TYPES OF TREES WHERE WE DON'T HAVE IRRIGATION? JUNE 18 FOR THE SIX MONTHS REPORT? UH, COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ, SORRY. SHOULD WE BE PLANTING THESE TYPES OF TREES WHERE WE DON'T HAVE IRRIGATION? WHAT WE ARE PROPOSING AS PART OF THE LESSONS LEARNED IS TO DO A LONGER WATERING PERIOD. UM, SO WE HAVE THE CONTRACTOR WHO'S INSTALLING THESE PLANTS COME OUT MORE FREQUENTLY FOR LONGER PERIODS OF TIME TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE SUPPLEMENTING THE IRRIGATION THAT IS NOT PRESENT WITHIN THE DUNE SYSTEM. OKAY, THANK YOU. OKAY. WITH THAT, WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE [1. DISCUSS UTILIZING 7605 COLLINS AVENUE AS A POTENTIAL BASE OF OPERATIONS FOR OCEAN RESCUE.] NEXT ITEM. UH, EVERYONE CLEAR WITH WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN? OKAY. NUMBER ONE, ITEM NUMBER ONE, DISCUSS UTILIZATION OF 76 0 5 COLLINS AVENUE AS A POTENTIAL BASE FOR OPERATIONS FOR OCEAN RESCUE. THIS WAS SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER ROSE GONZALEZ AND CO SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER SCHWARZ. UH, COMMISSIONER ROSEN GONZALEZ, IF YOU'D LIKE TO TEE IT UP. THIS IDEA CAME FROM NORTH BEACH RESIDENTS WHO ARE, UM, WHO'VE BEEN VERY UPSET ABOUT ONE OF THE WEST LOTS BEING TAKEN BY THE FIRE DEPARTMENT. UM, IT'S BEEN A TEMPORARY LOCATION THAT THEY'VE BEEN IN FOR ALMOST A DECADE. AND, YOU KNOW, IT, IT, IT DOESN'T LOOK SO GREAT. IT TAKES AWAY THE PARKING THAT PEOPLE NEED IN NORTH BEACH. AND SO WE THOUGHT THAT A SIMPLE MOVE OVER OF, YOU KNOW, WE WENT WITH THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, UM, AND THE LIFEGUARD UNION, THE CWA, AND THEY LOVE THE SPACE. UM, WE ALREADY HAVE SURF WRITER THERE. I KNOW THAT THE SPACE WAS PURCHASED WITH BUILDING DEPARTMENT FUNDS, BUT WE THOUGHT THAT WE COULD DO A SIMPLE LEASE FOR A SMALL AMOUNT, UM, IN ORDER TO, UM, YOU KNOW, ACCOMMODATE, OH, BY THE WAY, IF WE DID MOVE THE LIFEGUARD, UM, THE CWA LIFEGUARD TO THE, TO THAT SPACE, WE WOULDN'T HAVE TO, UM, RECONFIGURE THE INSIDE OF THE SPACE BECAUSE THE GENERAL PUBLIC WOULDN'T BE, UM, GOING THERE. SO I DON'T REALLY KNOW HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT THIS. I'M, I, I, YOU KNOW, EITHER WAY, UM, I WAS TRYING TO FIND A SOLUTION BECAUSE EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE BUILDING NEW HEADQUARTERS FOR THE LIFEGUARDS THERE, IT'S MANY MOONS AWAY. UM, WHEN WE SPOKE TO CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS, IT WAS, THEY HAVEN'T EVEN REALLY STARTED TO CONFIGURE THE PROJECT, AND IT'S PART OF A LARGER PROJECT WITH THE COUNTY. SO I THOUGHT IN THE INTERIM, WE COULD MOVE THE LIFEGUARDS OFF THIS LOT, FREE UP THAT LOT. UM, BUT I'M NOT WEDDED TO IT EITHER WAY. SO, I MEAN, IF YOU GUYS WANTED TO MAKE IT FOR THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT, THAT'S FINE, BUT IT SEEMS LIKE THIS HOUSE IS AN ODD LOCATION FOR THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT. UM, IT'S A RESIDENTIAL HOUSE, UM, AND I DON'T REALLY SEE HOW YOU ACCOMMODATE IT SO THAT THE PUBLIC WILL ENTER IT IN, IN A NORMAL KIND OF COMMERCIAL WAY. UM, AND WE WOULD SAVE A LOT OF MONEY, UH, IF WE MOVED THE LIFEGUARDS THERE BECAUSE, UH, WE WOULDN'T HAVE TO MAKE IT, YOU KNOW, ALL OF THESE ACCOMMODATIONS. SO, UM, WHERE ARE YOU GUYS ON THIS? DO, DO YOU WANNA SPEAK? LET'S HEAR FROM THE CITY AGAIN. DEPARTMENT. OKAY. UH, YES. GOOD MORNING [01:10:01] EVERYONE. VINCE TEJAS, BUILDING DEPARTMENT DIRECTOR AND BUILDING OFFICIAL. UH, THE PURCHASE OF THE 76 0 5 COLLINS AVENUE HOUSE, UH, DOES HAVE A BUILDING DEPARTMENT USE. UH, IT'S NOT NECESSARILY FOR ALL THE PUBLIC. IT WAS GONNA BE A NORTH, UH, BRANCH IF YOU WOULD. WE, UH, WE HAVE IT EARMARKED FOR OUR CALL CENTER AND FOR REMOTE OFFICE, OF WHICH WE CURRENTLY ARE RENTING A COMMERCIAL SPACE AT SOME GREAT EXPENDITURE WHEREBY WE CAN USE THIS SPACE AND LIMIT THAT EXPENDITURE, UH, ON A REGULAR BASIS AND NOW HAVE AN ASSET. UM, THAT SAID, THERE'S ALSO A MEETING FOR THE PUBLIC, UM, SCHEDULED FOR FEBRUARY 6TH AT 4:00 PM UH, AND AGAIN, MY UNDERSTANDING FROM PREVIOUS DISCUSSIONS WITH FIRE IS IF THEY DIDN'T GET THE WHOLE HOUSE, THEY WERE NOT INTERESTED. SO I'LL DEFER TO MY COLLEAGUES IN THE FIRE SERVICES. OKAY, GOOD MORNING, MADAM CHAIR AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS. UH, DEPUTY CHIEF EZ. UM, BACK IN NOVEMBER, WE WENT OUT AND LOOKED AT THE PROPERTY. WE ALSO WENT OUT WITH CWA PRESIDENT AND THE FIRE CHIEF AND, UH, VIEWED THE PROPERTY AND IT IS QUITE SMALL TO DIVIDE. THE AREA INSIDE IS QUITE SMALL TO DIVIDE THE 18 PERSONNEL THAT WE WILL BE NEEDING IN THERE. IF, IF WE HAD TO DIVIDE IT, THEN WE'D PROBABLY WOULD RATHER DEFER. UM, AND WE ALSO HAVE, UM, SOME OTHER NOTES ON, ON THE TRAILER AREA THAT, THAT WE ARE CURRENTLY USING RIGHT NOW, WHERE WE WOULD, UH, HAVE A PLAN TO REDUCE THE FOOTPRINT THAT WE'RE USING BY 4,500 SQUARE FEET, WHICH WOULD GIVE US APPROXIMATELY EIGHT TO 12 PARKING SPOTS TO HELP ALLEVIATE, UM, PARKING FOR THE RESIDENTS IN THAT AREA. SO THAT'S WHERE WE WERE AT IN NOVEMBER, AND REALLY NOTHING HAS CHANGED. SO WE'RE LOOKING FOR SOME DIRECTION FROM YOU GUYS. SO WHAT I WOULD RECOMMEND IS THAT WE JUST MOVE THIS ITEM TO THE MARCH MEETING AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE HAVE PUBLIC INPUT. AND THEN AFTER THAT MEETING, I'LL REPORT BACK TO YOU GUYS AND LET YOU KNOW WHAT I FOUND. UH, ONE OF THE OTHER REASONS THAT WE LIKE THIS SPACE IS BECAUSE THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF CRIMINAL ACTIVITY IN THAT PARK. SO IF YOU PUT LIFEGUARDS AND FIREMEN IN THAT AREA, UM, I THINK IT WILL PROBABLY REDUCE THE ATTRACTIVE, YOU KNOW, THE, THE APPEAL OF HOMELESS AND CRIMINAL ACTIVITY IN THAT AREA. SO THAT'S THE SECOND REASON WHY WE WANTED TO DO THIS. SO IF IT'S OKAY WITH BOTH OF YOU, LET'S WAIT FOR THE COMMUNITY MEETING. WE'LL SEE WHAT THE COMMUNITY HAS TO SAY ABOUT THIS. AND, UM, AND VINCE, IF YOU'D LIKE TO MEET IN BETWEEN SO I COULD FIND OUT EXACTLY WHAT YOU'RE PAYING PER MONTH, UM, ON THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT LEASE, UM, I WOULD LIKE TO UNDERSTAND THAT TOO, SO THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE NOT, UM, 'CAUSE I SAW, SAW THAT STOREFRONT, IT DIDN'T LOOK LIKE A VERY EXPENSIVE STOREFRONT. I CAN'T IMAGINE THAT IT'S THAT EXPENSIVE CURRENT, UH, FLORIDA PRICES ARE, ARE NOT INEXPENSIVE. I COULD PROMISE YOU THAT. UH, BUT YES, I'LL, I'LL LOOK AT THE BUDGET AND WE COULD DEFINITELY, UH, HAVE A MEETING AND GO OVER WHAT THOSE NUMBERS LOOK LIKE. BECAUSE FIRST OF ALL, IT WOULDN'T BE A, A PERMANENT THING ANYWAY. IT WOULD JUST BE UNTIL THEIR HEADQUARTERS WERE BUILT, OKAY. WHICH WOULD FREE UP THAT LOT. AND BY THE WAY, IT WOULD ALSO GIVE YOU AN OPPORTUNITY OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS TO DRAW UP HOW YOU REALLY WANNA RECONFIGURE THE INSIDE, UM, OF THE PROPERTY, IF AT ALL. I MEAN, IT'S, IT'S THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT'S ASSET AND POSSIBLY, I KNOW FIRE DOESN'T WANNA PAY, UH, ONE PENNY TO DO THIS MOVE, BUT WE COULD FIND OUT WHAT THE LEASE IS THAT THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT IS CURRENTLY PAYING, AND POSSIBLY FIND OUT IF THAT WOULD NOT BE A HUGE EXPENDITURE FOR US TO TAKE FROM THE GENERAL FUND TO REIMBURSE THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT AND A LEASE. DO YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT, IN THE INTERIM, UNTIL THEY GET THEIR PERMANENT HEADQUARTERS, I, I UNDERSTAND, UH, WHAT YOU'RE ASKING. AND AGAIN, I WOULD HAVE TO SIT DOWN WITH LEGAL AS WELL TO VERIFY THAT WE DON'T WANT FOUL WITH ANY FLORIDA STATE STATUTES, SPECIFICALLY 5 5 3 0.80. WHAT THAT AH, OKAY. 5 5 3 5 5, 3 0.80. THAT'S IT. OF COURSE WE DON'T, I'LL GET INTO WEEDS IF YOU WANT WITH THE OTHER SUBSECTIONS, BUT THAT'S THE GENERAL ONE. UH, AND AGAIN, I'LL GET YOU THAT INFORMATION WITH THE LEASE AND, AND WE COULD DISCUSS THOSE ITEMS IN, IN FURTHER DETAIL. OKAY. I, I WANNA MAKE EVERYONE HAPPY. I AM NOT LOOKING TO KICK THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT OUT. IT JUST SEEMED LIKE AN EASY WAY TO REMOVE THESE GUYS FROM THE TRAILER FOR THE TIME BEING FREE UP A PARKING LOT. THE NEIGHBORS SURROUNDING HAVE REALLY, I'M NOT, THERE'S NO BLAME FOR THE PARKING, BUT IT'S VERY UNSIGHTLY. UM, AND THOSE LIFEGUARDS HAVE BEEN IN A TRAILER FOR A DECADE, AND IF YOU GO IN AND YOU SEE THE CIRCUMSTANCES THAT THEY ARE OPERATING UNDER, I THINK THAT PUTTING THEM OCEAN FRONT ON THE EAST SIDE OF COLLINS AVENUE IN THE MIDDLE OF A PARK SO THAT WE HAVE A PUBLIC SAFETY, UM, COMPONENT COULD, IT'S JUST A WIN-WIN. SO I'D LIKE TO SPEAK WITH YOU AND GET YOU ON BOARD, VINCE, IN SOME WAY SO [01:15:01] THAT YOU'RE HAPPY AND WE'RE NOT VIOLATING. I AM HAPPY I'M NOT GETTING SHOT. FIVE 3.80, OKAY. 5 5 3 0.8 0 0 5 5 3 0.0. OKAY. AND WE'VE ALLUDED TO, UH, THE COMMUNITY MEETING. IT'S FEBRUARY 6TH FROM FOUR TO SIX 30. IT'S IN PERSON ONLY AT 76 0 5 COLLINS AVENUE. OKAY, WONDERFUL. AND WE WILL RECONNECT. AND VICE MAYOR BACH HAS A COMMENT. I JUST HAD A QUICK QUESTION FOR CHIEF EZ. UM, WHAT IS THE PLAN? WHERE ARE WE ON GETTING A NEW PERMANENT HOME FOR YOUR GUYS UP THERE? IT'S, FROM WHAT I, WHAT I UNDERSTAND IT'S TAKING A LITTLE BIT OF TIME, UM, ADDITIONAL TIME, OBVIOUSLY. UM, IS THERE A PLAN IN PLACE THOUGH? WELL, WE HAD A MEETING. THERE'S ACTUALLY GEO BOND FUNDING AND THE, THE NEW HEADQUARTERS WOULD BE PART OF A LARGER COUNTY COMPLEX. IF YOU GO UP THERE AND YOU SEE WHERE THE COUNTY IS, UM, HAS ITS EQUIPMENT, THEIR BUILDING A LARGE FACILITY THERE, BUT THEY ARE AT THE VERY, VERY BEGINNING, I WOULD SAY THEY HAVE NOT EVEN COMMENCED TO THE, THEY'RE JUST AT THE BEGINNING OF SOME SORT OF CONCEPTUALIZATION. AS, AS YOU KNOW, COMMISSIONER BOUGHT, UH, BECAUSE THERE'S SEVERAL AGENCIES INVOLVED. IT COULD BE AN ADDITIONAL, YOU KNOW, FIVE TO 10 YEARS BEFORE EVERYTHING'S DONE. EVEN WHEN WE BEGIN THAT FACILITY, WE DON'T KNOW THAT THE GEO BOND FUNDING THAT WE GOT IN 2018 IS EVEN GOING TO FUND THAT. SO IN THE SPIRIT OF, YOU KNOW, UM, WE LIKED THE, WE ALSO LIKED THE IDEA THAT THE LIFEGUARDS AND THE MIAMI, UM, SURF, UH, SORRY, THE LIFEGUARDS AND THE SURF RIDER TESTING THE WATER WERE ALSO IN THE SAME FACILITY. THAT WAS ANOTHER, UM, SYNERGY. THAT WAS A POSITIVE ONE. UM, I JUST HAVE TO, I SEE HERE CONVINCE OUR, OUR BUILDING DIRECTOR THAT THIS WOULD, UM, BE SOMEHOW A POSITIVE THING FOR THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT AND FIND OUT WHAT THEY'RE PAYING IN COMMERCIAL LEASE AND HOW WE CAN SOMEHOW MITIGATE THAT IF POSSIBLE. AND BY THE WAY, KNOW THAT THIS WOULD NOT BE A, IT'S NOT A PERMANENT FIX, BUT IT'S, IT'S BETTER THAN A TRAILER, YOU KNOW, AND THERE'S A LOT OF ADDED VALUE TO IT. SO LET'S SEE WHAT THE COMMUNITY HAS TO SAY AND COME BACK IN MARCH, IF THAT'S OKAY WITH EVERYONE. OKAY. SO WE'LL, UH, MOVE ON TO THE NEXT ITEM NUMBER 14. [14. DISCUSS POSSIBLE SUGGESTED BUILDING DEPARTMENT PROCESSES IN CONNECTION ISSUING BUILDING VIOLATIONS FOR SMALL, OLDER AND/OR HISTORIC BUILDINGS WITH THE GOAL OF REDUCING THE COST AND BURDEN ASSOCIATED WITH CURING BUILDING VIOLATIONS.] ITEM NUMBER 14 IS DISCUSSED POSSIBLE SUGGESTED BUILDING DEPARTMENT PROCESS IN CONNECTION, ISSUING BUILDING VIOLATIONS FOR SMALL, OLDER, AND OR HISTORIC BUILDINGS WITH GOAL OF REDUCING COSTS. THIS IS A BUILDING ITEM AND IT WAS SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER ROSE GONZALEZ AND CO-SPONSORED BY DOMINGUEZ, UH, 14. AND SO, UH, WE INITIALLY COMMISSIONER WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A SUNSHINE MEETING ON IT, AND THEN IT, UH, DIDN'T COME TO FRUITION 'CAUSE THE EMPLOYEE AT THE TIME LEFT. AND, UH, SO HERE WE ARE TO DISCUSS POTENTIAL PROCESSES HERE. OKAY. UM, SO VINCE, WOULD YOU, UM, WOULD YOU LIKE TO TEE US OFF, VINCE AND LET US KNOW WHAT YOU FEEL ABOUT THIS? WELL, LEGALLY I HAVE TO BE CONSISTENT WITH THE APPLICATION OF MY FEES AND WITH THE APPLICATION OF FINES, KEEP IN MIND THAT FINES ARE THE, UH, THE STICK THAT KEEPS SOCIETY IN LINE. UM, I WOULD ALSO REFERENCE A COMMISSION, UH, AGENDA ITEM R FIVE M, WHEREBY YOU'RE ACTUALLY GONNA BE ADDING MORE ENFORCEMENT. SO THIS IS KIND OF DISCOMBOBULATED OR, OR, OR AT ENDS WITH, WITH, WITH THAT PIECE OF, UH, PROPOSED LEGISLATION AS WELL. HOWEVER, IN LIGHT OF SOME OF THESE, UH, IDENTIFIED ISSUES, UH, THE BUILDING REPRIEVE PROGRAM FOR VIOLATIONS HAS BEEN APPROVED. UH, AND IT IS IN EFFECT, UH, WE ARE ALREADY REDUCING THE RECERTIFICATION, UM, FEE FOR THESE, UH, EXISTING BUILDINGS. AND WE'VE MADE THE, UM, OR ACTUALLY YOU ALL PASSED THE, THE REDUCTION IN FEES WITH ANY REPAIRS ASSOCIATED WITH BUILDING RECERTIFICATION. WHEN WE DISCUSS VIOLATIONS OF THE CODE, LET'S BE CLEAR, WE'RE MAKING AN ADDITION OR AN ALTERATION TO A STRUCTURE. ALRIGHT? GENERALLY SPEAKING, AN AGED STRUCTURE, OKAY? WITHOUT DOCUMENTS, WITHOUT PLANS, WITHOUT A DESIGN PROFESSIONAL OR A LICENSED CONTRACTOR INVOLVED, WE CAN JEOPARDIZE AND DO JEOPARDIZE THE PUBLIC. EVEN IF IT'S SOMETHING VERY PEDESTRIAN LIKE AN OUTLET, YOU CAN CAUSE A FIRE. SO AGAIN, TRYING TO THROTTLE BACK, AND I UNDERSTAND THAT, THAT THE PUBLIC WANTS RELIEF, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, THEY NEED TO UNDERSTAND BAD BEHAVIOR WILL NOT BE REWARDED WITH A PASS. IT CANNOT BE REWARDED WITH A PASS. IF WE MAKE ONE EXCEPTION OR [01:20:01] ONE APPEASEMENT, WE'RE OPENING THE DOOR. AND THEN BASICALLY, UM, WE'RE LOSING ALL OUR POWER. AND AGAIN, WE HAVE TO BE CONSISTENT ACROSS THE BOARD. VINCE, WHEN WILL THE, UH, CONSULTANT BE DONE WITH HIS ANALYSIS AND PROVIDE INFORMATION TO THE CITY COMMISSION RELATED TO THE BUILD, THE AD HOC COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS? WE'RE ALREADY RUNNING WITH THAT, THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS. WE'VE, UH, WE'RE ADDING, UH, ADDITIONAL INSPECTORS, UH, FOR THE PRIVATE PROVIDERS WE'RE HAVING, WE'RE BRINGING BACK THE WALKTHROUGH PROCESS. SO AS PLANS ARE GOING THROUGH, YOU HAVE A FACE-TO-FACE OPPORTUNITY TO GO THROUGH THOSE. OKAY. UM, AGAIN, WE'VE, WE'RE MOVING BY LEAPS AND BOUNDS. WE HAVE OVER 30 ITEMS THAT WE'VE IMPLEMENTED BASED ON AD HOC RECOMMENDATIONS TO GO FORWARD. SO AGAIN, WE'VE TAKEN, ALRIGHT, HERE'S WHAT I'LL ASK, UH, MAJOR COMMISSIONER, WE BROUGHT THIS ITEM BACK IN SEPTEMBER. MANY THINGS HAVE CHANGED AND IMPROVED SINCE THEN. I THINK I WOULD ASK THAT, UH, SUBJECT FROM YOUR DEPARTMENT SENT AN LTC OF, UH, AN UPDATE, WHAT THE LATEST IMPROVEMENTS HAVE BEEN, WHAT HAS BEEN IMPLEMENTED? UM, I KNOW I PICKED UP A COUPLE THINGS THAT'LL BE ON THE FEBRUARY 3RD, UH, COMMISSION MEETING. UH, AND WE CLOSE THIS OUT. WE CAN BRING SOMETHING NEW IF NEEDED. YEAH, I DON'T LOVE THE IDEA OF, UM, DISCOUNTING VIOLATIONS. UM, I, BUT I DO UNDERSTAND THE SITUATION THAT OUR SMALLER BUILDINGS ACROSS OUR SMALLER HISTORIC BUILDINGS ARE FACING. UM, COULD THERE BE CERTAIN VIOLATIONS THAT AREN'T CONSIDERED, YOU KNOW, LIKE BAD OP OR SOMETHING THAT YOU FIND THAT YOU COULD DISCOUNT? ARE THERE LIKE A CERTAIN SET OF, LIKE, IF WE LOOKED AT ALL THE DIFFERENT VIOLATIONS THAT YOU HAVE, IS THERE ANY WAY THAT WE COULD PROVIDE SOME SORT OF, UM, FINANCIAL RELIEF? WE'RE DOING THE RESEARCH. WE GOT THE, OKAY, WE GOT THE DISCOUNT FOR RECERTIFICATIONS. AND THAT INCLUDES THESE SMALLER BUILDINGS TOO, CORRECT? YES, MA'AM. AND NOT ONLY THAT, UH, KEEP IN MIND OUR, OUR FINES AND OUR FEES ARE CONSISTENT WITH MIAMI-DADE COUNTY AS WELL. SO IT'S UNIFORM. THERE ISN'T AN ADDITIONAL BONUS FEE OR FINE JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE IN MIAMI BEACH. SO IT'S CONSISTENT, UH, BASICALLY THROUGHOUT ALL 35 MUNICIPALITIES IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY. UM, I WOULD CLOSE THIS ITEM OUT. THE ONLY THING THAT I COULD SUGGEST THAT WE DO TO HELP THE SMALLER BUILDINGS IS POSSIBLY LOOK AT SOME OF THE DATA AND FIGURE OUT WHAT ARE THE MAJOR VIOLATIONS THAT YOU'RE ISSUING. AND THEN DO SOME SORT OF COMMUNITY OUTREACH TO ALL OF THESE PROPERTY MANAGERS AND SAY, HERE'S WHAT WE'RE FINDING ACROSS THE BOARD. HERE'S WHAT YOU CAN DO TO PROACTIVELY CURE THIS VIOLATION BASED ON THE NEW CODE YOU'RE SMILING. DOES THAT SEEM LIKE SOMETHING THAT YOU DON'T WANNA ? THAT'S MY SECOND ITEM WITH OUR CONSULTANT BOB MORAN, IS CORRECTING VIOLATIONS AND AVOIDING GETTING INTO THOSE SITUATIONS. IT'S GENERALLY WORK WITHOUT A PERMIT. I, I, WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO DO IS ACTUALLY NOT, NOT DO THE OUTREACH SO MUCH TO THE PROPERTY MANAGERS AS MUCH AS THE CONDO ASSOCIATIONS. UM, JUST THE, I DON'T KNOW, HOW DO WE HAVE A DATABASE OF THOSE CONDO ASSOCIATIONS THAT WE COULD REACH TO CREATE SOME SORT OF, UM, SO, SO YOU'RE LOOKING AT EDUCATING, I THINK EDUCATION IS, WHAT'S THE, WHAT'S THE BIGGEST VIOLATION THAT YOU FIND WORK WITHOUT A PERMIT? . OH, HMM. AND THERE'S NO WAY, I WAS TRYING TO SIMPLIFY WHAT WORK NEEDED A PERMIT AND WHAT WORK DIDN'T. DID YOU EVER GO THROUGH ANY OF THAT AND FIND OUT LIKE WHAT MIGHT NOT NEED A PERMIT? CHAPTER ONE OF THE FLORIDA BUILDING CODE IS, IS VERY, UH, VERY BROAD. ANY ALTERATION, CHANGE OF EQUIPMENT, DEMOLITION, ALL THOSE THINGS REQUIRE A PERMIT. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. SO I DON'T REALLY SEE WHAT WE COULD DO APART FROM, APART FROM POSSIBLY GIVING DIRECTION THAT WE DO SOME COMMUNITY OUTREACH BASED ON TOP VIOLATIONS FOR CONDO ASSOCIATIONS. I THINK THAT THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING PROACTIVE. THAT WAY THEY COME IN, THEY HAVE ACCESS TO VINCE AND HIS TEAM, IF YOU BROUGHT THE WHOLE TEAM IN, AND THEY COULD HAVE THESE, YOU KNOW, CONVERSATIONS WITH YOU SO THAT THERE'S NOT, YOU KNOW, SO MUCH PANIC. AND WE'RE CREATING THAT COURSE FOR THE PROPERTY MANAGER SO THAT THEY CAN'T GO IN FRONT OF THE SPECIAL MASTER ANY LONGER AND SAY, OH, WE DIDN'T KNOW THAT WE COULDN'T DO THIS WORK WITHOUT A PERMIT. 'CAUSE IT'S THE PROPERTY MANAGERS THAT, THAT ARE SUGGESTING THAT THESE ASSOCIATIONS DO THIS WORK WITHOUT PERMITS, PROBABLY CORRECT IN THAT SITUATION. I CAN'T GET TO WHO PULLS THE TRIGGER ON, ON AUTHORIZING THE WORK WITHOUT A PERMIT OR, OR WHATNOT. IT COULD BE A, A RESIDENT, IT COULD BE THE MANAGEMENT COMPANY, IT COULD BE THE MAINTENANCE PERSON. I, I'M NOT INVOLVED IN THAT. I JUST SHOW UP ONCE THE VIOLATION IS, IS THERE, UH, AND MY INSPECTORS VERIFY THAT IT'S THERE AND WE CITE IT AS APPROPRIATELY NEEDED. ARE YOU GUYS ALREADY DOING COMMUNITY OUTREACH ON THE VIOLATIONS? CONDO ASSOCIATION? AND THERE IS A DATABASE, BY [01:25:01] THE WAY, ON THE CONDO ASSOCIATIONS. WE USE THAT TO NOTICE. AND WE ALSO USE THAT DATABASE WHEN WE'RE POSTING, UH, OUR RECERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS. NOW, ARE WE ALREADY WORKING ON A, UH, PUBLIC INFORMATION CAMPAIGN? LIKE I SAID, WE DO HAVE BOB MORAN, THE CONSULTANT. MM-HMM . THAT'S ONE OF THE VARIOUS, UH, PUBLIC OUTREACH THAT WE'RE GONNA DO. UH, AND AGAIN, EVERYONE THAT'S BEEN COMING IN WITH A RECERTIFICATION, WE'VE LET THEM KNOW ANY REPAIRS ASSOCIATED WITH IT ARE APPROVED BY THE ORDINANCE, UH, FROM LAST SESSION, UH, WITH THE 50%, UH, REDUCTION IN THE FEE AND ANY REPAIRS RESULTING FROM, UH, HAVING TO CORRECT ANY ISSUES WITH THE STRUCTURE OR THE ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS OR LIFE SAFETY COMPONENTS WILL BE AT THE REDUCED RESIDENTIAL RATE. SO WE ARE INFORMING THE PUBLIC. OKAY. SO I THINK WE CAN CLOSE THIS ITEM OUT IF THEY'RE ALREADY GOING TO DO PUBLIC OUTREACH. I AGREE. AND AS TO WANT THE LTC WITH THE UPDATE OF WHAT'S BEEN IMPLEMENTED SO FAR. I AM. AND WHAT'S COMING DOWN THE PIKE. ALRIGHT, LET'S [13. DISCUSS THE “FROM THE GET-GO” INITIATIVE THAT AIMS TO OVERHAUL THE BUILDING PERMIT REVIEW PROCESS BY ENSURING THAT ALL NECESSARY ITEMS ARE IDENTIFIED DURING THE INITIAL SUBMISSION AND REVIEW] MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER 13. ITEM NUMBER 13 IS DISCUSSED THOUGH FROM THE GET GO INITIATIVE THAT AIMS TO OVERHAUL THE BUILDING PERMIT REVIEW PROCESS BY ENSURING THAT ALL NECESSARY ITEMS ARE IDENTIFIED DURING THE INITIAL SUBMISSION AND REVIEW. THIS WAS SPONSORED BY THE MAYOR, THIS IS MAYOR MINOR'S ITEM. HE IS ON VACATION. HE STILL WANTS THIS ITEM TO BE HEARD. UH, VINCE, IF YOU COULD, UH, TEE THIS UP, DANNY. ABSOLUTELY. OH, UH, DANNY, DID YOU HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY ON BEHALF OF MAYOR MINOR ON THIS ITEM? YES. HELLO. BASICALLY, HE JUST WANTED TO HEAR THE PRESENTATION THAT VINCENT MARIA, HE WANTED THE COMMITTEE TO HEAR THE PRESENTATION THAT VINCENT MARIA HAVE PREPARED. THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING. UM, RAY HERNANDEZ, INTERIM ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER IN CHARGE OF BUILDING. UM, WE HAVE SPECIFIED VERY SPECIFIC THINGS IN THE MEMORANDUM OF WHAT HAS ALREADY BEEN DONE AT THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT. UM, AND WHAT'S GETTING DONE IN THE NEXT FEW MONTHS. IT IS BASICALLY A COMPLETE OVERHAUL OF THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT. AND THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE TO THANK YOU ALL FOR, UM, APPOINTING THE AD HOC COMMITTEE, WHICH HAS BEEN INSTRUMENTAL, UM, IN GUIDING US ALONG THE WAY. ALSO, BOB BRAND, WHO'S BEEN AN AMAZING CONSULTANT. UM, AND HE'S ALSO A RESIDENT, WHICH MAKES HIM EVEN BETTER. UM, HE'S BEEN GREAT TO WORK WITH AND IT, IT HAS EVOLVED OVER 200 PEOPLE, UM, WITHIN THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT THAT HAVE HAD HOURS AND HOURS AND HOURS OF MEETINGS, UM, AND REALIGNMENT OF HOW THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT DOES BUSINESS. UM, AND IT'S GONNA GO FROM WHAT USED TO BE A VERY ENCLOSED ENVIRONMENT AFTER COVID TO A VERY OPEN ENVIRONMENT BACK AGAIN. UM, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST THING, WHICH IS THAT WE'RE BRINGING BACK WALKTHROUGHS. UM, AND THIS IS SOMETHING THAT EVERYBODY HAS WANTED. I KNOW, UM, COMMISSIONER ROSEN GONZALEZ, THAT YOU HAD A VERY BAD EXPERIENCE WITH, YOU KNOW, SOME SPACES THAT YOU KNOW OF. AND I THINK THAT IF WE WOULD'VE HAD WALKTHROUGHS AVAILABLE, NONE OF THAT WOULD'VE REALLY HAPPENED. I MEAN, IT'S JUST SOMETHING THAT WHEN YOU COME TO PEOPLE AND YOU TALK TO PEOPLE, YOU SOLVE THINGS. IT'S JUST HUMAN NATURE. YOU HAVE YOUR PROFESSIONALS IN FRONT OF YOU AND YOU CAN GET IT DONE. . SO THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE BRINGING BACK FIRST AS A PILOT, WHICH IS, UM, WHICH IS GETTING SET UP RIGHT NOW. AND THEN AS A PHASE TWO, AND THIS HAS BEEN VINCE'S MISSION BECAUSE HE'S BEEN STAFFING THE ENTIRE BUILDING DEPARTMENT WITH ALL THE VACANCIES THAT WE'VE HAD FOR AT LEAST A YEAR, BRINGING BACK PEOPLE, UM, AND WORKING ON THAT BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO HAVE A FULL STAFF IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO BRING THE LEVEL OF THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT TO A DIFFERENT LEVEL, A MORE RESIDENCE FIRST LEVEL, A MORE CUSTOMER FRIENDLY LEVEL. UM, SO IT'S ALL GETTING DONE. UM, THE AD HOC COMMITTEE WHO WE THANK, UM, ENTIRELY, UH, HAS ALREADY SUNSETTED, BUT, UM, ALL OF THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS WE'RE TAKING FORWARD. WE'RE EVEN BRINGING BACK, UM, A DIVISION FOR PRIVATE PROVIDERS, WHICH IS VERY IMPORTANT, EVEN FOR THE DEVELOPERS. UM, AND WE'RE GONNA BE HELPING A LOT OF THE BUSINESSES ALSO THAT NEED A LOT OF HANDHOLDING, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO, UH, COS CERTIFICATES OF USE AND BTRS. UM, AND TO YOUR POINT, UH, COMMISSIONER, WERE PUTTING TOGETHER A WHOLE AD CAMPAIGN. THERE'S A VIDEO THAT'S BEEN PUT TOGETHER, UM, AS WELL AS A LOT OF BROCHURES THAT WE'RE HANDING OUT. AND WE'RE PLANNING TO TAKE SOME OF THIS INFORMATION ON THE ROAD, A ROAD SHOW LIKE WE DID FOR THE GEO BOND. UM, WE'RE, WE'RE GONNA BE REACHING OUT TO NBU AND TO DIFFERENT ASSOCIATIONS TO SHOW THEM WHAT WE'RE DOING BECAUSE IF PEOPLE DON'T KNOW WHAT [01:30:01] WE'RE DOING, IT DOESN'T DO US ANY GOOD . SO WE'RE GONNA BE DOING THAT TOO. SO A RESIDENT THAT WANTS TO DO, FOR EXAMPLE, I'M SORRY, I DIDN'T EVEN ASK TO SPEAK. OKAY, LET'S SAY I'M REMODELING MY BATHROOM, RIGHT? AND I JUST WANNA DRAW IT AND I'M PUTTING, YOU KNOW, CHANGE OF FIXTURES. WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS IN ORDER TO, TO GET THAT PERMIT? I MEAN, DO THEY NEED TO GET A PLUMBING LIKE, UM, INSPECTOR, LIKE A PLUMBING ENGINEER, JUST A PLUMBER. OKAY. TO PULL THE PERMIT. SO THAT'S GONNA BE ONE OF THE WORK CLASSES FOR AN INTERIOR, UH, RENOVATION OF A BATHROOM, UH, OR A KITCHEN. ALRIGHT? AND AS LONG AS THERE'S NO EXTERIOR WORK INVOLVED, THERE ARE CERTAIN DIVISIONS WITHIN THE PERMITTING PROCESS THAT WON'T HAVE TO SEE IT. OKAY. SO AUTOMATICALLY IT'S, IT'S A STREAMLINED PERMITTING PROCESS. THAT'S ONE OF THE PILOTED WORK CLASSES THAT WE'RE GONNA BE LAUNCHING WITH THE WALKTHROUGH PROGRAM. AND TO YOUR QUESTION, UH, WHAT YOU WOULD REQUIRE IS, FIRST AND FOREMOST, EVERY PERMIT STARTS WITH THE APPLICATION. OKAY? THE CO THE COST, UH, AFFIDAVIT. OKAY? SO WE COULD DO THE SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENT, SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE THAT WE HAVE TO ENFORCE BOTH THROUGH THE FLORIDA BUILDING CODE, OUR LOCAL ORDINANCE, AND THE NFIP AND CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATION 44. SO ONCE THAT INITIAL LAUNCH IS SUBMITTED, UH, THEN WHAT WE NEED IS A DRAWING OR A PLAN. MM-HMM . NOW DEALING WITH A CONDOMINIUM, WE HAVE SOMETHING CALLED CONDO DOCKS. SO SOME OF THOSE LAYOUTS, UH, AND FLOOR PLANS ARE ALREADY GENERATED THERE. I CAN UTILIZE THOSE OKAY. GOING FORWARD. AND YOU DO NOT HAVE TO GET A DESIGN PROFESSIONAL, AS LONG AS THOSE CONDITIONS ARE STILL THE SAME. ANY ALTERATION FROM WHAT YOU GET APPROVED THROUGH YOUR WALKTHROUGH PROCESS WILL COMPEL A REVISION. OKAY. NOW, TO YOUR END, WHEN YOU SAY, UH, A BATHROOM REMODEL, CHANGING FIXTURES, AND PERHAPS THE MOST COMMON IS CHANGING A BATHTUB TO A SHOWER BECAUSE OF, YOU KNOW, MOBILITY ISSUES, IF YOU WILL, AS MM-HMM . AS WE GET OLDER, UH, YES, YOU WILL NEED A, A PRIMARY BUILDING PERMIT. OKAY. AND YOU'RE GONNA NEED A PLUMBING PERMIT JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT LINER ISN'T LEAKING TO THE UNIT BENEATH. OKAY. WHAT I ABLE THE DRAINS ARE INSTALLED, LIKE, OKAY, LET'S SAY THAT I'M, I'M RESIDENT, I'M GOING IN, I WANNA REMODEL MY BATHROOM IN THIS WALKTHROUGH, WOULD I BE ABLE TO GO IN WITH THIS DRAWING, GET MY MASTER BUILDING PERMIT, AND THEN JUST HAVE THE PLUMBER COME AND GET HIS PERMIT TO PULL IT AND THAT'S IT. HE COULD EVEN COME WITH YOU. WONDERFUL. THAT WOULD BE GREAT. AND, UM, FOR THE ELECTRIC PART, I KNOW THAT BEFORE WHEN YOU WERE TRYING TO DO LIKE A BATHROOM REMODEL OR A KITCHEN REMODEL, YOU WANTED, EVEN, EVEN THOUGH AN ELECTRICIAN, A LICENSED ELECTRICIAN WAS GONNA PULL THE SUB PERMIT, I THINK ON THE MASTER PERMIT, YOU GUYS WERE REQUIRING, UM, AN ELECTRICAL ENGINEER TO STAMP THAT. DO WE NEED THAT REQUIREMENT? A STATE, IF YOU'RE HIRING A LICENSED ELECTRICIAN AND YOU'RE JUST CHANGING AN OUTLET, NO, A STATE LICENSED ELECTRICAL CONTRACTOR CAN DO A LOAD CALCULATION, OKAY? MM-HMM . THEY'RE AUTHORIZED TO DO SO. THEY DO HAVE TO SIGN THE DOCUMENT, ALRIGHT. PROVIDE THEIR LICENSE NUMBER, GIVE ME THE INFORMATION. AND, AND A NOTARY HAS TO VERIFY THAT CONTRACTORS ARE, ARE REGULATED UNDER FLORIDA STATUTE 4 89. ALRIGHT? ENGINEERS AND ARCHITECTS ARE REGULATED UNDER SEPARATE CHAPTERS. 4 71 FOR ENGINEERS, 4 81 FOR ARCHITECTS. THEY HAVE THE ABILITY WITHIN THEIR STATUTE ON HOW TO AFFIRM, SIGN AND SEAL AND PROTECT THEIR DOCUMENTS, BE IT A RAY SEAL RUBBER STAMP OR A DIGITAL SIGNATURE. CONTRACTORS DO NOT HAVE THAT, HENCE WHEN THEY DO THEIR CALCULATIONS, WE NEED A TITLE BLOCK OR AN INFORMATION, PERHAPS SOMETHING ON THEIR LETTERHEAD THAT TELLS ME, A, WHO YOU ARE B THAT YOU'RE LICENSED, THAT YOUR CURRENT, AND THAT YOU, THIS SIGNATURE IS AUTHENTICATED, HENCE THE NOTARY REQUIREMENT WHEREBY AN ENGINEER ARCHITECT HAS THAT RAISED SEAL THAT THEY JUST SIGNED DATE AND THAT SEAL OR THAT RUBBER STAMP AFFIRMS THAT IT'S THEM. OKAY? OKAY. BUT LET'S SAY I LIVE, YOU KNOW, SINGLE FAMILY HOME, I'M PULLING THE PERMIT AS AN OWNER BUILDER, I'M MY OWN CONTRACTOR, AND OBVIOUSLY MY SUBS, MY PLUMBING AND MECHANICAL, WHATEVER, THEY'RE ALL GONNA BE PERMITTED. CAN WE ISSUE TO A RESIDENT THAT MASTER PERMIT SO THAT THEY CAN BE THE CONTRACTOR ON THAT AND THEY DON'T HAVE TO HIRE THE EXPENSIVE DESIGNER AND THEN HAVE THOSE SUBS PULL THE SEPARATE PERMITS? CAN'T, ARE WE ALLOWED TO ISSUE THAT TO A RESIDENT AS AN OWNER? OWNER BUILDER? IMPORTANT. FIRST AND FOREMOST, THE EXCEPTION FOR, FOR CONTRACTING IS 49.103. AND THAT STIPULATES A VALUE. I'M, I'M NOT LAUGHING AT YOU, YOU'RE JUST SO FUNNY. WHAT IS THAT? 49? OH, 49.103. IT'S EXCEPTIONS FROM CONTRACTING. OKAY. OKAY. SO IF TO BEHAVE AS AN OWNER CON, UH, OWNER BUILDER, THERE ARE LIMITATIONS IN THE STATUTE. OKAY? STARTING WITH VALUE, YOU HAVE TO OCCUPY THE RESIDENT, THE RESIDENTS, YOU CAN'T BE RENTING IT OUT MM-HMM . OR HAVE IT FOR SALE WITHIN A YEAR. MM-HMM . SO THERE ARE SEVERAL CRITERIA THAT FIRST AND FOREMOST HAVE TO BE SATISFIED BEFORE WE EVEN GET THERE. UH, ON TOP [01:35:01] OF THAT, WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE DESIGN PROFESSIONAL ASPECT, AGAIN, THE EXCEPTION PROVIDES FOR A VALUE LIMIT ON WHAT YOU CAN AND CAN'T DO WITHOUT A DESIGN, WITHOUT A CONTRACTOR. NOW A DESIGN PROFESSIONAL, AGAIN, GOES BACK TO 4 71 AND 4 81. THOSE ARE THE STATUTES THAT REGULATE THOSE. AND THERE'S ALSO VALUES AND LIMITATIONS ONTO WHAT A CONTRACTOR CAN DESIGN OR AN OWNER CAN DESIGN. THE MINUTE YOU NEED CALCULATIONS, THAT'S IT. YOU HAVE TO GET A DESIGN PROFESSIONAL PERIOD, NO NEGOTIATION. NOW, IF IT'S A SWAP OUT OF A CABINET, UH, OR AGAIN, WE GO BACK TO THE, THE EXAMPLE OF A BATHROOM, PERHAPS A, A TUB TO SHOWER, WHICH IS BASICALLY, I WANNA SAY 75%, UH, OF, OF THE WORK CLASSES OBSERVED, THAT CAN BE SUBMITTED BY A LICENSED PLUMBING CONTRACTOR, EITHER IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA OR A MASTER CONTRACTOR IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY. AND AGAIN, THE CRITERIA FOR THEM AFFIRMING THE SCOPE OF THEIR WORK, I WOULD NEED PRIOR PLANS PERHAPS, UM, THAT HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED THAT SHOW THE ACTUAL CONDITION. BECAUSE THAT'S THE ONE THING, WE'RE NOT GONNA, AT THAT POINT START APPROVING OR VERIFYING OR PROVIDING A VENUE, UH, FOR LESS THAN SCRUPULOUS INDIVIDUALS FROM LEGALIZING OR AFTER THE FACTING NON PERMITTED WORK. OKAY? I MEAN, IF, SO WE NEED A REFERENCE DOCUMENT THAT'S ALREADY BEEN GENERATED IN ORDER TO AVOID HAVING TO GO THE DESIGN PROFESSIONAL ROUTE, AND THERE'S A MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF VALUE THERE AS WELL. SO I COULDN'T, AS A RESIDENT, GO IN IN THE MORNING, DRAW MY BATHROOM, UM, KNOWING THAT I HAVE, UM, LIKE OBVIOUSLY TILE PER PERSON ISN'T LIKE PERMITTED. I GUESS THAT WOULD BE UNDER THE BUILDING. OKAY, LIZ, I WANNA, I WANNA REMODEL MY BATHROOM AND, BUT I KNOW THAT IF I JUST PULL MY PLUMBING PERMIT AND THE INSPECTOR GOES IN THERE AND SEES THAT I'M DOING SOME TILE WORK, I'M GONNA GET A BUILDING VIOLATION. RIGHT? AND THAT'S NOT WHAT WE WANT. YOU, YOU'LL FAIL THE INSPECTION AND BE COMPELLED TO, I WOULD LIKE A RESIDENT TO BE ABLE TO GO IN, DRAW WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO DO, AND THEN GET THEIR DIFFERENT, YOU KNOW, UH, AND THEN GET THE DIFFERENT SUB. WE CAN'T DO THAT. YES AND NO, GENERALLY NO, YOU CAN'T. AGAIN, IT DEPENDS ON THE VALUE. THAT'S ONE AND THAT'S THE LIMIT. BUT THAT WHAT I, WHAT IS THAT VALUE? HOW MUCH IS THAT? OKAY, IT DEPENDS. IF WE'RE TALKING AN ARCHITECT THAT'S $25,000 IF IT'S ANYTHING. BUT IF I'M THE OWNER BUILDER AND I WANT MY MASTER BUILDING PERMIT SO THAT I CAN DO MY BATHROOM TION, MY REQUIREMENT IS THAT YOU GET A REFERENCE DOCUMENT, GO TO THE MICROFILM RECORD OF YOUR PROPERTY, OKAY? AND GET THE LAST PLANS THAT SHOW THAT THAT CONDITION IS THERE, THAT YOU'RE NOT MOVING THE SHOWER. SO THAT'S ALL YOU NEED, SHOWER. SO ALL YOU DON'T NEED ANYTHING, ANYBODY TO SIGN OFF ON THAT AGAIN. AND THEN I NEED THE PERSON THAT'S GONNA BE INSTALLING OR APPLYING, THERE COULD BE A PLASTIC LINER, THEY COULD BE DOING A LIQUID APPLIED, UH, TUB LINER, SHOWER LINER. THERE'S DIFFERENT THINGS. AND AGAIN, IF WE'RE DEALING ALSO WITH FIRE RATED WALLS OR STRUCTURAL WALLS, HOW ARE YOU BUTTRESSING THAT? ARE YOU, THERE ARE SEVERAL COMPONENTS. IT'S NOT A ONE SIZE FIX ALL. NOW, WHEN YOU COME IN THROUGH THE WALKTHROUGH PROCESS, IF, IF, UH, YOU HIT ONE OF THOSE HICCUPS, YOU'RE GETTING IT FROM THE HORSE'S MOUTH RIGHT THEN AND THERE MM-HMM . OKAY. SO WE COULD PROVIDE YOU THE GUIDANCE, HEY LOOK, GO DOWNSTAIRS REAL QUICK TO THE RECORDS DEPARTMENT, PULL UP ANY MICROFILM AND WE COULD SEE EXACTLY WHAT YOUR CONDITION IS. OKAY? SO THE IDEA AND, AND THAT WAY YOU ARE GETTING AHEAD OF, I GUESS, THE CURVE IF YOU WOULD, AND YOU ALREADY HAVE SOMETHING TO WORK FROM. NOW, AGAIN, I CAUTION YOU BECAUSE AS THINGS GET ADDED TO THOSE SCOPES, YOU START REACHING THOSE THRESHOLDS AFTER A CERTAIN THRESHOLD, YOU ARE OBLIGATED TO GET A DESIGN PROFESSIONAL AND DO THE WHOLE THING. AND YOU COULD STILL USE THAT MICROFILM OR THAT RECORD REQUEST AS A REFERENCE DOCUMENT SHOWING, HEY, WE HAVEN'T MOVED THE TUB, WE HAVEN'T ADDED A BEDROOM, WE HAVEN'T MADE ANY SIGNIFICANT ALTERATION. OKAY? OKAY. UM, WELL WE ANSWERED THIS, THIS IS, BUT THIS IS THE TYPE OF SEMINAR THAT WE NEED TO DO WITH RESIDENTS SO THAT THEY UNDERSTAND THAT THEY CAN COME IN, PULL THE PLANTS OF THEIR HOUSE, A SURVEY, RIGHT? ALL YOU NEED IS A SURVEY, RIGHT? NO, NOT A SURVEY. WELL, IF YOU WANNA JUST DO A FENCE, PERHAPS A SURVEY, BUT THEN YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO GO, SINCE IT'S SOMETHING EXTERIOR, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO GO TO ZONING. SO IT DEPENDS. YOU DEPENDING ON THE SCOPE OF WORK, YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT A TUB, I NEED TO KNOW THE FLOOR PLAN, I NEED TO KNOW THE LAYOUT, WHAT'S PHYSICALLY THERE, WHAT'S ACTUALLY THERE THAT WE'RE GONNA GO AND THEN PRESCRIBE AND TELL ME WHAT KIND OF LINE CAN THEY TAKE A PICTURE OF IT AND PUT THAT ON THE PLAN. LIKE, I WANNA MAKE IT AS EASY AS POSSIBLE. LIKE IF YOU CAN GET AROUND THE STATE STATUTE TO MAKE IT EASY, IF THEY COULD TAKE A PICTURE OF THEIR BATHROOM AND PIN IT TO THE, YOU KNOW, AND PIN IT TO THE APPLICATION SO THAT THEY DON'T HAVE TO PAY THE ADDITIONAL $1,500 TO HAVE THAT DRAWN. THAT'S A BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SOMEBODY DOING SOMETHING ILLEGALLY AND GETTING A VIOLATION OR GOING AND PULLING. I WANT PEOPLE TO SAY, YOU KNOW WHAT, IT WAS SO EASY TO RENOVATE MY [01:40:01] BATHROOM. I I, I UNDERSTAND. 'CAUSE OUR VINCE, OUR BUILDING DIRECTOR IS SO WONDERFUL AND ACCOMMODATING THERE, THERE'S NO GETTING AROUND STATUTES. THOSE ARE THE ENABLING LEGISLATURE. BUT I HAVE A QUESTION THAT COMMISSIONER YEAH, IT'S MINOR'S ITEM. I, I I GET IT. UH, COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ. YES. UM, THANK YOU MADAM CHAIRMAN. SO YOU MENTIONED CERTAIN STATE STATUTES INSERTING BUILDING CODES, THESE, ARE THESE BUILDING CODES IN THE FLORIDA STATUTES OR IS IT A DIFFERENT DOCUMENT? OKAY. FLORIDA STATUTE GET READY FOR ANOTHER 1, 5, 5 3 IS THE ENABLING LEGISLATION FOR WHAT WE WE REFER TO AS THE FLORIDA BUILDING CODE. YES. SO THE FLORIDA BUILDING CODE BECOMES YOUR ADMINISTRATIVE CODE, THE DETAILS. UNDERSTOOD. SO, BUT THERE'S A FLORIDA BUILDING CODE COMMISSION. YES, SIR. OKAY. AND IS IT POSSIBLE TO, LET ME ASK YOU THIS, IS IT POSSIBLE TO PASS A LOCAL AMENDMENT TO THE CODE TO THE FLORIDA BUILDING CODE? ABSOLUTELY. AS LONG AS IT'S MORE RESTRICTIVE THAN THE BUILDING CODE. RESTRIC MORE OR LESS RESTRICTIVE. RESTRICTIVE. CORRECT. AND IS IT POSSIBLE FOR THE, HOW OFTEN DOES THE FLORIDA BUILDING COMMISSION MEET? WELL, THE FLORIDA BUILDING CODE GETS ADOPTED, UH, TRI ANUALLY AND CURRENTLY TRI, WE'RE IN A MODIFICATION PERIOD FOR THE 2026 EDITION OF THE FLORIDA BUILDING CODE. THAT WOULD TAKE EFFECT, UH, DECEMBER 31ST, 2026. OKAY. AND HAVE WE SAT DOWN TO DISCUSS ISSUES THAT MIGHT BE UNIQUE TO MIAMI BEACH THAT WE MAY WANT TO BRING TO THE ATTENTION OF THE FLORIDA BUILDING CODE COMMISSION, UM, THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT WE MAY WANT THEM TO CONSIDER? LIKE FOR EXAMPLE, I THINK WHAT MY COLLEAGUE IS, IS MENTIONING TO HELP STREAMLINE, LIKE IF YOU CAN DO, IF IT'S SOMETHING SIMPLE THAT YOU CAN DO YOUR OWN, YOU KNOW, DRAWINGS FOR WITHOUT HAVING TO HIRE ANOTHER PERSON. IS THIS, SO IS THIS SOMETHING THAT WE CAN REF, YOU KNOW, SEND AN URGING THAT WE CAN REACH OUT, THAT WE COULD LOBBY, UH, AS PART OF OUR STATE LOBBYING EFFORTS TO THE FLORIDA BUILDING COMMISSION TO CONSIDER? THERE? THERE'S ALREADY, SO THE FRAMEWORK OF THE STATUTE, IT'S, THAT'S THE GENERAL ENABLING LEGISLATION AND THE DETAILS COME TO US THROUGH THE CODE. AND THERE'S PROVISIONS IN CHAPTER ONE AS TO WHAT REQUIRES A DESIGN PROFESSIONAL. AND THEN THE STATUTES THAT REGULATE THOSE DESIGN PROFESSIONALS HAVE OTHER RESTRICTIONS AND REQUIREMENTS. AND THAT'S WHERE THOSE OTHER THRESHOLDS COME IN. AND THE EXCEPTIONS, LIKE I . YEAH. BUT WHEN I HEAR RESTRICTIONS AND REQUIREMENTS, I HEAR RED TAPE AND BUREAUCRACY TIME AND EXPENSE FOR RESIDENTS AND TAXPAYERS, WHICH WE WANT TO BE ABLE, YOU SEE, I WOULD VALUE, YOU KNOW, YOU TELLING US WHAT WE COULD URGE THE FLORIDA BUILDING CODE COMMISSION TO CHANGE TO HELP CREATE A MORE EFFICIENT PROCESS. THERE'S THINGS WE CAN DO LOCALLY, BUT NOT EVERYTHING IS LOCALLY. A LOT OF TIMES WE FIND OURSELVES WITH OUR HANDS TIED AND SAYING, WE'RE PREEMPTED BY THE STATE, BY, BY, BY, YOU KNOW, 8 8 3 0.50 OR BY, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING ELSE. AND SO, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE THESE THINGS, IF YOU COULD HELP US IDENTIFY WHAT ARE THESE THINGS THAT WE MIGHT WANT TO ASK THE STATE TO AMEND SO THAT WE CAN CREATE A MORE EFFICIENT PROCESS FOR OUR, FOR OUR, I I I TRUST AND I BELIEVE THAT THERE IS NO LEGISLATURE MORE COMMITTED AND NO STATE GOVERNMENT MORE COMMITTED RIGHT NOW TO MAKING A MORE EFFICIENT PROCESS FOR HOMEOWNERS AND RESIDENTS THAN THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION. AND WE SHOULD USE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO ADVOCATE ON THEIR BEHALF, BECAUSE THIS MIGHT BE ONE OF THOSE RARE OCCASIONS WHERE OUR LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND OUR STATE GOVERNMENT MIGHT ALIGN IN AGREEING ON SOMETHING WHICH IS EFFICIENCY, CUTTING RATE, RED TAPE, AND MAKING A MORE STREAMLINED PROCESS, PERMITTING PROCESS FOR OUR RESIDENTS. UH, I'M DEFINITELY HAPPY TO SIT DOWN AND, AND GO OVER THE, UH, MINUTIA OF THE, THE SEVERAL PIECES OF LEGISLATION INVOLVED AND WHAT WE CAN TRY AND INITIATE. UM, THE, THE, THE BAD WORD OF PREEMPTION DOES COME UP, UH, QUITE OFTEN. UH, BUT THERE'S, THERE'S ADDITIONAL LOCAL REQUIREMENTS THAT AREN'T HERE IN THE BEACH THAT COME THROUGH US THROUGH OUR, OUR BIGGER BROTHER, BIGGER SISTER OF, UH, MIAMI-DADE COUNTY. FOR EXAMPLE, DURHAM, UH, IS ONE THAT IF YOU'RE DOING AN ALTERATION INTERIORLY OVER 160 SQUARE FEET, NOW YOU HAVE TO GO TO THEM. AND THAT ADDS AN ADDITIONAL LAYER OF RED TAPE, UH, TO, TO QUOTE YOU, UH, COMMISSIONER. SO YES, I'M HAPPY TO, TO, YOU KNOW, SIT UP. WE COULD SET UP A MEETING, UH, OFFLINE TO NOT BOG DOWN THE COMMITTEE TOO MUCH, AND WE COULD GO OVER SOME INITIATIVES THAT I THINK WOULD, WOULD DEFINITELY PUSH THE NEEDLE, UH, IN THIS DIRECTION. AND THE, THE FACT THAT THE APPETITE IS, IS HERE, UM, I DON'T THINK IT'S EXCLUSIVE, BUT I DO WANNA REMIND EVERYBODY JUST AS WHEN I DISCUSSED THE, THE VIOLATIONS, UM, A LOT OF THE BUILDING CODE, UNFORTUNATELY, [01:45:01] YOU MAY LOOK AT A BLACK AND WHITE SHEET OF PAPER, BUT IT'S ACTUALLY WRITTEN IN A LOT OF ACCIDENTS, BLOODS AND DISASTER. SURE. THAT'S UNDERSTOOD. AND, AND THAT'S THE, THE BALANCE THAT THEY'RE TRYING TO, OUR, OUR, OUR PRIORITY IS ALWAYS TO, TO, TO LOOK OUT FOR THE SAFETY AND WELLBEING OF PRIORITIZE LIFE AND PROPERTY. CORRECT. AND SO AND SO AND SO UNDERSTOOD THAT WE DON'T WANT TO DO THAT, BUT SOMETIMES CERTAIN THINGS GET OUTDATED, SOMETIMES IN THEIR IMPLEMENTATION. THEY'RE DETERMINED TO AT TIMES EVEN BE REDUNDANT. ABSOLUTELY. THE TECHNOLOGY CHANGES TO GO FORWARD. IT AND TECHNOLOGY CHANGES. AND SO, AND SO, GIVEN THAT WE ARE IN THIS PERIOD OF REVISION, IT WOULD BE, IT'LL BE A GOOD TIME I FEEL FOR US TO GET TOGETHER AND SEE WHAT, WHAT THE SUFFICIENCIES COULD BE. ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU. ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU, VINCE. THANK YOU. OKAY. I'D LIKE TO MOVE THIS TO THE FULL COMMISSION AND, UM, THAT WAY WE CAN TAKE ACTION THERE ON FUTURE ITEMS AND THE MAYOR WILL BE PRESENT TO GIVE ADDITIONAL INPUT. OKAY. OKAY. ITEM [18. DISCUSS POTENTIAL LOCATIONS FOR THE RELOCATION OF THE SANITATION DEPARTMENT’S OPERATIONS OFFICE, WHICH IS CURRENTLY LOCATED ON THE FIRST FLOOR OF THE 17TH STREET PARKING GARAGE.] NUMBER 18. ITEM NUMBER 18 IS DISCUSSED POTENTIAL LOCATIONS FOR THE RELOCATION OF THE SANITATION DEPARTMENT, OPERATIONS OFFICE, WHICH IS CURRENTLY LOCATED ON THE FIRST FLOOR OF 17TH STREET PARKING GARAGE. THIS WAS SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ. OKAY. SO, UM, AS I'VE UH, BEEN A COMMISSIONER, I'VE BEEN TOURING DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS FOR THE PAST COUPLE YEARS, AND WHEN I TOURED THE SANITATION DEPARTMENT, I WAS QUITE SURPRISED. AND SO I'D LIKE TO HEAR FROM THE, UM, CITY ADMINISTRATION ON THEIR THOUGHTS OF WHAT I WITNESSED AND, UH, POTENTIAL NEW LOCATIONS. THANK YOU. CHAIR DOMINGUEZ AND FELLOW COMMISSIONERS. UM, WHAT WE BROUGHT BACK IS, UM, BASICALLY A, AN OPPORTUNITY HERE TO LOOK AT, UM, ONE OF OUR EXISTING SITES WHERE OUR OPERATIONS LOCATION IS FOR OUR UTILITIES AT 4 51 DAY BOULEVARD. UM, AND I THINK THE GOOD PART ABOUT THAT IS, UH, IN 2016 THERE WAS A POTENTIAL PLAN TO PUT A LIGHT CARRA SYSTEM THERE. UM, SO A LOT OF THE FRAMEWORK, UH, FOR WHAT WE WOULD NEED FROM AN OPERATIONAL PERSPECTIVE, IT, IT, THERE'S A BASELINE THAT'S ALREADY THERE. SO WE HAVE THAT SITE AS ONE POTENTIAL SITE. AND, AND IN FURTHER DISCUSSIONS WE HAD WITH ADMINISTRATION, UM, WE ALSO INCLUDED, UM, OUR SITE AT, UM, 2100 MERIDIAN, WHERE IT'S CURRENTLY PARKS AND GREEN SPACE OPERATIONAL FACILITY. SO WHAT WE WOULD LIKE TO DO AT THIS POINT IN TIME IS, UH, UTILIZE, UH, THE CONSULTANT WHO DID THIS LIGHT RAIL CAR STUDY BACK THEN, WHICH WAS KIMLEY HORNE AND, AND KIMLEY HORNER AS A FIRM WE USED TODAY. UH, WE ESTIMATE THE COST, UM, OF APPROXIMATELY A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS OR LESS TO DO IT. AND IT BASICALLY WOULD JUST, YOU KNOW, PROVIDE UPDATED AND CURRENT COSTS AND INFORMATION, YOU KNOW, FOR US TO LOOK AT THE POTENTIAL TO MOVE THE SANITATION OPERATION OF, UH, PUBLIC WORKS UNDER ONE ROOF AT THE OPERATIONS. AND IS THAT TYPE OF FUNDING, UM, MONIES THAT THE DEPARTMENT WOULD HAVE ALREADY OR NEEDS TO BE FOUND THROUGH FINANCE? NO, WE, WE, WE NEED TO MAKE THE, THE REQUEST IS TO, UH, $400,000. SO WE CAN GO AHEAD AND, AND TAKE THIS ACTION. OKAY. SO IF MY COLLEAGUES AGREE, I'D LIKE TO MOVE THIS TO THE FULL COMMISSION SO THAT WE CAN THEN REFER IT TO FINANCE FOR CONSIDERATION IN 2020. OKAY. BUT BRETT, UM, AND IF I COULD THERE WAS PUT SOME BRAIN POWER IS BEING PUT INTERNALLY BEHIND US ALREADY, RIGHT? SOME, YOU KNOW, IDEAS, SO NOT STORY FROM SCRATCH. I DON'T WANT TO DELAY, UH, I WANT YOU TO BE ABLE TO MOVE AS FAST AS POSSIBLE. SO YEAH, AND I, I THINK THAT'S WHY, YOU KNOW, GOING WITH KIMLEY HORN WILL, WILL PROBABLY BE BEST BECAUSE THEY'VE ALREADY HAD A BASELINE WHEN THEY STARTED THIS, UM, YOU KNOW, LIGHT RAIL PROCESS AND, AND INVOLVED THAT FACILITY. UH, AND WE ALSO PUT IN THE, UH, GREEN SPACE FACILITY AS ANOTHER POTENTIAL OPTION. SO WE CAN LOOK AT A COUPLE THINGS THAT, YOU KNOW, MAY BE ABLE TO GET US, UH, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE NEED TO BE IN TERMS OF BEING ABLE TO MOVE THAT OPERATION OUT OF 17TH STREET GARAGE. OKAY. SO WITH THAT, WE'LL MOVE TO THE FULL COMMISSION AND THEN GO TO NUMBER 18. OKAY. ITEM NUMBER SIX. WE JUST HEARD 18, OH, I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY. NUMBER [6. DISCUSSION ALLOWING MULTIFAMILY RESIDENCE BUILDINGS TO HOLD GARAGE SALES TWO (2) TIMES PER YEAR] SIX IS DISCUSS ALLOWING MULTI-FAMILY RESIDENCE BUILDINGS TO HOLD GARAGE SALES TWO TIMES PER YEAR. AND THIS WAS SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER DOMINGEZ. OKAY. SO, UH, THIS ITEM WAS, UH, BROUGHT FORTH, UH, BY THE FLAMINGO PARK GROUP, UM, MCC MERIDIAN COURT COMMUNITY, AND I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT IF ANY BUILDING IS HAVING MORE THAN ONE GARAGE SALE, THAT IT'S THE BUILDING THAT REQUESTS IT BECAUSE, UH, WE WOULDN'T WANT THIS TO GET OUT OF HAND AND I'D LOVE TO HEAR MORE FROM [01:50:01] MANNY MARQUEZ. UH, GOOD AFTERNOON CHAIR, UH, COMMISSIONERS. UH, CURRENTLY THE CITY CODE ALLOWS FOR ONE GARAGE SALE PER 12 MONTH PERIOD FOR SINGLE FAMILY HOME OR MULTI-FAMILY RESIDENCE. UH, WE COULD BRING AN ITEM TO THE NEXT COMMISSION MEETING ALLOWING FOR TWO. UH, THE CAP WAS ONE, IT'S BEEN ONE FOR MANY, MANY YEARS. PREVIOUS COMMISSIONS DISCUSSED, UH, INCREASING IT. AND THERE WERE SOME FEARS THAT SOME, UH, RESIDENTS MIGHT TRY LIKE TO HAVE LIKE A FLEA MARKET TYPE THING ON A REGULAR BASIS. UH, I THINK THIS IS SOMETHING THAT COULD BE BROUGHT SIMPLY, IT'S JUST CAPPING IT AT TWO PER YEAR. WE'VE HAD A REQUEST IN THE PAST, UH, FOR MULTIPLE GARAGE SALES IN A YEAR, AND WE'VE TOLD THE RESIDENTS, NO, YOU CAN ONLY HAVE ONE CURRENTLY, WE AVERAGE APPROXIMATELY 20 GARAGE SALES PER YEAR FOR THE WHOLE CITY. SO I, I THINK THAT, UM, THE CITY SHOULD NOT ACCEPT GARAGE SALE REQUESTS FROM RESIDENTS DIRECTLY. IT HAS TO COME FROM THE BUILDING BECAUSE THAT WOULD MEAN THAT THE BOARD HAS APPROVED AND VETTED THAT IT'S OKAY TO HAVE THE GARAGE SALE ON THEIR PREMISES. I'D LOVE TO HEAR FROM OUR COLLEAGUES WHAT THEY THINK ABOUT THIS. IF, IF I MAY ADD TO THE CHAIR, UM, THE BUILDING, IT HAS TO COME, IF IT'S A CONDO ASSOCIATION, IT NEEDS TO COME FROM THE CONDO ASSOCIATION. WE WOULDN'T ACCEPT AN APPLICATION FROM A RESIDENT AND NEED TO BE BUILDING. AND THAT'S WHAT I MEANT WHEN I SAID BUILDING. I MEANT THE CONDO ASSOCIATION HAS TO MAKE THE REQUEST, NOT THE INDIVIDUAL RESIDENT THAT'S CURRENTLY IN OUR RULES. OKAY. COMMISSIONER, I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THIS. I WOULD MOVE IT IF YOU WANT IT. OKAY. I KNOW. OKAY. ALRIGHT, SO WE'LL MOVE IT TO THE FULL COMMISSION AND THEN WITH THAT WE'LL GO TO ITEM NUMBER 15. [15. DISCUSS TIMELINE FOR CONSTRUCTION OF MIAMI BEACH CONVENTION CENTER HEADQUARTER HOTEL AND ANTICIPATED OPENING DATE.] ITEM NUMBER 15 IS DISCUSS THE TIMELINE FOR CONSTRUCTION FOR MIAMI BEACH CONVENTION CENTER HEADQUARTERS, HOTEL, AND ANTICIPATED HOME DATE. THIS WAS SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER DOMINGUEZ AND CO-SPONSORED BY FERNANDEZ. AND WE HAVE, I BELIEVE, HI. OKAY. HI. YES. MY NAME IS YVETTE BATISTA, CONSTRUCTION PROJECT MANAGER AT TERRA, AND WE'RE HAPPY TO INFORM THAT WE HAVE SECURED TERM SHEETS WITH THE LENDER. THAT IS A BIG MILESTONE FOR 'CAUSE IT MEANS THAT WE HAVE COMPLETED PRETTY MUCH THE FINANCING. RIGHT NOW WE'RE IN THE DUE DILIGENCE PROCESS. THERE'S A LOT THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE TO COME TOGETHER FOR CLOSING. OKAY. SO WE'RE LOOKING AT CLOSING TOWARDS THE END OF MARCH, BUT WE'RE STILL GONNA CONTINUE WITH OUR PLAN OF DOING TEST PILES IN FEBRUARY. OKAY. SO TEST PILES FEBRUARY, CLOSING IN MARCH AND, UH, FOUNDATIONS IN APRIL. AND THEN, UM, HOTEL OPENING IS STILL TARGETING NOVEMBER OF 2027. OKAY. SO THAT'S OUR, THAT'S OUR UPDATE. UH, OKAY. AND WHEN IN 2027. NOVEMBER, 2027. OKAY. HOTEL OPENING. OKAY. SO YOU'VE SECURED A LENDER. THE CLOSING IS AT THE END OF MARCH. UH, PILINGS ARE STILL BEING DONE IN FEBRUARY. FOUNDATION WILL BE DONE IN APRIL. AND, UH, SO RIGHT. THE, THE TEST PILES IN FEBRUARY, THEN WE BEGIN BUILDING THE FOUNDATION, THE, THE PILES RIGHT? IN APRIL? YES. AFTER THURSDAY. OKAY. UH, SO WHEN WILL THERE BE A GROUNDBREAKING? PROBABLY MID-APRIL. OKAY. MID TO END OF APRIL. WE, WE NEED TO GET STARTED PLANNING THE CEREMONY. WE WERE JUST TALKING ABOUT THAT EARLIER. COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ. YES. THANK YOU. AND, UH, IT CERTAINLY IS, UH, EXCITING NEWS. I HOPE, I HOPE THAT CLOSING COMES QUICKLY, THAT WE CAN MOVE FORWARD. I'M GLAD TO HEAR THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE SOME MOVEMENT ON THE SIDE WITH, UH, PILINGS. UH, WITH THAT MEANS THAT NOW IS THE TIME WHEN WE NEED TO BE TALKING ABOUT TRAFFIC PLANTS AND STAGINGS AND, UH, AND, YOU KNOW, THAT TYPE OF, OF ACTIVITY, UH, BECAUSE WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS IMPORTANT PHASE OF CONSTRUCTION, THAT WE LIMIT THE IMPACT AS MUCH AS WE CAN ON THE AREA. WHERE ARE WE WITH THE MOT PLAN, UH, FOR THIS? RIGHT. WE HAVE AN MOT AND LOGISTICS PLAN THAT HAS BEEN CIRCULATED AND APPROVED, UH, BY, UH, TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS. SO OUR CITY MANAGER HAS ALREADY APPROVED, IT'S READY FOR CITY MANAGERS APPROVAL AS PART OF THE PREPOSSESSION CONDITIONS. OKAY. UH, AND TO THE CITY ADMINISTRATION, UH, BY WHEN DO WE ANTICIPATE APPROVAL OF THE MLT PLAN? BY, BY THE, WE HAVE MULTIPLE ITEMS THAT WE'RE WORKING WITH THE CITY MAN MANAGER'S OFFICE, UHHUH, UH, AND THAT'S ONE OF THEM. MM-HMM . OKAY. UH, HOW ABOUT, UH, THE, UM, YOU KNOW, THE PLAN FOR OFFSITE TRANSPORTATION, PARKING, UH, FOR CONSTRUCTION WORKERS AND ALL THAT? AGAIN, THERE'S [01:55:01] ANOTHER IMPORTANT ASPECT OF THIS AS WE MOVE FORWARD. I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT AS WE BREAK GROUND, WE HAVE VISITOR PARKING HERE, INDIVIDUALS THAT WANT TO COME TO CITY HALL, OR INDIVIDUALS THAT WANT TO EXPERIENCE ACTIVITIES AT THE CONVENTION CENTER, ENJOY LINCOLN ROAD. SO WHERE ARE WE WITH THE, UH, PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION PLAN FOR THE CONSTRUCTION WORKERS? RIGHT. OUR PLAN IS THE SAME THAT WE HAD IN PLACE FOR OUR FOUNDATION PERMIT. WE HAVE A CONTRACT WITH, UM, I CAN'T REMEMBER IT, IT'S IN DIRECT EXCEL. IT'S A PARKING GARAGE, AND WE HAVE AN AGREEMENT WITH THEM, UM, THAT WAS SIGNED FOR THE FOUNDATION PERMIT. IT'S BEING EXTENDED FOR THE HOTEL AND IT SHOULD BE SIGNED IN THE NEXT, UH, WEEK OR SO AND WILL BE SUBMITTED FOR THE VERTICAL. UM, BUT WE ARE, WE'RE COVERED FOR THE FOUNDATION. BEFORE YOU START WORK, ARE THERE ANY EASEMENT AGREEMENTS THAT NEED TO BE, UH, REVIEWED AND EXECUTED BETWEEN THE DEVELOPER AND THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH? CORRECT. WE HAD A CALL WITH THE CITY EARLIER THIS WEEK ABOUT THAT. WE HAVE FIVE EASEMENTS THAT NEED TO BE RECORDED BEFORE WE START CONSTRUCTION. MM-HMM . OKAY. AND WHERE ARE WE ON THE BASE? I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE. I DON'T WANT, I, I DON'T WANT US TO FIND OURSELVES IN A SITUATION THAT YOU COME BACK A MONTH FROM NOW AND WE'RE TOLD, OH, WE HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO MOVE BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THERE'S AN ISSUE WITH THE EASEMENTS OR THERE'S AN DOCUMENT SITTING ON SOMEONE'S DESK AND WE HAVEN'T RECEIVED A SIGNATURE YET. UH, WE LEARN FROM OTHER PROJECTS LIKE, YOU KNOW, DEALING WITH OTHER JURISDICTIONS AND THINGS STAYING ON PEOPLE'S DESKS. AND SO I JUST WANNA KNOW, YOU KNOW, I WANNA MAKE SURE WE MOVE EFFICIENTLY. SO, UM, TELL US WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THOSE EASEMENTS. GOOD MORNING, TY VIRA. I'M THE CITY'S LIAISON, UM, FOR THE HOTEL PROJECT. UM, SO WE'VE BEEN MEETING WITH A DEVELOPER OVER THE COURSE, YOU KNOW, THE LAST COUPLE YEARS. UM, VERY OFTEN AT THE MOMENT, THE EASEMENTS, UH, WHICH IS YOUR QUESTION, THERE ARE FIVE EASEMENTS TO BE REVIEWED BY THE CITY, UH, REVIEWED AND APPROVED. WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF DOING THAT. WE HAD TO HIRE A SURVEYOR, UH, TO DO A PEER REVIEW OF WHAT THEY SUBMITTED TO US. AND THAT IS, IS EXPECTED TO BE COMPLETED IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS. OKAY. AND DOES THAT NEED TO COME ULTIMATELY TO THE CITY COMMISSION FOR APPROVAL? NO, THESE ARE EASEMENTS THAT ARE PRE-APPROVED AS PART OF THE LEASE AGREEMENT. SO THE CITY MANAGER HAS THE AUTHORITY TO DO THAT. THESE ARE THINGS LIKE THE BRIDGE, RIGHT? MM-HMM . THAT CONNECTS THE HOTEL TO THE CONVENTION CENTER, AND THAT'S IMPORTANT. MM-HMM . RIGHT. BUT, UM, FOR EXAMPLE, THE STAGING AREA, UM, THE ALLEYWAYS LOCATIONS, THEY HAVE RIGHT OF WAY EASTMANS ALSO, AND THERE'S THE HOTEL, THE, THE, THE HOTEL ALLEYWAY AND ALL THAT. UM, YEAH. YEAH. THE, THE ALLEYWAY IS ONE OF THE EASTMANS, THE ALLEYWAY, THE CRANES , THE BRIDGE, THE TEMPORARY STAGING AREAS, THE TEMPORARY STAGING AREAS, AND THEN THE FPLS, UH, VAULT AND, AND SWITCH GEAR. OKAY. ALRIGHT. ARE THERE ANY, ANYTHING PENDING WITH THE CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS? YOUR GMP? OUR GMP WILL BE SIGNED IN IN THE NEXT WEEK OR SO. MM-HMM . OKAY. VERY GOOD. AND THERE'S A CERTIFICATE OF INSURANCE ALREADY ISSUED THAT IS IN PROGRESS. OKAY. WE, THAT'S NOT GONNA BE READY UNTIL, LIKE, PROBABLY LIKE THE DAY OF CLOSING TO CLOSE. OKAY. BUT THAT'S IMPORTANT BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, FOR THE CITY, AND THAT ULTIMATELY PROTECTS OUR CITY, OUR RESIDENTS, OUR TAXPAYERS. SO HAVING THAT CERTIFICATE OF INSURANCE, UH, BY, YOU KNOW, WHY, WHY IS IT THAT WE NEED TO WAIT? SO THERE'S THE BUILDER'S RISK AND THEN'S THE GENERAL LIABILITY. RIGHT. OKAY. AND DOES THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE FEEL COMFORTABLE WAITING UNTIL THE DAY OF THE CLOSING TO HAVE, UH, THE CERTIFICATE OF INSURANCE? NO. SO LET ME JUST CLARIFY THAT. UM, WE ACTUALLY WERE HAVING A CONVERSATION ABOUT THIS YESTERDAY. WE'RE GONNA HAVE THEM IN CONTACT WITH OUR BUILDER, WITH OUR INSURANCE FOLKS AT THE CITY TO MAKE SURE THAT THE DOCUMENTATION THAT THEY'RE PROPOSING IS ACCEPTABLE TO THE CITY. ULTIMATELY WILL GO BE REVIEWED BY THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AS WELL. BUT THIS IS IN PROGRESS, SO IT'S NOT LIKE AT THE LAST MINUTE THEY'RE GONNA SUBMIT SOMETHING TO US FOR REVIEW. OKAY. VERY WELL. THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. OKAY. UM, WE HAVE OUR NEXT MEETING IN A COUPLE WEEKS, BUT THINGS CHANGE ALL THE TIME IN CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS. SO I WOULD LIKE FOR YOU TO COME BACK AND GIVE US AN UPDATE. WHAT'S GOING ON ON, UH, FEBRUARY 12TH. FEBRUARY 12TH. OKAY. SAME COMMITTEE? YES. OKAY. THIS IS A LATE JANUARY MEETING. YES. WANT THAT CLOSING? , YOU WANT AN UPDATE ON THAT CLOSING? YEP. OKAY. WITH THAT WE'LL MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER 16. [16. DISCUSS THE POTENTIAL IMPLEMENTATION OF A TEXT MESSAGING SYSTEM TO FACILITATE THE REPORTING OF CODE COMPLIANCE COMPLAINTS] ITEM NUMBER 16 IS DISCUSS THE POTENTIAL IMPLEMENTATION OF A TEXT MESSAGING SYSTEM TO FACILITATE THE REPORTING OF CODE COMPLIANCE COMPLAINTS. AND THIS WAS SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ AND CO-SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE. [02:00:01] OKAY. SO WHO WANTS TO GO FIRST? THANK YOU. UM, MADAM CHAIR, THIS IS AN ITEM I PLACE ON THE, ON THE AGENDA. I'M SO GRATEFUL TO COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE FOR, UH, FOR, FOR JOINING ME AND SPONSORING, UH, THIS, THIS ITEM BECAUSE I, AS WE WERE SPEAKING EARLIER, UH, IN AN, IN AN EARLIER ITEM, UM, YOU KNOW, ENFORCEMENT OF ISSUES IS IMPORTANT. AND I FEEL THE MORE THAT WE CAN DO TO MAKE OUR GOVERNMENT ACCESSIBLE TO INDIVIDUALS AND THEIR PREFERRED MEANS OF COMMUNICATION, THE MORE EFFICIENT OUR OPERATIONS WILL BE AND THE BETTER WE'LL BE ABLE TO SERVE OUR PUBLIC. I THINK BEING ABLE, ALLOWING OUR RESIDENTS TO BE ABLE TO TEXT MESSAGE, UH, CODE ENFORCEMENT IS ALIGNED WITH THE DIRECTION IN WHICH WE'RE MOVING. AND, FOR EXAMPLE, UM, GONNA SWITCH GEARS TO POLICE, YOU KNOW, WITH POLICE. WE HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY AND WE'RE WORKING WITH MIAMI-DADE COUNTY TO BE ABLE TO INCORPORATE, UH, THE, UH, TEXT TO 9 1 1 AND THAT, AND THAT IS IN THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE, UH, BECAUSE WE ALREADY HAVE THE EQUIPMENT FOR IT. MIAMI-DADE COUNTY HAS A, HAS ADAPTED THEIR, THEIR EQUIPMENT FOR IT AND ALL THAT. THERE IS A SYNCHRONIZE SYNCHRONIZATION GOING ON WITH IT. UM, SO THE NEXT PHASE IS HOW DO WE, UH, GET OUR OTHER REGULATORY ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES ALIGNED WITH THIS? SO, I SEE WE HAVE OUR ADMINISTRATION HERE. I WANNA RECOGNIZE, UH, FRANK ANA, OUR CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER, TO TELL US WHERE WE ARE AT WITH, UH, WITH THIS ITEM. GOOD MORNING. UH, FRANK MCDON, CIO WITH THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH. UM, SO AS AN UPDATE ON THE TECHNOLOGY SIDE OF IT, UH, WE ESTABLISHED A PILOT. WE, WELL, WE IDENTIFIED A TECHNOLOGY. WE ESTABLISHED A, A PILOT AND DID TESTING, UH, THROUGHOUT THE FOURTH QUARTER OF LAST YEAR TO KIND OF WORK OUT THE TECHNOLOGY PIECE OF THAT. UH, WE'VE REGISTERED SOME NUMBERS FOR THE SHORT CODE TEXTING, WHICH IS WHAT MANY OF US ARE FAMILIAR WITH TO REGISTER, SIGN UP FOR NOTIFICATIONS AND, AND THOSE TYPES OF SYSTEMS. UM, AND WE'RE AT A POINT NOW WHERE THE TECHNOLOGY WORKS. WE'VE ESTABLISHED, UM, HOW TO DO THE WORKFLOWS THAT WE WOULD NEED TO PROPERLY IMPLEMENT THIS. UM, AND WE'VE DONE A DEMO, YOU KNOW, WITH THE DEPARTMENTS TO SHOW THEM THIS IS, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S POSSIBLE AND WHAT WE'RE ABLE TO DO. SO RIGHT NOW, I DON'T WANNA SPEAK FOR, UH, FOR THE CODE DEPARTMENT, BUT RIGHT NOW WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW THAT'S GONNA, UH, BE IMPLEMENTED OPERATIONALLY, RIGHT? 'CAUSE JUST 'CAUSE THE TECHNOLOGY WORKS, THE DEPARTMENT NEEDS TO BE ABLE TO TAKE IN THOSE REQUESTS AND PROCESS THEM. UM, AND THEN, YES. SO YOU'RE SAYING WE COULD APPLY THIS ACROSS MULTIPLE DEPARTMENTS, NOT JUST CODE ENFORCEMENT. SO OUR INTENT, RIGHT, EVEN THOUGH THIS ITEM SPECIFIC TO CODE, UM, WAS TO BUILD IT IN A WAY THAT WE CAN MAKE IT EXTENDABLE TO OTHER DEPARTMENTS AS WELL. SO IT'S NOT A SHORT CODE SPECIFIC TO CODE COMPLIANCE. AND AS TIME GOES ON AND WE KIND OF WORK OUT HOW IT IS THAT WE CAN INTAKE THOSE REQUESTS AND, AND HOW WE PASS THAT ALONG, IT'S BUILT IN A WAY THAT MULTIPLE DEPARTMENTS WOULD BE ABLE TO USE IT OVER TIME, WHICH WAS OUR INTENT. AND PART OF THE REASON WHY WE WANTED TO WAIT A LITTLE BIT TO DO IT ONCE, BUT BE ABLE TO GIVE THE FLEXIBILITY WHERE DEPARTMENTS ACROSS THE CITY WOULD BE ABLE TO ADAPT THIS IF, IF SO, YOU KNOW, DESIRED. SURE. AND HOW FAR AWAY ARE WE FROM BEING ABLE TO LUNCH? UH, LUNCH, NOT LUNCH I'M THINKING IS 12 AWAY. I'M THINK OF LUNCH, TO LUNCH, UH, DISSERVICE. IT WOULD PROBABLY BE WITHIN LIKE THE NEXT FEW WEEKS. WITHIN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS? MM-HMM . OKAY. AT LEAST TO START A PILOT. RIGHT? START A PILOT. SO WE HAVE THE MESSAGING DONE AND, AND WE CAN DO, YOU KNOW, WE CAN WORK WITH, UH, THE CODE DEPARTMENT AND COMMUNICATIONS, YOU KNOW, IF NEEDED OR ANY OTHER DEPARTMENTS THAT NEED TO WORK ON THE ENGAGEMENT WITH OUR RESIDENTS SO THEY UNDERSTAND HOW TO DO IT. UM, AND AS TIME GOES ON, IF WE DECIDE TO ONBOARD ADDITIONAL DEPARTMENTS, WE CAN CHANGE SOME OF THE MESSAGES. SO YOU'LL, YOU'LL REGISTER WITH THE SYSTEM, YOU'LL ACCEPT THAT YOU WANT, AND THEN DEPENDING WHAT IT IS THAT YOU PUT IN, UH, WE CAN, UM, YOU KNOW, KIND OF SEND THAT TO THE CORRECT DEPARTMENT THAT WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ADDRESSING THE ISSUE. I LOVE THIS ITEM. I'LL TELL YOU, OUR RESIDENTS PREFERRED METHOD OF COMMUNICATION IS TEXT MESSAGE. UH, WHICH IS WHY I HAVE PLACED THIS ON THE AGENDA. 'CAUSE A LOT OF TIMES I'LL GET COMPLAINTS FROM RESIDENTS BY TEXT MESSAGE AND IT'S MUCH EASIER TO TELL THEM, RATHER THAN TELL 'EM, DOWNLOAD OR AN, AN APP OR EMAIL THIS NUM THIS, THIS PERSON OR CALL THIS NUMBER. IT'S MUCH EASIER TO TELL 'EM THIS SAME TEXT MESSAGE YOU JUST SENT ME, YOU SEND IT TO THIS OTHER NUMBER. UH, AND SO AND SO MADAM CHAIR, I'D LIKE TO KEEP THIS ITEM OPEN BECAUSE ONCE WE LAUNCH THE CODE ASPECT OF THIS, I WOULD LIKE TO CONTINUE GETTING UPDATES ON, YOU KNOW, NUMBER ONE, IT'S HOW IT'S SUCCESS OR, YOU KNOW, IF ANYTHING NEEDS TO BE CHANGED, YOU KNOW, HOW IT'S BEING RECEIVED BY THE PUBLIC ONCE IT'S LAUNCHED. BUT ALSO WHERE WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF THEN GETTING ONBOARDING OF OTHER DEPARTMENTS, UH, AS PART OF THIS TEXT MESSAGING SERVICE AND FRANK AND CODE, IF YOU COULD, UH, MEET WITH ME BECAUSE I WOULD LIKE A DEMONSTRATION, UH, TO MAKE SURE THAT IT MEETS THE EXPECTATIONS FOR THE PUBLIC. YEAH. AND I CAN CERTAINLY SCHEDULE TIME WITH YOUR OFFICE TO DO THAT. UM, THE GOOD THING IS THE WAY THAT IT'S BUILT, WE'LL BE ABLE TO TRACK THE NUMBER OF TEXT MESSAGES. SO TODAY WE KNOW HOW MANY CALLS THE DEPARTMENTS GET. SO WE CAN START, YOU KNOW, PROVIDING THAT LEVEL OF DETAIL. [02:05:01] THIS IS HOW MANY WE GET, UH, HOW MANY REQUESTS WE GET THROUGH LIKE THE, THE APP AS YOU MENTIONED, HOW MANY OF THEM ARE IN PHONE CALLS TO OUR CALL CENTERS, HOW MANY OF THEM ARE TEXTING? AND INEVITABLY, UM, WE CAN HAVE A BROADER DISCUSSION ABOUT WHAT WE DO WITH OUR CALL CENTERS, WITH THE CITY, HOW WE INTAKE THAT, YOU KNOW, FROM A 3 1 1 STANDPOINT. RIGHT? UM, AND WE CAN TALK ABOUT THAT. SO I THINK THIS IS A MUCH LARGER DISCUSSION. UH, TEXTING IS A PORTION OF IT, BUT IT'S MORE OF A STRATEGIC, I LOVE THIS ITEM. AND, UH, AND FRANK, THANK YOU AND YOUR TEAM FOR, FOR, FOR TAKING ON THIS, THIS EFFORT ON THESE, UH, CAPABILITIES THAT WE CAN EXPAND NOT JUST IN CODE, BUT THROUGHOUT OUR ORGANIZATION AND TO CODE ENFORCEMENT FOR STEPPING UP AND BEING, UH, WILLING TO ADAPT INTO THIS NEW TECHNOLOGY. I REALLY APPRECIATE IT. YOU'RE WELCOME. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SO, MADAM CHAIR, IF YOU DON'T MIND KEEPING THIS ITEM OPEN. UH, YES, THAT'S FINE. COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE AS CO-SPONSOR, DO YOU WANNA ADD ANY COMMENT? NO, I JUST THINK THIS IS GREAT. THE MORE THAT WE COULD DO TO PROVIDE ACCESSIBILITY, SO OFTEN WE SERVE AS MIDDLE MEN AND WOMEN FOR A LOT OF THINGS. YOU KNOW, IN SOME REGARDS WE SERVE, THIS WAS MCDONALD'S. WE'D BE ON THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS, BUT THEN ALSO UNIQUELY SERVE AS HAMBURGER FLIPPERS, RIGHT? SO IT'S LIKE THE TRY AND FACILITATE JUST BETTER COMMUNICATION FOR OUR RESIDENTS AND THE PEOPLE THAT ARE ACTUALLY, UH, ON THE GROUND EXECUTING. I, I THINK ANYTHING WE COULD DO TO FACILITATE THAT IS GREAT. OKAY. SO, UH, WHEN DO YOU WANT THE UPDATE? COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ? UM, LET'S SAY A MONTH. 'CAUSE WE'RE, BECAUSE THERE SHOULD BE FOR THE MARCH STATE, IT SHOULD BE IMPLEMENTED WITHIN A FEW WEEKS. SO, AND I WOULD LOVE TO DO SOMETHING BIG. I MEAN, THIS, THIS IS FOR OUR RESIDENTS. THIS IS GOING TO BE HUGE. UH, AND I THINK WE SHOULD, YOU KNOW, REDO, LET'S DO SOMETHING BIG TO, UH, LAUNCH THIS AND COMMUNICATE THIS TO, TO OUR COMMUNITY. SO LET'S GET AN UPDATE IN A MONTH. GREAT. AND, UH, CITY ATTORNEY I'D LIKE TO CO-SPONSOR BE LISTED AS A CO-SPONSOR. I LOVE IT. THAT'LL BE MARCH 12TH? CORRECT. OKAY. AND, UH, SO WITH THAT, WE'LL MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER EIGHT. ITEM [8. Discuss Expanding CitiBike PROGRAM.] NUMBER EIGHT IS DISCUSS EXPANDING CITY BIKE PROGRAM. THIS WAS SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER ROSE GONZALEZ. COMMISSIONER. OKAY. COMMISSIONER ROSE GONZALEZ. HI. UM, AFTER OUR TRAFFIC DEBACLE DURING OUR BASEL, I UM, SPOKE TO JOSE. I DID SEE COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ ON AN E-BIKE, ALTHOUGH I DIDN'T SEE HIM ON A, ON THE BEACH WALK ON AN E-BIKE AND NOT ON A SIDEWALK. IT'S VERY RESPONSIBLY RUNNING THIS E-BIKE. SO WHAT IS THIS? HOW CAN WE EXPAND THE CITY BIKE? NO, UM, PROGRAM THAT WE HAVE, UM, SO THAT MORE CONVENTION GOERS DO HAVE ACCESS TO BIKES. WHEN I LOOKED AT THE NUMBERS, THERE WAS A HEALTHY AMOUNT OF PEOPLE GRABBING THOSE BIKES. AND I THINK THE MORE THAT WE OFFER, UM, THE BETTER. SO I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE SPOKEN TO CITY BIKE AND WHAT, WHAT THEY SAID. 'CAUSE I, UM, I SPOKE TO SOMEONE AT CITY BIKE WHO TOLD ME IT TAKES A LONG TIME TO GET THOSE DOCKS. THEY HAVE TO ORDER THEM, AND IT COULD TAKE, YOU KNOW, YEARS TO A YEAR TO GET THEM. SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT, WHAT THE PLANNED EXPANSION WOULD LOOK LIKE, BUT SURE. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER. GOOD MORNING, MADAM CHAIR COMMITTEE MEMBERS. JOSE GONZALEZ, TRANSPORTATION AND MOBILITY DIRECTOR AND INTERIM PARKING DIRECTOR. UM, SO JUST BY WAY OF BRIEF BACKGROUND, SINCE THE INCEPTION OF THE DECO BIKE BICYCLE SHARING PROGRAM BACK IN 2011, IT HAS JUST GROWN EXPLODED IN POPULARITY. THE PROGRAM IS CURRENTLY REGISTERING APPROXIMATELY 1.2 MILLION RIDES A YEAR, AND THAT'S WITH ABOUT A THOUSAND, UH, ABOUT 1100 BIKES STRATEGICALLY LOCATED AT DOCKING STATIONS, UH, THROUGHOUT, THROUGHOUT THE, UH, THROUGHOUT THE CITY. SO GIVEN THE POPULARITY OF THE PROGRAM, WE RECENTLY AMENDED THE CONTRACT AND EXTENDED IT FOR AN ADDITIONAL FIVE YEARS. SO NOW IT EXPIRES IN 2029. AS PART OF THAT AMENDMENT, UH, IT, IT PROVIDES FOR MORE ELECTRIC ASSISTED BICYCLES AS PART OF THE PROGRAM FOR ABOUT ANOTHER HUNDRED. AND, UH, AND THERE'S ALSO PUBLIC BENEFIT THAT'S ASSOCIATED WITH, WITH THE AMENDMENT WHERE IT, UH, IT'S INTENDED TO INCENTIVIZE RESIDENTS WHO ARE CURRENTLY NOT, UM, REGISTERED AS PART OF THE PROGRAM. AND ALSO, UM, A LITTLE BONUS FOR RESIDENTS WHO ARE ALREADY REGISTERED, THEY GET ONE FREE MONTH EVERY 12 MONTHS OF, OF RIDES FOR, FOR FREE. UM, SO DEFINITELY THERE'S AN INTEREST IN EXPANDING IT FURTHER, AS YOU MENTIONED, COMMISSIONER, DURING ART WEEK, WE PUT AN ADDITIONAL STATION OUT THERE RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE CONVENTION CENTER, AND IT WAS HIGHLY UTILIZED. UM, CITY BIKE HAD TO HAVE A PERSON LIKE CONSTANTLY REPLENISHING BIKES THERE. SO IT WORKED. SO THEN WHAT CAN WE DO? OKAY, SO LET'S SAY THAT WE TOOK THAT AND WE MULTIPLIED IT FOR NEXT YEAR'S BASEL, LIKE TIMES 10. MM-HMM . I'M NOT LIKE, I WANT A SERIOUS BICYCLE LOOK AT THE AMOUNT OF RIDES THAT WE HAD, UM, DURING BASEL. I THINK IT WAS IMPRESSIVE. [02:10:01] SO IT IS, HOW CAN, HOW CAN YOU EXPAND IT? THAT'LL, FROM MY EXPANSION INITIALLY, I WAS SAYING YOU EXPAND IT ALL OVER, BUT LIKE, WHAT, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU COULD POSSIBLY DO AT THE CONVENTION CENTER? I THINK IT SHOULD BE PERMANENT. MM-HMM . BECAUSE I THINK THAT PEOPLE FROM ALL CONVENTIONS ARE JUST GONNA PICK UP THESE BIKES. BY THE WAY, PEOPLE DURING, YOU KNOW, THE WINTER MONTHS, THEY'RE COMING DOWN HERE TO SOUTH BEACH, LIKE, WHAT MORE DO THEY WANT? THEY'RE IN THE SUNSHINE, THEY WANT A BIKE. NOBODY WANTS TO GET INTO A CAR. AND ONCE THEY SEE HOW BAD THE TRAFFIC IS, THEY'RE GONNA GRAB THOSE BIKES ALL OVER. BUT WHAT YOU NEED TO FIGURE OUT IS WHERE ARE THOSE PEOPLE COMING? LIKE WHERE ARE THE STRATEGIC HOTELS THAT THEY'RE GONNA GRAB THE BIKES, BRING THEM TO THE CONVENTION CENTER, CAN THEY DOCK THEM? I GUESS IT'S MORE COMPLICATED THAN, LET'S SAY THAT THEY GET TO THE CONVENTION CENTER CENTER AND THERE ISN'T AN AVAILABLE DOCK. I DO KNOW THAT THERE'S, THERE AREN'T ENOUGH CITY BIKES OVER BY THE ANA COMPLEX. MM-HMM . THEY NEED BIKES. RIGHT. I WOULD PUT A STATION THERE. I WOULD HAVE LIKE, WHAT ARE THE TOP CONVENTION HOTELS FOR BOWELL? FIND OUT THOSE NUMBERS, PUT STATIONS, THE EXPANSION SHOULD HAVE NUMBERS DIRECTLY FROM OCEANFRONT HOTELS OR TO THE CONVENTION CENTER. SO DO YOU WANNA AGREED. AGREED. AND I THINK YOU'RE RIGHT ON POINT. UH, COMMISSIONER, I THINK THE NEXT STEP HERE IS TO, UM, DIALOGUE WITH CITI BIKE SO THAT THE EXPANSION, IT NEEDS TO BE STRATEGIC AS YOU'RE POINTING OUT. MM-HMM . IT NEEDS TO BE TARGETED. IT NEEDS TO BE STRATEGIC WHERE, UM, WHERE THERE'S A, A, A LOT OF DEMAND AND, AND LITTLE SUPPLY. SO I THINK THAT EXERCISE NEEDS TO, NEEDS TO HAPPEN IN ORDER TO DETERMINE THE SCALE OF THE EXPANSION. I WILL NOTE THAT ANY EXPANSION, ANY SIGNIFICANT EXPANSION WILL LIKELY REQUIRE AN AMENDMENT TO THE CONTRACT. MM-HMM . BECAUSE UNFORTUNATELY THE CURRENT AMENDMENT DOES LIMIT THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF BICYCLES TO, UH, 1200. SO THAT'S JUST ABOUT A HUNDRED MORE THAN WHAT'S OUT THERE TODAY. SO IT'S REALLY NOT A WHOLE, SORRY, COULD YOU REPEAT THAT LAST POINT? UH, IT'S, IT'S THE, WHAT LIMITS IT TO 1200, 1,200 BICYCLES CONTRACTS. CURRENTLY WE HAVE ABOUT 1,100 OF BICYCLES. WHAT LIMITS IT? THE CONTRACT. SO CAN WE REVISE WE THE CONTRACT? YES. YES, YES, YES. IT CAN BE AMENDED, YOU KNOW, AT ANY TIME. UM, BUT IT, IT DOES, FOR WHATEVER REASON, I THOUGHT THE CITY MANAGER HAD THE AUTHORITY TO INCREASE THAT. I, WE DO. HE'S GONNA, THEY'RE GONNA AMEND IT AND COME BACK TO US WITH SOMETHING AMENDED. BUT YOU ALSO HAVE TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT WHEN YOU'RE DOING THIS, DOES THE FOUNTAIN BLUE OFFER THEIR CUSTOMERS BIKES? LET'S SAY THAT THEY GET ON THEIR FOUNTAIN BLUE BIKES AND THEY GET TO THE CONVENTION CENTER. DO WE HAVE READYING DOCKING STATIONS WHERE PEOPLE CAN PUT THEIR BIKES? I THINK THIS IS A QUESTION OF, I YOU HAVE TO CALL THE, THE MAJOR HOTELS. FIANNA, HOW MANY BIKES DO YOU HAVE? AND IS THERE A NEED? YOU KNOW, AND YOU, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO GET ON THE PHONE AND DO SOME RESEARCH AND FIND OUT HOW MANY BIKES DOES EACH HOTEL HAVE? UM, ARE WE COMPETING WITH THEM IF WE'RE PUTTING THE CITY BIKES THERE AND DO, WOULD THEY LIKE EXTRAS? AND THEN YOU ARE GOING TO NOT JUST HAVE TO HAVE CITY BIKE DOCKING STATIONS AT THE CONVENTION CENTER. YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO HAVE REGULAR DOCKING, UH, REGULAR DOCKAGE FOR BIKES. MM-HMM . RIGHT. NOW. DO WE HAVE THAT? I DON'T KNOW THAT WE DO. SO THIS IS A QUESTION OF, YOU KNOW, REALLY FIGURING OUT HOW CAN WE MAKE OUR CONVENTION CENTER BIKE BIKE FRIENDLY. MM-HMM . AND BY THE WAY, I MEAN, I WOULDN'T DISCOUNT, YOU KNOW, THE WASHINGTON AVENUE. LOOK AT IT FROM ALL, YOU KNOW, FROM, FROM, FROM EVERY, FROM EVERY POINT. ABSOLUTELY. THERE, THERE ARE DEFINITELY AREAS WITHIN THE CITY THAT I THINK THERE'S UNMET DEMAND WHERE WE WOULD PRIORITIZE THOSE AREAS. BUT IT WOULD NEED TO BE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH, WITH DECO BIKE. OF COURSE. WELL, WHY DON'T YOU GO, SO GO TO DECO BIKE. THIS WOULD BE MY, MY MOTION. UM, LAURA'S IN THE BATHROOM. COMMISSIONER DOME IS IN THE BATHROOM. SORRY, . OKAY. THIS WOULD BE MY MOTION. GO DO THIS LITTLE STUDY THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, ABOUT OUR LARGEST HOTELS AND WHERE PEOPLE ARE TAKING THE BIKES FROM. GO AND SPEAK TO DECO BIKE AND THEN COME BACK WITH A PLAN. UM, NOT, BUT, BUT TWOFOLD. NOT JUST THE, THE, THE DECO BIKE PLAN COME BACK WITH, UH, WHERE WE'RE GOING TO ALLOW PEOPLE TO DOCK OTHER BIKES FROM DIFFERENT HOTELS. 'CAUSE I, I SEE A LOT OF PEOPLE AROUND TOWN THAT HAVE BIKES FROM THEIR, UM, HOTELS OR THEY MIGHT RENT A BIKE WHILE THEY'RE HERE. SO I WOULD MAKE THAT TWOFOLD. AND HOW LONG DO YOU THINK YOU NEED TO DO THAT? BECAUSE I REALLY WANNA GET THIS IN PLACE, UM, FOR NEXT SEASON MAYBE. ABSOLUTELY. SO MY TEAM JUST ADVISED THAT THE CONVERSATIONS WITH CITI BIKE HAVE ALREADY STARTED MM-HMM . IN TERMS OF A, AN EXPANSION, A TARGETED EXPANSION. I DON'T KNOW THAT I HAVE A TIMEFRAME YET AS TO WHEN WE CAN COME BACK. I WOULD SAY IF YOU CAN GIVE US A COUPLE MONTHS, 60 DAYS, YOU WANT 90 DAYS. 60 DAYS, LET'S TRY 60 DAYS. OKAY. 'CAUSE I WOULD LIKE US TO PLACE THAT ORDER AND HAVE THAT IN PLACE FOR, YOU KNOW, FOR NEXT SEASON. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, REALLY WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO, IT'S, IT'S NOT JUST, UM, THE EXPANSION OF THE PROGRAM. IT'S LETTING THE CONVENTION CENTER OF [02:15:01] PEOPLE AND ALL OF THE CONVENTION, ALL THE CONVENTIONS THAT WE HAVE BOOKED, HAVING THEM BEGIN TO MARKET THE IDEA OF BICYCLES TOO. RIGHT. TO THEIR CONVENTION GOERS. HEY, BY THE WAY, HERE'S YOUR BIKING OPTION. YOU CAN EITHER RENT BICYCLES HERE. WELL, WE DON'T WANNA COMPETE AGAINST OURSELVES, OBVIOUSLY, BUT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GONNA HAVE DECO BIKES AVAILABLE, YOU KNOW, AND, AND, AND, AND LET THEM KNOW, AND GIVE THE CONVENTION GOERS A MAP OF, OF WHERE THOSE BIKES ARE SO THAT THEY CAN PASS THAT ALONG TO THEIR, YOU KNOW, CONVENTION. IT'S A, IT'S A, IT'S, IT'S EASIER THAN A DIFFERENT TRANSPORTATION , UM, MORTALITY. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, I THINK IT'S GONNA BE EFFECTIVE. OKAY. WE'RE GONNA LOSE QUORUM IN ABOUT 20 MINUTES. SO I'D REALLY LIKE TO MOVE THINGS ALONG. UH, COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ, AND I KNOW WE HAVE PUBLIC COMMENT. THANK YOU. AND MR. DIRECTOR. UH, AS, AS YOU MENTIONED, WE HAVE THE NEW AGREEMENT, UH, WITH, WITH CITIBANK, THAT, THAT INCLUDES THE RESIDENT BENEFIT AND THAT I'M SO GRATEFUL TO CITIBANK THAT THEY AGREED TO. THEY ALSO INCREASED, UH, THE E-BIKES TO 10% OR BY, BY 10% I THINK, UH, OF WHAT WE HAD BEFORE. HAS THAT NEW AGREEMENT ALREADY BEEN SIGNED BY THE CITY? I KNOW DECO BY SIGNED IT ALREADY. HAVE WE SIGNED IT ALREADY? THEY SIGNED IT. I BELIEVE IT IS STILL IN BEING ROUTED FOR FINAL SIGNATURES ON THE CITY SIDE. SO THAT MEANS OUR RESIDENTS RIGHT NOW DON'T HAVE THE BENEFIT THAT WE NEGOTIATED FOR THEM. UH, I KNOW THE EFFECTIVE DATE IS JANUARY 1ST. SO WITH THE DATE, WITH THE EFFECTIVE DATE BEING JANUARY 1ST, I WOULD THINK THAT THOSE BENEFITS ARE ALREADY IN PLACE. OKAY. EVEN THOUGH THE CONTRACT HAS NOT BEEN, UM, FULLY INKED YET. OKAY. AND WHY HAVEN'T WE SIGNED THAT YET? UH, I THINK IT'S JUST BEING ROUTED THROUGH DOCUSIGN. WE'LL FIND OUT WHERE IT IS AND WE'LL PLEASE EXPEDIT IT. THANK YOU. I KNOW. OKAY. PUBLIC COMMENT, ONE MINUTE. PUBLIC COMMENT. WE HAVE MATTHEW GUANO. YOU HAVE ONE MINUTE, MATTHEW, IF YOU COULD UNMUTE YOURSELF. THANK YOU. HI. GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. MY NAME IS MATTHEW, BOTH HANOFF AND I JUST WANTED TO THANK THE ENTIRE COMMITTEE FOR DISCUSSING THIS ITEM. UH, THE NUMBER OF RIDES LAST YEAR WAS ACTUALLY HIGHER THAN 1.2 MILLION. IT WAS ONE, IT WAS OVER 1.7 MILLION. AND THAT'S A NUMBER THAT HAS PLATEAUED IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, PROBABLY BECAUSE OF THE LIMITATIONS ON THE SIZE OF THE NETWORK. SO I THINK THIS IS A REALLY TIMELY, UH, ITEM THAT'S BEING DISCUSSED IN ANY WAY THAT CAN EXPAND THE SYSTEM WILL ALLOW MORE PEOPLE TO RIDE AND MORE RIDES TO BE CONDUCTED. AND I ALSO WANT TO THANK THE COMMISSIONER FOR BEING THE LEAD ON THIS RESIDENT BENEFIT. THE RESIDENT BENEFIT THAT WAS PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED. IT'S A FIRST IN THE COUNTRY THAT PROVIDES NO CHARGE RIDES TO RESIDENTS IN A BIKE SHARING SYSTEM. SO ONCE IT'S UP AND RUNNING, IT'S GONNA BE A REALLY EXCITING PROGRAM. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH AND I HOPE THAT YOU CAN ALL WORK TOGETHER TO EXPAND THE SYSTEM EVEN FURTHER. , THANK YOU. IF WE COULD UNMUTE CALLER AND USER ONE. AND IF YOU COULD PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELF. GIVE US YOUR NAME. OKAY. YOU PUT THEIR HAND DOWN. ALRIGHT. SO THIS ITEM, WE'LL COME BACK TO THE MARCH 12TH MEETING. UM, AND I'M GOING TO SKIP AROUND A LITTLE BIT. NUMBER 11, [11. DISCUSS DECREASING INFRASTRUCTURAL STREET CLUTTER ON SIDEWALKS THAT INHIBITS THE INTENDED USE OF THE PEDESTRIAN RIGHT-OF- WAY.] NUMBER 11 IS DISCUSSED DECREASING INFRASTRUCTURAL STREET CLUTTER ON SIDEWALKS THAT INHIBIT THE INTENDED USE OF THE PEDESTRIAN RIGHT OF WAY. COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE MAGAZINE, I APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. UM, WHAT I, WE SPEND SO MUCH TIME AND EFFORT AND, AND BRAIN POWER TRYING TO BEAUTIFY OUR CITY. AND THE ONE THING THAT JUST ONCE YOU SEE IT, YOU CAN NEVER UNSEE IT IS SO MUCH STREET CLUTTER AND SIGNS. AND, UH, IF I WAS LIKE ONE OF MY COLLEAGUES, I, I'D HAVE A POWERPOINT PRESENTATION A HUNDRED PAGES LONG JUST TO SHOW. I MEAN, WE, WE HAVE TO JUST BE MORE REALISTIC, RIGHT? IF YOU'RE ON COLLINS AVENUE AND TECHNOLOGY HAS CHANGED, NAVIGATION HAS CHANGED. IF YOU'RE IN ON COLLINS AVENUE DRIVING NORTH, YOU DON'T NEED A SIGN POINTING NORTH BEACH THIS WAY. THAT'S JUST MY FUNDAMENTAL VIEW. IT PROVIDES, UH, THIS REALLY LEEWAYS WITH, UH, THE CITY BIKE DISCUSSION. WE WILL NEVER, EVER, EVER SOLVE OUR TRAFFIC PROBLEM IF WE DON'T DO EVERYTHING POSSIBLE TO GET PEOPLE OUT OF THEIR CARS. ONE WAY TO DO SO IS FREEING UP OUR SIDEWALKS OF CLUTTER. UH, BRAD, WHAT, WHAT ARE SOME INITIAL STEPS THAT WE COULD TAKE? CAN WE DO SOME SORT OF ANALYSIS OF, YOU KNOW, BLOCK BY BLOCK THE STREET SIGNS THAT WE HAVE? WHAT IS IMPORTANT, WHAT IS NOT? EVEN IF YOU LOOK RIGHT OUTSIDE OF CITY HALL, UH, IN BETWEEN THE CONVENTION CENTER, UM, JUST WITHIN THE PAST FEW MONTHS, THERE'S, I, I BELIEVE THEY'RE HANDICAP OR CITY ONLY PARKING SIGNS AND THEY'RE PLACED AT EVERY SINGLE PARKING SPOT. IT IS JUST OVERKILL. IT'S AESTHETICALLY UNPLEASING. IT'S FOSTERING [02:20:01] AN UNSAFE ENVIRONMENT. WE NEED TO TAKE BETTER PRIDE IN, IN PRESENTING OUR CITY IS A PLACE THAT JUST LOOKS UNCLUTTERED AND, UH, ENJOYING THE NATURAL RESOURCES THAT WE'RE BLESSED WITH. SO LET ME HAND IT OVER TO YOU TO SEE HOW WE CAN START KIND OF IMPLEMENTING SOMETHING LIKE THIS. I, I, I THINK FIRST ON THIS MATTER, UH, THE FIRST ISSUE IS, IS PROBABLY A, GONNA TAKE A LITTLE BIT OF A COMBINED EFFORT BETWEEN, I WOULD SAY PERHAPS PUBLIC WORKS, PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION, COLLECTIVELY WORKING TOGETHER. I THINK ALL OF US KIND OF MAYBE TOUCHED A LITTLE PIECE OF THAT. SO I THINK THAT'S THE FIRST STEP IN, IN US BEING ABLE TO GET TOGETHER AND THEN KIND OF, YOU KNOW, COMPLY, COMPILE A LIST OF, YOU KNOW, ALL THE THINGS AS IT RELATES TO SIGNS WE SEE OUT THERE. I I, I WILL JUST, I WANNA MENTION ONE THING 'CAUSE I DON'T KNOW THAT WE'VE REALLY TALKED ABOUT IT, UM, IN A, IN A PUBLIC FORUM, UH, AS FAR AS WE TALK ABOUT STREET CLUTTER, BUT WE, IN PART OF OUR INITIATIVE LAST YEAR, WE WERE ACTUALLY ABLE TO REMOVE ALL OF THE NEWS RACKS THAT WERE ON THE SIDEWALKS AND CAUSING SOME ISSUES. SO THEY'RE ALL GONE FROM THE CITY. SO THAT'S, THAT'S A POSITIVE STEP. ARE THERE STATE LAW THAT KIND OF GOVERNS WHAT YOU NEED SOME SIGNS FOR? I, YES. I MEAN, I WOULD LET I, FROM WHAT I, YES. WE DON'T NEED TO GET INTO THAT HERE. MAYBE JOSE, JUST IN INTEREST OF TIME, IF YOU COULD JUST DO A QUICK LTC ABOUT STATE LAW AND I WOULD LOVE TO COME OUT THERE ON THE GROUND WITH YOU ALL AND KIND OF JUST, YOU KNOW, VISUALIZE, UH, HOW WE CAN DO BETTER AND THEN WE COULD WORK IN TANDEM ABOUT PUTTING A, A PLAN OF ACTION FORWARD ABOUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO KIND OF DECLUTTER SOME OF THE, UH, OVERS SIGNAGE THAT WE HAVE KIND OF ALL THROUGHOUT OUR CITY. DOES THAT WORK? SURE. WE'LL BE HAPPY TO, TO ASSIST, UH, PUBLIC WORKS IN ANY YEAH. YOU KNOW, SITE VISITS, INSPECTIONS NEEDED. UH, THERE ARE SIGNS THAT ARE REQUIRED, UH, REGULATORY SIGNS THAT ARE REQUIRED, BUT THERE ARE, UH, MANY SIGNS THAT I'M SURE ARE SUPERFLUOUS THAT THAT COULD, IF YOU COULD FOLLOW UP WITH AN LTC ABOUT WHAT THOSE REQUIREMENTS ARE. JUST SO I HAVE A FRAME OF REFERENCE AND AS DO MY COLLEAGUES BE VERY MUCH APPRECIATED AND LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU ON THIS. ABSOLUTELY. OKAY. SO ONTO, UH, ITEM NUMBER 19. OKAY, WE'LL CLOSE THAT. WE'LL, THE LTC WE'LL CLOSE OUT THAT ONE. WAIT FOR THE LTC ITEM NUMBER 19 WILL BE NEXT. [19. DISCUSS THE POTENTIAL REMOVAL OF BULB-OUTS AT CERTAIN LOCATIONS TO INCREASE PARKING AND/OR MITIGATE TRAFFIC CONGESTION.] OKAY. ITEM NUMBER 19 IS DISCUSSED THE POTENTIAL REMOVAL OF BALLOUT AT CERTAIN LOCATIONS TO INCREASE PARKING AND OR MITIGATE TRAFFIC CONGESTION. THIS IS SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE. MADAM CHAIR, I'M FINE TO PULL THIS. UH, THIS CAUGHT ME OFF GUARD USUALLY, UM, UH, ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THINGS LIKE THIS. VERY MUCH MORE PEDESTRIAN FRIENDLY. UM, SO THIS KIND OF, UH, CAUGHT ME A BIT OFF GUARD. LET ME JUST, UM, IF YOU WOULDN'T MIND, DEFER IT AND I'LL COME BACK TO YOU TO SEE IF I PULL IT, UH, ENTIRELY. WAIT, WAIT, DON'T, DON'T PULL IT. YEAH. WAIT, THAT THE MAYOR OFFICE. WAIT, SORRY. THAT WAS THE MAYOR'S ITEM. OH, BEING TOLD. OKAY. OH WAIT, THE MAYOR'S ITEM. SORRY. OH, THAT'S OKAY. UM, I AM IN SUPPORT OF THIS, UH, REMOVING BALL BOUTS AND LOOKING FOR WAYS TO FIND PARKING AND WHATNOT. UH, COMMISSIONER? YES. I THINK THAT REMOVING THE BALL BOUTS ON 40TH STREET ARE KEY TO ALLOWING PEOPLE TO MAKE A TURN AND YOU WILL ALLEVIATE TRAFFIC TREMENDOUSLY. SO I, LET'S MOVE THIS TO THE FULL COMMISSION. YEAH, I WOULD, WE WOULD LIKE TO. WELL, DO YOU WANT TO? OKAY. OKAY. ALL IN FAVOR? DO WE KNOW WHAT WE'RE REMOVING? CAN WE START WITH 40TH THREE? SO, BUT WE'LL DISCUSS IT AGAIN AT THE FULL COMMISSION. YEAH. THANK YOU. IN THE INTEREST OF TIME. 'CAUSE WE'RE ABOUT TO LOSE QUORUM. AND THERE'S ITEM NUMBER SEVEN, COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ. YES. START WITH 40TH. THE STREET ON THE BULB BELTS. WE DON'T LIKE THOSE AT ALL. ITEM NUMBER SEVEN IS DISCUSSED. [7. DISCUSS IMPLEMENTING A SYSTEM THAT NOTIFIES RESIDENTS IF THEIR VEHICLE IS ILLEGALLY PARKED TO PROVIDE A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME TO COMPLY WITH THE CITY’S PARKING POLICIES BEFORE IT IS TOWED.] IMPLEMENTING A SYSTEM THAT NOTIFIES RESIDENTS IF THEIR VEHICLE IS ILLEGALLY PARKED TO PROVIDE A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME TO COMPLY WITH THE CITY'S PARKING POLICIES AND TRANSPORTATION WILL BE PRESENTED. COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ, UH, THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. AND THERE CANNOT BE A EASIER, MORE COMMON SENSE ITEM THAN THIS. WHEN SOMEONE'S GONNA BE TOWED. THEY USUALLY HAVE BEEN GIVEN A PARKING TICKET ALREADY, AND THERE'S USUALLY A 15 MINUTE GRACE PERIOD BETWEEN BEING ISSUED A PARKING TICKET AND SOMEONE BEING ABLE TO BE TOWED. UH, WHEN THAT PARKING TICKET IS ISSUED, WE SHOULD GIVE OUR RESIDENTS THE COURTESY OF A TEXT MESSAGE. HEY, LISTEN, YOUR CAR HAS BEEN TICKETED AND YOU'RE ABOUT TO BE TOWED. BECAUSE THE GOAL IS NOT TO TOW THE VEHICLE. THE GOAL IS TO ACHIEVE COMPLIANCE. AND IF WE TEXT MESSAGE THE PERSON, ONCE THAT TICKET HAS BEEN ISSUED, WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO AVOID THAT CARD HAVING TO GET TOWED AND AVOID HUGE COSTS FOR OUR RESIDENTS. SO I WANNA ASK JOSE, UH, WHERE ARE WE IN BEING ABLE TO IMPLEMENT THIS? SURE. AND THROUGH, THROUGH THE CHAIR. UM, COMMISSIONER, YOU, YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY CORRECT. THERE IS VALUE IN NOTIFYING OUR RESIDENTS IF THEY'RE PARKED ILLEGALLY AND GIVING THEM AN OPPORTUNITY TO, [02:25:01] TO, UH, TO CORRECT THAT. UM, WHAT WE DID WAS WE MET WITH THE IT DEPARTMENT TO SEE WHAT IT WOULD TAKE TO DEVELOP SUCH A SYSTEM. AND IT'S DEFINITELY DOABLE. IT'S DEFINITELY FEASIBLE. RIGHT. THERE IS SOME INFORMATION THAT WE WOULD LIKE FROM THE COMMITTEE. SURE. AS WE GIVE THIS A LITTLE MORE, MORE SHAPE, UM, FACTORS, THREE FACTORS. UH, PRIMARILY THE FIRST IS HOW LONG SHOULD A PARKING ENFORCEMENT OFFICER WAIT? UM, AFTER THE 15 MINUTES, WE'RE ALREADY GIVING THEM, WE'RE ALREADY GIVING THEM FIF WE'RE ALREADY GIVING OUR RESIDENCE 15 MINUTES, UH, BETWEEN TICKET AND TOWING. MY, I BELIEVE JUST KEEP THE SAME POLICY OF 15 MINUTES. BUT THE MOMENT YOU ISSUED THAT TICKET, SEND THE TEXT MESSAGE TO, TO THE RESIDENT. SURE. UH, IN ORDER FOR RESIDENTS TO RECEIVE TEXT MESSAGES, THEY HAVE TO BE REGISTERED IN, IN OUR SYSTEM, IN OUR VIRTUAL SYSTEM, CURRENTLY ONLY, ONLY IF THE MINORITY ARE, WE NEED THE MINORITY OR THE MAJORITY. THE, WELL, THERE'S A PHONE NUMBER. I THOUGHT IT WAS 16,000 THAT WERE REGISTERED OF ABOUT, WITH A PHONE NUMBER OUT OF THE 22,000. YEAH. SIX, SIX OUT OF ALL THE REGISTER. OUT OF ALL THE RESIDENTS THAT ARE REGISTERED, THE MAJORITY HAVE LISTED THEIR CONTACT INFORMATION, BUT THERE ARE MANY RESIDENTS WHO ARE NOT REGISTERED. AND WE CAN BUILD UPON THAT. AND, AND SO RIGHT. THERE WILL NEED TO BE EXTENSIVE COMMUNITY OUTREACH TO LET RESIDENTS KNOW ABOUT THE, AND, AND IT BENEFITS RESIDENTS 'CAUSE IT PROVIDES DISCOUNTS, UH, DISCOUNTED PARKING FOR RESIDENTS. COMMISSIONER, CAN WE MOVE THIS TO THE FULL COMMISSION? WELL, AND I THINK IT WAS A THIRD ITEM THAT HE NEEDED FEEDBACK ON. THE, THE OTHER IS THE, UH, HOW MANY, WELL, HOW MANY TIMES DO WE NOTIFY RESIDENTS? SHOULD IT ONLY BE ONCE THEY'RE NOTIFIED ONCE TEXT, ONE TEXT MESSAGE, YOU LET THEM KNOWS. AND, UM, AND I BELIEVE, OH, AND THEN THE TYPES OF VIOLATIONS, OF COURSE THERE ARE SOME VIOLATIONS THAT ARE VERY EGREGIOUS AND THERE OTHERS THAT ARE NOT. SO YEAH, LIKE IF YOU'RE PARKED IN FRONT OF A FIRE HYDRANT, OF COURSE. NO. BUT LIKE IF YOU, IF YOU WERE PARKED SOMEWHERE AND THEN THEY PUT A NO PARKING SIGN BECAUSE IT'S BEING RENTED OUT FOR A VALET PURPOSE OR A SPECIAL EVENT PURPOSE, YOU KNOW, THERE'S LIFE SAFETY STUFF AND THEN THERE'S NON-LIFE SAFETY STUFF. MM-HMM . AND I THINK, I THINK WE WOULD ALL AGREE NON THE, UH, NON-LIFE SAFETY STUFF IS WHAT WE'RE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, MAY I, I FOR ONE SCENARIO, THE FREIGHT LOADING ZONES, WE ARE TRYING TO, TO ENFORCE FREIGHT LOADING ZONES SO THAT TRUCKS DON'T HAVE TO BLOCK TRAVEL LIENS. BUT I THINK YOU'RE STILL GIVING THE RESIDENT THE 15 MINUTE GRACE PERIOD, OR ARE YOU NOT? WE CURRENTLY, ARE WE? AND QUICKLY, BECAUSE WE'RE ABOUT TO LOSE QUO, I'M SORRY. YES. NO, UH, BECAUSE FOR FREIGHT LOADING ZONES, THERE'S A TOW TRUCK THAT FOLLOWS THE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER. 'CAUSE WE'RE TRYING TO, SO YOU DON'T GIVE THE 15 MINUTE GRACE PERIOD? UNFORTUNATELY NOT. SO IN THAT CASE, YOU DON'T ANYTHING THAT RIGHT NOW YOU'RE GIVING THAT 15 MINUTE GRACE PERIOD, GIVE THE RESIDENT THE COURTESY OF THAT, OF THAT TEXT MESSAGE. BECAUSE IN THOSE 15 MINUTES YOU MIGHT GET THE COMPLIANCE QUICKER THAN WHAT THE TOW TRUCK CAN GET THERE. ABSOLUTELY. AND JUST THE LAST THING I WANNA STATE IS THAT THERE IS AN UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCE. HOPEFULLY THIS PRIVILEGE, IF YOU WILL, IS NOT ABUSED. UM, BECAUSE WHAT'S THE UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCE? IT HAS THE POTENTIAL OF BEING ABUSED. IF, IF RESIDENTS KNOW THAT THEY'RE GOING TO BE PROVIDED AN OPPORTUNITY OF TEXT, IF THEY, THEY, THEY, THEY WON'T ABUSE IT BECAUSE THEY'RE STILL GETTING A PARKING TICKET. THEY'RE STILL GETTING THAT PARKING TICKET PLACED ON THAT WIND FEE ON THAT, ON THEIR WINDSHIELD. SO IT'S, SO THEY'RE STILL BEING PENALIZED WITH, WHAT IS IT, $46 IF YOU GOT A TICKET? IT DEPENDS ON THE TYPE OF TICKET. IT COULD BE 36 36 A PARKING TICKET. RIGHT. SO THERE'S, SO, YOU KNOW, I, I DON'T, I'M NOT CONCERNED ABOUT THE MADAM CHAIR. THANK YOU FOR BEING WILLING TO MOVE THE ITEM. OKAY. SO WE'LL MOVE THAT FOR THE, TO THE FULL COMMISSION. IS THAT WITH A POSITIVE RECOMMENDATION? OKAY. BY ACCLIMATION. FROM THERE, WE'LL MOVE ON TO ITEM 21, [21. DISCUSS ENHANCING PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICIENCY AT SENIOR CENTERS WITH A DEDICATED MID-SIZE BUS SERVICE] PLEASE. ITEM NUMBER 21 IS DISCUSS ENHANCING PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICIENCY AT SENIOR CENTERS WITH THE DEDICATED MIDSIZE BUS SERVICE. THIS ONE IS SPONSORED BY THE MAYOR AND CO-SPONSORED BY COMMISSIONER. DON'T THIS, UM, SO, UH, THIS ITEM, IF YOU QUICKLY WANNA TEE IT UP, AND THEN I'D LIKE TO MOVE IT TO THE FULL COMMISSION. OKAY. THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. UM, SO WE HAVE BEEN FORMULATING A PLAN, UH, THAT WOULD CONSIST OF A DEDICATED MID-SIZE BUS THAT WOULD SERVE OUR SENIOR CENTERS AND PICK UP RESIDENTS FROM THOSE SENIOR CENTERS AND TAKE THEM TO, UH, A DESTINATION. UH, ONE DESTINATION THAT WE'VE HEARD, OR SEVERAL DESTINATIONS, ONE THAT WE'VE HEARD LOUD AND CLEAR FROM RESIDENTS OF THE STELLA MARRIS IS THE WALMART. YES. NOW, AS, AS YOU KNOW, THERE IS NO WALMART WITHIN OUR CITY. THE CLOSEST WALMART IS, UH, BY HUNDRED 63RD STREET IN AVENTURA, IN THE AVENTURA AREA. SO THIS, THIS SERVICE WOULD BE, UH, LEAVING OUR CITY, IF YOU WILL. UH, SO FAR THAT'S THE MOST POPULAR DESTINATION REQUEST IS, UH, WALMART. UH, SO WE'RE, UH, YOU KNOW, WE'RE TAKING STEPS [02:30:01] TO TRY TO REFINE THIS PLAN. I THINK THAT'S AMAZING. I THINK IT'S GREAT. AT LEAST IT'S NOT THE CASINO , BECAUSE I KNOW THAT THAT'S A POPULAR STOP THAT THEY LIKE TO, WE DO IT TO SURVEY. I'D LIKE TO MOVE THIS TO THE FULL COMMISSION. ARE WE ALL IN SUPPORT? I'D LIKE TO CO-SPONSOR IT. YEAH. OKAY. FROM THERE, WE'LL MOVE ON TO ITEM 12. [12. DISCUSSION ON CO-NAMING 17 STREET IN HONOR OF NORMAN BRAMAN.] ITEM NUMBER 12 IS DISCUSSED. CONSIDER CONA 17TH STREET AND HONOR OF NORMAN BRAMAN. COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ. THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. AND I THINK WHEN WE LOOK AROUND OUR, OUR CITY, WHETHER YOU LOOK AT PRIDE PARK AND THE ARTWORK THAT'S BEEN DONATED THERE, OR WHETHER YOU LOOK AT THE IDENTITY OF OUR CITY, HOW IT'S BEEN INTERCONNECTED WITH ART BASEL AND THE IMPACT THAT HAS, NOT ONLY IN THE ECONOMY OF OUR CITY, BUT ON OUR CITY'S BRAND. OR EVEN WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE INCREDIBLE MEMORIAL THAT WE HAVE WITH THE HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL BEHIND ALL OF THIS, UH, IS, IS IS THE GENEROSITY OF, OF PATRONS OF GOOD CAUSES LIKE NORMAN BRAMAN. AND BECAUSE OF THAT, UH, GREAT CONTRIBUTION THAT HE'S DONE TO OUR CITY, I THINK IT'S ALWAYS BEAUTIFUL THAT WE GET TO HONOR THESE AND THESE INDIVIDUALS WHILE THEY'RE STILL WITH US, WHEN THEY GET TO APPRECIATE THE, UH, WARMTH OF THE COMMUNITY THAT IS GRATEFUL FOR THOSE MEANINGFUL CONTRIBUTIONS. AND, UM, AND IN, IN THAT SPIRIT, I'D LIKE TO, UM, REQUEST THE, UH, CODE DESIGNATION OF A PORTION OF 17TH STREET IN HIS HONOR BECAUSE IT IS IN THE PROXIMITY OF THESE GREAT CONTRIBUTIONS THAT HE'S, THAT HE HAS DONE TO OUR COMMUNITY. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER FERNANDEZ. UM, NORMAN BRAMAN HAS BEEN VERY PHILANTHROPIC AND HE IS SPEARHEADING AND FUNDING THE EXPANSION AND UPGRADES TO THE HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL. HE'S DONATED, UH, BEAUTIFUL ARTWORK, THE MINNA SCULPTURE THAT WE HAVE AT PRIDE PARK. AND, UM, I'D LIKE TO MOVE THE ITEM, AND IF I COULD YOU JUST, MADAM CHAIR, JUST ONE SECOND. ALSO, UH, HIS CONTRIBUTION TO MOUNT SINAI AND IF THERE'S ONE ISSUE THAT UNITES MIAMI BEACH, PERHAPS MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE, IS, UH, BEING ANTI CASINO. AND I'M NOT SURE IF THERE'S A, A BIGGER CATALYST THAN ALL OF, UH, SOUTH FLORIDA AS TO WHY WE DON'T HAVE A CASINO IN MIAMI BEACH OTHER THAN NORMAN BRAMAN. SO I THINK THIS IS A GREAT CONTRIBUTION. YES. AND, UM, MADAM CHAIR, I JUST WANT TO PLACE IT ON, ON THE RECORD, UH, MR. DIRECTOR, WHICH IS THE PORTION OF 17TH STREET THAT THE ADMINISTRATION IS RECOMMENDING TO BE DESIGNATED. UH, SO COMMISSIONER, WE'RE ACTUALLY NOT NOT RECOMMENDING, UH, WE, WE WANTED TO KNOW WHAT THE COMMITTEES, UH, YOU KNOW, WHAT, WHAT YOUR RECOMMENDATION IS IN TERMS OF THE LIMITS. IT COULD BE THE ENTIRE STREET OR IT COULD BE A PORTION OF 17TH STREET. ONE THING I'D LIKE TO MENTION IS THAT 17TH STREET IS CURRENTLY CO-DESIGN DESIGNATED AS HANK MEYER BOULEVARD. AND WE KNOW THAT BECAUSE THERE ARE SIGNS OUT THERE BETWEEN ALTON AND MERIDIAN. NOW, THE, THE COUNTY, UM, WILL, UH, OR ALLOWS MULTIPLE CO DESIGNATIONS ON THE STREET. I WOULD SAY FROM 17TH STREET TO ALTON ROAD. UM, I MEAN FROM WASHINGTON AVENUE TO ALTON ROAD, THAT IS THE AREA, THE CITY CENTER THAT IS WITHIN PROXIMITY OF A LOT OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS, UH, THAT MR. BRAMAN HAS DONE. AND I, AND I ALSO WANT TO ECHO WHAT COMMISSIONER MAGAZINE, UH, SAID. EVEN LAST YEAR, UH, UH, NORMAN BRAMAN WAS WILLING TO FILL UP AN, AN AIRPLANE WITH MIAMI BEACH RESIDENT TO TAKE TO TALLAHASSEE TO JOIN IN THE FIGHT AGAINST CASINOS. UH, YOU KNOW, STUFF LIKE THAT, UH, REALLY HELPS KEEP THE CHARACTER OF OUR COMMUNITY BEYOND, UH, THE ACTUAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF PHYSICAL STUFF LIKE ART, LIKE THE HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL, LIKE A NEW CANCER CENTER, BUT, YOU KNOW, CONTINUING IN KEEPING OUR CITY SAFE, UH, FROM THE INFLUENCES OF SOMETHING LIKE CASINOS. AMAZING. OKAY. THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. SO WE'LL MOVE THAT TO THE FULL COMMISSION AND THEN, UM, WE'RE GONNA LOSE QUORUM IN TWO MINUTES. AND I THINK ITEM 20, WHICH IS THE LAST [20. DISCUSS THE POTENTIAL IMPLEMENTATION OF A BICYCLE LANE ON THE WEST SIDE OF COLLINS AVENUE AS PART OF AN UPCOMING FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (“FDOT”) RESURFACING, RESTORATION, AND REHABILITATION (“RRR”) PROJECT ON STATE ROAD (“SR”) A1A/COLLINS AVENUE FROM SR 907/W 63 STREET TO 75 STREET.] ITEM, DESERVES A LONGER DISCUSSION. CAN WE DEFER IT TO THE FEBRUARY 12TH IN TWO WEEKS, WHICH IS THAT, UH, IT IS, UH, BICYCLE LANE ON THE WEST SIDE OF COLLINS AVENUE. YEAH, YEAH, YEAH. SO FOR, WE'LL MOVE THAT ONE TO FEBRUARY 20TH, I MEAN, TO FEBRUARY 12TH. UM, SO WITH THAT, UH, THANK YOU EVERYBODY. THANK YOU TO THE CITY ADMINISTRATION AND THE TEAM HERE ON THE DAY IS FOR ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL PUBLIC SAFETY AND NEIGHBORHOOD QUALITY OF LIFE MEETING. WE'LL SEE YOU AGAIN ON FEBRUARY 12TH. EXCELLENT. GOOD. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.