City of Miamiegov.ci.miami.fl.us/meetings/2005/6/1093_M_City... · 05-00481-cover memo.pdf...

Thursday, June 9, 2005

9:00 AM

Meeting Minutes

City of Miami

City Hall

3500 Pan American Drive

Miami, FL 33133

www.ci.miami.fl.us

City Hall Commission Chambers

City Commission

Manuel A. Diaz, Mayor

Joe Sanchez, Chairman

Angel González, Vice Chairman

Johnny L. Winton, Commissioner District Two

Tomas Regalado, Commissioner District Four

Jeffery L. Allen, Commissioner District Five

Joe Arriola, City Manager

Jorge L. Fernandez, City Attorney

Priscilla A. Thompson, City Clerk

REGULAR

Meeting Minutes June 9, 2005City Commission

CONTENTS

PR - PRESENTATIONS AND PROCLAMATIONS

MV - MAYORAL VETOES

AM - APPROVING MINUTES

CA - CONSENT AGENDA

PA - PERSONAL APPEARANCES

M - MAYOR'S ITEMS

D1 - DISTRICT 1 ITEMS





PH - PUBLIC HEARINGS

EM - EMERGENCY ORDINANCES

SR - SECOND READING ORDINANCES

FR - FIRST READING ORDINANCES

RE - RESOLUTIONS

BC - BOARDS AND COMMITTEES

DI - DISCUSSION ITEMS

City of Miami Printed on 6/29/2005


9:00 A.M. INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

Present: Vice Chairman González, Commissioner Winton, Chairman Sanchez, Commissioner

Regalado and Commissioner Allen

On the 9th day of June 2005, the City Commission of the City of Miami, Florida, met at its

regular meeting place in City Hall, 3500 Pan American Drive, Miami, Florida, in regular

session. The meeting was called to order by Chairman Joe Sanchez at 9:25 a.m., recessed at

12:17 p.m., reconvened at 2:41 p.m., and adjourned at 5:38 p.m.

ALSO PRESENT:

Joe Arriola, City Manager

Jorge L. Fernández, City Attorney

Priscilla A. Thompson, City Clerk

Sylvia Scheider, Assistant City Clerk

Chairman Sanchez: (INAUDIBLE) here at 3500 Pan American Drive. This is a regular

meeting, scheduled for Thursday, June 9, 205 [sic]. It's certainly a pleasure to have you here.

We'll go ahead and call the meeting to order. Let's go ahead and start with the invocation and

the pledge of allegiance.

Invocation and pledge of allegiance.

PRESENTATIONS AND PROCLAMATIONS

05-00548PR.1 CEREMONIAL ITEM

Name of Honoree Presenter Protocol Item

Virgil Fernandez Chairman Sanchez Certificate of Appreciation

Crystel Deneen Dawson Commissioner Winton Outstanding Collegian Award

05-00548-cover page.pdf

05-00548-protocol list.pdf

Commissioner Winton presented an Outstanding Collegian Award to Crystel Deneen Dawson, a

Coconut Grove resident, for her outstanding academic achievements.

Chairman Sanchez presented a plate to Jack Foley A. Horkheimer for his excellent achievements

and accomplishments at the Miami Museum of Science, educating the children and people of

Miami about astronomy.

Chairman Sanchez deferred Fire Chief Virgil Fernandez's presentation due to his absence.

Chairman Sanchez: Thank you. We have, I believe, a very reasonable agenda in front of us

today, and there's no reason why we possibly couldn't get out of here by 4, maybe 4:30, and as

the order of the day continues, we'll go into the protocol list.

Presentations made.


http://egov.ci.miami.fl.us/Legistarweb/Attachments/15110.pdf



Presentations made.

MAYORAL VETOES

NO MAYORAL VETOES

Chairman Sanchez: Having said that, I do believe that we are done with the proclamations and

awards, and we can move on to the agenda. We do not have any mayoral vetoes, so we could

continue with the agenda.

APPROVING THE MINUTES OF THE FOLLOWING MEETINGS:

Motion by Commissioner Winton, seconded by Vice Chairman González, to APPROVED

PASSED by the following vote.

Votes: Ayes: 4 - Commissioner González, Winton, Sanchez and Regalado

Absent: 1 - Commissioner Allen

Motion by Vice Chairman González, seconded by Commissioner Winton, to APPROVED

PASSED by the following vote.



Chairman Sanchez: We do have to approve a couple of minutes from following -- from previous

meetings. We have the regular meeting of September 11, 202 [sic]. We do need a motion to

approve that. Is there a motion?

Commissioner Winton: So moved.

Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion by Commissioner Winton. Is there a second?

Vice Chairman González: Second.

Commissioner Regalado: Second.

Chairman Sanchez: Second by Vice Chairman González. It is open for discussion. Hearing

none, all in favor, say “aye.”

The Commission (Collectively): Aye.

Chairman Sanchez: Anyone in opposition, having the same right, say “nay.” Motion carries,

and we go on to the next item to be approved, and that is a regular meeting on May 12, 205

[sic]. Is there a motion?

Vice Chairman González: Move it.

Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion by Vice Chairman González. Is there a second?

Commissioner Winton: Second.


Chairman Sanchez: Second by Commissioner Winton. It is open for discussion. Hearing no

discussion on the item, all in favor, say “aye.”


Chairman Sanchez: Anyone in opposition, having the same right, say “nay.” Motion carries.



CONSENT AGENDA

05-00476CA.1 RESOLUTION

A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION ACCEPTING THE BID

OF GRAPHIC DESIGNS INTERNATIONAL, INC., RECEIVED ON FEBRUARY

23, 2005, PURSUANT TO INVITATION FOR BIDS NO. 04-05-012, FOR THE

PURCHASE, DELIVERY AND INSTALLATION OF DECALS AND STRIPING,

FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION, ON

AN AS-NEEDED CONTRACT BASIS, FOR A TWO (2) YEAR PERIOD, WITH

THE OPTION TO RENEW FOR TWO (2) ADDITIONAL ONE (1) YEAR

PERIODS, AT AN ANNUAL AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $34,916.10, FOR A

TOTAL CONTRACT AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $139,664.40; ALLOCATING

FUNDS FROM THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT NO.

311850.429401.6.840, B-74220.

Department of

General Services

Administration

05-00476-resolution.pdf

05-00476-summary form.pdf

05-00476-award form.pdf

05-00476-award sheet.pdf

05-00476-bid tabulation.pdf

05-00476-bid security.pdf

This Matter was ADOPTED on the Consent Agenda.



R-05-0360


A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION, WITH

ATTACHMENT(S), VACATING, DISCONTINUING AND ABANDONING THE

EAST TEN (10) FEET OF LOT 14, BLOCK 5, "PARKERS FLAGLER

HEIGHTS," ACCORDING TO THE PLAT THEREOF, RECORDED IN PLAT

BOOK 18, PAGE 32, OF THE PUBLIC RECORDS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY,

FLORIDA; AUTHORIZING AND DIRECTING THE CITY MANAGER TO

EXECUTE A QUIT CLAIM DEED, IN SUBSTANTIALLY THE ATTACHED

FORM, REVERTING SAID RIGHT OF WAY BACK TO THE ABUTTING

PROPERTY OWNERS.

Department of

Public Works










05-00477-exhibit.pdf


05-00477-city letter1.pdf











05-00477-map.pdf




R-05-0361


A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION CLASSIFYING ONE

1991 AVANTI VESSEL, BOAT HULL IDENTIFICATION NO. ERQ25107B091,

AS "CATEGORY A" SURPLUS STOCK; FURTHER STIPULATING THAT SAID

VESSEL BE DONATED TO THE MIAMI OVERSEAS CHINESE

ASSOCIATION, MIAMI, FLORIDA AND THAT SAID DONATION BE VALID

AND EFFECTIVE BETWEEN JUNE 9, 2005 AND JUNE 9, 2006, UPON THE

EXECUTION OF THE APPROPRIATE RELEASE DOCUMENTS.

Department of

Police



05-00478-registration.pdf

05-00478-MOCA letter.pdf




R-05-0362


A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION RESCINDING THE BID

AWARD TO A AND S EQUIPMENT COMPANY, INC., THE PRIMARY

VENDOR, FOR THE PROVISION OF FORKLIFT MAINTENANCE AND

REPAIR SERVICES; AWARDING THE BID TO NATIONAL LIFT TRUCK

SERVICE, THE SECONDARY VENDOR, UNDER THE SAME PRICES,

TERMS AND CONDITIONS PURSUANT TO BID NO. 02-03-161;

ALLOCATING FUNDS FROM THE GENERAL OPERATING BUDGETS OF

THE VARIOUS USER DEPARTMENT AND AGENCIES, SUBJECT TO

BUDGETARY APPROVAL.

Department of

Purchasing
























05-00479-city letter.pdf

05-00479-pre resolution.pdf

05-00479-fax confirmation.pdf

05-00479-fax .pdf

05-00479-insurance certificate.pdf

05-00479-fax2.pdf

05-00479-contract award.pdf

05-00479-bid number.pdf

05-00479-insurance requirements.pdf




R-05-0363



ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE A

MUTUAL AID AGREEMENT, IN SUBSTANTIALLY THE ATTACHED FORM,

BETWEEN THE CITY OF MIAMI AND THE VILLAGE OF BISCAYNE PARK,

TO RECEIVE AND EXTEND MUTUAL AID IN THE FORM OF LAW

ENFORCEMENT SERVICES AND RESOURCES TO ENSURE PUBLIC

SAFETY AND ADEQUATE RESPONSE TO INTENSIVE SITUATIONS,

INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO NATURAL AND MAN-MADE DISASTERS

OR EMERGENCIES AS DEFINED IN PART 1, CHAPTER 23, OF THE

FLORIDA STATUTES.

Department of

Police







R-05-0364



ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING A SETTLEMENT IN THE CASE OF

WILLIAM B. BRICKELL, JAMES B. BRICKELL, JR., BEATRICE A.

BRICKELL, MARY SNYDER AND ARCHIE K. PURDY (THE "BRICKELLS")

V. CITY OF MIAMI ("CITY"), CASE NO. 88-0230 ("LAWSUIT"), CONSISTING

OF (1) THE CONVEYANCE TO THE CITY OF THE PROPERTY KNOWN AS

THE BRICKELL PARK ("PROPERTY"), LESS TWO STRIPS OF LAND

LYING ALONG THE NORTHERN BOUNDARY OF THE PROPERTY

("RELATED PARCEL"), (2) THE CONVEYANCE OF THE RELATED

PARCEL TO CITY NATIONAL BANK OF FLORIDA, AS TRUSTEE UNDER

LAND TRUST LOAN NO. 2401-1863-00, AS SUCCESSOR TO THE

Office of the City

Attorney

















RELATED GROUP OF FLORIDA ("RELATED"), (3) THE GRANT OF A

TEMPORARY CONSTRUCTION EASEMENT OVER A STRIP OF LAND

LYING WITHIN THE PROPERTY TO RELATED, AS OWNER OF THE

ADJACENT PARCEL FOR A TERM OF 5 YEARS, (4) THE OBLIGATION OF

RELATED TO CONSTRUCT TEMPORARY AND PERMANENT PARK

IMPROVEMENTS TO THE PROPERTY, AS APPROVED BY THE CITY AND

TO MAINTAIN THE PROPERTY IN PERPETUITY AND (5) OTHER

MATTERS DESCRIBED IN THE AGREEMENT ("AGREEMENT") AND THE

EASEMENT, ATTACHED HERETO AS "EXHIBITS A" AND "B;"

AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER AND THE CITY ATTORNEY TO

EXECUTE ALL DOCUMENTS NECESSARY OR DESIRABLE TO

CONSUMMATE THE SETTLEMENT OF THE LAWSUIT, INCLUDING

SPECIFICALLY, THE AGREEMENT AND THE CONSTRUCTION

EASEMENT, IN SUBSTANTIALLY THE ATTACHED FORMS AND A

STIPULATION DISMISSING THE LAWSUIT WITH PREJUDICE; PROVIDED

THAT IF THE AGREEMENT IS NOT EXECUTED WITHIN SIXTY (60) DAYS

OF THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS RESOLUTION, THIS RESOLUTION

SHALL BECOME NULL AND VOID.


05-00481-exhibit A.pdf

05-00481-exhibit B.pdf

05-00481-exhibit C.pdf

05-00481-exhibit D.pdf

05-00481-exhibit A2.pdf

05-00481-exhibit B2.pdf

05-00481-exhibit C2.pdf

05-00481-exhibit D2.pdf

05-00481-exhibit E2.pdf

05-00481-exhibit E.pdf

05-00481-exhibit F.pdf

05-00481-exhibit G.pdf

05-00481-exhibit H.pdf

05-00481-exhibit I.pdf

05-00481-cover memo.pdf

05-00481-attachment 1.pdf





Motion by Commissioner Winton, seconded by Vice Chairman González, that this matter

be ADOPTED WITH MODIFICATIONS PASSED by the following vote.

Votes: Ayes: 4 - Commissioner González, Winton, Sanchez and Allen

Noes: 1 - Commissioner Regalado

R-05-0372

Chairman Sanchez: And we go to discuss CA.6. All right. CA.6. Any --

Jorge L. Fernández (City Attorney): Yes.

Chairman Sanchez: -- discussion on CA.6?
























Commissioner Winton: I think we ought to have a --

Chairman Sanchez: I just have one question on it.

Commissioner Winton: -- presentation, frankly.

Chairman Sanchez: Excuse me?

Commissioner Winton: We -- somebody ought to --

Mr. Fernández: Yeah.

Commissioner Winton: -- staff ought to present.

Mr. Fernández: It's a very brief presentation that just summarizes what the item is for you. This

item, in essence, resolves litigation that has been going on for almost 20 years, and at the end of

the day, what will happen is that the City will receive a deed to Brickell Park. There will be a

strip of land, approximately 9,000 square feet, that will be deeded to The Related Group. The --

there will be a grant of an easement, approximately half the park, for a period of five years, very

limited only to five years, and the purpose for that is so that there could be construction and a

sales office taking place in the adjacent parcel. There is an agreement to make temporary and

permanent park improvements, and maintain the park in perpetuity, including the bay, and that

is a critical component of this settlement. Also, there is the issue of the taxes, where there is an

agreement going back to 2000, where both the City and now The Related will assume the

responsibility 50/50 for payment of back taxes, if any are due. This is an issue that's being

challenged, and at the end of the day, if it's found that no taxes are due, then the City's exposure

to 50 percent is for nothing, but if there is any taxes past due, then the City has acknowledged a

responsibility in previous agreements for 50 percent of that, and then there is also a covenant for

setbacks, view corridors, open spaces requirements, but not for floor/area requirements, and that

is also advantageous to the City, and the last thing that we have incorporated in the resolution is

that there is 60 days to -- for this resolution to expire. If, within the 60 days, all of the

agreements are not signed and all the transactions taken place, then all bets are off, so it applies

a level of pressure to all the parties to make sure that there is a deliverable in short order.

Chairman Sanchez: Any questions on the item from the Commission?

Commissioner Regalado: Yeah, Mr. Chairman.

Joe Arriola (City Manager): Can I explain one more thing about the taxes for a second?

Because there's been a concern about the half tax and the whole thing. If -- and that's a big “if”

because there's no reason why parkland should be taxed -- you have to understand that our half,

let's say that we were -- for -- our half is one dollar, just for -- half of that, the 50 cents, we

would get part of the 50 cents, plus we would also get part of the 50 cents that Related would

have to pay, so basically, to the City, in the case there will be a tax, it'd be pretty -- it'd be a

pretty neutral thing, OK, because we would get part of what we would pay, and we would get

part of what they would pay, so at the end, it would be a pretty neutral thing. I don't think

there's any way in the world that they could tax parkland anyway, but in the case that this was to

happen, that's what we would get.

Commissioner Allen: If I may ask a question.

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner --

Commissioner Allen: I'm sorry.



Chairman Sanchez: -- Allen, hold on. Commissioner --


Chairman Sanchez: -- Regalado, are you done?

Commissioner Regalado: No, I haven't --

Chairman Sanchez: Are you done?

Commissioner Regalado: I haven't even started.

Chairman Sanchez: Oh, OK. You may continue.

Commissioner Regalado: OK. No, I have not asked a question, but I do have several questions.

First of all, how can the tax assessor assess tax --

Commissioner Winton: Exactly.

Commissioner Regalado: -- on a site that is considered and zoned park.

Commissioner Winton: Yeah.

Commissioner Regalado: That's my first question.

Mr. Fernández: Well, that's precisely the issue that is on appeal, and the tax assessor's decision

is being challenged. You need to understand -- and I don't know that I could either explain or

we would have the time -- what's been happening with this case for the last 20 years. There is a

period of time where title or property to this park could be argued, jumped from the City back to

the Brickells, private parties, and what the tax assessor is trying to do is make sure that

whenever title to the City leaped out of the City, if it ever did, then that they would be able to

collect taxes on that, and it's a contorted history that this litigation has followed over the last

twenty or so years, and what the tax assessor is doing -- and in abundance of caution, he's

saying taxes are due and owing to me. You prove differently the title has not left the City, and

then, of course, if that's the case, then no taxes would be due and owing.

Commissioner Winton: Commissioner Regalado, could I interrupt just a second?

Commissioner Regalado: Sure.

Commissioner Winton: You said an abundant of caution on the part of the tax assessor's?

Mr. Fernández: Yes.

Commissioner Winton: I would consider it an abundance of arrogance, and almost thievery

trying to tax land that's clearly been in the public domain forever, and there's been this battle all

along. I mean, I think the tax assessor's lost it.

Mr. Fernández: I was being kind and cordial --

Commissioner Winton: I know you --

Mr. Fernández: -- and extending --



Commissioner Winton: -- that's why --

Mr. Fernández: -- and other --

Commissioner Winton: But I had to correct it because I don't want to be so kind and cordial to

something so ridiculous.

Commissioner Regalado: Well, the next question is, these taxes are past taxes --

Mr. Fernández: Correct.

Commissioner Regalado: -- so the future, the tax assessor will not be able to tax what is park.

However, half of the park is going to be used for commercial purposes --

Commissioner Allen: Precisely.


Commissioner Regalado: -- so he can argue that half of the park, in the future --

Commissioner Allen: Right.

Commissioner Regalado: -- could be taxed because of --


Commissioner Regalado: -- commercial use --


Commissioner Regalado: -- on the next five years, according to the settlement.

Mr. Fernández: And this has already been contemplated and discussed, and The Related Group

understands that our position is -- and that the tax assessor's position will be -- that for that

grant of an easement that they will be getting for five years, that there will be, more than likely, a

tax imposed on that, and that they would assume that responsibility for the tax going forward,

perspectively, over the easement, as well as over the strip of land that they're getting as part of

this deal, so --

Commissioner Regalado: Well, the strip --

Mr. Fernández: -- future taxes --

Commissioner Regalado: -- of land will be theirs forever --

Mr. Fernández: Of course, right, exactly.

Commissioner Regalado: -- not the City --

Mr. Fernández: Exactly.

Commissioner Regalado: -- so that's their problem, but I'm talking about --

Mr. Fernández: But the parkland --



Commissioner Regalado: -- the parkland that will be used for commercial purposes.

Mr. Fernández: For -- as an easement, for five years, yes, they understand that, and that

reliability solely falls on the shoulders of The Related Group.

Commissioner Regalado: OK. Now, my other question is, if they are going to use half of the

park for a staging area and sales office, they -- would they be paying rent to the City?

Mr. Fernández: No, the consideration that they have paid for that is, in essence, the amounts

that they have paid to ensure that the litigation is settled, and that the City will be getting the

parkland back, free and clear.

Commissioner Regalado: No, the amount that they have paid already is to secure the part of the

park that they needed for the project, not to end the litigation, but my question is, why do we

have -- yes. They -- excuse me, this is the way I'm trying to present this. They have come to the

table and resolved the litigation because they needed that park, or part of the park, the part that

we are deeding to them to complete their project, plus they figured it out that they need the

staging area for the demolition of the hotel and the sales office of the park, so that is in their

benefit, very intelligent on their part; vision, totally fine; everything is fine. My question is, if

they don't have to pay rent to the City for use half of the park for the next five years, then they

should pay all of the taxes. It's very simple.

Commissioner Winton: All of which taxes?

Commissioner Regalado: All of the back taxes.

Commissioner Winton: All the back taxes?

Commissioner Regalado: Yeah.

Mr. Arriola: Should they pay for -- you know, why should they pay for the back taxes? I just

told you it's going to be totally neutral to us. In the case, in the case that we got to pay taxes, it's

going to be pretty much sort of neutral for us. This is a deal we made with them. This has been

in litigation for 20 years. We've settled litigation that's over 20 years old, and the City's going to

end up with a great park. You know, this is Monday morning quarterback, and you really are

absolutely wrong in your assessment of what you're doing.

Commissioner Regalado: OK, OK.

Chairman Sanchez: All right.

Commissioner Regalado: This is not Monday morning quarterback. I questioned -- I posed the

same question to the only person that explained it to me, this deal, which was the City Attorney.

Did I ask you about the back taxes? I asked you about the back taxes, so this dates back to

Tuesday. There were my concerns on Tuesday. These are my concerns now. Is it a good deal?

Yes, but don't tell me that the City will be neutral because every tax that is paid in the City of

Miami, part goes to the School Board, part goes to the County, and part goes to the City, so if we

have to pay 50,000, we will be getting back the third of 50,000. If we pay half a million, we will

be getting back the third of half a million. The other two parts will be going to the School Board

and to the County. It's very simple. That's my point.

Mr. Arriola: We would also be getting a third of their payment, too, sir.

Commissioner Regalado: Yeah, I --



Mr. Arriola: OK.

Commissioner Regalado: -- understand that.

Mr. Arriola: Well, in case you don't know how to add.

Commissioner Regalado: No, I do. I do, but I mean, you know. I'm (UNINTELLIGIBLE) --

Chairman Sanchez: Hey, listen, let's maintain decor [sic] here. This is government. This item

needs to be discussed, and we need to have a healthy and respectable discussion on the item.

Commissioner Regalado, are you done?

Commissioner Regalado: No, I'm not. I am trying to understand why -- OK, the settlement -- I'm

in favor of the settlement. They were very intelligent in coming to the table to settle this

litigation. I understand that, but what I'm trying to understand is why the taxpayers of the City

of Miami have to take the brunt of paying these taxes if this park is essential, essential to this

development, so that's my only question.

Mr. Arriola: First of all, you're assuming that it's essential, and it's not essential. They could

build around it; that's number one. Number two, this was a deal that the City didn't make with

Related; made it with a prior group. It's something that the City agreed to prior to Related, and

now what you're saying is Related comes up, bails us out, pays for the park, gives us the park,

and we should penalize them. I mean, this is not the way to do business.


Mr. Arriola: The reason the city is growing is because we know how to commit and keep our

word. Now you're trying to say that we should break our word because of some cockamamie

story on protecting the taxpayer. We already protected the taxpayer. The tax base that this is

going to pay will multiply 101 times over this thing.


Commissioner Regalado: Well, if we didn't -- my last comment. If we agreed to this settlement

on the year 2000, why it didn't came through? Why it got stopped? Why it was lost in the

system?

Chairman Sanchez: That --

Commissioner Regalado: Why we need to settle now and we didn't settle on the year 2000?

Chairman Sanchez: That should be addressed to the City Manager -- I mean, the City Attorney,

who was not the City Attorney at that time, but maybe he could answer that question. This has

been going on for 15 years, I believe.

Mr. Fernández: Yes. The agreement that imposes -- where the City agreed to accept half of the

liability for past taxes, the reason that agreement didn't conclude at the time, back in 2002, was

for archaeological reasons. I wasn't here. I have the agreement in my hand. I would need to

read it and try to find out why it's taking us this long to come this far, but the answer to your

question, Commissioner, you started by asking whether -- for the easement that they would get

for five years, what consideration are they paying for that. You asked by way of rent; are they

paying rent or -- and my answer to you is that the consideration that they're giving the City for

that five-year easement is, in fact, the fact that they have bailed -- to use a word that has been

used before. They're paying for the park so that the City can get title to the park, and after the

end of five years, the City would get an improved park, because their easement will disappear



then; they would make permanent improvement, and they have also agreed, in perpetuity, to

maintain the park. All of those items, in my opinion, are sufficient legal consideration for the use

of a five-year easement.

Mr. Arriola: You know, well, the other thing that you have to remember, the 1999 agreement

was that the City and the Brickells were going to sell this property for development. There was

not going to be any more park there. The settlement in 1999, the City made was to build a

high-rise there, OK. The City was going to get half of the money, and the Brickells were going to

have the money. This is not only a bail out, but this is the way we're going to be able to keep a

park there because, originally in 1999, whoever was here and approved this thing was to build a

high-rise condominium right there and kill the land --

Commissioner Winton: Well --

Mr. Arriola: -- and kill the parkland.

Commissioner Regalado: No, no.

Commissioner Allen: What'd he say?

Commissioner Winton: Actually --

Commissioner Allen: That's -- are they -- that's --

Commissioner Regalado: No, excuse me.

Commissioner Allen: -- impossible.

Commissioner Regalado: I have the floor.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, go ahead.

Commissioner Regalado: Excuse me.


Commissioner Regalado: What we did then --

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner Regalado has the floor.

Commissioner Regalado: -- was to contribute to the Miami Circle. What the -- excuse me, I was

here. Mr. City Attorney, do the research. What -- I don't know if you remember that. Johnny

was here and Joe Sanchez was here, but we were called to help bail out the Miami Circle, and

that was one of the reasons that we did that agreement. I think a million dollar was pledged

from the City of that sale to the Miami Circle.

Mr. Arriola: You were going to sell it.

Commissioner Winton: Now, I don't think that --

Chairman Sanchez: Johnny, before --

Commissioner Winton: Excuse me.

Chairman Sanchez: -- let's try to maintain this in order. Commissioner Allen, sir, you were



next, and I want to make sure --

Commissioner Allen: Is Commission -- Regalado done?

Commissioner Regalado: Yeah, I'm done.

Chairman Sanchez: I believe he's --

Commissioner Allen: Oh, I'm sorry. Yeah, just --

Chairman Sanchez: No, you could yield to Commissioner Winton, if you want, but I mean --

Commissioner Allen: Yeah.

Chairman Sanchez: -- you had the right to speak next.

Commissioner Allen: Right, if you will Commissioner Winton. Yeah, I just have two quick

questions. In fact, Commissioner Regalado asked several of the questions that I had concerns

with, but Mr. City Attorney, you did clear up the issue because my concern was what are we

getting in the way of consideration, and the last whereas clause where we're granting these guys

a temporary easement for a term of five years, but let me go a bit further. It also says that they

are perform -- are to perform temporary and permanent park improvements. Has that been

spelled out? Because all it can do is just plant a tree, and that could be characterized as a park

improvement. I need to know has that been clear -- a criterial [sic] as to what exactly they're

going to do in the --


Commissioner Allen: -- way of a park improvement?


Commissioner Allen: OK, so -- all right, so that answers my question. I mean, it's substantial. I

mean, it's not just something perfunctory.

Mr. Arriola: It's to the City's standards.

Commissioner Allen: Right, OK. All right. That's it.

Chairman Sanchez: Could -- Vice Chairman González. No, go ahead.

Vice Chairman González: No. I've been listening to all this discussion, and the only thing that I

can say, or I can add to this, is that we cannot go back to the times when the City of Miami

entered into an agreement and they -- and then later on decided to erase the agreement and

come up with another agreement. I mean, this is an honorable government. I think we're giving

an example of compromising and other standards that didn't happen before. I remember the

fiasco that we had with the Fusion some years ago, where supposedly there was an agreement,

and in two minutes, that agreement disappeared, and we lost the team. If there is an agreement -

- and it was an executed agreement, Mr. City Attorney?


Vice Chairman González: By both parties?




Vice Chairman González: Then we have to honor the agreement. I mean, we are honorable

people here. I mean, we -- you know. I wouldn't like to be myself in the position of changing

positions after we have made a compromise and signed an agreement, so that's my only

comment.

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner Winton.

Commissioner Winton: As it relates to the agreement that we were talking about, 1999, I don't

think there was -- Mr. City Attorney, somebody behind you might know the answer to this, but

this agreement that we're talking about that was reached in 1999, if I remember this correctly,

there wasn't an agreement. There was a proposed agreement. There was a proposed agreement.

The proposed agreement was, in fact, to sell the park to the highest bidder, and the proceeds

would be split 50/50; 50 to the City, 50 to the Brickell family. I got elected in November 1999,

and I was radically opposed to that proposed settlement agreement, and we, in fact, voted as a

Commission back then to set aside that proposed settlement agreement, and that was with the

backing of all the associations and groups involved in Brickell and downtown, and we felt

strongly that we would rather risk losing the entire park -- let's go to court; let a judge decide,

and we understood that, once you go to court and let a judge decide, your odds are no greater

than 50/50, but we decided that the 50 percent odds in favor of keeping it as a park permanently

was better than the odds of guaranteeing that you're going to take money and sell the damn

thing, so this Commission voted back then to support moving forward with a lawsuit and letting

a judge decide, and we were just hoping we would get a favorable decision. However, we all

know that when you get before a court of law, and we know the recent history of the City of

Miami's great litigation capacity, where we seem to lose a lot more than we win. As far as I'm

concerned, I considered the probability to be less than 50/50 that we would win, and so, as a

consequence -- and I'm going to back everyone up a could of steps here. Another thing that

happened, I'm going to say 2001, Manny Diaz and I got together with George Perez and begged

him, literally begged him to come to the north side of the river and be the first developer in

almost 20 yeas to build anything in the core of downtown Miami, and we had a whole series of

meetings begging him to jump across the river because we didn't have a development boom

going on then anywhere in Miami-Dade County, or in the City of Miami. And we convinced him

to come across, but there was a -- ultimately, a quid pro quo, and that quid pro quo was, we had

already passed an ordinance that required developers to build a bay walk. George said, I want

to build a spectacular bay walk. I want to build a bay walk around there that's going to have

fabulous landscaping, sculptures, all kinds of things, and I want the City to contribute $4 million

to that effort, and this Commission debated it and passed the resolution in support of taking $4

million of our Homeland Defense bond money and spending it on the bay walk in the hope that,

that one development moving to the north side of the river would stimulate finally some

economic redevelopment in the real core of the Central Business District; and we further said

that, by the way, the City's going to get that $4 million back either in the first or second year of

ad valorem taxes just for the two buildings, so from my standpoint, it was a great investment.

Well, you know, we're down the road three, four years, and voila, the core of downtown Miami,

thanks to George moving across the river, is on fire, and that $4 million investment that we made

-- and if you remember, we also passed a resolution that required the City to take that 4 million

that was going to be used for capital improvements out of our Homeland bond, we required the

City to set aside ad valorem tax money from that project and bring it back into the Homeland

Defense Bond program so that, again, the money could be used for public sector infrastructure

improvements for our citizens, and that's going to be happening soon, so it was a great move.

Fast-forward to today. We have a park that the citizens of downtown and Brickell, and the

business owners of downtown and Brickell have been fighting mad about for years, and years,

and years; a park that's been in litigation for almost 20 years, and again, George Perez comes to

the table and strikes a deal that may, ultimately -- I don't know if it's revenue neutral. I don't

think it's completely revenue neutral in terms of back taxes because I think, maybe --

Commissioner Regalado, your math is good, but it isn't -- in terms of moving forward the



litigation, that litigation cost, and those keep going up, and up, and up, and you have the great

risk that we lose the park; it gets sold to the highest bidder, and we end up with condos there,

and that's the worst thing I could imagine, so George coming along and paying the $4 million to

the Brickell family to settle the suit, and we doing these trade-offs, I think, is as significant as the

first move that George made, which was to build on the north side of the river before anyone was

doing it. I would say, however, one thing to George's team. The major criticism you're going to

get from anyone in the public is, in fact, going to relate to this five-year easement, and my view is

-- and I'm backing this agreement -- but from a public image standpoint, the smaller the area

that you actually use, the better, and the less time you need it, the better. That's going to be good

for you, and it's going to be good for the community, and I'm not going to suggest we change the

agreement, but I am going to suggest that y'all use all of your energies to minimize the amount of

land you need for staging, and you minimize the amount of time you need it, and you work real

hard to find other ways to do those kinds of things, and everybody's going to come out the big

winner. The end.

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner Winton, you hit some of the issues that I was going to speak

on, but I'm certainly not going to repetitious on this, but I'll tell you, as the Chair, I do welcome

healthy debate. I think that it's truly the beauty of democracy when we're able to openly discuss

these items because, under the Sunshine law, we're not allowed to talk about these items until

we're in an open forum meeting. However, I think every Commissioner here had an ample

opportunity to sit down with the City Attorney, as I did, and we went through this, and I

expressed the concerns that I had. As I stated earlier, I felt that it should not have been on the

consent agenda. It should have been a regular item for discussion, pertaining to the deal itself.

The biggest responsibility that we have here is fiduciary responsibility, and after reviewing this

settlement, which it is a settlement, with the City Attorney, and looking at it, the only concern

that I had was to protect the City from any liability, and I think that the deal itself, as explained

to me, and as properly debated in an open forum, the City Attorney has properly addressed and

answered some of the concerns that are set forth. Having said that, we're prepared now to move

with this item for a motion.


Chairman Sanchez: Is there a motion? There's a motion by Commissioner Winton. Is there --


Chairman Sanchez: -- a second?


Chairman Sanchez: Second by Vice Chairman González. I think we have debated this long

enough. Having said that, all in favor, say “aye.”

Commissioner Regalado: No.

Chairman Sanchez: Anyone in opposition, having the same right, say “nay,” so we'll make it

easy. Madam Clerk --

Commissioner Allen: Mr. Chairman.

Chairman Sanchez: -- roll call.

Commissioner Allen: Before we --

Chairman Sanchez: Roll call, Madam Clerk.



Commissioner Allen: Mr. Chairman, if you will. Before we take a vote on this, I'd like to ask

one other question that just dawned on me if it -- with your indulgence.

Chairman Sanchez: Sir, you have the floor.

Commissioner Allen: OK. Is anyone here from The Related Group, by any chance?

Commissioner Winton: A lot of people.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah. Is it possible for one of you guys to come to the podium, please?

Because Commissioner Winton brought up a very interesting point in terms of the easement

that's being granted to you guys. My concern is, has it been conveyed to the City as to what

square footage you're going to use, because we don't want the public get the impression that

you're hoarding this property, and therefore, I can't pass, or use, a portion of this as a public --

for a public --

Commissioner Winton: It says half.

Commissioner Allen: -- purpose. Pardon me?

Commissioner Winton: Isn't it half?

Commissioner Regalado: Say half.

Commissioner Winton: Says half.

Commissioner Allen: Well, that's --

Mr. Arriola: It's -- no, I could answer that for you. It's either half or less.

Commissioner Allen: It's half?

Mr. Arriola: We already have a --

Commissioner Winton: It's up to half, right?

Mr. Arriola: -- we drew the line. We have -- everything has been in the presentation, sir.

Commissioner Allen: Right. Well, I just want to make sure that my fellow Commissioners feel

comfortable with this. Is that assurance what the City Manager has indicated, Related Group?

Commissioner Winton: How about the Commission?

Thomas Daly: That's correct.

Chairman Sanchez: Sir, could you state your name for --

Commissioner Allen: OK.

Chairman Sanchez: -- the record, please?

Mr. Daly: Yes, Thomas Daly, 1000 South Point Drive, principal with The Related Group in this

project, and if I might, Commissioner, there was a dual purpose to this easement; one was to

facilitate the development of the property; the second, when we were negotiating with the



Brickells, was the interest of public safety. We're going to be building high-rise buildings

adjacent to the park, with about a 25-foot setback, and in addition to the construction easement,

it was a public safety easement. In answering a previous question, there is a interim park plan,

which we've committed to redevelop the south half of the park immediately for use, and to grant

public access to the bay walk.

Commissioner Allen: Good. That's what I wanted to hear on the record.

Chairman Sanchez: As you --

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, and I --

Chairman Sanchez: Has your --

Commissioner Allen: Yes.

Chairman Sanchez: -- question been answered, Commissioner?

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, it's been answered, and I hope that satisfies any of my fellow

Commissioners' concerns, as well.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Madam Clerk, there's a motion on the floor and a second, and we

are ready for a roll call.

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): Roll call. Commissioner Allen?


Ms. Thompson: Commissioner Regalado?

Commissioner Regalado: No.

Ms. Thompson: Vice Chairman González?

Vice Chairman González: Yes, ma'am.

Ms. Thompson: Commissioner Winton?

Commissioner Winton: Yes.

Ms. Thompson: Chairman Sanchez?

Chairman Sanchez: Yes.

Ms. Thompson: The ordinance -- I'm sorry, the resolution has been approved, 4/1.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Thank you very much. That concludes the consent agenda.



ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING THE PURCHASE OF TWO (2) LDV

MODEL #MCC30LLC260-03, MOBILE COMMAND CENTERS, CONSISTING

OF EQUIPMENT LISTED IN THE ATTACHED DOCUMENTS, FROM LDV,

INC., VIA THE DEPARTMENT OF POLICE, TO BE UTILIZED BY THE

DEPARTMENTS OF POLICE AND FIRE-RESCUE, AS AUTHORIZED UNDER

Department of

Police



A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE CITY OF MIAMI

AND THE STATE OF FLORIDA COUNTER-DRUG PROCUREMENT

PROGRAM, ESTABLISHED AND MAINTAINED PURSUANT TO THE

NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT SECTION 1122, KNOWN AS

THE "1122 PROGRAM," IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $449,335, FOR

EACH MOBILE COMMAND CENTER, FOR A TOTAL COST NOT TO EXCEED

$898,670; ALLOCATING FUNDS IN THE AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED

$449,335, FROM THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM ("CIP"), POLICE

HOMELAND DEFENSE PREPAREDNESS BOND, B-72911, ACCOUNT CODE

NO. 312048.299307.6.840, AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $281,584, FROM

THE URBAN AREAS SECURITY INITIATIVE GRANT PROGRAM II, FISCAL

YEAR 2003, ACCOUNT CODE NO. 110111.280910.6.840 AND AN AMOUNT

NOT TO EXCEED $167,751, FROM CIP, B-72814, ACCOUNT CODE NO.

313305.289307.6.840.




05-00482-background information.pdf

05-00482-report.pdf

05-00482-motion.pdf

05-00482-fire rescue.pdf

05-00482-procurement program.pdf

05-00482-LDV .pdf

05-00482-procurement program letter.pdf

05-00482-memo of agreement.pdf

05-00482-contract.pdf

05-00482-Summary Fact Sheet.pdf




R-05-0365


A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION AUTHORIZING THE

DIRECTOR OF FINANCE TO PAY CLAUDIA ROGER, WITHOUT ADMISSION

OF LIABILITY, THE SUM OF $37,000 IN FULL AND COMPLETE

SETTLEMENT OF ANY AND ALL CLAIMS AND DEMANDS AGAINST THE

CITY OF MIAMI, ITS OFFICERS, AGENTS AND SERVANTS, IN THE CASE

OF CLAUDIA ROGER VS. CITY OF MIAMI, IN THE CIRCUIT COURT IN AND

FOR MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, CASE NO. 04-04534 CA (06), UPON

EXECUTING A GENERAL RELEASE OF THE CITY OF MIAMI, ITS PRESENT

AND FORMER OFFICERS, AGENTS, AND EMPLOYEES FROM ANY AND

ALL CLAIMS AND DEMANDS; ALLOCATING FUNDS FROM THE

SELF-INSURANCE AND INSURANCE TRUST FUND, INDEX CODE NO.

515001.624401.6.651.

Office of the City

Attorney


05-00456-cover memo.pdf

05-00456-budget.pdf






















R-05-0366


A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION ESTABLISHING A NEW

SPECIAL REVENUE FUND ENTITLED: "2005 OUTREACH TO HOMELESS

DETAINEES" AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS FOR THE OPERATION OF

THE SAME, IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $85,796, CONSISTING OF A

GRANT AWARD FROM THE STATE OF FLORIDA GRANT-IN-AID

PROGRAM, FOR A ONE-YEAR PERIOD, FOR OUTREACH, ASSESSMENT,

PLACEMENT AND TRANSPORTATION SERVICES TO HOMELESS

DETAINEES BEING RELEASED FROM THE MIAMI-DADE COUNTY JAIL;

AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE THE NECESSARY

DOCUMENTS, TO IMPLEMENT ACCEPTANCE OF SAID GRANT AWARD.

Homeless Programs






R-05-0367


A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION ESTABLISHING A NEW

SPECIAL REVENUE FUND ENTITLED: "2005 SUPPORTIVE SERVICES

GRANT" AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS, IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED

$251,071, CONSISTING OF A GRANT FROM THE UNITED STATES

DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, THROUGH THE

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY HOMELESS TRUST, FOR A ONE YEAR-PERIOD,TO

PROVIDE OUTREACH, INFORMATION, REFERRAL, ASSESSMENT AND

PLACEMENT SERVICES TO HOMELESS INDIVIDUALS; AUTHORIZING THE

CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE THE NECESSARY DOCUMENTS TO

IMPLEMENT ACCEPTANCE OF SAID GRANT AWARD.

Homeless Programs






R-05-0368









ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE A

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT, IN SUBSTANTIALLY THE

ATTACHED FORM, WITH THE CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM OF

SHARPTON, BRUNSON & COMPANY, PA., FOR THE EVALUATION OF

PROPOSALS RECEIVED IN RESPONSE TO THE REQUEST FOR

PROPOSALS DOCUMENT TO BE ISSUED FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A

HOTEL AND OTHER GOLF COURSE IMPROVEMENTS AT 1802

NORTHWEST 37TH AVENUE, MIAMI, FLORIDA, COMMONLY REFERRED

TO AS THE MELREESE GOLF COURSE, UNDER THE UNIFIED

DEVELOPMENT PROJECT PROCESS; ALLOCATING FUNDS FOR SAID

SERVICES AND EXPENSES IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $65,000,

FROM ACCOUNT CODE NO. 001000.500101.6.270.

Department of

Economic

Development


05-00522-exhibit1.pdf

05-00522-exhibit1A.pdf

05-00522-exhibit1B.pdf


05-00522-pre resolution1.pdf

05-00522-pre resolution2.pdf




R-05-0369



ATTACHMENT(S), DECLARING SURPLUS THE CITY-OWNED PROPERTY

LOCATED AT 46 WEST FLAGLER STREET, MIAMI, FLORIDA, ALSO

KNOWN AS PAUL WALKER PARK ("PROPERTY"), AS MORE

PARTICULARLY DESCRIBED IN "EXHIBIT A," ATTACHED AND

INCORPORATED; AUTHORIZING AND DIRECTING THE CITY MANAGER

TO: (I) SOLICIT OFFERS FROM ADJACENT PROPERTY OWNERS FOR

THE PURCHASE OF THE PROPERTY; (II) ACCEPT RESPONSIBLE AND

RESPONSIVE OFFERS; (III) NEGOTIATE A PURCHASE AND SALE

AGREEMENT ("PSA"); AND (IV) PRESENT THE NEGOTIATED PSA TO THE

CITY COMMISSION FOR FINAL APPROVAL.

Department of

Economic

Development


05-00523-exhibitA.pdf





R-05-0370















ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE

AMENDMENT NO. ONE, IN SUBSTANTIALLY THE ATTACHED FORM, TO

THE AGREEMENT WITH FLAGLER FIRST CONDOMINIUMS, LLC,

RELATING TO THE REDEVELOPMENT OF AN AFFORDABLE HOUSING

CONDOMINIUM PROJECT KNOWN AS FLAGLER FIRST CONDOMINIUM,

LOCATED AT 101 EAST FLAGLER STREET, MIAMI, FLORIDA ("PROJECT"),

PROVIDING AN EXTENSION OF THE DEADLINE FOR THE RECEIPT OF

CERTIFICATES OF OCCUPANCY AND THE SALE OF EIGHTY-ONE (81) OF

THE PROJECT'S RESIDENTIAL CONDOMINIUM UNITS, UNTIL DECEMBER

23, 2006.

Department of

Economic

Development



05-00377-exhibitB.pdf






R-05-0371

Adopted the Consent Agenda

Motion by Commissioner Winton, seconded by Vice Chairman González, including all the

preceding items marked as having been adopted on the Consent Agenda. The motion

carried by the following vote:



END OF CONSENT AGENDA

Chairman Sanchez: We move on to the consent agenda. As always, Mr. City Manager, is there

any in the consent -- items in the consent agenda that you would like to be pulled out for

discussion? Mr. City Attorney?

Jorge L. Fernández (City Attorney): Consent item number 6. We have just distributed to you, in

addition to what you have in your packet, a new version of the resolution that adds one sentence

at the end. We've given the Clerk a copy of that, as well as, attached to that resolution, we've

also given you a new settlement agreement that is essentially the same as was distributed in the

packet to you, but that it highlights two issues, which have been highlighted in yellow for your

benefit. In essence, it's the same that you had before, but we just want to make sure that the

Clerk has the right information on the record.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Any of the Commissioners wishing to pull any of the items for

discussion? Commissioner González?

Vice Chairman González: No, sir.

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner Regalado?

Commissioner Regalado: I will like to discuss CA.6, but we can do it within the framework of

the agenda -- the consent agenda, or separate, whatever you feel like --








Chairman Sanchez: Well, I'll -- Commissioner Winton, and then, as the Chair, I will --

Commissioner Winton: No, I have nothing.

Chairman Sanchez: -- speak last. I would like to pull CA.6, and let me tell you why. I do think -

- I've read it. I've had an opportunity to sit with the City Manager. I'm very comfortable with it,

but to be honest with you, I don't think this is an item that should have been on the consent

agenda. This is an item that should have been on the regular agenda for discussion, to basically

have an opportunity to discuss the item, and I do have some concerns, and as the Chair, I am

always last, but I just want to make sure that items like this, when they have such a large impact

-- and this is a case that's been going on for 15 years, a very -- a complicated case. I think that it

needs to be pulled out for the purpose of discussing it to prove transparency, accountability, and

just good government -- good government, so having said that, let's go ahead and pull CA.6 for

discussion. Is there any other item that needs to be pulled out?

Commissioner Winton: Move consent agenda.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. There's a motion to move the consent agenda.


Chairman Sanchez: There -- by Commissioner Winton, second by Commissioner González. Any

discussion on the item? Hearing none, all in favor, say “aye.”





PERSONAL APPEARANCE

05-00483PA.1 DISCUSSION ITEM

MV FILMS PRODUCTION, LLC TO ADDRESS THE CITY COMMISSION

TO REQUEST A WAIVER OF THE CITY OF MIAMI NOISE ORDINANCE

FOR THE FILMING OF THE FEATURE FILM, "MIAMI VICE", SCHEDULED

SHOOTING IN OUR AREA FROM JUNE 29TH TO SEPTEMBER 30TH,

2005.

05-00483-miami vice letter.pdf

05-00483-memo1.pdf

05-00483-memo2.pdf

DISCUSSED

Discussion on Item PA.1 resulted in the resolution below:

05-00483a(PA.1) RESOLUTION

A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION DECLARING AN

EXEMPTION FROM THE PROHIBITIONS AND RESTRICTIONS

CONTAINED IN SECTIONS 36-4(A) AND 36-5 (A) OF THE CODE OF THE

CITY OF MIAMI, FLORIDA, AS AMENDED, AS RELATED TO THE LEVEL

AND HOURS OF NOISE RESULTING FROM FILMING "MIAMI VICE,"

FROM JUNE 29 THROUGH SEPTEMBER 30, 2005, AT VARIOUS

LOCATIONS IN THE CITY OF MIAMI, FLORIDA, WITH EACH LOCATION

AND TIME PERMITTED BY THE OFFICE OF FILM ARTS, CULTURE AND

ENTERTAINMENT.

Motion by Commissioner Winton, seconded by Commissioner Regalado, that this matter

be ADOPTED PASSED by the following vote.



R-05-0397

Chairman Sanchez: That concludes the consent agenda. Let me -- there are certain items that

we will be taking out of order, as professional courtesy, and of course -- residents that have

asked that, for whatever reason, whether it's work-related or child care, some of the items be

heard. Let's go ahead and -- I think we're waiting for the chairmans [sic] of the School Board,

the Hialeah and Miami-Dade County to present a resolution that'll be presented in front of this

Commission for approval. Only two are here; we're waiting for one more, so let's go ahead and

take -- I believe there is the Miami Vice noise ordinance. Are we ready? All right. Robert

Parente, you have the floor, sir, and that is PA.1.

Robert Parente (Director, Film, Arts, Culture & Entertainment): Yes, PA.1.

Commissioner Winton: Robert, you lost a lot of weight.

Mr. Parente: Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and the Commissioners.






Chairman Sanchez: Robert, before you go -- say anything else, welcome back. I know that you

have gone through something that you had us all praying for you, and you've made it through,

and we certainly prayed for you and your family as you were able to recoup, and we hope that

you get better very quick.

Mr. Parente: Thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: God bless you.

Mr. Parente: Thank you, Commissioner. There was a couple of days there when I almost went

to the big Commissioner in the sky, but I'm back and I'm feeling pretty good, so -- this is actually

my first appearance doing any City work. As you know, the movie Miami Vice is coming to town.

It's well over a hundred million dollar project. They won't start officially shooting it 'til June 29,

but we're already very deep in preproduction. With me today is Maria Chavez, one of Miami's

veteran location managers and scouts, and she's here representing Miami Vice. Our request is

very simple. Because of the Commission's scheduled, we can't come to you every time we need a

waiver of the noise ordinance, so what we're requesting today is a blanket waiver, covering from

June 29 to September 30, but let me just say this, that doesn't give Miami Vice carte blanche to

go around and make noise wherever they want. Each and every filming location has to be

permitted by my office, and each and every noise situation will be regulated by my office. We'll

notify each Commissioner, if they're filming in your district. If there's going to be noise items,

we absolutely have very stringent requirements that Miami Vice must meet in terms of notifying

the whole entire neighborhood, so we feel it's really something that we want to do to make sure

Miami's one of the film-friendly cities in Miami.


Mr. Parente: I mean, in the state, country.


Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion. Is there a second?


Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion by Commissioner Winton, second by Commissioner

Regalado. It is open for discussion. Any discussion on the item? Hearing none, all in favor, say

“aye.”



Thank you, Robert, and welcome back.

Mr. Parente: Thank you very much, Commissioner.

Commissioner Winton: Go Miami Vice.

Unidentified Speaker: Thank you.



MAYOR AND COMMISSIONER'S ITEMS

CITYWIDE

HONORABLE MAYOR MANUEL A. DIAZ

DISTRICT 1

VICE CHAIRMAN ANGEL GONZÁLEZ

DISTRICT 2

COMMISSIONER JOHNNY L. WINTON

DISTRICT 3

CHAIRMAN JOE SANCHEZ

05-00484D3.1 DISCUSSION ITEM

DISCUSSION REGARDING SMART GROWTH IN THE CITY OF MIAMI.

05-00484-email.pdf

DISCUSSED

Discussion on Item D3.1 resulted in the resolution below:

05-00484a(D3.1) RESOLUTION

A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION PLEDGING TO THE

CITIZENS OF MIAMI THAT THE CITY COMMISSION WILL STRENGTHEN

NEIGHBORHOODS AND RESPOND TO URBAN DEVELOPMENT THROUGH

SMART GROWTH PRINCIPLES, PROJECTS AND INITIATIVES; PLEDGING

TO APPROACH SMART GROWTH AS A REGIONAL ISSUE BY WORKING

WITH MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, MIAMI-DADE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

AND OTHER MUNICIPALITIES TO ENSURE THAT BASIC SERVICES SUCH

AS UTILITIES, TRANSIT, AIR AND SEA PORTS AND SCHOOLS ARE

EXPANDED AND MAINTAINED AT A HIGH LEVEL TO MEET THE DEMANDS

OF GROWING URBAN AREAS; MANDATING SAID PLEDGE TO ASSURE

THE CITIZENS OF THE CITY THAT THE MASTER PLANS AND THE

CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS WILL BE IMPLEMENTED AND

COMPLETED IN A TIMELY MANNER AND MAINTAINED AT A HIGH LEVEL

TO MEET THE DEMANDS OF GROWING URBAN AREAS AND WILL BE

ONGOING TO KEEP PACE WITH GROWTH AND RELATED ISSUES BY A

REGIONAL APPROACH.

District 3

Motion by Chairman Sanchez, seconded by Commissioner Winton, that this matter be

ADOPTED PASSED by the following vote.






R-05-0373

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Let me pass the gavel --

Vice Chairman González: What item was that?

Chairman Sanchez: -- to the Vice Chairman. The -- that was PA.1.

Vice Chairman González: PA.1.

Chairman Sanchez: Yes, and now we're going to go to my -- one of my items.

Vice Chairman González: OK, Mr. Chairman, you're recognized.

Chairman Sanchez: That is discussion regarding smart growth in the City, and of course, the --

I have the resolution that's being passed, as we speak, and it's reference to the United

Leadership for Accountability in Government, and I will step down, and I want to take this

opportunity, before I step down, to welcome three distinguished guests that are here today, all

chairmans [sic] of local governments throughout our community. We have, from Miami-Dade

County Commission, of course, the Chairman Joe Martinez, who's here with us; City of Hialeah

Councilman -- Chairman Julio Robaina, and Miami-Dade School Board Chairman Frank

Bolaños, who's also here that'll be supporting this resolution, as they have already -- well, the

County's already passed a resolution, and the other Commissioners will be passing the

resolution in the near future, so I will step down and ask that the Vice Chairman recognize me.

Commissioner Winton: What's, he leaving?

Chairman Sanchez: And I would love for them to --

Vice Chairman González: Mr. Chairman, you're recognized.

Chairman Sanchez: -- join me and say a word. Yes, sir?

Vice Chairman González: You're recognized.

Chairman Sanchez: You know, after sitting there for so many years, and --

Commissioner Winton: Name and address for the --

Chairman Sanchez: -- looking this way --

Commissioner Winton: -- record, please?

Chairman Sanchez: You know, Johnny, if I didn't like you so much. Joe Sanchez, resident of the

City of Miami, and Chairman for the next six months, and then we'll have Vice Chairman Angel

González take over. This is something that we got together, and when I say “we,” I'm talking

about the colleagues that are here with me today, to talk about several issues that affect us all,

and we came up with the United Leadership for Accountability in Government, and they're

basically following our footsteps because, as I stated in the first meeting, there isn't a city

throughout the United States that has been able to have the turnaround that we have had thanks

to a lot of things that are happening in our great city, so we talked about issues that really affect

us all, and I think the beauty of it is that what affects us here in the City, affect the County, and it

affects the School Board. Whatever happens in Hialeah, issues affect the County and the School

Board because we have schools throughout the entire City, and it's very important that we work

together and have that open avenue of communication to be able to address issues, such as



traffic, overcrowding of schools, development, you know, safety -- children's safety, as we see

now that their ordinance --

Commissioner Winton: Distribution of impact fees.

Chairman Sanchez: -- distribution of impact fees, too.

Commissioner Winton: The MMAP (Metro-Miami Action Plan).

Chairman Sanchez: I knew you were going to toss that one in, but there are a lot of issues that I

think that we're able to -- if we're able to work -- yeah, he's out of order. Tell him he's out of

order. Use that gavel. Tell him he's out of order.

Vice Chairman González: Come on, Johnny.

Chairman Sanchez: So these are all --

Commissioner Regalado: No, he's not. He --

Chairman Sanchez: -- issues that really affect us all.

Commissioner Regalado: -- he's in order. He's in order.

Chairman Sanchez: But Herbert Humphrey said it best when he said that partnership between

governments is a partnership which requires that all partners are adequately equipped to fully

participate in their responsibilities. I believe we are, and I believe that we shall, and this is a

step in the right direction, as we make history, to have all governments, whether it's just four now

and we're looking to open up the avenue to other municipalities to work together to address all

those issues. I bring the concept of smart growth to the table. Each and every one of the other

municipalities bring something that we're all able to put together, intertwine, and work at, and

improve what we do, which is to provide service. We are the shepherds of the taxpayers' dollars,

and if we work together, we'll be able not only to improve services, but provide accountability,

transparency, and just basically good government, so at this time, I want to recognize, which I

already have, but would like to turn it over to my good friend, Miami-Dade County Chairman

Joe Martinez.

Applause.

Miami-Dade County Chairman Joe Martinez: Thank you, sir. Good morning. Thank you, thank

you. We had like an unwritten rule; whosever Commission it is, they get to say everything they

want, and the rest of us just say, “Good morning. We support this.” Perfect example of what

we're speaking about today is the item that you heard today, earlier, right before this one, the

Miami Vice issue; the permitting, how it's controlled, how it'll be affected. That affects

everybody in Dade County. It affects the traffic patterns and everything. What we are doing

here is opening an avenue of communication whereas if we start getting complaints in the

County for whatever reason, I have somebody that I can directly now -- we established a line of

communication. Hey, do -- instead of going through that bureaucracy, which all of us try to cut

through, sometimes find that it really stalls us, but it's a spirit of cooperation, as the Chairman

Sanchez said. It's first time in history that it's been done. We're starting today with four. After it

is approved, and I hope it is approved by every single one of these boards, then we will all write

a letter, co-signed by all four of us, to every municipality to join us. Can you imagine the

purchasing power that instead of City of Miami, Hialeah, School Board, the County have

individually, we could all join. Buy police cars for everybody; instead of buying 100, you buy

500. Price should be driven down. Paper, pencils, pens, everything and anything, and that's

what we're trying to accomplish, something we've been working on for about two months, just



meeting informally, and it looks like it's -- this is the culmination, so I thank you, and I hope we

have your support. Tomasito, thank you for everything you've done.

Vice Chairman González: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Chairman Sanchez: At this time, I would like to introduce the School Board Chairman, Frank

Bolaños.

Applause.

Vice Chairman González: You're recognized, Mr. Chairman.

Frank Bolaños (Chairman, Dade County School Board): Thank you, Chairman González.

Thank you, Chairman Sanchez, and fellow Commissioners, and rest of the staff. The item before

you and the companion items that have been and will be presented to our boards, as well -- ours

at the School Board will be next Wednesday, and our colleagues here will be attending that, as

well. The item that we jointly signed stipulated ten particular and very specific areas that are

areas of concern and also areas of great opportunity for us, as elected officials, and for our

communities, and some of those areas have been mentioned. I am particularly excited about the

opportunities of greater collaboration and joint use, where we've already had joint use

agreements with parks. I think more of those are possible, and very much recommended. I think

that, as we face serious problems with overcrowding, and as we see the exciting opportunities

that you are driving in the City of Miami and other parts of the County, with residential and such

great residential growth, certainly, we know the pressures down the line that would place on

education and schools. There's a great, I think, both need and opportunity of joint use of

facilities. Our public school system will take more and more the face of a real urban school

system, where no longer will we have the luxury of developing on the 60-acre high schools, 20-,

30-acre middle schools, and 10-, 15-acre elementary schools, so there are so many areas of joint

opportunities that we have, and we look forward to exploring those with you for the benefit of

our school children and our entire community. Thank you.

Vice Chairman González: Chairman Bolaños, before you leave the podium, I have to publicly

recognize you for your work. You and I share the same district, or part of the same district, and

I have to say publicly that whenever my office has called Frank Bolaños' office in any issue, they

have responded -- it has taken me longer to call than for them to respond, so I really -- we

appreciate it, and in the name of all the residents in my district, we want to thank you publicly.

Mr. Bolaños: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Vice Chairman González: Thank you, sir.

Mr. Bolaños: That's very kind of you. Thank you.

Commissioner Winton: Here, here.

Chairman Sanchez: At this time, I would like to introduce a good friend of mine from the City of

Hialeah, Councilman Julio Robaina.

Vice Chairman González: You're recognized.

Applause.

Councilman Julio Robaina: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Buenos días (comment not translated).

Commissioners, it's truly a pleasure to be before you and asking for your support for this

resolution. We have a duty to our residents, and just as all of you have shown the leadership in



making sure that the bonds that have been passed in your city are working correctly, we have

done the same in the City of Hialeah, and part of this coming together is to make sure that the

People's Transportation Plan, whether we agree with it or not, and we agree with the tax or not,

it's there and it's been voted on, and we have the responsibility to make sure that it works. The

general obligation bonds that were passed by our community at the county level, whether we

agree with them or not, we have an obligation now to make sure. We see many times during

campaigns that there's a lot of phases, and then afterwards, there's no responsibility. Well, we

ask that all of you continue to show your leadership and be part of this group, as we are going to

continue to make this group even bigger, include all the municipalities. When I was president of

the Dade County League of Cities, this was our goal. Our goal was to have communication, not

only with all the cities, but with the County and the School Board, so I think this is a good step

forward. It's not about us four; it's about bringing the whole community together and making

sure there's responsibility for what they're paying for today, so I appreciate your support on this

item, and I appreciate the opportunity to be here, Mr. Chair. Thank you.

Vice Chairman González: Thank you very much. Thank you for being here.

Chairman Sanchez: Mr. Vice Chairman, I would really appreciate it if my colleagues all

cosponsor this resolution. This resolution basically puts all the items -- all the issues that affect

us all on a regional aspect, and the resolution that I would love to make a motion from --

Vice Chairman González: Yes, sir.

Chairman Sanchez: -- down here, it's a resolution of the City of Miami Commission pledging to

the citizens of Miami that the City Commission will strengthen its neighborhoods in response to

urban development through smart growth principles, projects, and initiatives; pledging to

approach smart growth as a regional issue by working with Miami-Dade County, Miami-Dade

County Public Schools, and other municipalities to ensure that basic services, such as utility,

transit, air and seaport, and schools are expanded and maintained at a high level to meet the

demands of growing urban areas; assuring the citizens of the city that the master plan and the

capital improvement projects will be implemented and completed in a timely manner, and

maintained at a high level to meet the demands of growing urban areas, and will be going --

ongoing to keep pace with growth and related issues by a regional approach. I would so make

the motion from down here.

Commissioner Winton: Second and --

Vice Chairman González: OK.

Commissioner Winton: -- discussion.

Vice Chairman González: We have a motion. Discussion. Commissioner Winton.

Commissioner Winton: I think the concept is fabulous and long overdue. I thought about it

many times in the past, and just haven't had time, and my hat's off to you, Commissioner Sanchez

-- Chairman Sanchez, for taking the leadership, and all of you for taking the leadership to put

this together. I think it is long overdue, and I think there's another major battleground where

this group can play a vital role, and that relates to our Florida Legislative Delegation. We've

had our rear end kicked in Tallahassee year after year after year after year. The School Board's

really been whacked by the inability of our own delegation to wield the power the way they

should be wielding power to make things happen for our own community, and I think you're

going to have another battleground relative to that same issue, and that relates to something we

read about everyday in some media outlet, everyday, and that's affordable housing, and we know

that the Florida Legislature, this session, passed a bill. We pay -- every time you do a real estate

transaction, we pay, essentially, a surtax to fund affordable housing, and that tax generated



statewide something in the neighborhood of $450 million this year. The Florida Legislature, in

its infinite wisdom, has decided, let's keep the tax. We don't want to lower the tax. Let's keep the

tax, but we're going to cap it at, say 250, and it's order of magnitude, these numbers. Two years

from now, and we take the rest of it and put it in the general fund. I've never heard anything so

boneheaded in my entire life. Affordable housing is a crisis in Miami-Dade County, all corners

of the County; yet, our Florida Legislative delegation has decided they're supporting this idea of

capping a bona fide revenue source that exists to create affordable housing, so my view is -- and

I hope y'all take this up -- that if they're going to put a cap on it, then reduce the tax, and if

you're going to reduce the tax, let local municipal governments vote to reimpose the same tax,

and we'll spend the money ourselves on affordable housing, and so, I hope that -- I'm thrilled to

death that you all are doing what you're doing, and I hope you'll take up some of these really

tough issues like this, where we really need to group together and win some wars in Tallahassee.

Thank you.

Vice Chairman González: Commissioner Regalado.

Commissioner Regalado: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'd like to congratulate all of you for what

you're doing, and a few minutes ago, just before the Miami Vice issue, there was a discussion

about a park and the tax assessor of Miami-Dade County, and what you're all looking for is

accountability, and all of you are really accountable. You are the focus of, as we are, but

especially you, as chairmen of those bodies, of the people's need. Chairman Robaina tried, but

he missed the deadline, to place on the ballot in the last election of March 8, the tax assessor

question that was in the City of Miami's ballot, and I have heard, and Chairman Martinez have

said publicly that he supports to place on a ballot the issue of an elected tax assessor, which will

be accountable to the people, so I would hope that you guys, in the next month, work to -- since

we now have an election for a heavyweight mayor, instead of a strong mayor, because it's a

heavyweight mayor, maybe we can just offer to the people of Miami-Dade County the possibility

of having a tax assessor, tax collector placed in the ballot. Thank you. Thank you all.

Vice Chairman González: Well, I just want to commend you for this effort. I think this is very

important. It's something that, once again, has never been done, and I think it's going to have

great effect for every city involved, and for the County, and for the City of Miami, so I want to

commend you publicly for this effort, for the time and effort that you're taking.

Chairman Sanchez: Roll call.

Commissioner Winton: Call the question.

Vice Chairman González: All right. We have a motion and we have a second. All in favor, say

“aye.”


Vice Chairman González: All opposed have the same right. OK, motion carries.

Chairman Sanchez: Thank you so much.

Unidentified Speaker: Thank you.

Commissioner Regalado: Thank you.


Commissioner Winton: The vote was 7/0.



Vice Chairman González: 7/0.

Commissioner Regalado: Thank you.


DISCUSSION ON RESTRUCTURING CRA BOARD.

05-00501-email.pdf

DEFERRED

A motion was made by Vice Chairman González, seconded by Commissioner Allen, and was

passed unanimously, to defer item D3.2 for 60 days.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Moving along, let me -- my District 3, Item 1 was heard earlier

and passed this morning. D3.2 is a discussion reference the restructuring of the CRA

(Community Redevelopment Agency) Board. I am respectfully requesting that this item be

deferred to -- possibly deferred for 60 days.

Vice Chairman González: Move to defer D3.2 --

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner Allen.

Vice Chairman González: -- for 60 days.

Commissioner Allen: Second.

Chairman Sanchez: 60 days.

Commissioner Allen: Yes. Commissioner Winton? Yeah.

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner --

Commissioner Allen: Winton.

Chairman Sanchez: -- Winton, 60 days?

Commissioner Winton: Yeah, great.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Is there a motion?

Vice Chairman González: I'll move it.

Commissioner Allen: I second the motion.


Chairman Sanchez: There is a motion by Commissioner -- Vice Chairman González, second by

Commissioner Allen. No discussion on the item. All in favor, say "aye."


Chairman Sanchez: Anyone in opposition, having the same right, say "nay." Motion carries.

The item has been deferred for 60 days.




DISTRICT 4

COMMISSIONER TOMAS REGALADO


DISCUSSION ABOUT BANDIT SIGNS LOCATED IN RIGHT OF WAY

AREAS THROUGHOUT THE CITY OF MIAMI.

05-00540-memo.pdf

DISCUSSED

Direction to the City Attorney by Commissioner Allen to take legal action against businesses

placing illegal signs on City rights-of-way; further, Commissioner Regalado directed the

Administration to work with Miami-Dade County to place liens on the properties of the above

mentioned Code violaters.

Vice Chairman González: OK. We did RE.1. We have EM.1. I think Commissioner Winton

needs to be here for EM.1. That's what I heard this morning.

Commissioner Allen: Could you repeat that again, Mr. Chairman?

Vice Chairman González: EM.1.


Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): EM.1 is actually an emergency ordinance, and you need

four-fifths votes, anyway.

Vice Chairman González: Four-fifths vote, that's correct.


Vice Chairman González: OK. Why don't we do D4.1. That's district Commissioners' items.

D4.1, that's yours, Commissioner Regalado.

Commissioner Allen: D4.1.

Commissioner Regalado: Yes, sir?

Vice Chairman González: D4.1.

Commissioner Regalado: OK, good. Thank you. D4.1, it's only one item, and it's very easy.

The fact that I use the name "bandit signs" caught the attention of many people, but these are

bandit signs. If you drive by Coral Way, from east to west, or west to east, or Flagler, or -- but

mostly Coral Way and Flagler, because we have swale areas in that avenue, so if you drive by

27th Avenue, you will see that in the City's right-of-way, there are small signs that people stick

on the median or in the swale area of -- in the City's right-of-way advertising different business

from car sales to car alarms to sales of furniture and all that. These are illegal, and we all know

that. However, it's very difficult for the City to enforce the ordinance in place because of, first of

all, the Code Enforcement inspectors are overwhelmed; second, they will -- they cannot be

patrolling all the streets all the time, looking for those signs. It is very difficult and dangerous

for a City employee to park and try to cross Flagler Street or Coral Way, and just jump on the

median and take those signs. One of the things that had been done in the past is that the signs

are removed after maybe two or three days. For those of us who understand a little the concept

and dynamics of advertising, that is enough. If you are able to keep one of those illegal signs in




the median in Coral Way or Flagler for three or four days, several thousand people would like at

that sign, will pass by once, and the second time, will probably get the phone. If you get one

phone call or two phone calls from all the signs, then you've got it made, and that's it. Code

Enforcement has been calling the people and saying, "you have to pick up your sign." It doesn't

work. They don't care. They just say, might as well take those signs. Now, the other problem is

most of these business are not within the municipality in -- of the City of Miami, so Code

Enforcement does not have the power to issue fines because these people have their properties

outside of the City limits. My proposal is for the Code Enforcement director to go and meet with

either Team Metro or the County's financial department, and offer them sort of a deal: If we, in

the City, fine these people, would you take care of getting the fine? And if they don't pay, these

businesses, would you lean their property? And the only thing we want is a 20 percent

administration fee, and the County can keep 80 percent of the fine. The reason for this is that

when you get two or three fines, they're going to cease and desist of placing signs in the City of

Miami, which is the ultimate goal that we have, that we don't have the signs polluting. The

reason I'm trying to just push forward this is because I saw a person placing one of these signs

exactly in Flagler and Le Jeune Road. To place this sign on the City's right-of-way, this person

walk all over flowers and the grass, and destroyed -- not only they place the sign, but it took the

flowers and throw it away, so the sign will be visible, so that is twice a crime, because not only

that person was placing a sign, but it was destroying some landscaping that the City did. I saw a

sign right in the middle of the only traffic circle that we have ready in Flagami on 43rd and 5th,

so they figure, "Hey, what the hell. We're going to put the sign right in the middle of traffic

circle and everybody will see," so you know, I think -- and I understand Code Enforcement;

they're powerless if they don't have the business in the City, but my proposal is that if the

Administration agrees that we go talk to the County and say, look, we got to end this. You can

have 80 percent of the amount of the fine, if you give us a 20 percent administration fee, and

maybe it work because, you know, it's out of control. It is. It is out of control, and now that

we're going to landscape Coral Way, you see all these people trumping all over the landscaping

to place a sign, and that's a shame, so that's my comment and my proposal, Mr. Chairman.

Vice Chairman González: Well, let me tell you, what I can't understand is that anybody, because

they have their place of business in the County, or in any other municipality, they can come to

the City of Miami and violate our ordinances and our regulations, and there has to be a

mechanism, I don't know, but we can -- I believe -- and I might be wrong, because I'm not an

attorney, but I believe that we can fine any company that violates our ordinances, no matter

where they are located; is that correct?


Vice Chairman González: And we cannot bring him before the Code Enforcement Board of the

City of Miami, but we can always take him to court, can't we?


Vice Chairman González: So --

Commissioner Winton: Oh, well, there you go.

Vice Chairman González: -- why don't we do that? We find these people violating our

ordinances; we take pictures of the signs; we keep the signs as evidence; we send them a

citation; if they don't pay the citation, we take them to court. Once we take two or three --

Commissioner Winton: Bingo.

Vice Chairman González: -- of these people to court --



Commissioner Winton: They go quick.

Vice Chairman González: -- and they pay a good fine, I'll bet you that they won't put up any

more signs in our streets.

Commissioner Regalado: Hey, whatever it takes.

Vice Chairman González: I mean, it's easy to say.

Commissioner Allen: That's a (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

Vice Chairman González: We -- no, no. We can stop it.

Commissioner Winton: Well, maybe we do both. Maybe do your suggestion and that.

Vice Chairman González: Yeah, we can do both, but what I mean is, you know, it's like me going

to Hialeah now and violate their ordinances. They're not going to mind that I live in the City of

Miami; they're going to come after me, you know, whichever way they can until they get ahold of

me, so that's what we need to do with these people.

Commissioner Allen: OK, so Mr. Chairman, I guess you're advising that we instruct the City

Manager to go forth with both proposals?

Vice Chairman González: Both proposals. We need to go out, you know, everywhere we can.

Commissioner Winton: The more tools we have --

Vice Chairman González: Exactly.

Commissioner Winton: -- to whack bad guys, the better off --


Vice Chairman González: That's right.

Commissioner Winton: -- we are.


Vice Chairman González: So does this require a vote, Mr. City Attorney? It doesn't. It's just a

direct --

Mr. Fernández: No. I think the City Manager and I have been properly instructed.

Vice Chairman González: All right. OK.

Commissioner Regalado: That's it.

DISTRICT 5

COMMISSIONER JEFFERY L. ALLEN



PUBLIC HEARINGS

05-00485 Public HearingPH.1 ORDINANCE

AN ORDINANCE OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION AMENDING CHAPTER

54/ARTICLE V/SECTION 54-190 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF MIAMI,

FLORIDA, AS AMENDED, ENTITLED "STREETS AND SIDEWALKS/BASE

BUILDING LINES/NONSTANDARD STREET WIDTHS," BY MODIFYING THE

WIDTH OF THE NORTH SIDE OF NORTHEAST 16TH STREET BETWEEN

NORTHEAST 2ND AVENUE AND BISCAYNE BOULEVARD, MIAMI,

FLORIDA; CONTAINING A REPEALER PROVISION, A SEVERABILITY

CLAUSE, AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

Department of

Public Works

05-00485-ordinance FR-SR.pdf

05-00485-summary form SR.pdf

05-00485-memo1 FR-SRpdf

05-00485-memo2 FR-SR.pdf

05-00485-memo3 FR-SR.pdf

05-00485-location sketchFR-SR.pdf

Motion by Vice Chairman González, seconded by Commissioner Allen, that this matter be

PASSED ON FIRST READING PASSED by the following vote.

Votes: Ayes: 4 - Commissioner González, Sanchez, Regalado and Allen

Absent: 1 - Commissioner Winton

Chairman Sanchez: OK. Let's go ahead -- why don't we skip the Commission items, and we'll

get to them. I believe that we could go to PH.1, and start going through the agenda. PH.1.

Stephanie Grindell: Stephanie Grindell, director of Public Works. PH.1 is an ordinance to

reduce the zone street right-of-way width of Northeast 16th Street from 50 feet to 25 feet, from

Northeast 2nd Avenue to Biscayne Boulevard.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. PH.1 is a public hearing. It's an ordinance. Is there a motion?


Commissioner Allen: What's that, PH.1?

Chairman Sanchez: Yes, sir.

Commissioner Allen: I think -- yeah. I'll make a motion for discussion purposes, if I'm not

mistaken. Yeah.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. There's a motion by Vice Chairman González; second, for the

purpose of discussion, by Commissioner Allen. Commissioner Allen, you're recognized.

Commissioner Allen: Yes. Mr. Chairman, PH.1, if I understand correctly, is this -- we're

granting, if you will -- I don't have it before me here, yet. Are we not grant -- in this case, are we

granting some sort of a -- let's see --

Ms. Grindell: What we're doing is --

Commissioner Allen: No. I -- no, I'll withdraw my question. I -- my concerns goes to another

PH.1. I'm sorry.









Chairman Sanchez: All right, so there is a motion and a second. Before we --

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, mine's PH.3.

Chairman Sanchez: -- debate the item or discuss the item, we'll go to the public. It is a public

hearing. It's an ordinance, so therefore, the public hearing is opened. Anyone from the public

wishing to address this item, please step forward and be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none,

the public hearing is closed, coming back to the Commission. Any further discussion on the

item? If not, Mr. City Attorney, could you read the ordinance into the record, followed by the

Clerk with a roll call.


The Ordinance was read by title into the public record by the City Attorney.

Chairman Sanchez: Madam Clerk.

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): Roll call.

A roll call was taken, the result of which is stated above.

Ms. Thompson: The ordinance has been passed on first reading, 4/0.

05-00488PH.2 RESOLUTION


ATTACHMENT(S), ACCEPTING THE PLAT ENTITLED " 8600 EAST DIXIE," A

REPLAT IN THE CITY OF MIAMI OF THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED IN

"ATTACHMENT 1," SUBJECT TO SATISFACTION OF ALL CONDITIONS

REQUIRED BY THE PLAT AND STREET COMMITTEE AS SET FORTH IN

"EXHIBIT A," ATTACHED AND INCORPORATED, AND THE PROVISIONS

CONTAINED IN SECTION 55-8 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF MIAMI,

FLORIDA, AS AMENDED, AND ACCEPTING THE DEDICATIONS SHOWN

ON THE PLAT; AUTHORIZING AND DIRECTING THE CITY MANAGER AND

CITY CLERK TO EXECUTE THE PLAT; AND PROVIDING FOR THE

RECORDATION OF THE PLAT IN THE PUBLIC RECORDS OF MIAMI-DADE

COUNTY, FLORIDA.

Department of

Public Works


05-00488-exhibit 1.pdf

05-00488-exhibit A.pdf


05-00488-exhibit maps.pdf


05-00488-legal description.pdf

05-00488-request.pdf

05-00488-notice of public hearing.pdf

05-00488-memo.pdf

05-00488-notice.pdf

Motion by Vice Chairman González, seconded by Commissioner Regalado, that this matter




R-05-0385














Chairman Sanchez: All right. PH.2 is a resolution. It is Department of Public Works.

Stephanie Grindell (Director, Public Works): This is a resolution accepting the proposed plat at

8600 East Dixie, which is located on Northeast 87th Street and East Dixie Highway, east of

Northeast 8th Avenue, in District 2.



Chairman Sanchez: It is a motion.


Chairman Sanchez: Is there a second? It is a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing

to address this item, please step forward and be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none, the

public hearing is closed, coming back to the Commission for discussion. Hearing no discussion

on the item, it's a resolution. All in favor, say "aye."





ATTACHMENT(S), ACCEPTING THE PLAT ENTITLED "FIFTY FIFTH

STREET CAFÉ," A REPLAT IN THE CITY OF MIAMI OF THE PROPERTY

DESCRIBED IN "ATTACHMENT 1," SUBJECT TO SATISFACTION OF ALL

CONDITIONS REQUIRED BY THE PLAT AND STREET COMMITTEE AS SET

FORTH IN "EXHIBIT A," ATTACHED AND INCORPORATED, AND THE

PROVISIONS CONTAINED IN SECTION 55-8 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY

OF MIAMI, FLORIDA, AS AMENDED, AND ACCEPTING THE DEDICATIONS

SHOWN ON THE PLAT; AUTHORIZING AND DIRECTING THE CITY

MANAGER AND CITY CLERK TO EXECUTE THE PLAT; AND PROVIDING

FOR THE RECORDATION OF THE PLAT IN THE PUBLIC RECORDS OF

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA.

Department of

Public Works






05-00489-exhibit maps.pdf


05-00489-legal description.pdf

05-00489-request.pdf

05-00489-notice.pdf

05-00489-memo.pdf

05-00489-notice.2.pdf

Motion by Commissioner Allen, seconded by Vice Chairman González, that this matter be


















R-05-0386

Chairman Sanchez: And we go to PH.3.

Stephanie Grindell (Director, Public Works): PH.3 is a resolution accepting a proposed plat of

FIFTY FIFTH STREET CAFE, which is located on the west side of Northeast 4th Court, at

Northeast 55th Terrace, in District 5.


Commissioner Allen: Motion for discussion, Mr. Chairman.


Chairman Sanchez: Well, there is a motion by Commissioner Allen, second by Vice Chairman

González. The item is open for discussion. Before we discuss the item, Commissioner Allen, it is

a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing to address this item, please step forward and

be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none, the public hearing is closed, coming back to the

Commission for discussion. Commissioner Allen, you're recognized.

Commissioner Allen: Yes. Just for a bit of clarification purposes, there's a historical basis for

this, right? Was something passed in '02 concerning either dedicating a certain piece of public

property to this entity or -- could you give me the background pretty much on this, please?

Ms. Grindell: This actually -- in a previous resolution, there was a closure and vacation of a

portion of Northeast 55th Terrace.

Commissioner Allen: Right, and so what we're doing is replatting it and providing them with

additional square footage?

Ms. Grindell: Correct.

Commissioner Allen: So, in effect, we're giving them public property, but --

Ms. Grindell: Correct.

Commissioner Allen: -- what's the public purpose?

Ms. Grindell: I'll leave that up to the applicant. Sir.

Commissioner Allen: I'm just curious.

Vice Chairman González: Who's the applicant?

Ms. Grindell: Right there.

Ben Fernandez: What is our public purpose?

Commissioner Allen: Yeah. We're giving public land. What's the public purpose? I mean,

we're -- in effect, we're -- you know, what's the consideration? I mean, I don't -- it says here, it

goes back to '02, and I need to know, in terms of -- you're getting additional square footage.

Public property is being dedicated to this entity. What's the public purpose?



Mr. Fernandez: Commissioner Allen, this application went to the Zoning Board for the

vacation of the right-of-way, which was approved. Initially, it was approved as a temporary

street closure. This parcel of 55th Street dead-ends into the FEC (Florida East Coast) Corridor,

and it serves absolutely no function, except to separate the existing parking area from Soyka's

restaurant, which is one of the first restaurants that really began the entire renaissance of

Biscayne Boulevard. Mark Soyka, through his efforts, really began the entire regentrification of

this area, and for many --

Commissioner Allen: Be careful with the word “regentrification;” just say redevelopment of the

area.

Mr. Fernandez: Redevelopment, thank you.

Commissioner Allen: That's better.

Mr. Fernandez: And really, what has happened is that the valet services had to cross the street,

and it's really sort of a public hazard to have it opened as a right-of-way. If there were any

potential for a crossing along the FEC Corridor, then maybe that wouldn't be the case, but --

Commissioner Allen: Are they giving you an assurance what this will increase their public -- the

parking or what's --

Mr. Fernandez: It will increase the parking --

Commissioner Allen: What's it going to be used for?

Mr. Fernandez: It will not be a unified building site. We proffered a covenant through the

zoning process that would ensure it would only be used for parking for the --

Commissioner Allen: And that's what I want to get to, what covenant was negotiated, so that's

the covenant --

Mr. Fernandez: That's exactly what was negotiated. That was the term of the covenant; there

would be no structure on this portion of the right-of-way. It will always remain undeveloped.

Commissioner Allen: And for parking, a public access --

Mr. Fernandez: That's correct.

Commissioner Allen: -- nonetheless.

Mr. Fernandez: That's exactly right.

Commissioner Allen: OK, thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: Ben --

Mr. Fernandez: You're welcome.

Chairman Sanchez: -- would you be so kind enough and put your name and address on the

record, please?

Mr. Fernandez: Thank you. Mr. Chair, my name is Ben Fernandez. I'm an attorney with

Bercow & Radell, 200 South Biscayne Boulevard. I'm here on behalf of Mark's Classic



Corporation, the owner of the property.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. I believe, Madam Clerk, that there is a motion and a second for

the purpose of discussion. Did we open it up for the public hearing?

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): Yes, you did.

Chairman Sanchez: Yes, we did, and we did close it for the record.

Ms. Thompson: Yes, you did.

Chairman Sanchez: So it comes back for the Commission. It is a resolution. All in favor, say

"aye."


Chairman Sanchez: Anyone in opposition, having the same right, say "nay," and the motion

carries.



ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE AN

OCCUPANCY AGREEMENT ("AGREEMENT"), IN SUBSTANTIALLY THE

ATTACHED FORM, BETWEEN THE CITY OF MIAMI AND NEW BETHANY

BAPTIST MISSION, INC., A FLORIDA NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPORATION,

FOR THE PROPERTY LOCATED AT 6311-6329 NORTHEAST 2ND AVENUE,

MIAMI, FLORIDA ("PROPERTY"), AS LEGALLY DESCRIBED IN SAID

AGREEMENT, IN CONNECTION WITH THE ENTRY OF THE ORDER OF

TAKING ENTERED INTO ON FEBRUARY 16, 2005, BY THE HONORABLE

RONALD M. FRIEDMAN TO ACQUIRE TITLE TO THE PROPERTY IN

CONNECTION WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF LITTLE HAITI PARK.

Department of

Economic

Development





05-00491-memo.pdf






R-05-0387

Chairman Sanchez: We go to PH.4. It's also a resolution. It's the Department of Economic

Development.

Laura Billberry: Lori Billberry, Economic Development. This resolution is authorizing the

Manager to execute an occupancy agreement with New Bethany Baptist Mission, and this is in

connection with an Order of Taking, where the City had received the property. However, the

condemnee [sic] was offered an extended period of possession that will last until March 7, 2006,

unless modified by the court.










Vice Chairman González: Move PH.4.



Chairman Sanchez: Second by Commissioner Regalado. Before we open it up for discussion, it

is a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing to address this item, please step forward

and be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none, the public hearing is closed, coming back to the

Commission for discussion. Any discussion on this resolution? Hearing none, all in favor, say

"aye."





ATTACHMENT(S), BY A FOUR-FIFTHS AFFIRMATIVE VOTE, AFTER AN

ADVERTISED PUBLIC HEARING, ACCEPTING THE PROPOSED

STIPULATED FINAL JUDGMENT AND JOINT MOTION FOR ITS ENTRY,

FOR ACQUISITION OF THE TITLE TO THE PROPERTIES AS DESCRIBED

HEREIN, IN CONNECTION WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF LITTLE HAITI

PARK; AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE AN OCCUPANCY

AGREEMENT ("AGREEMENT"), IN SUBSTANTIALLY THE ATTACHED

FORM, FOR SAID PROPERTIES LOCATED AT 212 NORTHEAST 59TH

TERRACE, 211 NORTHEAST 59TH STREET AND 215 NORTHEAST 59TH

STREET, MIAMI, FLORIDA, AS LEGALLY DESCRIBED IN THE AGREEMENT

BETWEEN THE CITY OF MIAMI AND OWNERS OF SAID PROPERTIES,

ERS PROPERTIES, INC., A FLORIDA FOR-PROFIT CORPORATION AND

SIGMUND O. SCHICKMAN, AN INDIVIDUAL ("COLLECTIVELY PARTIES"), IN

COMPLIANCE WITH THE MEMORANDUM OF SETTLEMENT ENTERED

INTO ON MAY 16, 2005, BY THE PARTIES RESULTING FROM MEDIATION

PURSUANT TO A COURT ORDER; ALLOCATING FUNDS IN THE AMOUNT

OF $1,966,000, FROM THE $255 MILLION HOMELAND

DEFENSE/NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENT BOND FOR THE COST OF

SAID ACQUISITION INCLUSIVE OF THE COST OF ATTORNEY'S FEES AND

EXPENSES, SURVEYS, APPRAISALS, ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTS, TITLE

INSURANCE, DEMOLITION, AND FENCING.

Department of

Economic

Development





05-00499-memo.pdf


05-00499-Stipulated final judgement.pdf


ADOPTED WITH MODIFICATIONS PASSED by the following vote.












R-05-0388

Chairman Sanchez: PH --

Vice Chairman González: 5.

Laura Billberry (Acting Director, Economic Development): 5.

Chairman Sanchez: I'm sorry. PH.5. PH.5 is also a resolution. It is a public hearing. Is there

a motion?


Ms. Billberry: If I may state, for the record, though, at the time that this was originally

negotiated, the -- we only had one appraisal in hand. We have amended the resolution in the

whereases only, just so you know it doesn't affect the actual action of the Commission to clarify

that the second appraisal came in last night, and so the average of the two appraisals is

$1,506,500, and therefore, the purchase price exceeds the appraised value by $104,000.

Chairman Sanchez: OK, so you would be placing an amendment, as stated on the record.

Vice Chairman González: I do have a question.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Before we discuss the item, we need a motion and a second for

the purpose of discussing the item, so is there a motion?


Chairman Sanchez: There is a motion by Vice Chairman González. Is there a second for the

purpose of discussion?

Commissioner Allen: I second.

Chairman Sanchez: OK. Commissioner Allen. There is a second by Commissioner Allen for the

purpose of discussion. Before we discuss the item, let's go ahead and open it up for the public.

There is -- I believe there is members of the public who are wishing to address this Commission

on this item, so the public hearing is opened at this time. Sir, please state your name and

address for the record, and address this Commission.

Peter Ehrlich: Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Commissioners. My name is Peter Ehrlich, with a

residence at 770 Northeast 69th Street. I'm president of Lemon City Taxpayers' Association, and

I'm a business owner on Northeast 59th Street, Northeast 59th Terrace, the same street/terrace of

the subject property. Just a very few comments on this item, PH.5, the taking of the properties

on 59th Street, 59th Terrace. First, the sellers have owned the properties for 42 years. They did

not want to sell. Nonetheless, they're receiving approximately $80 per square foot from the City.

The City's paying over $100 per square foot, approximately, with attorney's fees and costs. By

way of comparison, in the last 12 or 18 months, buyers -- users have paid 100 to $150 per

square foot for warehouses within six blocks of the subject property. The last sale of a

warehouse in this neighborhood occurred in March of '05, and it was for $144 per square foot,

so the price that you're talking about is probably the market or maybe even a little bit below

market. I would like to point out that the City property acquisition of the approximately 12 or 13

acres in Little Haiti Park has evicted approximately 250 residents, and approximately 75 to 80



employees. Going forward, we would like the City to encourage new development and new

housing within this area of District 5. This area borders the FEC (Florida East Coast) Corridor

and it sits west of Northeast 4th Avenue. There are two or three projects already approved to

add 160 units of new housing in this area, and we expect you'll see -- you are going to be seeing

more. We hope you'll do what you can to encourage confidence in new housing and new jobs in

this area. Thank you very much for your time.

Commissioner Allen: Thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: Thank you, Peter. Is there anyone else from the public wishing to address

this Commission? Hearing none, seeing none, the public hearing is closed, coming back to the

Commission for discussion. I believe, Commissioner --

Vice Chairman González: I have a question.

Chairman Sanchez: Vice Chairman González, you are recognized.

Vice Chairman González: I have a question, and my question is, is this the last action that we

have to take before we begin construction of the Little Haiti Park?

Ms. Billberry: They are already beginning construction --

Joe Arriola (City Manager): Yeah, we started the -- we actually started clearing, believe it or

not, Commissioner, in the soccer field side of it. This is the last piece that we needed for the

cultural center, and as soon as we take it, we'll break ground on this site. To everybody's

amazement, we actually are clearing land and all that -- and at -- yes, sir.

Vice Chairman González: So we're finally starting --

Mr. Arriola: Yes.

Vice Chairman González: -- to construct the park?

Mr. Arriola: Yes.

Commissioner Allen: That's terrific.

Mr. Arriola: It's been like having an elephant twice.

Vice Chairman González: Yeah.

Mr. Arriola: It's been forever.


Vice Chairman González: It was overtime, so --

Mr. Arriola: Yeah.

Vice Chairman González: -- that's what I wanted to hear. I'm ready to vote.


Commissioner Allen: Yeah, just quickly, so the only issue, as I look here, is a matter of what's

being allocated, right, 1.966 is going to be changed to a different figure.



Ms. Billberry: No, no. The figure -- the purchase price and the figure being authorized by this

resolution is not changing. The only thing is that we are noting, for the record, because we are

required to pay appraised value, and when we pay above appraised value, we have to get a

four-fifths vote, so when just want to make, for the record, what the average of the two

appraisals are, which was the 105,600 -- excuse me, 105,000 -- 1,506,000.

Commissioner Allen: One point five million.

Ms. Billberry: Yeah.

Commissioner Allen: Right, right. Just for purposes of the gentleman who came up during the

public hearing, what does that work out to, per square foot? Do you happen to know?

Ms. Billberry: Yes, it's $83 per square foot.

Commissioner Allen: OK, so that's reasonable. All right, thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Any further questions? I just have one, and it's directed to the

City Attorney on this, and it's not even pertaining to this. It's pertaining to a lot of the bond

projects that are going up. Could we use bond money to pay attorney's fees in an eminent

domain?

Jorge L. Fernández (City Attorney): Attorney's fees are an integral part of the taking process,

and if the bond monies originally contemplated are used to acquire property, then it is part of

the cost associated with that.

Vice Chairman González: As long as it is related to this project?

Mr. Fernández: Yes, definitely.

Chairman Sanchez: And just to clarify this, this question was not directly towards this; it's just

pertaining to other major bond projects that are out there that I just said -- somebody had asked

me that question. It was a very good question, so having stated that, I believe that there's no

further discussion. It is a resolution. All in favor, say "aye."



Mr. Fernández: Mr. Chairman.


Mr. Fernández: The Clerk needs to reflect that, in fact, all the "ayes" amount to four-fifth.

Vice Chairman González: Why don't we do a roll call?

Chairman Sanchez: For the record -- I don't think we need to do roll call. For the record, there

are four Commissioners present, and all four voted in favor of the item.

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): And in its modified state? It was modified.

Chairman Sanchez: As amended.



Ms. Billberry: The where -- the two whereases were modified.

Chairman Sanchez: As amended, stated on the record. All right.

10:30 A.M.

[A sign interpreter translated the proceedings during Items PH.6 through PH.15.]



ATTACHMENT(S), APPROVING THE CITY OF MIAMI'S ("CITY") ANNUAL

PUBLIC HOUSING AGENCY ("PHA") PLAN FOR FISCAL YEAR 2005, IN

CONNECTION WITH THE IMPLEMENTATION AND ADMINISTRATION OF

THE CITY'S SECTION 8 HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHER PROGRAM;

AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO SUBMIT THE ANNUAL PHA PLAN,

ATTACHED AND INCORPORATED, FOR REVIEW AND APPROVAL BY THE

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN

DEVELOPMENT ("U.S. HUD") FOR THE CITY'S CONTINUED

PARTICIPATION IN SAID PROGRAM; AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER

TO EXECUTE THE NECESSARY DOCUMENTS AND CERTIFICATIONS

REQUIRED, FOR SUBMISSION OF THE CITY'S PHA PLAN TO U.S. HUD.

Department of

Community

Development





05-00504-public notice.pdf



Votes: Ayes: 3 - Commissioner González, Sanchez and Allen

Absent: 2 - Commissioner Winton and Regalado

R-05-0375

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Let's go to public hearing. We have -- the translator's here? OK,

so we are ready. We should be done in about half an hour with the public hearings. Let's try to

keep our statements brief. If you're content with what the City is providing to you, a “thank you”

would be sufficient. All right, so we'll start with PH.1.

Barbara Gomez-Rodriguez (Director, Community Development): No, PH.6.

Commissioner Allen: Six.

Chairman Sanchez: Oh, I'm sorry.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Barbara Rodriguez, Department of Community Development. PH.6 is --

Chairman Sanchez: Sorry.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: -- requesting an approval for our annual public housing agency plan for

fiscal year 2005.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. We need a motion. Is that just the expansion of Section 8 --









Chairman Sanchez: -- for three years. All right.


Chairman Sanchez: There is a motion by Vice Chairman González, second by Commissioner

Allen. It is a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing to address this Commission,

please step forward and be recognized. See -- this is Section 8. OK, I figured. You're social

services. All right. Seeing no one from the public, the public hearing is closed, coming back to

the Commission for further discussion. Hearing no discussion from the Commission, it is a

resolution. All in favor, say “aye.


Chairman Sanchez: Anyone in opposition, having the same right, say “nay.” Hearing none, it

passes, 3/0.



ACCEPTANCE OF AMERICAN DREAM DOWNPAYMENT INITIATIVE

FUNDS, IN THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF $137,300, FOR FISCAL YEAR

2005-2006, FOR FIRST TIME HOMEBUYER DOWN-PAYMENT

ASSISTANCE; AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE THE

NECESSARY DOCUMENTS TO IMPLEMENT ACCEPTANCE OF SAID

FUNDS.

Department of

Community

Development







Absent: 1 - Commissioner Regalado

R-05-0376

Chairman Sanchez: We go to PH.7.

Barbara Gomez-Rodriguez (Director, Community Development): PH.7 is requesting approval to

accept, from the American Dream Down Payment Initiative, ADDI funds, a total of 137,300 --

Vice Chairman González: Move --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: -- for fiscal year 2005.


Chairman Sanchez: All right. There's a motion by Vice Chairman González.

Commissioner Allen: I'll second just for a quick discussion.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. We have a second for the purpose of discussion. The second is






made by Commissioner Allen, who also wishes to discuss the item. Mr. Allen -- Commissioner

Allen, you're recognized.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, Madam Rodriguez, this money will be used citywide.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: It's citywide down payment assistance.

Commissioner Allen: Right, citywide. Thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. It is a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing to address

this Commission, please step forward and be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none, the public

hearing is closed, coming back to the Commission. It is a resolution. All in favor, say “aye.”



4/0.

Commissioner Allen: Right, and before we move on, quickly, Madam Rodriguez, on this issue,

going forward in the upcoming fiscal year, the City will have adequate amount of funding to help

first-time homebuyers pay down their mortgages and/or maybe closing, that sort of thing.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: It's on --

Commissioner Allen: Just to give the public some idea that we do have that capacity.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: It's a citywide program we run.


Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: It is advertised, and it is on a first come, first serve.

Commissioner Allen: Right, so the citizens would know.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Yes.

Commissioner Allen: First -- right. Thank you.

Commissioner Winton: Yeah, I don't think it's adequate.

Commissioner Allen: Pardon me?

Commissioner Winton: You asked if we had adequate, and --

Commissioner Allen: Well, you know, that's true. I did, but -- see, because I don't want any

misinformation to get out there because, you know, we're doing afford --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: The only thing you have in that resolution is $137,000, so again, it's a

first come, first serve. You never have enough in housing.


Chairman Sanchez: I'm sorry.

Commissioner Allen: Sorry.



Chairman Sanchez: Are we discussing an item that hasn't been moved, PH.8?

Vice Chairman González: No, it's an item that --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: No. He's dis --

Vice Chairman González: -- we already discussed and voted on.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: He's asking about --

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, just a follow up.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: -- PH.7.

Commissioner Allen: A follow up on --

Chairman Sanchez: Oh, OK. All right.

Commissioner Allen: -- PH.7.

Chairman Sanchez: I'm just trying to keep some decor [sic] here, that's all.


Chairman Sanchez: All right. Are you done there, Commissioner Allen?

Commissioner Allen: Well --

Chairman Sanchez: We voted on the issue already.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, we voted, but just to follow up. I just wanted -- since this was a --

you know, for the public -- I mean, it has to be understood from the residents that we have very

limited amount of money --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Correct.

Commissioner Allen: -- and it's a first come, first serve basis.


Commissioner Allen: It's citywide, not just district only.


Commissioner Allen: OK. I just want to make sure that's perfectly clear. Thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: Is it crystal clear?

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, it's crystal clear.

Vice Chairman González: OK. PH (public hearing) --

Commissioner Allen: It's not for my sake. I just want all the constituents out there to know this.



Chairman Sanchez: Absolutely.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, because --



ACCEPTANCE OF STATE HOUSING INITIATIVES PARTNERSHIP FUNDS,

IN THE AMOUNT OF $1,579,897, TO SINGLE FAMILY ACTIVITIES, NOT

LIMITED TO SINGLE FAMILY REHABILITATION, SINGLE FAMILY

REPLACEMENT HOMES, THE HOMEBUYERS FINANCING PROGRAM AND

THE HOMEOWNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM, FOR THE

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE LOCAL HOUSING ASSISTANCE PLAN AND

THE AMOUNT OF $175,544, FOR THE ADMINISTRATION, FOR THE TOTAL

AMOUNT OF $1,755,441, FOR FISCAL YEAR 2005-2006; AUTHORIZING

THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE THE NECESSARY DOCUMENTS, FOR

ACCEPTANCE OF SAID FUNDS.

Department of

Community

Development




Motion by Vice Chairman González, seconded by Commissioner Winton, that this matter




R-05-0377

Chairman Sanchez: All right. PH.8 is a resolution.

Barbara Gomez-Rodriguez (Director, Community Development): PH.8 is requesting

authorization to accept the State Housing Initiative Partnership funds in the amount of

1,779,897, to single-family activities, not limited to single-family rehab. It will be single-family

replacement home, homebuyers finance program, and homeownership down payment assistance.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. It --




Winton. Before we discuss the item, it is a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing to

address this item, please step forward and be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none, the public

hearing is closed, coming back to the Commission for discussion. Hearing no discussion from

the Commission, it's a resolution. All in favor, say “aye.”


Chairman Sanchez: Anyone in opposition, having the same right, say “nay.” Motion carries

unanimously.








ALLOCATION OF EMERGENCY SHELTER GRANT ("ESG") FUNDS FOR

FISCAL YEAR 2005-2006, IN THE AMOUNT OF $352,229, TO THE CITY OF

MIAMI HOMELESS PROGRAM, NEIGHBORHOOD ENHANCEMENT TEAM

AND THE AMOUNT OF $10,893, TO THE DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY

DEVELOPMENT, FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF GRANT-RELATED

ACTIVITIES, FOR A TOTAL ALLOCATION OF $363,122; DIRECTING THE

CITY MANAGER TO SUBMIT A MULTI-YEAR WAIVER REQUEST TO THE

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN

DEVELOPMENT TO INCREASE THE PERCENTAGE OF ESG FUNDS THAT

CAN BE USED FOR ESSENTIAL SUPPORTIVE SERVICES; AUTHORIZING

THE CITY MANAGER TO SUBMIT THE NECESSARY DOCUMENTS TO

IMPLEMENT ACCEPTANCE OF SAID FUNDS.

Department of

Community

Development








R-05-0378

Barbara Gomez-Rodriguez (Director, Community Development): PH.9 is requesting approval

for the allocation of our Emergency Shelter Grant funds for fiscal year 2005/2006, in the amount

of 352,229, and to fund the City of Miami Homeless Program; and $10,893 to fund the City of

Miami Department of Community Development administration, for a total allocation of 363,122.



Chairman Sanchez: There is a motion by Commissioner Winton, second by Vice Chairman

González. Before we go into discussion, it is a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing

to address this item, please step forward and be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none, the

public hearing is closed, coming back to the Commission for discussion. Hearing no discussion

on the item, there's a motion and a second. All in favor, say “aye.”




A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION ACCEPTING THE

SECTION 8 MODERATE REHABILITATION HOUSING PROGRAM FUNDS, IN

THE AMOUNT OF $3,791,756, FROM FISCAL YEAR 2005 ANNUAL

CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF

HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT.

Department of

Community

Development












Motion by Commissioner Winton, seconded by Commissioner Allen, that this matter be




R-05-0379

Barbara Gomez-Rodriguez (Director, Community Development): PH (public hearing) --


Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: PH.10 is requesting approval to accept Section 8 Mod Rehab Program

funds in the amount of 3,791,753 for fiscal year 2005.



Commissioner Allen: Let me second it for discussion purposes quickly.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. For the record, there's a motion by Commissioner Winton,

second by Commissioner Allen, for the purpose of discussion. Commissioner Allen, you're

recognized.

Commissioner Allen: Yes, Madam Rodriguez, this is for rehab purposes, right, which again --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: No. This is for Section 8 Mod Rehab Program.

Commissioner Allen: Right, which is citywide, of course.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: No. These are buildings that have been in contract with the City of

Miami for the last 15 years, under Section 8 Mod Rehab Program. There are 420 units. They've

been leased for the last 15 years, and it's just to continue paying the rent on them.

Commissioner Allen: Rent, right, OK. Thank you.


this item, please step forward and be recognized. Hearing none, seeing none, the public hearing

is closed, coming back to the Commission. It is a resolution. All in favor, say “aye.”





ATTACHMENT(S), ALLOCATING 31ST PROGRAM YEAR COMMUNITY

DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT FUNDS, IN THE AMOUNT OF $9,398,140

AND FUTURE PROGRAM INCOME FUNDS, IN THE AMOUNT OF

$1,000,000, FOR A TOTAL ALLOCATION OF $10,398,140, FOR THE 31ST

PROGRAM YEAR BEGINNING OCTOBER 1, 2005, AS SPECIFIED IN

"ATTACHMENT A," ATTACHED AND INCORPORATED.

Department of

Community

Development











R-05-0380

Chairman Sanchez: PH.11.


to allocate the 31st Year Community Development Block Grant funds for 9,398,140, and future

program income of a million dollars for a total allocation of 10,398,140, and those dollars

would be distributed as follow: 2,079,628 for City of Miami Community Development

administration; $200,000 City of Miami Building Department Unsafe Structure; 562,676 for

Department of Capital Improvement Projects; $4 million in economic development activities;

$700,000 of housing; 1,804,200 in public service activities; and 1,051,636 to pay the Section

108 debt.



Commissioner Allen: Quick -- second for discussion.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. There's a motion by Vice Chairman González, second by

Commissioner Allen for the purpose of discussion.

Commissioner Allen: OK. Ms. Rodriguez, with respect to the 4 million for economic

development, that's understood to be citywide, correct?

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Well, you'll see the resolution once we get to the individual. It's

citywide.

Commissioner Allen: Great.

Chairman Sanchez: Any further discussion? If not, it's a public hearing. Anyone from the

public wishing to address this item, please stand up, move forward to be recognized.

Leroy Jones: Is that the --


Mr. Jones: -- item for the agencies (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: No.

Chairman Sanchez: No, not this one.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: No.







Mr. Jones: That's 13?

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: 14 and 15.

Chairman Sanchez: 14.

Commissioner Allen: 14.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. The public hearing is closed at this time, coming back to the

Commission. There's a motion and a second. It's a resolution. All in favor, say “aye.”





ATTACHMENT(S), APPROVING THE ALLOCATION OF FISCAL YEAR

2005-2006 HOUSING OPPORTUNITIES FOR PERSONS WITH AIDS

PROGRAM FUNDS, IN THE AMOUNT OF $10,351,000, AS SPECIFIED IN

"ATTACHMENT A," ATTACHED AND INCORPORATED, TO PROVIDE

HOUSING ASSISTANCE AND HOUSING RELATED SERVICES TO

LOW-INCOME INDIVIDUALS LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS; AUTHORIZING THE

CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE AGREEMENT(S), IN SUBSTANTIALLY THE

ATTACHED FORM(S), WITH EACH AGENCY, AS SPECIFIED IN

"ATTACHMENT A," FOR SAID PURPOSE.

Department of

Community

Development





05-00513-exhibitC.pdf







R-05-0381

Chairman Sanchez: And we go on to PH.12.


to fund, for fiscal year 2005/2006, Housing Opportunity for Persons With AIDS (Acquired

Immunodeficiency Syndrome) fund, in the amount of $10,351,000. This one is agency driven.

This is a countywide program. The attachment includes all of the agencies that are being

funded.

Chairman Sanchez: Is there a motion?











Vice Chairman González: I move it.


Winton. It's a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing to address this item, please step

forward and be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none, the public hearing is closed, coming

back to the Commission for discussion. Hearing no discussion, it's a resolution. All in favor, say

“aye.”





ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING THE ALLOCATION OF 31ST PROGRAM

YEAR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT FUNDS, IN THE

AMOUNT OF $4,000,000, IN THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CATEGORY,

TO THE AGENCIES SPECIFIED IN "ATTACHMENT A," ATTACHED AND

INCORPORATED, FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES IN THE

31ST PROGRAM YEAR BEGINNING OCTOBER 1, 2005; AUTHORIZING THE

CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE AGREEMENT(S), IN SUBSTANTIALLY THE

ATTACHED FORM(S), WITH SAID AGENCIES, FOR SAID PURPOSE.

Department of

Community

Development












R-05-0382



to allocate $4 million in the economic development category.


Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Leroy, this is the ones that the agencies -- on economic development.

Commissioner Allen: Exactly, right.


Vice Chairman González: I'll move PH.13.

Chairman Sanchez: We need a motion and a second --










Commissioner Winton: Sec --

Chairman Sanchez: -- before we open it up to the public hearing.


Chairman Sanchez: There is a motion by Vice Chairman González. It is a second by

Commissioner Winton. The item is --


Chairman Sanchez: -- under discussion. Before we discuss it at the Commission, we'll open up

the public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing to address this Commission, please step

forward and be recognized. State your name and address for the record, and address this

Commission. Leroy, always a pleasure to see you.

Commissioner Allen: Yes. Mr. Jones.

Leroy Jones: How are you doing, sir?


Chairman Sanchez: First annual?

Mr. Jones: Yeah.

Chairman Sanchez: You've had this before.

Mr. Jones: No, no, no. That's the banquet.

Chairman Sanchez: Oh.

Mr. Jones: That's the Mom and Pop banquet. Hello. My name is Leroy Jones, 180 Northwest

62nd Street, the executive director of Neighbors and Neighbors Association. First of all, I'd like

to take this opportunity to thank Community Development to seeing fit to funding us again. I

think this'll be our fifth year of being funded through the City of Miami.


Mr. Jones: I brought a copy of our First Annual Mom and Pop Banquet, and if you turn to like

page 38, you'll see all the businesses that have received funding through our Mom and Pop grant

program since 2000 until 2004, and it's over 600 businesses, and out of that 600, about four

something is in the City of Miami, so I just wanted you to see the impact that because we receive

money from the City of Miami through Community Development to provide technical assistance

to for-profit businesses, the impact that it has, and that it's having in the City of Miami. I also

gave y'all a copy of a resolution that Commissioner Moss, Miami-Dade County, recently

requested that the County draft a resolution to recognize Neighbors and Neighbors Association

for a NACA award, National Association of Counties Award. I think that's a great plus to show

the accomplishments and achievements that we have accumulated throughout the years because

we funded by Miami-Dade County and the City of Miami, so on behalf of Neighbors and

Neighbors Association, I'd like to request that you please move the motion for the request, and I

thank you all for being able to allow NANA (Neighbors and Neighbors Association) to be a part

of the City of Miami, and to continue to provide the type of service that we provide to small

businesses throughout Dade County. I just want to mention, before I sit down, is that the -- our



program -- the -- one of our projects, the Mom and Pop grant program is the only program of its

kind in the country, and it's being looked at to have national attention right now. I think that's

great for us to have a small agency, that's located in the City of Miami, that's funded by the City

of Miami, that's now being recognized as a national program, but it couldn't happen without the

assistance and the financial assistance that we receive from the City of Miami, and I do want to

say that my services is countywide, so it touches every County Commissioners' district, as well as

every City of Miami Commissioners' district. Thank you.

Commissioner Allen: Thank you. Mr. Chairman.

Chairman Sanchez: Thank you.


Chairman Sanchez: Yes, sir, Commissioner.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, before you sit down, Leroy, of course, Mr. Jones, just want to say

that you've done a terrific job, years past in the district. As you very well know, Ms. Rodriguez

has always gave you glowing remarks, and I, likewise, will give you glowing remarks, so to that

end, I want to thank you for your efforts, and continue steadfastly to that end. Having said that,

let me just ask you, Ms. Rodriguez, since we're talking about the economic development, since

this is a public hearing, for those constituents who are watching Net-9, the revolving loan

program will probably have about a million dollars. Could you just expound on that to some

extent, what that will consist of, and the timeline when that money will be available, and some --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: All this money will be available October 1 --

Commissioner Allen: Correct.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: -- 2005, and we are allocating a million dollars to start a revolving loan

program within the City of Miami citywide.

Commissioner Allen: Citywide, that's correct, right, but of course, there will be a great deal of

emphasis placed on District 5 because of the dire need, not that we're looking for any

preference, but clearly, we've talked about that beforehand, so those who are interested need to

start becoming familiar with your department if they wish to participate in this revolving loan

program.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: We will, and we will have community meetings, and we'll make sure that

--


Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: -- it does get advertised, and that we --

Commissioner Allen: Now --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: -- help all districts.

Commissioner Allen: Is this going to be a first come, first serve basis, or are there going to be

eligibility criteria, the like, right?

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: We will have underwriting criterias [sic] that they must meet. We will

meet with every community, and we will fund the need up to the million dollars.




Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Usually, we do get requests more than a million. We will make sure that

we fund programs and businesses that really need it, and that can really pay us back because it

is a loan program; it is not a grant, but it will be citywide.

Commissioner Allen: Correct, and then, secondly, with respect to commercial facade program,

clearly, that is, I think, an allocation of probably about what, 1.6, give or take, if I'm not

mistaken?

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: The million, six that we have allocated is basically to pay for the actual

construction costs.

Commissioner Allen: Right, of course, and you do require -- we have worked diligently together

on a pilot project that we're going to do in my district in terms of sprucing up the business

corridor along 7th Avenue, starting from 54th Street, which has been the hub, if you will, the

heart of my district in terms of the business community, so to that end, we will be doing

something --


Commissioner Allen: -- steadfast, correct?


Commissioner Allen: Right, OK. Thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Does that --

Vice Chairman González: All right.

Chairman Sanchez: -- answer all your questions, Commissioner?


Chairman Sanchez: OK. Anyone else from the public wishing to address this Commission? If

not, the public hearing is closed at this time, and I believe we are on PH (public hearing) --

Vice Chairman González: 13.

Chairman Sanchez: -- 13. There is a motion on the floor and a second. It is a resolution. All in

favor, say “aye.”



Madam Clerk.



ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING THE ALLOCATION OF 31ST PROGRAM

YEAR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT FUNDS, IN THE

AMOUNT OF $1,804,200, TO THE AGENCIES SPECIFIED IN "ATTACHMENT

A," ATTACHED AND INCORPORATED, FOR PUBLIC SERVICES ACTIVITIES

IN THE 31ST PROGRAM YEAR BEGINNING OCTOBER 1, 2005;

Department of

Community

Development



AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE AGREEMENT(S), IN

SUBSTANTIALLY THE ATTACHED FORM(S), WITH SAID AGENCIES, FOR

SAID PURPOSE.






05-00516-submittal.pdf

05-00516-submittal 2.pdf





R-05-0383



to fund our public services agencies for a million, four, two hundred, and the list is attached.



Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion --


Chairman Sanchez: -- by Vice Chairman González, second by Commissioner Winton. Before we

open it for discussion --

Commissioner Allen: Discussion, right.

Chairman Sanchez: -- I believe this is the item that social services are here to speak on.


Chairman Sanchez: So anyone wishing to address this Commission, please step forward and be

recognized. The public hearing is closed -- I mean, open at this time.

Jackie Knowles: Good morning.

Chairman Sanchez: Please state your name and address for the record.

Ms. Knowles: Jackie Knowles, executive director of Regis House, 2010 Northwest 7th Street, in

Miami, and in your Commission district, Chairman. Good morning. Obviously, you haven't

voted on it yet, but I'm going to say an early “thank you,” once again. I believe this is going to

be our fourth year of funding from the City to make possible after school free programming for

City of Miami youth at Citrus Grove Elementary, so just very briefly. Thank you so much. We're

very happy to provide this service, and we don't want to have to do another rally, but if we have

to, please count on us. That was a lot of fun. Thank you.











Madelyn Rodriguez: Madelyn Rodriguez, 418 Southwest 4th Avenue. I'm here to thank

Commissioner Sanchez and all the Community Development Department, Barbara, Pedro, and

all the staff for their help, for their support throughout this year, and for helping Centro Mater

be the center that we are. This is just to come and say hello, and say thank you, and we're here

to help all the community. Thank you.


Eunide Decayette: My name is Eunide Decayette. I'm the new program administrator for Notre

Dame Childcare under Catholic Charities. I wanted to say especially thank you to Ms.

Rodriguez and to Commissioner Allen for giving me a great opportunity to be part of the City of

Miami program of the CDBG (Community Development Block Grant). Thank you very, very

much for your participation in the community, and I also wanted to say, if there's any time that I

can help any of you for anything regarding my community, I'm trying to be part of it. I'm new,

but I'm not new to my community, and this is something that I feel that I should do for nothing,

but I get paid for it, and I'm proud to work in my community. If there's anything I can help you

with, please don't hesitate to call Notre Dame. Thank you.


Chairman Sanchez: Ma'am, what is your name? I'm sorry, I didn't get it.

Ms. Decayette: Eunide Decayette.


Ms. Decayette: Thank you.

Commissioner Winton: Spell that. I want to watch you spell that.

Chairman Sanchez: Madam Clerk, make sure I get that name.

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): We -- you want me to -- it's here.

Chairman Sanchez: No, no, no. It's OK.

Commissioner Winton: No, I wanted to see if the Chairman could.

Chairman Sanchez: You couldn't spell it either.

Commissioner Winton: I know, exactly.

Helena Del Monte: Honorable Commission --

Chairman Sanchez: I could spell your name.

Ms. Del Monte: -- Helenda Del Monte, executive director of the Association for the

Development of the Exceptional. I'm here with a big message of thanks to all of this

Commission, to the Department, to Madam Director. The services that are acquired through

CDBG (Community Development Block Grant) funding for adults with developmental

disabilities, which is such a frail population, only shows the strength of this Commission and the

strength of the City of Miami in really looking out for these individuals that cannot look out for



themselves. Thank you, and on the same note, this has been a very difficult year, where we

almost lost CDBG funding, and I'd like to applaud very, very loud, thanks to our Mayor, to the

rapid way that this Commission acted, to the way that the Department -- Madam Director, thank

you, under your guidance. We all sat present, and together, we did it. We did it only for one

year. We need to start now preparing for next year to come, so again, thank you very much. It

was, you know, quite an achievement. Thank you.


Gladys Palacios: Hi. My name is Gladys Palacios. I'm the program administrator for Catholic

Charities Sagrada Familia Childcare Center, located at 970 Southwest 1st Street, and I just want

to say thank you to Commissioner Sanchez and Barbara Rodriguez for your continued support to

the early childhood education programs in the community. Thank you.

Vice Chairman González: Thank you.

Althea Jackson: Good morning. My name is Althea Jackson. I'm the senior administrator with

the James E. Scott Elderly Program. I just stop by this morning to say thank you to the staff of

the City of Miami; thank you to the Commissioners for your support with our seniors. We look

forward to working with you again, and I'll be sure and take this message back to Commissioner

Rolle. Thank you very much.

Vicki Augustus-Fidelia: Good afternoon. My name is Vicki Augustus-Fidelia, and I'm the CEO

(Chief Executive Officer) of the Belafonte Tacolcy Center, and I've come to say thank you for

your continuing support of our programs that impact a critical population in our community, our

youth at risk, so thank you very much for your continued support.


Miriam Urra: Good morning. My name is Miriam Urra, and I'm representing Allapattah

Community Action, located at 2257 Northwest North River Drive, and I'm here today standing in

front of you very happy about the outcomes of the Community Development Block Grants, and I

would like to thank the Department of Community Development, headed by Barbara Rodriguez,

and very special, these Commissioners -- the Mayor and the Commissioners of this City of Miami

that put a tremendous effort in the fighting against cuts of these funds that are benefiting so

many poor people in the City of Miami, so especially my Commissioner, Angel González, that is

always fighting for his citizens that are in need greatly for these funds, so again, I have no words

to tell you thank you, thank you for all you did, and we are very proud of all of you. Thank you

very much.


Angie Vazquez: Good morning. My name is Angie Vazquez, with Southwest Social Services. We

are located at 25 Tamiami Boulevard, and we run five senior centers and a Meals on Wheels

program. We're here to say thank you. The needs of the elderly continue to grow, as do the

waiting lists, and it's good to hear that you stand with us, and at least hold the line, and to

congratulate both -- all of you, our elected officials and our department, because we do receive

funding from other places, and sometimes it's an adversarial thing. We don't always feel that the

old and the poor are being thought of, and that we are going out there by ourselves, and it is

with great pride to stand next to you this year, and to hold the funding, and hold the line to

continue to serve those who need it the most. Thank you.





Ramon Perez Dorrbecker: Good afternoon. My name is Ramon Perez Dorrbecker. I'm the

CEO (Chief Executive Officer) for Little Havana Activities and Nutrition Centers of Dade

County. I'm here this morning to give you thanks on my behalf, my board of directors, and all

the elderlies that we serve within the City of Miami for supporting our program and granting us,

again, the monies that are -- not necessarily all the money we need to provide services for these

elderly, but at least monies to continue giving the services that we provided for so many years, so

I want to congratulate all the Commissioners for the job that you do in the City of Miami, and

particularly, Commissioner Sanchez, for giving us the support that we need for all the

participants within his district, and Barbara Rodriguez and her staff for also helping us obtain

wherever there is a need, and wherever there -- we need her help for her support, so thank you

so much, and congratulations.

Chairman Sanchez: Thank you for providing excellent service. OK.

Sonia Jacobson: Good morning. My name is Sonia Jacobson. I'm the founder and the

executive director of Suited for Success. We are located at 2650 Southwest 27th Avenue, and I

would like to thank the staff for recommending us for funding this year from the City of Miami,

and I would also like to share with you the fact that this week we are celebrating our ten-year

anniversary of providing services to Dade County, as well as residents from the City of Miami.

We have assisted over 11,000 men, women, and at-risk teens in the community, and about 70

percent of all of the clients that we have serviced come from the City of Miami, so it's a milestone

for us this week, and we look forward to another ten years in the community, and by the way, for

the first time in our ten years of history in the community, we are seeing more men than women.

The program initially started to help women. In 1999, we added our men's program, and we are

now seeing about six to 700 men a year for the first time. Why? I don't know exactly, but we are

in desperate need of ties for men, so I'm going to ask all the Commissioners --

Commissioner Winton: Ties?

Ms. Jacobson: -- ties, and I'm going to ask the Commissioners and all of the staff that work for

the City of Miami to get a tie drive together for us; donate all your old ties, gentlemen. I'm sure

it's time to clean the closets, and somebody will call my office, and we'll make arrangements to

pick them up.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: We will.

Ms. Jacobson: So I thank you again for recommending us for funding this year.

Chairman Sanchez: Well, I'll tell you what, I'm going to volunteer for that.

Mr. Arriola: Here.

Ms. Jacobson: OK, very good. I'll hold you to that.

Mr. Arriola: Tell you what, here you can have my tie right now.

Applause.

Commissioner Allen: Oh, that's very kind of you, Mr. Manager.

Ms. Jacobson: Thank you --

Commissioner Allen: I have a quick comment --



Ms. Jacobson: -- very much.

Commissioner Allen: -- Mr. City -- Chairman.

Chairman Sanchez: Listen, I'm collecting the ties.

Commissioner Allen: Look, that's the --

Chairman Sanchez: I've got plenty of ties to give you, trust me.

Commissioner Allen: -- one he didn't -- really didn't want, so --

Ms. Jacobson: Thank you very much.

Commissioner Winton: He wanted an --


Commissioner Winton: -- excuse not to wear a tie today.

Commissioner Allen: Mr. Chairman, if I could, just a quick comment.

Chairman Sanchez: What people will do not to wear a tie.


Mr. Arriola: That's a better answer.



Commissioner Allen: Yes --

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Before we do that --


Chairman Sanchez: -- the public hearing is closed at this time. Is there anyone else? Seeing

none, hearing none, the public hearing, for the record, is closed. We come back to the

Commission. Commissioner Allen, you're recognized.

Commissioner Allen: Yes, Mr. Chairman. Thank you very much. As you very well know, this is

a very important time for most of the agencies that are receiving funding, and to that end, Ms.

Rodriguez, I'll turn to you, and since we're talking about public service funding, could you

explain for the record and for those who are watching Net-9 that, in fact, there are limited

resources in this category, and that if anyone was turned down, that does not mean that they

were turned down because you just didn't like their proposal. I mean, could you expound on

that? And then there's a second question I'd like to ask.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Commissioner Allen, I can tell you that all agencies that did not get

recommended for funding, we've worked with them. We will continue working with them, and we

will try to help them, you know, even get funding from other sources that are not us.

Unfortunately, our resources, yes, they shrink every year. Public service is the only category

that has a cap under community development, and it does become very hard, and I think we've



accomplished, at least, those agencies that are performing that are existing providers to

maintain them at their same level of funding, so we will continue working with all the agencies,

regardless if they were funded or not, to see if we can help them get other funding.

Commissioner Allen: Right, and I like, also additionally, the idea of Suited for Success. I think

that's a great program that's going to be on board, and then, lastly, if a person were to look at

this, let's say John Q. Public were to look at this, and they're from District 5, would it be safe to

say that, look, as I look at the distributions across the board in all the other districts, is our

district getting a fair rata, pro rata allocation relative to the public service area, as compared to

--

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: It did, and District 5 is the district that got the most funding for public

service.




Chairman Sanchez: Vice Chairman González.

Vice Chairman González: Yeah, Mr. Chairman. Well, I think that we're almost at the last item,

and I want to recognize Ms. Rodriguez effort, and I remember when we used to spend six, seven,

and eight hours discussing CDBG funding, and ever since Barbara has been in control of this

department, the meeting has gone fast, quick; everybody seems to be happy. Everybody comes in

to congratulate Barbara and the department, and the staff for the work that they're doing, so I

think that, Barbara, you need to be commended. Mr. City Manager, your director --

Applause.

Vice Chairman González: -- your community department -- your Community Development

director needs to be recognized --

Commissioner Allen: Yes, yes.

Vice Chairman González: -- and appreciate, OK.

Commissioner Allen: I second that strongly.

Mr. Arriola: She's still not getting a raise, OK?

Vice Chairman González: We'll discuss --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Commissioner, I do want to --

Vice Chairman González: -- that later.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Commissioner --

Vice Chairman González: Also, I want to take the opportunity -- Barbara, excuse me, a minute -

-

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Yeah.



Vice Chairman González: -- also, I want to take the opportunity to recognize the work that every

agency did to support us --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Right.

Vice Chairman González: -- in saving those funding. We could have not done it alone. We

needed your support. You were there present. You worked; you collected signatures. You did

everything that you had to do, and together, and together, we were able to achieve the, you

know, what we needed to achieve, and that was not to have any more cuts in the funding, so we

need to congratulate you --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: We do.

Vice Chairman González: -- for defending your agencies and defending the people that you

serve. Thank you.

Applause.

Vice Chairman González: Yes, Barbara.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Commissioner, I do want to say that I really want to thank all of you, but

in particular, my staff. Community Development, you're only as good as the people you have

working for you, so you know, they're here today, all the supervisors are, and I do thank them.

They're great, and it was a team effort, and I also want to thank who I report to, which is Linda

Haskins, so you know, it's been a team, and I think we try to do it every year better, and I do

want to say thank you.

Vice Chairman González: Where is Linda hiding at?

Applause.

Vice Chairman González: Linda, congratulations.

Commissioner Allen: And, Mr. Chairman, again, I'd just like to echo what Commissioner

González has said regarding Ms. Barbara Rodriguez. She has worked closely with my office.

Without her, I don't think I would have been as effective this year as I am, so again, thank you

very much, Ms. Rodriguez.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Thank you, Commissioner.

Chairman Sanchez: All right, and as always, I mean, we wish we had more funds to provide

those agencies that continue to do such an incredible service for those, as someone stated, who

cannot take care of themselves, and being that we do still continue to have a city that has a lot of

need, we're blessed to have great organizations, who have a good track record of performance

because if they do not perform, we should not fund them --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Right.

Chairman Sanchez: -- but the agencies that are in front of us today, at least the ones from my

district, I could tell you that I am the proudest Commissioner to have these agencies continue to

provide the services for a lot of families, that if it wasn't for these services, they would be in a lot

of trouble, so thank you so much. Thank you for the staff. I think the process has gotten -- we've

simplified the process, and once again, as my colleagues stated, thank you so much for the

unified force that we put together, and it really shows, when we really work together, we could

accomplish anything we want, and we put together a great rally that was led by our Mayor and



the Commission, and you, who played a very important role in that message that we sent to

Washington, that we do have a tremendous need, and we should not penalize those that are less

fortunate than others because of budget cuts, so thank you so much. God bless you, and

Barbara, God bless you, and I can see you got a couple extra gray hairs every year during this

process, so -- OK --

Commissioner Winton: I don't see any gray hair there.

Chairman Sanchez: I mean, she's got a couple. She hides them. All right. It is a resolution.

The resolution -- no further discussion on the resolution. We are on PZ.14 [sic], I believe,

Madam Clerk.

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: PH.14.

Ms. Thompson: You're on P --

Chairman Sanchez: All right. All in favor, say “aye.”



Congratulations. Continue to do the good deed --

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: And --



ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING THE TRANSFER OF PROGRAM INCOME

FUNDS IN THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF $45,000; ALLOCATING SAID FUNDS

TO ALLAPATTAH-WYNWOOD COMMUNITY AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER,

INC., IN THE AMOUNT OF $15,000, FOR PUBLIC FACILITIES AND

IMPROVEMENT ACTIVITIES AND TO SISTERS AND BROTHERS FOREVER,

INC., IN THE AMOUNT OF $30,000,TO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE PUBLIC

SERVICE ACTIVITIES/ELDERLY SERVICES, AS SPECIFIED IN

"ATTACHMENT A," ATTACHED AND INCORPORATED; AUTHORIZING THE

CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE AMENDMENTS TO THE AGREEMENTS, IN

SUBSTANTIALLY THE ATTACHED FORMS, WITH SAID AGENCIES FOR

SAID PURPOSES.

Department of

Community

Development









05-00525-exhibitC2.pdf



05-00525-ED Agreement.pdf

05-00525-amendment 1.pdf

05-00525-amendment 2.pdf

05-00525-social program agreement.pdf

05-00525-elderly meal service.pdf

05-00525-work program.pdf

05-00525-compensation.pdf





R-05-0384

Chairman Sanchez: -- and we'll go to PH.15.


in the amount of $45,000 from program income to fund the Allapattah-Wynwood Community and

Development Center, $15,000, which is a public facility and improvement; and $30,000 to

continue to provide services by Sisters and Brothers Forever, Incorporated.


Vice Chairman González: Move --

Chairman Sanchez: Need a motion.


Commissioner Allen: Second just for a quick discussion.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. There's a motion by Vice Chairman González, Commissioner

Allen makes a second for the purpose of discussion.

Commissioner Allen: Yes, Madam Rodriguez, again, for those who are watching Net-9, you

mentioned program income. Could you just expound on that, just define that to some extent

what's that all about for the public?

Ms. Gomez-Rodriguez: Program income is basically money that the Department of Community

Development received by collections of loans, and on a quarterly basis, whatever we have, we

try to put it back in the community.

Commissioner Allen: In the community, correct. Thank you.




















this Commission, please step forward and be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none, the public

hearing is closed, coming back to the Commission for a vote. It's a resolution. All in favor, say

“aye.”



Ladies and gentlemen, congratulations. We will be back at 2:30 sharp. We should be out of

here by 4 o'clock, if everything goes according -- as planned, as the plans that the Chair has,

and having said that, Madam Clerk, before we go into recess, any item that is deferred would

automatically roll over into the next regular Commission meeting. Is that stated on the record?

Ms. Thompson: Yes.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. The City of Miami Commission stands in recess 'til 2:30. Thank

you.



ORDINANCE - EMERGENCY

05-00486 Emergency OrdinanceEM.1 ORDINANCE

(4/5THS VOTE)

AN EMERGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION, WITH

ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO ACCEPT A

CONTRIBUTION OF FUNDS FROM MIAMI-DADE COUNTY IN THE AMOUNT

OF $1,400,000, FOR THE DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. BOULEVARD

IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT, B-78505, AS STATED HEREIN AND AN

AMOUNT OF $840,000, FOR THE SOUTH MIAMI AVENUE IMPROVEMENTS

PROJECT, B-60479, AS STATED HEREIN; AMENDING ORDINANCE NO.

12622, ADOPTED DECEMBER 9, 2004, AS AMENDED, TO APPROPRIATE

SAID CONTRIBUTION OF FUNDS IN THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF $2,240,000,

INTO CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT NO. 341330, ENTITLED

"CITYWIDE TRANSPORTATION AND TRANSIT;" AUTHORIZING THE CITY

MANAGER TO EXECUTE THE JOINT PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT(S), IN

SUBSTANTIALLY THE ATTACHED FORM(S), FOR BOTH SAID PROJECTS,

TO IMPLEMENT ACCEPTANCE OF SAID CONTRIBUTION OF FUNDS;

CONTAINING A REPEALER PROVISION, A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE AND

PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

Department of

Capital

Improvement

Programs/Transpor

tation

05-00486-ordinance.pdf





be ADOPTED as an emergency measure, waiving the requirement for two separate

readings PASSED by the following vote.

Votes: Ayes: 5 - Commissioner González, Winton, Sanchez, Regalado and Allen

12696

Direction to the Administration by Chairman Sanchez to schedule a meeting with him to discuss

the reasons why funding allocated to historical corridor improvements in Little Havana have not

been made.

Vice Chairman González: Let's go to the next item, which is EM.1 --

Commissioner Winton: Which one?

Vice Chairman González: -- and it is an emergency ordinance.

Commissioner Winton: What item?

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): EM.1.


Commissioner Winton: EM.1.

Mary Conway (Director, Capital Improvement Projects & Transportation): Mary Conway,

director of Capital Improvements and Transportation. EM.1 is an emergency ordinance







accepting $1.4 million from the County People's Transportation Plan for Dr. Martin Luther King

Boulevard, between I-95 and Northwest 37th Avenue, and an additional $840,000 for South

Miami Avenue, between 15th and 25th Roads. It's being done as an emergency ordinance so

that it will require one reading to allow us to get through our Commission and the County

Commission in support of an August construction start date.

Commissioner Winton: So move.


Chairman Sanchez: Discussion. EM.1?



Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): Yes.

Commissioner Allen: EM.1.

Commissioner Winton: Accepting money.


Commissioner Regalado: Page 23.

Vice Chairman González: To accept 2 -- 22 --

Commissioner Allen: How much?

Vice Chairman González: $2 million.

Ms. Conway: $2.24 million, and these are two projects where the City is providing the design

services, and we'll be administering the construction on behalf of Miami-Dade County for both

of these County roadways.

Chairman Sanchez: Wasn't that the one that the County had also allocated some funds for Calle

Ocho?

Ms. Conway: Not on this particular. This is part of the People's Transportation Plan. I believe

there are some additional Calle Ocho monies that were in the recent bill passed by the State

Legislature.

Chairman Sanchez: No, no, no, no, no.

Ms. Conway: No?

Chairman Sanchez: This has nothing --

Ms. Conway: This is --

Chairman Sanchez: -- to do with the State. I think the County gave us 250,000 for -- I support --

first of all, let me make it very clear, I support this. I'm just inquiring as to some funds that were

allocated from the County $250,000 towards MLK (Martin Luther King), and 250,000 towards

8th Street for historical corridors that needed improvements, and it was matching funds to be



added by the City, and then somehow, the City didn't have the funds, and somehow, MLK ended

up with the money and Little Havana didn't get the money.

Ms. Conway: I'll have to look into that, and get back to you. I'm not familiar with monies add

signed for historical corridors, but I'll find out and get back with your office.

Chairman Sanchez: All right, and this is for -- and now you're coming back with a total of 1.4

mill, right, for --

Ms. Conway: But this is a --

Commissioner Winton: No, it's 2.2.

Ms. Conway: -- total of 2.24; 1.4 for MLK, and 840 for South Miami Avenue.

Chairman Sanchez: OK. Could you get back to me on that?

Ms. Conway: Absolutely.

Chairman Sanchez: Because you know, I would hate -- and I think that, once again, as a

responsibility that I have --

Commissioner Winton: And I would be with you.

Chairman Sanchez: Yeah. If I --

Commissioner Winton: I'm on your side.

Chairman Sanchez: If it was $250,000 that the County was giving and the City had to match

$250,000 for --

Commissioner Winton: We'd better find it.

Chairman Sanchez: -- Calle Ocho, and we haven't gotten --

Ms. Conway: We could do that.

Chairman Sanchez: -- the money, I think the merchants and the residents in Little Havana

deserve an explanation on that, and I think that, as their representative, I have to speak out on

the issue, so I would like to sit down with you and find out why, you know, we did not get that

money. However, once again, let me just state that I am in full support of this, and I do believe

that not only do I look out for my district; I look out for the entire city, and I'm glad that we're

making these improvements to areas that have been, I shouldn't say abandoned, but I should say

overlooked in the past.

Commissioner Allen: That's correct. Yeah, Mr. Chairman, quickly, a point of inquiry. Ms.

Conway, you mentioned two point -- what was the amount again?

Ms. Conway: The total amount --

Commissioner Winton: Two two four.

Ms. Conway: -- is $2.24 million

Commissioner Allen: $2.24 million. Has that been line item allocation with respect to these two



separate --

Ms. Conway: It was line itemed in the County's People's Transportation Plan. These are the

County's monies that we are administering the construction on their behalf to accelerate the

projects. One point four million was specifically line itemed in the County's People's

Transportation Plan for MLK, between I-95 and 37th Avenue; the 840 was for South Miami

Avenue.


Chairman Sanchez: All right. It is an ordinance. Is there a motion already?

Ms. Thompson: Yes, sir.

Chairman Sanchez: There is a motion and a second. Has it been opened to the public? All

right. It is a public hearing, an ordinance on -- emergency ordinance. Anyone from the public

wishing to address this item, please step forward and be recognized. The public hearing is open

and closed. No one is coming forward. We come back to the Commission, and before we vote, I

just want to, Madam Director, just get back with me on that -- on those funds, please.

Ms. Conway: Absolutely, absolutely.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Having said that, Mr. City Attorney, read the ordinance into the

record, followed by a roll call.


Ms. Thompson: First roll call. Second roll call.

Roll calls were taken, the results of which are stated above.

Ms. Thompson: The ordinance has been adopted as an emergency measure, 5/0.



ORDINANCES - SECOND READING

05-00440 Second ReadingSR.1 ORDINANCE


37 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF MIAMI, FLORIDA, AS AMENDED,

ENTITLED "OFFENSES-MISCELLANEOUS," TO CREATE SECTION 37-7, TO

BE ENTITLED "SEX OFFENDER RESIDENCY PROHIBITION," PROVIDING

FOR A PROHIBITION FROM SEX OFFENDERS CONVICTED OF CRIMES

UNDER CERTAIN FLORIDA STATUTES FROM LIVING WITHIN 2,500 FEET

OF SPECIFIED LOCATIONS WITHIN THE CITY OF MIAMI; CONTAINING A

REPEALER PROVISION, A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE, AND PROVIDING FOR

AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

Office of the City

Attorney

05-00440-ordinance SR.pdf

05-00440-cover memo SR.pdf

Motion by Commissioner Regalado, seconded by Vice Chairman González, that this matter



12691

Direction to the City Manager and City Attorney by Commissioner González to meet with the

Police Chief and any other individuals needed to formulate an information bulletin to be mailed

to the surrounding neighbors of sexual offenders to alert them of the home addresses of sexual

offenders in their neighborhoods.

Direction to the Administration by Commissioner González to provide information concerning

absconded sexual offenders to the Quality of Life Task Force that can be used during ongoing

investigations by the task force.

Chairman Sanchez: Once again, Barbara, before we go to you, let's take care of one item, and

then we could get done with your item. I -- we should be out of here by 12:30, and then we'll

come back at 2:30, so let's take care of SR.1, that's the sex offender. That'll be very brief.

Commissioner Winton: What is that, SR (second reading), what?

Chairman Sanchez: It's on second reading.

Commissioner Allen: SR.1.

Chairman Sanchez: And I believe Commissioner Regalado wanted to be here on that, so we'll --

Commissioner Regalado: Yes, please.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Let's take up SR.1. It's an ordinance on second reading, and of

course, that is the sex offender residency prohibition.

Commissioner Regalado: I'll move the item for discussion, Mr. Chairman.

Chairman Sanchez: OK, there's a motion --






Chairman Sanchez: -- by Commissioner Regalado for discussion.


Chairman Sanchez: Is there --

Vice Chairman González: I'll second --

Chairman Sanchez: -- a second?

Vice Chairman González: -- for discussion.

Chairman Sanchez: Second by discussion by the Vice Chair González. Before we do that, we do

have some guests, Ron Book and his daughter are here to speak on this item, and then we're

going to have the police state something on the record as to this item.

Ron Book: Mr. Chairman, members of the Commission, thank you very much. For the record,

Ron Book, 2999 Northeast 191 Street, Penthouse 6, Aventura, Florida, and I'm joined by my

oldest daughter, Lauren. I don't live in the City of Miami, but I certainly spend a lot of time

here. I'm here in support of this ordinance for a whole lot of reasons, but most importantly, to

put a face on it; to put a face on a parent of a child who was a victim of a long series of

predator/pedophile attacks, who today stands before you as a survivor and not a victim. I

listened with interest on the first day with my daughter that this Commission talked about the

issue and the issue of Miami Beach passing an ordinance, and the City of Miami potentially

becoming a dumping ground for the creeping crud of society, the lowest life of society. Because,

ladies and gentlemen in the audience, and members of this Commission, after having gone

through this horrible, tragic experience, I can tell you that there is no lower form of life than a

convicted sexual predator. Your ordinance doesn't take every sexual offense; it takes the most

serious sexual offenses. It doesn't ban people from living somewhere because they've been

convicted of the most heinous sexual offenses in State law. It simply says that, as elected

officials, you have a right to protect the health, safety, and welfare of all of your citizens. You're

not here to coddle the criminal element of society. You're here to protect law-abiding citizens,

and the most valuable assets that all of us have, and that's our children. Your ordinance says

that you can't live within 2,500 feet of a school, of a daycare center, of a park or recreational

facility, places that children congregate. I hope none of you ever, ever, ever deal with the pain

that my daughter, that my other children, that my family has endured over the last four years.

The day that I learned of what had gone on, I really didn't know what to do. I sought answers. I

asked questions. I sought more answers, and I've spent now the last three years as the pro bono

counsel for the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence, and as chairman of the Children's

Home Society Foundation Board statewide. Why? Because my daughter, myself, and my family

are trying to do what we can do to help protect others. Let's not fool anybody. Let's not fool the

public. We're not stopping sexual predators from committing their crimes, Commissioner

Winton; you and I both know that. I listened to your comments very carefully as you spoke them

over the last several weeks, but Mr. Chairman, members of this Commission, are you pushing

them out of here? Are you pushing them somewhere else? Yes. Had the City of Miami Beach

passed its ordinance and you not acted, would you have potentially become a dumping ground?

Yeah, you probably could've and would've. Since the day the City of Miami Beach introduced

their ordinance, six of those convicted predators have left the Beach. Now I don't know where

they went, but we don't want to make the City of Miami a place for those people to live. We don't

want to make a home for them. They want to go live in the country; they can live in the country.

They want to go live somewhere else; they can go live somewhere else. There're a lot of places

in 67 counties in this state that they can live, where there aren't parks, and there aren't schools,

and there aren't daycare centers, and there aren't recreational facilities and playgrounds, where

children play to become targets within 2,500 feet of their residence. With all the time that you're



here, Mr. Chairman, and I consider all of you to be my friends, I'm not sure you'll ever enact an

ordinance that will have the potential to protect more of the little children of this community than

the one that you have before you today, and as I said early yesterday morning in Miami Beach,

and we went to Pembroke Pines last night, and we're here this morning, let the ACLU (American

Civil Liberties Union) come on. Your lawyers, the lawyers on Miami Beach that have worked on

this ordinance, have made certain that you went carefully, that you've treaded lightly, and that

we have assured that we have not violated constitutional rights of those criminals, but let us not

forget, let us not forget the charge that every elected official takes when you get elected; it's to

protect the health, safety, and welfare of the community, and the community at-large, as I would

suggest to you, is not the creeping crud of society; it's all of the law-abiding citizens out here,

their children, their grandchildren, and all of the other children that all of us know. Those are

the people that are the community that you're charged with protecting, not those that the ACLU

simply thinks we all have a responsibility to protect their civil rights. All of the other people in

the communities have civil rights, as well. Finally, I would only say one last thing. I've read

more about predators and pedophiles than most of the experts have. I've read all the studies. I

don't care what a couple of these liberal think tank institutions have put out there over the past

several weeks since this issue has been the hottest issue in South Florida, when they say that

such a large percentage do get rehabilitated. Well, I've talked to the experts; not the experts in

Miami, not just the experts in Florida, but the experts throughout the country; those who

counsel, those who care for those who are these predators, and let me tell you something, the

numbers are way plus 95 percent for those who cannot be and are not rehabilitatible [sic]. They

are not rehabilitatible, they are not savable, and we do not need them living within 2,500 feet of

your schools, your parks, your recreation centers. Let them live somewhere else. Don't let them

live where your children are. Thank you very much, and we would be glad to answer questions.

Applause.

Commissioner Regalado: Mr. Chairman.

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner Regalado, you're recognized.

Commissioner Regalado: There is nothing more important as placing a face to an issue, and

what we just heard is very compelling. I didn't need it, though. I knew about this case. I guess

that all of us here, and I am trying to bring this with my other colleagues for several months now

to this City Commission because I think it's important. It's not about the issue of not becoming

the dumping ground, which we would be if we don't act on the issue of protecting our residents

and our children. Tonight, at seven p.m., the Coral Gables City Commission will hear on first

reading a similar ordinance. Coral Gables have only one registered predator in the whole city

of Coral Gables, and yet, they are going to hear, and probably vote on it. Why? Not because

trend, not because, you know, it's mass decision of municipalities to follow one another, but

because this is a real issue. The state of Florida is ground zero for attacks on children in the

United States of America; no question about it. I am in the media, I know. I deal with AP

(Associated Press), UPI (United Press International), CNN (Cable News Network) wire stories

every day of the year. There is no question about that, and we need to act as soon as possible.

Are we attacking a sector of the community? No, we are defending our community. Sometimes

the City Attorney has expressed concerns because we cannot present a compelling case. Well, I

would tell you that we are here in the City of Miami, as of today, real lucky, but if we follow the

patterns of attack in Hollywood, in Cutler Ridge, in Aventura, in the last six months, all of the

attacks or attempted abductions have occurred near a school, one block away from the school,

exactly one block away from the school, so this is a compelling argument. I am so sorry for the

people that have to go through this. I pray to God that no other family will go through what the

Book family went through. It's something overwhelming. I just hope that every governmental

body understand that this is an urgent issue, and for those -- I mean, who say we're just part of a

mass hysteria, well, half of the world cannot be crazy. I mean, all of the municipalities are

realizing that they need to do this to protect their residents, and you know, if they want to sue us,



bring it on. I mean, this will be the best way to spend the taxpayers' money, defending the

children of our city, so I am ready to continue and to vote.


Commissioner Allen: Yes, Mr. Chairman. First of all, I'd like to, of course, say to Ron, of

course, I hear your pain, your concerns. As you very well know, we've had our many battles at

the State Legislature for a great many years, Ron. Again, I think this Commission, likewise,

shares my concern, as well, that we really care dearly for your concerns. Having said that, I just

want to make it perfectly clear, I'm in favor of this, but I want it to be said that we -- that is,

myself, and hopefully, my fellow Commissioners are on the same page with me. We're not just

doing this -- passing this as a knee-jerk reaction because the other municipalities are doing this.

We're making a legislative finding based on there's a dire need here. There's been findings of

fact. I think you have placed on the record adequate findings of fact that this is a serious

situation with the health and safety concerns of our citizens, so to that end, I just want to make it

perfectly clear that, as I read this ordinance, it's forward-looking. In other words, we're not

doing anything retroactively in any way, shape, or form, and I think the City Attorney, in our

briefings, has assured me that this will past constitutional muster. I feel pretty good about this,

and again, my heart goes out to you, Ron. Thank you very much.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Be -- can I -- I did not open for the public opinion on this, so

what I'd like to do now, before we continue to debate it here and discuss it, I would like to open it

up to the public. This is a public hearing. It's an ordinance. Is there anyone from the public

wishing to address this Commission on this item? Seeing none, hearing none, the public hearing

is closed, coming back to the Commission. Commissioner -- Vice Chairman González, you're

recognized.

Vice Chairman González: Yes, Mr. Chairman. At the last Commission meeting that we

discussed this item, I think that we instruct the City Manager through our Police Department, we

get a report from the Police Department in reference to the cases, or the residents that we have

in the City of Miami, the sexual predators that reside in the City of Miami, and the frequency of

violations or -- we were supposed to get a report from the Police Department. Are we ready for

that report? Is the Police Department ready to put something on the record?

Jorge L. Fernández (City Attorney): Mr. Chairman, Commissioners, we have, over the past

several weeks, been working with our Police Department so that they would help us ascertain on

the locations that we're imposing the 2,500 feet requirement, to plot those out; to take a look at

what the City would look like. The Police Department has also been very instrumental in helping

us clarify and get a clear picture of the rationale as to why 2,500 feet around playgrounds and

schools, in particular, would certainly be justifiable. While the Police Department is getting

ready to make their brief presentation to you, we have also, over the past several weeks, become

-- during the research -- have become aware that the federal courts have begun to address this

issue, and we feel very confident today that the standard of review that any federal court would

apply to a challenge to this ordinance is not the strict scrutiny test, but is a rational basis

analysis test, and in essence, what that means is -- and I believe that this ordinance will, if

challenged, we'll be able to sustain it on that basis, that an ordinance will be considered

constitutional under the rational basis test where there is any reasonable, conceivable state of

facts that could provide a rational basis for it. After all, we're not dealing with a protected class.

Sexual offenders and sexual predators do not have any protected rights. The district court of the

-- Circuit Court of Appeals, in the Eleventh Circuit, has in fact ruled that when it comes to

housing, housing is not a fundamental right, and so, there is a series of findings that courts have

already begun to make with regard to this issue that gives us great confidence that the ordinance

that we have presented in front of you today, in fact, will sustain a legal challenge when it comes

to the rational basis, applying the rational basis test. What the Police Chief and others in the

Police Department will be able to do is that they would, perhaps more clearly than anyone else,



be able to articulate to you a rationale. You've heard some testimony earlier with regard to the

degree of repeat offenders and the nature, or condition of sexual predators, and then how it is

that, looking at the City, imposing all of the circles that we have, where that would put you.

Vice Chairman González: OK. I have another question. On reading the backup documents, it

talks about to establish permanent -- wait a minute. OK, it says 2,500 feet of any school,

designated public school bus stop. That would cover the entire City of Miami because I think

school buses stop every -- in every neighborhood, everywhere in the City of Miami, so my

concern is would this prohibition prohibit these people from living anywhere in the City of

Miami? Because I don't have any problem with the school; 2,500 feet around any schools, any

daycare, as counsel mentioned, or playgrounds, or parks.

Commissioner Allen: Good point.

Vice Chairman González: Now, when we talk about bus stops, there're bus stops everywhere in

the City of Miami. I mean, you know, my concern is that I want, you know, to pass a resolution

that can really be enforced, and we can really -- you know, that has some bite. I mean, I don't

want to pass a resolution that, later on, we have to bring it back and, you know, reconsider or

anything like that. I want to make sure that whatever we do today is something that could really,

really have an effect on these people.

Mr. Fernández: We're addressing, in the ordinance, four sites: schools, parks/playgrounds --

Vice Chairman González: No problem with that.

Mr. Fernández: -- daycare --

Vice Chairman González: No problem with that.

Mr. Fernández: -- and public school bus stops. Of those, clearly, the one that's more of a

moving target, the one that is less permanent, is public school bus stops. Clearly, schools are

schools, and they're there and they're fixed, and they don't move --

Vice Chairman González: Right.

Mr. Fernández: -- as well as parks and playgrounds. Daycares, you know, they're also

permanent structures that are identifiable. We know where every single daycare center is, but

the standard of the rational test that we have been talking about, in my opinion, while there is

justification to be applied to all four of those locations, I certainly believe that we have a much

stronger case for schools and playground/parks than we do for daycare and bus stops.

However, even for those two, I believe that there is a rational argument that could be made for

imposing the 2,500 feet around those, and that's my analysis, but you need to hear from --

Vice Chairman González: Before listening from the Police Chief, another concern that I have is,

can we come up with a resolution that can ban these people not only from residing within the

2,500 feet of a school, but that they can ban them for hanging around these facilities? Because,

let me tell you, a sexual predator can live, I don't know, maybe in Kendall, and nothing prohibit

him from driving a car, one of those ice cream trucks, and park in front of a school.


Vice Chairman González: Is there something in the law that prohibit --




Vice Chairman González: -- anybody from -- you know, one of these guys from coming from

Kendall to Little Havana to sell ice cream in a school? You're going to have the guy riding right

next to the school door selling ice cream to the kids.


Mr. Fernández: Yeah. It's --

Vice Chairman González: You know, I would like to see something more stronger than this, as

long as it is constitutional, but stronger.



Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner Regalado.

Commissioner Regalado: Just a clarification, public school bus stop are very few. These are

designated areas where many students congregate in one area, where buses do not have access.

I don't think that there are that many in the City of Miami because this is not a regular stop.

This is just a place where more than 10 -- between 10 and 20 students are taken by their parents

over there to congregate and wait for the bus, so I -- that is a logical place to be part of this

ordinance because, in that specific area, more than 20 students are needed to be congregated to

wait for a bus, a School Board -- a school system bus to come and pick them up, so -- and there

are not that many. I've done stories about that, and there're not that many in the City of Miami.

There're very few because of no access to different areas of the City, and so that's the logical --

that's the logic behind that --

Vice Chairman González: Can we get that information?


Vice Chairman González: I'm sorry. Can we get that information from the School Board, where

are the bus stops in the City of Miami for school buses? Because let me tell you, I don't know

about Miami-Dade County Public School, I don't know how many buses they have, but we have

friends, mutual friends; Balsera has almost 40 buses, or 50 buses, and that's just one company --

Commissioner Regalado: Yeah, but this ordinance --

Vice Chairman González: -- that pick up kids.

Commissioner Regalado: -- address only a specific Miami-Dade County School system

authorized --


Commissioner Regalado: -- bus stops, which is places where parents are told to take the

children so the bus can pick them up there.


Joe Arriola (City Manager): Let me --

Commissioner Allen: Mr. Vice Chairman --



Vice Chairman González: Let me -- just -- Commissioner Winton -- I'm sorry, Commissioner

Allen. I need to recognize --


Vice Chairman González: -- Commissioner Winton, and then, you have the floor.

Commissioner Allen: OK, and then --

Mr. Arriola: I also ran the school system.


Mr. Arriola: I ran the bus -- I mean, transportation for the school system. I ran it for several

months, so I can give you some --


Mr. Arriola: -- firsthand knowledge on this thing. There're several ways that kids are

transported in schools today. There are -- as he said, the private. You'd be surprised how many

kids are actually picked up at their homes, literally at their homes. The -- any one school bus in

the several almost a thousand bus routes, and -- but there's no one stop that is -- it's in a main

highway. Most of the stops you'll find will be in a residential neighborhood --


Mr. Arriola: -- where they will include three or four blocks of a residential neighborhood, and

remember, most of these kids are going to the same school --

Commissioner Allen: Correct.


Mr. Arriola: -- so they will pick up within the residential school, so while it sounds like the bus

stop will be far away, Commissioner, most of this -- most of the bus stops are very centrally

located, and like Commissioner Regalado say, one bus stop might have four or five stops

throughout the whole route, throughout the whole day. They're not like they're picking up, you

know, like a regular --

Vice Chairman González: Individual.

Mr. Arriola: -- bus service, individual, or anything like that. The other ones, the individual ones

that they do pick up, they actually pick up at their homes, so it would be a lot more difficult for a

predator to be waiting at those locations because they actually pick the kids with disabilities,

kids that are being transported to a different school area, that sort of thing, they actually pick

them up at the school, so it is not as vague as you think it is. It is a lot more centrally located,

and I -- you know, I would venture to say that this will be good because you could actually keep

them away, and it's not a wide area, as you might think. It's not like the regular bus stop that,

you know, stops every block, and then you couldn't be anywhere around there. It's a very, very

much centrally located, and encompass big, big areas of neighborhoods.

Vice Chairman González: All right. Thank you. Yes, sir. Commissioner Winton, and then

Commissioner Allen.

Commissioner Winton: Obviously, I'm in support of this ordinance; we all have been, from the



beginning, but frankly, I'm also troubled by some things. This ordinance got here because the

City of Miami Beach pushed an ordinance, and we were taking, clearly, a defensive posture. I

didn't even know what the distance from schools and places where kids congregate, I didn't know

what those distances were to begin with, so this was a new learning curve. There's no question

in my mind that as more municipalities pass this ordinance, which they're going to have to do,

there's going to be zones in Miami-Dade County -- and I've been mad at Miami Beach for doing

this. I've been mad at Miami Beach because they also dump their homeless in our city. Miami

Beach was the one municipality that voted to not support the half-penny sales tax for

homelessness, so they dumped their homeless people in our city. Now they're dumping their

sexual predators in our city, and we have no choice but to act. It's no more right for them to

dump their people on us than it is us on somebody else, and that's what we're going to be doing

here. This issue -- and we're going to do it because we have to do it, but this is an issue that

needs to be taken up by the Florida Legislature again. Because if the 2,500-foot rule is

completely logical -- seems like it is to me -- then it ought to be a statewide rule, and the other

thing that the State needs to do -- two more things, as far as I'm concerned, and I think these are

among the lowest life-forms that exist out there, the sexual predators. They ought to stick them

in jail a hell of a lot longer so they can't get out and we don't have to worry about them, and

that's probably the number one step that they ought to take, and the number two step that they

ought to take is put ankle bracelets on them so that we can monitor exactly where they are, and if

they're wearing an ankle bracelet, then we know where the hell they are. We know if they're

going to be close to a school. We know if they're hanging out around the school. We know if

they're hanging out around the park, and our police departments across the state of Florida can

get in there and pick them up, and put them back in jail again. This is knee-jerk reaction that

doesn't really address the real issue. We have no choice but to take it, but I'm not happy about

it. I'm going to be happy when the Florida Legislature takes this issue back up and deals with it

in the right fashion. End.


Chairman Sanchez: Mr. Book, before -- as the Chair, I speak last. I'll allow you an opportunity

to --

Mr. Book: If I could just briefly --


Mr. Book: -- propose --

Chairman Sanchez: I'm sorry? Oh, I'm sorry.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah. I'm sorry.

Mr. Book: I'm sorry.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, Ron, just quickly --


Commissioner Allen: -- I just wanted to -- because it seems like -- as I look at the ordinance,

there are a few problematic areas here, and I'll turn to the City Attorney. Could we nonetheless

still pass this if we were to delete the designated public school bus stop -- Is that -- if that's a

problematic area?

Commissioner Winton: No.



Mr. Fernández: I did not mean to call any greater attention to it other than, in giving you my

analysis --


Mr. Fernández: -- of a degree. I believe that the ordinance, as it stands in front of you today, is

defensible, and I think that --


Mr. Fernández: -- we stand a greater chance of prevailing than not.


Mr. Fernández: And within the provisions that we have provided to you in this ordinance, I am

telling you that there is -- the arguments get somewhat weakened as you go down the

progression from school, playgrounds, daycares, and bus stops.

Commissioner Allen: Right, and --

Mr. Fernández: And that's just merely my analysis of it. Bus stops are a moving target because,

from year to year, the School Board re-designates school boundaries, and rearranges school bus

stops, and so then you have the whole issue then of a residency that last year was not subject to

that because of the circle, now this year becoming subject to it because of the circle, so it

becomes problematic, from an enforcement perspective.

Commissioner Allen: I see. Well --

Mr. Fernández: That's the only issue I meant to raise in that.

Commissioner Allen: OK, just to conclude because Chief Timoney has been patiently waiting, of

course, and he needs to opine, but having said that, I just want to make it perfectly clear that my

decision is not based on a knee-jerk reaction or a defensive posture. It's going to be based on

the findings of fact, the testimony before me today, and having said that, Mr. Chairman, I'll turn

to you. I guess we need to have the Chief to put his testimony on the --

Chairman Sanchez: What I'd like to do is, before we --


Chairman Sanchez: -- before, as the Chair, going last --


Chairman Sanchez: -- (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Book --

Commissioner Allen: Oh, I'm sorry.

Chairman Sanchez: -- Mr. Book wanted to address the Commission on one issue. Try to keep it

brief, and then --

Mr. Book: Let me just be very brief.

Chairman Sanchez: It's very important that, as we build our case here -- and we are building

our case -- that we have the police continue and provide us -- and complete the presentation



they're going to present to put on the record.

Mr. Book: Let me just speak to two points that have been raised very briefly. Number one, I

don't believe you are responding in a knee-jerk fashion. You are responding to a crisis that

exists in the state of Florida today. Nobody asked someone to go and kidnap a child, molest

them, assault them, and dump them, and kill them. Nobody asked for that to happen in Florida;

it's happened. We are responding to that; that's first of all. Second of all, to the issue that

Commissioner Winton raised -- Mr. Chairman, through you, to Commissioner Winton. Number

one, the Jessica Lundsford Act did just what you asked in large part. Number one, in prospective

fashion, in prospective fashion, when you are convicted now, you will -- when you get out of jail,

you will be monitored. You will have real time monitors placed on you, not a simple ankle

bracelet. The Department of Law Enforcement was given, I believe, $5 million to go out and

purchase the best technology available today, the best technology available today to monitor

where these people are. They cannot get, unfortunately, the pig that assaulted my daughter, but

if that individual, in the future, does what the individual did that assaulted my daughter and

writes letters from the prison, and gets the probation revoked, you can get them then, even

though they were sentenced under the old law. That's what the law does today, as a result of the

Jessica Lundsford case; so that's number one. Number two, the Lundsford Act also substantially

enhanced the penalties for those convicted prospectively. In addition to that, and even though

this ordinance does not take in the cyberspace crimes that go on amongst children today, an act

was passed by the legislature directly at our request, which was initiated by the Broward State

Attorney to us, that significantly enhances the penalties for those in the future that are convicted

of cyber sex-related crimes, the individual who writes and entices. We had a glitch in the law

and it got that as well. What these laws did not address was the issue of increasing the distance

from the 1,000 foot that's in the state law to the 2,500 foot. Let's face it, criminal laws are

statewide in application, but there are local efforts that have to coincide and lock

interchangeably with state law, and that's what this local ordinance does. I do not believe for a

minute this is a knee-jerk reaction. This is a response to a crisis in the state of Florida.

Somebody called me yesterday and asked me why did I think Florida had become such a focal

point, and I can't answer that question. I don't know whether it's our climate. I don't know

whether it's the laws that were previously on the books. I don't know whether it's the leniency of

our judicial system. I don't know what it is, but you know what? This state and this community

are becoming a damned unfriendly place for these people to come, and that's the message we

want to send.

Chairman Sanchez: Thank you. Chief, could you --

Chief John F. Timoney (Chief of Police): Yes. Good morning.

Chairman Sanchez: -- complete your presentation?

Chief John Timoney: Chief of Police, John Timoney, along with Deputy Chief Frank Fernandez.

Prior to this issue coming up at the last Commission meeting, the Miami Police Department has

been very active in this whole area of sexual predators and sexual offenders, and as a matter of

fact, we put together a book and had it delivered to each Commissioner regarding the predators

and offenders that live in the various Commission areas. We also, over the last month, on

weekends, our Sexual Battery Unit has gone out to the residences of the -- both the predators

and the offenders, making sure that, one, they were where they said they were supposed, where

they're registered, and making sure they were in full compliance with the requirements of the

law, and so, we will prepare a more extensive report prior to the next Commission meeting.

We'll get it to your office probably by the end of next week, but just a quick overview. Within the

City of Miami, there are a total of 292 people who were declared sexual offenders; 236 were in

full compliance. They were where they were supposed to be. Fifty-six subjects, or 24 percent of

them -- or 20 percent, rather, had absconded. In other words, we could not find where they are

now, unable to locate them. There were some, on the initial visit, that they were not home. They



-- in fact, about 30 or 40 of them showed up the following Monday at police headquarters and

made sure that their registration was up-to-date, but there are still 20 percent that have

absconded and are missing, and what we have done is gone out to those locations, our

detectives, with affidavits, getting neighbors to sign. We need to have this by law, a neighbor to

sign that no, he hasn't been here, and that has the effect now of an arrest warrant if, in fact, we

come across those people. On the sexual predators, there are a total of 36 sexual predators, of

which, 29 were in full compliance, about 80 percent; but again, 11 percent, or four, have

absconded. There are two others who are in jail, who have committed other sexual acts, and

now are pending trial on those sexual acts. We've also done a quick -- and this is to

Commissioner González, what you were addressing earlier. We've done a quick look-see at -- if

you demarcate the 2,500 feet, and effectively, there will be very little, very few places, if any, that

a person could reside within the City of Miami, when you take into consideration those four.

Even if you left out the bus stops, my sense is there still wouldn't be -- we've looked at just the

schools and parks, and that effectively eliminates living in most parts of the city. The final,

again, personal or professional accounted on this, these laws, as best that I could tell, are meant

to do two things: the first and foremost, coming out of the Megan's Law, in New Jersey, is it's

got a notification to parents that you have a sexual predator/offender living in your area, and it's

only right that parents have that knowledge, and you know, obviously, they can't break the law,

but at least they're equipped with that knowledge and can guide their children accordingly. The

second one, which this present legislation goes to, we see time and time again, particularly

around schools, less than 1,000 feet on a regular basis, pedophiles, flashers appearing in

schools, around schools, and around Miami-Dade County. It happens on a regular basis, and so

there is, I think, justification for this law. Again, we will provide each Commissioner, and the

(UNINTELLIGIBLE), obviously, the Manager, with a far more extensive report of exactly where

we are by the end of next week. If there are any questions, I'd be --

Chairman Sanchez: Thank you. Thank you, Chief. As the Chair, always being last --

Commissioner -- Vice Chairman --

Vice Chairman González: I just --

Chairman Sanchez: -- González.

Vice Chairman González: -- have one more comment, or one more question, Mr. Chairman, and

thank you for allowing me. Mr. City Manager, is there a possibility, based on the work done by

our own police department, they have all the information of where these -- I don't want to call

the name -- where these gentlemen live? Is there a way that we can do a mailer to the

surrounding areas of every place where these people are located, letting the neighbors or the

parents know that they have one of these elements living in their neighborhood? Can we do a

mailer by -- you know, get the fund -- find the funds from wherever the fund is available; transfer

it to the Police Department, and let the Police Department do that type of information bulletin,

with the description of these people and letting the neighborhoods know that they have them in

their neighborhoods. Could we do something like that, in addition to passing this resolution?

Whatever we do -- I don't care, whatever we do is going to help.

Chief Timoney: Could I --

Vice Chairman González: We need to do as much as possible. Yes, Chief.

Chief Timoney: Two things, Commissioner. The pictures and the locations of each offender or

pedophile are on the FDA -- FDLE (Florida Department of Law Enforcement) Web site, but

we're cognizant that there are some poor neighbors in this city that obviously don't have access

to internet, but we just had this discussion a couple days ago with George Wysong and the rest of

our staff, and what we were thinking is maybe getting this information out to responsible people;

obviously, the NET (Neighborhood Enhancement Team) commanders, but maybe some



community groups, as part of the notification process, in an effort towards going that way, and if

we agree on that, then we will take that charge.

Mr. Arriola: Commissioner --

Vice Chairman González: You were reading my mind, Chief. In fact -- yeah, we know it's in the

Internet. I know it's in the FDLE internet, but not everyone in this community have a computer,

or know how to go into the internet, or you know, so --

Mr. Timoney: That is interesting. When you look at where they reside, it's often in the poorest

sections of the city --

Vice Chairman González: Exactly.

Mr. Timoney: -- where the folks wouldn't have --

Vice Chairman González: Correct.

Mr. Timoney: -- access to those things.

Vice Chairman González: Correct, so --

Mr. Arriola: Commissioner, I'd be delighted to fund anything, and you know I will fund the

money. If I get the clearance from the Law Department, I promise you, I could do this in --

Vice Chairman González: All right. Since I have proposed it, why don't you and the --

Mr. Arriola: The three of us will do it.

Vice Chairman González: -- City Attorney have a meeting on it, and maybe with the Chief and

Deputy Chief, come up with something, and then bring it to -- for my colleagues to approve --

Mr. Arriola: That --

Vice Chairman González: -- at a future date.

Mr. Arriola: I'd be delighted to do that and we -- being that it's your idea, we'll include you --

Vice Chairman González: All right. Thank you very much.

Mr. Arriola: -- in it. The four of us can do it.

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner Regalado, for a brief statement, and then I will wrap it up,

and we'll vote on the issue.

Commissioner Regalado: Just a question: Who will be empowered after this becomes law, if we

voted for it today, to tell these people to move out of the area? Will we have to go to court, or

are we giving the Miami -- City of Miami Police Department the power to tell them that they

have to move within how many days?

Commissioner Winton: Good question.

Vice Chairman González: Commissioner Regalado, that's a good point, and that's something

that I had in my mind to discuss, too. If you look at what each city is passing, they are

grandfathering in the people that are living in the cities now.



Commissioner Winton: Oh.

Vice Chairman González: They're applying these rules for future residents.

Commissioner Regalado: No, but we're not grandfathering. This ordinance does not

grandfather them.

Vice Chairman González: Well, but I'm telling you what -- for example, I watched the news

yesterday on Miami Beach and also Doral, that passes a resolution in reference to this issue, and

they don't apply the resolution to the residents that live there now. They're doing it for future

residents, so that's a good question. I don't know -- now we go into another legal issue.

Mr. Fernández: Well, the issue of having laws that have retroactive effect is a serious legal

consideration. There is an element of grandfathering that takes place. Laws must be

prospective; you've heard that word used very well by Mr. Book, and we have made sure that the

ordinance that we have presented to you meets all of the legal requirements. With regard to the

first question that Commissioner Regalado made, who has the power to enforce, again, we need

to be very careful that we do not constitute ourselves into a legislative body, an executive body. I

mean, we cannot be judge, jury, hangmen. We cannot do everything because that, too, runs

afoul of the law. Our penalty provision is very clear. A person who violates a section and whose

conviction, under the relevant state statutes, was classified as a felony of the third degree,

second degree, first degree, or higher, shall be punished by a fine not to exceed $500, or by

imprisonment for a term not to exceed 60 days, or by both, such fine and imprisonment. In other

words, this ordinance does not obviate a legal process that would take place if, upon notification

and upon enforcement by the police department, this person does not accept the regulations

being imposed by this ordinance, then we must apply process of law. We cannot, with all due

process, proceed, so this ordinance does the best and the most we can. It does not eradicate and

does not give us the ability to, as -- you know, to --

Commissioner Winton: I don't understand the answer. Does that mean that --

Commissioner Regalado: Neither do I.

Commissioner Winton: Does that mean that the 298 sexual offenders in the City of Miami have

to move or not?

Mr. Fernández: No.

Commissioner Regalado: Well, we don't know. No. We don't know because it doesn't say. In

the ordinance, it doesn't say that they are grandfathered, that they can keep living, so that's why

-- that is what my question is.

Commissioner Allen: Well, yeah --

Commissioner Regalado: Sweetwater -- the City of Sweetwater sent the police department and

tell them, “You have to move,” and that's that. That's the end of that, and that was my question.

Mr. Fernández: OK.

Commissioner Regalado: Empower the police department --

Vice Chairman González: No.

Commissioner Allen: Well, it's (UNINTELLIGIBLE), right?



Vice Chairman González: If you excuse me, I'll defer to that because I watched the news what

the City of Sweetwater did. As a matter of fact, the City of Sweetwater did something that they

could -- probably will be challenged in court, and they will have a suit as big as the entire

county because they went to the extreme of including on their -- in their resolution that if I'm a

property owner and I rent to one of these persons, I could be fined, $1,500 fine, and I could be

sentenced to two months in prison, and once again, they're becoming attorneys, you know, state

attorneys, judges --

Mr. Fernández: Yes. We are not --

Vice Chairman González: I mean, they can do whatever they want; it's their problem. They're

the ones that are going to be sued, and their constituents, their taxpayers are going to be paying

the suit, OK, so I don't care. To be honest with you, I don't care. I have to concern myself with

whatever we do in the City of Miami, and I will support the resolution, and I'll -- as a matter of

fact, I want a stronger ordinance, but we want to make sure that we do something that we don't

have to back off from it later on and look like (UNINTELLIGIBLE) to the entire world, you

know. Look what these people did.

Mr. Fernández: On page 3 of 4 --


Mr. Fernández: -- under exceptions, Commissioner Regalado, a person residing within 2,500

feet of any school, designated public school bus stop, daycare center, park, or playground does

not commit a violation of this ordinance if any of the following apply: the person established a

permanent residence prior to July 1, 2005. There is that grandfathering position that you

assumed was not in the ordinance. It's in the ordinance.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, it's in.

Mr. Fernández: This says prospective application.

Commissioner Allen: right.

Mr. Fernández: The second exception is that the person was a minor because this board

instructed us to make sure that we dealt with that issue.

Chairman Sanchez: The Romeo and Juliet clause.

Mr. Fernández: Correct, and that is the number -- roman number two, as well as three; the

person is a minor, and the last one, the school designated public school bus stop or daycare

center within 2,500 feet of the person permanent residence was open after the person established

the permanent residence.

Commissioner Allen: Good.

Mr. Fernández: That's how we have addressed those issues, which I think, if not addressed,

would render this ordinance more susceptible to a challenge.

Commissioner Allen: Right, and Mr. Chairman, so the remedial measures are there, so that's

good. Right.

Chairman Sanchez: Could I -- are we done so --




Chairman Sanchez: -- we could wrap it up?

Commissioner Allen: They're there. We can move.


Mr. Fernández: And also, with regard to Commissioner González comment, this ordinance does

not impose a burden or a penalty on the property owner, who inadvertently or -- for -- you know,

rents the premises. It penalizes the sexual offender, and it prosecutes the sexual offender, not the

owner of the real estate, which I understand some of the jurisdictions are going further into that

area, and they're imposing -- OK, so you know, there's going to be -- if there is a thousand

municipalities that would look at this, there will be, perhaps, a thousand variations. I just need

to advise you and counsel you in what I believe, with our team of experts and with our lawyers,

would be achieving your goals and be defensible in court.


Chairman Sanchez: No, I would like to speak.

Commissioner Winton: Oh, you haven't spoken? I'm sorry.

Chairman Sanchez: As the Chair, being last, and giving everyone an opportunity to speak.

Commissioner Winton: I rescind the call.

Chairman Sanchez: Thank you. Mr. Book, I can't fathom the pain and suffering that you have

gone through as a loving father. I cannot certainly fathom the pain that your lovely daughter

has gone through, and I cannot fathom the pain of parents that have lost their children to a

sexual predator. As a father of three -- and I consider them to be the greatest gift that the good

Lord has ever given me -- this is something that I take very serious. You stated very clearly that

we have a responsibility here as elected officials, by the people who vote and give us the trust,

not only to lead the city, but protect their families, health, safety, welfare of our community, and

I take that responsibility very seriously. You stated that 28 -- Mr. Chief, you stated that 28

sexual predators that are out there, two have committed sexual crimes against children. Sir, that

is two too many in our community. I could tell you that what we're doing here, and what other

cities are doing throughout our state and our nation, is protecting the greatest resource that we

have, and that resource is our children. Now taking legal matters into consideration, and seeing

that other municipalities are crafting legislation that will probably be challenged in court, and

you know we live in a great nation where anything could be challenged in court, and I respect

that. It is our responsibility to craft the legislation that will stick, and I believe this legislation

that's in front of us has a chance. Other legislation that have been put forth, and we have either

obtained the information through the media, it's legislations that I believe have gone too far, and

they will be challenged in court. However, they, too, are protecting their greatest resource,

which are their children. We could always come back and amend this ordinance, rewrite it, so

we have an opportunity to pass it in court, or our legislation, or our law may be the one that

makes it through the legal channels, and then other cities can bring it back, re-craft it, rewrite it,

and make sure that it's constitutional and does not violate anybody's right, but I could tell you

this much, we have beaten this horse to death, and we have prepared a good case, and under the

advisement of our legal counsel, we believe that this legislation can cut the mustard in court, and

therefore, having said that -- and there's already a motion and a second on the floor -- with

brave hearts and high hopes, we'll vote on this resolution that's in front of us --

Mr. Fernández: Ordinance.



Chairman Sanchez: It's an ordinance.

Commissioner Allen: Ordinance, ordinance.

Chairman Sanchez: I'm sorry. It's an ordinance -- and then we will pray that if it's challenged

in court, we will do whatever we can to make sure that we defend it with the fullest power that we

have vested. Thank you very much. It is a ordinance. Read it into the record. Madam Clerk,

roll call.


Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): Roll call. Commissioner Allen?

Commissioner Allen: Aye.




Vice Chairman González: Before voting, Chief --

Chief Timoney: Yes, sir.

Vice Chairman González: -- can you provide the information on these twenty -- how many are

they, the ones that are missing, 28?

Chief Timoney: There was a total of 36.

Vice Chairman González: Thirty-six.

Chief Timoney: Twenty-nine are in compliance; four are missing; two are in jail.

Vice Chairman González: OK, the ones that are missing that we can't identify where they are or

whatever, could you provide that information to the task force? Maybe the task force, the

Quality of Life Task Force, since we're going --

Chief Timoney: The pictures, the whole thing.

Vice Chairman González: -- into bars at night --

Chief Timoney: Absolutely.

Vice Chairman González: -- and all of these places where these people used to congregate,

maybe we can find them there --

Chief Timoney: We'll also give you the 56 --

Vice Chairman González: -- and send them back to --

Chief Timoney: -- offenders. OK.




Chief Timoney: Sounds good.

Vice Chairman González: I appreciate that, Chief.

Chief Timoney: Yep.


Ms. Thompson: Commissioner Regalado?

Commissioner Regalado: Yes.

Ms. Thompson: Chairman Sanchez?

Chairman Sanchez: Yes, ma'am.

Ms. Thompson: The ordinance has been adopted on second reading, 5/0.


Mr. Book: Thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: No, thank you.

Mr. Book: Thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: God bless you.



54/ARTICLE V/SECTION 54-190 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF MIAMI,

FLORIDA, AS AMENDED, ENTITLED "STREETS AND SIDEWALKS/BASE

BUILDING LINES/NONSTANDARD STREET WIDTHS," TO MODIFY THE

WIDTH OF NORTHEAST 7TH STREET, NORTHEAST 8TH STREET,

NORTHEAST 10TH STREET AND NORTHEAST 11TH STREET, BETWEEN

NORTHEAST 2ND AVENUE AND BISCAYNE BOULEVARD, MIAMI,

FLORIDA, CONTAINING A REPEALER PROVISION, A SEVERABILITY


Department of

Public Works


05-00379-summary form FR-SR.pdf

05-00379-memo FR-SR.pdf




12692

Chairman Sanchez: Where are we at now?

Vice Chairman González: EM.1 or SR.2, whatever you want to take it.






Chairman Sanchez: OK. Let's go to EM.1. Maybe we'll wait for Commissioner Winton to be

here on EM.1. We'll go to SR.3. Have we done SR.3? No, we have not. Let's do SR.2.

Commissioner Allen: SR.2.

Chairman Sanchez: These are --

Commissioner Allen: That's pretty perfunctory.

Chairman Sanchez: There's no opposition on this; very simple. We could just breeze through

them. Hopefully, we'll get out of here by 4:30.

Stephanie Grindell (Director, Public Works): SR.2 is a second reading for an ordinance to

reduce the zone street right-of-way width of Northeast 7th Street, 8th, Northeast 10th and 11th

Street, between 2nd Avenue -- Northeast 2nd Avenue and Biscayne Boulevard from 70 to 50 feet.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. This is a second reading ordinance. Is there a motion?




Chairman Sanchez: Second by Commissioner Allen. Before we open it for discussion, it is an

ordinance on second reading ordinance, which requires a public hearing. Anyone from the

public wishing to address this Commission, please step forward and be recognized. Seeing none,

hearing none, the public hearing is closed at this time, coming back to the Commission for

discussion. Hearing no discussion on the item, Mr. City Attorney, could you read it into the

record, followed by a roll call from the City Clerk?

The ordinance was read by title into the public record by the City Attorney.





AN ORDINANCE OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION, WITH

ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO ACCEPT

GRANT FUNDS, IN THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF $2,000,000, FROM THE

STATE OF FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION ("FDOT"), TO

PROVIDE FUNDING, IN THE AMOUNT OF $1,000,000, FOR THE MIAMI

RIVERWALK EXTENSION: FLAGLER STREET BRIDGE AREA PROJECT

B-40691 (SEGMENT B) AND B-40692 (SEGMENT C) AND $1,000,000 FOR

THE EAST LITTLE HAVANA GREENWAY PROJECT, B-40686 (SEGMENT

D); AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 12622, AS AMENDED, TO APPROPRIATE

SAID CONTRIBUTION OF FUNDS INTO CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT

NO. 341211, ENTITLED "GREENWAYS IMPROVEMENTS;" AUTHORIZING

THE ALLOCATION OF THE CITY'S CONTRIBUTION TO THE FLAGLER

STREET BRIDGE AREA PROJECT IN A TOTAL AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED

$337,700; ALLOCATING SAID FUNDS, IN THE AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED

Department of

Capital

Improvement

Programs/Transpor

tation



$150,000, FROM THE PARKING SURCHARGE AND AN AMOUNT NOT TO

EXCEED $187,700, FROM THE HOMELAND DEFENSE NEIGHBORHOOD

IMPROVEMENT BOND PROGRAM; AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO

EXECUTE A LOCAL AGENCY PROGRAM AGREEMENT, IN

SUBSTANTIALLY THE ATTACHED FORM, FOR THE FLAGLER STREET

BRIDGE AREA PROJECT, TO IMPLEMENT ACCEPTANCE OF SAID

GRANTS; CONTAINING A REPEALER PROVISION, A SEVERABILITY



05-00380-exhibit1 FR-SR.pdf

05-00380-exhibit1A SR.pdf

05-00380-exhibit1B SR.pdf

05-00380-exhibit1D FR-SR.pdf

05-00380-exhibit1L FR-SR.pdf

05-00380-exhibit1RL FR-SR.pdf

05-00380-exhibit1R FR-SR.pdf

05-00380-summary form FR-SR.pdf





12693

Chairman Sanchez: All right. SR.3 is an ordinance on second reading. Capital Improvement

Program, Transportation.

Mary Conway: Mary Conway, director of Capital Improvements and Transportation. SR.3 is a

second reading accepting $2 million in grant monies from the Department of Transportation; $1

million each for two additional sections of the Miami River Greenway project.


Vice Chairman González: Move SR.3.

Chairman Sanchez: There is a motion. We need a second.


Chairman Sanchez: There's a --


Chairman Sanchez: -- motion by Vice Chairman González, second by Commissioner Winton. It

is an ordinance on second reading, requiring a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing

to address this item, please step forward and be recognized. Please state your name and address

for the record.

Ashley Chase: Ashley Chase, assistant managing director of the Miami River Commission, with

offices at 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway. I'd like to read a letter into the record on behalf of our

chairperson, Ms. Irela Bagué. The Miami River Commission respectfully recommends

acceptance of the Florida Department of Transportation $1 million East Little Havana













Greenway, and $1 million for the Miami Riverwalk Extension, Flagler Street Bridge Area grants.

The $2 million in FDOT (Florida Department of Transportation) grant awards are for greenway

construction consistent with the Miami River Greenway Action Plan, and the Miami River

Corridor Urban Infill Plan. The MRC (Miami River Commission) commends the City of Miami,

the Trust for Public Land, and FDOT for partnering on bringing these sections of the Miami

River Greenway to fruition. The MRC is proud to have authored the awarded East Little Havana

grant application in 2002 on behalf of the City of Miami, which resulted in the $1 million FDOT

grant. On behalf of the MRC, I extend our sincere gratitude to the City of Miami for providing

MRC's staff this opportunity, and we look forward to continue working in partnership to

significantly improve the Miami River Corridor. Thank you.

Commissioner Allen: Mr. Chairman, quickly.

Vice Chairman González: All right. Yes, Commissioner Allen.

Commissioner Allen: Yes, sir. First of all, I think this is a --

Chairman Sanchez: All right. The item is under discussion. Commissioner Allen, you're

recognized.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah. This is a great, great project, guys. I'm just curious, any idea

what's the completion date on this, Ms. Conway? Do you have any idea or --

Ms. Conway: These --

Commissioner Allen: Because I want to be there at the ribbon cutting, that's why to be honest

with you. This is a great project.

Ms. Conway: We have -- right. We've already had ground breaking ceremonies for several of

the greenway sections. We have additional ones that are funded. These are further out. This

money will be used to offset part of the design monies and to fund the construction balances, so

we're a couple years away from these particular segments, but we have an additional five or six

segments that are about -- that are already under construction or about to be under construction

in the next several months.

Commissioner Allen: Well, this is going to be a beautiful project, guys. Yeah, thanks.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Any further discussion on the item? If not -- I'm sorry -- the

public hearing is closed at this time. It's coming back to the Commission. Any discussion on --

from the Commission? Hearing none, it is an ordinance on second reading. Mr. City Attorney,

could you read the ordinance into the record, followed by a roll call by the Clerk?







42/ARTICLE IV/DIVISION 4 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF MIAMI,

FLORIDA, AS AMENDED ("CITY CODE"), ENTITLED "POLICE/TOWING AND

IMMOBILIZATION OF MOTOR VEHICLES/POLICE TOWS," MORE

Office of the City

Attorney



PARTICULARLY BY AMENDING SECTION 42-119 OF SAID CITY CODE BY

SETTING THE MAXIMUM TOW RATES ALLOWED FOR THE DEPARTMENT

OF OFF-STREET PARKING DISPATCHED TOWING AND WRECKER

SERVICE FOR PRIVATE VEHICLES, SETTING AN ADMINISTRATIVE FEE IN

THE AMOUNT OF $25 AND RATIFYING AND CONFIRMING ANY

ADMINISTRATIVE CHARGES INCLUDED IN THE MAXIMUM TOWING FEES

INCLUDED IN ANY CONTRACT OR AGREEMENT IN EFFECT; FURTHER

DECLARING THE ADMINISTRATIVE FEE TO BE LEGAL AND VALID AND

RATIFYING, VALIDATING AND CONFIRMING IN ALL RESPECTS, THE

ADMINISTRATIVE FEES IMPOSED PRIOR TO THE ADOPTION OF THIS

ORDINANCE; CONTAINING A REPEALER PROVISION, A SEVERABILITY

CLAUSE AND PROVIDING FOR AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE DATE.


05-00441-cover memo FR-SR.pdf




12694

Chairman Sanchez: SR.4, it's an ordinance on second reading.

Vice Chairman González: Move SR.4.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. It is an item --


Chairman Sanchez: -- from the City -- the Office of the City Attorney.



Allen. It is an ordinance on second reading that requires a public hearing. Anyone from the

public wishing to address this item, please step forward and be recognized. Seeing none,

hearing none, the public hearing is closed, coming back to the Commission for discussion.

Hearing no discussion, Mr. City Attorney, read the ordinance into the record, followed by a roll

call.







2/ARTICLE XI/ENTITLED "ADMINISTRATION/BOARDS, COMMITTEES,

COMMISSIONS," OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF MIAMI, FLORIDA, AS

AMENDED ("CITY CODE") BY SETTING FORTH REMOVAL AND TERM





LIMITS PROVISIONS OF SAID CODE; CONTAINING A REPEALER

PROVISION, A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE, AND PROVIDING FOR AN

EFFECTIVE DATE.

05-00469-ordinance SR.pdf

05-00469-cover memo SR.pdf




12695

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Moving right along, we go to --

Vice Chairman González: SR.5.

Chairman Sanchez: -- SR.5, which is an ordinance on second reading.

Commissioner Winton: So moved --

Vice Chairman González: Second, SR.5.

Commissioner Winton: -- with comment.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. All right, there's a motion by Commissioner Winton, second by

Vice Chairman González for the purpose of discussion. Before we discuss it, let's go ahead and

open it up to the public. It's an ordinance on second reading, requiring a public hearing.

Anyone from the public wishing to address this item, please step forward and be recognized.

Seeing none, hearing none, the public hearing is closed, coming back to the Commission for

discussion. Commissioner Winton, you're recognized.

Commissioner Winton: I just thought you might get a kick out of something we found on the

Internet that was directed at this particular ordinance. It has seven different pictures of me, and

it says, "Commissioner Winton meets with his appointed policy advisory board."

Chairman Sanchez: And they're all you.

Commissioner Winton: And they're all you, so you know --

Vice Chairman González: Well, you know --

Commissioner Winton: But I thought you might get a --

Commissioner Regalado: Cloning --

Commissioner Winton: -- kick out of it.

Commissioner Regalado: -- is illegal, you know.

Commissioner Winton: Cloning is illegal, so I'm still in favor of this ordinance.

Chairman Sanchez: OK. There is a motion and a second. It is under discussion. Hearing none

-- we've already opened up to the public and closed the public hearing. Mr. City Attorney, read

the ordinance into the record, followed by a roll call.






Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): Roll call. Commissioner Regalado?




Ms. Thompson: Commissioner Allen?

Commissioner Allen: I vote "aye."


Commissioner Winton: Do I get to vote seven times?

Ms. Thompson: No, sir, just once. Thank you.

Commissioner Winton: Just thought I was going along with the cartoon.

Vice Chairman González: This is not fair.


Ms. Thompson: And then Chairman Sanchez?

Chairman Sanchez: Yes, ma'am.


ORDINANCES - FIRST READING

05-00500 First ReadingFR.1 ORDINANCE


18 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF MIAMI, FLORIDA, ENTITLED

"FINANCE," AS AMENDED, BY AMENDING ARTICLE IV, ENTITLED

"MINORITY AND WOMEN BUSINESS AFFAIRS AND PROCUREMENT

PROGRAM," BY AMENDING SECTION 18-89 ENTITLED "CONTRACTS FOR

PUBLIC WORKS OR IMPROVEMENTS" TO CREATE A LIVING WAGE

ORDINANCE;"PROVIDING FOR A REPEALER PROVISION, A

SEVERABILITY CLAUSE AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

(NEED AGENDA PACKET)

Office of the City

Attorney

05-00500-ordinance.pdf

05-00500-email.pdf

DEFERRED

Direction to the Administration by Vice Chairman González to schedule a private meeting

between him and the Budget Director to discuss the fiscal impacts of creating a Living Wage

Ordinance in the City of Miami.





Chairman Sanchez: All right. We move on to FR.1. It's an ordinance on first reading, and this

is the living wage, I believe. The Living Wage ordinance.

Larry Spring: Commissioner, Larry Spring, chief of Strategic Planning, Budgeting and

Performance. About 30 days ago, the Commission directed us to go out and perform a study

regarding the impact of living wage. We set out on that mission, having meetings with our local

counterparts regarding the different assumptions that should be in a living wage, the areas of

impact that we should be focusing on in regards to implementing such an ordinance, and

although there continues to be a lot of support, you know, from the Mayor's Office and all the

Commissioners, I'm asking that we defer or delay this reading until we can continue that

process. I've gotten a lot of information, but it's still not to the point where I'm ready to present

it, and move forward with the development of the ordinance.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Commissioner Regalado.

Commissioner Regalado: Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. I know that -- and, especially,

Larry has a workload with the budget and all coming, we have here professor Bruce Nissen from

FIU (Florida International University), which is an expert on living wage. I've been talking to

him, and we all -- you have met with him. He was just waiting several days ago for the final

numbers to come up with a full report. He has done that. I think that it would be no harm to

have a vote today, on first reading -- after all, it's first reading -- and then have Larry and give

the Professor all the information, because I think that you do need just a few numbers.

Professor, if you don't mind, would you come here -- and you know, vote on first reading, and

then, in the process, we can analyze, and the final vote is the final vote; it's always been like that,

so -- but I just wanted to ask you, Professor, if it's -- if it would take weeks or months to get the

final information where you can present, and Larry can decide what is the impact in every aspect

of the City government.

Bruce Nissen: No, it shouldn't take very long, at all, actually.

Commissioner Regalado: You need to say your name.

Mr. Nissen: Oh, I'm sorry. My name is Bruce Nissen. I'm the director of research at the Center

for Labor Research and Studies, Florida International University, 11200 Southwest 8th Street,

Miami, Florida 33199. No, it wouldn't take much time, at all. We've actually done the study and

crunched the numbers in terms of the contracts with the City, the service contracts, I want to

emphasize, by the way. It was clear, a couple of things needed to be -- I had a meeting with

Larry and we had to straighten out a couple of points. One of which is that this does not cover

construction contracts; it's a very important point. There seem to be some --

Chairman Sanchez: I'm sorry. Does not cover what?

Commissioner Regalado: Construction.

Mr. Nissen: Does not cover construction contracts; it covers only service contracts, so it would

cover, actually, a very small number of your contracts, and that study -- that part of the study

has been done in terms of the costs, in terms of your contracts. There wouldn't be much

increased costs there. The only thing that's left is your own costs in terms of your internal

payroll, so I mean, you could crunch those numbers yourself; you could give them to us, and

we'd be happy to crunch them too, but it's just really a question of how much would your own

City payroll actually go up, so that was the numbers I was waiting to hear to get from Larry, if

you wanted us to do the study -- to crunch the numbers to help him with that study, or if you

wanted to crunch those numbers yourself. Really, it's just a question of to comply with a living

wage ordinance, how much extra costs will there be in terms of your own payroll. It's already

been calculated, and I think Larry agreed it's been calculated in a way that he couldn't do it any



different and nobody else could do it really any different in terms of your contracts, and it's a

very, very small amount, by the way, in terms of the contracts. The majority of the costs to the

extent that we'll be -- will be from your City -- your own City payroll costs, and Larry had told

me that since the study I had done a while back, a year or so ago, that, you know, you've already

increased the pay of certain amounts of workers, and so the costs won't be smaller than what I

had calculated into my previous study, and I said, you know, it's cool. We need to get your

updated numbers. It may be very easy to crunch the numbers and see how much your own costs

are going to go up inside your City payroll. That's all that's left, so once those numbers are

there, you know, and given to me, we can crunch them really, really quickly, and I'm sure you

could do that internally inside the City also.

Commissioner Allen: Mr. --

Chairman Sanchez: But nobody's got those numbers now. You don't have those numbers?

Mr. Nissen: I have numbers from about a year ago. I have a study --

Chairman Sanchez: But they're not accurate numbers.

Mr. Nissen: -- I did about a year ago that I feel is extremely accurate, and to the extent Larry

checked up on it, he felt we had done a very, very accurate job, too, in the parts of it that he

looked at, which was internal to the City kind of at that point, so I got a -- we've got a study, but

it's about a year old now that, I would say, very strongly that that's accurate. That's been about

a year ago. Your costs might be lower at this point, if you, in the interim, have given pay raises

to City personnel, and therefore, increase costs in terms of your own City personnel would be

lower --

Commissioner Regalado: Yeah, since --

Mr. Nissen: -- than in that particular study.

Commissioner Regalado: -- you did the study one year ago, there was a lot of personnel that

came on board from part timers to full timers. You have been advising the different governments

that have implemented, through the group that you all represent, Miami-Dade County --

Mr. Nissen: Yes. I --

Commissioner Regalado: -- Miami Beach.

Mr. Nissen: -- was involved and was giving advice to Miami-Dade County prior to passage of

its living wage ordinance, and likewise with Broward County prior to passage of its living wage

ordinance, and I actually have been around the state when living wage ordinances came up

elsewhere around the state also. Yes.

Commissioner Regalado: And as an expert, would you recommend that the City Commission

moves forward and then the final numbers will be easy to obtain in the process of the next 30 to

35 days?

Mr. Nissen: I think that's definitely so. The final numbers will not be hard to come up with, and

just -- I wouldn't say that you have anything to lose by deciding to pass first reading now. If,

after you've looked at the numbers, you know, you decide that you don't like this or something,

there's the second reading, there'd be a chance to stop that, I think. The numbers, you know -- I

just need to --

Commissioner Allen: Mr. Chairman, can I just speak -- OK. Commissioner Regalado, you're



requesting that this be a first reading?


Commissioner Allen: OK. Respectfully, I don't have enough data or any information before --

Commissioner Winton: We don't have anything.

Commissioner Allen: -- me to even make an informed decision. You know, I know we're talking

about living wage ordinance, but I'm the type of guy, I like to do due diligence. I like to see

substantive stuff before I can make an informed decision, but --

Commissioner Regalado: Yes. If I may, because --

Commissioner Allen: I have absolutely nothing before me.

Commissioner Regalado: Yeah. If you yield just one second, because I have -- your office

signed the receipt -- a receipt for the full report that professor did, and they signed it and they

said -- your staff said that it will be delivered to you. This was several weeks ago. It's in the --

also in the background material. I have had meetings with Larry. I have seen communications

that the Mayor, I think in the speech or whatever, was supporting this. I have brought this even

before you were here. I have brought this several times and we always comply with the deferral,

so I -- you know, I just think, if you all want to defer the ordinance, well, let's take a vote. I will

vote, "no," because I think that we've been deferring this for so many times. I think it's easy to

get the information. The information that the professor has only needs to be complemented with

a few numbers. The only thing that we need to have is the will to establish a living wage

ordinance in the City of Miami, and if we do have that will, then we vote "yes." If we don't, we

vote "no," and -- but just take it to a vote. It's very easy.

Commissioner Allen: Right, but in fairness, Commissioner Regalado, I hear what you're saying,

but what I meant by making an informed decision, I want to hear some counterarguments, as

well. I need to have enough substantive information before me, before I could make an informed

decision, so I'm just not prepared at this point --

Commissioner Winton: Yeah. Mr. Chairman.

Commissioner Allen: -- respectfully, not that this is a -- perhaps is a great idea, but, you know,

I'm just not -- I don't feel comfortable and qualified at this point to even make --

Commissioner Winton: Mr. Chairman.

Vice Chairman González: All right. Commissioner Winton.

Commissioner Winton: First of all, I want to put on the record that I'm a skeptic, so I have to be

sold. I'm not anywhere close to be sold on this whole concept. I don't understand -- I don't come

close to understanding the impact, and I want to see a full presentation. I wouldn't support a

first reading passage of this ordinance under any circumstance right now, given the fact that we

don't have anything in front of us, and I don't want somebody -- you know, I'm not going to

accept somebody just kind of throwing stuff off their memory right now, either. I want to see real

data in front of me that I can analyze, so I understand the source of the data so that I can think

about whether or not there are holes in the study process, and be able to ask those kind of

questions, and I don't have anything right now, so I'm absolutely opposed to passing this

ordinance on first reading right now.




Commissioner Regalado: I just wanted -- Mr. Chairman, if I may.


Commissioner Regalado: I just want to say that on May 11, 2005, the different Chiefs of Staff of

the members of the City Commission, and Kim Kennedy for Mayor Diaz, and somebody from the

Chief Administrator, the City Manager, because it's just to initial, plus Priscilla Thompson, the

City Clerk, they sign as receiving the impact of a living wage ordinance on the City of Miami by

Bruce Nissen and Theodore Carrasco of Florida International University, and this is the same

report that Professor Nissen is referring of one year ago, but he believe that if this has changed,

the impact that he analyzed in the City and with the County, that if this have changed, it would

have changed for the better in the City of Miami because some people would

(UNINTELLIGIBLE) but, you know, hey, majority rules, and --

Vice Chairman González: All right, so we have -- do we have a motion on this item?

Commissioner Allen: I'll make a --

Vice Chairman González: We don't have a motion?

Commissioner Regalado: I have --

Commissioner Allen: Guys --

Commissioner Regalado: I would --

Commissioner Allen: -- I make a motion to defer.

Commissioner Regalado: Mr. Chairman, I would introduce a motion to approve on, first

reading, the FR.1.

Vice Chairman González: Is there a second? Is there a second to the motion? Motion dies for

lack of a second. All right. Next item.

Commissioner Regalado: So, when are we coming back with this?

Mr. Spring: At this moment in time, I think at least another 30 days would be sufficient;

although, I'm very close to ending my study. I have a --

Commissioner Regalado: OK.

Mr. Spring: -- great deal of detail. I've gone through -- just to kind of give you a status update,

I've gone -- obtained the list of all the contracts that would potentially be applicable, given the

set of assumptions that I'm assuming; those assumptions are to pass an ordinance that would be

similar to the one that was passed by the County, Miami Beach, and Broward County, i.e., with

regards to service only.


Mr. Spring: Cleaning, janitorial, et cetera, so forth, so --

Vice Chairman González: One thing that I want to appreciate myself, once you have finished

your study, to please sit down with me because, you know, we might have this study done in

writing --



Mr. Spring: Right.

Vice Chairman González: -- and I'm sure my office has it and all that, but I want to hear from

City administrators what the impact is going to be, how many people are going to be impacted,

how it's going to impact the budget? Because my plans for next budget time is going to be

reducing taxes, reducing fire fee, but if we want to reduce everything at the same time, we're

going to go down the hole, so you know, we have to establish priorities. What do we want to do?

Do we want to reduce taxes for the entire City of Miami property owners? Do we want to reduce

fire fee for the entire City of Miami? Or do we want to raise just a selective group of people

salary? You know, so we have to establish priority, and I need to know what the fiscal impact is

going to be in this City, because one thing that I don't want to hamper is the possibility of

reducing taxes and starting to eliminate the fire fee. We've been talking about this for years --

for the years that I've been here, and I know that Commissioner Regalado, that has been his fight

for I don't know how much years, and we haven't done it. This year, I'm going to be on the front

line supporting the reduction of the fire fee and reducing -- reduction of taxes.

Mr. Spring: OK.

Vice Chairman González: And I know that we cannot do all at one time, so we have to set up

priorities; what do we want to do first, all right? That's only me, one vote, one Commissioner,

but --

Mr. Spring: I will certainly put my report together; it'll be thorough, and I'll schedule --

Vice Chairman González: No, but I would like you not to give me a report in writing. I would

like you to sit down with me --

Mr. Spring: Absolutely.

Vice Chairman González: -- and go over the report --

Mr. Spring: Schedule an appointment and go over it.

Vice Chairman González: -- with me, as you do on every -- as you do in everything else.

Mr. Spring: Right.

Vice Chairman González: That's what I want you to do with me.

Mr. Spring: Absolutely.




2/ARTICLE XI/ENTITLED "ADMINISTRATION/BOARDS, COMMITTEES,

COMMISSIONS," OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF MIAMI, FLORIDA, AS

AMENDED ("CITY CODE") BY DELETING REFERENCES TO CERTAIN

BOARDS AND AUTHORITIES IN THE SUNSET PROVISIONS OF SAID

CODE; CONTAINING A REPEALER PROVISION, A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE,

AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

Office of the City

Attorney


05-00524-cover memo FR-SR.pdf








Chairman Sanchez: All right. Can we -- before we go to the public hearings, can we take FR.2?

This is going to be very quick, and they have a bond counsel that is costing us a lot of money.

FR.2.

Commissioner Allen: FR.2.

Chairman Sanchez: We're trying to save the City as much money as we can here, so I apologize.

I know you're getting paid by the hour.

Albert Del Castillo: Not at all, Mr. Chairman.

Commissioner Winton: Renegotiate his contract.

Mr. Del Castillo: Good morning, Mr. Chair, Commissioners. Albert Del Castillo, with the law

firm of Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, at 801 Brickell Avenue. The item before you is a relatively

straightforward item, which is an amendment to Chapter 2, Article 11 of the City Code, in order

to delete from the sunset provisions of the City Code certain agencies and boards that have the

authority and they have issued long-term debt in the capital markets, and so with that long-term

debt outstanding, it really does not make sense, if you will, to have these agencies be subject to a

sunset provision. It makes all the sense in the world to review those agencies and have them

report to you so that you can see what they're doing, but the ultimate consequence of the sunset

provision is the ability to eventually abolish that entity, and since each of these authorities that

are listed to be -- that are being proposed to be deleted from this sunset provision have the

authority to issue long-term debt, and indeed, have issued long-term debt, you cannot abolish

those at this time, or at any time in the future while that debt is outstanding.


Mr. Del Castillo: So the three that you're looking -- that we're looking to delete from this sunset

provision would be the Downtown Development Authority, the Off-Street Parking Board, and the

Health Facilities Authority.




Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion and a second. Motion is made by Commissioner Winton,

second by Commissioner Allen. It is open for discussion. Before we do that, it's an ordinance on

first reading, requiring a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing to address this item,

please step forward and be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none, the public hearing is closed,

coming back to the Commission for any further discussion. Hearing no discussion on the item,

Mr. City Attorney, read the ordinance into the record.







Mr. Del Castillo: Thank you very much.

Commissioner Allen: Commissioner Sanchez -- before you step away, so overall, how is the

City's bond rating, before you step away?

Mr. Del Castillo: The ratings are doing well. I think that what the City Commission may have

done in relation with the rating agencies up in New York are tremendous. They have a very

good view of the City. Having said that, Commissioner, I deal with the aspects of the bond

financing from the legal side, and there're very well -- very qualified financial advisors that are

also working with the City to help enhance the bond ratings.


Chairman Sanchez: All right. Thank you, sir.

Mr. Del Castillo: Thank you, sir.


AN ORDINANCE OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION RELATED TO

MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS; CHANGING THE TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2005,

CITY OF MIAMI GENERAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION TO TUESDAY,

NOVEMBER 1, 2005, TO PROVIDE THE MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

SUPERVISOR OF ELECTIONS SUFFICIENT TIME BETWEEN THE

GENERAL AND RUN-OFF ELECTIONS TO ACCURATELY PROGRAM

VOTING MACHINES, PRINT AND TEST-RUN THE BALLOT, AND PROVIDE

SUFFICIENT TIME FOR PROCESSING ABSENTEE BALLOTING;

DIRECTING THE CITY CLERK TO TRANSMIT CERTIFIED COPIES OF

THIS ORDINANCE TO THE MIAMI-DADE COUNTY MANAGER AND

ELECTIONS SUPERVISOR; CONTAINING A REPEALER PROVISION, A

SEVERABILITY CLAUSE, AND PROVIDING FOR AN IMMEDIATE

EFFECTIVE DATE.

Office of the City

Attorney


05-00539-exhibit 1 SR.pdf

05-00539-exhibit 2 SR.pdf

05-00539-email FR-SR.pdf

Motion by Commissioner Allen, seconded by Commissioner Regalado, that this matter be


Votes: Ayes: 3 - Commissioner González, Regalado and Allen

Absent: 2 - Commissioner Winton and Sanchez

Direction to the City Clerk by Commissioner Regalado to aggressively seek to have Miami-Dade

Elections Department provide multiple early voting sites throughout the City of Miami to ensure

that all residents of the City of Miami are afforded the opportunity to participate in the early

voting process.

Vice Chairman González: All right. Next. Let's go to FR.1.







Commissioner Allen: FR (first reading) --

Jorge L. Fernández (City Attorney): You just did --

Commissioner Regalado: We just did it.

Mr. Fernández: -- FR.1.

Commissioner Allen: You just did --

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): Right.

Mr. Fernández: And you have --

Vice Chairman González: Oh, I'm sorry.

Mr. Fernández: -- also done FR.2.

Vice Chairman González: Yeah, we did that.

Mr. Fernández: It's FR.3.

Vice Chairman González: FR.3.

Commissioner Allen: FR.3.

Ms. Thompson: FR.3 now.


Vice Chairman González: FR.3 now. OK.

Commissioner Allen: This is -- I move the item, Mr. Chairman --


Commissioner Allen: Mr. Vice Chairman.

Vice Chairman González: We have a motion. Do we have a second on FR --


Vice Chairman González: And we have a second. This is a public hearing. Anybody from the

public that wishes to address the Commission on this item, please come forward. Seeing none,

hearing none, the public hearing is closed, comes back to the Commission. Discussion.


Vice Chairman González: Discussion. Commissioner Regalado.

Commissioner Regalado: There is no decision, yet, on the system. Either we continue to use the

electronic machines or we go to the scanner system.

Ms. Thompson: As far as I know, no determination has been made yet --



Commissioner Regalado: Right.

Ms. Thompson: -- only the report has been issued by the Supervisor of Elections.

Commissioner Regalado: Right, I understand, but my point is that probably, most likely, the

system is going to change. That is -- that seems to be the will of the County Commission, and we

need to be prepared to -- since at -- since they're going to change the system, 90 percent sure,

they're going to have hard time training the new -- the people with the new scanners and all that,

and probably, the early voting sites will fall through the cracks. We need to --

Vice Chairman González: I'm sorry. I thought we had lost quorum.

Commissioner Regalado: Huh? No.

Vice Chairman González: I thought we had lost quorum, but we haven't.

Commissioner Regalado: We really need to be very aggressive on the early voting sites in the

City of Miami, because last time we only had two.

Ms. Thompson: That's correct.

Commissioner Regalado: And that's not -- it's not fair, because the north and the west part of

the City of Miami were not able to participate in the early voting process, completely out of it,

because the two voting -- early voting sites were only in the south of the City.

Ms. Thompson: Commissioner, if you can recall, the Supervisor of Elections did assure us that

he would work diligently with us to increase the number of early votes sites, and we're also

hoping that there will be some change in the limitation that has been placed on the early voting

sites, saying it was only City Halls, County Halls, or libraries.

Commissioner Regalado: Yeah, but that's a state thing.

Ms. Thompson: Right, but -- no, they're working on changing that, so hopefully, that'll be

changed, and in addition, we will have more than the two sites. He said he will work with us

with that.


Commissioner Allen: OK, and just a quick --

Vice Chairman González: All right. Commissioner Allen.

Commissioner Allen: -- question. Just a quick query. I guess this will be directed to the City

Attorney. Accordingly, if we pass this, I guess all the other dates will -- concomitant dates will

fall in line, if you will?

Mr. Fernández: Correct, and it is --

Commissioner Allen: Qualifying and all of that sort of --

Mr. Fernández: Exactly. All of the dates that are measured from the date of the general

election, then likewise, get moved one week earlier.

Commissioner Allen: Right, and having said that, Mr. City Attorney, we're talking about making

this effective as of this year. It says here, "changing the elections in November 1, 2005." That's



this year.

Mr. Fernández: This only, correct.

Vice Chairman González: This year only.

Commissioner Allen: So, therefore, all the qualifying dates are now moved back --

Vice Chairman González: A week --

Commissioner Allen: -- a week earlier.

Mr. Fernández: Exactly.


Mr. Fernández: Because we're holding now by this ordinance, and by the next item, you'll be

considering moving the general election in the City of Miami to November 1.

Commissioner Allen: Right, and there's -- is there a concomitant component to this, that this has

to be communicated to the public and printed out in a timely fashion?

Mr. Fernández: Well, this is being communicated to the public. This has been advertised, and

you know, the general public and anyone interested will have sufficient notice by the fact that

this is getting first and second reading, and it's being duly advertised.

Commissioner Allen: Right, so all our new pamphlets coming from the City will reflect this

adjustment accordingly?

Ms. Thompson: That is correct. We will update our website. We will update our candidates'

packages, their CD-ROMs (Compact Disc-Read-Only Memory). Everything will be updated and

notified.

Commissioner Allen: Because as it stands now, the qualifying date for the current November is,

what, September -- what was it? If I'm not mistaken, can you correct --

Ms. Thompson: The ending date for qualifying would have been September 24.

Commissioner Allen: And so now it will be?

Ms. Thompson: One week earlier, September 17.

Commissioner Allen: September the -- correct. Thank you.



Vice Chairman González: It's an ordinance, Mr. City Attorney.


Vice Chairman González: Roll call, Madam City Clerk.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah. Before we vote, Mr. Vice Chair, just one quick question.



Vice Chairman González: Yes, Commissioner Allen.

Commissioner Allen: I guess it's directed to the Clerk. With respect to this, Madam Clerk, this

has been, of course, compared, if you will, is there any state laws that might -- there's no conflict

in any way, shape, or form? Because you know, you also have, in addition to qualifying times,

you have reporting periods and all kinds of things. I mean, that doesn't have any bearing on a

reporting period, so do you know or -- in terms of campaigning, you know, that sort of thing.

Ms. Thompson: As far as your quarterly reports, no, but there will be other reports that it will

have a bearing on, because we have to start it from the date of the election, and then count

backwards for certain reporting periods. All adjustments to those schedules will be made, but

there are certain quarterly reports that are done and due by state law; that will not change.

Commissioner Allen: OK. Well, I need to get with you right away then. Thank you.

Vice Chairman González: All right. Roll call, Madam City Clerk.

Ms. Thompson: Roll call.



Item FR.3 is a companion item to Item FR.4

05-00385aFR.4 RESOLUTION


ATTACHMENT(S), MAKING PROVISIONS FOR HOLDING A GENERAL

MUNICIPAL ELECTION ON NOVEMBER 1, 2005, FOR THE NOMINATION OF

CANDIDATES FOR THE OFFICES OF MAYOR AND TWO

COMMISSIONERS, AND FOR HOLDING A LATER RUNOFF ELECTION ON

NOVEMBER 15, 2005, UNLESS ALL OF SAID OFFICES HAVE BEEN FILLED

IN THE GENERAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION; PROVIDING FOR THE

REGISTRATION OF PERSONS QUALIFIED TO VOTE IN SAID GENERAL

MUNICIPAL AND RUNOFF ELECTIONS; DESCRIBING PERSONS

QUALIFIED TO VOTE IN SAID GENERAL MUNICIPAL AND RUNOFF

ELECTIONS; DESCRIBING THE REGISTRATION BOOKS AND RECORDS

MAINTAINED UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF THE GENERAL LAWS OF

FLORIDA AND CHAPTER 16 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF MIAMI,

FLORIDA, AS AMENDED, WHICH THE CITY HAS ADOPTED AND DESIRES

TO USE FOR HOLDING SUCH GENERAL MUNICIPAL AND RUNOFF

ELECTIONS; DESIGNATING AND APPOINTING THE CITY CLERK AS THE

OFFICIAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE CITY COMMISSION WITH RESPECT

TO THE USE OF SUCH REGISTRATION BOOKS AND RECORDS; AND

DIRECTING THE CITY CLERK TO GIVE NOTICE BY PUBLICATION OF THE

ADOPTION OF THIS RESOLUTION AND THE PROVISIONS HEREOF.

Office of the City

Attorney

05-00385a-resolution.pdf

05-00385a-exhibit.pdf

05-00385a-email.pdf

Motion by Commissioner Regalado, seconded by Commissioner Allen, that this matter be

ADOPTED WITH MODIFICATIONS PASSED by the following vote.






Votes: Ayes: 3 - Commissioner González, Regalado and Allen

Absent: 2 - Commissioner Winton and Sanchez

R-05-0389

Vice Chairman González: All right. FR.4.

Commissioner Regalado: I move it.

Commissioner Allen: Second, Mr. Chairman.

Vice Chairman González: We have a motion and we have a second. All in favor, say "aye."

Jorge L. Fernández (City Attorney): Mr. Chairman, before you vote on that, just a minor

correction. We need to correct the address for the Supervisor of Elections in this item. This is a

minor correction, and just for the record to reflect that, accordingly.

Vice Chairman González: All right, so we have to --

Commissioner Allen: Correct -- which is --

Vice Chairman González: -- vote on it as amended, right?

Mr. Fernández: Yes, as amended --

Commissioner Allen: Section 5?

Mr. Fernández: -- and the Clerk understands what we have done.

Commissioner Allen: Section 5?


Vice Chairman González: All right, so Commissioner Allen, you accept the amendment, right?

Commissioner Allen: Yes, I second -- yes.

Vice Chairman González: Commissioner Regalado, you accepted the -- second the amendment?

Commissioner Regalado: Yes, sir.

Vice Chairman González: All right. All in favor, say "aye."


Vice Chairman González: Motion carries.

Item FR.4 is a companion item to Item FR.3



RESOLUTION

05-00527RE.1 RESOLUTION


ATTACHMENT(S), AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO ENTER INTO A

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF MIAMI

AND THE EMPLOYEE ORGANIZATION KNOWN AS THE FRATERNAL

ORDER OF POLICE, WALTER E. HEADLEY, JR., MIAMI LODGE NO. 20,

FOR THE PERIOD OF OCTOBER 1, 2004 THROUGH SEPTEMBER 30, 2005.

Department of

Employee Relations






Votes: Ayes: 4 - Commissioner Winton, Sanchez, Regalado and Allen

Absent: 1 - Commissioner González

R-05-0374

Chairman Sanchez: OK. Before we go into Barbara, can we take up the contract issue, and get

them out of here early? Can we do that? What item is that?

Commissioner Regalado: It's the contract issue.

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): Would that be RE.1?

Chairman Sanchez: I'm trying to get some of these items out of the way, so then we could --

Joe Arriola (City Manager): Yes.

Chairman Sanchez: -- fall in place. RE.1. All right. Can we go to --

Vice Chairman González: That's the police item?

Chairman Sanchez: Yes. RE.1. OK, and then, Barbara, I believe we'll go to you, yes. All right.

RE.1. OK. Are we ready with RE.1?

Mr. Arriola: We are.

Chairman Sanchez: OK. RE.1. is the collective bargaining agreement between the City of

Miami and the employee organization known as the Fraternal Order of Police.

Mr. Arriola: Yes.

Chairman Sanchez: OK.

Mr. Arriola: Before I present the contract, I would like to introduce to you the team that put this

whole thing together from both sides. I want to introduce Sergeant Armando Aguilar, president

of FOP (Fraternal Order of Police), Officer Carlos Avila, vice president, Sergeant Bill Scarola,

treasurer, and chaplain office, Tina Duncan. Al Cotera could not be with us today. From the

City side, we have Chief Frank Fernández, Sonja Walthour, William Rossi, and Elsa Jaramillo,

who could not be here; and from our side, Linda Haskins, wonderful attorney, Jorge Fernández,






and the woman that's probably lost more nights of sleep over this than anybody I could imagine,

Rosalie Mark, who's been doing this for the last couple years, and doesn't sleep and doesn't

really get enough consideration. Before I do anything, I want to congratulate this team. This

was a -- not only a labor of love, this was a labor of a lot of hard work. A lot of, a lot of hours

were put into this thing, and this was not easy. This is a -- the first contract that both parties

knew that had a -- we had a give-and-take, and everybody agreed to the give-and-take, and this

was a tremendous effort to get to the point we are today, to where we're going to present you

with a contract, and I just wanted to acknowledge the wonderful, wonderful work in this

incredible endeavor.

Chairman Sanchez: Thank you, Mr. City Manager. Is anyone from the City else -- is there

anyone else that would like to speak on the item? If not, Mr. President.

Armando Aguilar: Morning, Commissioners, Mr. Manager. Armando Aguilar, president, Miami

Fraternal Order of Police, 710 Southwest 12th Avenue. I also want to recognize the City's

administration. During this long process of endless hours of negotiations, we didn't always

agree, but we did it with the spirit of cooperation and professionalism, and I want to thank them

for that, and I look forward to the future years of prosperity for the City and the new contract

that we got to start negotiating again.

Mr. Arriola: OK.


Commissioner Allen: Does that --

Mr. Arriola: Having said that, let me go through this whole, little --

Commissioner Allen: Right. Does that --


Mr. Arriola: -- procedure, and we'll go, and I'll go through the bullet points with you, Mr.

Chairman. The negotiating team focus was addressing changes needed, both short- and

long-term for the employees, and for the City overall. Some of the key elements of the agreement

are as follow: the City was faced with an increased challenge in recruitment of qualified

individuals to be police officers because our wages lagged behind other cities in the labor

market. In an effort to position the City to be more competitive, we have agreed to the following

changes: we raised the salary range across-the-board by 4.5 percent; pay a one-time Florida

Department of Law Enforcement certification payment of $1,648 to all certified police officers

current and future. This certification payment recognizes the time and effort a police officer puts

into pursuing this career; higher experience certified police officers at a higher step in the pay

range, based on previous policing experience; two, not unlike government throughout the nation,

the City of Miami is experiencing the financial stress of increased costs in medical and

retirement benefits. The FOP membership has demonstrated the commitment to our city by

agreeing to the following key changes: one, share a greater portion of medical plan costs with

the administration; reduce the retirement BACDROP (BAC = electing to defer retirement back

no further than the employee's retirement eligibility date or the allowable time period. DROP =

Deferred Retirement Option Plan) not to exceed 12 months; eliminate bargain unit members'

ability to purchase three whole creditable service years; the elimination of five percent

retroactive salary increase upon retirement for bargain unit members hired after 10/31/1994.

That's basically the basic changes. We will go back to -- as our wonderful president said, we're

going back to the drawing board now. We wanted to put a contract on the table. We're going to

be working very hard -- as a matter of fact, we've had our first meeting. It was kind of a casual

meeting, but we kind of expressed our feelings, and we're going back and start the process again.



The Police Department employees have worked incredibly hard to restore excellent service to

our customers. They have reduced crime, and policed themselves, winning back the trust of our

citizens. There's more work to do, but we are on the right track. It is our desire that today you

will vote in favor of this agreement so that the City can continue on the path of creating the best

police force in the country. Again, I want to congratulate Armando and his staff for really taking

a lot of heat and coming forward with an agreement that we could all live with, and I -- of

course, my staff, who's been phenomenal.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Let's get a motion and a second for the purpose of discussion. Is

there a motion?

Commissioner Winton: So move.


Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion by Commissioner Winton, second by Commissioner Allen.

It is open for discussion. Commissioner Allen, you're recognized.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, well, just a perfunctory comment. I'm always in favor when there's

labor harmony, and I would hope that, going forth, we're able to come to an agreement because

a lot's happening in our city, so that goes to both parities we have. We've got to get this deal

done, guys, going forward, so we can at least have, perhaps, maybe a four- to five-year deal, so

we don't have to keep coming back to the bargaining table, and I think, in this instance, both

parties deserve a round of applause from my office, because I think you guys worked diligently in

the issues here that I heard that the City Manager has expounded on are right on point, and

hopefully that can please the officers in terms of going forward, so with that, I'll just conclude.

Thank you.


Commissioner Regalado: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I also want to congratulate the Manager's

team and FOP for reaching this agreement. We have been told, and we know now that in the

future we are going to have dozens of thousands of new residents, and the City is booming, and it

is, and I will say to them, to those who say that, look, we already have more people in the City,

just with the construction workers, working on buildings throughout the City, we have more

problem. We have a first-class police agency, but they are overworked. They are overwhelmed.

I know what is going on, at least in the area that I represent, and I know how hard these people

work; these officers, during the night, on Sunday, on Saturdays, and you know, there's something

that we need to be thinking about in the next budget process. We need more police officers, but

if you want a Gucci, you have to pay for it, unless you want to buy in the no-so-good place,

something that comes from China, so we need to be conscious that we need to raise the

standards in terms of salaries for the police officers. The only way to attract police officers is to

offer them a better salary, better working conditions, because you know, after all, Miami is and

will always be a city with serious problems, regardless of the crime down or statistics. This is a

major international city and we need police officer -- we need more police officers. You know,

people in my district will not talk about the need for police unless and until something is going

on in their block; there's a burglary; there is a car being stolen. Then they say that we do need

more police because they can even see them, so you know, I thank you, but I think it's a

responsibility of this body to look with the Administration and the union of what else we can do

to bring more police officers to this city. If we want more residents and we are getting more

residents, we need more police officers, and good police officers, and we need to raise the

standard. If we want to raise the bar for police officer, then we have to raise the salary, too.

Thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: OK, Commissioner Winton. No? As the Chair, I'll be very brief. I have



had the opportunity to sit on both sides of the table on this. As a former law enforcement officer,

I was the senior vice president of the Florida PBA (Police Benevolent Association) negotiated in

Tallahassee for the Florida Highway Patrol, and now, as a Commissioner, I have had the

opportunity to be at the other end of the table, and I could tell you this much, although I did not

sit in the meetings, I was kept abreast, as the Chair. I can honestly tell you that this was a very

respectable and very well smooth -- although they did not agree on all issues -- but it was

something that was done with professionalism and dignity, and it's something that we could all

be proud of, so I want to take the opportunity to thank all those who labored and put so many

hours to try to work an agreement out that really sets the tone for the future of the City of Miami.

Now, having said that, I want to state something, that I do believe that the greatest resource that

we have in this city is the employees of this city. It is the firefighters, the police, Solid Waste.

From the person who cleans our floor, to the person who is out there writing resolutions or

ordinance, the City is only as good as the people that represent us, and it's very important that

we work with them to try to find an agreement when it comes to labor disputes. However, I

implore and I challenge the unions to address a concern that we all have, and that, of course, is

the pension issue. I would sit here and support anyone being competitive and earning a good

living because they deserve it. However, we must look at the future of the goose that lays the

golden egg, and we must protect it. Having said that, I congratulate you, and is there a motion?

There's already a motion --

Vice Chairman González: We already got --

Commissioner Winton: We already did.

Chairman Sanchez: -- and a second.

Vice Chairman González: We already --

Chairman Sanchez: Motion was made by Commissioner --


Chairman Sanchez: -- Winton, second by Commissioner Allen. Any discussion on the item?

Hearing none, roll call.

Ms. Thompson: Roll call.


Ms. Thompson: The resolution is passed, 4/0.

Chairman Sanchez: Congratulations.

Mr. Aguilar: Thank you, Commissioner.

Applause.



BOARDS AND COMMITTEES

05-00396BC.1 RESOLUTION

A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION APPOINTING

THE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION AS

CHAIRPERSONS, VICE-CHAIRPERSONS AND/OR MEMBERS ON

VARIOUS TRUSTS, AUTHORITIES, BOARDS, COMMITTEES AND

AGENCIES FOR TERMS AS DESIGNATED HEREIN.

APPOINTED AS CHAIRPERSON:

Chairman Joe Sanchez is appointed Chairperson of the Bayfront Park

Management Trust.

Commissioner Johnny L. Winton is appointed Chairperson of the

Downtown Development Authority.

Vice Chairman Angel González is appointed Chairperson of the Orange

Bowl Advisory Board.


Midtown Community Redevelopment Agency.

Commissioner Johnny L. Winton is appointed Chairperson of the OMNI

Community Redevelopment Agency.


Southeast Overtown/Park West Community Redevelopment Agency.

APPOINTED AS VICE CHAIRPERSON:

Chairman Joe Sanchez is appointed Vice Chairperson of the Mayor's

International Council.

Commissioner Jeffery Allen is appointed Vice Chairperson of the

Midtown Community Redevelopment Agency.

Commissioner Jeffery Allen is appointed Vice Chairperson of the OMNI

Community Redevelopment Agency.

Commissioner Jeffery Allen is appointed Vice Chairperson of the

Southeast Overtown/Park West Community Redevelopment Agency.

Commissioner Tomas Regalado is appointed Vice Chairperson of the

Miami Sports and Exhibition Authority.

APPOINTED AS MEMBER:

Office of the City

Clerk



Vice Chairman Angel González is appointed as a member of the

Commercial Solid Waste Management Advisory Committee.

Commissioner Tomas Regalado is appointed as a member of the Dade

County Visitors Industry Voluntary Education Service Training Trust.

Chairman Joe Sanchez is appointed as a member of the Dade League of

Cities.

Commissioner Regalado is appointed as a member of the Enterprise

Zone Advisory Council.

Chairman Joe Sanchez is appointed as a member of the Florida League

of Cities.

Mayor Manuel Diaz is appointed as a member of the Greater Miami

Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Chairman Joe Sanchez is appointed as a member of the Metro Dade

Community Action Board.

Commissioner Johnny L. Winton is appointed as a member of the

Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO).

Chairman Joe Sanchez is appointed as an ex-officio, nonvoting member

of the Miami-Dade HIV/AIDS Partnership.

Chairman Joe Sanchez is appointed as a member of the Miami River

Commission.

Vice Chairman Angel González is appointed as a member of the Tourism

Development Council.

05-00396 current members.doc

05-00396 memo.pdf




R-05-0392

Direction to the City Clerk by Commissioner Regalado to contact the Dade County Visitors

Industry Voluntary Educational Service Training Trust to find out why it never sent him any

notices of its meetings.

Direction to the City Clerk by Vice Chairman González to contact the Enterprise Zone Advisory

Council to find out why it never sent him any notices of its meetings.



http://egov.ci.miami.fl.us/Legistarweb/Attachments/14070.doc




Chairman Sanchez: We go to board appointments. Let's go.

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): Commissioner --

Chairman Sanchez: You know what I think the problem is, we didn't have any Cuban coffee.

Nerves are starting to get --

Vice Chairman González: And I think you're out of luck because my secretary left already, so --

Chairman Sanchez: So we're out of luck. OK. Board appointments. Commissioner Allen.

Ms. Thompson: Chair --


Ms. Thompson: If I might, please. Are you going to start with BC.1?

Chairman Sanchez: I -- where's my list? I don't have it.

Ms. Thompson: BC.1 is this one that covers all the boards and committees where our

Mayor/Commissioners sit.

Chairman Sanchez: Oh, my God. When are we going to start doing away with some of these

boards? BC.1. All right.

Ms. Thompson: If I might, I just want to call to your attention. I needed to make an amendment

or a modification to what you have before you, OK. We need to add under the category, where

you have appointed as Vice Chairperson, we need to add the Mayor's International Council.

Right now, our Chairman Sanchez is serving as the Vice Chair, and we need to delete one board,

where it's appointed as a member, and that would be the South Florida Employment and

Training Consortium. We've been advised that that is the same board as the workforce board, so

that we don't need at all.

Chairman Sanchez: Let me simplify the process here. Is there of the Commissioners that want to

be removed from any of the boards you're serving? If not, can we just make one motion to

reappoint everybody right back instead of going independently one by one?

Ms. Thompson: Yes.




Commissioner Regalado: Mr. Chairman, one question.

Chairman Sanchez: There is --

Commissioner Regalado: Priscilla.

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner Regalado, there is a motion and a second to reappoint all



the Chairmans [sic] that are currently appointed to the boards.

Commissioner Winton: With the modification as read into the record by the City Clerk.

Chairman Sanchez: Absolutely.

Commissioner Regalado: OK. You're talking Chairman and Vice Chairman, right?

Ms. Thompson: And members.

Commissioner Regalado: I'm sorry?

Ms. Thompson: And you all -- some of you also serve as members to these boards.



Commissioner Regalado: That was my question. Which one of these I am a member, Tourist

Development Council?

Ms. Thompson: Just let me look through the list, please. Miami Sports and Exhibition Authority,

you're the vice chairperson.

Commissioner Regalado: Yeah, yeah, but I'm talking about the other outside of the City boards,

like Greater Miami Conventions and Visitors, Metro-Dade Community Action Board,

Metropolitan Planning Organization.

Ms. Thompson: What I have is Dade County Visitors' Industry, Voluntary Educational Service

Training Trust. I have you as a member there.

Commissioner Regalado: OK, I am a member there since like, I don't know. My point is that I

have never, ever received any notice of any meeting. I don't even know if that thing exists

anymore.

Ms. Thompson: I have not gotten anything from the board saying that they don't. When we

make our appointments, we usually notify those boards who our appointments are and we just go

from there.

Commissioner Regalado: But they never notice their meeting, and so if they -- if they don't want

me there, might as well take me because I don't -- you know, I don't even understand what is that,

so I just don't want to be -- you know, just to have the name there. They never contact the City,

and --

Commissioner Winton: Who is this group?

Commissioner Regalado: I have no idea, but the worst thing is -- I think it's a County entity --

the worst thing is that they represent that the City Of Miami is represented, and we -- I have

never been notified ever of one meeting.

Commissioner Winton: So maybe --

Commissioner Regalado: And that's my point.

Commissioner Winton: Maybe you could ask the Clerk to find out if that --



Commissioner Regalado: Yeah, find out --

Commissioner Winton: -- entity exists and what their (UNINTELLIGIBLE) is.

Commissioner Regalado: -- because -- not that I want to go there. It's just that maybe they say

the City of Miami is represented, but they never advise the City.

Commissioner Winton: So, Madam Clerk, would you find out?

Ms. Thompson: Yes, I'll check on that and get back with you on that.

Commissioner Winton: Thank you. Motion and a second.

Vice Chairman González: I second your motion, but I also have a question. I remember that

about a year and a half ago, maybe two years ago, Commissioner Teele nominated me to the

Enterprise Zone Advisory Council. It shows on my page here that the --

Commissioner Winton: Seat is vacant.

Vice Chairman González: -- seat is vacant, but in addition to that, I was never notified of any

meeting.

Commissioner Regalado: That's what I'm saying.

Vice Chairman González: I was never called to my meeting.

Commissioner Regalado: That's what I'm saying.

Vice Chairman González: And maybe --

Commissioner Winton: But that entity does exist.

Vice Chairman González: We don't have anybody sitting at this board. If this board is

functioning or it hasn't been dissolved or whatever, we need to find out what's going on with this

board at the County --


Vice Chairman González: -- and, in fact, if it is working, then we need to have someone there to

represent the City.

Commissioner Winton: So I would further modify my motion to include Commissioner González

as our representative to the Enterprise Zone Advisory Council.

Commissioner Regalado: Yeah, but find out about this board --

Commissioner Winton: Yeah, she'll find out.

Commissioner Regalado: -- because they represent, they represent themselves as saying --

Commissioner Winton: Yeah, I know.

Commissioner Regalado: -- "Oh, we have a City of Miami --



Commissioner Winton: I agree.

Commissioner Regalado: -- representative” --

Commissioner Winton: And so we --

Commissioner Regalado: -- and we never go there because we never --

Commissioner Winton: And we could direct the City Clerk to find out if -- find out what their

schedule is for this group, and make sure that "they" get us on their notice schedule.

Vice Chairman González: All right, so we have a motion and a second to approve the

nominations to the different boards --

Commissioner Winton: As modified.

Vice Chairman González: -- as modified. All in favor, say "aye."


Vice Chairman González: All opposed have the same right. Motion carries.



CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS AS MEMBERS OF THE ARTS AND

ENTERTAINMENT COUNCIL FOR TERMS AS DESIGNATED HEREIN.

APPOINTEES: NOMINATED BY:

Felice Dubin Vice Chairman Angel González

Nikki Ann Rollason Commissioner Jeffery Allen

Office of the City

Clerk

05-00400 members.doc

05-00400 memo.pdf

Motion by Commissioner Allen, seconded by Commissioner Regalado, that this matter be




R-05-0393

A motion was made by Commissioner González, seconded by Commissioner Allen, and was

passed unanimously, to appoint Felice Dubin as a member of the Arts and Entertainment

Council.

A motion was made by Chairman Sanchez, seconded by Commissioner Allen, and was passed

unanimously, with Commissioner Winton absent, to defer the nomination to be made by

Chairman Sanchez for a member of the Arts and Entertainment Council.





A motion was made by Commissioner Allen, seconded by Commissioner Regalado, and was

passed unanimously, with Commissioner Winton absent, to appoint Nikki Ann Rollason as a

member of the Arts and Entertainment Council.

Vice Chairman González: BC.2. I do have an appointment, I believe, is that right, Madam City

Clerk?

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): Yes, sir, you do.

Vice Chairman González: OK, I will reappoint Felice Dubin. Do I have a second?

Commissioner Regalado: I'll second.

Commissioner Allen: I'll second. Yes.

Vice Chairman González: OK. We have a motion and a second. All in favor, say "aye."


Vice Chairman González: OK. Chairman Sanchez has one appointment.

Chairman Sanchez: For what?

Vice Chairman González: For the Arts and Entertainment Council.

Chairman Sanchez: Arts and Entertainment Council, I will --

Vice Chairman González: You have Luis Palomo.

Chairman Sanchez: Who do I have, Luis Palomo?

Ms. Thompson: You have a vacancy right now.

Chairman Sanchez: He's no longer a member?

Ms. Thompson: No.

Chairman Sanchez: Luis Palomo is no longer a member?

Ms. Thompson: I'm sorry.

Vice Chairman González: You have a second nomination.

Ms. Thompson: Let me explain what happened. When the member -- the chairmanship changed,

we had -- the former chair had two --

Chairman Sanchez: All right, I'll make it very simple for you.

Ms. Thompson: Thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: I'll reappoint Luis Palomo and defer the other.

Ms. Thompson: He's already appointed, so you do --

Chairman Sanchez: He's already -- so I will make -- I'll defer.



Ms. Thompson: OK.

Vice Chairman González: OK. We have a motion to defer.


Vice Chairman González: We have a second. All in favor, say "aye."


Vice Chairman González: Commissioner Allen has one nomination.

Commissioner Allen: Yes. I nominate Nikki Ann Rollason as a new appointee.

Vice Chairman González: OK. We have a motion. Do we have a second?


Vice Chairman González: And we have a second. All in favor, say "aye."





CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS AS MEMBERS OF THE EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

ADVISORY BOARD FOR TERMS AS DESIGNATED HEREIN.


Chairman Joe Sanchez

Commissioner Tomas Regalado

Office of the City

Clerk


05-00401 memo.pdf

DEFERRED

A motion was made by Chairman Sanchez, seconded by Commissioner Allen, and was passed

unanimously, with Commissioner Winton absent, to defer the nomination pending to be made by

Chairman Sanchez for a member of the Equal Opportunity Advisory Board.

A motion was made by Commissioner Regalado, seconded by Commissioner Allen, and was

passed unanimously, with Commissioner Winton absent, to defer the nomination pending to be

made by Commissioner Regalado for a member of the Equal Opportunity Advisory Board.

Vice Chairman González: All right. BC.3, Equal Opportunity Advisory Board. Commissioner

Sanchez has one nomination.





Chairman Sanchez: Defer.


Vice Chairman González: OK. We have a motion to defer and a second. All in favor, say "aye."


Vice Chairman González: Commissioner Regalado has one nomination.

Commissioner Regalado: Defer to the next one.

Vice Chairman González: We have a motion for deferral. Do we have --


Vice Chairman González: -- a second? And we have a second. All in favor, say "aye."



A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION APPOINTING AN

INDIVIDUAL AS A MEMBER OF THE HEALTH FACILITIES AUTHORITY

BOARD FOR A TERM AS DESIGNATED HEREIN.

APPOINTEE: NOMINATED BY:

Marcelino Feal Commissioner Tomas Regalado

Office of the City

Clerk


05-00402 memo.pdf





R-05-0394

Vice Chairman González: Health facility and authority board. Commissioner Regalado, you

have one appointment.

Commissioner Regalado: Dr. Marcelino Feal.



Vice Chairman González: We have a motion and we have a second. All in favor, say "aye."









CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS AS MEMBERS OF THE HISTORIC AND

ENVIRONMENTAL PRESERVATION BOARD FOR TERMS AS

DESIGNATED HEREIN.


Anthony R. Parrish, Jr. Commissioner Johnny Winton

(for Business, Finance, or Law category)

Jane Caporelli Commissioner Johnny Winton

(for Citizen category)

Lourdes Solera Chairman Joe Sanchez

(for Restoration Architect category)

Enid A. Lorenzo Commissioner Tomas Regalado

(for Citizen category)

Gary A. Appel Commissioner Jeffery Allen

(for Real Estate Broker category)

Gerald Marston Commissioner Jeffery Allen

(for Landscape Architect category)

Office of the City

Clerk


05-00403-applications.pdf

05-00403 memo.pdf





R-05-0395

Vice Chairman González: BC.6 -- 5, Historic and Environmental Preservation Board.

Chairman Sanchez: I believe I have one, and it's --

Commissioner Regalado: I have one.

Commissioner Allen: And I have one, as well.

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): OK. On BC.5, we only have -- I'm sorry. We have a

number of them. We have Commissioner González. Commissioner González has two,

Commissioner Winton has two, Commissioner Sanchez has two; Commissioner Regalado, two,






and Commissioner Allen, two, so there are a number of them that needs to be made.


Vice Chairman González: Well, I will defer mine.


Commissioner Regalado: Why don't we say all --

Vice Chairman González: Yeah, why don't we do all of them.

Commissioner Allen: Collectively, yeah.

Commissioner Regalado: I have -- Mr. Chairman, I have one appointment for the category of

citizen, Anid Lorenzo.


Chairman Sanchez: All right. I have one, Lourdes Solera. She's an incumbent.


Commissioner Allen: And I will reappoint the two incumbents, Gary Appel and Gerald Marston.

Chairman Sanchez: And Commissioner Winton, who left, asked me to reappoint both of his,

which are Anthony Parish and Jane Caporeli.

Vice Chairman González: All right. We have a motion --


Vice Chairman González: -- to approve the names proffered, and we also have a motion to defer

some of the appointments, so we heard a second?


Vice Chairman González: And we have a second. All in favor, say "aye."





INDIVIDUAL AS A MEMBER OF THE PARKS ADVISORY BOARD FOR A

TERM AS DESIGNATED HEREIN.


Chairman Joe Sanchez

Office of the City

Clerk



05-00411 memo.pdf

05-00411-resignation cabanas.pdf

05-00411-resignation Seijas.pdf

05-00411 members.pdf

DEFERRED

A motion was made by Chairman Sanchez, seconded by Commissioner Regalado, and was

passed unanimously, with Commissioner Winton absent, to defer item BC.6.

Direction to the City Clerk by Vice Chairman González to check and follow up on resignation

letter from Victor Seijas as a member of the Parks Advisory Board.

Vice Chairman González: BC.6, Parks Advisory Board.

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): Commissioner Sanchez.

Chairman Sanchez: Parks Advisory Board. Who do I have there as an incumbent?

Ms. Thompson: Ileana Cabanas, she resigned, so you actually have a vacancy.

Chairman Sanchez: Defer.

Vice Chairman González: OK, we have a motion to defer --


Vice Chairman González: -- and we have a second. All in favor, say "aye."


Vice Chairman González: Motion carries. By the way, Madam City Clerk, my appointment on

that board sent me a letter back in November telling me that he could not serve on the board

because of his business obligations, and he told me that he had notified you, and I reappointed

him again in, I think it was in April, and he sent me a second letter. Have you received a letter

from Victor Cejas, Jr?

Ms. Thompson: I'll have to check, sir.


Ms. Thompson: I'll check --

Vice Chairman González: Would you please check on that?

Ms. Thompson: Yes.

Vice Chairman González: All right. Thank you very much, because I would need to appoint

someone else the next meeting.

Ms. Thompson: Thank you.



INDIVIDUAL AS A MEMBER OF THE CIVILIAN INVESTIGATIVE PANEL

FOR A TERM AS DESIGNATED HEREIN.

Office of the City

Clerk








Timothy C. Moore Civilian Investigative Panel

05-00475 memo.pdf

05-00475-nominations.pdf


05-00475-resignation.pdf

Motion by Commissioner Allen, seconded by Chairman Sanchez, that this matter be




R-05-0396

Vice Chairman González: BC.7, Civilian Investigative Panel. We have one appointment at

large.

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): The committee has proffered a name, and they would just

like the Commission to approve that appointment -- that recommendation.

Commissioner Allen: That name is a Timothy Moore.

Ms. Thompson: Yes.

Vice Chairman González: OK. Do we have a motion on that?

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, I'll make a motion to --

Chairman Sanchez: Second.

Vice Chairman González: OK. We have a motion from Timothy C. Moore, and we have a

second. All in favor, say "aye."


Vice Chairman González: Motion carries. OK. That's it.







DISCUSSION ITEMS

05-00384DI.1 DISCUSSION ITEM

DISCUSSION CONCERNING A FINANCIAL UPDATE AND A BUDGET

OUTLOOK.

Office of Strategic

Planning,

Budgeting, and

Performance /

Department of

Finance

05-00384-memo.pdf

DISCUSSED

Chairman Sanchez: Let's go ahead and go with DI.1, which is a financial update on budget

outlook, and then we'll go ahead with D1-- DI.3 and DI.4, and then we'll go into the supplement,

and then we'll go to the board and committee appointments, and we should be done. All right,

sir, you're recognized.

Larry Spring: Very quickly. Larry Spring, chief of Strategic Planning, Budgeting and

Performance. The action taken by this Commission at the last meeting appropriating midyear

appropriation address all pending budget forecast deficits, so at this time, we have no reportable

conditions. I would only put on the record that we continue to monitor overtime, and I think I

put that on the record last meeting in regards -- in our Fire Department, and no other items to

report at this time.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Thank you very much.


DISCUSSION CONCERNING A WORKSHOP MEETING WITH THE

EXTERNAL AUDITORS TO REVIEW THE FINDINGS AND

RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE ANNUAL AUDIT.

Department of

Finance


05-00487-pre ordinance.pdf

City of Miami CAFR FY 2004.pdf

DISCUSSED

Direction to the Administration by Chairman Sanchez to schedule a meeting with him, the

Finance Director and the external auditors to review the findings and recommendations in the

annual audit.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Scott, we'll go ahead and take up your item, which is D1.2 [sic],

and it's a discussion item.

Scott Simpson: Thank you. Scott Simpson, Finance Department. We're here today in

accordance with the financial integrity audit -- ordinance, which requires a presentation of the

results of operations for the fiscal year, which are encapsulated in the City's Comprehensive --

Commissioner Winton: Where is D1.2?

Mr. Simpson: -- Annual Finance Report --







Chairman Sanchez: D1.2 [sic].

Commissioner Winton: Where is it? I mean --

Mr. Simpson: -- management letter --

Commissioner Winton: -- I've got everything --

Mr. Simpson: -- and single audit.

Commissioner Winton: It's after --

Commissioner Winton: D --

Chairman Sanchez: -- the Board Appointments.

Commissioner Allen: D1.2.

Chairman Sanchez: It's page 25.

Commissioner Winton: Oh, page 25.

Commissioner Allen: What's the issue again, I'm sorry?

Mr. Simpson: It's the annual presentation of the results of operation for the fiscal year.

Commissioner Regalado: No, page 25 is SR.4.

Commissioner Allen: On smart growth, is that what you said?

Commissioner Winton: Got it.

Mr. Simpson: We're representing our financial results for the fiscal year.

Commissioner Allen: Oh, right.

Mr. Simpson: Yeah, only the results, and it's required by the integrity ordinance. We have Jerry

Chiocca, who's the engagement partner from Rachlin Cohen, and Susan Friend, who's a

principal with Rachlin Cohen, to discuss the financials. We have additional copies, in the event

that you would like one available.

Jerry Chiocca: Thank you, Scott. For the record, my name is Jerry Chiocca, from the firm of

Rachlin Cohen & Holtz. My business address is 1 Southeast 3rd Avenue, 10th floor, Miami

33131. Susan Friend is at the same address, also. Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman, members of

the Commission. I'm here to present the first annual financial report presented -- prepared by

our firm. Brief overview of the financial statement is as follows: It is divided into four sections.

The first section is the introductory section. It includes the chart of principal officers, letter of

transmittal, organization chart, and certificate of achievement, and reporting for financial

statements. The second section is the financial section. This section includes the auditors'

reports, management's discussion and analysis, which is the discussion of the City and the results

of its operations, which is similar to what is provided in SEC (U.S. Securities and Exchange

Commission) and commercial reports. The basic financial statements required supplementary

information, and combining an individual fund financial statements. The statistical section

includes trends of information, various financial and operating results. The final section is the

compliance section, which is government-required auditing standard reports. The auditors are



responsible for the financial and compliance section, and that's where I'll talk about today, and

staff handles the introductory and statistical section. If you have your books in front of you and

you go to the tab that says "financial section," the first section is the Independent Auditor's

report. It says we've audited the financial statements of the City of Miami, except for, obviously,

the components were audited by other auditors. It says we've conducted our audits in

accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States, and the third

paragraph, it expresses our opinion that, based on our audit and the audit of the other auditors,

the financial statements presented, present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position

of the governmental activities in each major fund, and the respective changes in financial

position for the year then ended September 30, 2004. If you jump to page 17 for a moment --

Commissioner Allen: Seventeen?

Mr. Chiocca: Yes, sir. -- that's the statement of revenues, expenditures, and changes in fund

balance. It shows all six columns of your governmental funds, and I'm just going to talk about

the general fund, which is in the first column, which is the primary operating fund of the City.

Revenues for the year -- see in the left column -- was a little over $370 million; expenditures of

$395 million; other financing sources of $20.462 million; had a net change of $5 million to the

negative. If you'll recall, when you -- in your budget process, you budgeted to use approximately

$36.1 million in fund balance, so you did $31 million better than you anticipated. Your ending

fund balance was $136.8 million, so in the budget process, you knew you were going to go into

that, and you didn't go into all of it, which was very good on your part. Page 15 is the balance

sheet. Again, we'll concentrate on the general fund for a moment. Total assets of $184.4

million; liabilities of $47.6 million, and net assets of $136.8 million, and you'll see that the net

assets are broken into three categories: reserved, unreserved, and/or designated or

undesignated. Designated unreserved was $39.1 million, which represents the amount of surplus

that was used for the balancing of the 2005 budget. Designation for strategic initiatives of $1.64

million, which are amounts appropriated in future years for certain projects that you have on the

bulletin board. Finally, designation for management initiative of $53.2 million, which amounts

are appropriated future years for specific projects that management has approved to set aside in

accordance with the City's Financial Integrity Ordinance. Finally, you have unreserved and

undesignated fund balance of $39.3 million, which is available to meet the future needs of the

City. This amount is equal to ten percent of the average City revenues for the past three years,

2002 to 2004. This amount is also equal to about nine percent of the 2005 budget of $446

million, so from that standpoint, that's a good position to be in. Most cities are about right

where (UNINTELLIGIBLE) and they consider it to be good financial.

Chairman Sanchez: Which is nine percent?

Mr. Chiocca: Nine percent. Page 13 is the statement of net assets. This is a citywide statement

that shows all of the assets of the City on a combined basis. You'll see that total assets are

$1.363 billion; liabilities of $692 million, and net assets of $671 million. Normally, in most

cities, the investment and capital assets is your largest number. That's your buildings, your

roads, your infrastructure, and here it's no difference; you have $586 million of infrastructure in

net assets. Finally, last, but not least, there's our other report section in the back, certain letters

I'm required to discuss with you. The first are on page 127, is the report of CPAs (Certified

Public Accountants) on internal control and financial reporting.

Commissioner Winton: What page is that?


Mr. Chiocca: 127.

Commissioner Winton: Well, let us get that.



Mr. Chiocca: Way in the back, under the tab that says "other reports."

Commissioner Winton: We don't have tabs.

Commissioner Allen: Which page again, sir?

Mr. Chiocca: Don't have tabs?


Mr. Chiocca: 127.

Commissioner Allen: I got it.

Chairman Sanchez: That's the internal control of finance --

Mr. Chiocca: Yes.


Chairman Sanchez: -- reporting, right?

Mr. Chiocca: Yes, it is, sir.


Mr. Chiocca: What it says here, regarding internal control of finance reporting and compliance

and other matters, we've noticed one item that we need to bring to your attention is a reportable

condition, and we'll talk about that in a few minutes. In the area of compliance, based on our

tests, there's no --

Chairman Sanchez: Hold on, hold on.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, let me --

Chairman Sanchez: They're reported conditions.

Mr. Chiocca: One condition that we'll talk about in a minute.

Chairman Sanchez: Oh, of course.

Commissioner Allen: Oh, OK.

Mr. Chiocca: Because it's at the back of your report.

Chairman Sanchez: All right, because that's part of the initiative of the letters, for you to inform

us --

Mr. Chiocca: Absolutely.

Chairman Sanchez: -- any reported conditions or anything outside of the norm.

Mr. Chiocca: Absolutely.




Mr. Chiocca: Just didn't get to it, yet, sir.

Chairman Sanchez: I apologize.

Mr. Chiocca: I want to finish the rest of the report; otherwise, I'll lose my place. On page 128,

it says -- I'm sorry.

Commissioner Allen: You're going over this. I hate to interrupt, but --

Mr. Chiocca: Sure. No, go ahead.

Commissioner Allen: -- page 127, let's go to the first paragraph there, where you guys did not

audit financial statements, but yet, you know --

Mr. Chiocca: Of the component units.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah. Are you saying that the Employees' Retirement Trust represents 90

percent, and 75 percent, respectively, of the aggregate remaining fund information, or are you

including all those other agencies in conjunction with the Employees' Retirement Trust?

Mr. Chiocca: No, no, no, no.

Commissioner Allen: You see how that's worded? I don't --

Mr. Chiocca: We audited the aggregate remaining fund information. These funds -- these

component units and pension plans were audited by other auditors, and they've supplied their

reports to us.

Commissioner Allen: OK, right, but -- so, does this -- so, can you single out and say that -- are

they saying that the Employees' Retirement Trust represents 90 percent or, rather, 75 percent --

Mr. Chiocca: Yes.

Commissioner Allen: -- or that the balance of all these other --

Mr. Chiocca: No, no --

Commissioner Allen: -- agencies constitute --

Mr. Chiocca: -- just of the -- 90 percent of all the remaining information, all the information,

and not just the pension plans.


Mr. Chiocca: Yes.

Commissioner Allen: All the information, and respectively, 75 percent --

Mr. Chiocca: Yes.

Commissioner Allen: -- on the -- OK.

Mr. Chiocca: Yes.




Mr. Chiocca: OK. On page 128, based on our tests, we have no instances of noncompliance,

which have to be brought to you [sic] attention today. Again, we still have the one reportable

condition to talk about. On page 129 is our management letter. It says, in item number 1,

corrective actions have been taken to address significant findings made in the proceeding

financial audit, except as reported in the company schedule of prior audit findings. The City, on

page 130, was in compliance with the investment of public funds. Also, on item number 4,

during the course of our audit, nothing came to our attention that the City was in violation of any

laws, rules or regulations; made any improper or illegal expenditures that were discovered

within the scope of our audit; had any deficiencies in internal control, except as reported in the

back of the book; failed to properly record financial transactions; did not have any inaccuracies

or shortages of defalcation, but the point -- one point I want to bring out on 6a, the City, during

the year 2004, was not, and I repeat, was not in a state of financial emergency, as defined by the

Florida Statutes. In addition, based on our analysis of financial condition assessment, which is

another requirement of the Auditor General of the State of Florida, there were no findings that

identified any deterring financial condition at this point in time. Let me jump over on page 139,

the major finding this year has to do -- in cash, there was a payroll bank reconciliation that was

not in agreement with the amounts reflected on the books and records.

Vice Chairman González: Excuse me. What page?

Mr. Chiocca: Page 139, sir. Sorry.

Chairman Sanchez: 139?

Mr. Chiocca: 139.


Mr. Chiocca: There was a discrepancy on the bank reconciliation in the books. We brought it to

staff's attention; they revised their analysis of how they're going to reconcile the account, and

made the appropriate entry. I believe you have already passed a policy supporting that action

previous meeting. There are other items that we brought to your attention that -- what we

consider other matters, nothing that rises to the level of reportable condition to you today.

Anybody has any questions? That ends our report.

Chairman Sanchez: On the re -- does anybody have any question on this, because I sure do?

Commissioner Allen: On the report -- before I think about it and everything, I just want to ask,

you do have substantive knowledge as to -- well, I guess you wouldn't on some of these audits,

but -- because I don't know whether or not you'd be the person to ask the question of. I'm just

concerned about something and -- so, do you have substantive knowledge on the --

Mr. Chiocca: I believe Scott can answer, if I can't answer it.

Commissioner Allen: All right, all right.

Mr. Chiocca: What's the -- yeah.

Commissioner Allen: I'll defer to -- while I'm thinking about this.

Mr. Chiocca: OK.



Chairman Sanchez: All right. It's very simple. This audit, what you provide to us, is any

reportable conditions or anything outside of the norm --

Mr. Chiocca: Correct.

Chairman Sanchez: -- with suggestions how to address them and correct them. You've stated

there were conditions, but apparently, I only heard one condition, and that is the -- on the

reportable condition on the cash.

Mr. Chiocca: There's only one reportable condition on the cash. There are other matters --

Commissioner Winton: That's fabulous.

Mr. Chiocca: -- which were not substantive enough, but we do point them out, reconciling

capital assets and doing things that were not sufficiently important to be called a reportable

condition. These items had already been resolved moving forward.

Mr. Simpson: One of the items also on the management letter, the very last comment for the

current year, is in regards to GASB (Government Accounting Standard Board) 45 retirement --

accounting for -- other place retirement benefits. We've alluded to this in the past. That is going

to be a sizable liability for the future.

Commissioner Allen: That's what I wanted, right.

Mr. Simpson: Right. The GASB implementation for the City is going to be a Phase I

implementation, which means for fiscal 2 -- I'm sorry, go ahead.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. You were answering Commissioner Sanchez's

question.

Mr. Simpson: Right.

Commissioner Allen: I just have a follow up.

Mr. Simpson: So, for --

Chairman Sanchez: Well, listen, I'm no genius when it comes to this, but I could tell you this

much, as a Commissioner here -- and I always state this -- the fiduciary responsibility that I have

and the company that we're paying -- and I think we've learned from the past that it is their

responsibility, under the guidelines that regulate their business, that they do this report and they

provide to us -- and the questions that I always ask, which gives us -- protects us from liability, is

that this company needs to state on the record, to us, any reportable conditions, and anything

that's out of the norm. That's what I want to hear from your company because if, later on down

the pike, we hire another company and there's something else that doesn't --

Mr. Chiocca: Jive.

Chairman Sanchez: In other words, you know --

Commissioner Allen: Pass muster.

Chairman Sanchez: -- it doesn't cut the mustard here, I will be very concerned with, so I want to

make sure that, sir, you state on the record any reportable conditions that need to be brought to

our attention so we could address them now, and you've only stated that there's one.



Mr. Chiocca: For the record, there is only one reportable condition that rises up to an item that

has to be brought to your attention, absolutely, Mr. Commissioner.

Chairman Sanchez: And that is --

Mr. Chiocca: On the area on reconciling --

Chairman Sanchez: -- on Section 2, financial statements finding, which is a reportable condition

--

Mr. Chiocca: 04-1.

Chairman Sanchez: -- based on 04-01, which is --

Mr. Chiocca: Yes.

Chairman Sanchez: -- cash.

Mr. Chiocca: Yes.

Chairman Sanchez: Has that problem been addressed --

Mr. Chiocca: Yes.

Chairman Sanchez: -- by the City?

Mr. Chiocca: And also by you.


Commissioner Allen: Right. OK. Mr. Chairman, just a quick question. As you know, this isn't

necessarily sexy stuff here. I personally do understand financial statements, but since this is an

open public hearing and we're on Net-9, let me have you turn to page 127, so it can be crystal

clear for those who don't necessarily follow this, because I'd like you to just sort of put this in

laymen's term, in terms of the overall budget, as it relates to my question earlier, these various

agencies that submitted their audited financial statements to you, and then, thus, you made a

correlation as to the overall fund and what that would represent in the way of a percentage,

particularly on page 127. Could you put that in laymen terms, what exactly that means for the

public? You know, the Employees' Retirement Trust, Police Officers' Retirement Trust, which

represent 90 -- 75 percent of the assets and revenues of the aggregate remaining fund

information.

Mr. Chiocca: These are component units, nonmajor component units of the City of Miami, as

well as the pension trust fund that the City has hired other outside auditors to audit and report

on in separate financial statements. Their financial statements are rolled up into this in the

column that says “component units,” as well as other places in the financial statements. What

this is saying is this amount here, these funds here represent 90 percent of the assets of the

aggregate fund remaining fund information, not the general fund, not CRA (Community

Redevelopment Agency), not the other funds, and 95 -- 75 percent of the aggregate remaining

fund information of those right there.

Commissioner Allen: Did you want to weigh in?

Mr. Simpson: No.



Mr. Chiocca: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) --

Commissioner Allen: Expound on that?

Mr. Chiocca: -- explain it better.


Mr. Chiocca: And we rely, obviously --

Commissioner Allen: Does -- well, let me just ask you --

Mr. Chiocca: -- we rely on their auditor's report.

Commissioner Allen: Does that have -- would that have -- for example, if Joe Q. Public wanted

to find out, does that have a bearing going forth on the general fund, based on what you've just

said, yes or no, and any -- could you put that on the record, and make it perfect -- crystal clear.

Mr. Chiocca: I'm not sure I understand the question.

Commissioner Allen: Well, if someone just reads this and they would think that, perhaps, this

might have some impact on future allocations, and this would absorb a great portion of our

annual budget because of these annual charges that we must fund and that sort of thing, just to

get a full understanding of this.

Mr. Simpson: No.

Commissioner Allen: Because, bear in mind, now we're also involved in negotiations with labor

unions; that's why I want to make it crystal clear to everyone what this means.

Mr. Simpson: No, it does not have any impact on the general fund, because our individual

general fund has been audited by them, and it's subjected to auditing standards under GAS

(Government Accounting Standard). What they're doing is they're laying out, saying that other

report -- this firm audited this percentage of these funds; the other firms' auditors audited these

other firms, segregating what they're aligned to in the internal control related to the City that

they, personally, put their procedures to.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Scott, this is a discussion item. There's no -- we're not voting on

this.

Mr. Simpson: Right.

Chairman Sanchez: This is just a discussion item, OK. I would like to meet with you later on,

during the week, to go over this a little bit.

Mr. Chiocca: I'd be happy to meet with you also.

Chairman Sanchez: I would love that.

Mr. Chiocca: Just call my office.

Chairman Sanchez: We --

Mr. Chiocca: Absolutely, if anybody here -- anyone here, obviously.



Chairman Sanchez: Thank you so much. All right. It's a presentation. There is no action to be

taken by the Commission. Any further questions on the matter? If not, thank you so much, sir.

Mr. Chiocca: Thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: Scott, if you --

Mr. Simpson: Thank you.


Chairman Sanchez: -- could arrange a meeting --

Mr. Simpson: I'll take care of it.

Chairman Sanchez: -- with my Chief of Staff. OK. Let's --

Mr. Chiocca: One more item. I'm so sorry.

Chairman Sanchez: I'm sorry.

Mr. Chiocca: I forget -- it's our first year auditing. We, you know, had

some(UNINTELLIGIBLE), but I wanted to thank staff, Joe, Linda, and the staff there to helping

us. It was, you know, first year for both of us. We had to get a little acclimated. They went

above and beyond in helping us get acclimated, and I want to just put that also on the record.

Chairman Sanchez: Well, we certainly appreciate that, and we certainly appreciate your efforts.


UPDATE ON 311 LAUNCH AND FUTURE ACTIVITIES.CITISTAT


DISCUSSED

Chairman Sanchez: All right, and I guess we move on to board appointments; am I correct,

Madam Clerk? We've done all the items except board appointments?

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): And then you have some discussion items and a

supplemental agenda.

Joe Arriola (City Manager): And you also have the 311 presentation.

Commissioner Winton: The who?

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Well, let's --

Mr. Arriola: The 311 presentation.


Chairman Sanchez: Are they here for the 311 pres --

Mr. Arriola: Absolutely.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Let's get them out of the way.




Commissioner Regalado: Yeah, let's do it.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. 311 presentation.

Mr. Arriola: There's the young man.

Chairman Sanchez: OK. Let's get you out of the way, sir.

Ron Riedell: Thank you.


Mr. Riedell: Good afternoon, folks and Commissioners. I am here today to talk a little bit about

311. I want to give you some background first, before I get into a real update about what's been

happening with 311. This whole process started back in the late '90s with the FCC (Florida

Communications Commission) dedicating the 311 number to a municipal information type of call

center. The concept was that 911 was being overloaded with general questions from citizens that

were the non-emergency type of questions because they were frustrated not knowing how to get

ahold of their municipal government, not knowing who to call to get what, and dealing with the

myriad of phone numbers that are in our directory as to what department to talk to, so the

concept was to create a 311 companion to 911 -- to offload 911 for real emergencies. The

process has proved itself. We have a number of very successful large City launches that have a

couple of years of track record now that show that this concept is working; it is de-loading the

911 facility, which is great news. Cities like Chicago, New York, Dallas, Baltimore, all have up

and running, multi-year 311 operations. About two -- little over two years ago, based on the

direction of you folks, the elected officials, the Mayor, the City management was directed to

negotiate with Dade County to create a consolidated South Florida 311 call center, as opposed

to a City of Miami 311 call center, Dade County 311 call center, which would be confusing to

the constituents, and not only confusing to the constituents, but is much more expensive to create

two separate call centers with two separate infrastructures and two separate cost structures. A

little over a year ago, we consummated that basic agreement with an interlocal with the County.

The interlocal provides pretty good deal for us. It provides for City to give up its exclusive use of

the 311 number to the County. In exchange for that, the County has agreed to fund, staff,

operate and maintain the 311 call center. Included in that interlocal -- I'm sorry.

Commissioner Winton: For how long?

Mr. Riedell: Forever, into the future. Within that interlocal, we have built in a service level

agreement which allows the County and the City to establish a certain level of quality that we

would expect them to achieve as they are working with our citizen base -- their citizen base and

our citizen base in answering their questions and handling their situations and their issues

properly. About -- well, not about. November 29, '04, the County launched the 311 call center.

Unfortunately, some quality call tests that my folks did indicated that they were not doing a good

job with City issues. We immediately contacted the County; they acknowledged they were having

training and staffing issues, and we agreed that we would defer the City of Miami's portion of the

311 launch. That was back in November of '04. Now, since then, the County has been working

aggressively on their staffing issues, and on May 9 of this year, we relaunched the City of Miami,

and I'm very pleased to report to you folks that the relaunch has been very successful. The

quality is significantly better. We've done hundreds of test calls. Over 90 percent of the time,

we're giving out correct City information, so we're very pleased. That doesn't mean it's going to

stay that way forever. It just means that we've got a point in time now where we have some

confidence in what's happened, and we're going to move forward and try to keep control of this

thing and build it into a successful operation. Still a lot more to be done, however. We have

launched, but it's a soft launch. Now, a soft launch is defined by the County as something that's



not advertised, so they're kind of gradually introducing the 311 concept into the community. The

hard launch, the advertised launch will be occurring, at least tentatively set now for the August

time frame, and it will be based -- they're basing that on getting to their full staffing levels, which

they're still achieving. In August, the City and the County will mutually agree upon an

advertising strategy to get the word out officially about 311. Now, prior to the official launch,

my team is going through a process of gradually increasing the City of Miami traffic into that

call center, because right now, the way the call center is set up, it gets mostly County calls.

What we're doing is we're working with all the 411 operators to be sure that they're giving out

311 as a general information source. We're working with the yellow pages. We're working with

the different offices that generate help and information booklets for the citizen to be sure that the

word 311 is in there. We're also working with each City department, and have already begun

this process of analyzing the types of calls that City department gets, and there are certain

departments that have a large number of very simple, repetitive questions being driven into these

telephone lines. The Parks Department is the easiest one to explain. When summer programs

kick off, there's tons of questions about summer programs. People are calling about intramural

schools -- scores. These kinds of simple, repetitive calls can all be pushed to 311, and they can

handle them. Those kind of repetitive calls don't require any action from the City; they're just

information, so our goal will be to find where those key simple questions type phone calls are

and point that telephone line to 311, so when they dial it, instead of getting the Parks

Department, they're going to get 311, and they're going to get their questions answered, and that

will be a real huge benefit to the departments affected, because now these folks that have been

answering these same routine calls over and over and over again are now going to be freed up

to really handle the issues that the citizens have that go beyond the simple questions that they

don't ever get a chance to do half the time, so we're excited about the ability to start redirecting

some of that traffic. We're also looking at putting 311 on the City's web page. We're looking at

having a special web page for 311, which will be coming up later in the year. However, no

matter how good we are at directing citizens to 311, they're still going to walk into the NET

(Neighborhood Enhancement Team) office; they're still going to call the NET office, so our

concept has been, all along, was to create the NET office as a satellite 311 location, and we're

going to give them the same functionality that 311 has. In March of this year, we launched the

first phase of that, and the NET offices right now are -- have been given access to 311's

electronic work order system. Now, that system is designed to intake a citizen's request. It

requires a downstream department to take action. An example is, someone didn't pick up my

garbage, there's an abandoned vehicle next door, there's a pothole in front of my house. We

have worked with the downstream departments, and we have found out what the citizen needs to

tell the call taker to be sure that the department can work the problem. Once that information is

gathered, the electronic work order is sent down to the correct department. The citizen is given

a tracking number and a commitment from the department as to when that will be handled.

Missed garbage, 24 hours, for example. The work order is sent, the work gets done in the field,

and it is closed out. Now, what we have, which we never had in the past as a city, is I have a

series of reports that I can run, and I am running, that will now track all of these citizen

inquiries, whether they come in through the NET or they come in through 311. These reports

will track all of the different types of requests; where they came from, whether they were done on

time, whether they are still open. I can analyze them by department, by type of request, by

location, by Commission district, however you want to see them. That process and the objectives

that the departments have committed to will all be folded into the score card process, so that

there is some accountability now as we move forward with our ability to keep track of how we're

handling our citizen base. The next phase of this for the NET office is to give them access to the

"frequently asked question" database that we built for the call center. That frequently asked

question database will be very useful to the NET offices because they can search in there and

find out about Section 8 housing; they can find out whether there's a basketball court in Kennedy

court; they can find out how to reserve a tennis court, and such and such, so there's tremendous

amount of data that they will then have access to that the call center now has access to, and they

will act and look like a mini 311 call center. The last pieces of this puzzle, which I've yet to put

into place, is to working with your staff to finalize how you folks want to be folded into 311, and



I hope to start some time next month to get with your folks to see what you would like to see from

311, how you'd like to manage it internally in your offices, and I will explain to you also what

we're doing with the City Manager and how he's going to be utilizing the 311 Work Order

Management and Reporting System, and that, gentlemen, is all I really have for you today. If

you have any questions, I'd be glad to entertain them.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Any questions on 311?

Joe Arriola (City Manager): Yeah.



Mr. Arriola: Let me give you a couple of more things that we go with the 311 that you will be

able to see in the future. If Commissioner Winton or Commissioner Regalado will want to track,

let's say, complaints -- and we'll call them complaints. Sometimes they're not complaints.

Sometimes they're -- what happened in the district, on a monthly basis, let's say, I will be able to

then come to you and say, this is how many calls we got in, whether it's complaint, what -- you

know, whatever -- the information, as it comes in, we'll be able to chart out exactly what is

happening in your district, so you will be able to know, you know, what the calls in, what is the

basic complaint in your district, et cetera, et cetera. This way we will not be coming here and

say, so and so called me. We will actually have a track of everything that's going on in your

area. Also, if we have flaws somewhere, if it's somebody that is screwing up somewhere, whether

it's an inspector, or a garbage pick-up, or any of that, we will have an actual track of -- down to

the detail of who is doing what, so we'll be able to really have much better -- much, much better

information.

Mr. Riedell: For an example -- let me just give you an example on what Joe just said. Just take

missed garbage for an example. We can draw a pattern that the last three months, we've had 50

requests because of missed garbage, and I can plot them in a map and they can see exactly

which route has been missing the garbage over and over again, and that's where Joe is going. I

could also analyze it by Commission district, if you're interested in what's happening in your

area. Obviously, I can plot potholes, which is going to be very invaluable to the CIP (Capital

Improvement Projects) folks, as they keep track of where the citizens are reporting poor road

conditions to factor it into how we do our CIP work, so there's a lot of little tools that we can

bring to play here to help us manage the City better.

Vice Chairman González: My only -- I'm sorry. My only question is, do we depend on the

County for this system?

Mr. Arriola: Well, the issue is that -- yes. Now, having said that, I will tell you that we have a --

the County has really failed for the last year, as you know, and you know, and there's no -- the

good thing is that the County realizing -- and George Burgess realizing they failed -- have

heavily relied on Don, who is doing a phenomenal job, and Don has been the true driver on this

thing. Nobody -- I mean, Don is literally, on a daily basis, checking the quality control of this

thing. We've gone from total failure --

Mr. Riedell: Yeah.

Mr. Arriola: -- to about 90 percent --

Mr. Riedell: To above-average quality.

Vice Chairman González: But --



Mr. Arriola: Much -- but it is a problem, you know. County --

Vice Chairman González: My concern is, whatever happens if the County drops the ball,

because Don may not be here. He might be here for the next 20 years, but let's say that

tomorrow he gets a contract in New York, paying him $1,000,000, and he decides to go to New

York, and then we don't have Don anymore, and the County fails, and let me tell you, all of this

technology, and all of these changes, they're good, but sometimes they fail, and we have that

within our system, so I'm not --

Mr. Arriola: Of course.

Vice Chairman González: -- criticizing the County. We have made --

Mr. Arriola: Of course.

Vice Chairman González: -- some changes in some areas in our City of Miami that I don't want

to talk about it now, because it's not the time to talk about it, but it have proven there has been a

fail because they haven't worked out. They have been in place for the last two years, and they

don't continue to play out, and they don't continue to satisfy the residents' requests and the

residents' concerns, and that is my concern. Whatever happens if the system fails, if the County

fails?

Mr. Riedell: Let me give you some scenarios to -- I can't obviously give you the complete

answer, though; let me try. First of all, as far as the system is concerned, the Motorola system

that we're using that collects the frequently asked questions, bills database for it, and has a

search engine that we can pull up this information; it also has the software that has the

electronic work request. That software has been used by a number of very large municipalities

and it's been --

Vice Chairman González: No, no, no. I think you misunder --

Mr. Riedell: No. I'm just taking a step --

Vice Chairman González: I think you misunderstood me. I'm not --

Mr. Riedell: I'm sorry.

Vice Chairman González: -- talking about the technical aspect of whatever equipment you use --

Mr. Riedell: You're talking about the people.

Vice Chairman González: -- to do this process. I'm talking about the personnel handling this

process, OK.

Mr. Riedell: OK. I'll get -- I'm going there right now. I was just getting the technology out of

place. We're lucky it's fairly stable, issue number one. Issue number two is that you are correct,

the real key here is staffing levels and management. Staffing right now is -- we're in very good

shape, and that should hold us for a while, and let me explain why I say that. The County has

done a good job, finally, in staffing folks that have call center experience. They've pulled them

from a lot of the Telcos (telecommunication companies) in the area that have shut down call

centers, so we have a very good management team right there, in there right now, so that's good

news. The problem we're going to have, and where you need to be concerned, and I -- where

you -- where your question really goes is that as we add more load into that system, if they don't

staff properly, no matter how good those call takers are, the quality is going to go down, and



that's why we've got to have a very good close integration between how much load I give them

and how well they staff. Now, right now, they've got a fairly aggressive staffing strategy, but a

budget crunch could force them to back down on staffing, and that means we could have to

collapse some of the goals that we've had for 311. That's all -- those are always possible issues

that we'll have to negotiate. I would say this, that there is a bonus to this, and it goes kind of to

where Chairman Sanchez was going earlier on in the Commission meeting, where he was

encouraging the municipalities to get together to do things as one team so that we save taxpayer

dollars, and really, that's what we're doing here. We're joining forces to say, look, it doesn't

make sense to buy all of this software, all of this hardware, open up a place, hire people, try to

staff it, and run all these little isolated call centers, because it's impossible to get the citizens'

calls directed there properly. With wireless technology, people driving all over the place, you

just can't route calls properly, so this is the right thing to do for the citizens; it's the right thing to

do for the taxpayers. It's up to us to manage through these risks, and so far so good, but you are

correct, sir, there is the potential of a problem there. We have to manage it closely for its life

cycle.

Vice Chairman González: My last question is going to be this: Let's say -- hypothetical

question. Let's say that a year from now, we decide or we find out that the system -- the County

is not handling the system the way it should be handled, and it's affecting the citizens of the City

of Miami.

Mr. Riedell: Yes, sir.

Vice Chairman González: Is there a way to separate the system from the County that we can

have our own system?

Mr. Riedell: Yes. We actually made provisions for that in the interlocal. I don't think it's an

ideal solution, but there are provisions for us to withdraw because of quality issues. In that case,

we would get the 311 number exchanged back in the central offices, the wire centers that Bell

South manages, in the City's territory. We would get those back. We would have to buy our own

software, but all of the intellectual property that I built into the software would be -- would come

to us, and we could open up our own call center with ten or 15 people and try to operate that.

That's obviously not the ideal answer, but it is a back up plan, and again, the real fallacy of that

-- that would have been a good answer 15 years ago, but with wireless, it destroys that, because

you're driving to work, you live in the city, you work in the County, and you're back and forth,

and you're making these phone calls --


Mr. Riedell: -- they don't follow the routing like the landlines do, but yes, sir, we do have a

provision in there to do that, to take --


Mr. Riedell: -- our football and go home.

Vice Chairman González: Thank you very much.


Commissioner Regalado: What is the first response time, since the minute that the County

operators get a call from a City of Miami resident?

Mr. Riedell: It takes -- their delay time, I think, is about 60 seconds right now.



Commissioner Regalado: OK. No, but --


Commissioner Regalado: -- when that call is routed to one department, and you know, I have a

-- my garbage have not been picked up --

Mr. Riedell: OK.

Commissioner Regalado: -- like you said, so what is next? Does that -- is that person gets a

call from a real person, like a live human from the City, or the County respond for us?

Mr. Riedell: I'll explain how that works. Once the citizen reports the problem, it's immediately

transferred to Solid Waste. They have a very short turnaround on missed garbage. Someone is

dispatched almost immediately. There is no process in there, other than what the department

elects to do --

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Well --

Mr. Riedell: -- to call back -- I'm sorry.

Chairman Sanchez: We lose quorum.

Vice Chairman González: I'm sorry, I'm sorry.

Chairman Sanchez: OK. We lose quorum.

Vice Chairman González: I'll wait.

Chairman Sanchez: Well, we're not taking any action on this, so --

Mr. Riedell: No, no, no, no. This is just --

Chairman Sanchez: No, no, no.

Mr. Riedell: -- for your information. No.

Chairman Sanchez: There's no action being taken, so you --

Mr. Riedell: Yeah.

Chairman Sanchez: It's OK.



Mr. Riedell: There is no process built in where the 311 call center will call back the citizen.

basically, his garbage will be picked up, the pothole will be fixed. What we do is we give the

citizen the ability to call back to the call center with a tracking number that they can start to

complain when that doesn't happen, and we also have built in to this -- to the process an

escalation process, where if a 311 call taker gets a citizen that comes back and says, they didn't

get my garbage in 24 hours, we can send an e-mail, and it escalates directly to the director, and

the director is informed that the citizen is -- has missed -- you've missed the objective of the

citizen. The goal here is to make the work happen in the time committed, without having to talk



to the citizen. We want to just do the job right. Now, in the past, we've never been able to track

whether we do the job right, but with this new reporting system that I have, and with it being

integrated in the score card, which means it's integrated into salaries, it means that I'm going to

track every time they don't fix that problem, or they don't pick that garbage up in a day, and

that's really what our catch is, but no, sir, there is no formal process of talking to the citizen after

the inquiry or the request is put into the system.

Commissioner Regalado: OK, and the last question is, there is no -- because New York has it.

Police, nonemergency.

Mr. Riedell: I'm sorry?

Commissioner Regalado: Can we -- are we including police, nonemergency, in 311?

Mr. Riedell: If -- yes. In the sense that if a police nonemergency call comes in to 311, it will be

transferred to the City of Miami's police nonemergency line, not to 911.

Commissioner Regalado: OK, because it's easier to dial 311 than to --

Mr. Riedell: Yes.

Commissioner Regalado: -- to the nonemergency number, which is a 305-64 --

Mr. Riedell: Right, right. They will --

Commissioner Regalado: -- whatever.

Mr. Riedell: -- transfer the call on to the police nonemergency, and stay away from 911.

Commissioner Regalado: OK. That's it.

Chairman Sanchez: Don, I just --

Mr. Riedell: Yes.

Chairman Sanchez: Very brief on this. I could support a system like this because I could tell

you this much, the way we work now, which is in a way primitive, you know, we get the calls to

the Commissioners's office, and then we have to send it either to the City Manager's office, or we

go direct to the NET Offices with the project in itself, and you have what I call layers of lawyers

of pitfalls where things may fall through the cracks, and at the end of the day, what we want to

be able to provide to our residents is the best possible service which hold people accountable,

and once they get that level of service, where there's accountability, efficiency, I think they will

be satisfied. The assurance that we want is that people are not going to call somewhere and, you

know, get what you usually get --

Mr. Riedell: Get mishandled. Get mishandled.

Chairman Sanchez: -- when you call now --

Mr. Riedell: Yes.

Chairman Sanchez: -- where it says, you know, if it's Solid Waste, dial 1; if it's Code

Enforcement, dial 2, and then you end up just not talking to a human being, and I think that if

we're able to provide that service and provide that human communication with people, I think it's

-- it serves a purpose, but from what you've gathering, the beauty of being the Chair is that I go



last, so I would say that 80 percent of the questions are usually already answered that my

colleagues have expressed, but I'm all in favor of having a good database to track down services,

to make sure that if something -- there's deficiency, we're able to expeditiously identify that

problem and correct it as quickly as possible.

Mr. Riedell: And one of this things I'm hoping to accomplish, as I work with your staff, is to

clean up that process that you've just described of how you refer your escalations through the

city, because really, I want to fold all of that into 311, because anything that comes in from the

citizen, we're trying to capture into 311, so I'm trying to find some ways of bringing all of the

issues that you guys handle into 311, and bring it into two different kinds of stacks. There's a

stack where a citizen just doesn't know who to call, and they call you guys for help out of

frustration, and that's really a routine request, and shouldn't take high priority, and then you get

the abused citizen that says, "I've called 311 five times and they have done nothing," or blah,

blah, blah, and that needs to be handled differently, and right now, it's very confused. When

your folks get phone calls and they send them on from the Commissioner, you know, the priority

calls get mixed in with the routine calls; the people that just didn't know where to go calls, and it

creates too much commotion, and it misprioritizes [sic] things, so I'm anxious to work with your

staffs to try to find ways of integrating you into 311 in a logical, consistent manner so that we

smooth some of this out.

Chairman Sanchez: Well, I look forward to it.

Mr. Riedell: OK.


Mr. Riedell: Thank you, sir.

Chairman Sanchez: Thank you so much. Let's -- Commissioner Allen.


DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE RESOLUTION REGARDING A POSSIBLE

SETTLEMENT IN THE MATTER OF NATIONAL ADVERTISING V. CITY OF

MIAMI. (BILLBOARD LITIGATION)

Office of the City

Attorney

05-00450-email.pdf

DEFERRED

A motion was made by Commissioner Regalado, seconded by Commissioner Allen, and was

passed unanimously, with Commissioner Allen voting against the measure, to defer item DI.1 for

30 days.

Direction to the City Attorney by Vice Chairman González to schedule, during the next

Commission meeting and in Vice Chairman González' conference room, a shade meeting

(executive session), to brief the Commission on the status of proposed settlement with National

Advertising Company. Chairman Sanchez requested the City Attorney to meet with each

Commissioner on this issue.

Chairman Sanchez: Mr. City Attorney, settlement on the National Advertising billboard

litigation. I believe that's going to be deferred.

Jorge L. Fernández (City Attorney): Yes, should be deferred. We'll continue to make progress,

but we're not there yet.




Chairman Sanchez: Is there a motion to defer the item?

Commissioner Regalado: I'll move it.

Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion and a second.

Commissioner Allen: second. Just for a --

Chairman Sanchez: Discussion on the item.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, just quick -- Mr. City Attorney, are we actively engaged in

negotiations, because they have lost at the appeal level, am I correct? Is that the -- am I

correct? We're talking about the --

Mr. Fernández: They have lost some of -- there are three or four matters that have been going

on for a number of years. On the two substantive issues, they have lost an appeal, but there is

still other issues that are in court --

Commissioner Allen: Right --

Mr. Fernández: -- proceeding.

Commissioner Allen: -- and this is National, right?

Mr. Fernández: This is only National.

Commissioner Allen: So, in all likelihood, they're not going to appeal it to the --

Mr. Fernández: No, no.

Commissioner Allen: -- Supreme Court?


Commissioner Allen: And they wouldn't even accept the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) on that issue, I'm

pretty sure.

Mr. Fernández: Correct. I --

Commissioner Allen: Right, so you know, frankly speaking, OK, I guess we'll defer it, but --


Commissioner Allen: -- frankly, they're in no better position now than they were from the

moment they filed the lawsuit, so frankly, we don't really have to negotiate with these guys, to be

honest with you.

Mr. Fernández: We have never negotiated out of a position of needing to negotiate. We've

negotiated always, and continue to negotiate because we believe, and the Administration is of

the opinion that it's in the City's best interest to negotiate a settlement that would be

advantageous to the City, not necessarily that the City stands to risk any great losses or

anything. It's an opportunity to achieve a more advantageous position for the City.

Commissioner Allen: Right, but in fairness, they did not like our decision. They sued us. They



lost. They really aren't going to get a Writ of Certiorari from the Supreme Court, so frankly, I

don't mean to sound harsh, we can just tell them -- dust our hands off. The issue's moot. It's

over. We don't even have to sit and discuss any issues with these guys at the table.

Mr. Fernández: The word "advantageous" means that it continues to be in the City's best

interest to, recognizing our upper hand position, to continue to achieve an advantage to the City

or a position that would mean monetarily, particularly, very beneficial to the City.

Commissioner Allen: Right. See, that's the question. I don't want the decision to be driven by

some sort of monetary purpose, because you may recall, we did pass a measure whereby in my

district, there is a moratorium, if you will, on billboard signs, and obviously, part of my district

does give the best exposure, notwithstanding the fact that, you know, we already have two other

billboard companies that have already exhausted, you know, their introduction of billboard signs

in my area. I would, again, and perhaps, maybe, I can see if I can get some support from my

Commission here that why don't we just cease discussions with the National Advertising

Company, because they have lost flatly in their efforts to sue us. Why are we sitting at the table

negotiating with someone who cost us a ton of money to litigate against their actions, and maybe

it's in our best interest to tell these guys to go away; we've already have enough billboard

companies now in the City, and we don't even need to talk to these guys any further.

Mr. Fernández: The cost of the City in defending the litigation, that, you're correct, that they

have perpetrated on the City is part of where the City will be making itself whole, as a result of

the settlement, plus realize other advantageous position. Clearly, Commissioner, it is the

position of the Administration, and the Administration should be speaking to this directly. I can

only reflect to you what it is my understanding from this Commission, working with the

Administration, that it is the Commission's directive and it is the Commission's goodwill or

intention that we bring to you a proposed settlement. At the time that a settlement is brought to

you, at that time the Commission is free to vote it up or vote it down. Short of that, what I

understand you're trying to do is get support from your colleagues to instruct me and the

Manager to stop negotiating in an area where we both believe it's in the City's best interest,

given the fact that we have so much money already spent in the defense of this lawsuit, and to

stop and arrest all of the possibilities of recouping the money, making the City whole, and

perhaps achieving a greater advantageous position for the City, and --

Commissioner Allen: But if I -- I'm sorry, Mr. City Attorney.

Mr. Fernández: No, and that I understand is what you're seeking to do now with your

colleagues, get your colleagues or get the City Commission to formally instruct me and the

Manager to cease and desist further settlement negotiations with National.

Commissioner Allen: Right, and there's a sound basis for that, because they sued us; they've

lost; they're clearly not going to get a Writ of Certiorari from the Supreme Court. Frankly

speaking, there's no need for us to sit down. In the way of attorney's fees, I mean, if they -- if you

guys are -- if we're sitting here as both the Commission and the City Manager is saying, look,

guys, why don't you pay our attorney's fees? Well, they're going to want something in exchange

for that, the placing of additional billboards. I would submit that we already have two reputable

companies now that have, if you will, plastered our community with billboard signs, and so we

don't need any other national company coming in erecting additional billboard signs, because I

don't think that our decision should be driven by -- for monetary reasons with respect to the

National negotiations; we should cease and desist discussions with them. They've lost. They

have no other recourse. That's a gamble they took. They could have negotiated like the other

two national advertising sign companies could have done. They chose to roll the dice, if you

will, and they lost.




Commissioner Allen: So it seems to me the most logical thing to do is say, look, you had your

day in court; you lost; we don't need to sit down at the table with you any further. I think we

have sufficient amount of money coming in from the two current billboard companies that we

have now, or perhaps maybe there are three there at this juncture.

Joe Arriola (City Manager): No. No, no, no, no. Let's be very clear. This settlement with

National represents close to $3 million to us. We are not even close to getting our money back

on this deal. We are in the hole by millions of dollars, so don't -- our two deals don't even come

close to paying for the money that had been spent for the last I don't know how many years.

Only through a settlement with National we will come close to recouping our money, I want you

to be aware of that, not -- you know, we're in the hole, big, big, big, big time on this one.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, but, Mr. City Manager, to sit down and negotiate with National

Advertisement [sic] and to tell those guys, look, we've had to litigate this with these other two

companies; you're going to be paying most of the attorney fees; they're not going to accept that

as a quid pro quo exchange.

Mr. Arriola: What you're asking --

Commissioner Allen: I mean --

Mr. Arriola: -- is not to negotiate that with them? That's --

Commissioner Allen: Oh, no.

Mr. Arriola: -- the flaw on this.

Commissioner Allen: No. I'm saying to you guys, if we put that offer on the table, it only stands

to reason that National is going to say, Well, we'll do that, guys. You give us placements of

certain signs in certain areas." Now, of course, we've already passed legislation. There's a

moratorium in my district, but I'm concerned with the balance of my Commissioners, Their

particular district, particular Commissioner González and Commissioner Sanchez. Your area

can be proliferated with these signs. It just brings about plight [sic] and just a total degradation

of the community, in my opinion, and we shouldn't be driven by whatever amount of money

they're willing to offer us on an annual basis. We are receiving money now from the other

national advertising companies. I think that's sufficient. Again, just to reiterate and conclude,

they've sued us in court; they lost, end of story. We don't even need to sit at the table with these

guys.

Mr. Fernández: Well, I -- you know, I need to report more fully to the Commission the legal --

the status of the litigation. While we have received some very positive rulings by the circuit court

in Atlanta of the federal case that was pending, that, by no means, conclude all of the litigation

that's still pending. At this point, I cannot recollect and I cannot report to you. Given an

opportunity, I would be very happy to give you a concise one- or two-page summary of where we

stand in the legal struggle with the billboard industry. However, the -- from a fiscal perspective,

you need to hear from your City Manager, and you need to take under advisement his

recommendation to continue negotiating. From my vantage point, I think it's in the City's best

interest, from a legal solution, to all the pending issues, given the fact that we have also entered

into settlement agreements with two other advertising companies, billboard companies that it

would be in the City's best interest, legally, to see if we can reach a settlement that would be

favorable and advantageous to the City.

Commissioner Allen: Well, Mr. -- quickly, not to belabor this point, Mr. City Attorney. National

-- we're speaking of National --




Commissioner Allen: -- they lost the case at the Eleventh Circuit, end of story. There are no

outstanding issues. The only way they can get any recourse is to appeal to the Supreme Court,

and the Supreme Court only hears "X" amount of cases per year. I would guarantee you, they

would not get a Writ of Certiorari. That's why they're coming back to the table saying, "Look,

guys, now can we talk settlement?" Think about it, guys. They had that opportunity three years

ago. They rolled the dice; they lost, so we're going to sit down with these guys now and say,

"Look, let's give you guys another shot, another bite at the apple." That doesn't sound -- that

doesn't make sense to me.

Mr. Arriola: Well, it makes sense --

Commissioner Allen: Because --

Mr. Arriola: -- if you're willing to lose three million bucks today.

Commissioner Allen: But wait, wait. Mr. City Manager --

Mr. Arriola: Wait a second. You --

Commissioner Allen: Mr. City Manager.

Mr. Arriola: They got $3 million on the table --


Commissioner Allen: Listen --

Mr. Arriola: -- and you're saying "screw $3 million."

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner.

Commissioner Allen: Mr. City Manager.

Mr. Arriola: I want you to be aware of that.

Commissioner Allen: Right. Wait, so we're supposed to, if you will -- and I don't want to use

that terminology here. Well, I think I should. We're, in effect, prostituting ourselves for a certain

amount of money when, in fact, there's no legal basis for us to even accept it. We currently have

national advertising companies that said, "Look, Mr. City Attorney, City Manager, City

Commission, we're going to sit down and discuss this issue with you. We want to come to a

settlement." We agreed to that. There was a nice settlement with respect to the replacement of

signs from one area to another. We got annual income coming from that on an annual basis.

Fine. National says, "I tell you what, I don't like what those guys are doing. We're going to sue

you, City of Miami." It cost us a lot of money. They've lost. I think, frankly speaking, why

should we be sitting back and having a discussion with these guys?

Mr. Arriola: Everybody sued us.

Commissioner Allen: And be driven by --




Mr. Arriola: Everybody sued us --

Chairman Sanchez: Let me just elab --

Mr. Arriola: -- so you understand that.

Commissioner Allen: And be --

Chairman Sanchez: As the Chair, as the Chair --

Commissioner Allen: And you say $3 million. Well --

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner Allen, you've made your point. It is a valid argument that

you've made, but let's --

Commissioner Allen: We're rewarding bad -- I mean, I just don't get it.

Chairman Sanchez: Listen, you know, you're --


Chairman Sanchez: No. Wait a minute., wait a minute. We got to maintain order here. We got

a -- decorum. You know, you put two attorneys in a room and they're going to have a difference

of opinion, which is perfectly fine. You've stated your concerns, which I think they have some

merit. However, I think that by deferring, which there's a motion and a second already for 30

days, this isn't going to kill us, and I think that the City Attorney needs to sit down with all the

Commissioners and provide us more information, so at the next Commission meeting we're able

to sit down and say, look, either we go with the suggestion you made, Commissioner, which is

we're not going to pursue a settlement, or we continue settlement. Because all we're going to do

here is, you're going to have a Commissioner who has an opinion, and you have our City

Attorney, who has an opinion and is presenting to this legislative body. I think everybody has

put their statements on the record, so I believe that, for the sake of harmony, and for the sake of

possibly getting out of here today early, deferring this item isn't going to kill us, isn't going to

hurt this process that's going on, and we could bring it back at the next Commission meeting and

make a final decision on it, so having said that, I will ask that there's a motion and a second;

somebody call the question so we could either vote it down, approve it or deny the deferral, and

we move on to the next subject. If we don't get a motion to defer and pass, then I will open it

back to Commissioner Allen and --

Commissioner Allen: And I'll make a motion.

Chairman Sanchez: -- we could debate it here till 11 o'clock at night, so there's --

Commissioner Allen: I'll make a motion.

Chairman Sanchez: -- a motion and a second. There is a motion and a second to defer the item.

All in favor, say "aye." Anyone in opposition? I guess it doesn't fly, so Commissioner Allen.

Commissioner Winton: No, no, no. No, I'm --

Commissioner Allen: Right, so I make a motion that --

Commissioner Winton: No, no. No, no.

Commissioner Regalado: Defer what?



Commissioner Winton: Do we have a motion and a second to defer?

Commissioner Allen: Wait, wait, wait.

Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion already and a second to defer this item --

Commissioner Winton: OK.

Commissioner Regalado: Who made that?

Chairman Sanchez: -- for 30 --


Chairman Sanchez: Hey, listen, come on.


Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion and a second. If you want to vote it up or down, so let's do

it. There's a motion and a second. The motion was made by -- could you put it on the record?

Commissioner Allen: Wait.

Ms. Thompson: The motion was made by Commissioner Regalado and second by Commissioner

Allen.

Commissioner Allen: And it failed.

Mr. Fernández: No.

Commissioner Allen: The deferral.

Commissioner Regalado: Wait, wait, wait, wait. I have not made a motion about this.

Commissioner Allen: Deferral.

Commissioner Winton: I haven't voted.

Commissioner Regalado: What is this?

Commissioner Winton: When did it fail? Well, did the motion fail?

Commissioner Allen: The deferral failed.

Chairman Sanchez: Folks, folks, folks. Hold on. Hey, listen. Please allow --

Commissioner Regalado: No. I mean, I don't have a problem --

Chairman Sanchez: Could you --

Commissioner Regalado: -- with deferring, but -- excuse me.

Chairman Sanchez: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) could you allow the Chairman the opportunity,

please?



Commissioner Regalado: OK. Can she tell me --

Chairman Sanchez: Could you, please, because you're out of order.

Commissioner Regalado: Mr. Chairman, I'm not out of order.

Chairman Sanchez: Yeah, you are.

Commissioner Regalado: Somebody said that I made a motion. I don't remember making a

motion.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah. The Chairman --

Ms. Thompson: Yes, sir, you did make the motion to accept the City Attorney's request to defer --

Chairman Sanchez: Defer the item, Commissioner Regalado, you did.

Ms. Thompson: -- this item, which is DI. 4, and it was --

Chairman Sanchez: Now, you could retract it now, if you want, but you said -- you made the

motion --

Commissioner Allen: And it failed, and it failed.

Chairman Sanchez: No. We did not vote on it. We're voting on it right now. Please allow me,

as the Chair, the due respect --

Commissioner Allen: Sure.

Chairman Sanchez: -- to vote on it. If it doesn't fly, then we'll continue to debate it. There is a

motion made by Commissioner Regalado and a second by Allen. You could withdraw your --

Commissioner Regalado: No, no, no, no.

Chairman Sanchez: OK, to defer the item for 30 days; have an opportunity to sit down with the

City -- look, it --


Chairman Sanchez: We did not -- we do not serve a purpose --

Commissioner Regalado: Call the question. Why don't you --

Chairman Sanchez: -- to have a City Commissioner arguing with our City Attorney when we are

settling a lawsuit that they're out there watching. It just -- it isn't good business practice.



Vice Chairman González: Well -- Can I --

Chairman Sanchez: For the deferral, there's a motion and a second. All in favor, say "aye."

Anyone in opposition, having the same right, say "nay."



Commissioner Allen: Nay.

Vice Chairman González: Before saying "aye," can I make a statement?

Chairman Sanchez: Sure.

Vice Chairman González: Before saying, "aye," I'm willing to vote on the deferral, but we need -

- Mr. City Attorney, we need to have a Shade meeting where you can bring us up-to-date on

what's going on on this settlement --


Vice Chairman González: -- and I agree with Commissioner Allen that this needs to end, so my

proposal is, at the next Commission meeting, before the meeting or during the meeting, we have

a Shade --

Chairman Sanchez: It's incredible.

Vice Chairman González: -- meeting. You can use my conference room, if you want to, if that

pleases you, and you let us know what's going on, and then that day, we need to make a decision,

but Commissioner Allen is right. I mean, I'm also, you know, concerned, why we keep deferring

and deferring and deferring and deferring and deferring. We have to tell these people, listen,

this is it. This is it. Either you fish or cut bait, but this is it, you know, so that is my proposal.

Commissioner Allen: Or rewarding someone for, you know --

Vice Chairman González: OK, so -- exactly, so --

Commissioner Winton: You're voting yes or no, and I agree with you.

Vice Chairman González: I'm voting "yes."

Commissioner Winton: I agree with you, by the way. Shade meeting.

Chairman Sanchez: All right, ma'am, did it -- Madam Clerk, did the deferral pass?


Ms. Thompson: Yes, it did.

Commissioner Winton: Four to one.

Chairman Sanchez: All right, let's move on, folks. Jesus.



05-00563SI.1 RESOLUTION

A RESOLUTION OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION AMENDING

RESOLUTION NO. 05-0149, ADOPTED MARCH 10, 2005, TO CORRECT

THE STATED AMOUNT OF THE CONTRACT WITH RECREATION DESIGN

AND CONSTRUCTION, INC., FOR THE LITTLE HAITI PARK SOCCER AND

RECREATIONAL FACILITIES, PROJECT NO. B-38500, TO REFLECT THE

CORRECT NEGOTIATED AMOUNT AS $5,725,942 INSTEAD OF $5,154,911;

ALLOCATING FUNDS FOR SAID PURPOSE FROM CAPITAL

IMPROVEMENT PROJECT NO. 331412 ENTITLED "LITTLE HAITI PARK

LAND ACQUISITION AND DEVELOPMENT."

Department of

Capital

Improvement

Programs/Transpor

tation

05-0053-legislation.pdf

05-0053- summary form.pdf

05-0053-pre. legislation.pdf




R-05-0390

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Supplemental agendas, SI.1. It's a resolution.

Vice Chairman González: I don't have the supplemental.

Chairman Sanchez: There is Department of Capital Improvement Program And Transportation.

Mary Conway (Director, Capital Improvement Projects & Transportation): Mary Conway. SI.1

is a resolution that is correcting a discrepancy in the item that came before you on March 10,

regarding the Little Haiti Soccer component. The legislation numerical dollar amount did not

match the back up documentation with the accurate negotiated amount. This item is correcting

that discrepancy.

Vice Chairman González: But this correction is not reducing the amount of money in the park?

Ms. Conway: No.

Commissioner Allen: Right. This is --

Vice Chairman González: All right, so I'll move the item.

Commissioner Allen: That's the increase?

Vice Chairman González: No.

Ms. Conway: It's not an increase. This is reflecting the actual negotiated amount of 5.725

million. It was brought for you -- brought before you in March with the incorrect dollar figure.

Vice Chairman González: My question, Commissioner Allen, was that -- to make sure there was

not a decrease --

Commissioner Winton: Move it.






Vice Chairman González: On the money allocated to the park (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

Commissioner Allen: Because my concern -- yeah, when I figure out -- I'm sorry, Mr. Chairman.

Chairman Sanchez: What's -- you know, let's have some order here. Is there a motion and a

second --

Commissioner Winton: I moved it.

Chairman Sanchez: -- to approve the item? There's a motion --

Vice Chairman González: And I second.

Chairman Sanchez: -- by Commissioner Winton, second by Vice Chairman González.

Discussion. Any discussion on the item?

Commissioner Allen: Yes, Mr. Chairman, just a quick inquiry. I notice -- so that constitutes an

11 percent increase, I figured it out, I think, yesterday or something, but this is -- this happened

at the outset.

Ms. Conway: The --

Commissioner Allen: It's just -- it's a scrivener's error? That's what I'm trying to get at.

Ms. Conway: Yes.

Commissioner Allen: I mean, it's --

Ms. Conway: Yes. When the contract was being negotiated, the final negotiated amount

between the City and the contractor, RDC (Recreation Design and Construction), was

$5,725,942. Because of the timing associated with getting everything negotiated, getting it

scheduled on the agenda, when the legislation was prepared, there was a transfer error and we

didn't transfer the number properly. If you look at the March 10 agenda item, and look at the

back up documentation, you'll see that it clearly reflects the correct number, but it was not

transferred properly to the legislation.

Commissioner Allen: OK, thank you.


Chairman Sanchez: Any further questions on the item? This is a resolution. Does this require a

public hearing?

Priscilla A. Thompson (City Clerk): I would think so, if it has to do with your bond money, and

you're making this correction now on something that was previously passed.

Chairman Sanchez: It does. It is a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing to address

this item, please step forward and be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none, the public hearing

is closed, coming back to the Commission for discussion. I only have one thing. Why is this such

a big emergency that couldn't be on the regular agenda?

Ms. Conway: The only reason is that we have been routing. We held the groundbreaking for

this project the week before last. We were in the process of routing this contract for signatures

so that we could start the work on the park immediately, and when it was in legal for review, we

caught the discrepancy and wanted to get it corrected so we didn't have to delay the project for



several more weeks.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. That's good enough for me. It's a resolution. All in favor, say

"aye."



05-00565 Emergency OrdinanceSI.2 ORDINANCE

(4/5THS VOTE)

AN EMERGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE MIAMI CITY COMMISSION, WITH

ATTACHMENT(S), AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 12622, AS AMENDED,

ADOPTED DECEMBER 9, 2004, TO REVISE CURRENT HOMELAND

DEFENSE/NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENT BOND APPROPRIATIONS

AMONG APPROVED PROJECTS, APPROPRIATE NEW REVENUE AND

ADJUST COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT APPROPRIATIONS;

CONTAINING A REPEALER PROVISION, A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE AND

PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

Department of

Capital

Improvements

Program

05-00565-legislation.pdf



05-00565-pictures.pdf


be ADOPTED as an emergency measure, waiving the requirement for two separate

readings PASSED by the following vote.


12697

Direction to the Administration by Chairman Sanchez to limit supplemental agendas to real

justifiable emergencies only.

Chairman Sanchez: We go to ordinance on -- emergency ordinance, SI.2.

Mary Conway (Director, Capital Improvement Projects & Transportation): SI.2 is an

emergency ordinance that is addressing the capital improvement ordinance and project funding,

and in the attachment, you'll see that we are making some additional swaps regarding Homeland

Defense funding between first and second series. The emergency nature of this specifically deals

with the Miami Arena and the structural failures on the dock regarding the super structure, and

the pictures that were attached to this clearly show where you have concrete spalling on the

dock, and we have had to close sections of the dock. We are in the process of getting an

emergency proposal for the engineering design, and we'll be doing emergency repairs to be able

to reopen the dock, and in addition to that, we're making other swaps, like I mentioned earlier,

associated with the bond. This was presented before the Bond Oversight Board, Audit

Subcommittee last night, and approved.

Commissioner Allen: OK, it was, good.

Commissioner Winton: Move it.

Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion and --








Chairman Sanchez: -- and a second. Before we open it up for discussion, we open it up to the

public. It's a public hearing. Anyone from the public wishing to address this item, please step

forward and be recognized. Seeing none, hearing none, the public hearing is closed, coming

back to the Commission for discussion. On the discussion, any discussion? I have a discussion.

Once a --

Commissioner Allen: I have discussion, too.

Chairman Sanchez: Commissioner Allen, you're recognized.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah. The only thing is, obviously, we're swapping out monies for first

series, second series, that sort of thing, right?

Ms. Conway: Yes.

Commissioner Allen: Just want to make sure that that can be done district wide, as well,

because when I come forward, I want to make sure I'm always allowed to do that, in terms of

emergency matters, relative to economic development in my district. Just want to make --

Ms. Conway: It's always an option to swap monies.


Ms. Conway: You may not necessarily need to do that because you still have a balance of

quality of life monies in the first series available for you to allocate to specific projects.


Chairman Sanchez: Any discussion on the item? Mary, the only concern I have here is, once

again, the marina, the Dinner Key dockmaster quarters and that -- I saw pictures. Those are

clearly justify as emergency item. The rest of the swap should not be here. Should be on a

regular agenda, and we need to be very careful with that.

Ms. Conway: The only reason that we --

Chairman Sanchez: You know, we continue to show a pattern here, putting emergency items on

stuff that aren't really emergencies --

Ms. Conway: Upgrade.

Chairman Sanchez: -- and this is a supplement to an agenda, so items like this, put them on the

agenda so we could debate them, because all you create is, you're going to have -- inquire as to

why is it here. I don't have a problem with it, as long as it's justifiable. I saw the pictures of the

marina. There is justification. There's a big emergency there. Get that done, but the swap, I

cannot be sold that that's an emergency.

Ms. Conway: And I would not agree with that, since we had to bring this item before you, with

you just put everything at once without -- so that we wouldn't have to come back again, but I

understand.

Chairman Sanchez: Well, I'm going to ask the Administration that, please, don't continue to do

that. I think it's important that things be put on the regular agenda if they're not an emergency.



Ms. Conway: Understood.

Chairman Sanchez: The supplemental agenda, at the end of the day, you get an emergency, and

the rest, which doesn't seem to be an emergency, you're passing it under a so-called emergency

ordinance. It just isn't good government. All right. Having said that, it's an ordinance on

second reading. Mr. City Attorney, read the ordinance into the record.


Ms. Thompson: Roll call. The first roll call. Commissioner Regalado?

Commissioner Regalado: Sorry?

Ms. Thompson: I'm sorry. First roll call. Commissioner --

Chairman Sanchez: This requires a four-fifths vote. It is an emergency ordinance.

Ms. Thompson: And two roll calls.

Chairman Sanchez: And two roll calls.

Ms. Thompson: This is your first roll call. Second roll call.

Roll calls were taken, the results of which are stated above.

Ms. Thompson: The measure has been passed an as emergency ordinance, 5/0.



NON-AGENDA ITEMS

05-00570NA.1 DISCUSSION ITEM

Discussion concerning South Florida Water Management with its Executive

Director, Carol Wehle.

DISCUSSED

Chairman Sanchez: (INAUDIBLE) back in order, and we do have Commissioner Winton and

Commissioner Allen present, and Commissioner Regalado is outside, so ladies and gentlemen,

the City of Miami Commission is back in order. We'll go ahead and start with the remainder of

the agenda in the afternoon, and we do have scheduled time certain this afternoon at 2:30 to

recognize Carol Wehle, the new executive director of the South Florida Water Management

District. She is here today, and it is with great honor that she's here in front of us today to

introduce herself, so we welcome you to the City of Miami.

Carol Wehle: Thank you. Thank you very much. I know that you have a busy day, so I will

make this short. I wanted to introduce myself to you. My name is Carol Wehle. I'm the new

executive director of the South Florida Water Management District, and I know that we have

many common issues dealing with water resource protection, and just wanted to let you know

that our executive director who recently left, Henry Dean, I think, did a phenomenal job of

reaching out and developing good, positive relationships with our partners, the local

governments, and I wanted to assure you that I am going to continue in Henry's footsteps, and

hopefully build upon the great relationships that he's built with you. I'm originally from Boston.

Commissioner Allen: Oh, are you?

Ms. Wehle: And I am a civil engineer; have a degree from MIT (Massachusetts Institute of

Technology), and moved to Florida in 1978, and worked at Kennedy Space Center, building the

solid rocket boosters for the space shuttle, so I came here from an interesting direction, and for a

while, lived in Brevard County, and while I wasn't a City Commissioner, I was an elected

official. I was a County Commissioner, and understand --

Commissioner Winton: I'll be darn.

Ms. Wehle: -- the challenges of dealing with the many issues that you have in serving your

constituencies and the many issues that they present to you, and want you to know I'm very

sensitive to the fact that, you know, you have a huge job to do, and you're so close to your

constituencies in the local government arena. You're here, and I remember many times going to

Publix and having discussions with my constituencies, and dealing with their issues. After I was

a County Commissioner, I worked for Henry at the St. Johns River Water Management District.

I was his deputy executive director, and when he came down, followed him. I've been the

assistance executive director at the South Florida Water Management District. While Henry was

out and about building wonderful relationships, I was back in West Palm Beach running the

day-to-day of the business, and I'm very happy to get out, and now very honored to be his

successor to continue building on positive relationships. We have a lot of important things to

accomplish together, and I know that the water management district cannot accomplish its

mission without having strong partnerships with our local governments, and I look forward to

working with you and appreciate your job, and hope that you consider me a tool in your toolbox

when you're dealing with your water resource issues, and thank you for having me here today.

Chairman Sanchez: No, the pleasure's --




Chairman Sanchez: -- all ours. Yes, sir.



Commissioner Allen: Just a quick question before you step down.

Ms. Wehle: Yeah.

Commissioner Allen: Once again, congratulations.

Ms. Wehle: Thank you.

Commissioner Allen: You're from Boston. My daughter lives in Boston.

Ms. Wehle: Oh.

Commissioner Allen: In fact, (UNINTELLIGIBLE), and I'm pretty sure --

Ms. Wehle: Go, Red Sox.

Commissioner Allen: That's right, but let me ask you this, at first blush, you're now just been

appointed as a head person. What are the pressing issues, vis-à-vis, the fact that there is

discussion of extending the boundary lines. That's going to have pressure going forward on the

water resources. How does that impact the City? What issues should we be concerned with,

immediate issues, that is?

Ms. Wehle: Well, considering that it's raining today, I think that one of the most pressing issues

is going to be continuing to work on flood protection. The South Florida Water Management

District was initially devised, if you will, to be the local sponsor for the flood control project, and

flood control is a very important issue. Continuing our commitment to accelerate the

construction of the Everglades restoration projects, I think, is critical. I think the public -- and I

have to share that the staff at the South Florida Water Management District has been very

frustrated with how slow it's been to actually start construction, and we're so very excited that,

with the Governor allowing us to borrow money and our ability to enter into construction next

year, I think, is really going to be a big boost for Everglades restoration, and I think continuing

our partnership -- when you all deal with growth management issues, our role in that is to

provide the best possible technical information that we can, but remember, growth management

issues are the responsibility and is the authority of the counties and the cities, and we don't want

you telling us how to permit, and I'm sure you don't want us to tell you how to plan your county

and city, but if you need information about wetlands, you need information about aquifers, you

need information about the water resources so that you can deliberate on the impact of your

growth management decisions, we're going to be there for you to provide that technical

information to make good, informed decisions, as I know you always do.


Commissioner Allen: I guess that's it.

Chairman Sanchez: Anything else?

Commissioner Allen: I mean, yeah.



Chairman Sanchez: If not, Ms. Wehle, I certainly wish you the best.

Ms. Wehle: Oh, thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: I can see you surrounded yourself with great individuals that have been in

front of us --

Ms. Wehle: Well, I brought the brightest --

Chairman Sanchez: -- many, many times.

Ms. Wehle: -- and the best from the water management district --

Commissioner Allen: But, you know --

Ms. Wehle: -- and they informed me --


Ms. Wehle: -- that they all live within the boundaries of the City of Miami.

Commissioner Allen: Exactly.

Ms. Wehle: And I have to say --

Chairman Sanchez: One of them is my neighbor.

Commissioner Allen: And Mr. Chairman --

Ms. Wehle: -- they do an outstanding job.

Commissioner Allen: If I could, just one quick question.

Ms. Wehle: Yes.

Commissioner Allen: You do realize that we have an increasing population here in this city, so

to that end, is that going to --

Commissioner Winton: You have a what kind of population?

Commissioner Allen: An increasing population --

Chairman Sanchez: Increasing.

Commissioner Allen: -- here within the City.

Commissioner Winton: Oh, I thought you said an imprisoned population. I thought wow.

Commissioner Allen: Well, I should have -- yeah. In some instances, yes. We do have an

increasing population here, so to that end, is that going to create a strain on the water

resources? You know, we have these large-scale developments taking place. I mean, it's

understandable that some of those -- most of those units will be filled, so could you --

Ms. Wehle: Well --



Commissioner Allen: -- opine on that, if you could, please?

Ms. Wehle: -- I would say that one of the pressing issues is to make sure we work together to

ensure a very stable, viable, long-term supply of water that does not create environmental

damage in the process of supplying it. This population needs a good, stable source of water, and

one of the things I'll be coming back to you with is this new relationship, I think, that we're

getting direction from the State Legislature, Senate Bill 444, Senator Dockery's growth

management bill, contains a lot of very interesting new and innovative water supply planning

initiatives that need to be entered into between the water management district and the local

governments, and there's also money attached to it, a grant program to help facilitate the

development of water supply, and let me say this. I think there's a recognition at the state level

that in order to provide continued supplies of water to the growing populations in the future, that

a lot of those supplies that will not cause environmental degradation --


Ms. Wehle: -- are going to be more expensive than the sources of water that you have today.


Commissioner Allen: Yeah, that's right.

Ms. Wehle: And, therefore, it was contemplated in the legislation that there be up to a 40

percent match for the local governments; that's kind of the carrot. They always put one in there,

and the carrot is that there will be funding for the capital construction of these projects when a

county or city chooses to develop an alternative source of water that is environmentally sound

and doesn't cause damage. The executive directors of the five water management districts will

be meeting with Secretary Castille on Monday to discuss the bill and the interpretation of the

bill, and to give us clear direction on our relationship with the local governments. I believe this

bill strengthens our relationship, and is going to provide the tools to the water management

districts to help to be a more productive partner, not just to give you technical information, but

to provide some substantive funding for the capital portion of your projects.

Commissioner Allen: OK, so you -- so --


Commissioner Allen: -- based on that -- OK, I -- thanks a lot, so you do --

Ms. Wehle: Sir --

Commissioner Allen: -- is it foreseeable that there will be an increase in costs flowing to the

residents going forth? Is that a possibility?

Ms. Wehle: Well, you know, in any --

Commissioner Allen: On a per capita basis.

Ms. Wehle: -- of the discussions I've ever heard --


Ms. Wehle: -- when you go to conferences on water, kind of the mantra is, all the cheap water

has been used in Florida. Florida has water. It's that the inexpensive sources of water have all

been tapped, and now we're going to have to look at, you know, maybe more sophisticated



treatment, more sophisticated sources of water, and it just is common sense that those sources of

water will be more expensive, and to kind of alleviate the burden, think about it this way, from a

policy perspective, if the reason we're developing more expensive sources of water is to protect

the environment, then think of the 40 percent match that we could bring to the table as the cost of

protecting the environment, and the 60 percent, the cost of bringing adequate water supplies to

your citizens.


Commissioner Regalado: Good afternoon.


Commissioner Regalado: Does the South Florida Water Management have a position on the

urban development boundaries?

Commissioner Allen: Yeah. That's what I asked her.

Commissioner Regalado: Oh, you did ask her that?


Commissioner Regalado: I wasn't here.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah. I --

Ms. Wehle: And asked that -- and we talked about our position.

Commissioner Allen: I asked her earlier

Commissioner Regalado: I am sorry, I am sorry.

Commissioner Allen: You answered that one, yeah.

Commissioner Winton: I didn't hear that question or the answer.

Commissioner Regalado: I am sorry.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Is there any further questions?

Commissioner Regalado: But you do have a position?

Ms. Wehle: Well, my position is this, and I think, in a nutshell, the land use decisions that the

cities and counties make are the statutory responsibility, and you have the authority to make

those decisions. Our role is very clearly spelled out in this decision-making process, and that is

to provide to you all the best technical information possible to deliberate on the resource

impacts that your decisions make, and that is our role. While we would not want the City to tell

us how to issue permits, you probably don't want us to tell you how to make your growth

management decisions, but with that said, I know that you care very greatly about what the

impact of your decisions may have, and we will provide you the best available technical

information on all of the water resources that affect any of your decisions so that you have

everything that you need to make a good, informed decision.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Well, thank you so much, and we wish --



Ms. Wehle: Thank you very much.

Chairman Sanchez: -- you the best of luck.

Ms. Wehle: I look forward to working with all of you.



Chairman Sanchez: Thank you so much. Always good to see you.

05-00571NA.2 DISCUSSION ITEM

Brief discussion concerning the placement into the record of the Model City Trust's

response to comments made during the May 26, 2005 City Commission meeting,

alleging that the Trust deliberately misled the Homeland Defense Neighborhood

Improvement Bond Oversight Board.


DISCUSSED


Commissioner Allen: Yeah. I just have a perfunctory matter here. It was just handed to me, and

this doesn't require any action by the Commission.

Chairman Sanchez: It's a pocket item?

Commissioner Allen: Pardon me? It's not a pocket item, per se, but just -- I was just handed

this. It's concerning, if you will, during our City Commission meeting on May 26, 2005, certain

comments were made to allege that the Model City Trust deliberately and calculatedly misled the

board -- the Bond Oversight Board --

Chairman Sanchez: But why don't we wait --

Commissioner Allen: -- so I just want to put it in the record as a response, so it doesn't require

any --

Chairman Sanchez: You don't want the other Commissioners to be here to listen to that or --

Commissioner Allen: No. It doesn't require any discussion or anything. I'm just putting on the

record just to file it with the Clerk.


Commissioner Allen: This is a response in relation to the --

Chairman Sanchez: You're recognized.

Commissioner Allen: -- May 26 meeting, so Madam Clerk, I'll hand to you. I'll have my senior

policy advisor to hand that to you, a response with respect to Model City concerning the May 26

Commission meeting. Thank you.

Chairman Sanchez: OK. Thank you.




05-00566NA.3 RESOLUTION


ALLOCATION OF FUNDS, IN THE AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $35,000,

PLUS COSTS AND EXPENSES, AS APPROVED BY THE CITY MANAGER,

TO CONDUCT AN INVESTIGATION BY AKERMAN, SENTERFITT & EIDSON,

UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF RETIRED FEDERAL JUDGE EDWARD

DAVIS, REGARDING THE CASE OF FRANK PICHEL, FORMER

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS, OF THE CITY COMMISSION, AS DIRECTED

PURSUANT TO RESOLUTION NO. 05-0201, ADOPTED MARCH 24,

2005.





R-05-0391

A motion was made by Vice Chairman González, seconded by Commissioner Regalado, and was

passed unanimously, with Commissioner Winton absent, to adjourn today's Commission meeting.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Pocket items.

Vice Chairman González: Pocket items.

Chairman Sanchez: Do we have any pocket items?

Vice Chairman González: I do have one pocket item, Mr. Chairman, whenever it's my turn.

Chairman Sanchez: You're recognized.

Vice Chairman González: All right. I have -- it's “a resolution of the City of Miami Commission

authorizing the allocation of funds in the amount not to exceed $35,000, plus costs and expenses,

as approved by the City Commission, to conduct an investigation by Akerman, Senterfitt &

Eidson, under the supervision of retired Federal Judge Edward Davis, regarding the case of

Frank Pichel, former Sergeant-At-Arms, of the City Commission, as directed pursuant to

Resolution No. 05-0201, adopted on March 24, 2005.” That is my motion.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. There's a motion. Is there a second?


Chairman Sanchez: Second. Purpose of discussion. Discussion on the item.

Commissioner Allen: Just a quick discussion.


Commissioner Allen: Mr. City Attorney, can you weigh in on this? Is this legally proper?

Jorge L. Fernández (City Attorney): Yes, it is.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. I just have some questions. We --



Vice Chairman González: I have some questions, too.

Chairman Sanchez: OK, I'll be last, as the Chair.

Vice Chairman González: And my question is, when we instructed the City Manager to find -- to

conduct an independent investigation on the case of Frank Pichel, we also included -- and I

think it was -- this was the -- Commissioner Regalado's motion, and I second the motion at the

time. I think that that motion included Lieutenant Cairo, because Lieutenant Cairo is a

codefendant of Frank Pichel, and Frank Pichel is a codefendant of Lieutenant Cairo. Without

Frank Pichel, the City of Miami Police Department don't have a case, and without Cairo, the

City of Miami doesn't have a case, so they are -- and City Attorney, I don't know if I'm right or

wrong.

Mr. Fernández: No, you're right. When you directed the City Manager to conduct this

investigation, it was referencing both individuals.

Vice Chairman González: Both individuals.

Mr. Fernández: And clearly, my understanding is that the investigation that's being conducted is

on both individuals, so that resolution needs to reflect that.

Vice Chairman González: All right. The only reason that I want to clarify it on the record

because it only mentions Sergeant Frank Pichel and it doesn't mention Lieutenant Cairo, so I

want it to be on the record. Thank you very much. That's my comment.

Chairman Sanchez: OK. There's a motion and a second. Under discussion.


Chairman Sanchez: I just have some questions. As the Chair, I'm always last on protocol. Do

you have some other questions on this?

Commissioner Allen: Oh, no. No, I was just seconding the motion.

Chairman Sanchez: I do. We allocated already $25,000 -- not to exceed 20 -- and what

happened?

Joe Arriola (City Manager): No, no, no, no, no.

Chairman Sanchez: How much did we allocate already?

Mr. Arriola: Twenty-five, and this is asking for $10,000.

Mr. Fernández: But this is a wrap-up resolution.

Mr. Arriola: It's a wrap-up resolution.

Mr. Fernández: It's in an amount not to exceed.

Chairman Sanchez: Listen, how much did we allocate last time?

Mr. Arriola: Twenty-five.

Chairman Sanchez: $25,000.



Mr. Arriola: Correct.

Chairman Sanchez: And now you're asking for an additional --

Mr. Arriola: No.

Chairman Sanchez: -- 35,000?

Mr. Arriola: No, no, no, no. No, no, no. The whole thing is going to be 35, but that's how we

have to write it. We're asking for $10,000 more, but this is a, what do you call it, a wrap, and so

we have to ask --

Chairman Sanchez: Let me ask you something.

Mr. Arriola: -- for 35. Yes.

Chairman Sanchez: And I think Pichel is a fine officer; I worked with him in the department, but

I'm a bit concerned that we're going to open a Pandora's box here. What's to say that, for

whatever reason, we fired another police officer and he doesn't come in in front of this legislative

body asking for an independent investigation?

Mr. Arriola: Well --

Mr. Fernández: The officer has not asked for anything. It is this Commission --

Vice Chairman González: This Commission that asked for it.

Mr. Fernández: -- that asked for it.

Chairman Sanchez: OK. I just want to be careful not to open up a box --

Mr. Fernández: You're not open up any Pandora's boxes.

Chairman Sanchez: -- a door where you're going to have an officer that says, "Well, listen, you

know, I got fired and I deserve the same treatment he got."

Mr. Fernández: And -- well -- and then that will be up to this Commission. If this Commission --

Chairman Sanchez: To decide.

Mr. Fernández: -- chooses to, you know, request the Manager to conduct an investigation, then

it takes three votes.

Chairman Sanchez: Now, would this be the last amount of money? Are you going to come back

and probably ask for more money to continue this investigation?

Mr. Arriola: I spoke with Judge Davis as recently as yesterday, the day before yesterday, and he

assures me that he'd be able to conclude the finding. The problem is that we have spent

something close to $10,000 on --

Vice Chairman González: On transcripts.

Mr. Arriola: -- I don't know how many hours and hours and hours of tape.




Vice Chairman González: Transcripts.

Mr. Arriola: -- tape -- transcripts that were not in the best shape because we have never done

this before, so the transcripts alone cost us ten grand.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. Well, listen, I'm going to state it on the record. I'm going to

support this, but I'm not supporting another penny going into this because this is something

that's going to open up a precedence here that, you know, it's going to come back and bite us,

trust me on this.

Vice Chairman González: Yeah, but --


Vice Chairman González: Mr. Chairman, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute, because

you know, what you're implying is that Commissioner Regalado and myself acted irresponsibly.

Chairman Sanchez: No, no, no, I'm not saying that.

Vice Chairman González: And let me tell you, let me tell you, we have an obligation here to

establish fairness in this City, not only with the police officers, but with every single employee,

and we get pissed off -- and I know that the Administration get pissed off because many times the

employees board, OK, find employees of the City of Miami innocent, and let me tell you, I, myself

-- and each one of us is a vote here. Each one of us have a way of thinking and a way of

representing the City. We have spent millions of dollars here in many things that we should not

have spent, so I think that, you know, in the pursuit of justice and (UNINTELLIGIBLE) on one

employee that has served this city for 25 years, OK, with a commendable career, we need to go

to the bottom of whatever is going on, especially after we, some of us, and maybe you don't --

you're not aware of the case, but you could talk -- you can always call officer Pichel and ask the

involvement that he had in some cases in the City of Miami that affected some people in the City

of Miami, and let me tell you, right here, we have personal vendettas, we have political

vendettas, we have -- you know, and we have two standards. We have the clique voice and the

non-clique voice, and if you're not part of clique, you get crucified. If you're part of the clique,

you get all type of benefits, and I don't agree with that type of behavior. If you're going to have

rules and regulations, we have to go by the rules and regulations, and everybody has to go by

the same rules and the same regulations and the same standard, and you may not approve

another penny, and if there is another case in the future, where I, as a Commissioner, one

person, one Commissioner, feel that one employee is not given the right treatment, and there is a

doubt on my mind that an action that has been taken is not fair, I'm going to do whatever it takes

and whatever is in my power to investigate it. I cannot tell the City Manager don't fire an

employee. I cannot tell the Chief of Police don't fire an employee, but I do have the right, under

the City Charter, to investigate, and even to subpoena, OK, and even to subpoena, and to ask

questions. That's a right I have as a Commissioner, and while I'm a Commissioner, I'm going to

make sure that justice is done in this City, equal justice, not justice for some.


Chairman Sanchez: No, no, no, no. Wait, wait. Commissioner --

Commissioner Allen: Chairman, you should respond.

Chairman Sanchez: -- González, I would love to respond because I have the utmost respect for

Commissioner González.



Vice Chairman González: No, you have not shown that, when you say that you have concerns

and when you said what on the record, you are implying that Commissioner Regalado, who was

the one that made the motion to have this independent investigation conducted, and I second that

motion, that we acted irresponsible, that we are not concerned with spending the City monies

and with the outcome of the investigation; all we want to know is to get to the bottom of this. If

this judge comes tomorrow and says, you know what, this guy is a fool. You know what? This

was the right action to do. I say, well, he's an independent person. Then we have to go -- obey

by that, but I want an independent person to come here and stand there and tell us exactly what's

going on here, and it was about time to do it because many, many good, many, many good

officers have been crucified in this city, many, many good officers, and I don't want to go back

and start talking about independent cases because then it's going to get ugly.

Chairman Sanchez: If I -- I would like to respond. First of all, I'm not questioning your actions,

nor Regalado's actions, or the officer's actions. I could tell you that we do have a process in

place in the city where people could take their actions towards and follow the process that's

there. My only concern is that you're going to have other City employees that may want to seek

this, and then the avenue becomes that when they're done through that process, they'll be

knocking at my door as a City Commissioner or your door, and if you think or I think that there's

an injustice, then I could pursue it, but you open up a process where people are going to come

and they're going to say, "Look, I was treated unfairly. I went through the process,” whatever it

may be, and now I would like for you to start an independent investigation, and that's the only

concern that I have. I would love for this to come back and say, look, he was cleared or

whatever, and he comes back to work, but I think that it sends a bad precedence for all those

City employees, whether it's a police officer, whether it's a fire fighter, whether it's a Solid Waste

employee, or anyone, and that's the only concern that I have. This amount of money that we're

spending, which is 25, and now 35, or whatever the amount may be, if it comes back and that

investigation's completed, whatever the outcome it may be, but I will never do this again because

it just basically sets out a bad precedence. That's my only statement to say, and if it offended

you, I truly apologize, and if it offended anybody, I truly apologize. I'm just very concerned with

where we're heading with this.

Vice Chairman González: Listen, you have your right to vote whichever way you want. You're

an independent vote, you're an independent Commissioner; you can vote any way you want, but

when I started looking at Frank Pichel's case and I see that one of the allegation or one of the

counts against Frank Pichel is because he allegedly talked to the Miami -- to a Miami Herald

reporter, let me tell you, if that's all you have to go against a police officer, that he talks to a

Herald, and you don't have a proof that he, in fact, talked to a Miami Herald reporter, then I

have some serious problems, then I have serious problems, and that was the case, that was the

case.


Commissioner Regalado: Mr. Chairman, if I may. You always mention the book of rules. What

is --

Mr. Fernández: Masons.

Chairman Sanchez: Masons book of rules.

Commissioner Regalado: The Mason book of rules. That is being -- has been the history of

local government to use that, as well as federal government. I had the opportunity of working in

the Federal Government as a journalist for many years, and there is such a thing as sergeant of

arms [sic]. The office of sergeant of arms is totally different to other city or county

municipalities. In the federal government, it's an independent. In local municipalities, it's part



of the administration and the Police Department, but the City Commission that does not have the

power to appoint employees or fire employees does have the authority to appoint or fire very few

people; the City Attorney, the City Clerk; indirectly, the City Manager, and the Auditor General,

and, of course, the sergeant of arms. What happened here is that someone in the Police

Department decided, without even not informing the City Commission, that the person that was

working at the will of the City Commission was being accused and transferred and arrested and

shot or whatever, sent to jail or whatever. This is part of the authority of the City Commission,

and although we do not want to be a strong City Commission -- now that everybody's talking

about strong mayor -- we need to maintain the dignity of this body, and if someone is going to

accuse a sergeant of arm that serve at the will of the City Commission, the least that they could

do is to come and say, "look, we have found that this person is a criminal," and then the City

Commission and the Chair will have the possibility of making a decision. However, the way it

was done, it wasn't right. The way it was done, it was just somebody packing pistol, coming to

Commissioner González Office looking for this guy to be arrested or to take him to bat. That is

not the way things are done, not in the United States, so this is why this body, including you,

decided that the City Manager, which is the person that we trust with the employees, should

make an investigation. This does not open a Pandora's box, no -- I mean, in my office, I had

complaints of employees that feel that they have been discriminated or threatened, and what do

we tell them? I'm sorry, you know, you have to go to the Civil Service Board, go to the Manager,

or whatever. This is a totally different case. We cannot allow any department head just to walk

over the little powers that the City Commission has, and this is this case. In this case, the Chief

of Police decided that he didn't want that person and that's the end of it. It is not customary to

do that when a person is working at the pleasure of this body, and that's -- I think that that's a

logical explanation of why we did what we did, but this is not opening a Pandora's box because,

you know, if not, the -- probably some disgruntled employees would always be complaining, so

that is -- I guess that that's all I wanted to say.

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, just a quick question. Yeah.

Chairman Sanchez: You want to elaborate on this?

Commissioner Allen: Yeah, Mr. Chairman. Mine is just a quick --

Chairman Sanchez: No, no. We haven't voted on this.

Commissioner Allen: Oh, yeah. Well, just --

Chairman Sanchez: We have to vote on it.

Commissioner Allen: -- an inquiry. I mean, this happened before me. I think officer Frank

Pichel is quite a gentleman. I guess my only question of the City Attorney, just for my own

purposes, the mechanics of this, does this give Akerman and Senterfitt subpoena power, and

assuming they come back with a decision, if you will, favorable for Frank Pichel, then do we

decide -- do we serve as the final arbiter in this matter? I'm just curious as to --

Mr. Fernández: No.

Commissioner Allen: -- how this unfolds.

Mr. Fernández: What --

Vice Chairman González: It would be up to the City Manager.

Mr. Fernández: No.




Mr. Fernández: The City Manager was directed to conduct an investigation. The City Manager,

in his wisdom, made a decision that he would like the assistance of someone, like Judge Davis.

Commissioner Allen: An independent person.

Mr. Fernández: Judge Davis is assisting the City Manager conduct investigation. It is, at all

times, the City Manager's investigation. At no time, is it Akerman Senterfitt's investigation, or

for that matter, Judge Davis. It is the person of Judge Davis, with his quantum of knowledge and

experience, and his reputation, that is assisting the City Manager, but at the end of the day, you

have only the City Manager to look to, and it is up to the City Manager to report to you, together

with the -- basing himself on the information and the assistance he has gotten from Judge Davis,

the results of that investigation.

Commissioner Allen: And then, again, ultimately, do we make the final decision, pursuant --

once --

Chairman Sanchez: No.

Commissioner Allen: -- the investigation is --

Mr. Fernández: No.

Commissioner Allen: Are we --

Chairman Sanchez: No.

Commissioner Allen: That's what I'm trying to get at. What's --

Commissioner Regalado: No, we don't.

Mr. Fernández: It's an investigation, and the City Manager will report to you.

Commissioner Allen: Got you. OK, that's it. Thanks.


Commissioner Allen: That clears it up for me.

Chairman Sanchez: There is a motion and a second on the pocket item. All in favor, say "aye."


Chairman Sanchez: Anyone in opposition, say "nay." Motion carries, 4/0. Anything else?

Commissioner Allen: That's it.

Chairman Sanchez: All right. I think a motion to adjourn is in place.

Commissioner Allen: Yes. Move to adjourn --


Commissioner Allen: -- Mr. Chairman.




Chairman Sanchez: There's a motion and a second to adjourn. All in favor, say "aye."


Chairman Sanchez: Ladies and gentlemen, thank you so much. It's always nice to end the City

Commission meeting with fireworks.


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