WEEK OF THURSDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2016
A Singular Voice in an Evolving City
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FINANCIAL TRENDS
How a Fed branch goes about assessing the economy, pg. 13 FEWER FLY THROUGH MIAMI: Total passengers going through Miami International Airport fell 1.65% in August from August 2015, county aviation statistics show. The 1,920,293 domestic passengers in the month fell 3.25% from the prior year while the 1,923,229 international passengers almost exactly matched last year’s figure. For the first eight months of the calendar year, airport passenger traffic is up 2.17%, with domestic passengers up 3.32% and international passengers up 0.93%. On the cargo side for the year to date, loads are up marginally, 0.26%.
Aviation bonds save county $152 million in debt, pg. 15
THE ACHIEVER
UNDERWATER INSPECTIONS: Miami-Dade commissioners are being asked to approve a $1.1 million contract for three years of underwater bridge inspections as well as load ratings of all transit guideways, structural analysis and repairs or retrofits. Mayor Carlos Gimenez is recommending that Network Engineering Services Inc. get the bid, using as subcontractors Atkins North America Inc., AECOM Technical Services Inc., URS Corporation Southern and Underwater Engineering Services Inc. Underwater bridge inspections became an issue in 2012 when flaws were found in supports for the Bear Cut Bridge linking Key Biscayne to the mainland. The issue is to come before the county commission’s Transit and Mobility Services Committee today (10/13). PARKLET PLANS: A program that would turn parts of public streets and roads into mini-parks, commonly known as parklets, might become MiamiDade County policy. Commissioner Juan Zapata is asking the county’s Transit and Mobility Services Committee today (10/13) to recommend that the full commissioner create the program. If enacted, his measure would have Mayor Carlos Gimenez set up a program to create the mini-parks in the county’s unincorporated areas and work with the cities to enact their own. Miami Beach and the City of Miami have approved parklets, though none is yet in use. The mayor would be required to report to commissioners monthly on the program’s progress. Mr. Zapata notes that parklets are in use in San Francisco, Philadelphia, Oakland and Los Angeles. CALMING THE TRAFFIC: Traffic circles are being built in neighborhoods all around Miami and a recent state study says they are effective. A Florida Department of Transportation study shows that traffic circles or intersection roundabouts decrease traffic fatalities by 90%, traffic injures by 75% and total crashes drop by about 35%. The study was cited by Miami City Commissioner Francis Suarez, who has negotiated with the county for the city to handle traffic calming projects on city streets. He’s also earmarked money to build traffic circles in his district.
Steven Marcus
Photo by Marlene Quaroni
Guiding grants by Health Foundation of South Florida The profile is on Page 4
As urban growth slows, Miami counters trend BY CAMILA CEPERO
As cities across the US continue to see population growth slow as residents uproot for the suburbs or other cities altogether, Miami continues to see growth in its urban core, countering the national trend. According to the US Census Bureau, the top 50 US cities accounted for 20% of national population growth for the 12 months end July 1, 2015, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. Notably, within Florida, cities such as Jacksonville, Orlando, Tampa and Miami all saw population rise last year, countering the national slowdown trend. According to the Census Bureau, Miami was No. 12 among cities for population growth in 2015 with a 2.23% rise from the prior year. But the future of Miami’s urban growth is unpredictable, said Peter O. Muller, urban geographer and senior professor at the University of Miami’s Department of Geography and Regional Studies. “There are very special urban parameters – the ocean on the east, conservation areas on the west.” Dr. Muller said. “It’s very
AGENDA
different from Houston and other metros. Houston can just keep sprawling in every direction.” In September, Miami Today reported that greater downtown Miami’s population is increasing faster than either the city as a whole or Miami-Dade County, according to a report by the Downtown Development Authority. At least some of the slowdown in population growth in major cities can be attributed to an increase in migration to warmer locales like San Antonio, Charlotte, North Carolina and Denver, the Wall Street Journal reported. “Miami will last no matter what happens. As soon as winter gets cold, everything is forgiven and everyone is right down here again,” Dr. Muller said. “If the sign didn’t tell you on I-95 that you were going into Broward, you wouldn’t know,” Dr. Muller said. “Life is not much different on either side, but that’s all forgotten.” Since 2010, Miami’s downtown population has risen 6.5% a year while the city as a whole grew 1.8% and Miami-Dade 1.4%. Additionally, 63% of new residents within the city in 2016 can be attributed to growth
in greater downtown, the Downtown Development Authority report said. “The decade of the city may in fact be coming to an end,” Dr. Muller said, “but you wouldn’t know about it in Miami.” The 20% population growth among the top 50 US cities in 2015 is down from 21% the prior year, partly because millennials are reaching home-buying age and high urban real estate costs are making suburbs more attractive for young workers and retirees, the Wall Street Journal reported. The most notable slowdown occurred in the Great Lakes region. Chicago’s population fell 0.1%, its first dip since 2009. New York, Boston, Austin and San Jose, CA, still grew in population last year, but more slowly than the prior year, driven in part by rising housing costs, In 2005, the top 50 cities accounted for 3% of US population growth, meaning that today, the nation’s big cities are still growing faster than they were a decade ago. Nonetheless, population growth in major cities on the whole has slipped each year since 2011, when cities accounted for 26.7% of US population gain.
MIAseeks trade zone for Brink’s Brink’s Global Services USA has signed a letter of intent for a long-term lease in a future Foreign Trade Zone at Miami International Airport to store and process precious metals, banknotes, diamonds, gemstones and jewelry. The location would allow the logistics giant to deal with precious commodities under airport security. The trade zone status gives merchandise the same Customs treatment as if it were outside the US, without duties or ad valorem taxes. The county’s Trade and Tourism Committee is to vote today (10/13) on an airport bid to become a magnet site within a Foreign Trade Zone overlay operated by the Seaport Department. Magnet status would allow the airport to offer Brink’s warehouse space in a Foreign Trade Zone. Brink’s letter of intent, signed by Leandro Moreira, director of life sciences for Brink’s Global Services, is the only one in the airport’s package. Airport documents note that Brink’s also intends to use the secure trade zone warehousing to handle pharmaceuticals, which the letter of intent does not state. The airport notes that Brink’s is one of seven logistics companies that have joined its Pharma Hub program designated by the International Air Transport Association last November. “The airport has also been approached by a gold refinery company interested in establishing their business within” a Foreign Trade Zone, the airport’s application says. Brink’s Global is part of the 53,900-employee Brink’s, which networks 900 offices in more than 110 nations, handling billions of dollars in valuables daily. Brink’s Global has its Latin America Regional Office at 5600 NW 36th St., overseeing offices in 16 nations. Clients are primarily banks, financial institutions, mines, diamond and jewelry industries and governments.
NEW DETAILS ADVANCE 838 MIDTOWN APARTMENTS ...
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MISHANDLED TRANSPORTATION PLAN COSTS ON FIRE ...
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CANADA SEEKS TO GROW ITS $8 BILLION TRADE LINK ...
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ZOO APES FAILED PAST GOAL OF A MILLION VISITORS ...
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MIAMI TODAY
TODAY’S NEWS
WEEK OF THURSDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2016
THE INSIDER TAX ZONES FOR TRANSIT: A move to study the feasibility of using tax-increment financing to help fund transit projects in six so-called SMART corridors is on the agenda of a Miami-Dade County committee today (10/13). The proposal by Commissioner Esteban Bovo Jr. would call for an administration report within 180 days. The measure before the Transportation and Mobility Services Committee would also direct Mayor Carlos Gimenez to “consult with city officials to determine whether municipalities are interested in contributing a portion of their municipal ad valorem tax increment” to a proposed transit tax-increment financing district. ALL GAINS TO TRANSIT: A proposal before a county commission committee today (10/13) would seek to set a county policy that any legally transferrable revenue in this fiscal year greater than the revenues the county got last year from property taxes would be transferred to the People’s Transportation Plan. The proposal by Xavier Suarez is before the Transit Mobility Services Committee. It says that as property values continue to rise and increase county revenues, anything above the prior year’s monies would fund transportation Xavier Suarez projects already planned and would be overseen by the Citizens; Independent Transportation Trust. DEVELOPING TO AID TRANSIT: Noting that a countywide plan to integrate land use and transportation planning concepts around proposed mass transit routes might give Miami-Dade an edge in competing for Federal Transit Administration funds, Commissioner Rebeca Sosa is asking a county committee today (10/13) to call for an evaluation of land uses within a half mile of six proposed targeted routes. If adopted by the Transit and Mobility Services Committee and later the full county commission, the measure would require Mayor Carlos Gimenez to direct a further evaluation of land Rebeca Sosa in six so-called SMART transit zones to seek further opportunities for development needed to generate ridership and enhance transit cost-effectiveness. TEACHING TECH SKILLS: Funds to help fight poverty in the City of Miami will go toward teaching youths technology skills. The city commission has allocated grant funds, on a reimbursement basis, from the District 4 share of the city’s anti-poverty initiative to Venture Hive LLC. The total up to $48,000 is to run two teen tech programs for 12- to 15-year-olds. One is a once-a-week afterschool program for 12 weeks, to introduce workforce skills in technology, programming, innovation and entrepreneurship. The other is a full-time winter break program where participants will focus on prototyping and understanding the Lean Startup Model Program, which develops skills related to programming, hardware product development, entrepreneurial thinking, communication and personal development. District Four Commissioner Francis Suarez sponsored the legislation. INSTITUTE’S 1,200 JOBS: The Miami Cancer Institute at Baptist Health South Florida will create 1,200 new jobs on opening, including 200 added medical professionals, Michael J. Zinner, the institute’s founding CEO and executive medical director, told an audience at the Nahmad Speaker Series held in conjunction with a Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce lunch meeting at Jungle Island last week. Baptist now employs 16,000 persons, Dr. Zinner said, and makes a $2 billion contribution to the local economy. Dr. Zinner said that the magnitude of medical tourism’s impact at the Michael J. Zinner institute will “rival many of the established places in the United States,” including Baltimore, Boston and New York City. Among the institute’s attributes, he said, is a 90,000-square-foot research building. “We are just getting off the ground.” HEAVY ONLINE APP USE: The Miami Parking Authority continues to report growing numbers for the online service PayByPhone to pay for parking. Summer usage grew to more than 66%, and in September 73% of all parking transactions the authority handled were made using PayByPhone, said authority COO Alejandra Argudin. She told the city’s Off-Street Parking Board on Oct. 5 that monthly PayByPhone transactions are averaging 350,000. She said she’s hopeful usage will crest 80% by year’s end. Fueling use and new customers is the authority taking over parking operations at several Miami-Dade County parks this year. ONE-STOP FILM PERMITTING: County commissioners are being asked to reauthorize an agreement to issue film permits in Hialeah through the county’s Film and Entertainment Office. The county office operates a one-stop shop for permits in the county and 17 of its municipalities, so that film, video and television productions can handle all of their permits in the county in one place, making it more attractive for them to bring productions here. The county would get a $100 fee for each permit it handled for Hialeah. The renewal of the agreement for five years goes today (10/13) before the county’s Economic Prosperity Committee for a stamp of approval, and then to the full commission. RELIEF FOR HAITI: County Commission Chairman Jean Monestime has created the South Florida Haiti Relief Group to coordinate relief efforts to Haiti after Hurricane Matthew. Members include government and community leaders. The group decided to focus on three areas vital to recovery: health, education and small business recovery (primarily farmers and mom-and-pop operations). The group agreed that Sant La Haitian Neighborhood Center will serve as fiscal agent to receive donations in a special account. Donations via checks payable to Sant La for South Florida Haiti Jean Monestime Relief Group can be mailed to 5000 Biscayne Blvd., Miami 33137 or using a credit card via PayPal through Sant La’s website www.santla.org.
Midtown 6 and Midtown 7 towers were recommended for approval after new plans showed more details.
838 Midtown apartments advance BY JOHN CHARLES ROBBINS
Showing how its large mixeduse project will fit in with the surroundings of a growing Midtown helped Magellan Development Group gain a thumbs-up from a city review board. After deferring the project last month, the Urban Development Review Board on Oct. 5 recommended approval of Midtown 6 and Midtown 7. The project is designed to bring 838 apartments to Midtown in two towers. Magellan plans them side by side at 3101 and 3001 NE First Ave., Midtown 6 with 447 rentals, 40,000 square feet of retail and parking for 600 cars, and Midtown 7 with 391 apartments, 30,709 square feet of retail and 505 parking spots. In September, the board deferred the project after criticizing a lack of detail in renderings and a failure to illustrate how the towers would interact with the area. The board was presented with an updated plan and renderings for the Oct. 5 meeting. The new information shows the planned structures and how they relate to nearby properties and proposed projects. “This shows in context our buildings,” said architect Grace Ames of bKL Architecture. Each building is 27 floors of apartments and a four-story podium with amenity deck. Each will host first-floor retail and share a pedestrian path. Earlier, Ms. Ames had described the project as “sister buildings that play off each other,” and noted how glass and bronze on the first floor and wood screens would offer a warm, inviting look. Board members said they didn’t see the welcoming look she referred to, and said they wanted much more detail on the materials to be used in construction and the layout of the retail spaces. Ms. Ames said last week the new plans offered much more detail. “This is an enlarged view of the podium, so you can see the material,” she said, going over new renderings with the board. Coral stone, stucco and glass will be used on the first floor retail, she said. Board member Fidel Perez said
he wasn’t at the September meeting and was viewing the project for the first time. While he said the project was exciting, and that the architect attempted to break up or soften the mass of the podium on such a large development, “I still think you need to do more,” Mr. Perez said. Ms. Ames said the podium is only four stories high and lower than other podiums for similar mixed-use projects. “We actually worked to keep it low,” she told the board. Mr. Perez also said he felt the eastern side of the project, facing the Florida East Coast Railway tracks, appeared to be “left behind” in the design and could be improved with a bit more attention to detail. Ms. Ames said architects can revisit that side of the project. Board member Neil Hall was pleased to see more detailed drawings and plans. “I’m happy you responded to us,” he told Ms. Ames. “Compliments to you. You’ve responded in a positive way.” Mr. Hall went on to say he is quite familiar with Midtown and he appreciates the planned pedestrian mall. “It’s a good space … [and] I like the scope,” he said. Board member Anthony Tzamtzis said he was also seeing the project for the first time. Although he said he admired the site plan and the way retail uses were distributed on the site, he was critical of the façade on the towers, calling the design monotonous and too plain. Board Chairman Robert Behar agreed, saying the mass of the towers repeats the same element over and over and the buildings “need something more.” Mr. Behar suggested a little TLC would help the look of the large buildings. “I like the project – but break up the massing,” he said. Ms. Ames said architects are looking at different ideas for the look of the towers. The board considered recommending approval with a condition that the developer work to better articulate the large façade on the towers, to break up the uniformity. In the end, the vote to recommend approval was without conditions, although Ms. Ames said
architects will continue to work with city staff on improving the look of the buildings. Board member Jesus A. Permuy said the updated plans were “quite an improvement,” particularly the way they showed the relationship to neighboring properties, including the Chiquita property and Midtown 8. Chiquita North and Chiquita South are planned for 3010 NE Second Ave. and 2900 NE Second Ave. The project is a multifamily housing development offering about 700 rental apartments in several buildings. In July, the review board recommended approval of Midtown 8, planned for 2901 and 2951 NE First Ave., north of Northeast 29th Street. The project includes a 28-story tower, 387 residential units, about 30,000 square feet of ground floor retail uses and an adjacent garage for about 520 vehicles. Magellan Development is also behind Midtown 5, nearing completion north of Northeast 32nd Street and Northeast First Avenue. Midtown 5 is a 24-story mixed-use tower with 400 apartments, 22,271 square feet of retail, 2,728 square feet of offices and a 450-space garage. Designed by Loewenberg Architects, Midtown 5 is developed as a premier rental tower consisting of studio and one- to three- bedroom units.
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WEEK OF THURSDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2016
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Get heavy hitters into the game for ballpark aerial transit The game of linking 5,500 Marlins Park parking spots to carc h o k e d downtown’s Government Center via aerial cable is in early innings, too late for 2017’s AllStar Game here but still Michael Lewis in time for the 2018 baseball season if the players hustle. So far, however, every key player in this transit prototype still sits on the bench or outside the ballpark. The heaviest hitter, Florida East Coast Industries with its now-rising MiamiCentral station complex and All Aboard Florida, didn’t figure in the Metropolitan Planning Organization-funded study that just endorsed a hard look at bringing aerial transit to the railroad’s depot. The study team never talked with them and company staff didn’t speak at three public meetings. Railroad passengers, employees and office tenants would benefit from 5,500 underused ballpark parking spaces just six minutes by aerial gondola from their downtown hub. Moreover, the company could clean up in a public-private partnership to develop the cable system. All Aboard wasn’t the only no-show. The Miami Marlins, who’d gain as baseball and events patrons arrived by cable and also by reselling parking at other times in city-owned garages at hefty profits, didn’t talk with consultants or attend meetings, either.
Nor, it seems, did the Miami Parking Authority, which owns the parking and gets $10-plus off the top for every space. Imagine leasing 5,500 spaces every weekday to downtown workers who’d glide the last mile to jobs via aerial cable instead of fighting clogged city streets by car. The other missing key player was County Commissioner Esteban Bovo Jr., a sparkplug for creative transit who actually requested that the Metropolitan Planning Organization fund the study. Also not evident in these first few plays of a nine-inning bid to add an aerial mode that could someday feed passengers into light rail hubs were financial partners to spearhead development. It’s so early in the game, the study team says, that nobody at the planning organization has even spoken to them about the study. Certainly, the planning organization has yet to act. No surprise. Michael Acierno of Pompano Beach, a financial consultant on the study who’s been at aerial transit so long that in 2002 he helped promote the never-built Miami Glide cable system to connect Watson Island to what is now Museum Park, knows how slowly government can move on transit. So does his Denver partner in the current study, Roger Gardner of EcoTransit Technologies, who with Mr. Acierno in 2004 studied for the Metropolitan Planning Organization an aerial cable system in Coconut Grove up 27th Avenue to Metrorail, though in that case they found it wouldn’t be viable. Now, as aerial transit springs up in multiple places, Mr. Acierno calls a
ballpark link “a bit more tangible.” The Metropolitan Planning organization is at bat. It’s their study. They can shelve it in a dark corner or do something about it. But all of the organization’s study money today is going to light rail, Mr. Gardner was told. The organization is scrambling to study six light rail corridors that it promised to work on simultaneously without a shred of funding assured for any of them. That big promise assuredly will not be kept, but board members felt it was vital to help every county commissioner – all also board members – tell constituents that they would not be left behind. In reality, however, someone has to go first. And someone will. Meanwhile, a relatively low-cost $40 million transportation system that could relieve downtown traffic almost immediately by up to 5,500 cars a day and could find a ready private partner to get it flowing shouldn’t be left to gather dust. It could be fast-tracked in 12 to 18 months with no impediments but the public-private deal to let it fly. Light rail takes far longer. Mr. Bovo, the loudest proponent of getting something done quickly, is a logical player to get out ahead on this study that he requested. A vital ridership look and public-private funding structure, Mr. Gardner said, would cost $125,000 to $250,000 to yield “ballpark numbers, pun intended,” on a route to Marlins Park. That study could also revisit soccer next door. While the David Beckham team ruled out the site beside Marlins Park with the baseball team controlling
all the parking, aerial transit at 4,000 fans per hour gliding each way might tip the balance. Aerial cable transit systems were new when Mr. Acierno was planning a line from Watson Island to mainland parkland. “Now they’re popping up,” he says. The most recent was last week in the Mexico City area when Ecatapec de Morelos opened a 2.9-mile system expected to carry 26,000 passengers a day in places where it’s hard to put groundlevel mass transit. Such systems can handle big numbers. La Paz carries more than 40 million a year, Mr. Gardner says, and Medellin 25-plus million. With all the aerial transit rising globally, Mr. Gardner still sees Miami as one of the top 10 places for a system to win because of “traffic congestion and the inability to do large civil structures like Metrorail anymore. That’s just a long putt [because of] limited right-of way.” The aerial system to the ballpark, he notes, would need only a small footprint on the ground – 20-square-foot pads spaced 400 to 500 feet apart and just two stations on government-owned sites. Mr. Acierno calls it “minimally invasive.” As light rail plans are made and funding sought, there’s excellent reason to move forward simultaneously on aerial cable to relieve downtown congestion, add transit to and from Little Havana and create a prototype for potential aerial links from the ends of those light rail lines to harder-to-reach passengers who will eventually have to fill those rail cars. The Metropolitan Planning Organization is at bat. And a ballpark parking link is a fat pitch to hit.
Who should decide what change is good for us? I’m the expert Adapt or die. Change or vanish. Adjust or bust. Exhortations to change are everywhere. From political campaigns to organizational restructuring to therapy sessions. To stay competitive, we are told, we must embrace change. The Isaac Prilleltensky only constant is change. Change is an imperative. But wait a minute, mister! Hold it right there! Who gets to decide what change is good for us? Is it the liberal media? The professorial elite? Chris Brown? Hillary Clinton? Donald Trump? The Dalai Lama? Anthony Weiner? I looked high and low. I read extensively. I traveled the world. But at the end of the day, I found the answer close to home. The global authority on change is no other than me. This did not come easy to me, though. I’ve struggled with humility for many years, but I finally decided that it would not be fair to deprive the rest of you from my transcendental revelations. The reason I’m the authority on change is because I’ve struggled with it all my life. But after an inner journey, I decided that instead of me adjusting to the world, the world should adjust to me. I have empirical evidence to support my case: Thermostats: Based on 57 years of experience I discovered that the best tem-
The Writer Isaac Prilleltensky is dean of the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Miami and the author of “The Laughing Guide to Well-Being: Using Humor and Science to Become Happier and Healthier.” Follow his humor blog at http:/ /prilleltensky.blogspot.com perature for me at night is 76.5° Fahrenheit – 76° is too cold, and 77° is too hot – but commercial thermostats do not have a setting for 76.5°. To reach the desired temperature I sleep half the night with the thermostat set at 76° and the other half at 77°. It is the only way to reach 76.5°. Underwear: I find that 99% of all underwear brands in the world are either too tight or too loose for my physique. Just as thermostats do not have middle numbers, underwear does not have half sizes. I know that I’m not the only person suffering from this type of discrimination, but am the only one with guts to admit it. In a couple of weeks I’m going to Italy for work, and am very excited to buy Intimissimi underwear, which is not available in the United States of Consumerism! Chairs: Like underwear, 99% of dining chairs are not made for humans. Recently my wife and I embarked on a shopping expedition to replace our dining table and chairs, which had been damaged by a contractor who came to fix one thing and ruined seven others along the way.
Shopping in this country should be easy, you think, until you rest your back on chairs with straight wooden backs made for Guantanamo. No wonder 90% of Americans suffer from back pain. Should I adjust to this crazy world, or should the world adjust to me, I ask. Sofas: Our lovely contractor managed to ruin our sofa as well. After 11 excursions to Crate & Barrel, Macy’s, JC Penney, Rooms to Go, IKEA, Robb & Stucky, Ethan Allen and El Dorado, I found it inexplicable that most sofas would be either too high, too deep, or too low for my build. Again, no half sizes. Your knees dangle in the air because the sofa is too high, or your butt is so far back that the cushion ends at your heels, causing deep vein thrombosis (not to be confused with trumposis, which is set to replace the zika virus as the most virulent epidemic affecting this country in centuries). Our first trip to El Dorado lasted three hours. Ora, who thanks to extensive internet research knew more about the store than the salesperson, subjected the guy to interrogations about colors, makes, fabrics, prices and country of origin the way custom officials interrogate refugees from Syria. I felt so bad for him that at the end of our visit I gave him $20. He looked puzzled, but I felt bad about leaving the store without buying anything. After all, these guys live on commission, and I have to live with my conscience. Self-deprecation: Today you cannot
even engage in self-denigration. As soon as you get started a few voices come from the woodwork to tell you that it is not good for you. Since when did self-dejection become so objectionable? Even social scientists tell you that self-deprecating humor is not good for you. Excuse me, but what if I’m perfectly happy with my defects? It takes a lifetime to nurture a neurotic personality, and to give up on it to adjust to the world would be tantamount to treason. I choose authenticity, and you should too. Be brave. Hold on to your hard-earned neurosis, and above all, do not replace it with trumposis.
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TODAY’S NEWS
MIAMI TODAY
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In $8 billion trade link, Canada’s consul general seeks more BY CAMILA CEPERO
Though she’s only been the Canadian consul general in Miami for just over three months, Susan Harper is adjusting quickly to her new position by identifying her priorities, traveling throughout the state and cooking up ways to help Floridian and Canadian businesses establish links to last a lifetime. There are currently over 315 Canadian-owned companies operating in Florida, according to the Consulate General of Canada in Miami. Those companies alone are responsible for over 42,700 jobs throughout the state, many in innovative sectors such as modeling and simulation and digital media. And as it turns out, Canadianowned businesses are directly responsible for over $1.7 billion in salaries. The Florida-Canada trade relationship is worth over $8 billion, and 620,200 jobs in Florida depend on trade and investment with Canada. As consul general since July, Ms. Harper hopes to strengthen the trade, investment and business connections across borders. “As a Canadian, I knew that there were a lot of Canadians who came here to visit, snowbirds, and permanent residents,” Ms. Harper said. What she didn’t realize, however, was that Canadians are Florida’s No. 1 international tourism market, with more than 4.2 million annual visits to Florida and $5.1 billion in spending. “Both of our economies are very linked to continuing to do international business,” Ms. Harper said. Though she said she’s still “too new to see where the gaps are” in the Canada-Florida trade and investment connections, the consulate has identified three unique industry sectors that are being prioritized. The first of those is clean technology, which can be defined as energy, efficiency, and environmental technologies that promote sustainable use of resources and environmental protection. “Clean tech is important to [Canada] as a country because of the focus on climate change and environmental issues,” Ms. Harper said. Canada is now the seventh largest renewable energy producer in the world, and its clean tech sector is growing at 9% annually. The second of the sectorial priorities is health sciences. This industry consists of a large group of disciplines related to the delivery of health care through the application of science, engineering, mathematics and technology. “This seems to be an important priority from the [Florida] governor on down and we certainly have things to offer in the health sciences area,” Ms. Harper said. The last of the three sectorial priorities is the high tech industry. Though it’s difficult to define exactly what goods and services fall within the industry’s borders, it typically includes products using the most advanced technology available and often incorporating advanced computer electronics. “I’ve heard a lot about the I-4
Susan Harper aims to strengthen trade and investment ties in state.
corridor,” Ms. Harper said. “I’ve been to Tampa and to Cape Canaveral for a rocket launch with some of our scientists and Canadian companies, so I know that on the Cape Canaveral side we have some kind of aerospace link.” The I-4 – or Interstate 4 – corridor is typically defined as Florida’s beltline, encompassing the area from Tampa to Orlando to Melbourne, and has more recently been a hotbed for the state’s high tech development. “Certainly for me, the fact that those are the sectors of interest, those are what I needed to understand in the trade and investment area,” Ms. Harper said.”As you
can see, our sectors are aligned with new drivers.” “That doesn’t mean we’re not highly involved in the traditional pillars.” Canada continues to be Florida’s No. 1 destination for agricultural products, according to the consulate. Canada buys nearly $1 billion – almost one-quarter – of Florida’s agricultural exports, 4.5 times more than Florida’s No. 2 partner. In 2015, Canada purchased $232 million (77%) of Florida’s fresh vegetable and $243 million (61%) of its fresh fruit exports, and remains the leading destination for Florida orange juice. Canada and the US trade an
average of $1.3 million in bilateral goods and services every minute of every day. “That’s not even counting the banking sector,” Ms. Harper said. Florida’s top good exports to Canada equal $3.9 billion and include fertilizers, aircraft, optical, medical and precision instruments, fruits and nuts, and vegetables. Top goods imports equal $4.2 billion and include fuel oil, engines and turbines, furniture and bedding, aircraft, and softwood lumber. Florida’s top services exports to Canada equal $3.8 billion and include travel, transportation services, business, professional and technical services, royalties and license fees, and insurance services. “If you add tourism, exports, foreigners buying local services, if you add that to trade and investment, in both directions, we’re currently the most important economic partner Florida has,” Ms. Harper said.”It’s good to know that we matter a lot in Florida. Both sides care a lot about relationships, that’s what I hear. We know you’re important.” In a recent trip to Tallahassee, state officials reconfirmed interest in using public-private partnerships. Typically called P3s, they are business ventures that are funded and operated through a partnership between government and one or more private sector companies. “P3s [are] an approach to doing business,” Ms. Harper said.”It’s an emphasis on how we like to do business… That’s without in any
way forgetting about other parts of the economy. It’s a balance… It’s growing [and] like a lot of people here, we’re looking to keep building on stability.” “From our point of view, we have a certain amount of expertise, but it’s more of an approach. Everybody has infrastructure needs.” Ms. Harper commended the outcome of a P3 partnership at PortMiami that resulted in the dredging of the main shipping channel and its ability to handle fully laden post-Panamax class vessels. “Frankly, P3s [are] an approach that [has] worked very well for us,” she said. “The government doesn’t have limitless funds. This is a new way to have the private sector participate.” “We’ve learned from Australians, Brits. The US is sort of entering this community now… We think we have some interesting experiences to offer and can also offer contacts.” However, Ms. Harper said, she’s fully aware that the CanadaFlorida relationship isn’t only beneficial to one side. “I want to be clear that we’re dealing with sophisticated partners in Florida,” she said. “We know that [Canada] gets a lot out of this too.” “The fact is that right at this moment I think we are the biggest economic partner for Florida and I’m sure that we’re always going to be one of the top partners. We are so invested in our people, in these relationships. We’re a longterm, serious partner.”
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Miami International’s ranking in on-time flights still slipping BY MARILYN BOWDEN
Aviation industry reports recorded a decline in on-time performance at Miami International Airport, or MIA, during calendar year 2015. The County Commission’s Trade & Tourism Committee hired consultant Leigh Fisher to find out why. The results of that study are on the committee’s agenda today (10/13). In its annual report, UK-based OAG, formerly called Official Airlines Guide, reported that MIA had slipped from No. 9 in 2014 to No. 19 in 2015 in on-time performance among the world’s 20 largest airports, with 80.08% of flights arriving or departing within 15 minutes of their scheduled times, down from 83.2% in 2014. The Federal Aviation Administration’s Airline Service Quality Performance statistics classify flight delay causes under five categories: carrier delays due to circumstances beyond the airline’s control, extreme weather, national aviation system delays or cancellations, late-
arriving aircraft that push back the start of the next flight and security issues. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, carrier delays were the main cause of delays at MIA in 2015. Leigh Fisher found that internal data from American Airlines – MIA’s predominant carrier – also showed an increase in flight delays from 2014 through 2015. American’s researchers suggested several reasons for this. First was a change in Custom & Border Protection protocols for catering and customer boarding for international departures, which the airline reported caused a spike averaging 11.5 delays through the middle of March 2015. Related causes cited by American Airlines were customer service issues such as misconnected customers, mishandled baggage and Transportation Security Administration screening, which together contributed 2.3 percentage points in delays. Construction at MIA during 2015 requiring American Airlines passengers to
be bused to gates in MIA’s Satellite E terminal, rather than go by train, reduced American’s on-time performance ratio in 2015 to 64.2% compared to a reported 79.9% ratio for the airline’s other operations. American’s decision to schedule more flights during peak hours also contributed to delays on its flights, shortening connection times but allowing less tolerance for previous schedule disruptions. American Airlines said that the OAG’s data were skewed by the transition of many American Eagle flights to Republic Airlines, which does not report its data. Also, the airline’s researchers noted, staffing shortages in Havana airspace beginning on Dec. 14, 2015, contributed to the total picture. Data through July of this year compiled by the US Department of Transportation suggest that MIA continues to struggle in 2016. The department’s most recent consumer report shows that between Jan. 1 and July 31, 2106, 76.99%
of MIA flights arrived on time, ranking 24 out of 29 major US airports covered in the report. A year ago MIA held the No. 15 spot, with an on-time performance ratio of 77.53%. The biggest culprit, according to the Consumer Report, may be the weather. Although fewer than 1% of delays were classified in the extreme weather category, the report states, “Weather is a factor in both the extreme-weather category and the aviation-system category. This includes delays due to the re-routing of flights by DOT’s Federal Aviation Administration in consultation with the carriers involved. Weather is also a factor in delays attributed to latearriving aircraft, although airlines do not report specific causes in that category.� Using data collected from airlines, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics determined that in July 36.03% of late flights were delayed by weather, up from 31.93% in June and 29.36% in July 2015.
Transitioning Metrorail to ground level cited for two routes BY CATHERINE LACKNER
Two proposals to expand mass transit from the Miami-Dade County line to Homestead and Florida City would bring Metrorail down to earth, literally. Alice Bravo, director of the county’s Transportation and Public Works Department, said it would be cheaper, easier and quicker to transition Metrorail from an elevated service to a ground-level service than to invest in another mode of transit along the north and south corridors identified by the Strategic Miami Area Rapid Transit plan. The extended line would use the existing Metrorail cars, and would run in the median of Northwest
27th Avenue and inside the existing US 1 busway. “The key to success is to keep all of the corridors moving forward,� Ms. Bravo told the MiamiDade Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Fiscal Priorities Committee last month. “We must approach each corridor as an open slate and in an unbiased manner.� The planning organization has unanimously adopted the plan to introduce rapid transit along six corridors, though development of all six will likely take place at different times, and be financed by different means. The routes are the: „ Beach Corridor, between Miami Beach and Miami. „ East-West Corridor, along
State Road 836. „ Kendall Corridor, from Dadeland to Southwest 162nd Avenue. „North Corridor, along Northwest 27th Avenue from west of downtown to Northwest 215th Street. „ Northeast Corridor, from downtown to Aventura, largely along the Florida East Coast Railway tracks. „ South Corridor, from Dadeland to Southwest 344th Street, along US 1. “The north corridor begins at the Martin Luther King Jr. station and continues north to the county line,� Ms. Bravo said. “What we’re looking at are the same elevated stations until the line reaches North-
Public Notice Notice is given that a meeting of the Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners will be held on Tuesday, October 18, 2016, at 9:30 AM, in the Commission Chambers, located on the Second Floor of the Stephen P. Clark Center, 111 N.W. First Street, Miami, Florida, wherein, among other matters to be considered, a public hearing will be held at such time that the item is called on the following: Ordinances and Resolutions: t 3FTPMVUJPO DPEFTJHOBUJOH UIBU QPSUJPO PG /8 UI "WFOVF GSPN /8 /PSUI 3JWFS %SJWF UP 6 4 BT A +PTF 'FSOBOEF[ "WFOVF VSHJOH UIF $JUZ PG .JBNJ UP KPJO JO UIJT DPEFTJHOBUJPO t 3FTPMVUJPO DPEFTJHOBUJOH UIBU QPSUJPO PG 48 UI "WFOVF GSPN 48 UI 5FSSBDF UP 48 UI 4USFFU BT A +PSHF 1FĂ—B 8BZ Resolution Approving the Following Plat: t 3FTPMVUJPO BQQSPWJOH UIF 1MBU PG .BUBHBS "DSFT CPVOEFE PO UIF /PSUI CZ 48 4USFFU PO UIF &BTU BQQSPYJNBUFMZ GFFU 8FTU PG 48 "WFOVF PO UIF 4PVUI BQQSPYJNBUFMZ GFFU /PSUI PG 48 4USFFU BOE PO UIF 8FTU CZ 48 Court) t 3FTPMVUJPO BQQSPWJOH UIF 1MBU PG .JBNJ $PVOUSZ %BZ 4DIPPM CPVOEFE PO UIF /PSUI BQQSPYJNBUFMZ GFFU 4PVUI PG /& 4USFFU PO UIF &BTU CZ #JTDBZOF $BOBM $BOBM $ PO UIF 4PVUI CZ /& 4USFFU BOE PO UIF 8FTU CZ /& "WFOVF
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west 82nd Street, where it will transition to grade. It will still be a one-seat ride.� Elevated rail is far more expensive than mass transit at street level, she said, and the current cars can be retrofitted to get power from an overhead line rather than the electric third rail that exists now. “There will be minimal right-ofway acquisition, for a significant cost reduction.� Her department is working to put together cost estimates, she said. For the south corridor, “that transition already exists,� in that the county owns a holding area for Metrorail cars south of the Dadeland South Station that is next to the US 1 busway. “We have identified station locations and will work with municipalities and unincorporated areas to refine station design, so that it speaks to communities,� Ms. Bravo said. “We have to figure out how to phase the project so that we can still maintain bus service during construction.� “This is a new concept for us, and it’s exciting,� said Daniella
Levine Cava, county commissioner, planning organization member and committee chair. “It helps us move forward with the concept of Metrorail everywhere and has some real advantages.� Ease of implementation and economies of scale are two principal advantages, Ms. Bravo said. Ms. Levine Cava asked if the concept would work in the other corridors. “We started with these two corridors, and the others have different characteristics, as well as right-of-way and geometric constraints,� Ms. Bravo said. But all concepts would be studied, she said. “Congratulations,� said Maurice Ferre, former Miami mayor and planning organization member. “This is thinking out of the box and makes a lot of sense.� He asked if at grade Metrorail service could be extended along the east and west corridors, given that there is a Metrorail station near the Palmetto Expressway in Medley. He asked that Ms. Bravo’s department study the matter and report back.
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New aviation bonds net county $152 million in debt saving BY SUSAN DANSEYAR
The issuance and negotiated sale of $744.375 million aviation revenue refunding bonds last month was deemed a success by Mayor Carlos Giménez, as the series represents a net present value savings of 13.07% over 25 years. The bonds, issued to refund and redeem a portion of an outstanding series originally used for capital projects at Miami International Airport, were priced by Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. on Aug. 2, sold to retail investors Aug. 2 and to institutional investors Aug. 3. According to a memo Mr. Giménez wrote to commissioners, the refunding generated debt service savings of $152.015 million over the life of the bonds, representing a net present value savings of $96.640 million or 13.07%, and a true interest cost of 3.27%. The transaction closed Aug. 25. The county applied for ratings on the bonds from top firms Fitch Ratings, S&P Global Rating and Kroll Bond Rating Agency Global, which all affirmed their ratings of A (stable), A (stable) and AA- (stable), respectively. S&P’s July 22 report states its A/stable long-term rating to Miami-Dade’s aviation revenue bond series due Oct. 1, 2041, reflects the agency’s assessment “of a large connecting hub airport with a niche market dominance with additional debt need
Photo by Maxine Usdan
Bonds were issued to refund bonds originally used for capital projects at Miami International Airport.
that has produced steady financial results despite having a high debt load and high airline cost structure.” The key credit strengths, according to S&P, are MIA’s size and niche market dominance as a US gateway airport to Latin America; historically good air travel demand, expected to be near recent levels as a result of serving a strong service area economy; and historically steady financial performance expected to continue from MIA’s residual use agreements. “Net airport revenues secure the bonds,” the report states. “MIA has what we consider a
simple capital structure, consisting only of fixed rate bonds. It has no swaps, variable-rate debt or direct-purchase bonds.” Fitch Ratings also assigned an A/stable outlook, which the July 25 report said reflects the airport’s strong position in the South Florida market for both domestic and international air service, and its capital program is essentially complete while the financial metrics have exhibited stability in recent years. “In Fitch’s view, the airport has a conservative debt structure and currently has slightly more than $5.5 billion of outstanding senior-lien aviation revenue
bonds,” the report states. “MIA’s board has authorized the issuance of $6.2 billion in aviation revenue bonds, of which $5.84 billion has been utilized. The additional borrowing requirements under the latest capital program should be able to manage within this authorization.” Kroll Bond Rating Agency’s long-term rating of AA- with a stable outlook is based on several key rating strengths, according to the July 22 report. Those are that management has effectively steered MIA through its massive capital program; the southeastern US location is in relative close proximity to key Latin American
and Caribbean destinations; the sizable foreign-born service area population that fosters international business and supports travel by family and friends; high yield routes temper concerns regarding high airline costs; and sound financial operations characterized by ample coverage and comfortable liquidity. “The stable outlook reflects KBRA’s expectation that passenger traffic will remain stable to slightly increasing, borrowing levels will approximate what is currently anticipated, debt service coverage levels will remain robust and non-airline revenues will continue to temper the need for significant increases in airline payments,” the report states. Factors that may contribute to a rating upgrade are “an accelerated passenger traffic growth trend with accompanying strong performance of nonaeronautical revenues lowering airline [cost per enplanement],” Kroll states. In June, county commissioners authorized issuing aviation revenue refunding bonds up to $750 million at a savings of $79 million over 25 years. The finance department’s bond administration division then prepared a preliminary official statement to the marketplace setting a sale date to buy the bonds. The statement outlined pertinent information on Miami-Dade’s credit and the bonds’ details such as duration and interest rates.
Matthew’s aftermath unlikely to pressure insurers on capital The aftermath of Hurricane Matthew will pressure the earnings of some insurance underwriters in Florida and other Southeast states but isn’t expected to present a major capital challenge, Fitch Ratings says. Fitch estimates that if the storm results in insured losses in excess of $10 billion, a greater proportion of losses will be borne by reinsurers than by primary companies. A total of 4,973 claims from Hurricane Matthew had been reported across Florida as of Monday, the Florida Office of Insurance Regulations reported, with estimated insured losses at $21 million. But those data, the office said, came from a reporting period of only three days that ended at midnight Sunday. “These numbers will increase across the state in the days and weeks ahead,” the office predicted. Matthew skirted the Florida coastline, generating high winds and storm surge. It will take significant time to assess industry-wide and company-specific insured losses, Fitch said. The Florida insurance market has evolved considerably in the past decade, Fitch wrote. Homeowner’s market share has shifted away from large national writers and state-sponsored Citizens Property Insurance Corp. to a number of smaller Florida homeowners specialists. A lack of storm activity over the last decade has substantially increased the claims-paying re-
surer, followed by Allianz SE; miums by a wide margin. sources to meet catastrophe thew, Fitch wrote. Among private entities, Fitch Tokio Marine Holdings Inc.; Fitch estimated that Florida losses, such as those arising from Matthew, of both Citizens Hurricane Catastrophe Fund has said, Lloyd’s of London ap- Everest Re Group Ltd.; and XL and state-sponsored reinsurer, assumed the largest level of pre- pears to be the next largest rein- Group plc. the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund. Fitch wrote. The smaller Florida specialist homeowners insurers now hold approximately 60% of Florida homeowners insurance market share. 1firstbank.com The primary insurers with the five largest homeowners exposure in Florida, as measured by statutory 2015 direct written premiums, include Universal Insurance Holding Group, Tower Hill Group, State Farm Mutual Group, Citizens Property Insurance Corp. and Federated National Insurance Co. The limited history for the newer specialty insurers means that the resiliency of their balance sheets and claims management functions are relatively untested by a large catastrophe event, Fitch noted. Loss experience from Matthew, Fitch said, will provide insight into the underwriting expertise of the Florida specialist companies and their ability to service a significant number of claims. Property insurers’ writing business in Florida relies heavily on reinsurance protection and other methods to mitigate their risk of extreme loss, Fitch said. Brickell • Coral Gables • Deerfield • Doral • Hialeah • Kendall As a result, the state catastroMargate • Pembroke Pines • Pinecrest • Sunrise • Westchester phe fund, the traditional and collateralized reinsurance markets and the catastrophe bond market could have meaningful FirstBank Florida is a Division of FirstBank Puerto Rico. exposure to losses from Mat-
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TODAY’S NEWS
WEEK OF THURSDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2016
In P3 deals, value for the money is yardstick, county told BY SUSAN DANSEYAR
Infrastructure is a vital, fundamental element for Miami-Dade’s future, which the county’s Private Public (P3) Task Force told a county committee this week can be well served by this type of project if delivery is cheaper and sustains opportunity for local employment. Task Force Chairman Christopher Hodgkins appeared before the Strategic Planning and Government Operations Committee on Tuesday, providing an overview of the final report presented to the full commission. Essentially, Mr. Hodgkins said, anything the county does with a P3 needs a cheerleader. The important question, he said, is whether there’s room to make a particular project a P3 and why, and the answer to that question is value for money. Given a certain number of dollars, he said, the task force looks to see if a P3 will save money. “If it does, we ask, how can we do it?” Before anyone moves forward, after the advocate says something would make a good P3 project, the issue then comes to the commission for examination. “Why do something if there’s not a buy-in?” he asked “The reason [P3s] fail is that when they get here, there are people out in the audience wearing tee shirts that say “Save My Job.” Therefore, Mr. Hodgkins said, the first thing the task force did was make sure the county honors union contracts when proceeding with a P3. “This is a very diverse group, appointed by you, and all agreed with this report,” he said. “Once we narrow down the [request for
Photo by Maxine Usdan
Christopher Hodgkins, who chaired the Public Private Task Force, headed creation of the Miami Tunnel.
qualifications], the commission then decides whether to go forward based on the value and we proceed with the [request for qualifications]. And you have a vote to go to contract negotiations.”. Thus, Mr. Hodgkins said, the commission has four bites at the apple. All over the US right now, Mr. Hodgkins said, P3s are what’s happening. The Miami Tunnel, which he headed, is an example, in his opinion. “If you put together the right process that protects your employees and public dollars, it can work,” he said. The committee members largely agreed. Chairman Juan Zapata said with a P3, the county will understand the life cycle of a project and know the options upfront, rather than see an asset that’s not well-maintained and eventually costs more money than anticipated to maintain.
“The one thing we don’t do well is maintenance,” Mr. Zapata said. “We scrimp on maintenance and then find ourselves spending a lot of money years later.” However, Mr. Zapata said, the private sector handles maintenance well and its good design experience and ideas can lead to operational savings. “The [P3 model] brings in the best talent ’round the world to give us solutions that we wouldn’t be able to come up with,” he said. “This takes us in the direction we want, so we know what our costs will be down the road.” Daniella Levine Cava, who thanked the P3 committee for thorough work, said analysis of the value-for-money framework is outstanding, which she looks forward to applying at the right time. It’s important to stress in the value-for-money analysis there are the five elements, Ms. Levine Cava said: design, build, finance,
operation and maintenance. “The devil is in that detail,” she said. “Each element has to be evaluated; we should not treat them as all or nothing.” For example, Ms. Levine Cava pointed out, operation and maintenance could be the county’s responsibility in a given P3 project. One question Ms. Levine Cava had was why the South Miami Heights Treatment Plant, which was going to be considered for a P3 method, is no longer on the list. Mr. Hodgkins did not know and Mr. Zapata said his guess is it’s a matter of politics, given that Water and Sewer Department personnel and the administration “prime-timed it” at P3 conferences around the country and there was a lot of interest. When the committee unanimously agreed to accept the report, Ms. Levine Cava asked that the full commission discuss the South Miami Heights project and
whether it belongs on the list for consideration as a P3 project. On Feb. 3, 2015, the commission adopted legislation that created the Miami-Dade County Public Private Partnership (P3) Task Force, composed of 13 business leaders and professionals experienced in carrying out successful arrangements with this financial model. The primary reason for the task force was to assist the board and administration in a plan that would ultimately result in private-public collaborations for infrastructure projects. Members who volunteered included Mr. Hodgkins, Diana Gonzalez, William W. Riley Jr., Bill Ernstrom, Ron Frazier, George Burgess, John M. Cal, Richard M. Gomez, Enrique “Rick” Crooks, Margaret Cullen, Carlos Diaz-Padron, David L. Dixon, Andy Madtes, Ralph Rosado and Christian B. Ulvert. Duties included making recommendations to the county commission on changes in ordinances, resolutions, administrative practices and regulations that would advance P3s; identify potential projects addressing the county’s critical infrastructure needs that are suitable for the P3 model; review and assess projects, timelines, legislative recommendations or other goals, tasks and deliverables in the county’s P3 plan; and provide a written report to the commission describing their findings and recommendations. The task force was an advisory group only without any power or authority to commit Miami-Dade or any of its agencies to any policies or obligations and was scheduled to sunset 220 days from the resolution’s effective date.
Grove Bay garage site to be cleared, construction due soon BY JOHN CHARLES ROBBINS
After being delayed for years by legal tangles, ground is to be broken soon on a new multilevel parking garage project for the Coconut Grove waterfront. The Grove Bay Parking Garage will be built and operated by the Miami Parking Authority, under the direction of the OffStreet Parking Board. At its October meeting, the board hired a company for site clearing at the city-owned property just northwest of City Hall off Pan American Drive. The site preparation is expected to take 45 to 60 days, said Authority CEO Art Noriega, making the site ready for construction of the new public parking facility hugged by retail shops. As part of a three-party public-private agreement between the authority, City of Miami and Grove Bay Investment Group LLC, construction on the garage must begin before year’s end, according to Mr. Noriega. In a memo on the latest in the Grove Bay project, Mr. Noriega said in preparation for the construction the authority authored an invitation to bid and released it to its pool of approved vendors.
The garage is to be part of The Harbour, a mixed-use development from Grove Bay Investment Group.
The invitation requested contractors for site clearing, demolition, cutting, and excavation, as well as protecting all existing trees on the site. Staff also met on site to review specifications with prospective contractors. The authority received two proposals: a base bid from Florida Lemark Corp. was $146,071.25, plus $58,500 for alternate tree removal; and a base bid from KVC Constructors Inc. was $111,493, plus $26,450 for alternate tree removal. Mr. Noriega told the board that staff considered KVC Con-
structors Inc. the lowest most responsive bid and recommended it be granted the contract. He said the KVC proposal was validated and he was “absolutely comfortable with the pricing.” The garage is part of The Harbour, a mixed-use development from Grove Bay Investment Group LLC with new restaurants and shops, targeted for a 2017 opening. The garage is to rise off Pan American Drive and South Bayshore Drive. In the summer of 2013, the city commission agreed to lease about 7 waterfront acres to
Grove Bay Investment Group for $1.8 million a year upon completion, and about $17.9 million of privately-funded improvements to redevelop a marina, construct restaurants, improve the public baywalk, fund part of the garage and make other improvements. City voters approved the plan in November 2013, but lingering litigation held up the project. The garage had been designed with two levels, with ground floor retail, providing enough area for about 228 vehicles. It has since been redesigned with a third level, bringing parking
spaces to about 333. This year, the city’s Planning, Zoning and Appeals Board approved of the retail uses for the garage. The planning board approved an exception to the zoning code allowing for development of a general commercial facility. The plan calls for about 34,339 square feet of commercial. A planning department analysis said, “The Parking Garage specifications were established in a Lease Agreement between the City of Miami and Grove Bay Investment Group, as well as in an Intergovernmental Agency Agreement between the City of Miami and the Miami Parking Authority. These two documents prescribe the General Commercial Use for the ground floor of the Parking Garage. All three of these documents were approved by City Commission.” Planning staff found the proposed commercial use to be “a substantial enhancement of the parking structure.” Grove Bay Investment Group is putting $4 million into construction of the garage, which has a total price of about $8 million, according to the authority.
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