Miami Today: Week of Thursday, May 11, 2017

WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2017

A Singular Voice in an Evolving City

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HEALTH UPDATE

New Miami Cancer Institute has 800 patients daily, pg. 14

Budget cuts $160 million from South Florida hospitals, pg. 13 COMPENSATION ROSE FASTEST HERE: Private industry total compensation costs for workers rose faster in South Florida than any other large metropolitan area in the nation in the 12 months ended March 31, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported last week. In the area that includes MiamiDade and Broward counties, compensation costs rose 3.2% for the 12-month period, the bureau reported, far above the US average of 2.3%. Trailing Miami were Philadelphia and San Jose at a 3% increase each, followed by Detroit, Minneapolis and New York at 2.9%. The smallest increase among the large metro areas was in Houston, 1.6%. Factoring out all employment costs but wages and salaries, however, the Miami area saw a 3.1% increase, far below gains of 3.6% in Seattle and 3.5% in Detroit.

The Achiever

By John Charles Robbins

NEW PUMP STATIONS: Miami-Dade’s Infrastructure and Utilities Committee on Tuesday approved a service agreement between MiamiDade and Nova Consulting Inc. for the county’s wastewater pump station improvement program. Spending will be increased by $8 million to $25.6 million with a two-year agreement renewal to Dec. 30, 2020. The increase will be funded by a combination of the Water and Sewer Department revenue bonds being sold, wastewater connection charges and future department revenue bonds. The Water and Sewer Department established a pump station improvement program to upgrade wastewater collection and transmission, including pump stations and water mains, under a consent decree with the US Environmental Protection Agency and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. The full commission is to vote on the resolution May 16.

HEALTHY TEETH: County commissioners gave preliminary approval during Tuesday’s Infrastructure and Utilities Committee meeting to award a contract for a type of acid for the Water and Sewer Department that is used to treat potable water and also helps prevent tooth decay. The department anticipates buying an annual 1,640 tons of the chemical. The contract is $2.66 million for a five-year term.

FREE RIDES: The Coconut Grove Miami Trolley Route is getting a boost from local businesses. The Miami City Commission accepted $400,000 from the Coconut Grove Business Improvement District (BID) for the purchase of two trolleys to help service the Grove route, launched in March 2016. The BID’s executive committee approved the funds Jan. 27, 2016. The new trolleys will further enhance the City of Miami Trolley services within and around Coconut Grove. The trolleys are free to riders.

Miamieyes raised fines for parking

David Appel

Photo by Cristina Sullivan

Heads Cherry Bekaert’s South Florida accounting team The profile is on Page 4

20% of county’s bus drivers absent every day

By Susan Danseyar

Anticipated $23.7 million bus cut savings might help build new transit corridors, pg. 2

Twenty percent of Miami-Dade Transit’s bus drivers are absent every day, all the time, which costs the county money, according to Mayor Carlos Giménez.

Miami-Dade’s contract with the Transportation Workers Union (TWU) almost incentivizes absences, the mayor said May 4 at Commission Chair Esteban Bovo Jr.’s policy council meeting.

Now, the county wants to outsource little-used bus routes that yield too little revenue.

TWU representative Clarence Washington told commissioners the union was not invited to a March 30 meeting with the administration.

Now, the administration, along with transit chief Alice Bravo, is to meet with the union at 1 p.m. today (5/11) to discuss outsourcing buses with low ridership and to negotiate driver absenteeism.

Mr. Washington said a March meeting was forced on the union. He said he was informed the bus routes would be outsourced because of low ridership.

“We have an absentee rate of 20% that’s causing a lot of overtime,” Mayor Giménez said.

“We need to take the routes that do not generate

revenue and contract them out.”

No transit worker will be laid off, the mayor vowed.

Mr. Washington said the union feels contracting out routes won’t help. “Transportation to the public is no different from [the fire or police department]. It’s a service we must provide for the public. The small community of routes [being discussed] are not supposed to ride lots of people. They say we’re not making any money on these routes.”

Mr. Washington said the union has “upwards of 40 people working” on those routes and they’re not supposed to, creating a manpower issue.

“We have a number of routes with very little ridership,” the mayor said. “The average cost per hour is $130. A private company will run at $50 an hour.” He said the contracted bus firm would use the same system for complaints and any county contract with a private operator could be halted at any time.

“No transit system makes money, but we can reduce the loss,” the mayor said, in agreement with Mr.Washington, who also said union workers have been under attack so much that they’re not

even able to provide the service.

Dennis Moss asked Mr. Washington why he couldn’t be ready to meet today. “We don’t think we can complete going through the information,” Mr. Washington said, adding that management gave the union detailed reports.

The county plans to discontinue three bus routes that are mostly circulators and never exceed 20 passengers throughout the day, Ms. Bravo said.

“Our goal through these efficiencies is to save [money] on overtime. Overall, our anticipation is that these changes will have a total annualized cost savings of $23.7 million.”

Ms. Bravo said the circulators complement the county’s transit service. “They help us focus our resources on the longer-distance commutes.”

Mr. Washington said the union feels contracting out circulator routes won’t help people the buses are supposed to move.

Mr. Moss voted ‘No’ on Mr. Bovo’s resolution to use savings from bus route changes that could take effect Nov. 19 to add other transit, saying he wants to hear the outcome of today’s meeting. A shift in fund use would require a full commission vote.

Parking violations in Miami could bring stiffer fines if city leaders can convince state and county lawmakers to beef up the penalties.

City commissioners are to consider a resolution today (5/11) urging changes in state law to allow increased penalties for parking violations and urging the county to raise its parking fines.

Requesting the higher penalties is the Off-Street Parking Board, which oversees the Miami Parking Authority.

Miami-Dade collects, processes and adjudicates parking violations countywide and approves the rate. Florida statutes limit the fine amounts that counties may impose.

It’s been more than 20 years since the county commission raised fines, according to the resolution. It says county code now provides parking penalties ranging from $18 to $33, “which do not adequately reflect the gravity of these illegal parking offenses, and are not in keeping with the current parking rates or the increasing costs of enforcement.”

A background memo says that to alleviate such abuses as parking after a violation shows on a meter, parking on prohibited streets and willful obstruction of streets, as well as other parking violations that create hazards or impede traffic and cut into legal parking sites, the city urges the county to amend its parking fines and the state to allow increased penalties.

Authority CEO Art Noriega told the parking board May 3 that Miami has one of the state’s lowest fine schedules.

A check of other Florida cities shows Tampa parking tickets range from $24 to $39, and in Fort Lauderdale from $32 to $57.

Mr. Noriega said the challenge will be to convince county elected officials to approve higher rates, noting the political risk. He said politicians tend to be leery of fee increases.

But stiffer penalties, he said, should lead to people being “more compliant.”

STATE ROAD 836 SOUTHWEST BELTWAY PLAN DETOURED ...

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WYNWOOD DISTRICT EXPANSION STUMBLES BUT GOES ON ...

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MICRO-ROOM HOTEL, RESIDENCES DROP GARAGE PLANS ...

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TEAM BACKS BID FOR PUBLIC-PRIVATE COURTHOUSE DEAL ...

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VIEWPOINT: MIAMI BEACH SETS OUR PACE ON GAMBLING ...

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PARKING TEAM WANTS TO RUN BISCAYNE BLVD. REMAKE ...

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BANC AMERICA IN LINE TO FINANCE COUNTY’S VEHICLES ...

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BRICKELL KEY SITE TO BE A PARK, WATER TAXI PICK-UP ...

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VIEWPOINT

MIAMI TODAY

WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2017

Miami Today is an independent voice of the community, published weekly at 2000 S. Dixie Highway, Suite 100, Miami, Florida 33133. Telephone (305) 358-2663

Miami Beach is setting the pace on gambling for all of us For all the right reasons, Miami Beach this week is to vote to keep casinos out of its city limits. The legislation should be passed, and then should become a model for every other government in Miami-Dade County to do Michael Lewis the same thing.

The most important reason for every city to act now to bar gambling is that neither the state legislature nor county hall can be counted on to hold the gates against the constant battering ram of mega-casinos.

Each legislative session casino interests get closer and closer to breaking through the barriers, as they almost did this year.

Meanwhile, county government has just begun a partnership with Genting, the Malaysian casino giant that bought the old Omni mall and the former Miami Herald site with the stated purposes of putting a mega-casino on each site. In the new partnership, a Genting affiliate will build a 300-room hotel with plenty of operating space for a casino over a county bus terminal adjacent to the other two sites –

clearing the way for not just one casino but a whole casino district.

Miami Beach, which thrives on the visitor industry, knows well what a wide-open casino could do to the upper-end visitors the city has come to attract more and more. Art Basel visitors and a Florida Atlantic City wouldn’t mix, and the huge loss to the community would be economic, sociological and cultural.

From Miami Beach, the blight would spread to the rest of the county. Despite the legislature’s decimation of Visit Florida in the just-ended legislative session, the economy of Miami-Dade, like the rest of this state, depends on visitors. Gambling is bringing in fewer visitors everywhere, and many of the high-end visitors who like the current climate of Miami-Dade would be repelled.

Because neither the state nor the county can be depended upon to hold the gates shut against casinos, the city is approaching its legislation as a land use and zoning matter, proposing planning and zoning regulations that would bar gambling uses. So even if the state were to legalize casinos, they couldn’t operate in Miami Beach based on land and zoning rules.

Again, every city should emulate Miami Beach. Then, if the state legalized them, casinos could enter unincorporated areas, leaving it to county hall to summon the wisdom and

courage to also bar gambling – though Genting probably has too many county commissioners on its side already to make that happen.

Miami Beach’s planning analysis for this week’s legislation is instructive. It notes that while the legislature didn’t allow more casinos in Miami-Dade this year “there is always the possibility of special sessions or for new bills to be introduced in future legislative sessions. It is therefore important that the city’s comprehensive plan and land development regulations address casinos in the event that the State Legislature allows an expansion of gambling or casinos at some point in the future.”

As for legality, the analysis concludes that the city is well within both its home rule and police powers to adopt the proposed zoning and comprehensive plan amendments.

The legislative analysis notes not only the well-documented social ills of gambling but the economic danger to the rest of the tourist industry: casinos are designed to keep the guests inside their facilities, not seeing the community and its attractions. That would imply that local spending per visitor would drop markedly in a casino economy, so even with the same number of visitors local incomes would fall.

The first airing of the three city measures is today (5/11) – the Planning Board is to review

them and send them to the city commission for a 2 p.m. hearing tomorrow (5/12) at city hall. The city commission’s vote will be preliminary, meaning final action would come after the commission, as it should, passes the items this week.

These measures, all ordinances, won’t be engraved in stone. Future city commissions could be swayed to undo what this commission should do now – erect gambling barriers. We should be counting on the state constitution to protect us – but we can’t, because as the city analysis notes, a future legislature could open the doors wide to gambling.

The casino interests will never stop trying to get in. Each step they take inside will lead to another and another.

The only defenses are to pass local measures like Miami Beach’s today and then have constant vigilance. Not only are we protecting our visitor economy but the lifestyle that keeps us here.

People pick the lifestyle they prefer. Of this we are certain: Atlantic City is selling very few multi-million-dollar condos. The big money comes here already, and comes to live as well as to visit. We have nothing to gain, and everything to lose, with casinos.

It’s appropriate that Miami Beach show leadership and lead the way. Who knows the visitor industry better?

Will fixed rail decongest Miami-Dade County roadways?

In this first in a series of transportation articles, I will examine how other areas in the USA dealt with urban road congestion challenges similar to ours.

One of the key issues is the importance of urban density.

Miami-Dade County Maurice A. Ferré is not New York City, Chicago or San Francisco. American midsize urban areas have spent billions of dollars constructing fixed rail systems over the past dozen years. Did fixed rail decongest their highways?

I was astonished to learn from theAmerican Public Transportation Association Ridership Report of the declining ridership numbers on their rail systems in Denver, San Diego, Atlanta, Dallas, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, and many others.

In Denver, when the elected officials received voter approval for their rail lines they were told the system would cost $4.7 billion.

The actual cost was $7.6 billion. The new rail line to the Denver airport was supposed to cost $350 million but cost $1.2 billion.

Not only was the cost undersold, but ridership numbers were overestimated. The operation and maintenance costs were also

The Writer

Maurice A. Ferré has been a member of the Florida Transportation Commission since 2011. He was mayor of Miami from 1973-1985, a Miami-Dade County commissioner from 1993-1996, a MiamiDade Expressway Authority board member from 2015-2017 and a county Transportation Planning Organization board member from 2011-2017. significantly underestimated. The first-year ridership on Denver’s West line was less than 60% of the projections sold to the voters. Did the new rail system reduce traffic congestion in Denver? This is what we are promising the commuters of Miami-Dade County with our SMART plan.

Dallas (DART), another recent light rail project, has had a similar experience. They’ve spent upwards of $5.5 billion on their light rail infrastructure over the past two decades, but light rail hasn’t reduced traffic congestion or even moved the needle on commuting behavior. In 1990, about 40,000 commuters in Dallas County relied on transit buses to commute to work. By 2000, with 20 miles of track in operation, only 36,925 commuters were using public transit. By 2014 it had declined to 32,368.

These two examples are not the exception but rather the rule. Those dozen recent rail transit projects have consistently cost an average of 50% more than the original projections and projected ridership numbers are double actual ridership numbers. This should sound familiar to Miami: Metrorail.

The dozen light rail and commuter rail systems built in similar-size cities in America in the past few years have cost an average of $5 billion to $8 billion each. More troubling than the cost overruns are the failures to decongest highways or increase ridership in public mass transit.

The most overestimated high cost/low ridership showings have been trains to airports.

Our own Orange Line to MIA averages only 1,000 passengers per day. But we are not unique. The airport train in Washington to Dulles International Airport has low ridership and is costing so much to operate that they are considering closure. Denver’s train to their airport is similar.

Miami-Dade County is not London, Paris or other major, high-density European cities with a tradition of mass transit. From most hotels and residences to a Metrorail station is a trip in itself. When you arrive by train to MIA lugging suitcases, the distance to your boarding gate can be up to a mile.

In all of these American cities of over 2

Letters to the Editor Raise gas tax, spur transit Mass transit far too slow The way to get people out of cars and onto mass transit is to provide incentives. Gasoline should be taxed $1 per gallon in the tri-county area.

This would encourage people to seek alternate forms of transportation. The proceeds of the tax would be used to subsidize the transit system and make fares free for everyone.

Keith Root

It actually doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that mass transit in Miami is too slow. There is no way anyone can spend two hours commuting when it can happen in 45 minutes if you go by car.

Bus stops are too close to one another.

I’m tired of sending letters to the City of Miami to separate bus stops. They don’t have to be on every block. They won’t have as many stops and move faster with traffic.

Another idea I’ve suggested is to eliminate so many detours and turns that buses unnecessarily make going into malls, train stations, etc. Buses should run on busy streets without having so many turns and detours. This only complicates routes and slows down the process.

And last but definitely not least, add more buses and more frequency, giving buses dedicated lanes during rush hour.

Grato de Cardenas

million residents, these multibillion fixed rail solutions have not decongested roads. In Denver, Dallas, Seattle, Southern California and in most metropolitan areas there has been a recent flurry of new toll roads built. These areas, like Miami-Dade, have a proportion of vehicle usage over mass transit of 95% to 5%.

The only exception to this is Seattle, where mass transit is used by 10%.

Here in Miami-Dade, transit usage is under 4% and decreasing. Americans will not give up their cars, not yet. Our Miami-Dade Transit will not go to where you are, nor to where you want to go.

The issue for us is the cost/benefit ratio for any mass transit solutions for Miami-Dade County, or what the private sector calls Return on Investment.

To move ahead smartly we must come up with a winning cost/benefit ratio. Fortunately, that is exactly what our Miami-Dade County Transportation Planning Organization and the Florida Department of Transportation District 6 are now studying. There are solutions to these key questions. But, again, we must have the best cost/benefit ratio, it must be affordable locally and it must be sustainable.

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WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2017

TODAY’S NEWS

MIAMI TODAY

7

Fulbright alumni seek US, Japan links on emerging issues

By Camila Cepero

Across societies around the world, national and local governments are facing at least some of the same grand-scale issues. Climate change, sea level rise, international business development and women’s empowerment are just a few examples of the similarities to tackle across borders, said one group of visiting Japanese Fulbright alumni.

Four Fulbright alumni returned to the US to give updates on Japan’s situation and shared their thoughts and views with Miami Today about how Japan and the US can work together to deal with emerging issues.

Regarding business development between Japanese and American companies, it’s important to note that Japan is “not a place to make things,” said Tomohiko Taniguchi, professor at Keio University’s Graduate School of System Design and Management, focusing on international political economy and Japanese diplomacy.

“The cost of labor is not cheap in Japan, but you’ve got brain power and money, so you have to tap into those resources,” said Mr. Taniguchi, who is also special adviser to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s cabinet.

Apple’s recent opening of a massive research and development center near Tokyo is an example of that, he said.

Nonetheless, the strong connections between the US and Japan date back 150 years, Mr. Taniguchi said, and he recommends that industries “don’t worry, just come.”

Masaru Karube, an associate professor of the Institute of Innovation Research at Hitotsubashi University and a member of the university’s Center for Japanese Business Studies, said that the framework is already in place for both countries to do business with each other.

Giant companies like Boeing, Tesla and Panasonic already have a presence in Japan, taking advantage of the technological advancements taking place in Japan.

“We have already constructed that relationship,” Mr. Karube said.

“In the short term, people may have different opinions, but in the long run, everyone can reach the same conclusion.

In regard to climate change, a global issue that both Japan and Miami are working to combat, Mr. Taniguchi said that “Japan is after all an island nation surrounded by seas, so anything that happens in the seas must concern the Japanese.”

“Sea level going up is one of the greatest concerns in Miami and it reminds me of our similar concerns,” he said. “For tackling climate change, Tokyo is a good reliable partner.”

Ayako Hirata, project-based associate professor of law and society at the Kyoto University Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies, said that Japan’s national and local governments are working hard to deal with and prevent further global warming.

“The framework is still a big agenda item – it’s not specific enough in terms of implementing ordinances in an effective way,” Dr. Hirata said. “And, of course, businesses are worried about the new regulations and that they may hinder economic growth, so there are every intense negotiations hap-

‘Industries are very cooperative, but the next target is individual households, which is a lot tougher.’

Ayako Hirata

Photos by Marlene Quaroni

Professors Ayako Hirata, Masaru Karube, Renge Jibu and Tomohiko Taniguchi, from left, cited joint aims.

pening, especially at the national level.”

“Industries are very cooperative, but the next target is individual households, which is a lot tougher,” he said.

Mr. Taniguchi said that “the biggest emitters in any country... are the chemical industry, steel mills and automobiles.”

“You can give big companies economic incentives to reduce emissions, and that has been going on for some time, and cars in Japan have been rather well known for being fuel efficient,” he said.

“Technology can make a huge difference... but the first thing one has

to have is a positive attitude toward the future.”

Japan is now moving in the direction of empowering women to join the labor force and pursue careers.

The trend is coming to the forefront of the country’s attention because of its possible economic impacts, said Renge Jibu, visiting fellow at Showa Women’s University and journalist.

“If only left-sided people talk about this kind of issue, our society will not change,” Ms. Jibu said. “We need to involve ordinary people and the business community.”

Since 2008, Japan has been seeing a decrease in its population. The

business community is expecting a future labor shortage and shrinking market. Prime Minister Abe has stressed in multiple speeches the seriousness of the crisis and is regarded as one of the reasons that women’s empowerment is now seen as an economic issue.

“In [the US] if you ask women, some want to be like Barbara Bush or Nancy Reagan,” Mr. Taniguchi said, “but the economic imperatives have made it impossible – you need to have two sources of income – it’s not a matter of choice.”

Ms. Jibu said that Japan is now experiencing something similar to what she observed as a scholar

in the US a decade ago when she interviewed over 50 working women.

“Almost all American women told me that the reason they kept working was because of money.

They just couldn’t quit, they had no choice. I returned to Tokyo in 2007 and at the time there seemed to be some choice, but after [the financial crisis in] 2008, there also seemed to be no choice in Japan,” Ms. Jibu said.

“What Japan is experiencing today is what the US experienced before, so Japan can learn from the US.” Overall, Mr. Taniguchi said, the most important thing to keep in mind is that both countries have to embrace changes, embrace differences and embrace growing diversity.

“And that’s already occurring.”

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TODAY’S NEWS

MIAMI TODAY

WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2017

Brickell Key site to be city park, water taxi pick-up location

By John Charles Robbins

A site on Brickell Key is being dedicated as a public park and water taxi pick up and drop off location.

Miami city commissioners meeting today (5/11) are to consider accepting a right-of-way deed of dedication for upland property on the key, a man-made triangular island at the foot of Southeast Eighth Street.

It is part of a development agreement the city has with property owner-developer Swire Properties.

The legislation is a resolution authorizing and directing City Manager Daniel Alfonso to accept, pursuant to a right-of-way deed, the dedication of upland from Swire Pacific Holdings Inc. The land is to be used “as a public linear park and for use as a public water taxi pick up and drop off location� and associated purposes, according to the resolution.

Also called Claughton Island, the 44-acre island is connected to the mainland by a bridge. The island is home to high-rises offering office space, hotel rooms and luxury condos.

Swire took over the development of Brickell Key in the 1980s.

A sketch presented with the deed marks the park and water taxi site just north of where Brickell Key Drive bridge (Southeast Eighth Street) connects with the island.

Willy Gort is seeking water transit.

A sliver of the key on the upper right beside the bridge to the mainland would be a water taxi pick-up.

A plan for the build-out of Brickell Key, with the construction of a new residential tower, was given the go-ahead in October 2015.

City commissioners approved the second and final reading of an amendment to the Brickell Key Development of Regional Impact, or DRI, order.

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The change reduced the permitted non-residential floor area by 676,116 square feet while increasing the number of residential units by 668, and required a 3.75-acre linear park on the island.

Swire Properties plans to bring a new residential tower to the southern corner of the island.

acre linear park and a quarter-acre park on the island.

Swire has determined that to satisfy its obligation, in part, to dedicate public park land it will convey property to the city for a park and water taxi site, according to the resolution.

The new deed includes a reverter clause should the property ever cease to be used for a public park and water taxi stop.

Dedicating the site for public water taxi use comes at a time when city and county officials are seriously considering the encouragement of water-borne transportation, and are busy identifying potential sites for water taxi stops.

Miami-Dade County is considering a fleet of water transit solutions to help lessen traffic gridlock on area streets and highways.

Even the term “water bus� is being used as the county examines all aspects of water transportation, from the size of vessels to fares to projected ridership.

The county’s transit department is looking at both a water bus system for commuters with a fixed schedule and route, and water taxis.

City Commissioner Wifredo “Willy� Gort has been calling for a waterways transportation plan for years.

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TODAY’S NEWS

MIAMI TODAY

11

Wynwood’s expansion stumbles again, goes on

By Catherine Lackner

A push to extend the boundaries of the Wynwood Business Improvement District (BID) suffered its second setback in the past few weeks but will continue, directors say.

Earlier this year, BID directors sent out all ballots to property owners in the area soliciting them to join; 350 positive replies were needed to expand the boundaries. The district received 390 positive votes, but a glitch forced the vote to be thrown out. There were plans, pending the city’s commission’s approval, to send ballots out again in an expedited manner.

But at the BID’sApril 12 meeting, it was decided to postpone sending out new ballots until a successor to Tom Curitore, the group’s executive director, could be hired. Mr. Curitore announced last week that he’s leaving to join the City of Miami Beach’s code enforcement department.

An active search is underway, but

County OKs a marketing vendor pool, seeks details on own team

By Susan Danseyar

The Miami-Dade County commission last week approved a pre-qualified pool of contractors for marketing services in the communications department, asking for a report on how many people work in the department and their tasks.

Commissioner Joe Martinez requested the report, which a communications department spokesperson agreed to provide.

Pre-qualified vendors will compete for marketing projects including outreach, media relations, market research, public relations, community engagement, public education and other programs that impact county residents, according to a memo by Deputy Mayor Edward Marquez.

The pool has seven groups for a five-year term of $2.5 million.

Market research, strategy development and analytics; branding and creative services; campaign execution; audio and visual production; media and public relations; engagement marketing and community engagement and outreach services; and voiceover talent services will replace and consolidate contract marketing and public relations, social media consulting, professional voice/talent services and public outreach services.

According to Mr. Marquez’s memo to commissioners, the replacement pool improves administrative efficiencies as similar services are grouped under a single heading and favorable pricing will be secured when vendors compete through spot market quotes.

if a successor can’t be hired quickly, that might push the entire process into summer, when many district business close.

Board member David Polinsky, who is a principal of 250 Wynwood and leads the BID’s planning committee, suggested postponing the effort until the end of the summer.

“Hopefully they will still be waiting for us,” said Albert Garcia, BID co-chair and chief operating officer of Mega Shoes. “It would definitely have been more than 50% of business owners.”

The campaign has been going on for some time. When the district was founded several years ago, owners could vote to tax themselves to be included. Then, the improvement district was an unknown quantity, but now it has been hailed as a success.

Mr. Curitore has said that his office frequently receives calls for services from area property owners and tenants who are not members of the BID.

“The expansion would allow for more efficient service delivery,” according to co-chair Albert Garcia.

A map of the district looks like “Swiss cheese,” Mr. Polinsky said when the expansion was first proposed in 2015.

The first set of ballots went out in the summer of 2016, and the failure of that vote was blamed on the timing, which directors are determined not to repeat.

“We’re doing more outreach than last time.” Mr. Garcia said last October. “We’ll be calling people on the phone and knocking on doors.”

For the expansion to be approved, 51% of proposed new owners must vote in favor of the measure. The Miami City Commission then must amend the district’s enabling ordinance, but that is seen as a formality.

The district now comprises 50 square blocks stretching from Northwest 20th to 29th streets, from North Miami Avenue west to Northwest Fifth Avenue. The plan would push the western boundary to Northwest Sixth Avenue and the

eastern line to the Florida East Coast Railway tracks, which meander to the northeast diagonally through the district from North Miami Avenue and Northeast Second Avenue. The new BID would include both sides of Northwest 20th and 29th streets.

“The expansion would allow more efficient service delivery,” Mr. Garcia has said. “We’ve received overwhelmingly positive support, which is a testament to the success we’ve had.”

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TODAY’S NEWS

MIAMI TODAY

WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2017

County team backs move for public-private courthouse deal

By Susan Danseyar

Miami-Dade is getting closer to building an estimated $361 million civil courthouse, whether through a private partnership or some kind of lease payment from the private sector for properties the county owns.

Commissioners at Chair Esteban Bovo Jr.’s policy council May 4 voted support for legislation directing the administration to solicit ideas from developers, financiers, real estate investment companies, contractors and builders to design, build, finance, operate or maintain a new civil courthouse.

The resolution by Sally Heyman and Rebeca Sosa has a timeline with requests to the private sector by the July 18 county commission meeting due back Sept. 1.

The current aging civil courthouse at 73 W Flagler St. has been discussed by two task forces, chaired and overseen by Ms. Heyman. Upholding the voters’ decision not to raise taxes, Chief Judge Bertila Soto said the legislation complies with the civil

Miami-Dade County Courthouse, shown in 2014, faces constant repairs.

master plan and she’s happy with the results.

Ms. Heyman said the plan seeks a true public-private partnership for a new civil courthouse. The county, she said, has identified real property that’s undeveloped but is just waiting to get a better evaluation with interested developers on land values.

Ms. Sosa said she wants to hear

at some point about what will be done with the current courthouse. “We need to throw everything on the table and let the private sector come up with ideas of how we can make this happen,â€? Mayor Carlos GimĂŠnez said. “These are our needs; these are the properties we have – about 11.â€? As for the old courthouse, he said it’s historically designated and an asset so it’s not

going anywhere. The legislation is the only way the county can move forward, Mr. GimĂŠnez said. “If [the resolution] doesn’t work, we’ll be back to look for other alternatives.â€?

Deputy Mayor Edward Marquez identified the funding sources: $45 million of general obligation bonds and up to $5 million of bond proceeds. “It’s still short to fund a $361 million courthouse,� he said. “We have a substantial amount of property to offer to the private sector. If we don’t have the old courthouse to operate, we’ll have operating expenses from it.�

Commissioner Jean Monestime said a new courthouse is a “big ticket item and needed in the county� and that he supports searching for solutions, but he asked if the expression of interest from the private sector also calls for the county to find other sources of funding. Mr. Monestime said he’s “extremely skeptical on how we’ll get it done.�

Mayor GimĂŠnez said there’s a need for the new courthouse and the county has assets. “The private

sector is the only one we can sell our assets to,� he said. “This will be north of $361 million.�

Mr. Bovo noted that he stated a new courthouse was a priority when he took over as commission chair. “Everything the county does of this magnitude, I want us to be thorough,� he said. “Part of being thorough is asking what other communities are doing that we’re not doing. Why are we not exploring opportunities that someone could build both civil and criminal together? We have to get it right and be responsive to the taxpayers. People will question how we’re doing this.�

Mr. Bovo said it’s important to follow technology. Ms. Sosa agreed. She said juries will one day convene by Skype and that technology might lower the number of rooms in the new civil courthouse.

Ms. Heyman said the task forces and others working on the new courthouse looked at combining the sites, but what’s unique about Miami-Dade is there can’t be a compound of the two uses because they’re zoned differently.

Musical chairs in management of city’s business districts

By Catherine Lackner

It’s a management switch across the Miami River: Manny Gonzalez, executive director of the Coconut Grove Business Improvement District (BID), will take the reins of the Wynwood BID May 15, while Tim Schmand, former Bayfront Park Management Trust executive director, will step in as interim executive director of the Coconut Grove BID that same day.

When in late April Tom Curitore, former Wynwood BID executive director, resigned, “we started getting interest from people in the private sectors and all levels of government,� said Albert Garcia, Wynwood BID co-chair. He was selected to head the search committee for a successor. “Tom’s leaving was unexpected, and he had a pivotal role in launching us. But, going into our fourth year, we took

the opportunity to rethink and recalibrate the BID. “We didn’t know Manny, but we knew his work and his accomplishments,� said Mr. Garcia, who is chief operating officer of Mega Shoes. “After sitting down with him, we were impressed by his energy and vision. He’s a doer, not so much a talker, and very straightforward.�

Mr. Gonzalez has experience in working with city entities and in dealing with a large board of

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directors, Mr. Garcia said. But there was more. “What really sets him apart is his character,� he continued. “We felt he would hit the ground running, and that he would be just as comfortable walking the streets and talking to business owners here as he would be sitting across from policy-makers at City Hall. We think he’s the right person at the right time.�

Mr. Garcia thanked Ken Russell, Miami commissioner and chair of the Coconut Grove BID. “He was very kind and understanding about this opportunity for Manny and for Wynwood. I have the utmost respect for, and applaud, his leadership in making this is a seamless transition.â€? “Wynwood really wanted Manny,â€? Mr. Russell said. “I’ve been working with him for 1½ years and he’s done a really good job, especially considering this is the largest BID we have,â€? with 19 board members. “I know he struggled with the decision, but he’s very excited about the great challenges and opportunities Wynwood offers.â€?

Within the Coconut Grove BID’s bylaws is a provision that a three-month search must occur to recruit an executive

director, which was a challenge, Mr. Russell said. “To find someone talented, you would have to ask them to leave their job� without the assurance of a permanent position. “It’s almost impossible to quickly find someone who is unemployed and well-qualified. Tim immediately came to mind, but I thought he wasn’t available,� as Mr. Schmand had expressed the intention to spend more time on non-management pursuits.

Mr. Russell decided to ask, anyway. “He’s ideally suited because he’s dealt with budgets and boards, and has taken Bayfront Park from being dependent on the city to being self-sufficient, though managing special events. “He also knows how to balance the events with the needs of the neighborhood, something we deal with in the Grove on a regular basis. We haven’t been able to figure that relationship out, and we have lost events because of it.�

Mr. Russell wouldn’t hazard a guess on whether Mr. Schmand would apply for the permanent position, “but I think the BID is going to fall in love with him, and think he’s going to fit in very well.�

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MIAMI TODAY

WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2017

13

Health Update State budget cuts $160 million from South Florida hospitals

By Catherine Lackner

Local hospitals – especially safety-net institutions that serve uninsured people – emerged as the losers as this year’s session of the Florida Legislature that ended Monday. That body included $160 million in budget cuts for South Florida hospitals in the budget it passed and sent to Gov. Rick Scott.

For the fiscal year beginning July 1, the Legislature cut the proportion of federal Medicaid funds and state tax revenues it will send to hospitals. In Miami-Dade County, Jackson Health System received $32.5 million in cuts, Baptist Hospital of Miami $15.3 million in cuts, Nicklaus Children’s Hospital $14.7 million in cuts, North Shore Medical Center $7.6 million in cuts and Palmetto General Hospital $6 million in cuts.

The University of Miami Hospital, Mount Sinai Medical Center, Hialeah Hospital, Homestead Hospital, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and Larkin Community Hospital all received lesser cuts.

“Any way you look at it, this is not good news,” said Mark Pafford, a board member of the Florida Community Health Action Information Network, an advocacy organization that promotes access to affordable health care.

“What they want to do has a direct

The Legislature cut the proportion of federal Medicaid funds and state tax revenues to go to hospitals.

impact on folks who are unable to pay for healthcare, and there are more than 1 million of them across the state,” he said. “It will have a dramatic impact on Miami-Dade County, which has a serious problem with people who don’t have insur-

ance. And it has a secondary impact on hospitals. Will they be able to stay in the black and still provide care?”

It’s possible that Gov. Scott will veto the budget, which could force legislators into special session to write a new one. “It’s also possible

that they have the votes to override a veto, especially in the House,” said Mr. Pafford, who served in the Legislature for eight years until last November, when he stepped down because of term limits.

Members of the House of Rep-

resentatives voted in favor of the budget 98-14, while the Senate passed it 34-3. And if Gov. Scott vetoed the hospital cuts as line items, there is no mechanism to put the money back.

“Hopefully, the Legislature has something up its sleeve to help hospitals,” Mr. Pafford said.

“There is the presumption that the federal government is going to come through” with Low Income Pool funds, but that idea may or may not be founded in fact.

“This is something hospitals have been fearing for many years, and it’s doubling down on callousness,” he said. “This is going to kill people.”

“Even before the budget cuts in Medicaid funding, Medicaid paid only 56 cents for every dollar hospitals spend treating Medicaid patients,” said Dori Alvarez, spokesperson for Baptist Health South Florida. “For example, Homestead Hospital, where 41% of all patients are on Medicaid and which had a deficit of $39 million in 2016, will see an additional reduction of $3.3 million, due to the proposed budget cuts.

“These cuts are devastating to many hospitals which provide care for the poor and uninsured and ultimately shifts the burden of paying for under-funded Medicaid services to commercially insured patients and self-pay patients.”

Gastro Health jumps from Miami-Dade to eye national role

By Catherine Lackner

With four practice acquisitions this year, and three more planned in the coming months, the Miamibased Gastro Health physician network is on track to grow throughout Florida and beyond.

The newest acquisitions are in Wellington, Delray Beach, Coral Springs and Hollywood; within three months, the group plans to add practices in Hialeah, Miami and Fort Myers on Florida’s West Coast.

“In 2017, Gastro Health became South Florida’s largest gastroenterology network with 25 locations and more than 60 physicians,” said Alejandro Fernandez, the network’s CEO, via email. “Less than a year

‘In 2017, Gastro Health became South Florida’s largest gastroenterology network with 25 locations and more than 60 physicians.’

Alejandro Fernandez ago, this claim could not be made, as the company solely had a presence in Miami-Dade.”

The two-fold growth strategy combines mergers and acquisitions with physician recruitment

to South Florida, he said.

Physicians sell their practices to reduce overhead and increase revenues, he explained. “Many private practice doctors, and in our case gastroenterologists, are looking to

become part of a larger network, which gives them the opportunity to survive and thrive in an everchanging health care environment.

“By providing physicians the opportunity to be part of a larger network, we are also addressing the physician shortage cited by Safety Net Hospital Alliance of Florida and the Teaching Hospital Council of Florida,” Mr. Fernandez said.

The report predicted a statewide shortage by 2025 in key specialties like psychiatry, gastroenterology and surgery, he said.

Considering that Florida’s population is both aging and growing, the demand for colonoscopies is expected to rise 10 percentage points, he said. In addition, many

baby boomers are encouraged to have liver screenings for hepatitis C, which has become a growing condition among that population.

“This year we went from being the Miami gastroenterology group to the South Florida gastroenterology group. By end of year, we hope to be well on our way to being the Florida group,” Mr. Fernandez said.

“We are looking to move out of Florida, as well, and are in discussions with groups in Texas, Indianapolis, Pennsylvania and Michigan. Our goal is to be the premier national GI group that provides a full continuum of digestive care with adult and pediatric gastroenterologists, colorectal surgeons and imaging and infusion centers.”

FIU program has faculty and staff take charge of own health

By Catherine Lackner

A wellness program at Florida International University aims to have faculty and staff take charge of their health and gives students valuable tools for their future careers.

After being hired in June 2015, Nathan Burandt and a small group of planners focused on building partnerships and mapping out a strategy, he said. The effort started small. ”With no budget, we worked out in-kind arrangements and did what we could to

bring awareness” to health issues, said Mr. Burandt, the university’s benefits and wellness program manager. The Florida Department of Health, Baptist Health South Florida and the Marsh & McLennan insurance agency have been among the partners.

Working with Go Run Miami, the university’s running club, this spring they rolled out a program on both of the university’s main campuses as part of a Heart-Healthy Journey. Teams of participants were to “count their minutes” of physical activity over six weeks, whether

walking, running or operating a mobility device. About 800 people signed up, with 636 completing the program, Mr. Burandt said. It was important that disabled people be able to participate in a comprehensive program, he said.

Data were collected, minus identifiable details, which will provide a resource for students in health disciplines that require research skills, he explained.

“It’s FIU continuing to build itself,” Mr. Burandt said. His goal is to create a campus wellness program on a par with those at the University of Arizona or

WellBama at the University of Alabama.

Once that is entrenched, he said, there could be a program designed for nonuniversity clients, possibly within three to five years.

A “know your numbers” program is also on the horizon, so that participants will be aware of their blood pressure, cholesterol and other health factors, “but that is in the beta stage,” he said.

“The biggest thing the program is proving right now,” he said, “is that FIU cares about its faculty and staff, and that speaks volumes.”

TODAY’S NEWS

WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2017

MIAMI TODAY

17

Parking authority wants to control Biscayne Blvd. remake

By John Charles Robbins

Art Noriega, the man who runs the City of Miami’s parking agency, says he wants control of a project called Biscayne Green, designed to make one of the busiest streets in Miami smaller, less imposing and more pedestrian friendly.

The plan has been around for at least a half dozen years, and along with eliminating lanes of traffic on Biscayne Boulevard, it would reduce public parking spaces from 388 to 187 and cost the Miami Parking Authority $1.2 million a year in revenue.

Although the plan belongs to Miami’s Downtown Development Authority (DDA), and has been advanced by the development authority for years including a renewed application in 2016 for funding from the state, Mr. Noriega says he has his own ideas.

“I have a bigger vision for those center lots … way bigger,” he told the Off-Street Parking Board May 3. The board oversees the parking authority.

Mr. Noriega, authority CEO, acknowledged the project has “a lot of moving parts,” but said his vision for the area is “much different” and includes parking spaces underneath a redesigned boulevard.

But the updated 2016 plan for Biscayne Green submitted to the Florida Department of Transportation does make reference to an option for underground parking.

For 20 days in January, more than 100 parking spaces and two traffic lanes on busy Biscayne Boulevard gave way to people.

The temporary pop-up park was a hit with some of the new residents who call downtown Miami home.

From Jan. 6-26, the DDA staged a demonstration that attracted 16,939 visits to the area on Biscayne between Southeast Second and Northeast First streets.

The project transformed surfacing parking lots into colorfully decorated spaces with picnic benches, a playground, a dog park and other amenities.

Thirty-five events in 20 days included art displays, live music performances, movies, happy hours, yoga, soccer, bike rides and play dates.

The test has given renewed vigor to pursue Biscayne Green.

City officials are in the midst of deciding what specifics to

‘I have a bigger vision for those center lots ... way bigger.’

Art Noriega

In a January experiment part of Biscayne Boulevard downtown was closed to simulate Biscayne Green.

Miami’s Downtown Development Authority hired event programmers to create activity during experiment.

put into a General Obligation Bond request for the November election.

Mr. Noriega told the parking board the proposed bond spending plan may include money for Biscayne Green.

Indeed, at the city’s first public forum on the general obligation bond held Monday at City Hall, the Biscayne Green project was listed by residents as a worthwhile endeavor.

Mr. Noriega brought up Biscayne Green during his monthly

status report. He said there have been two meetings with the DDA about working together on the project.

Mr. Noriega said he’d heard the project may be included in the general obligation bond, “which I think is great … but I want to take ownership of it.”

In an intro to the latest application filed with Florida Department of Transportation, it recounts the history of the project.

The DDA initiated extensive community outreach in 2010

that included neighborhood meetings, community forums and studies. Stakeholder input was gathered through one-onone and door-to-door meetings, a public charrette to develop the plan concept, meetings with the city, county and state and through a variety of public presentations to key stakeholder groups and organizations.

The community supported a vision to repurpose Biscayne Boulevard into a pedestrianfriendly and multimodal corridor,

according to the DDA. After community forums, the DDA in consultation with the community created 10 corridor alternative concepts.

“The DDA Urban Design and Transportation Committee considered the 10 alternatives and traffic findings and recommended three alternatives which included scenarios of reduced parking in the medians.

“The fifteen member DDA Board of Directors unanimously endorsed the alternative that contemplates the relocation of the parking lots in the median. The DDA continued its outreach and further developed an alternative which provides for underground parking for consideration,” the introduction says.

The DDA says the project is a long-term vision to redesign and repurpose Biscayne Boulevard into a pedestrian promenade, enhancing pedestrian safety and connectivity in downtown.

“Biscayne Green will create dynamic spaces and better accommodate multiple modes of transportation. The intent is to repurpose the corridor to meet the transportation needs of all street users in a safe and comfortable manner,” a project description in the application reads.

The parking authority is listed as one of several partners on the Biscayne Green project, according to the DDA, yet ultimately the authority could lose parking spaces.

Parking board members expressed some concern about losing paid parking spaces as the city changes.

“We should be careful what we put our flag on,” said board member Jami Reyes.

Downtown Development Authority website’s reviews mixed

By Catherine Lackner

One and one-half years in the making, a new website for Miami’s Downtown Development Authority draw praise, mixed with some criticism, at the authority’s April meeting.

“This is more in tune with technology than our current site,” said Lauren Bourgoyne, the authority’s website consultant and its former events and marketing coordinator. “It speaks to all of our audiences.”

On the landing page is a new and expanded photo, along with tabs for visitors, residents and those who are interested in doing business downtown. Several tabs at the top lead a site visitor to information and data, and also to the authority’s mission and goals, and to those

of its committees. There is also a calendar, a tab to access meeting agendas, and a press release center.

Information is cross-referenced so that data can be accessed from many different tabs, Ms. Bourgoyne said. The site will go live next month, she added.

“This is much more user-friendly,” said Ken Russell, authority chair and Miami commissioner. “It doesn’t look like a government website.

Ken Russell “But there’s a double logo” in the upper left corner, he said, and the word “downtown” is set in very small type.

“Is this website about downtown or about the DDA?” Additionally, “it assumes too much knowledge,” Mr. Russell said. “If someone lands here, they first need to know who and what we are. It should be very simple.”

He recommended the web designers testmarket the site before various groups of users who have no knowledge of the authority. “See if they get lost.”

Board member Richard Lydecker, senior partner of the Lydecker-Diaz law firm, asked about search-engine optimization.

“Our current site is not SEO-friendly, but in this version, every page on the site is,” Ms. Bourgoyne said. “As we start using it, you’ll start to see more activity.” The site designer

also has the capability to boost search-engine optimization, she added.

“It might take a couple of months, but it’ll be on the first page of a Google search,” said board member Jose Goyanes, owner of Metro Beauty Center and Churchill’s Barbershop.

“Who’s holding the vendor’s feet to the fire?” asked board member Gary Ressler, a principal of the Tilia Family of Companies.

“The vendor is in Denver; we can have them test it by pulling some people off the street who have never heard of the DDA.” “We have gone through some testing,” Ms. Bourgoyne said, but added that kinks will continue to be worked out before the site goes live and tweaks will be made as needed after that.

24

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WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2017

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