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Email from Frank Del Vecchio 4/23/2013 Granado, Rafael From: Frank Del Vecchio <fdelvecchio @atlanticbb.net> Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2013 8:08 PM To: Granado, Rafael Cc: Smith, Jose;Jimmy Morales; Gomez,Jorge; Sklar, Max; Held, Gary; Aguila, Raul; Lorber, Richard Subject: Charter Review Board April 25 Meeting. Submission for Consideration. Attachments: S.1.03(b)2.(5) Transmittal..doc April 23, 2013 MEMO FOR: City Clerk Rafael Granado I request that you place the attached draft of a Charter amendment that would require a referendum for the sale, exchange, lease for ten or more years, etc., of city-owned property in the Convention Center District, on the Charter Review Board agenda for consideration at its April 25 meeting. Frank Del Vecchio 301 Ocean Drive, Apt. 604 Miami Beach, FL 33139 Tel. (305) 672-2486 i 1 From: Frank Del Vecchio [mai Ito:fdelvecchio a,atlanticbb.net] Sent: Friday, April 19, 2013 4:57 PM To: Jackie Lalonde; Scott Diffenderfer; Aaron Perry; Fernandez, Alex; Richard Preira; Steve Zack Cc: Morales, Jimmy; Granado, Rafael; Smith, Jose; Aguila, Raul; Gomez, Jorge; Sklar, Max; Bower, Matti H.; Weithom, Deede; Tobin, Ed; Libbin, Jerry; Wolfson, Jonah; Gongora, Michael; Exposito, Jorge Subject: Convention Center Referendum Requirement April 19, 2013 MEMO FOR: City of Miami Beach Charter Review Board cc: Mayor and City Commissioners, City Clerk, City Manager, City Attorney FROM: Frank Del Vecchio, 301 Ocean Drive, Apt. 604, Miami Beach, FL 33139 SUBJ: Request to Consider a Convention Center Development Charter Amendment to Require Voter Referendum Approval for Sale or Lease of Any and All City-Owned Property in the 52-Acre Convention Center Redevelopment District The public has been officially led to believe that all property in the 52-acre Convention Center District is subject to voter approval in a city-wide referendum. Only recently have officials realized that the strict requirements of the City Charter require voter referendum approval only for city park property and the surface parking lots in the Convention Center District. The only way to honor the explicit representations in the City Commission- Approved RFQ [outlined below] and the numerous public meetings and city commission discussions, is to amend the City Charter to correspond to those representations. I have drafted a Charter amendment that adds buildings and streets to the city-wide voter approval referendum requirement. [Draft attached]. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- I urge the Charter Review Board to study the official RFQ documents, the applicable sections of the current city charter, and the minutes and videos of public meetings at which top city officials made these representations. It would be unconscionable now for the City to discover that the RFQ misstated the Charter requirement, and for the city commission to pull back at this late date. The credibility of our city and the process would be severely damaged. Since all the timetables for Convention Center District redevelopment assume that a voter referendum is a requirement, the inclusion of a validating Charter Amendment need not by itself affect the timetable. If the definitive details regarding the sale, conveyance, exchange or lease of RFQ properties are ready for inclusion on the November 5, 2013 General Election Ballot, voter approval can be made contingent on approval of the validating Charter Amendment that same date. 2 NOTES: *The February, 2012 Request for Proposals (RFQ #22-11/12) represents that "the use of any or all of the city-owned properties referenced in this RFQ will be subject to the requirements of section 1.03(b)(2) of the Miami Beach City Charter, which requires that any sale, exchange, conveyance or lease of ten (10)years or longer of such properties by the City shall also require approval by a majority vote of residents in a city-wide referendum." [RFQ Sec. I F. "REFERENDUM"]. **RFQ Section 1. C. 1. states that the City owns the entire project site and lists the properties on the site including: 2. The Convention Center; 3. The Gleason Theater; 4. 17th Street Garage; 5. Surface Parking Lots; 6. City offices: City Hall, 1701 Meridian, 555 17th St.; 7. Carl Fisher Club House; 8. 21st St. Community Center; 9. Internal Roads including Convention Center Drive and 18th Street. [Emphasis supplied.] ***A lawyer could argue that notwithstanding the representations in the RFQ, the small print in the city charter excludes most of the property listed, for only two categories of property in the Convention Center District are subject to the Charter requirement for city- wide referendum voter approval: City-owned parks [Charter Section 1.03(b)l.] and City-owned surface parking lots [Charter Section 1.03(b) 2. (4) Convention Center Parking Lots]. Draft amendment to Sec. 1.03(b) 2., City Charter Sec. 1.03. - Powers of city. (b) Alienability of property. 2. The sale, exchange, conveyance or lease of ten years or longer of the following properties shall also require approval by a majority vote of the voters in a City-wide referendum: (1)Lots West of the North Shore Open Space Park: All City-owned property bounded by 87 th Street on the North, Collins Avenue on the East, 79 th Street on the South, and Collins Court on the West; (2) Cultural Campus: All City-owned property bounded by 22nd Street on the North, Park Avenue on the West, 21st Street on the South, and Miami Beach Drive on the East; (3) 72 nd Street Parking Lot: The City-owned surface parking lot bounded by 73 rd Street on the North, Collins Avenue on the East, 72 nd Street on the South, and Harding Avenue on the West; (4) Convention Center Parking Lots: All City-owned surface parking lots located in the Civic and Convention Center District, generally bounded by Lincoln Lane on the South, Washington Avenue on the East, Meridian Avenue on the West and Dade Boulevard on the North;and- Convention Center District Buildings, Streets and Alleys: All City-owned buildings, streets, avenues, alleys, rights-of-way and public places, inclusive of easements and use agreements, located in the Civic and Convention Center District, generally bounded by Lincoln Lane on the South, Washington Avenue on the East, Meridian Avenue on the West and Dade Boulevard on the North; and(5) Lincoln Road Parking Lots: All City- owned surface parking lots in the vicinity of Lincoln Road located within the area bounded by 17th Street on the North, Euclid Avenue on the East, 16th Street on the South, and West Avenue on the West. ATTACHMENT: City Charter 3 Sec. 1.03. - Powers of city. (a) General. The City shall have all governmental, corporate, and proprietary powers to enable it to conduct municipal government, perform municipal functions, and render municipal services, and may exercise any power for municipal purposes except as expressly prohibited by law or this Charter. (b) Alienability of property. 1. The only limitation concerning alienability of City-owned park, recreation or waterfront property is the restriction of the sale, exchange, conveyance or lease of ten (10) years or longer (including option periods) of park, recreation, or waterfront property in the City of Miami Beach, unless such sale, exchange, conveyance or lease is approved by a majority vote of the voters in a City-wide referendum. This provision shall be liberally construed in favor of the preservation of all park, recreation and waterfront lands. 2. The sale, exchange, conveyance or lease of ten years or longer of the following properties shall also require approval by a majority vote of the voters in a City-wide referendum: (1)Lots West of the North Shore Open Space Park: All City-owned property bounded by 87 `h Street on the North, Collins Avenue on the East, 79 th Street on the South, and Collins Court on the West; (2) Cultural Campus: All City-owned property bounded by 22nd Street on the North, Park Avenue on the West, 21s' Street on the South, and Miami Beach Drive on the East; (3) 72 nd Street Parking Lot: The City-owned surface parking lot bounded by 73 rd Street on the North, Collins Avenue on the East, 72 nd,Street on the South, and Harding Avenue on the West; (4) Convention Center Parking Lots: All City-owned surface parking lots located in the Civic and Convention Center District, generally bounded by Lincoln Lane on the South, Washington Avenue on the East, Meridian Avenue on the West and Dade Boulevard on the North; and--L5) Convention Center District Buildings, Streets and Allevs: All City-owned building_, streets, avenues, alleys, rights-of-way and public places inclusive of easements and use agreements, located in the Civic and Convention Center District generally bounded by Lincoln Lane on the South, Washington Avenue on the East Meridian Avenue on the West and Dade Boulevard on the North; and(5) Lincoln Road Parking Lots: All City- owned surface&king lots in the vicinity of Lincoln Road located within the area bounded by 17` Street on the North, Euclid Avenue on the East, 16`h Street on the South, and West Avenue on the West. 3. The sale, exchange, conveyance or lease of ten years or longer of all remaining City- owned property(other than public beach rights-of-way—see (d) herein below, and other than those properties addressed more specifically in this Charter section 1.03) shall, as provided by Ordinance, require approval by a majority 4/7 vote of all members of the Planning Board and 6/7 vote of the City Commission. 4. The terms of this Charter section shall not apply to any valid written contractual commitments or bids or bonded indebtedness, which commitments, bids or indebtedness existed prior to January 14, 2004; nor shall this Charter section apply to any City property which is the subject of a settlements of a claim which the City had notice of as of January 14, 2004.