LTC 122-2004 Coordination of Miami Beach Senior High School Plans with Bayshore Neighborhood ROW Improvement Project Plans
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH
Office of the City Manager
Letter to Commission No. 122:"2004
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From:
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Date: May 20, 2004 c.
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Jorge M. Gonzalez .~. vJ~- ~
City Manager / / U 0
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Coordination of Miami Beach Senior High School Plans with;:
Bayshore Neighborhood ROW Improvement Project Plans rf'\
To:
Mayor David Dermer
Members of the City Commission
Subject:
Miami-Dade County Public Schools has been working for several years on plans to replace
the existing Miami Beach Senior High School with a new facility, and City staff and
community residents have had substantial input into this planning process. Currently, the
plans for the new facility are substantially complete and MDCPS plans to begin initial
demolition and construction on the project this summer. An issue that remains to be
resolved before plans are finalized is the configuration of the City right of way adjacent to
the school along the east side of Prairie Avenue and the north side of Dade Boulevard.
On Prairie Avenue, MDCPS had planned on using most of the strip of right of way as a
student drop-off and pick-up lane. On Dade Boulevard, MDCPS planned a bus drop off
lane running nearly the entire length of the school property.
During the community planning process for the Bayshore Neighborhood Right of Way
Improvement Project, residents of Prairie Avenue adjacent to the school specifically
requested a solution to the haphazardly parked cars, trash, and sparse landscaping which
characterized the east side of their street. The Basis of Design Report for the Bayshore
Neighborhood which was subsequently issued and approved by the City Commission
called for substantially enhanced landscaping in the ROW along the east side of Prairie
Avenue which would prevent parking and screen the view of the school. MDCPS's design
consultant for the project was made aware of this conflict last fall. MDCPS was under the
impression that they had final City approval for the project as they had made a
presentation to the City Design Review Board in August 2003. However, the item was
presented as a discussion item only and the issues and concerns subsequently raised by
City staff were not brought up at the time.
City staff met with MDCPS and their design consultant to discuss the Prairie Avenue issue.
At the initial meeting, it became clear that there were also numerous issues related to the
Dade Boulevard frontage of the project. City staff subsequently met several times with
MDCPS and their design consultant and were able to resolve most of the outstanding
issues on Dade Boulevard. The planned bus lane was reduced by half, trees and irrigation
were added, the narrow sidewalk that currently runs directly adjacent to Dade Boulevard
was widened and set back from the street, and an access driveway on MDCPS property to
the City Public Work's Yard was added.
However, City staff and MDCPS were not able to reach agreement on the treatment of the
Prairie Avenue ROW. City staff are concerned that the proposed drop-off pick-up lane will
be used for parking after school hours which would not be in keeping with the intent of the
BODR improvements. The City offered a compromise that reduced the drop-off pick-up
lane by approximately half, allowing the BODR improvements to be implemented on the
other half of the ROW area. This compromise did not meet MDCPS requirements.
At their last meeting with MDCPS on May 17th, City staff agreed to pursue a new solution
in which the drop-off lane would not be marked as a separate lane or spaces, therefore
decreasing the likelihood that it would be used for after hours parking. This solution would
also provide more street trees and landscaping to screen the school and beautify the street
than would have been implemented by the BODR improvements. It was agreed that the
City and MDCPS would hold a public meeting in early June to determine resident support
for the modified Prairie Avenue plan. If the plan is well-received, the City Commission
could then approve the required modification to the Bayshore Neighborhood BODR.
The Administration will continue to pursue a solution to this issue which addresses to the
greatest extent possible the concerns of the City, MDCPS, and the community.
JM~S
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