LTC 114-2010 FDOT Port of Miami Tunnel Project (POMT)
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER [~~Q APB? c O A=`~ Il~' S9
NO. LTC # 114-2010 LETTER''f0"C~MMSSION
TO: Mayor Matti H. Bower and Members of the City Commission
FROM: Jorge M. Gonzalez, City Manager
DATE: April 16, 2010
SUBJECT: FDOT Port of Miami Tunnel Project (POMT)
The purpose of this Letter to Commission (LTC) is to provide you with additional information
obtained about the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) District Six Port of Miami Tunnel
(POMT) Project (Project) subsequent to the April 14, 2010 City Commission meeting.
At the April 14, 2010 City Commission meeting, FDOT provided a formal presentation on the Project
to members of the City Commission. During the presentation, members of the City Commission
raised several concerns regarding the Project. Major concerns included traffic impacts to the
MacArthur Causeway from potential road closures affecting residents, businesses, and visitors,
especially during major City events; impacts resulting from noise and dust emitting from construction
operations; construction milestones; and traffic and safety impacts from new Port of Miami truck
volumes once the tunnel is operational, as well as from increased traffic from cruise ship
passengers and cruise ship logistics support. During the presentation, FDOT and the
Concessionaire advised the City Commission that an additional traffic volume of seven thousand
(7,000) trucks would be on the MacArthur Causeway once this project was finalized. This expected
increase does not include added volumes from cruise ships and port staff related traffic.
Following the presentation, the City Commission requested that several action items be taken to
mitigate the impacts to the City. The City Commission requested that staff meet with FDOT and the
Concessionaire to gather as much additional information on the Project as possible in order to
provide a clear plan of action which would address the concerns raised. The City Commission also
requested that the Administration retain the services of a professional transportation engineering
firm to conduct a comprehensive study on the Project as it relates to every component of
construction which may have a direct and/or indirect impact to the traffic accessing Miami Beach, as
well as to the residents of Miami Beach. Mayor Bower suggested placing an item on the next
Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) Governing Board meeting agenda, so that the City may
express its concerns to the County.
The Administration immediately engaged the services of PBS&J, a reputable transportation/traffic
engineering firm currently on the City's rotational list, to assist the City in the process of gathering all
Project data and analyzing the currently projected model data that may bear a direct and/or indirect
impact during construction and after the project is completed.
On April 15, 2010 the City of Miami Beach, FDOT, and their respective consultant teams, held a
meeting to discuss the technical intricacies of the Project. Present at this meeting were Alice N.
Bravo, P.E, FDOT, Director of Transportation Systems Development, Assistant City Manager Robert
Middaugh, Miami Beach City Engineer Fernando Vazquez, P.E., Miami Beach Transportation
Coordinator Christine Bettin, the Bouygues Lead Technical Team, Parsons Brinckerhoff (FDOT
owners representative), PBS&J (Miami Beach technical representative), and upper FDOT technical
management staff.
LTC - FDOT Port Tunnel
April 16, 2010
Page 2 of 2
During this meeting, discussions ensued on the impacts to Miami Beach, which generally fall into
two broad categories: impacts associated with the construction period, which may be as long as four
(4) years, and also operational impacts post construction.
During the construction period, there will be the traditional environmental impacts associated with
noise, dust and the operation of heavy machinery. Due to the scale and scope of the POMT, other
significant issues to be addressed are the movement of excavated materials and the supply of
construction materials. As the POMT will be initiated on Watson Island, all materials excavated from
the POMT will leave from Watson Island and all materials for construction will be transported to
Watson Island for staging and subsequent use. Lane closures during special events, and generally,
are also a construction concern, as will be traffic impacts associated with slow downs from persons
viewing what will be a large construction site and some unusual construction machinery.
Post construction the most significant concern for Miami Beach is how the facility will be operated
and the traffic patterns managed. The POMT will carry not only truck traffic, but is expected to also
carry most of the passenger traffic bound for the Port.
In both the construction and post construction periods, communication to the City, its residents and
to the business community must also be maintained and sustained at a high level.
During the April 15, 2010 meeting with POMT representatives, some information was obtained by
staff that addresses several of the concerns raised about impacts during the construction period.
The contractor either had information on the issue or in some cases was developing a more refined
model as to how to address the concern. One specific area not yet fully developed is how materials
will enter and leave the site. Noise, dust, vibrations and other physical issues have largely been
addressed, and in subsequent meetings this will be explored in more detail with Miami Beach
representatives. FDOT and the Contractor agreed to conduct a follow up meeting specifically for
Miami Beach during the week of April 19, 2010 to more fully brief staff on the technical aspects of
the project. In this meeting the staff will follow up on what has been described as extensive Quality
Control and Quality Assurance protocols for the POMT. FDOT also agreed to hold special
construction meetings with the City during the project and the Concessionaire's Contractor on a
weekly basis, to discuss all aspects of construction and related impacts and to coordinate access
closely with the City in order to mitigate traffic and other impacts.
FDOT and the Concessionaire also agreed to provide all project documentation to the City, including
the previously conducted traffic analysis. FDOT agreed to take into consideration the City's input on
the review of the current and future traffic models, current construction staging, as well as
coordinate all public outreach and special events with the City's Public Information Officer and
Community Resources Coordinator.
The City will continue to coordinate closely with FDOT to mitigate the City's concerns with the
Project, and will keep you informed on all aspects.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns
JMG/JGG/FHB/FV/CB
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