LTC 284-2011 Update on Public Baywalk Along West Avenue MAMIBEACH R ECFVF D
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER J I NOV 6 0 PM 3: 09
NO LTC # 284 -2011 LETTER C9MMISSIO 1
or
TO Mayor Matti Herrera Bower and Members of the City Commission
FROM Jorge M Gonzalez, City Manager
DATE November 8 2011 •
SUBJECT Update on Public Baywalk Along West Avenue
The purpose of this LTC is to update the Mayor and City Commission on the status of public
bay walks at the rear of the properties along West Avenue from 5 Street to Lincoln Road
RECENT UPDATES
• The portion of the block wall separating the bay walks of the Bentley Bay (540 West
Avenue) and Floridian (650 West Avenue) properties was removed and the grade
adjusted to allow a direct connection
• The City recently received a 50/50 matching grant from the Flonda Inland Navigation
District (FIND) for $472,820 This grant will fund bulkhead, storm drainage and
street -end park improvements for the westem terminus of 10 Street. Construction is
expected to begin sometime in the spring of 2012
• The DEP application for the public bay walk at the Mondnan Hotel Site (1000 -1200
West Avenue) continues to be fine tuned by the applicant's consulting engineer and
the City's consultant The final version of the application should be submitted to DEP
in December
• Plans for a publicly accessible bay walk behind the Flamingo property (1500 Bay
Road) have now been permitted and construction is underway The City expects the
baywalk to be accessible to the public in early 2012
CURRENT STATUS
The City's environmental consultant, Coastal Systems International, has developed a
Baywalk Master Plan that includes the following properties between 5 Street and Lincoln
Road
1. 520 — 540 West Avenue. Bentley Bay Condominium (DRB File 9802)
A baywalk has been constructed upland and is accessible The bay walk was recently
connected to the Floridian property to the north, as the portion of the block wall separating
the bay walks of the respective properties was removed and the grade adjusted to allow a
direct connection to the Floridian bay walk to the north (See Photos Below)
2. 650 West Avenue. Floridian Condominium (DRB File 5517)
A bay walk has been constructed upland and is accessible This bay walk is now connected
LTC — Update on Public Baywalk Along West Avenue
Date November 8, 2011
Page 2 of 6
to the Bentley Bay to the south (see above) To the north, no bay walk presently exists
According to the plans approved by the County's Shoreline Development Review Committee
(SDRC), as well as existing site conditions, this baywalk is publicly accessible
66 " 1 0-41 vii
m�._
✓ / A ' era I , • ' °T" • ' • M -,••••••;-.... W ` / „
/ • , y{. , , ., tom .__ _.. _ i {ti i�LW 1 -41.12
4 I" ,, _
y� __ =- ,
- - ti
++ E 4 ___ ` , " w rs -,ACC . .� _SZ 3 �% 4: .' � ,.
s . . � j ,_ 1
w
-.1's. i >..4 fir t Yea r E
►.wNyc4YK' � y am«- -. �.
T
A f t
4 ,, ' 116: '
. a :` R,ry,., „,
s ue _
. -4;,
_ c. -`- w,...e -
a . -
11!1) 1 ' "li1 1
LTC — Update on Public Baywalk Along West Avenue
Date November 8, 2011
Page 3 of 6
3. 800 West Avenue South Bay Club Condominium
No development order on this property was ever imposed as it pre -dates the creation of the
design review process, and no bay walk exists Staff has evaluated the feasibility of a
baywalk in this location and it appears that an overwater, as opposed to upland, connection
would be the most feasible option at some point in the future
4. 900 West Avenue. Southgate Towers Apartments (Rentals)
No development order on this property was ever imposed as it pre -dates the creation of the
design review process, and no bay walk exists Owners have begun discussions with the
Planning Department regarding a public baywalk connection through or adjacent to their
property, as part of a larger renovation project However, there is no timetable for such
renovation project Additionally, the following condition was included in the August 3, 2010
Final Order for a smaller renovation project at the subject property (DRB Fife No 22718)
The applicant is aware that an over -water and /or upland section of the City's
Public Baywalk parallel to the applicant's west property line is proposed by the
City to be constructed in accordance with the Public Baywalk Master Plan,
prepared by Coastal Systems International, dated 06 -18 -09
The applicant agrees to confirm prior to the issuance of a Certificate of
Completion for the improvements contemplated by this order, in a document
mutually acceptable to the City and the applicant, to allow the City, at the City's
sole expense, to design, permit, construct, own, and maintain an over -water
Public Baywalk section westward of the subject property's seawall
In the event the Applicant in the future seeks and obtains final, non appealable
approval from the Design Review Board for substantial renovations to its upland
recreational facilities, and the City has not by then obtained permits for or
constructed the over -the -water public baywalk, the applicant agrees to discuss
with the City the dedication, design and construction of an upland and /or over -
water public bay walk
5 Western Terminus of Tenth Street
Construction documentation for a proposed new streetscape, seawall and landscape
project, with public bay walk access, has been completed The City recently received a
50/50 matching grant from the Florida Inland Navigation District (FIND) for $472,820 This
grant will fund bulkhead, storm drainage and street -end park improvements for the western
terminus of 10 Street Construction is expected to begin sometime in the spring of 2012 A
portion of the funding for the street -end work is also part of the design review approval
provided as part of the Mondrian Hotel project, but would only become available in the event
the overwater baywalk behind that project cannot be approved by all applicable regulatory
authorities The previous challenge to the funding of the 10` Street terminus by the
Mondrian Hotel has been withdrawn
6. 1000 -1200 West Ave. Mondrian Hotel /Mirador Condos
Pursuant to the Final Order for DRB File 20181, an overwater public bay walk has been
proferred by the Mondrian Hotel, designed and was made part of the permit plans for the
Mondrian Hotel project As a condition of this approval, the applicant has posted
LTC — Update on Public Baywalk Along West Avenue
Date November 8, 2011
Page 4 of 6
$800,000 00 in escrowed funds, in order to ensure the construction of the baywalk, such
escrow is currently being held by a third party pursuant to an escrow agreement While a
prior application for the baywalk included plans for a marina, which were not received
favorably by the State DEP, the applicant has now put together a new application, for a bay
walk only, and is in the process of finalizing it, in consultation with City staff and the City's
outside environmental consultant Staff expects that the proposed overwater baywalk
application will be submitted and reviewed by the applicable Federal, State and County
permit agencies by the end of the year Given the complexity of this review process,
particularly at the State (DEP) level, there is still no indication whether it will receive approval
for construction The upland baywalk east of the seawall, which was an option provided for
in the DRB Final Order, has not received the approval of the immediately abutting
condominium associations to the north and south of the Mondrian Hotel and staff does not
expect any such authorization to be forthcoming
7. 1228 West Avenue Bay View Terrace (Condo)
As part of a recent Conditional Use approval by the Planning Board for the reconstruction of
a pier and dock lost during a hurncane, the Condominium Association agreed to design their
replacement pier and dock so that it can accommodate an overwater baywalk connection
behind its property Such agreement is part of the Conditional Use Approval issued by the
Planning Board on August 26, 2008 (PB File No 1879) No arrangements were made for
private funding of this connection
8. 1250 West Avenue. Bay Garden Manor (Condo)
No development order on this property was ever imposed as it pre -dates the creation of the
design review process, and no bay walk exists Staff has evaluated the feasibility of a
baywalk at this location and it appears that an overwater, as opposed to upland, connection
would be the most feasible option There is no timetable for this to be part of any future
project
9. Monad Terrace Single Family Homes
No development order on this property was ever imposed as it pre -dates the creation of the
design review process, and no bay walk exists While these properties are single family
homes, the properties are zoned for multi - family residential Any future aggregation of the
bayfront lots for a larger new development along the water would present an opportunity for
an upland public baywalk that could connect directly to the property to the immediate north
(Waverly) Staff has evaluated the feasibility of a baywalk at this location absent the
aggregation of the bayfront lots and it appears that an overwater, as opposed to upland,
connection would be the most feasible option, with cooperation by the homeowners
10 1330 West Avenue. Waverly (DRB File 9024)
An upland public bay walk has been constructed, pursuant to Design Review Board and
County Shoreline Development Review Committee Orders Litigation with the condominium
association regarding public access has concluded in favor of the City, and the association
has completed repairs to the seawall This portion of the baywalk is now open to the public
11 Western Terminus of Fourteenth (14 Street
Public Park and accessible public bay walk are completed and open
LTC — Update on Public Baywalk Along West Avenue
Date November 8, 2011
Page 5 of 6
12 1500 Bay Road. Flamingo (DRB File 9191)
The Grand Flamingo project was approved by the Design Review Board (DRB) on
November 4, 1997 Since the original approval, the subject project has become legal non-
conforming in terms of overall height, FAR, parking, and with regard to the parking pedestal
design Condition 9 of the Final Order for the project states the following
A baywalk extension, from the south side of the property north into the future park
area, shall be required
Although a bay walk was constructed, with direct access from the 14 Street Park, the above
noted condition was not complied with as public access to the bay walk, as required by the
DRB Final Order, was prohibited The owners of the Flamingo sued the City on issues
involving public baywalk access The Flamingo and the City entered into a settlement
agreement in September 2009, with the Flamingo agreeing to provide public access to the
baywalk by the end of 2011 Plans for a publicly accessible bay walk have been permitted
and construction is underway (See Photo Below) The City expects the baywalk to be
accessible to the public in early 2012
�" • 1 rr�
F..
11 !! ,w
t +' It•nn S
4. ''
ff
• +aftf'i }m R
yW '�
`6r
•
t b.
• 13. 1445 16 Street & 1491 Lincoln Terrace Mae Capn Condominium (DRB File 17716)
Pursuant to the Final Design Review Board Order, an upland public bay walk has been
LTC — Update on Public Baywafk Along West Avenue
Date November 8, 2011
Page 6 of 6
completed and is open to the public The public bay walk is operating independent of any
north or south connections, but will connect directly to the Flamingo property to the south,
upon completion of the Flamingo bay walk (see above)
14. 1450 Lincoln Road Lincoln Bav Towers Condominium
No development order on this property was ever imposed as it pre -dates the creation of the
design review process, and no bay walk exists The existing rear pool deck extends over the
seawall and projects into the bay Consequently the only method of connection from the
western street -end of Lincoln Road to the north side of the Mae Capn baywalk is to construct
an overwater connection A conceptual design for this specific connection between the
Lincoln Road Street -end and the Mae Capri Condominium baywalk has been developed by
the City The City is currently ascertaining permitting feasibility from the appropriate
regulatory agencies, and has been in discussion with the board and residents of this
building
15. Lincoln Road Street End
Public park and accessible public bay walk are completed and open (See Photos Below)
fl
•
JMG•TH. e
F•\PLAN \$ALL \CM_RESP \Baywalk Update November 2011.Itc.docx
C Jose Smith, City Attorney
Gary Held, First Assistant City Attorney
Bob Parcher, City Clerk
Jorge G Gomez, Assistant City Manager
Duncan Ballantyne, Assistant City Manager
Richard G Lorber, Acting Planning Director
Fred Beckmann, Public Works Director
Thomas R Mooney, Design and Preservation Manager
Elizabeth Wheaton, Acting Environmental Resources Manager