254-2001 LTC
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CITY OF MIAMI BEACH
Office of the City Manager
Letter to Commission No. v15i. ,ACtJ/
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TO:
Mayor Neisen O. Kasdin and
Members of the City Commission
Date: November 13, 2001
FROM:
Jorge M. Gonzalez \ ~
City Manager c) ~ 0
SUBJECT: WEEKLY UPDATE
The purpose of this LTC is to provide the Mayor and Commission with an update
describing some of the areas the Administration focused on during the week of
November 5, 2001.
Veteran's Day Weekend - The Administration met throughout the week to implement
the final preparations for the Veteran's Day weekend activities. The parade, associated
events, and concert on Sunday, November 11th were all hugely successful. Over
150,000 people were estimated to have attended the day's activities over the course of
the day. In addition to the City's Police, Fire, Parks, and Beach Patrol staff who
volunteered on Sunday, there were also over 100 Goodwill Ambassadors, comprised of
City employees and members from various City boards and groups, welcoming and
helping visitors who came to the beach. Volunteers from the Police and Fire
Departments from Miami-Dade County and several municipalities throughout the county
also helped to ensure that the day's events were successful.
Bass Museum Board of Trustees - Met on November 5th to discuss and review the
ongoing construction related issues and progress being made in this area. The Bass
will be exhibiting a show of local artists from December 12 through February 3 which will
coincide with the December Arts Beach celebration and the Art Miami fair early next
year. A "soft" opening is then scheduled for the end of May 2002 and a "grand" opening
celebration will be coordinated for the Fall 2002. The Administration agreed to provide
the Board of Trustees an anticipated construction schedule for the remainder of the
project. The Board also agreed to meet on a more regular monthly basis.
72nd Street Project - Representatives from the Administration met with representatives
from the Related Group on November 6th to discuss issues regarding the 72nd Street
project and prepare for a presentation to the North Beach Development cor~oration's
Capital Improvement Projects Committee scheduled for November 13 h and a
community workshop scheduled for November 26th. This community workshop will
allow the community to review the developer's proposal prior to the Commission setting
a public hearing at the November 28th Commission meeting.
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Public Safety Task Force - This group of nearly 50 participants, including
Commissioner Garcia and Representative Dan Gelber, met for the first time on
November th to discuss and review the preliminary plans and concerns involving public
safety issues. The group, comprised of representatives from about every industry on
Miami Beach, agreed on several next steps for the Task Force, including having the
Administration prepare a risk assessment for the community with input from the Task
Force. More information regarding the Public Safety Task Force will be provided to the
Commission shortly.
Florida House of Representatives Select Committee on Security - Representatives
from the Administration attended this meeting at Port Everglades on November 8th to
discuss local security and public safety related issues and concerns with the House
Select Committee chaired by Representative Dan Gelber. The purpose of the meeting
was to solicit and provide information for the upcoming legislative session. Miami-Dade
County Mayor Alex Penelas, as well as a number of representatives from Miami-Dade,
Broward and Palm Beach Counties were also in attendance.
School and Home Office Products Association (SHOPA) Convention -
Representatives from the Administration continued to meet with representatives from
SHOPA to discuss and finalize plans for this conference which expects to bring about
10,000 participants to Miami Beach from November 14 - 16, 2001.
Bayshore Golf Course Groundbreaking - About 20 local community activists and
representatives from the Golf Shore Advisory Committee attended this groundbreaking
ceremony on November 9th.
ArtsBeach - Representatives from the Administration continue to work with various
members of the community on all Arts Beach events that are scheduled to take place on
Miami Beach and around the South Florida region from December 1 0_16th, 2001. A full
list of events and activities scheduled for that week will be provided to the Commission
once all events are finalized.
Should you desire any additional information about any of these items, please feel free
to contact me.
JMG/RI/lc
F:/cmgr/$aIVltc-01/weeklyupd. November12