LTC 22-2002
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CITY of MIAMI BEACH
Office of the City Manager
Letter to Commission No. :2 Z - 2&7Ce:G
TO:
FROM:
Mayor David Dermer and
Members of the City Commission
Jorge M. Gonzalez d . /~
City Manager pr tI
WEEKLY UPDATE
Date: January 25, 2002
SUBJECT:
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
January 14 and 21,2002.
Capital Improvement Program Commission Workshop - This meeting, held
on Monday, January 14 afforded the Commission and residents an opportunity to
continue learning about the City's Capital Improvement Program. The discussion
at the meeting included a general overview and details regarding the
undergrounding of overhead utilities; street lighting; reclamation of City street-
ends and easements, funding, and issues related to Parks & Facilities
Improvement Program.
Employee Awards and Recognition Celebration - On January 14, the City
held it's annual Employee Awards and Recognition Celebration at the Jackie
Gleason Theater of the Performing Arts. Over 250 employees and their guests
were there to applaud the Service Award winners and employees who received
their 5 to 45 year service pins.
Mayor's Blue Ribbon Tourism Task Force - Met on January 14 and 22 to
continue their discussion of tourism related issues. The items discussed at both
meetings included Committee progress reports by the Parking, Sales &
Marketing, Administration, Cultural & Special Events, Service and Attitude, and
Residential Committees. The Task Force will continue meeting throughout the
month of February with the final recommendations presented on March 4, 2002.
Parks Blue Ribbon Task Force's Town Hall Meetings - The Task Force
hosted two town hall meetings, one in Middle Beach at North Beach Elementary
on January 17 and the other in South Beach at Fienberg-Fisher Elementary on
January 24, to solicit input and recommendations from the community in order to
continue developing a blueprint of ideas to improve the quality and services of
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the City's parks. The next meeting is scheduled to take place in North Beach on
January 31 at Biscayne Elementary.
Employee Brown Bag Luncheon - The City Manager and other
representatives of the Administration hosted a brown bag lunch session with the
Code Compliance department staff. The discussion focused on a variety of
issues including staff suggestions about how they could improve the services
they provide, challenges they face, and innovations they would like to have
considered. Monthly brown bag lunch meetings with various City Departments
were held last year in an effort to better communicate with employees and to get
to know each other better. This was the first of 12 monthly brown bag lunch
meetings scheduled for this year.
Grants Management Workshop - The Grants Management Division has held
two workshops and met with 50 employees representing 24 City Departments
and Divisions in an effort to share information about the grants process and the
opportunities available to the City.
Volvo Ocean Race Around the World - City Manager met with representatives
from Ocean Race Miami, the host committee for the 'Volvo Ocean Race Around
the World", to discuss possible ways in which the City can help this organization
with their event scheduled to be in Miami the last two weeks of March 2002.
Veteran's Day Concert Volunteer Appreciation Party - All City, County and
City of Miami employees who volunteered to help at our Veteran's Day Concert
on November 11 were invited to attend a "thank you" party hosted by Billboard
Live on January 17. Close to 100 hundred of our volunteers attended the event.
2002 Boat Show - Representatives from the Administration held a planning
meeting to continue discussing logistical issues involving this year's Boat Show.
A follow-up meeting is scheduled for February 1, 2002.
Florida Department of Transportation - The City Manager met with Jose
Abreu, Florida Department of Transportation District Secretary, to discuss
several issues affecting the City, including Collins Avenue, the two-way street on
the north end of Collins Avenue, and Alton Road traffic calming near Mount Sinai.
Bass Board of Directors Meeting - Was held on January 18 where an update
on the Museum's corrective construction was provided to the Trustees and
Friends of the Bass. Due to the lack of cooperation from the Contractor, the City
Manager proposed to bring an item to the Commission at its January 30 meeting
to award emergency authorization to waive competitive bidding and appropriate
funds to ensure the completion of the project.
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Florida Lottery - Representatives from the Administration continued to meet
with representatives from the Florida Lottery to continue planning for the live
Lotto drawings taking place on Lincoln Road on January 25 and 26, 2002. This
is the first stop that the Lottery is making in one of its new campaigns that takes
the Lotto drawings around the State. An LTC with additional information
regarding this event was sent to the Commission on January 23, 2002.
Bay-Link Project - Representatives from the Administration met with project
consultants to discuss possible funding sources for local match to available FTA
funds for the planning, design and construction of the Bay-Link system. The
possible local funding sources that were discussed included convention tax,
resort tax and tolling of the Causeways. A draft of the funding alternatives will be
ready for review in May 2002. Similar meetings and discussions regarding the
local match requirements are taking place with the City of Miami and Miami-Dade
County.
Finance and Citywide Projects Committee - Met on January 23 and
discussed the refurbishment of the Byron Carlyle lot. It was agreed to move
forward with the refurbishment. This issue will be further discussed at the
Parking Workshop scheduled for February 11, 2002.
17th Street Masterplan - Representatives from Zyscovich made a presentation
to the Mayor's Blue Ribbon Task Force, the Nightlife Industry Task Force, and
affected property owners regarding plans for the 17th Street lot. Most in
attendance applauded the City and consultant's vision regarding the plan.
Employee Appreciation Barbeque - Was held on January 24 at the 21st Street
Community Center to thank employees for their hard work and to give a special
recognition to those employees who have displayed outstanding customer
service to our residents. A special thank you goes out to members of our Police
Department who volunteered to cook on the grill for our employees.
Cultural Campus Oversight Committee - Met on January 24 to discuss issues
related to the construction of the library.
Mayor's Economic Summit II - Representatives from the Administration
attended the County Mayor's Economic Summit on January 25 held at the
American Airlines Arena that brought together representatives from the public
and private sectors to evaluate economic development progress in the County
and develop short and long term economic public policy recommendations to
ensure economic prosperity for the County.
Should you desire any additional information about any of these items, please
feel free to contact me.
JMG/RI
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