Resolution 2020-31168R E S O L U T IO N N O . 2020-31168
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF
THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, CALLING FOR A
SPECIAL MAIL BALLOT ELECTION TO BE HELD FROM JUNE
1, 2020 TO AUGUST 31, 2020, TO DETERMINE WHETHER A
MAJORITY OF THE AFFECTED PROPERTY OWNERS
APPROVE THE CREATION OF A SPECIAL ASSESSMENT
DISTRICT TO BE KNOWN AS THE SOUTH BEACH BUSINESS
IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT (THE "DISTRICT"); PROVIDING
THAT THE OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK AND OFFICE OF THE
CITY ATTORNEY SHALL CONDUCT SUCH ELECTION;
PROVIDING FOR THE FORM OF BALLOT; AND DIRECTING
THE CITY CLERK TO GIVE NOTICE OF SUCH ELECTION AS
REQUIRED BY THE CITY CODE AND STATE LAW.
WHEREAS, o n Jan uary 15 , 2020, the M ayor and City C om m ission adopted R esolution
N o. 2 0 2 0 -3 114 4, w hich cre a ted , pursua nt to Chapter 170, Fl orida Statutes, and subject to the
a p p ro v a l of a m ajority of the aff ected prope rt y ow ners, a special assessm ent district to be
kn o w n as the So uth B e a ch B usine ss Im pro ve m ent D istrict (th e "Di strict"), for a term of ten (10 )
ye a rs, to sta b ilize an d im pro ve that cert ain area of the City of M iam i Beach referred to as the
O ce an D riv e an d C o llin s A ve n ue retail busine ss district, w hich district is generally located w ithin
a na tio n a lly re co g n ize d histo ric district, thro ug h pro m otion, m anagem ent, m arketing, and other
sim ilar se rv ice s; an d
WHEREAS, the M ayo r and C ity C o m m ission hereby call fo r a special m ail ballot election
(th e "El e ctio n") to dete rm in e w he ther a m ajo rity (50 % plus one) of the affected property ow ners
a p p ro ve the cre a tio n of the D istrict; and
WHEREAS, th e C ity and So uth Bea ch BID Part ners, Inc. (th e "BI D"), intend to enter into
a M e m oran d u m of Un d er st an di ng ("M O U") to cond u ct the Election; and
WHEREAS, pu rsu a n t to the M O U , the B ID shall cover the costs of the Election,
in cl u d in g the C ity's staff co sts, as w ell as the cost of postage, printing, m ailing supplies,
a d v e rt is ing, an d tra n sla tion ; and
WHEREAS, the O ff ice of the C ity C lerk and O ff ice of the City A ttorn ey have prepared
sp e cial m a il ba llo t e le ctio n pro ced ures fo r the pro posed Election, w hich procedures are attached
a n d in c o rpo rated as E xh ib it "A."
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION
OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA:
SECTION 1.
In acco rdan ce w ith the pro visio ns of the C ode of the City of M iam i Beach and the
ge n era l la w s of the S tate of Flo rida, a special m ail ballot election is hereby called and directed
to be he ld in the C ity of M iam i B ea ch, Flo rida, fr om Jun e 1, 2020, to A ugust 31, 2020, fo r the
pu rp o s e of su b m itt in g to the aff ected pro pe rt y ow ners the fo llow ing question:
Shall a special assessm ent district know n and desig nated as the So uth
Beach B usin ess Im p rovem ent District be created fo r a term of ten (1 O)
years, with an estimated annual budget of $2,093,335, to stabilize and
improve the Ocean Drive and Collins Avenue retail business district, which
is generally located within a nationally recognized historic district, through
promotion, management, marketing, and other similar services, which
District is to be funded by special assessments against benefited
properties?
SECTION 2.
The Office of the City Clerk and Office of the City Attorney shall conduct the special mail
ballot election authorized herein, in accordance with the special mail ballot election procedures
attached hereto and incorporated herein as Exhibit "A".
SECTION 3.
The form of the ballot shall be a paper ballot, which shall be mailed to affected property
owners.
SECTION 4.
The City Clerk is hereby directed to give notice, as required by the Code of the City of
Miami Beach and Florida Statutes, of the adoption of this Resolution and of the special mail
ballot election herein prescribed.
SECTION 5.
This Resolution shall be effective immediately upon its passage.
PASSED and ADOPTED this (2 day ot Fbcu4ry_ _, 2020.
ATTEST: za2>
Mayor
APPRO VED AS TO
FORM & LANGUAGE
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F:\ATTO\KALN\South Beach BID\South Beach BID Election Reso.docx
EXHIBIT "A"
SOUTH BEACH BUSINESS IMPROVEM ENT DISTRICT
SPECIAL MAIL BALLO T ELECTION PR O CEDUR ES
The following procedures shall govern the special mail ballot election, which shall be
conducted by the Office of the City Clerk and Office of the City Attorney, to determine
whether a majority (50% plus one) of the affected property owners approve the creation
of the proposed South Beach Business Improvement District (the "District") (altogether,
the "Election").
1. South Beach BID Partners, Inc. (the "BID") sh all provide the City Clerk with a
Certified List, approved by the BID president and attested to by the BID secretary, of
each benefited property address within the District, and each property owner's
mailing address. In addition, the BID will provide the City with a mailing label and a
return-mailing label for each address. The format of the mailing labels and return-
mailing labels (the "Label s") sh all be as determined by the City.
2. Th e City reserves the right to hire a consultant, at the sole cost and expense of the
BID, to verify the accuracy of the names of the property owners and mailing
addresses submitted by the BID pursuant to Section 1 above.
3. The Office of the City Attorney shall draft the ballot question.
4. Upon the BID's approval of the ballot question, and the City's receipt of the Labels
and Certified List, the Office of the City Clerk, in consultation with the Office of the
City Attorney, shall prepare the Official Ballot. The City's seal will be embossed on
each Official Ballot.
5. The City shall translate or arrange the translation of any documents necessary to
effectuate the Election, including the Official Ballot.
6. The mail package for each Official Ballot shall be as follows:
Envelope 1:
Envelope 2:
Envelope 1, the outer envelope, shall be affixed with a mailing label
provided by the BID. This envelope shall contain (i) the Official
Ballot, (ii) a form affidavit affirming the voter's authority to vote on
behalf of the property owner (the "Affidavit"), (iii) an instruction
sheet detailing when the Official Ballot must be returned and the
date, time, and location of when the Official Ballots received will be
opened, (iv) Envelope 2, and (v) Envelope 3.
Envelope 2, which will be placed inside Envelope 1, shall be
stamped and pre-addressed for mailing to the Office of the City
Clerk. A return address label printed with the folio number, name of
1
Envelope 3:
the pro perty ow ner, and m ailing address of the pro perty ow ner shall
be affixed to Envelope 2.
Envelope 3 is the ballot secrecy envelope. To preserv e the secrecy
of the ballot, the pro perty ow ner w ill be instructed to rem ove the
Official Ballot from Envelope 1, and cast a vote by draw ing a circl e
aro und the appro priate ballot response. After voting, the pro perty
ow ner will be instructed to place the com pleted O fficial Ballot inside
Envelope 3, seal Envelope 3, and place Envelope 3 into Envelope
2. The pro perty ow ner will be instructed to place the Affi davit inside
Envelope 2 and not to place the Affi davit inside Envelope 3, to
preserv e the secrecy of the ballot. The pro perty ow ner shall return
a sealed Envelope 2, containing the Affidavit and a sealed
Envelope 3, to the City by (i) m ailing the pre-addressed Envelope 2
to the O ffi ce of the City Clerk, or (ii) physically bringing Envelope 2
directly to the O ffice of the City Clerk.
7. The O ffice of the City Clerk shall m ail all Offi cial Ballots to the pro perty ow ners on
the sam e day, via First Class U.S . M ail, unless the BID notifies the C ity in w riting
that the BID desires that the O fficial Ballots be sent via FedEx or any other delivery
serv ice, at the BID's expense; in such event, the BID shall pro vide the C ity w ith pre-
addressed labels and any and all necessary packing and m ailing m aterials fo r that
particular delivery serv ice. In the event that the BID elects to use a delivery serv ice
other than U.S. M ail, the pro cedure in Section 6 shall still apply, except that
Envelo pe 1 shall be placed inside a postage prepaid envelope for that particular
delivery service.
8. As voting envelopes are returned, the Office of the City Clerk shall track, on a daily
basis, the number of ballots received, by property address, using the Certified List.
The count will be posted on the City's website at the end of each day.
9. In the event that, following the tenth (10th) day after the start of the Election, a
property owner has not yet received an Official Ballot, the property owner may
submit a written request to the City Clerk for a Duplicate Ballot. Upon receipt of the
property owner's request, the City Clerk shall promptly mail a Duplicate Ballot to the
property owner. If the BID elects, pursuant to Section 7, to use a delivery service
other than U.S. Mail, the BID shall provide the City with a pre-addressed label and
any and all necessary packing and mailing materials for that particular delivery
service. If a property owner does not receive the Duplicate Ballot, the property owner
may, again, submit a written request to the City Clerk for a Duplicate Ballot;
however, the property owner ( or a representative of the property owner) shall be
required to retrieve the Duplicate Ballot from the Office of the City Clerk in person.
10. If the Office of the City Clerk receives two or more envelopes referencing the same
folio number, the ballots in those envelopes shall be voided, and that property owner
will be considered to have not voted.
2
11. The Canvassing Board for this special mail ballot election shall consist of the
following individuals:
a. Rafael E. Granado, City Clerk
b. Raul J. Aguila, City Attorney
c. Judy Hoanshelt, Director of Grants and Intergovernmental Affairs
12.A "yes" vote of the owners of a simple majority (50% plus one) of the affected
pro perties is required to approve the proposed District.
13. A property owner who fails to return an Official Ballot to the Office of the City Clerk
within the allotted timeframe will be considered to have voted "no" to the creation of
the District.
14. The City Clerk shall keep the BID president informed of all election-related activities,
and the BID president is responsible for disseminating all information to the owners
of properties within the District.
15. The ballots will be opened at a publicly noticed meeting of the Canvassing Board, at
a prescribed date, time, and location, as follows:
a. Envelope 2 will be opened and Envelope 3 and the Affidavit will be removed from
Envelope 2.
b. Envelope 2 will be placed in a separate stack.
c. The Canvassing Board will review the Affidavit to ensure that it is complete and
validly executed and notarized. If the Affidavit is not complete or validly executed
or notarized, the Affidavit will be stapled to the corresponding Envelope 3 and
rejected. If the Affidavit is complete and validly executed and notarized, the
Affidavit and Envelope 3 will be placed in separate stacks.
d. If the Affidavit is deemed valid, the corresponding Envelope 3 will be opened and
the Official Ballot will be removed and placed in a separate stack.
e. Those Official Ballots deemed valid pursuant to Section 15(d) herein will be
counted. The Office of the City Clerk will prepare a tally of "yes" votes, "no" votes,
unreturned ballots, and rejected ballots.
f. The Canvassing Board will review any ballot lacking a clear ballot response to
determine, if possible, the voter's intent.
16. Once the count has been finalized and the count is reconciled, the Office of the City
Clerk will prepare an Official Election Certification.
F:\ATTO\KALN\South Beach B1D\South Beach BID Special Mail Ballot Election Procedures.doc
3
R esolutio ns - C 7 P
MIAMI BEACH
COMMISSION MEMORANDUM
TO:
FROM:
DATE:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Commission
Raul J. Aguila, City Attorney
February 12, 2020
SUBJECT:A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY
OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, CALLING FOR A SPECIAL MAIL BALLOT
ELECTION TO BE HELD FROM JUNE 1, 2020 TO AUGUST 31, 2020, TO
DETERMINE WHETHER A MAJORITY OF THE AFFECTED PROPERTY
OWNERS APPROVE THE CREATION OF A SPECIAL ASSESSMENT
DISTRICT TO BE KNOWN AS THE SOUTH BEACH BUSINESS
IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT (THE "DISTRICT"); PROVIDING THAT THE
OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK AND OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY
SHALL CONDUCT SUCH ELECTION; PROVIDING FOR THE FORM OF
BALLOT; AND DIRECTING THE CITY CLERK TO GIVE NOTICE OF SUCH
ELECTION AS REQUIRED BY THE CITY CODE AND STATE LAW.
BACKGROUND/HISTORY
On January 15, 2020, the Mayor and City Commission adopted Resolution No. 2020-31144,
which created, pursuant to Chapter 170, Florida Statutes, and subject to the approval of a
majority of the affected property owners, a special assessment district to be known as the South
Beach Business Improvement District (the u District"), for a term of ten (10) years, to stabilize
and improve that certain area of the City of Miami Beach referred to as the Ocean Drive and
Collins Avenue retail business district, which district is generally located within a nationally
recognized historic district, through promotion, management, marketing, and other similar
services.
ANALYSIS
The attached Resolution calls for a special mail ballot election (the "Election") to be held from
June 1, 2020 to August 31, 2020, to determine whether a majority of the affected property
owners approve the creation of the District. The Office of the City Clerk shall conduct the
Election in accordance with the special mail ballot election procedures developed by the Office
of the City Clerk and Office of the City Attorney, which procedures are attached to the
Resolution as Exhibit "A." The form of the ballot shall be a paper ballot, upon which each voter
will be directed to draw a circle around the appropriate ballot response. The Resolution directs
the City Clerk to publish any election notices required by the City Code and Florida Statutes.
A pplicable Area
Not Applicable
Page 467 of 1185
ls this a Resident Right to
Know item ?
Yes, No
Does this item utilize G.O.
Bond Funds?
No
Legislative Tracking
Office of the City Attorney/Office of the City Clerk
ATTACHMENTS:;
Description
Reso Calling Special Election, South Beach Business Improvement District. CCC
Page 468 of 1185
EXHIBIT "A"
SOUTH BEACH BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT
SPECIAL MAIL BALLOT ELECTION PROCEDURES
The following procedures shall govern the special mail ballot election, which shall be
conducted by the Office of the City Clerk and Office of the City Attorney, to determ ine
whether a majority (50% plus one) of the affected property owners approve the creation
of the proposed South Beach Business Improvement District (the "District") (altogether,
the "Election").
1. South Beach BID Partners, Inc. (the "BID") shall provide the City Clerk with a
Certified List, approved by the BID president and attested to by the BID secretary, of
each benefited property address within the District, and each property owner's
mailing address. In addition, the BID will provide the City with a mailing label and a
return-mailing label for each address. The form at of the mailing labels and return-
mailing labels (the "Labels") shall be as determ ined by the City.
2. The City reserves the right to hire a consultant, at the sole cost and expense of the
BID, to verify the accuracy of the names of the property owners and mailing
addresses submitted by the BID pursuant to Section 1 above.
3. The Office of the City Attorney shall draft the ballot question.
4. Upon the BID's approval of the ballot question, and the City's receipt of the Labels
and Certified List, the Office of the City Clerk, in consultation with the Office of the
City Attorney, shall prepare the Official Ballot. The City's seal will be embossed on
each Official Ballot.
5. The City shall translate or arrange the translation of any documents necessary to
effectuate the Election, including the Official Ballot.
6. The mail package for each Official Ballot shall be as follows:
Envelope 1:
Envelope 2:
Env elope 1, the outer envelope, shall be affixed with a mailing label
provided by the BID. This envelope shall contain (i) the Official
Ballot, (ii) a form affidavit affirm ing the voter's authority to vote on
behalf of the property owner (the "Affidavit"), (iii) an instruction
sheet detailing when the Official Ballot must be returned and the
date, time, and location of when the Official Ballots received will be
opened, (iv) Envelope 2, and (v) Env elope 3.
Envelope 2, wh ich will be placed inside Envelope 1, shall be
stamped and pre-addressed for mailing to the Office of the City
Clerk. A return address label printed with the folio number, name of
Page 471 0f 1185
Envelope 3:
the property owner, and mailing address of the property owner shall
be affixed to Envelope 2.
Envelope 3 is the ballot secrecy envelope. To preserve the secrecy
of the ballot, the property owner will be instructed to remove the
Official Ballot from Envelope 1, and cast a vote by drawing a circle
around the appropriate ballot response. After voting, the property
owner will be instructed to place the completed Official Ballot inside
Envelope 3, seal Envelope 3, and place Envelope 3 into Envelope
2. The property owner will be instructed to place the Affidavit inside
Envelope 2 and not to place the Affidavit inside Envelope 3, to
preserve the secrecy of the ballot. The property owner shall return
a sealed Envelope 2, containing the Affidavit and a sealed
Envelope 3, to the City by (i} mailing the pre-addressed Envelope 2
to the Office of the City Clerk, or (ii) physically bringing Envelope 2
directly to the Office of the City Clerk.
7. The Office of the City Clerk shall mail all Official Ballots to the property owners on
the same day, via First Class U.S. Mail, unless the BID notifies the City in writing
that the BID desires that the Official Ballots be sent via FedEx or any other delivery
service, at the BID's expense; in such event, the BID shall provide the City with pre-
addressed labels and any and all necessary packing and mailing materials for that
particular delivery service. In the event that the BID elects to use a delivery service
other than U.S. Mail, the procedure in Section 6 shall still apply, except that
Envelope 1 shall be placed inside a postage prepaid envelope for that particular
delivery service.
8. As voting envelopes are returned, the Office of the City Clerk shall track, on a daily
basis, the number of ballots received, by property address, using the Certified List.
The count will be posted on the City's website at the end of each day.
9. In the event that, following the tenth (10th) day after the start of the Election, a
property owner has not yet received an Official Ballot, the property owner may
submit a written request to the City Clerk for a Duplicate Ballot. Upon receipt of the
property owner's request, the City Clerk shall promptly mail a Duplicate Ballot to the
property owner. If the BID elects, pursuant to Section 7, to use a delivery service
other than U.S. Mail, the BID shall provide the City with a pre-addressed label and
any and all necessary packing and mailing materials for that particular delivery
service. If a property owner does not receive the Duplicate Ballot, the property owner
may, again, submit a written request to the City Clerk for a Duplicate Ballot;
however, the property owner ( or a representative of the property owner) shall be
required to retrieve the Duplicate Ballot from the Office of the City Clerk in person.
10. If the Office of the City Clerk receives two or more envelopes referencing the same
folio number, the ballots in those envelopes shall be voided, and that property owner
will be considered to have not voted.
Page 472 of 1185
11. The Canvassing Board for this special mail ballot election shall consist of the
following individuals:
a. Rafael E. Granado, City Clerk
b. Raul J. Aguila, City Attorney
c. Judy Hoanshelt, Director of Grants and Intergovernmental Affairs
12. A "yes" vote of the owners of a simple majority ( 50% plus one) of the affected
pro perties is required to approve the proposed District.
13.A pro perty ow ner w ho fails to return an O ffi cial Ballot to the Office of the City Clerk
w ithin the allotted timeframe will be considered to have voted "no" to the creation of
the District.
14. The City Clerk shall keep the BID president informed of all election-related activities,
and the BID president is responsible for disseminating all information to the owners
of properties within the District.
15. The ballots will be opened at a publicly noticed meeting of the Canvassing Board, at
a prescribed date, time, and location, as follows:
a. Envelope 2 will be opened and Envelope 3 and the Affidavit will be removed from
Envelope 2.
b. Envelope 2 will be placed in a separate stack.
c. The Canvassing Board will review the Affidavit to ensure that it is complete and
validly executed and notarized. If the Affidavit is not complete or validly executed
or notarized, the Affidavit will be stapled to the corresponding Envelope 3 and
rejected. If the Affidavit is complete and validly executed and notarized, the
Affidavit and Envelope 3 will be placed in separate stacks.
d. If the Affidavit is deemed valid, the corresponding Envelope 3 will be opened and
the Official Ballot will be removed and placed in a separate stack.
e. Those Official Ballots deemed valid pursuant to Section 15(d) herein will be
counted. The Office of the City Clerk will prepare a tally of "yes" votes, "no" votes,
unreturned ballots, and rejected ballots.
f. The Canvassing Board will review any ballot lacking a clear ballot response to
determine, if possible, the voter's intent.
16. Once the count has been finalized and the count is reconciled, the Office of the City
Clerk will prepare an Official Election Certification.
FAT TO\KALN\South Beach BID\South Beach BID Special Mail Ballot Election Procedures.doc
Page 47& t 1185