LTC 044-2025 Update on the Injunction in Clevelander Ocean LP et al. v. City of Miami Beach et al., Requiring Ocean Drive ReconfigurationMIAMI BEACH
OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY and CITY MANAGER
LTC# 044-2025
TO:
FROM:
DATE:
LETTER TO COMMISSION
Honorable Mayor Steven Meiner and Members of the City Commission
Rica�co, City Attorney and �T�ity Manager
Janua�25
SUBJECT: Update on the Injunction in Clevelander Ocean LP et al. v. City of Miami
Beach et al., Requiring Ocean Drive Reconfiguration
This Letter to Commission (L TC) is a follow-up to L TC #023-2025, where we advised the
Mayor and Commission of an Order by Judge Butchko Sanchez granting the City's
emergency motion in part and extending the deadline to Friday, January 31, 2025, at 5:00 p.m., "to re-open the closed portion of Ocean Drive and revert Ocean Drive from a one
way road to a two-way road." Today, the City filed a Notice of Appeal, triggering appellate
review of the re-opening order.
The City Administration ("Administration") continues to collaborate with the Miami-Dade
County Department of Transportation and Public Works ("County") to obtain a permit for the conditionally-approved one-way southbound travel lane and two-way bicycle lanes on Ocean Drive. To this end, the City has re-submitted the design plans for the one-way southbound configuration and a post-implementation traffic study to the County for review
and approval. The City received numerous technical comments from the County on the
design plans, including a requirement to update the design plans to current roadway
design standards with a new Engineer of Record. This modification requires a re
evaluation of the design plans by the City's consultant (Calvin Giordano & Associates),
which will extend beyond the January 31, 2025 deadline imposed by the Court Order.
In addition, the County has advised the Administration that the only requirement for the two-way conversion is to obtain approval of a maintenance of traffic ("MOT") plan to be in
effect during the implementation of the two-way conversion. In an abundance of caution, the Administration is taking steps to engage a contractor and prepare an MOT plan for
review and approval by the County for the implementation of the two-way conversion of
Ocean Drive by the January 31, 2025 deadline, in compliance with the Court Order.
As the County has been and remains the authority having jurisdiction regarding all traffic
flow regulations countywide, it will be imperative to obtain whatever permits are deemed
necessary by the County for the modifications to the existing conditions.