20131016 SM2MIAMI BEACH
City Commission Meeting
SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL 2
City Hall, Commission Chambers, 3rd Floor, 1700 Convention Center Drive
October 16, 2013
Mayor Matti Herrera Bower
Vice-Mayor Edward L. Tobin
Commissioner Jorge R. Exposito
Commissioner Michael Gongora
Commissioner Jerry Libbin
Commissioner Deede Weithorn
Commissioner Jonah Wolfson
City Manager Jimmy L. Morales
City Attorney Jose Smith
City Clerk Rafael E. Granado
Visit us at www.miamibeachfl.gov for agendas and video "streaming" of City Commission Meetings.
ATTENTION ALL LOBBYISTS
Chapter 2, Article VII, Division 3 of the City Code of Miami Beach entitled "Lobbyists" requires the
registration of all lobbyists with the City Clerk prior to engaging in any lobbying activity with the City
Commission, any City Board or Committee, or any personnel as defined in the subject Code
sections. Copies of the City Code sections on lobbyists laws are available in the City Clerk's office.
Questions regarding the provisions of the Ordinance should be directed to the Office of the City
Attorney.
SUPPLEMENTAL AGENDA
C7 • Resolutions
C?KK A Resolution Supporting The Efforts Of The Florida United States Congressional Delegation To
Delay The Effective Date Of The 2012 Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act To Prevent
Significant Increases In Flood Insurance Rates Until The Federal Emergency Management
Agency Completes Its Affordability Study And The Study Is Considered By The United States
Congress.
(Requested by Commissioner Michael Gongora)
(Additional Information)
C?NN A Resolution Approving The Extension Of Hours For Certain Alcoholic Beverage
Establishments With A 5:00 a.m. Liquor License And Under Certain Specified Conditions
Pursuant To Chapter 6 Of The City Code For The 2014 Winter Party (March 5-10, 2014) And
The 2014 Pride Weekend (April11-13, 2014).
(Requested by Commissioner Michael Gongora)
(Item moved from R9P -Resolution)
1
Supp lemental Agenda , October 16, 2013
R9 -New Business and Commission Requests
R9T Discussion Regarding City 's Design For New Median On South Pointe Drive.
(Requested by Vice-Mayor Edward L. Tobin)
(Pictures)
2
--MIAMI BEACH
OFF ICE OF THE CITY ATIORNEY
JOSE SMITH, CITY ATIORNEY COMMISSION MEMORANDUM
TO: MAYOR MATII HERRERA BOWER
MEMBERS OF THE CITY COM SION
CITY MANAGER JIMMY MO L
FROM:
DATE: OCTOBER 16, 2013
SUBJECT: A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA SUPPORTING THE EFFORTS OF
THE FLORIDA UNITED STATES CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION
TO DELAY THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE 2012 BIGGERT-WATERS
FLOOD INSURANCE REFORM ACT TO PREVENT SIGNIFICANT
INCREASES IN FLOOD INSURANCE RATES UNTIL THE FEDERAL
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY COMPLETES ITS
AFFORDABILITY STUDY AND THE STUDY IS CONSIDERED BY
THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS.
Attached please find an article from The New York Times dated Sunday, October 13,
2013 which is submitted as supplemental material to the above-referenced Resolution. The
Resolution has been placed on the Agenda pursuant to the request of Commissioner Michael
Gongora for consideration by the Mayor and City Commission.
3
Agenda Item C 7 I( J<
Date /fJ-Ib-1 s ...
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SUNDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2013 National
~PHS IY W\U.JAM W~ RJit l'K£ NtW YORK nMES
An elevated house for sale south of New Orleans in P laquemines Parish, La. ~uyers o f properties in flood-prone areas could face steep increases in flood insurance premiums.
Cost of Flood Insurance Rises, Along' With Worries
By LIZETTEALVAREZ and CAMPBELL ROBERTSON
MIAMI-Sharp increases in federal flood insurance rates
are distressing coastal homeowners from Hawaii to New Eng-
land and are starting to hurt property values and housing sales
in areas just beginning to recover from the recession, ac-
cording to residents and legislators.
In recent weeks, the hefty flood insurance rate increases
brought about by a 20 l2law have stoked widespread alarm and
uncertainty, promptin g rallies, petitions and concern among
state. governors. Mississippi has sued the federal government
to try to block the taw. The issue has even garnered the atten-
tion of lawmakers, otherwise mired in the acrimonious govern-
ment shutdown. A bipartisan group of senators and House
members ftom Gulf Coast states are pressing for significant
adjustments to the law once ·
the Capitol returns to nonnaJ .
The law, officially known
aS the Biggert-Waters Flood
Insurance Refonn Act, is be-
ing rolled out in stages, with a
major part having gone into
effect on Oct l. It removes
subsidies that keep federal
flood insurance premiums ar-
tificially low for more than a
million policy holders around
the country -a discount that
was applied to properties that
existed before the drawing of
flood insurance rate maps.
New Law Ends Federal Subsidies
That Had Kept Premiums Low
ther now, over the next several years or whenever they sell
their properties. The exact amount of the increase depends on
the home's elevation above flood level. ·
Appr oved by Congress in July 2012 as part of a wide-
ranging transportation bill, the Biggert-Waters Act was in-
tended to regain control of an increasingly unsustainable Na-
tional Flood In~urance Program. The subsidies within that pro-
gram, in the view of critics, encouraged development in risky
areas and led to costly claims after catastrophic events,
payouts that were borne largely by those paying market rates.
But the effort to stabilize the program means changing
rules that have guided development in flood plains for decades.
Some property owners, including business owners and those
who bought property after July 6, 2012, are shocked to be facing
potential tenfold premium increases or, in some cases, signif-
icant losses to the value of their homes.
Property owners in the Northeast first confronted the
changes as they contemplated ·rebuilding in the wake of Hurri-
cane Sandy last year. But owners of flood-prone properties
elsewhere are just tuning in to the changes, with many still un-
clear how they will be affected.
"The homeowners and
business owners simply can-
not withstand these gargan-
tuan hikes/' said Senator Bill
Nelson, a Florida Democrat
and member of the bipartisan
group of lawmakers pushing
a bill to delay the increase.
.. There is a lot of paJ)ic about
this."
·Still, in recent years, ·
costly flooding disasters, in-
cluding Hurricane Sandy,
have left the program $25 bil-
lion in debt, a situation that
will most likely worsen be-
cause of clim!lte change and
coastal overdevelopment.
And almost everyone in-
volved agrees that the issue
is not whether to change the
An estimated 20 percent
of the property owners with
federal flood insurance re-
ceived these subsidies as the
new law went into effect, and
their premiums will rise, in
some cases precipitously, ei-
Claiborne Duvall, left, of Houma, La ., could see his premium rise to nearly $6,500 a year from $412.
Scott Morse of Belle Chasse, La., did not find out about the increases until after buying a new home. Continued on Page 16
4
IONAL SUNDAY, OCTOBER 13,2013
Cost of Federal Flood Insurance ·Rises
For Property Owners·, Along . With Fears
From Page 12
program, but how to soften the
impact on those hit hardest by
the cost increases.
·"The flood insurance ,program
is one big storm (lway from not
exis~ing at . all," said Steve 1E;llis, '_.
the vice president of ,-T<lXpayers
fqr Common Sense,· a nonprofit
group that has long pushed for
changes in the program.: The ·
group has suggested soine meas-·
ures to help those affeci:Eid by the .. ·
new law put insist~ th.at· delays
would only make problems
worse. "There's a lot of talk about
fairness,>.! Mr. Ellis said, "but I
would argue that it's not neces-
sarily fair that some people are
paying full risk-based rates and
other people aren't."
A flood-prone home bei,ng elevated in Plaquemin.e~ P~rish, La.
., '
risk, potential home buyers are
· thinking twice about ·properties
in flood-prone areas.
The National Flood Insurance
The alarm over the new .law
spreads beyond those los ing sub-.
sidies to even those whb · inten-·
tion~lly built outside of high-risk
flood zones and are currently
paying · nonsubsidized but rela-
tively low premiums. In the past,
if flood maps wete redrawn and a
property 's risk profile changed,
the old rate was "grandfathered"
in. The new law ends that prac-·
tice beginning late next year .. So
when the Federal Emergency
Management , Agency recently
presented revised maps for south
Louisiana, the reaction was
alarm.
. Program began in 1968 as a way
to extend government insurance
to homeowners in communities
that tend to flood. Today, 5.5 mil -
lion property owners hold federal
flood insurance policies , 80 per-
cent of whom pay market rates.
Every property with a mortgage
in a designated flood plain must
have flood insurance, and the fed-
"My whole investment prem-
ise was destroyed overnight ,"
said Scott Morse, w.ho, despite
being the president of a local
home builders association, did
not know about the change.s until
after he bought a new house in
January. ,
About 600,000 homeowners na-
tionwide will see their rates rise
only if they buy new policies or
allow their current policies to
lapse. Homeowners are now con-
cerned that they may not be able
to sell their homes because any-·
one . buying a property wUl be
forced to pay the steep premi-
ums . This has created a worri-
some ripple effect in the real es-
tate market, and some residents
fear that the value of their homes
has dropped.
Confronted with premiums
that · can range from $3,000 to
$33,000 or much more, depending
on the cost of the home and its
U ze tte Alvarez reported from Mi-
ami, and · Campbell Robertson
from New Orleans .
A bipartisan effort to
change a law stalls
amid the shutdown.
eral go vernment insures a vast
majority of them. In Floi-ida,
which has the most federal flood
insurance policies in the country,
, 260,000 -or ~3 percent -of
them are subsidized.
W. Craig Fugate, the FEMA ad-
ministrator, speaking before a
Senate committee last month,
said he was concerned that some
property owners might have diffi-
culty paying the new premiums,
but said it was up to Congress to
address that.
"I fully believe we should stop
subsidizing risk as we goiorward
for new construction, for second-
ary homes and for busine sses,"
he said. "But I think we need to
look at affordabllity for people
who live there, look at how we
can mitigate their risk."
In some communities, like Key
West and St. Pete Beach on Flori-
·da 's west coast, home sales have
come to a near standstill just as
the crush of the recession was be-
ginning to fade. That could get
worse when FEMA begins to
phase out subsidies for condo
owners in these flood zones, a de-
cision it has put off for now.
Wendy Lockhart and her hus-
band , who live in St. Pete Beach ,
a barrier island, said they · r~
cently closed on a house not too
far away. Just after they put their
old house on .the market, they
found out that for a buyer, the
flood insurance rates on that
home would jump immediately to
$8-,50 0 a year from $800.
"It's a total long shot that any-
. body would buy this at this
point," said Ms. Lockhart, who
owns a real estate brokerage •
firm. •
Many are hoping for wealthy
cash buyers who are not required
to carry flood insurance because
they do not have mortgages . Ab-
sent that, many are scrambling
for options .
"I built to their codes, I did ev-
erything I was supposed to do," .
said Claiborne Duvall,. 31, who
built his house outside of Houma ,
La., in 2011 only to find out re-
cently that a proposed new map
had moved him into a flood zone.
If the map is adopted, the $412 a
year he had been paying in flood
insurance wou ld steadily rise to
nearly $6,500.
"What are they going to do?"
he asked of those around him
who cou ld neither afford the new
rates nor find someone willing to
buy their homes. "Everyboay 's
just going to turn their keys in?"
THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
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MIAMI BEACH
OFFICE OF THE CITY ATIORNEY
JOSE SMITH , CITY ATIORNEY COMMISSION MEMORANDUM
TO: MAYOR MATTI HERRERA BOWER
MEMBERS OF THE CITY COMMISSION
CITY MANAGER JIMMY MORA
FROM: CITY ATTORNEY JOSE S
DATE: OCTOBER 16,2013
SUBJECT: A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, APPROVING THE EXTENSION OF HOURS FOR
CERTAIN ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE ESTABLISHMENTS WITH A 5:00 A.M.
LIQUOR LICENSE AND UNDER CERTAIN SPECIFIED CONDITIONS
PURSUANT TO CHAPTER 6 OF THE CITY CODE FOR THE 2014 WINTER
PARTY (MARCH 5-10, 2014) AND THE 2014 PRIDE WEEKEND (APRIL 11-
13, 2014).
Pursuant to the request of Commissioner Michael Gongora, the attached Resolution
approves the extension of hours for certain alcoholic beverage establishments with a 5:00a.m.
liquor license, under certain conditions as provided in Chapter 6 of the City Code, during the
2014 Winter Party (March 5-10, 2014) and the 2014 Pride Weekend (April11-13, 2014).
In Resolution 2013-28093 (attached hereto), the extension of hours for the above-
referenced alcoholic beverage establishments was already approved for the 2013 White Party
(November 29, 30, 2013).
F:\ATTO\TURN\RESOS\Hou rs Extension for White Party Winter Party and Pride Weekend.docx
7
Agenda Item C 7 tJP
Date /()-{6..-L3
RESOLUTION NO. --------
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY
OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, APPROVING THE EXTENSION OF HOURS
FOR CERTAIN ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE ESTABLISHMENTS WITH A
5:00 A.M. LIQUOR LICENSE AND UNDER CERTAIN SPECIFIED
CONDITIONS PURSUANT TO CHAPTER 6 OF THE CITY CODE FOR THE
2014 WINTER PARTY (MARCH 5 -10, 2014) AND THE 2014 PRIDE
WEEKEND (APRIL 11 -13, 2014).
WHEREAS , the City of Miami Beach is an international tourist destinat ion known for its
many attributes including its vibrant nightlife ; and
WHEREAS , the festivities on New Year's Eve and during other major event days and
weekends in the City carry over into the early hours of the morning ; and
WHEREAS, in order to address the special circumstances for celebration which occur
on New Year's Eve, and during other major event days and weekends within the City of Miami
Beach , the Mayor and City Commission codified , in Section 6-3(7) of the City Code , an
established policy of allowing alcoholic beverage establishments with a 5:00 a.m. liquor license
to continue to sell and serve alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption until 7 :00 a.m.
during designated major event days or weekends ; and
WHEREAS, the City 's Major Events Plan and Special Event Guidelines approved by the
City Commission already designate Winter Party and Pride Weekend as "major event periods "
which makes these events eligible for the extension of hours subject to the conditions
established in the City Code.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION
OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, that the extension of hours for certain alcoholic
beverage establishments with a 5:00A.M . liquor license , and under certain specified conditions
pursuant to Section 6-3(7) of the City Code, is hereby approved for the 2014 Winter Party
(March 5-10, 2014) and the 2014 Pride Weekend (April11-13 , 2014).
PASSED AND ADOPTED this __ day of _____ , 2013 .
ATTEST:
CITY CLERK MAYOR
F:IATTO\TURNIRESOS\Hours Extension for Wh it e Party Winter Party and Pride Weekend .docx
L.
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RESOLUTION NO. 2012-28093
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY
OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, APPROVING THE EXTENSION OF HOURS
FOR CERTAIN ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE ESTABLISHMENTS WITH A
5:00 A.M. LIQUOR LICENSE AND UNDER CERTAIN SPECIFIED
CONDITIONS PURSUANT TO SECTION 6 OF THE CITY CODE FOR
WINTER PARTY (MARCH 8-9, 2013) AND WHITE PARTY (NOVEMBER
29, 30, 2013) AS RECOMMENDED BY THE LAND USE AND
DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE.
WHEREAS, the City of Miami Beach is an international tourist destination known for its
many attributes including its vibrant nightlife; and
WHEREAS , the festivities on New Year's Eve and during other major event days and
weekends in the City carry over into the early hours of the morning; and
WHEREAS, in order to address the special circumstances for celebration wh ich occur
on New Year's Eve, and during other major event days and weekends within the C ity of Miami
Beach , the Mayor and City Commission codified , in Section 6-3(7) of the City Code, an
established policy of allowing alcoholic beverage establishments with a 5:00a.m . liquor license
to continue to sell and serve alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption until 7:00 a.m.
during designated major event days or weekends; and
WHEREAS , the City 's Major Events Plan and Special Event Guidelines, as most
recently approved by the City Commission via Resolution No . 2008-26908, already designates
Winter Party and White Party as a "major event period ," which makes these events eligible for
the extension of hours subject to the conditions established in the City Code ; and
WHEREAS , the Land Use and Development Committee considered this matter at its
November 5, 2012 meeting recommended the extension of hours for the Winter Party and White
Party 2013 . ·
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION
OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, that the extension of hours for certain alcoholic
beverage establishments with a 5:00A.M. liquor license, and under certa in specified conditions
pursuant to Section 6-3(7) of the City Code , is hereby approved for the weekends of Winter
Party 2013 and White Party 2013, as recommended by the Land Use and Development
Committee.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this /J.~ day of :Dec.e.rnbe~ , 2012 .
ATTEST:
T ·\AnFNnA\?01"1?-1?-1?\Air.RP.vF'rlH~ C:nmmi!;."-inl'l RF~() ?01? nnr.
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