94-21428 Reso
RESOLUTION NO.
94-21428
A RESOLUTION RATIFYING THE ADMINISTRATION'S APPLICATION
REQUEST THAT THE METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION,
UNDER ITS 1995-96 UNIFIED PLANNING WORK PROGRAM, PERFORM
A FEASIBILITY STUDY FOR THE PROPOSED SOUTH BEACH CIRCULATOR,
A DEDICATED BUSWAY LOOP, AND ITS CONNECTION TO DOWNTOWN
MIAMI; AND THAT THE STUDY ALSO INCLUDE DETERMINATION OF THE
MID-BEACH AREA TRANSIT NEEDS.
WHEREAS, pursuant to City Resolution No. 94-21324, on October 4, 1994 the
Administration requested that the Metropolitan Planning Organization IMPOI perform a
feasibility study for the proposed South Beach Circulator as part of the MPO's 1995-96
Unified Planning Work Program (UPWPI; and
WHEREAS, the Circulator would run special vehicles on a dedicated right-of-way
Ibuswayl on the Beach loop 11 st Street, Washington Avenue, 17th Street, and Alton Road)
with a connection to downtown Miami; and
WHEREAS, the feasibility study would identify transportation problems and needs,
determine solutions, and evaluate the validity of a busway as a pre-rail experiment; and
WHEREAS, on November 14, 1994, the South Beach Transportation Management
Association (TMAI requested that the scope of the feasibility study be expanded to include
determination of the transit needs of the Mid-Beach, including 41 st Street, the hospital and
hotel areas; and
WHEREAS, as requested by TMA, an amended application has been submitted in
order to meet the December 20, 1994 deadline.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF
THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA.
THAT the Mayor and City Commission ratify the amended application as submitted
by the Administration for the MPO's performance of a feasibility study under the 1995-96
UPWP.
ATTEST:
~~
CI Y CLERK
f~~
,1994.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this 21st day of
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FORM APPROVED
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By 'Tc..v
Date~
CITY HALL 1700 CONVENTION CENTER DRIVE MIArIIldEACH FLORIDA 33139
COMMISSION MEMORANDUM NO. ~
~.
CITY OF MIAI\J11 BEACH
TO:
Mayor Seymour Gelber and
Members of the City Commission
DATE: December 21. 1994
FROM:
Roger M. ca....l1. n I
CityManage;~
SUBJECT:
A RESOLUTION RATIFYING THE APPLICATION SUBMITTED TO THE
METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION FOR FUNDING UNDER THE
1995-96 UNIFIED PLANNING WORK PROGRAM FOR THE THE MIAMI
BEACH TRANSPORTATION DEVELOPMENT PLAN; AUTHORIZING THE
MAYOR TO EXECUTE ANY MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT FOR THE
FUNDS, WHEN AWARDED, AND AUTHORIZING APPROPRIATION OF THE
FUNDS, IF NECESSARY.
~ RESOLUTION RATIFYING THE ADMINISTRATION'S APPLICATION
REQUEST THAT THE METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION, UNDER
ITS 1995~96 UNIFIED PLANNING WORK PROGRAM, PERFORM A
FEASIBILITY STUDY FOR THE PROPOSED SOUTH BEACH CIRCULATOR, A
DEDICATED BUSWAY LOOP, AND ITS CONNECTION TO DOWNTOWN
MIAMI; AND THAT THE STUDY ALSO INCLUDE DETERMINATION OF THE
MID-BEACH AREA TRANSIT NEEDS.
ADMINISTRATION RECOMMENDATIONS
The Administration recommends adoption of the attached resolutions ratifying, after the ..
fact, the funding applications submitted to the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO),
in order to meet the new deadline of December 20, 1994 for the 1995-96 Unified Planning
Work Program (UPWP) for Transportation.
The first resolution (Exhibit "An) ratifies a $100,000 funding request for preparation of the
much needed Miami Beach Transportation Development Plan. If awarded, this request may
come as a direct grant to the City (Municipal Coordination Program) or planning work
performed by MPO staff or consultants on the City's behalf.
The second resolution (Exhibit "B") ratifies the request that the MPO perform a feasibility
study not only for the busway loop system for South Beach (pursuant to City Resolution
No. 94-21324). but also incorporating the South Beach Transportation Management
Association's (TMA) request that the scope of services be expanded to include a
determination of transit needs of the Mid-Beach, including 41 st Street, and the hospital
and hotel areas. TMA understands that the South Beach Circulator takes priority in study
and implementation.
AGENDA ITEM ~
17... - 21-qt.{
DATE
BACKGROUND
The annual MPO document known as Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) allocates
funding for transportation planning activities for the Miami Urbanized Area, which planning
activities are performed by MPO staff and consultants. Direct cash grants to municipalities
have been made only through Section 0-4.02, MPO Board Support and Municipal Planning
Coordination. This section has been recently contested by two federal agencies (FHWA
and FT A) which deemed ineligible the use of federal planning funds to cover salaries, be it
for MPO Board or city staff.
FY 1994-95 UPWP had allocated $805,000 ($455,000 for MPO Board staff support, and
$350,000 for municipal planning coordination). After the first appeal was turned down by
the federal agencies, the MPO has cut the proposed allocation to $400,000 in an effort to
win the second appeal, which has yet to be resolved. Miami Beach had used the funding
mostly to help cover the Transportation Coordinator's salary, but, as of September 30,
1994 this funding has stopped. Monies received or funding allocated to the City have
been as follows:
$39,501 for January-December 1993 (received)
$23,191 for January-September 1994 (received)
$63,000 for FY 1994-95, presently unavailable (under appeal).
ANALYSIS
Due to the facts that FHWA and FTA have deemed salaries an ineligible use of federal
"planning" funds and the 1994-95 proposed allocations for salaries may be compromised
by a failed appeal, the Administration has decided to bypass the salary issue in the 1995-
96 UPWP cycle and apply exclusively for funding to prepare the much needed Miami Beach
Transportation Development Plan (TOP). Note that from its inception the Transportation
Coordinator position has been covered by the general fund budget and partly reimbursed
by this grant funding.
The Issue of a Miami Beach TOP: The City's population balance, growth and
redevelopment patterns are changing and intensifying so rapidly that transportation
solutions will be required. A TOP is needed to guide the identification of essential
transportation projects for construction in the near and long-term future, if Miami Beach is
to meet concurrency standards and further its desirability as a residential and business
community, and a convention and tourist destination.
A .Future Transportation P/an. (Exhibit "C") has been recently completed by Kimley-Horn
and Associates using available traffic data and making projections based on current and
ORB-approved developments. This preliminary document has identified seven areas of
concern and guided the selection of the first transportation project to be undertaken - the
Dade Boulevard Connector (23rd Street/Dade Boulevard/Alton Road), the proposed
alternate route to the southern section of Collins Avenue for north/southbound commuter
traffic.
The preliminary TOP, however, needs to be substantiated and confirmed by current data
which is generated, analyzed and projected through computer models by experts for the
purposes of a .Comprehensive TDP.. Most transportation planning solutions carry a
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multi-million dollar price tag and federal funding is obtainable only when sufficient,
comprehensive data is made available to the MPO and technical committees for project
evaluation and prioritization.
The Issue of a Buswav for Miami Beach: Resolution No. 94-21324 dated September 22,
1994, outlined for the Florida Department of Transportation (FOOT) the City Commission
recommendations on issues concerning the proposed Miami Beach segment of the East-
West Transit Corridor. Among these recommendations was a request that FOOT support a
Miami Beach application to the MPO for the development of an interim busway system.
The busway would run special buses in a dedicated right-of-way, on the proposed South
Beach loop and into downtown Miami, to test the loop's ridership potential; further, that
a study to determine the transportation system's feasibility be initiated. Pursuant to the
City Commission recommendations, on October 4, 1994 the Administration submitted a
letter/application requesting that the MPO agree to fund and perform the required
feasibility study for the busway loop. This study will be an integral part of a future
application for federal demonstration funding.
Subsequently, the TMA requested that the feasibility study also consider the transit needs
of Mid-Beach due to its large employment base (hotels, hospitals, and 41 st Street). The
Mid-Beach system would be a separate system but connected to the South Beach loop
which, by the way, would take study and implementation priority. The Administration
agreed to this request for several reasons:
· The MPO has indicated that the expansion of the study's scope would be beneficial
and cost-effective since the two transit projects, although different in purpose and reach,
would eventually be interconnected; and
* The TMA should be involved by the City in the on-going advertisement and promotion
of the South Beach Circulator and the Mid-Beach system for the following reasons:
- Approximately 600 of Mount Sinai Hospital employees reside within the Mid/South
Beach area, as evidenced by a residential zip code check performed by the
hospital's TMA Board member. Mount Sinai is the first Mid-Beach employer to
conduct such survey, and others will follow; and
Significant TMA membership contribution will come from the larger Mid-Beach area
employers who have been unanimously advocating the feasibility study's expansion,
and might possibly withdraw from TMA if attention is not paid to the Mid-Beach
transit needs; and
The membership dues should eventually support most TMA activities, thereby
keeping the City's share of financial responsibility to TMA at a minimum.
CONCLUSION
The Administration believes that, if any benefit is to be derived from the MPO's UPWP, it
will be from planning studies conducted for Miami Beach by the MPO staff and
consultants, with our participation. Direct grants for staffing purposes are being
contested by federal funding sources and are difficult to obtain. We recommend
ratification of the two resolutions.
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