LTC 210-2005 Bi-Weekly Update
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH
Office of the City Manager
Letter to Commission No. no-zoos
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Subject:
Mayor David Dermer and
Members of the City Commission
Jorge M. Gonzalez Q - ~
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BI-WEEKL Y UPD TE
Date: A4gust 12, 2005
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The purpose of this LTC is to provide you with an update describing some o~e-
areas the Administration has recently been focusing on:
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Emergency I Hurricane Preparedness - Staff continues to work on and update
the City's emergency I hurricane preparedness plans. An emergency "drill" to
review and put into practice this updated plan is scheduled for August 30 with all
appropriate City staff participating.
Cirque de Soleil - Staff and I continue to meet with various representatives
associated with the Cirque de Soleil to further discuss this. proposed project and
the various efforts that need to be undertaken in dealing with the proposals.
Major Events Plan (MEP) - The City of Miami Beach, along with Miami-Dade
County and the City of Miami, will play host to the MTV Video Music Awards
(VMAs) Show for the second straight year. This year's show takes place on
Sunday, August 28 at the American Airlines Arena and includes two live remotes
that will take place at the National and Victor hotels respectively. These will be
live performances at each location during the show and televised to the viewing
audience. Additionally, MTV has secured the Surfcomber Hotel and will transform
it into "Hotel MTV" from August 24 - 28, 2005. As we experienced last year, most
clubs and hotels will be hosting parties throughout the weekend. Staff is working
daily with MTV and the other venues to finalize the details of the weekend and to
ensure adequate City resources are deployed. Enhanced staffing will be provided
by most City departments for this event.
Public Safety - The Police Department will hold a "Sexual Offenders and
Predators Awareness" seminar on September 1 at Nautilus Middle School.
Detectives from the Criminal Investigation Division will discuss federal legislation,
how to check for offenders that may be living in your area, proposed new
legislation, specifics on the new sexual predator ordinance and the Florida
Amber Alert Plan.
Film and Special Events - Production crews from the film Miami Vice filmed a
high-end boat race in the Baywalk and Marina that will serve as the opening of
the movie. Staff is working with Italian company, Filmauro, in their production of
"Christmas in Miami," the latest in a series of successful Italian road movies
starring the Italian equivalent of Bob Hope and Bing Crosby, that each year are
the top box office draws in Italy and typically lead to massive Italian tourism to
the featured destination. Filming is set to begin later this month in Miami Beach
with many Miami Beach locations featured. Staff has also met with the
producers, director, creator and network executives of Showtime's new Miami-
based TV series "Dexter" with the pilot set to film in the area beginning in
September. The recently concluded IMG Fashion shows at the Raleigh were a
great success, with organizers promising a bigger and better presence in 2006.
Staff continues to coordinate the International Association of Chiefs of Police
(IACP) events, including the 5K and final gala, scheduled for late September and
bringing in more than 8,000 police chiefs and/or dignitaries.
Labor Relations - Staff from the Office of Labor Relations continues to work on
preparing and collecting information the City Commission requested at the
August 1 City Commission meeting in preparation for the September 14 Finance
and Citywide Committee meeting. In addition, the Labor Relations staff held a
quarterly Labor / Management meeting on August 11 with all Department
Directors and Assistant Directors to share information regarding important labor
relations issues and discussed preparations for the upcoming round of
negotiations with all of the City's collective bargaining units.
Grants Management - Recent grant awards include $500,000 for the Byron
Carlyle Theater renovations; $500,000 Children's Trust Out of Schools Programs;
$196,294 Children's Trust for the Truancy Intervention Program (TIP); $63,993
for the Homeless Trust's Supportive Housing Program; $137,946 for the Alton
Road Median Landscaping project; $80,000 for the Muss Park renovations; and
$400,000 for the Normandy Isle Park renovations.
Organizational Development - Training on our new enhanced customer service
standards continues to take place with staff from throughout the City. The goal of
the training is to ensure that all employees receive the proper training and
resources to be able to deliver outstanding customer service. In addition, as part
of the City's ongoing organizational development efforts and enhanced customer
service initiatives, the following workshops are available in the next few months:
Team Building (August 16-18); Diversity: Understanding Differences (August
23); Communication to Better Relationships (August 25); Customer Relations
(October 19-21); Life Matters (December 6-8); Ethics (January 10-13); Seven
Habits of Highly Effective People (October 17-18); and Supervisory Essentials
Series (October-November).
United States Coast Guard - Several City senior staff members recently met
with leaders from the U.S. Coast Guard Station in Miami Beach to discuss ways
in which the City and Coast Guard can better work together on projects of mutual
interest.
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Miami International Book Fair I Miami International Film Festival - Staff
continues to work with representatives from Miami Dade College on scheduling
associated with the Book Fair, taking place in November 2005, and the Film
Festival, taking place in March 2006, and continue to discuss ways in which the
City can further partner on these important community / cultural events. As
information regarding these events become available, they will be shared with
the Commission.
Bass Museum - The Friends of the Bass Museum of Art has extended free
admission to all City employees and their families through October 23, 2005 to
view the current exhibits which include: Retratos: 2000 Years of Latin American
Portraits; Retratos de Carlos Luna; and Victoria Girman on Display.
Parks and Recreation - Various City Departments, including Parks and
Recreation, Police, Fire, Neighborhood Services and Tourism and Cultural
Development will staff booths and provide information at the Youth Sports Expo
on Saturday, August 13 from 1 :00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Flamingo Park. This
event is designed to help residents learn more about the City and the various
services we offer through our Parks and Recreation and other City programs. A
free Movie in the Pool event will take place on Saturday, August 20 at 8:00 p.m.
at the Scott Rakow Youth Center.
Voter Registration Efforts - As part of Vote Miami Beach, the City of Miami
Beach will host several voter registration drives over the course of the next few
months. The next two take place on August 13 at the Sports Youth Expo taking
place at Flamingo Park and on August 20 at the Movie in the Pool event at the
Scott Rakow Youth Center. The City continues the Vote Miami Beach campaign
and will host other voter registration drives in the coming months to fulfill the
City's objective to increase Miami Beach voter participation and voting
awareness. Miami Beach registered voters receive discounts at participating
Miami Beach businesses. For more information, go to votemiamibeach.com.
United Way - Our annual United Way efforts will kick-off in September with our
employee campaign running through the end of November 2005. Michael Aller
will again serve as the City's Chairperson.
Neighborhood Leadership Academy - The next session of the Miami Beach
Neighborhood Leadership Academy begins on September 12, 2005. The 13 part
academy is part of an overall commitment by the City to increase resident's
participation in decisions that affect Miami Beach and an effort to increase the
understanding of City official's and employees' duties and responsibilities as well
as city department services available to residents.
If you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to
contact me.
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