HomeMy WebLinkAboutSubmittal-Dusty Melton 2 (7-29-10)Governmental Operations and Environment Committek"
April 10, 2007 Agenda Item 3B Substitute No.
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Crime in the Magic City *
Well, in a few other parts of Miami -Dade County, too! But almost all in Miami.
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item LP.3 & SPA on q7._29-10
t
Priscilla A. Thompson
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Table of Contents
Inside: Team Metro's very latest list of mural violations
Cover If the enforcement list is supposed to be comprehensive, why does
this booklet contain very recent photographs of 17 signs that are
MISSING from the list? The list does prove one truth about this
brazen industry: Illegal mural goes up. Notice is given. Mural
comes down. Case is officially closed. MURAL GOES RIGHT BACK UP!
Tab 1: In living color - Pictures worth 1000s of words
Colorful proof of rampant, gigantic code violations, courtesy of
extremely sophisticated companies and individuals who well know
the meaning of "criminal."
Tab 2: Buraess to Arriola - Your mural ordinance is illeaal
As the City of Miami contemplated creating a "mural district"
downtown, the county manager gently reminds the city manager (as
he had done in writing before) that the Miami -Dade Sign Code is
the governing law of the entire community, including all cities.
Tab 3: Sorenson to Burgess and Ginsburg - Enforce the sign law
Angered by brazen, willful and increasing violations of the Sign
Code, one county commissioner seeks action from the county mayor,
county manager and county attorney.
Attach: Big surprise - City of Miami fails to enforce mural law
The Sign Code requires the City of Miami to enforce the ban on
illegal murals; instead, the city wants to facilitate
installation of many more. Proliferating murals prove enforcement
is non-existent.
Tab 4: Bigger surprise - Arriola admits murals are illegal
Finally. Still, Arriola to county commissioner: Butt out.
Tab 5: County to world at large, again - Murals are illegal
As if any doubt remains, then -Planning and Zoning Director Diane
O'Quinn Williams re -re -re -re -affirms that murals must come down.
Tab 6: Not a surprise - City of Miami issued no mural permits
Despite remarkable assertions that mural companies actually
obtained city permits to install their illegal signs ... Not!
Tab 7: Biggest surprise of all - City in bed with mural firms
Given media attention and urging by the county to, at long last,
begin to enforce the law, city officials schedule initial
hearings -- at which they cut an unpublicized deal with owners of
nine buildings: Plead guilty, pay us $7,500 per month per
building, and continue violating the law. Webster's defines
prostitution as the act of deliberate debasement (as for money)
and, also, as devotion to corrupt purposes.
Tab 8: Logical conclusion - City goes to bat for illegal murals
Upon being informed at a public City Commission meeting that its
administration had become business partners with illegal mural
ventures, those elected officials in attendance vote unanimously
to ask Miami -Dade commissioners to make the unlawful signs legal.
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Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
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Miami Murals Photo Index
Taken March 10. 2007:
1.
McCormick Building, north, along expressway, 111 SW Third St
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2.
McCormick Bldg., east face along I-95 exit to Biscayne Blvd
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3.
New World Tower garage, east face, 100 N Biscayne Blvd
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4.
Chantres Cleaners, west face, 2555 SW Eighth St
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5.
New World Tower, north face, 100 N Biscayne Blvd
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new construction, south face, 1000 Biscayne Boulevard
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7.
Storage Mart, west face, facing I-95, 640 SW Second Ave
8.
Miami Herald, southwest face, I-395 at edge of Biscayne Bay
9.
Miami Herald, southeast face, I-395 at edge of Biscayne Bay
10.
SoutheastFirst Bldg., south face/Dupont Plaza, 200 SE 1st St
11.
Miami Herald, northwest face, overlooking Venetian Causeway
12.
Borinquen Clinic, west face, along I-195, 3601 Federal Hgwy
13.
Borinquen Clinic, east face, along I-195, 3601 Federal Hgwy
14.
office building, west face, on I-395, 1236 N Miami Ave
15,
office building, west face, along I-395, 1348 N Miami Ave
16.
office building, south face, along I-395, 1348 N Miami Ave
17.
Cingular building, south face on Palmetto, 9700 S Dixie Hgwy
18.
office building, west face, along I-95, 591 NW 54th Street
19.
Hotel City Inn, east face, along I-95, 660 NW 81st St
20.
Hotel City Inn, north face, along I-95, 660 NW 81st St
21.
Hotel City Inn, south face, along I-95, 660 NW 81st St
22.
club district, north and west faces, I-395, 1035 N Miami Ave
23. office building, east face, abutting I-95, 301 SW 17th Road
24. office building, east, facing I-395, 1236 N Miami Ave
25. club district, north and west faces, I-395, 30 NE 11th St
26. industrial building, east face, along I-95, 650 NW 123rd St
27. industrial building, east face, along I-95, 10501 NW 7th Ave
Miami Murals Photo Index (cont'd)
Taken April 7, 2007:
28. One Bayfront Plaza, north face, 100 S Biscayne Blvd
29. new construction, east face, Biscayne Boulevard/Flagler St
30. New World Tower garage, east face, 100 N Biscayne Blvd
31. vacant building, west face, along I-95, 594 NW 23 St
32. new construction, south face, 1000 Biscayne Boulevard
33. office building, west face, on I-395, 1236 N Miami Ave
34. Lummus Park Manor, east face, along I-95, 350 NW Second St
35. Lorusso Apartments, east face, along I-95, 345 NW Third St
36. office building, north and east faces, 1348 N Miami Ave
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SP.4 on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
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item 5P.3 & SPA on 07-29.10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
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record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
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Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
Office of County Manager
111 NW 1 st Street • Suite 2910
Miami, Florida 33128-1994
MIAMQAD
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ADA Coordination
Agenda Cm&matlon
An in Pu6lit Places
Audit and Management See.;*m
October 27 2004
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Building Code Compliance
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Contmunny Aclw Agency
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Community s €conom;c Development
Community RL talion!
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Re_ City Ordinance entitled "Arts and Fntertainment Mural" -0
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Counyunde Hoallhcare Panning
Dear Mr. Arriola: N
Cultural Aft-
Elections
It has come to my attention that City staff has prepared an ordinance for
Emergency Management
consideration by the City Commission that may conflict with the County's
Employet Retallons
Ente,pii se Tt C4,glogy Services
ordinances relating to allowable signage.
€nvrr*nn. ul Resourcas Management
N4 (MploymemPmaices
For your reference, the item is entitled as follows:
finance
Fite aercve
An ordinance amending Chapter 62, Zoning and
General Sen ces Administration
Planning, of the City of Miami Code, by adding a new
Historic PivsrNatron
Article XI entitled, "Arts and Entertainment Mural
Homeless Trus,
1400 ;ngAgency
Regulations", creating definitions; providing for license
Housing Finance Authority
and permit requirements; providing for an application
Human Services
and approval process; providing for violations and
lMtpendent Review panel
enforcement process; containing a repealer provision
Intnnabasa9 Trade Consortium
COnt0nnter
a severability clause; and providing for an effective
+wcndelTade
,and
date.
Medical Exam+net
Meimpoliaan Planning Organixmion
Parkand RecrealiOn
Article VI of the Code of Miami-Dade County (the "County Code") states:
Planning and Zoning
Police
"This article shall be known as the 'Sign Coda of Dade
Pia .emenl
County, Florida' and shall be applicable in the
Prapcny Appra iter
,..I s �y P'� ,.!
unincorporated areas o! Dade Bounty, and specif cafly
PuNcUdyApp,ahe,
brary Sysicin
Publ;cwcdo
in the incorporated areas of Dade County. '4''urhen the
Safe Neighborfi cd Pada
provisions of this article are applicable to a municipality,
seapon
the municipality shall be responsible for enforcement."
Solid Waste Management
$Galigic DwInessManagement
Further, Section 33-86 of that Article reads as follows. "Only those signs
Tram Metra
that are specially authorized by this sign code shall be permitted. Thoso
Transit
that are not listed or authorized shall be deemed prohibited." It is
Urban Revitalization Taskrorccansit
assumed therefore that the language contained within the County's sign
Vrcaya Musrum and Ga,dens
wale, and Se-e,
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municipalities, acknowledging that concurrent enforcement responsibility was assigned to each city in
1985.
2. Increase, to the maximum allowable level, the financial fines, penalties or levies that may be applied
to violations of our sign ordinance — including involved property owners as well as those responsible
for the erection and/or installation of illegal signs on those properties.
3. Clarify any ambiguity that may exist in our existing ordinance, in order that all vat-ety and manner of
signs clearly are regulated by our comprehensive criteria.
Please consider this a matter of utmost importance and urgency.
Thank You
Attachment
cc: Honorable Carlos A. Alvarez, Mayor
Honorable Chairperson Barbara Carey -Shuler
and Members Board of County Cornmissioners
Honorable Harvey Ruvin, Clerk of Courts
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
MEMORANDUM
BOARD Or COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
TO: George Burgess, Coui)ty Manager
Robert Ginsburg, County Attomey
FROM: 'Katy Sorenson, Vice Chair
Commissioner, District 8
0
DATE: November 19, 2004
SUBJECT: Enforcement of Miami -Dade
County Ordinance
In Apnl 13, 2004, I sponsored Resolution R-471-04, which was approved unanimously by the Board of
County Commissioners, instructing the manager to initiate dialogue with all Miami -Dade municipalities
regarding enforcement of the countywide sign ordinance. I applaud the diligent effort by members of your
staff in this regard; however, dialogue clearly is not achieving the compliance we desire and deserve.
As a recent article in The Miami Herald (copy attached) makes abundantly clear, flagrant violations of our
countywide sign ordinance continue to proliferate within the City of Miami - and, perhaps, within other cities'
boundaries as well.
We are a nation and a community of laws_ These violations of our sign ordinance do not equate to "differences
of opinion" between your staff and various municipal officials_ These violations are an affront to this
aovemment and to the outdoor -advertising regulations promulgated by the Board of County Commissioners in
1955.
1 am particularly appalled that at least three new expressway billboards have just been erected within the
"protected zone" along Interstate 95 and Interstate 395. These three egregiously illegal billboards join the
many others that the City of Miami allowed to be erected in recent years, in violation of long -existing law.
For the very next available and appropriate committee and/or Commission agenda(s), please prepare:
A. A status report on meetings and discussions with municipal officials since adoption of Reso]ution R-471-
04; and
B, For my sponsorship, legislation necessary to:
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A, Thompson
City Clerk
Mr. Arriola, City Manager
Page 2
regulations form the minimum standards for regulations within the municipalities and that no
municipality shall adopt more liberal regulations, which directly conflict therewith.
After a preliminary review by the appropriate staff of the County's Department of Planning and
Zoning, it is my understanding that the provisions of this ordinance would allow more liberal
signage than those regulations within the County Code relative to signage.
You may recall that in December of last year I wrote to you regarding another ordinance that the
City was about to consider relating to "signs of graphic or artistic value" and "jumbo -trop signs" In
that instance County staff found that the proposal was also in conflict with the county -wide
regulations within Miami -Dade County's Code. Subsequent to your receipt of my letter our
respective staff met to discuss the issue and it is my understanding that the matter was resolved.
it appears that another meeting of appropriate staff members to discuss the Mural Ordinance is
now warranted. Additionally at that meeting I might suggest that staff of the City and County
develop a method by which ordinances on signage proposed for City Commission consideration
may first be routed to County zoning staff for review and comment. Conversely new ordinances
adopted by the County Commission which amend county -wide signage regulations would be
routed to City zoning staff as an update to the regulations.
I trust that you will understand the concern of this office regarding these issues. As always, I look
forward to working with you on this and other issues relative to Miami -Dade County's future image.
Please contact Pedro Hernandez, Deputy County Manager at (305)375-1253 to schedule a
meeting.
Sinctly,
_,eorge M, Burgess
County Manager
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
Submitted into the Public
record in connections with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-25-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
DiAkih`ilk„m Priscilla A. Thompson
Hem Idlerom
City Clerk
Posted on Tue, Nov, 16, 2044
UP FRONT i ADVERTISING
Building ads sending different messages
Miami wants to allow 60 additional outdoor advertising murals to hang from buildings in the city. The county
calls the idea illegal. Others say it's just plain ugly.
BY MICHAEL VASQUEZ
mrvasguez@herald.com
In neighborhoods across Miami, but especially in the city's downtown core, the buildings are talking -- or, more
accurately, selling.
With clever slogans and gargantuan designs, they make their pitch -- be it for the latest Audi (Port of Miami Hotel, 1100
Biscayne Blvd,), a bottle of Yellow Tail Australian wine (New World Tower, 100 N. Biscayne Blvd) or an iPod (Borinquen
Health Care Center, 3601 Federal Hwy). These outdoor commercial wall murals, or "waliscapes," are sprouting up in
major cities across the world, and Miami is no exception.
Miami leaders, in fact, are set to welcome 60 additional murals, even as county bureaucrats warn the city it has no right
to do so, and despite gripes from some residents that the city's natural charm and beauty are being eclipsed in the name
of commerce.
"It's advertising that you cannot turn off," laments Miami civic activist Steve Hagen. ' 'You can't turn the page; you
can't turn the dial. It's there to confront you 24 hours a day."
City Commissioner Johnny Winton, whose district includes many downtown businesses, is decidedly more receptive to
the ads, some of which he said ' 'are cool as heck."
"I've got a lot of issues that are hot -button with me," Winton said. ' 'This ain't one of them.'
City leaders say that approving the additional murals would create an infusion of local arts funding -- Miami would begin
charging up to $10,000 per mural in annual licensing fees, all of which would be directed to the city's Arts and
Entertainment Council.
Mural supporters often mention New York's ad -filled Times Square as an example of how murals enhance a city"s visual
appeal, not detract from it.
Each new mural would need the City Commission to sign off on its design before going up.
Winton, for one, predicted commissioners will ultimately vote in favor of the mural plan, as they already unanimous4y
gave the idea tentative approval last month. Final city approval could come as soon as Thursday.
Not so fast, says Miami -[lade County.
Several weeks ago, County Manager George Burgess sent a letter to City Manager Joe Arrlola warning the city was about
to approve rules that are, In effect, Illegal.
The county for decades has had its own, stricter, set of laws when it comes to murals, laws that apply within Miami city
limits as well.
Miami is supposed to enforce those strict county rules in its own city, but -- judging by the dozens of apparently illegal
murals within city limits -- that Isn't happening.
City Commissioner Tomas Regalado acknowledged there are "many" murals in his city of questionable legality.
City and county "need to sit down and work things out," said county Planning and Zoning Director Diane O'Quinn
Williams.
Winton, who said he is unsure whether Miami's current signs violate county law, said he would be wilting to alter Miami's
mural proposal in order to win the county's support. If the two entities cannot reach a compromise, they may find
themselves in a legal dispute over the matter.
O'Quinn Williams called murals essentially the same thing as traditional billboard advertisements, with both sharing the
same flaws.
Not only are they potential eyesores, but a plethora of street ads could distract motorists, O'Quinn Williams said.
Miami has a mixed record of dealing with billboards, something mural foes are Quick to bring up.
Throughout the 1990s, the city didn't bother enforcing laws that barred the outdoor ads from main streets.
Billboards sprouted in places they never should have been, such as the east side of I-95, where they can block downtown
and bay views.
Eventually, angry city leaders took the billboard industry to court and won settlements that s=orted the removal of some -
- but not all -- illegal billboards. Miami was hampered in its lawsuits by the fact that unwitting city employees had
repeatedly issued permits for illegal billboards over the years,
Many companies that hawk billboard ads also deal in murals, meaning the 50 additional murals Miami might approve
could end up steering thousands of dollars a month in advertising revenue to some of the same corporations the city just
sued.
iVevertheless, City Commissioner Regalado said Miami should not consider past billboard fights when deciding which
companies get to put up murals.
"To me, it's a totally different issue," he said. ' 'This is a new thing."
While advertising firms would surely benefit from more murals, some local property owners would as well -- though not
as much. Typically, the building a mural hangs from gets a small cut of the profits.
Even that easy money can have its complications, however.
The Borinquen Health Care Center in Miami's Wynwood neighborhood endured some criticism several months ago when
it allowed a mural advertising Lucky Brand Jeans to cover one of its walls. A local newspaper serving the neighborhood's
Puerto Rican community said the mural made the cllnic look "cheap." Borinquen's wall now advertises Apple's IPod MP3
player.
The clinic's director of administration, Paul Carl Velez, said naysayers overlooked the fact that Borinquen is using its
mural money to help pay for needed building repairs. The clinic cannot continue to serve the poor and uninsured without
a well-maintained, functioning facility, Velez said.
But some ads are off-limits. "We do take care of people who have chronic illnesses, so it would be ludicrous to have a
tobacco company up there," Velez said.
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Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
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Miami Herald, The (FL)
November 29. 2004
Section: Metro & State
Edition: Final
Page: 36
POLITICAL BEAT
Compiled by Herald Staff
Crackdown urged on illegal billboards
Saying that ongoing talks between the city of Miami and Miami -Dade County are "not
achieving the compliance we desire and deserve," Miami -Dade County Commissioner Katy
Sorenson recently fired off an angry memo to County Manager George Burgess urging a
get -tough approach when it comes to county rules goveming outdoor advertising
billboards and murals.
Miami -Dade has rules that severely limit where billboards and murals can pop up, but the
county doesn't enforce those guidelines within cities - it lets city code enforcement take
care of that.
The city of Miami has been criticized for historically lax policing of both billboards and
murals. In the 1990s, the city routinely allowed billboards to sprout in areas where they
shouldn't have been - like the east side of Interstate 95, where they can block downtown
and bay views.
Now Miami is considering a law that would allow 60 additional advertising murals,
something county bureaucrats say runs afoul of county rules. City and county have been
trying to work out a compromise, but Sorenson's memo said it's time for the county to take
code enforcement into its own hands, even within Miami city limits.
"We are a nation and community of laws," Sorenson wrote, adding she is "particularly
appalled" by three new illegal billboards she spotted in Miami.
Miami City Manager Joe Arriola acknowledged that new illegal billboards have surfaced
and that some of the city's current advertising murals are also illegal.
He said the city has fined the violators and doesn't need Sorenson weighing in on the issue
when the city is already talking with the county attorneys office about it.
"This is not even her district, for heaven's sake," Arriola said.
- MICHAEL VASQUEZ
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SP.4 on 07-24-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
�wtimes.com I 1f Signs are Outlawed... (Printable)1 2004-12-09 http://www.miaminewtirnes.conVissues/2004-12-09/news/metro_print...
From miam.inewtimes.com
Originally published by Miami New Times Dec 09, 2001
02004 New Times, Inc. All rights reserved.
It Signs are Outlawed..,
...Then Only Outlaws Will Have Signs
BY KIRK NIELSEN
For Barry Rush, the energetic CEO of Metro Lights, the trouble
starts when you call his billboards "signs." "They're not signs," he
insists, referring to the eight vast non -signs his firm has draped on
the sides of various buildings in downtown Miami. They're
"wallscapes" or "murals," he explains, sipping spring water and
relaxing in his running gear at an outdoor cafe at the Loew's Hotel
on South Beach.
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
Jonathan Posta;
Other things in Rush's world are not as they appear. For example, Buildings serve a new
lobbyist Lucia Dougherty, whom he hired about eighteen months purpose as de facto
billboards in this
ago, is not a lobbyist. "She's a lawyer," Rush says of Dougherty. cutting-edge town
"We have not hired any lobbyists." To bolster that argument he
notes that he has paid Dougherty, who makes a living winning
zoning variances from the city commission, only about $20,000 for
her assistance_ Miami commissioners are considering a new law to legalize the approximately fifteen
wallscape signs currently deployed, including Rush's, and about thirty-five others. The new measure
would require sign companies to pay the city a $10,000 fee, to be used by the city's Arts and
Entertainment Council to promote arts and entertainment.
Rush says one important thing to remember is that there is a big difference between a billboard that
covers a wall and a standalone billboard that blocks something else. "We haven't done any -thing to
impact the view of the landscape," he submits. Rather, Metro Lights, which is based in the very
billboard -intensive borough of Manhattan, takes a blank, "in some cases ugly," wall, and beautifies
it, Rush adds. "We think we've added vitality to the city."
Still, there are striking similarities between wall billboards and non -wall billboards. Miami zoning
officials issued Rush and other wallseape advertisers permits for their signs, even though city and
county laws passed in 1985 prohibit any new expressway billboards south and east of I-95. "The first
thing we did was file for permits," Rush says. "We didn't come in the middle of the night and do it."
Starting in 1996, Miami officials also issued permits to Carter Outdoor, Viacom, and Miami
Outdoor Advertising for more than twenty illegal expressway billboards in the prohibited zone.
(Despite the watchful eyes of Miami's tireless code enforcement inspectors, sign companies have
managed to sneak up at least three new illegal non-wallseape billboards in the restricted area in
recent months, raising the ire of county commissioner Katy Sorenson. Last month she sent a memo
to county manager George Burgess, saying she was appalled by the development, which she termed
an "affront to this government." "These three egregiously illegal billboards join the many others that
the City of Miami allowed to be erected in recent years, in violation of long -existing law." She
called on. Burgess to prepare legislation to "assert" the county's right to enforce its sign ordinance in
Miami and other municipalities. "We are a nation and community of laws. These violations of our
nes.com � if Signs are Outlawed... (Printable) + 2004-12-09 http://www.miaminewtimes.com/issues/2004-12-09/news/metro_print
sign ordinance do not equate to differences of opinion between your staff and various municipal
officials," she scolded. "These violations are an affront to this government and to the outdoor
advertising regulations promulgated by the Board of County Commissioners in 19$5.")
Another resemblance: Whether a sign is against wall or sky, if visible from an expressway it can
generate $10,000 to $20,000 per month. And regardless of billboard location, that kind of cash flow
is handy when someone from the mayor's office phones to ask for a campaign donation. Like this
past September, when Rush received a call from Otto Budet-Murias, one of Mayor Diaz's aides,
asking for a contribution to help fund the county's general obligation bond campaign. Rush gave
$10,000 to the Neighbors Building Better Communities political action committee. Another outdoor
advertiser, New Jersey -based Wallscape Media, also donated $10,000. (The PAC raised a total of
$1.1 million in about six weeks.) Rush dismisses any suggestion that his contribution was in any
way related to the pending legislation to legalize his signs. "I respect this city too much to think that
I would have been in trouble if I didn't write that check," he says. "Sometimes people do things
because they're the right thing to do," he says.
A third similarity: Miami -made County's plaruiing and zoning director, Diane O'Quinn Williams,
says the wallscapes are.just as illegal as the others. "We consider those billboard signs," she affirms.
"They have to be spaced a certain distance from one another. They can't be near expressways. They
have to he on certain zoned properties. They're too large. A whole bunch of things. They don't
comply."
Which raises a final comparison between Rush and the non-waliscape counterparts with whom he
has so little in common. Like them, if the county or any government orders him to remove his signs,
he will sue. "And we will win," he assures.
But he'd rather not take that route. "I'm a young guy trying to make a living and I believe in this city.
It's not a dirty thing to have commerce."
At press time, the city's ordinance to legalize Rush's billboards was on hold, pending discussions
between O'Quinn-Williams and Miami officials.
The Miami Model for Segni Business Start-up
Miami Mayor Manny Diaz is sticking with his pledge to run city government like a business, which
means that sometimes businesses run the government. The Illegal Billboard Plan, which continues to
work well for several CEOs, consists of the following steps:
Submitted into the public
1. Put up billboards near expressways, even if they are illegal. record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
2. Secure permits from city zoning officials, even if signs are illegal. Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
3. Contribute generously to political campaign of the mayor's choosing.
4. Press city commissioners for new law to make your illegal signs legal. (Plumbers 2 and 3 can be
inverted.)
5. When you realize that it is a county law that governs billboards, press county commissioners for
new law to make your signs legal.
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07_ Z9_lo
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
Aiincs.com I Billboard Verdict: lttegal! (Printable) 12004-I2-30littp://www.iiiiallii lowtimos.com/issues/2004-12-30hlews/nietro2_prht...
From miaminewtimes.com
Originally published by Miami New Times Dec 30, 2004
02004 New Times, Inc. All rights reserved.
Billboard Verdict: Illegal!
BY KIRK NIELSEN
Extracting a straightfor<%aid answer from the City of Miami was like
pulling teeth, but at last came a confession: The new billboards
plastering the walls of the city's high-rise buildings are illegal. At
press time 21 of the signs, which contain gargantuan images of beer
and vodka bottles, gyrating iPod iPodsters, sports cars, and guys in
swimsuits, were polluting views from Bricked to the Design
District. They join 31 free-standing billboards that have gone up in
that area since the Eighties, despite a countywide ordinance that
prohibits any whatsoever between 1-95 and Biscayne Bay, and
allows just ten along expressways running through the City of
Miami .
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
Whether a billboard is on a wall, pole, or anything else, Miami's own laws require a permit to put it
up. Building department director Hector Lima provided a list of all such permits issued since the
wall billboards began appearing a year and a half ago. Three co>inpatiies are responsible for nearly all
21: Wallscape Media, Metro Lights, and Dade Media. "if they are not listed on that list," Lima says
sternly, "there there are no permits issued for those companies." None of the three Turns is on the lisle.
That's odd, because in an interview earlier this month Barry Rush, the CEO of Metro Lights, assured
New Times that when he arrived in Miami from New York, "the first thing we did was file for
permits" ("If Signs Are Outlawed," December 9), He said he did so after meeting with Miami Mayor
Manny Diaz, the mayor's chief of staff, Francois Illas, and other officials.
Following that meeting, Waliscape Media and Metro Lights, at the mayor's request, contributed a
hefty $ 10,000 each to the bond campaign that netted $275 million for new downtown museums.
Following that selfless act, city manager Joe Arriola asked the Miami Commission to pass an
ordinance that would legalize the illegal wall billboards. A.rriola put the measwe on hold only after
county manager George Burgess informed him that, if passed, the ordinance would violate the
county's billboard law.
Luckily for Rush and the other purveyors of wall billboards, city officials seem content to ignore this
new trend in zoning -law corruption, even though Miami-Dade's planning and zoning director, Diane
O'Quinn-Williams, confirms that the wall billboards are prohibited by county law.
Requests for comment from Barry Rush and his counterparts at Dade Media and Wallscape Media
went unanswered. Illas, the former mayoral chief of staff whom Rush has now hired as a lobbyist,
pleads ignorance regarding his client's lack of permits. (Illas's gig: Persuade county commissioners
to legalize the illegal wall billboards.) Adapting the dodgy demeanor that has long enshrouded the
,tirnes.com I Billboard Verdict: Illegal! (Printable) 12004-12-30 http://www.miamitiewtimes.conVissues/2004-12-30/news/metro2_prin..,
billboard industry, Was won't admit that Rush's signs are illegal. "1'm not a lawyer," he hedges, then
submits that the countywide ordinance is "interpretive" as regards billboards on walls. "You've got
to get a bunch of lawyers in a room with a judge and then have somebody give us an interpretation.
For me to give an opinion doesn't have value because I don't know all the laws."
Submitted in -t4 the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
STIPULATED DISPOSITION OF NOTICES OF VIOLATIOIti
The City of Miami ("City") and the Owners of certain properties therein, as
named below, (the "Owners") Nvish to enter into the following plea of guilt and
disposition of Code Enforcement Notices of Violation (the "Stipulation"), through their
respective atiomeys indicated below:
CASE
iV O.
OWNER
ADDRESS
REPRESEN'T'ING
ATTORNEY
05-[2727
1040 Biscayne Associates,
LLC.
1040 Biscayne
Blvd.
Lucia A. Dougherty
OS -06340
Brookwood Biscayne Tower
Investment, LLC.
100 Biscayne Blvd.
Lucia A. Dougherty
05-06370
200S First Land, LLC.
200 SE 1 S` Street
Lucia A. Dougherty
05-08645
Borinquen Health Care Center,
Inc.
3601 Federal
Highway
Daniel Weiss
05-06289
WSMP MW -East, LP.
640 SW 2" Avenue
Daniel Weiss
05-06275
Julio de Quesada Living Trust
7105 SW 8 Street
Daniel Weiss
05-06539
Gallo Development, LLC.
2590 S. Dixie
Highway
Daniel Weiss
05-06377
Eastern Union Corporation
l 11 5W 3` Street
David Koretzky
05-08649 1035 N Miami Ave LLC
1035 N Miami Ave
Daniel Weiss
1. The Notice(s) of Violation ("NOV") and Stunmons to Appear were issued
to the Owners alleging a violation of Zoning Ordinance 11000, as amended, Article 10,
§10.4.5, §10.5.4.(l)-(6), and §10.6.3(l)-(25) relating to illegally erected, placed, or
mounted outdoor advertising signs; and
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SP.4 on 07-29.10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item 5P.3 & SP.4 on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
2. The Cite passed on first reading a proposed "Arts and Entertainment
Mural Regulations" Ordinance (the "Ordinance"), and
3. The City contemplates changes to said Ordinance by amendment, which
has not been reviewed by the planning Advisory Board nor adopted by the City
Commission, and
4. some of the attached NOV's and Summons may be rendered moot by the
adoption of the proposed Ordinance. However. via the owners' plea of guilt today, this
possibility will not invalidate or rescind this stipulation, in any way, and all monies paid
to the City via this stipulation shall remain with the City; and
5. It is recognized by the Owners that the nein Ordinance may not permit
some of the signs for which the NOV's have been issued. The City cannot: in any way,
contemplate or ensure that said Ordinance will actually benefit all the participating
owners in this Stipulation.
5. By entering into this Stipulation, the Parties agree that said Stipulation will
not prejudice or affect, in any way, future appiications by the Owners or their respective
sign companies for signs permitted by the proposed Ordinance.
7. Upon execution of this Stipulation, the Ov.17ers agree to pay a fine of
$250.00 per day ([lie "Fine") per property from the date of the Code Enforcement
Hearing approving this Stipulation until, such time as the City Commission considers the
proposed Ordinance or decides that it shall not pass.
S. So long as this Stipulation remains in effect, such Fine shall be due and
payable to the Office of Code Enforcement on the Vs day of each month beginning June
1, 2005. The first monthly payment will include the prorated amount of 5250.00 per day
from the date of the Code Enforcement Hearing on May 23, 2005 to the first payment
date of June 1, 2005. If payment is not received by the Office of Code Enforcement by
the 15°i day of each month thereafter, the City may place the case before the Special
Master for further consideration of the matter and enforcement of this Stipulation.
9. In consideration for the benefits derived by the Owners, which the City of
Miami acknowledges constitutes good and sufficient consideration, the City agrees that it
will not issue any additional Notices of Violation against the Owners under Article 10 or
under any other provision of the City Code relating to illegal placement or signage until
such time as the City Commission considers the new Ordinance.
10. This Stipulation may be modified or amended or released as to the
Property or any portion thereof by a written instrument executed by the City Attorney or
his designee and the Owners.
11. This Stipulation shall remain in full force and effect and be binding upon
the Ovmers and their respective heirs, successors and assigns.
12. This Stipulation is made exclusively in favor of the Owners and the City.
No parties other than the Owners and the City shall be entitled to any benefit hereunder
or to enforce the terms hereto.
13. This Stipulation shall automatically terminate upon the consideration of
passage or denial of the new Mural Ordinance, and in no way reflects the intention of the
City- to create an Ordinance chat benefits these owners exclusively, as the final provisions
of this Ordinance have not been fully contemplated.
14. This Stipulation shall be interpreted and enforced by the Special Master.
15. This Stipulation is between the owners and the City and in no way reflects
any agreement with Miarni Dade County as to the enforcement of its sign regulations.
f,N WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties and/or their designated representatives
have hereunto placed their hands and seals on the date above written.
Daniel Weiss, Esq.
Lucia A. Dougherty, Esq.
David Koretzky, Esq.
Victoria ;Mendez.
Assistant City Attorney
City of Miami
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SPA on 07-29-5
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Cleric
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item 5P.3 & SPA on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
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March 25, 2006
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Miami Herald, The (FL)
HOUSING CODES ARE DIFFERENT FOR RICH, POOR
Ana Menendez, amenendez@MiamiHera/d.com
After years of indifference, the city of Miami appears to be stirring from its long
aesthetic slumber. The keepers of the city's standards have, in recent months,
rediscovered their mandate to beautify and purify. Legions have fanned out across
town to crack down on the ugly, the illegal and the permit -challenged.
As with so much in the city, managing the wrath of the enforcers too often comes
down to a matter of money and influence. if you're a prominent business mogul and
your ugliness is a massive, illegal ad on a downtown building, the city might enter
into a deal with you and even try to change the law to accommodate your
proclivities.
If you're Milgyan Guerra, 45 -year-old single mom, your troubles have only just
begun.
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SP.4 on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk
Miami Herald: Document View
http://nI.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=doc&p_doc...
In 2003, Guerra bought a house on Southwest Seventh Street near 71st Place. The
place featured, among other things, a cozy guest room. Just about every house on
the sickle -shaped block has an extra room exactly like it. In 1948, when the homes
were built, the spare rooms were probably garages. At some point, the garages
were enclosed. No one has been around long enough to remember exactly when
that happened, though anecdotal evidence suggests that Dwight Eisenhower was
president at the time.
The problem is, either permits weren't always obtained or, if they were, some were
lost in the intervening half -century.
NO ONE CARED
For years, no one seemed to care. "I've lived here 18 years," said Guerra's
neighbor, Rolando Gonzalez, "and I never saw anyone from the city."
That changed a few months ago when neighbors suddenly began to receive letters
telling them their homes were flouting all sorts of city codes.
Guerra, who clears $300 a week working at a pet shop, learned that her house
carried numerous violations, among them a front yard that had been paved over by
previous owners and a converted garage for which no permits could be found.
"I was so shocked. It's not just the economic, but the moral. They make you feel like
a criminal," she said. Before she could continue, Guerra started to cry. "I feel so
trapped."
Guerra has already paid $500 to tear up part of her driveway. Next, she will have to
hire an architect to certify that the spare room is built to city standards. The
estimate: $3,500. Guerra would need to go deep into credit card debt to pay the bill.
"What am (going to do?" she said, and once more began to cry.
In contrast to the poor souls of Southwest Seventh Street and their converted
garages, the multimillion -dollar mural industry seems to inspire a gentle,
understanding charity from the city of Miami.
The majority of the ad murals appearing on downtown buildings seem to violate a
county ordinance that charges cities with enforcing a no -mural rule. But after an
initial half-hearted crackdown, the city has now settled with some building owners to
allow the murals (which bring in thousands in revenue) in exchange for a $250 daily
fine while the city moves to make them legal.
TWO OPTIONS
Guerra and her neighbors, meanwhile, face two options: tear down part of their
homes or pay thousands to have professionals sort out the permit mess.
When Rolando Gonzalez spoke before the City Commission on Thursday to beg
for relief, he got a tongue-lashing from Commissioner Angel Gonzalez. Laws are
laws, the commissioner thundered: "You have to live with them, I have to live with
them, we all have to live with laws."
There was no such lecture for the mural industry, when, just a few minutes later,
Gonzalez voted with his colleagues to ask the county to allow murals in some parts
of the city, a move that would turn the mural scofflaws back into respectable
citizens.
As for Guerra, she's on her own. If she and her neighbors don't like the way the law
is enforced, Commissioner Gonzalez had some parting advice: Hire a lawyer.
Copyright (c) 2006 The Miami Herald
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
item SP.3 & SP.4 on 07-29-10
Priscilla A. Thompson
Citv Clerk