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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSubmittal-Commissioner SarnoffServing the communities along the Biscayne Corridor. including Arch Creek East. Bay Pole. Baysicle. Biscayne Park. Belle Meade. Buena Vista. Design District, Downtown. Ednewater, El Ponal. Hibiscus Island. Keystone Point.'v1iami Shores. Mornineside. North Bay Nand. North Miami. Oakland Grove. Palm Grove. Palm island. Sans Souci. Shorecrest. Sta Island. 1i'vnwood. and Venetian Islands www.RiscayneTimes.com you're trapped in your metal box, shipwrecked with a thong of cheerless humanity on a soulless stretch of 1-95 or Biscayne Boulevard. somewhere between Aventura and down- town Miami. and the traffic is creeping along at glacial speed. On some days, you can almost feel the hours of your life leaching out and you wonder how it is that America's playground became America's parking lot. A set of railway tracks appears, some- times snaking alongside the Boulevard, sometimes striking off into the urban jun- gle. Only rarely do you see a train on them. And again you begin to wonder: What if a passenger train rode those rails? What if you could save yourself time, money, gas, and frustration, gliding to your Brickell office on rails instead of drowning in this slow -moving river of steel? If the Florida Department of Transportation has its way; and gets enough money, that vision could become January 2009 Volume 6, Issue 11 a reality. The state; like much of the nation, wants to turn hack the clock and revive the greatly neglected passenger - rail industry. There was a time, you see. when Train Continued on page 14 Dining Guide The Biscayne Corridor's biggest and best restaurant guide. Page 47 Community News Miami photographer Bunny Yeager remembers Bettie Page. Page 28 Our Correspondents The pleasures and perils of life as a civic activist. Page 22 SUBMITTED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD FOR ITEMba_ON His- oa_ 01551 Submittal - comm,s_ion<r Sz.„off' Art & Culture It was an artistic triumph. Now The Living Room is a mess. Page 34 1 COVER =ST'OR`Y Without FEC's freight service, cargo trucks would clog Miami's roadways 24/7. Continued from page 1 American life revolved around trains. For more than a century, from before the Civil War until after WW II, nearly every long journey on land began and ended at a railway platform. From the romantic steam engines of the Gilded Age to the stainless -steel streamliners of the mid - Twentieth Century, trains were fixtures in everyday life that captured imagina- tions and came to represent freedom, opportunity, and progress. Wherever the railroad went, new settlements, new industry, and a new way of life followed. South Florida, perhaps more than any other region in the U.S., owes its very existence to the railroad. The Florida East Coast Railway (FEC), which runs along the coast from Jacksonville to Miami — and until 1935, to Key West — trans- formed the once inaccessible southern peninsula into a booming tri-county mega- lopolis. And the man who laid the tracks in the late 1800s, oil.and hotel magnate Henry Flagler, earned himself the illustri- ous title "Father of Miami" for bringing the city to life and shaping an entire region with his twin ribbons of steel. But despite 112 years of active service, which continues to this day, a passenger train has not ridden the FEC rails since 1968. What was once known as "America's Speedway to Sunshine" now carries nothing but freight. And although talk of placing commuter trains on the rails has come and gone over the years, no new transit service has materialized in more than three decades, since a violent strike of the United Transportation Workers prompted FEC officials to dis- continue passenger service, which had already become difficult and unprofitable to operate under intense government reg-' ulations and growing competition from airlines and automobiles. Today an FDOT study known as the South Florida East Coast Corridor Transit Analysis, which began in 2005 and will be completed late this year or early 2010, looks to finally answer the question of how best to utilize the FEC rail corridor for commuter transit. The goal is to reduce congestion along 1-95 and U.S. 1 (Biscayne Boulevard) by uti- lizing the southernmost 85 miles of the FEC corridor, from Flagler Street in downtown Miami to Indiantown Road in Palm Beach County. In Miami -Dade County, the tracks mostly parallel Biscayne Boulevard on their way to downtown, where a bustling, six -track passenger station once stood just north of the county court- house, linking Miami to New York's Grand Central Station. The Miami sta- tion was demolished years ago, and the remaining tracks turn eastward at NE 7th Street, skirting the Freedom Tower and crossing by bridge over Biscayne Bay to. the Port of Miami. A padlocked gate blocks access to the railway bridge, which opens just once a week to allow an FEC freight train to pass. That single, weekly train currently handles some eight percent of the port's cargo. Farther north, a spur heads west along NE 73rd Street to the FEC's 432-acre Hialeah Yard northwest of Miami International Airport — one of the nation's busiest shipping yards. Another spur continues on through Medley, where rock trains pick up crushed lime- stone and other aggregates from the east- ern edges of the Everglades. Other than the weekly run to the port, trains rarely stray south of 73rd Street anymore, and the tracks below that point morph into a lonely stretch of tall grass, rubbish - strewn lots, graffiti -covered warehouses, and the occasional homeless man curled up on an old mattress. Continued on page 15 14 'Biscayne Times • www.BiscayneTimes.com SUBMITTED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD FOR ITEMa ON i is-oc1, January 2009 1:: FEC historian and Shores resident Seth:'Bramson.. Train, Continued from page 14 In all, the•FEC's,north-south.line pass- only.railsuccess story. Yet_the.system•strll,-,._ ;the U:S. has demonstrated the ability to- Making FEC commuter,trains works . • es through:the, downtowns of 28 cities. - doesn't have a permanent. funding source, ' reduce traffic, congestion. _ ::r, . would seem to be a fool -proof undertak- and towns,m thetri-countyregion, tra- so its fate' continually hangs in the balance- :`P.utting.a commuter train on the FEC .; tng.,Roughly"60 stations proposed. by versing oneof the nation's most:densely i- from one year to the; next. -And critics often line"•Cox•says`uAwould not eliminate: the FDOT (see map), placed along. the corri- populatedandcongested,coridors. •call it".the train from nowhere td nowhere? necessity of expanding 1-95 the turnpike; dor's commercial and residential areas; and other urbantroads: The test of rail's should theoretically make pedestrian success is not the number of.people`en the • access practical, leading not,onlyto a am abut theinumber'of cars removed .successful rail system but also_to a fronitithe road ,Something'like;98 percents redum n ction ortl =south automobile.traf- of transit m the-I iami area is by car : . fie' But. whether there's enough popula- You re not goiing to, change that. The prob-_. tion density within walking, distance of lem isthe last quarter mile. International ` :those proposed stations is questionable. studies show that anyone who has the "- When the BT recently hiked`.the tracks money to o as car is not going to"walk Hence the logic of studying.rail-transit possibrhties. We got through phase.one of theistudy'A says Scott Seeburger pre ect manager at FDOT s District 4offi and now Were going to.go full force with phase two Phaseone evaluated the environmental, socialand economic impacts;of vanoiistransit ter-ChnelOgieS7. (rapid rail, light=rail streetcars) Phase. two .wi11 analyze details like operations,'; { v s;"rr and passenra gestation sitesultingyin;a speci fic plan which will be submittedtto, the Federal',Transit Adtnmistrattonr. that agency gives the nod'of approval to the project It he,state will_beeome eligible for federal funding Engineering and.; ~` construction could beguisoon thereaf Of course ✓`whether any:of that actually means.'an,'thmg,fo`"r the future of localrai transit Iss..0ii+ari.,protraCted studies of- commutei'iad proposals have come -a' gone over the decades. A high speedtbul let train linking,Miami,;Orlando and •Tampa was shot:downjust five months before construction Was -to begin in 2003 Baylink, the proposed trolley project between, Miami and Miami Beach al • the MacArthurCauseway -h= ti .Ron ed,untril 2022 Andichi, ry s of new.Metroratl ih 2002, has stalledm - of low ndershil January,2009. This is what,wemight get elong ttie Biscayne Corridor , ,t Rail advocate Bob Powers., n Rad the three -county commuter train the world consulting on, transportation eight years to do it and he was dead for, ' m!•So:please don t tell me we>' fiat has beenbreaking• nafional.ndetslup . ; issues Hts message ,O.ther than'New six,ef;the records since 2006 is;perhaps Miami s - rs York. City:, and Chicago; -no railisystem in: _cant make this work ;• ecause it. lies too far west 'of major down- iwn and commercial centeriYobe accessi-. without a, -cal shuttle bus o%other form` mass transit ? 'Akeady there s talk within FDOT i sciappmg'the FEC commuter tram idea< entirely Because' of how much rail sys- tems cost - .:says FDOT s Seeburger "there are""argumentsfor obtaining the from the Miami port budge to -Miami ' inoieth'an a quarter mile to and Shores, it appeared. that many of the sites om a transit station." i : were almost entirely devoid of pedestn- e idea,thatrail transit is .. ans. Notably though several new high- anirnpotentwhne elephant riselcoodos were f situated along the -line, maybe difficult to accept - indicaattng that developers may have been especially for some HiscOneil ware ofFDOT s commut r-rail45. plans.. Comd`or,residents. who dream¢ ''Most-ofthe buildings wereempty, how - of comniuting.by tram to jobs- : - ever, a consequence of Miami's spectac- in downtownMiamr Bob ular real-estate bust And until the hous- Powers .resident of tlie'Palrn Grove ing market rebounds and density signifi- - assenger train has,not riidden,,th C`'ralls since-1968 (What was once. nown ash"America's p y` S eedwa toff unshine,i �,now carries no��. thin"' frei h't. • FEC right of way paving [thestnp of ' and beside the tracks] and running Neighborhood;Association<in Miami s ' . cantly.increases;.any commuter-train;,a> uses�on it: Not that that would be Upper Eastside ,couldn t.find enough epi- operatiOh1ottlthe FEC line will almost l ap but it would be less expensive thets to describe how he feels about rail certainly,be a park,and system. an putting m the: additional tracks that, ' detractors'and the:FEC project .'`l went " That scenario has some locals womed. . are needed and all the communication to so many FDOT project meetings it At a 2006 FDOT public hearing residents systemsr egpired ^ x, { would make your head spin Whenm some- who live, along theaFECryline expressed City buses running alongside' the FEC one tells me they need to do a five year concern that people arriving from tracks may not have,the romantic appeal study I say Wlia ado you;need to study- rounding areas to use the system would . f commuter trams gliding along the The F.EC madeHheir money bringing :cause unwanted commotion; traffic con- , 'ails but opponentsof rail transit make,a j tourists to: Miairut How, inuch,money did .;,,geshon; and overdevelopmentof station solid case .Wendel] ,Coz a former Lost they just spendlmaking express toll;lanes areas Also on their list of potential draw- . Angeles County transportat onjcommis. ` on L959 Why'didn t theyput that money backs: -noise andfumes'from trams, its toad stoner andvocal railopponent regularlyy into _the_FEC?In 1961 JFK said he:want- and•pilfeteed tax rev hues churns out anti rail literature and travels +. ed to -put a man on the moon' It took Biscayne Times. • www.BiscayneTimes.com SUBMITTED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD FOR ITEMb.ON i is-os Continued on page'16 15 COVER S'T 4y Train Continued.from.page 15 continual hom.blasts, disrupted traffic pat- terns at track crossings,.and expropriation of land for stations; parking lots, and other facilities. FDOT has since addressed two of those concerns, recommending the implementation of "quiet zones" and clean -fuel technology, but the other issues have yet to be discussed in detail. Naysayers and concerned property owners aside, Miami-Dade's congested roadways are crying _out for a viable transportation solution. Unstable gas prices, global warming, and a desire for "smart growth" have further increased - interest in urban rail. Seth Bramson, a Miami Shores resi- dent and the FEC's company historian, says, "The steel wheel and the steel rail are the most efficient and economical way of moving people and goods that exist. A single train can carry the load of 280 [tractor -trailer] trucks. One gallon of fuel will move.one ton of freight 423 miles." He goes on to stress the critical role the FEC currently plays in Florida: "The most important part of what the FEC does is to serve as a conveyor belt • HORSESHOE . CHAIR- ' (reg.'250)s NOW ` $15 Aerial view (1962) of the old downtown Miami passenger station. on rails. if the FEC was not there to move the thousands of carloads of freight each day, I-95 and U.S. I would operate at rush hour conditions 24 hours a day, • seven days a week. That's how important the FEC is. So any commuter operation in the corridor would have to be compli- mentary to -the freight operation." rc.E-tO0p4--'0 Imported Cabinets Tatales.Benches Chairs, Garden Statuary, : Large.Potter_y., Ethnic Art,Furniture, Pottery, Textiles. Lincoln' Road: Every day • llam-11pm 640 Lincoln Road. Miami Beach 305.673.5589 Warehouse: Tue. •'Sat. 10am-6pm ' 611 NW 72nd Street, Miami 305.757.4448 www.shopagora.com In fact, concern about the FEC's freight operation was the very thing that led to the FDOT study. As Scott Seeburger explains, "Miami -Dade had been looking at the corridor for a long time. Tri-Rail was.looking at it north of West Palm Beach. And there had been one or two studies earlier in Broward. The FEC felt improve • body shape • muscle mass. • bone density O skin tone r • sleep, cycle/ that the whole thing was being done kind of hodge-podge. They were concerned that different governmental entities would be coming at them with proposals and they didn't want to jeopardize their well - run and.profitable freight services,.so they requested a study. They're involved in the process and their needs are taken into consideration." There's little doubt, however, that com- muter trains on the FEC tracks will mean millions of dollars in new revenue for the company as local governments would need to lease or buy the right to use the corridor. In addition, some of the compa- ny's 2500 acres of real estate would increase in value as trackside parcels would be required for stations and double - tracking. FEC property values would also rise as business interests sought to estab- lish themselves along the new commuter route, a fact that likely did not escape the multinational Fortress Investment Group. In May 2007, the New York -based firm shelled out $3.5 billion to acquire Florida East Coast Industries and its real- estate arm, Flagler Development. Earlier Continued on page 18 educe: • weight • cellulite • stress • fatigue pain New Year's Special: 10% off (mention this ad) @ 786 623 5321 16 Biscayne Times • www.BiscayneTlmes.com SUBMITTED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD FOR ITEM. ON5o9 . January 2009 COVER STORY Train Continued from page 16 the same year, Fortress purchased RailAmerica, an operator of 41 short -line railroads across North America. According to Seth Bramson, the FEC is slated to become the flagship railroad of RailAmerica and will soon begin operat- ing under the name "FEC RailAmerica," with headquarters in Jacksonville. Fortress Investment Group may or may not have purchased the FEC specifically because they foresaw a boom in passen- ger service along the corridor, but FDOT's Scott Seeburger says that shortly after his study began, he started receiving calls from people he assumed were bro- kers looking for investments. Fortress, it appears, suspected that passenger trains could be in the railway's future. Amtrak is also interested in the FEC line, according to the Florida Times - Union. The federally supported national passenger carrier would like to move its twice -daily Miami -to -Jacksonville serv- ice from the Tri-Rail tracks to the FEC, where travel time would be shorter and trains could make stops in key coastal cities along the way. In 2001 Amtrak The FEC tracks cross Biscayne Boulevard at the Freedom Tower. signed an operating agreement with the FEC for a similar route, but the plan col- lapsed amid concerns about Amtrak's finances. A S15 billion funding bill, approved by Congress this past June, could put Amtrak in a position to pursue the plan once again. Seeburger believes that eventually on Invasive =Safs — Effective !apses.— Detox>fies —Promotes Weight, •Mental Clarity, Energy & Jmmur aric xygen1 eta_ - Encourages Cell Oxygenation & Supports Healing Aids ui Reducing Inflammation —Promotes 'Energy. ational -Light act ,Promotes Collagen Production .and ;Firmer.. Skin Tone, Smoothes Fine Lines & Wrukles.' 3- o-ssa e Massage Away Cellulite!!!. 105) 9 i'9- 77 f vc r:)�olisticHealing con FREE Ion Cleanse FIRST VISIT (Widr any Service) there will be some kind of commuter service along the FEC corridor. "How long it takes," he says, "is the real ques- tion, because of the amount of money that's involved. Where are the funds going to come from? And there will have to be a local contribution." Financing will likely need to come from all available sources: federal, state, and the three counties involved. Whether residents would approve of a tax increase to sup- port a commuter train remains to be seen. Given Florida's current S2.3 billion budget deficit, and Miami -Dade County's history of failed public -transit projects, an FEC commuter train may remain an elusive dream. But President- elect Barack Obama's massive infra- structure -funding plan might help. Already Miami Mayor Manny Diaz has asked Obama for S3.4 billion for public - works projects within the city, some of which would go to rail development. The golden age of railroading may be long gone, but the possibility of easy, affordable rail travel continues to hold enormous appeal for many thousands of urbanites, especially those marooned daily on Miami's clogged asphalt arter- ies, slumped behind steering wheels in resignation. And until a viable trans- portation alternative surfaces, that's where they'll remain — in their metal boxes, staring at the railway tracks, wait- ing for the train. Feedback: letters @b iscavnetini es. com • Business Law • Contracts • Acquisitions • Incorporations • Real Estate Law • Closings • Title Insurance • Landlord - Tenant 66 N.E. 96th Street ratio Shores, Florida; 305-754=8170 Let us be your title company! email: SKBPA(cr)cs.com The hiring of a lawyer in an important decision That should not be based soley upon advertisement. Before you decide, ask us to send you tree written information about our Qualifications and experience. January 2009 SUBMITTED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD FOR ITEMtoN 1is-o9.