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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSEOPW OMNI CRA 2008-10-07 MinutesCity of Miami City Hall 3500 Pan American Drive Miami, FL 33133 www.miamigov.com Meeting Minutes Tuesday, October 7, 2008 5:30 PM DOUBLE TREE GRAND HOTEL 1717 N. BAYSHORE DRIVE MIAMI, FLORIDA, 33132 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Michelle Spence -Jones, Chair Marc David Sarnoff, Vice Chair Angel Gonzalez, Commissioner Joe Sanchez, Commissioner Tomas Regalado, Commissioner CRA OFFICE ADDRESS: 49 NW 5th ST, SUITE 100, Miami, FL 33128 Phone: (305) 679-6800, Fax: (305) 679-6835 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 Present: Commissioner Gonzalez, Commissioner Sanchez and Chair Spence -Jones Absent: Commissioner Regalado and Vice Chair Sarnoff On the 7th day of October 2008, the Board of Directors of the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) for the Southeast Overtown/Park West and Omni Districts of the City of Miami met in regular session at the Doubletree Grand Hotel, 1717 North Bayshore Drive, Miami, Florida. The meeting was called to order by Chair Michelle Spence -Jones at 5: 36 p.m. and was acjourned at 6:34 p.m. ALSO PRESENT: James H. Villacorta, Interim Executive Director, CRA Pedro G. Hernandez, City Manager Julie O. Bru, General Counsel, CRA Gail A. Dotson, Assistant General Counsel, CRA William R. Bloom, Special Counsel, CRA Pamela E. Burns, Assistant Clerk of the Board DISCUSSION ITEMS 1. 08-01188 CRA DISCUSSION UPDATE ON THE STATUS OF CRA CAPITAL PROJECTS. cover memo.pdf DISCUSSED Chair Spence -Jones: First of all, I know that we should have another Commissioner on his way. IfI can get a quick update from Jim or anybody. Do we know how far, Jim, Commissioner Sarnoff is? 'Cause I do know that this project takes place, at least this one particular project, in his district. James H. Villacorta (Interim Executive Director, Community Redevelopment Agency): He called and said he'd be about 15 minutes late. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. I'm going to give him about -- he just called now or the 15 minutes was clocking when -- Mr. Villacorta: As I was coming in the building. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. I'll tell you what we're going to do. We're going to go 'head [sic] and take -- Do you mind, Commissioners --7 I know Sanchez has to leave at a certain time. You want -- Commissioner Sanchez: At 6:30. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. He leaves at 6:30, so let me do the CIP (Capital Improvements Program) projects so I can get that out of the way so we're not just sitting around waiting, and then we'll go 'head [sic] and take the last item. So we'd like to officially welcome everyone to the special meeting for the CRA (Community Redevelopment Agency). There's two items that we're going to address today; one being an update on the CRA's capital improvement projects that staff should be prepared to at least give us updates on. And the whole purpose of today's meeting is to make sure that we're all on the same page as we start the new fiscal year. I'm -- joining me today, we have Commissioner Gonzalez -- City of Miami Paget Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 Commissioner Gonzalez: Thank you. Chair Spence -Jones: -- and we have Commissioner Sanchez, and I believe Commissioner Regalado was not going to be joining us today. So let's just go 'head [sic] and get down to CRA business, and if -- Jim, if you're ready, we're ready for -- is CIP here? Mr. Villacorta: I think they're on their way. Ola had prepared a presentation -- Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Villacorta: -- of the projects. [Later...] Chair Spence -Jones: And we're going to move on to our second item, which is -- our first item that's now our second item. I only have my Commissioner for 15 more minutes. All right, so we're going to move on to our capital improvements, which is Mr. Ola Aluko. Okay. All right, so we're -- I'm going to lose -- I've already lost one Commissioner, and I'm going to be losing another one in 15 minutes. So, Ola, if you can just give us -- basically, the reason why I really wanted to have this particular briefing -- I need quiet in the audience, please, so that we can get through these last 15 minutes. I really wanted to make sure that at least our fellow Commissioners have an update on what's happening with the CIP projects. They have been moving, I know, well, at least in the Overtown area, but I wanted you to at least give a full briefing on those items to make sure if -- you know, there's -- if there's any issues, we can address them. Ola Aluko: For brevity, Madam Commissioner, I will do so. Ola Aluko, director of Capital Improvements, City of Miami. Good afternoon. We have several projects that we're working on for the CRA. The first one I would like to identify is the Northwest 14th Street project. This is between Northeast 2nd Avenue and the FEC (Florida East Coast) tracks. This project is roughly 80 percent completed in design. We expect our construction to start June 2009, and we expect this to be a year project. It entails a reconstruction of Northwest 14th Street and some streetlights, street furniture, landscaping, or minimal landscaping between, again, Northeast 2nd Avenue and the FEC tracks. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Real fast on this -- and Jim, I'm going to need you to chime in on some of this stuff. Eighty percent completed, but June 2009 is when you'll finish everything -- Mr. Aluko: In term -- Chair Spence -Jones: -- beyond the tracks, right? Mr. Aluko: No, no -- yes, June 2009 is when the construction will actually start. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Aluko: We have to bid the project out, and there's some administrative procedures that we have to follow -- Chair Spence -Jones: No problem. Mr. Aluko: -- which will put us to June. Chair Spence -Jones: So that side -- Overtown will now, on 14th Street, will begin to see -- City of Miami Page 3 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 Mr. Aluko: Between 2nd Avenue and FEC tracks. Now we do know that 14th Avenue is a major Chair Spence -Jones: Fourteenth Street. Mr. Aluko: -- thorough -- I'm sorry, 14th Street is the major thoroughfare. Chair Spence -Jones: One second. It's a lot of noise going on in the back area. I'm going to ask for you guys -- I'm going to ask staff to please ask everyone to quiet down so we can finish. Go 'head [sic]. Mr. Aluko: Currently, Capital Improvements is seeking funds to continue the 14th Street project between the FEC track and Northwest 3rd. As you know, we do have a project on 3rd Avenue as it is right now, so we don't want to leave that gap, but we are looking for funds. We've already done the preliminary studies. There will be minimal reconstruction immediately after the FEC tracks, but the remainder of 14th Street will just require milling and resurfacing and we'll carry on the streetlight treatments as we're doing between 2nd and the FEC. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. And this 7.5 million is what is going to be -- that has your cushion in -- there's not going to be any change orders or anything additional that's needed? Mr. Aluko: We're a bit early for that, Commissioner. This is just an estimate budget. Chair Spence -Jones: But the estimate ain't going to turn to like 9 million? Mr. Aluko: No. And again, the market is very, very competitive, so we expect the project, barring any unforeseen conditions below ground we expect the 7.5 million to be sufficient. Chair Spence -Jones: Mr. Villacorta, do you have any comments on this? Mr. Villacorta: I think we've only allocated 6 million towards this project at this time. Again, this is a budget based on preliminary estimates, and we're hoping that they'll be able to bring that number down. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Aluko: We feel comfortable with this response. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Aluko: The next project is closer to here. This is the North Bayshore project, the drainage project between 17th Street and 19th Terrace, basically in front of this building. This project is roughly 90 percent completed. We expect the completion to be next month, and we will be going out for bid some time in December, first week of December, and possibly, we look to engage a contractor in March of 2009. Again, this project is roughly a year in duration, so by March of 2010, we hope to be completed with this project. It entails the reconstruction of Bayshore Drive, South -- North Bayshore Drive. We plan on raising the street roughly a foot from its present location, and also do some lighting treatment, minimal landscaping, and maybe some benches or associated hardscape. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Villacorta: And we've actually applied for and received a grant from the State to help fund this in the amount of $100, 000. The Board has allocated and passed a resolution authorizing funding for 5 million. City of Miami Page 4 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. All right. Mr. Aluko: The companion project to this we call the North Bayshore operational project. Basically, this is from 15th Street to 17th Terrace. It will entail the milling and resurfacing of the streets right in -- from the church up to the Opera Tower. In addition to that, we're also making some operational changes, egresses and ingress adjustments to the function of the Omni, the Marriot, this particular building here, and the new condo that was just constructed, the Opera. We are implementing a traffic -- actually, a roundabout. Right now, we have some issues with the roundabout in the sense that we may have to acquire land from the adjacent property in the Omni -- Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Aluko: -- and -- Chair Spence -Jones: Mr. Villacorta, there is an issue regarding an agreement that we just did with the group for the Omni. What's the name of the organization? Mr. Villacorta: Omni Mall -- Mr. Aluko: Argent. Chair Spence -Jones: Argent. Mr. Villacorta: Yeah. Well, Argent, but that's not the company name they're using. Chair Spence -Jones: And who's actually negotiating that deal for us? Is that -- Mr. Villacorta: That's -- Chair Spence -Jones: -- Mr. Bloom or --? Mr. Villacorta: Mr. Bloom is handling the legal work, yes. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay, so is this -- are these the same people that's giving us a hard time about giving us a little -- Mr. Villacorta: Well -- Chair Spence -Jones: -- piece of --? Mr. Villacorta: -- we've requested that we be provided 15 feet of right-of-way along the length of their property to make the -- Chair Spence -Jones: Roundabout. Mr. Villacorta: -- traffic circle work. They were a little reluctant. We're still working on the agreement. This is where they were asking for help with the reconstruction of the Omni Mall in exchange for creating a certain number of jobs and for them investing -- Chair Spence -Jones: And they couldn't -- Mr. Villacorta: -- 140 million. City of Miami Page 5 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 Chair Spence -Jones: -- give us 15 feet to assist us with the roundabout? Bill? William R. Bloom (Special Counsel, Community Redevelopment Agency): Yes. Chair Spence -Jones: In your negotiation, I mean, is there --? Mr. Bloom: At that point, the -- there are issues on the agreement, including giving the necessary right-of-way. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. All right. Mr. Aluko: Well, contingent upon the agreement, we would like to complete the design also in November and go out for bid -- well, actually, this would be a supplement change order to the contractor that wins the North Bayshore drainage project, so we'll add it onto their project, but it is crucial that the agreement be ironed out so we can move forward, or else we'll have to find another type of traffic calming device, but a circle is definitely preferred The next project we have is fire station number 2 -- old fire station number 2. This is a renovation of the fire station on Northwest 14th Street. We are currently in design. We just signed the contract with the architects literally last week. It's a two-phase project. We expect the architects to go into the project, once we've done asbestos and environmental remediation. As you know, the building is dilapidated and the roof has concaved, and it might be -- it's very close to being an unsafe structure, so the idea is to get it -- get an asbestos contractor and a building contractor in there to shore up the building, clean out the asbestos, and then the architect will go in there, draw up the plans, and proceed with the design. So we expect that project to commence January -- the design -- the actual design in January, and that will be a yearlong project, so hopefully, by 11/09, we'll have a completed building design for the CRA. Mr. Villacorta: It's contemplated that our offices would be put in there. It would add some stability to the neighborhood to have people showing up for work every day in that area. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Commissioner Gonzalez: This is on North Miami Avenue, right -- Chair Spence -Jones: Yes. Mr. Villacorta: Yes. Commissioner Gonzalez: -- on 14th? Mr. Aluko: That's correct. The next project is the Ward Rooming House. The Ward Rooming House is an interior renovation. We've presented this project before the HEP (Historic and Environmental Preservation) Board, and they've approved it, and we have completed the design. We expect to go into construction within the next 30 days, and we hope to have this project completed by June of 2009. Mr. Villacorta: And it's our intention to house the hospitality institute that's doing the job creation and the job fairs in Overtown in this building. Mr. Aluko: Next project is, as you had mentioned earlier, Madam Commissioner, the 2nd Avenue traffic -- the 2nd Avenue study. We are currently engaging an architect and engineer to perform a study on 2nd Avenue. Yeah, the idea is to first hold a charrette to see what the community would like to see or would like to have implemented in their community. Roughly 30 days, maybe 45 days after the initial charrette, our architect and engineer will go back and design or come up with a study based on the needs, and our intent is, roughly a month later, to City of Miami Page 6 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 come up with our final concept, which we will present to the community again, and we'll ask the CRA's direction as to how you would like to move forward. And hopefully, there will be sufficient funds left with the CRA to where we can actually implement that project. Chair Spence -Jones: And when will that -- when will you start the study process? Mr. Aluko: We would like to have the charrette early November. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. This year, though? Mr. Aluko: We are in the process of engineering the engineer -- architect right now, so we need some advanced notice to the community, and they will -- I think three weeks should be sufificent. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Aluko: So if we have the charrette early November, that gives the AE, architect/engineer, a month, a month and a half, to actually do this -- perform this study, and then, hopefully, some time in January, late -- early February, we'd like to come back with the findings of the charrette and present it to the community. Chair Spence -Jones: No problem. Final project. Mr. Aluko: I'm sorry? Chair Spence -Jones: Final project. Mr. Aluko: Well -- Chair Spence -Jones: Third Avenue. Mr. Aluko: Yes, 3rd Avenue, that's correct. Third Avenue, that was a project that broke ground last year. We are in the process of completing the project. It's roughly 99 percent completed. We expect to have it completed next month, in November. FP&L (Florida Power & Light) has recently begun the installation of their light poles, and this will take them roughly 30 days, so we expect FP&L to have their part completed by late November, possibly early December. And again, this is FP&L, so they work at their own pace, depending on what type of crisis happens within the state. Chair Spence -Jones: So by December -- I know that we're having an actual ribbon -cutting ceremony on 3rd Avenue for all the businesses in the roadway project, so -- on December 1, so are you saying that we may -- at this point, we should be able to meet that deadline, right? Mr. Aluko: That's right. We, the City, will definitely meet our deadline. FP&L should have installed a substantial amount of light fixtures by then. We hope that all of them would have been completed. They have given us a date of November 30 to have it completed, but then again, we have unforeseen. We're still in the hurricane season. They may be pulled off the job, which is typical around this time of the year. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. The only thing that I just -- Jim, do you have any comments on this particular --? Mr. Villacorta: No. We're pushing to get 3rd Avenue done. Some of the residents have recently complained about potholes, but that's because what's there now is only a base course, it's not the final lift of asphalt. And with the heavy rains, some of that washed away. The contractor was out there. We notified him last night. He was out there this morning patching those areas that City of Miami Pagel Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 had washed out, and so they should see some improvement -- Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Villacorta: -- in the driveability of the road. Chair Spence -Jones: And Ola, are we on -- within budget? Mr. Aluko: Oh, yes. The change order that we presented to the Board I think, last meeting or the meeting before, it was part of the contingency. As I mentioned earlier at that meeting, the contractor bore solely on his own most of the additional costs due to their error. The bulk of the change order was due to owner driven, meaning that we wanted the waterline extension, which we had known before. There were some other amenities that the CRA had requested, which we added. Mr. Villacorta: Well, I think the -- actually, the bulk of the change order was additional drainage structures along the sidewalks. Mr. Aluko: That's correct. Mr. Villacorta: Yeah. Mr. Aluko: Drainage structures along the sidewalks had to be implemented. Mr. Villacorta: We -- the CRA did authorize a change order to replace the waterline that was not up to par. There was contingency money that would cover that. The additional drainage structures put us beyond the contingency that was in this project, but we have another project ongoing for sidewalk improvements, and we can draw the remaining balance of the change order from that project. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. And I just wanted to add, I know one of the things that we talked about in our staff meeting this week for CRA was on that same street, 3rd Avenue, there's a patch of green area that's right next to some of the buildings that we're rehabbing that we want to do a domino park. If anybody rides on 3rd Avenue about this time or early afternoon, you'll see that there's some older gentlemen that play dominoes and checkers every single day on the sidewalks, so we want to kind of do a little mini domino park right there on 3rd Avenue. So we wanted to fig -- we talked about having a conversation with you to -- if there's anything else, will be an additional -- Mr. Villacorta: Yeah. Chair Spence -Jones: -- change order. We do have the budget for it, correct -- Mr. Villacorta: We -- Chair Spence -Jones: -- for green spaces? Mr. Villacorta: Well, we met with Ola today to discuss the options, and I've reached out to Ernest Burkeen of Parks to get his suggestions, so we're going to put together a meeting of the three of us to decide what's the best equipment to put out there or the best way to meet that need. We were thinking it would probably be better to bring a separate resolution authorizing that funding, which we could take from the budgeted amounts that we have for green spaces -- Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. City of Miami Page 8 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 Mr. Villacorta: -- rather than add a change order to this contract. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. That is your suggestion? Mr. Aluko: Yeah, we agree. We do not want to continue to add change orders to this -- Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Aluko: -- contract 'cause that -- during audit, it'll seem as if -- Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Aluko: -- this contract went over. Mr. Villacorta: Yes. Chair Spence -Jones: No problem. That makes sense. Mr. Aluko: There is one last project, Madam Commissioner. That's the Omni water project. Chair Spence -Jones: Yes. Mr. Aluko: We had discussed this in passing with the CRA director. We will be meeting. I will have a former meeting with the CRA and also Miami -Dade WASA (Water and Sewer Authority) and our engineers. We would like to hopefully engage an engineer by the end -- before the end of this month so that we can go ahead and commence that design, and eventually, construction of the upgrades of the water and sewer lines in the Omni area. Mr. Villacorta: The Board had authorized $6 million for upgrading the lines that had been identified by WASA, and authorized me to either use CIP, or if they couldn't respond quickly enough, to put it out for bid. CIP has responded, and we're going to meet with WASA and see if we can't finalize the work -- the scope of work that needs to be done so that we can get an engineer on board and get this project moving. Chair Spence -Jones: Is there any --? Commissioner Gonzalez: Has there been a survey done on the waterlines in Overtown? Because one problem that we are confronting is that every time that you try to do a development Chair Spence -Jones: Yes. Commissioner Gonzalez: -- in many, many areas of the City, when you apply for the water allocation from Miami -Dade Water & Sewer, you find that you don't have enough capacity for the building that you're trying to build, and that increments tremendously the budget of any project. So, you know, looking at the Worldcenter project and some other projects that are on the pipeline in Overtown, that has to be a serious concern. Mr. Villacorta: The City hired Post Buckley to come out and do a high-level engineering survey. I think they're going to make a presentation at our meeting on the 27th of what they've found. When we were doing the Omni project, we asked WASA to take a look at it. They looked at 3rd Avenue because we had the money to replace the line there, but they were reluctant to put too much effort into looking at the rest of the CRA since we didn't have the funds -- of the Overtown CRA -- to upgrade those utilities. As part of the work that the Worldcenter is doing and after we see what Post Buckley presents, we probably will have to come back to the Board and seek City of Miami Page Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 funding for -- Chair Spence -Jones: Upgrades. Mr. Villacorta: -- an engineering study of what upgrades need to be done. Commissioner Gonzalez: All right. Chair Spence -Jones: We know for a fact -- Mr. Aluko: That was a timely question. Chair Spence -Jones: -- I mean, I have some houses we just built -- we're building in the heart of Liberty City, and the waterline connection is two hundred and fifty thou -- really, more than the house. Commissioner Gonzalez: Yeah. Mr. Villacorta: Yeah. Vice Chair Spence -Jones: So, yes, that is definitely a big issue. Mr. Villacorta: Well, that was the advantage of doing this in Omni is that those lines will be there when the developers come, and when they connect, we get repaid so -- Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Commissioner Gonzalez: All right. Chair Spence -Jones: Any other comments? Mr. Aluko: That's it, Madam Chair. We -- again, we like working with the CRA. Bring the money, we will build. Chair Spence -Jones: I just want to commend publicly to you, Ola, and your team. I know that you have them here, and also, our CRA team. We are finally getting some infrastructure projects out of the ground that we can physically see, touch, and feel, which is a wonderful thing, so it's great to see that you guys are working really great together. Mr. Aluko: It's a pleasure. Chair Spence -Jones: I think that it's important for you to, however, like you just did today, come back every four months, every six months, whatever, to give updates to the Board members so they know what kind of progress you're making. Mr. Aluko: Of course. Will do. Chair Spence -Jones: All right. With that being said, Madam Clerk, we'd like to officially adjourn this meeting. Commissioner Gonzalez: Thank you. 2. 08-01189 CRA PRESENTATION PRESENTATION BY MIAMI WORLDCENTER GROUP, LLC. City of Miami Page 10 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 Cover memo 08-01189.pdf PRESENTED Direction by Chair Spence -Jones to the City Manager to include the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) staff in discussions with developers for projects proposed for the CRA areas. Chair Spence -Jones: We'll we're going to go 'head [sic] and get started. Is the number two person here for the agenda? The presentation on Miami Worldcenter; are they here then? Nitin Motwani: Yes, we are. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. I think we need to go 'head [sic] and get started 'cause I don't want to lose one of my Commissioners in the midst of all of this. So let's go 'head and get started with the Miami Worldcenter. And again, I want to just be clear as to why I really wanted to make sure we had a meeting to kind of address this issue of what's going to be happening in the overall area. The purpose of this meeting and also including this on the agenda was to make sure that the public knew what was going on with the Miami Worldcenter. There was a lot of talk, you know, floating around regarding the project, and I thought that it was important that my fellow Commissioners, all of us, were briefed all at the same time in an open setting. I do understand, through my CRA (Community Redevelopment Agency) director, that there was several community meetings that have already taken place regarding the project and to my under -- James H. Villacorta (Interim Executive Director, Community Redevelopment Agency): Yes. We met with the Overtown Oversight Board and had a town hall meeting for the public at the Lyric Theater. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. And the feedback from that particular meeting was -- those particular meetings? Mr. Villacorta: The Overtown Oversight Board was particularly positive. They are happy for the prospect of jobs coming to the CRA area. The Lyric Theater meeting went well as well. There were a few people asking for more information, but they were a minority. Most of the public that attended was very positive for the project. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. I just thought it was important for you to officially put that on the record So today we just really wanted to make sure that, you know, if there's any public comments regarding the project, we can address them. There's no doubt, I'm sure, in all of our minds that this is a huge project that would have a huge impact on the residents in the area, the businesses in the area, and of course, the goal of the CRA is to make sure that we provide more jobs in the area, but I thought it was extremely important that we at least had an official presentation. So with that being said if the World -- Miami Worldcenter people are ready. Mr. Motwani: We are ready. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Motwani: The projector just shut off. Pamela E. Burns (Assistant Clerk of the Board): Excuse me. We need you on the microphone too. Mr. Motwani: Sorry. Chair Spence -Jones: Just state your name and address for the record. And I don't know if we're going to be able to see it with that bright light shining, so I don't know how you want to -- City of Miami Page 11 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 Mr. Motwani: Okay. Let me just improvise, excuse me. Thank you for allowing me to speak. My name is Nitin Motwani, 700 Northeast 2nd Avenue, principal and managing director of Miami Worldcenter. I apologize. The PowerPoint's not working. This graph, I think, or this picture, best illustrates Miami Worldcenter. The idea here is we work very closely with the CRA plan in understanding the connectivity and bridging east to west, as well as north to south. We think all of it's important. In speaking with members of the Overtown community, we all understand that a lot has happened to our east and also to our south within the central business district in Brickell, as well as to the north with the Performing Arts Center. So the key thing that we felt was important besides 8th and 9th Street was also including loth Street as another pedestrian friendly boulevard. We want to make as much -- make this as porous of a project as possible so that people will be incentivized to go from the America Airlines Arena west into Overtown and from the central business district north through our project and also into Overtown. We've had wonderful conversations with the Overtown community. They're very happy to hear that our first phase is all commercial, providing a number of jobs and opportunities. We're also talking about ways that we're complementary, as far as different uses. That might make more sense in Overtown, given the historic nature of the community. So there's really been a lot of positive dialogues, and we've worked -- the CRA has been very helpful in helping us understand the history of the neighborhood, both Park West and Overtown, what the needs are, and how we can work together and be really good neighbors, which I think we're off to a great start. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Is that -- Mr. Motwani: Yeah. Vice Chair Spence -Jones: -- that was it, Nitin? It's ready now? Mr. Motwani: Everything is ready. This is the plan that I was just showing. So for everyone to see, our project lies here from 6th Street to 11 th Street, from 2nd Avenue to Miami Avenue. In the CRA plan, 8th Street and 9th Street were connectors into Overtown. We've included loth Street as well. We followed the CRA plan guidelines, meaning a master developer would come in, create an environment, create jobs, and that would help the community as a whole. Some of the key things that are -- you'll find in SD-16.3, the zoning we're discussing, a couple key things to focus on. Number one, we're not asking for an upzoning. We're not asking for a change of uses. What we're asking is to design better buildings in compliance with the CRA plan, as well as Miami 21; wider sidewalks, more open space, more pedestrian friendly environments and less liner parking garage -- more liner parking garages, rather than the ones that are currently existing along 2nd Avenue. These are the kinds ofstreetscapes that we're looking to create, a lot of landscaping. Again, you'll see wide sidewalks. In fact, this is loth Street that would go from Bicentennial Park straight into Overtown. Again, the -- more of the pedestrian friendly environments. This is our version of Lincoln Road. This could be something that might happen on 7th Street, getting rid of cars altogether, creating places that people can bring their families, loved ones, and just enjoy the beautiful weather in Miami. Going into the idea of being a porous community. This is as porous as it gets. North, south, east, west, diagonal from Biscayne. We want to include Miami Dade College. We want to include the federal courthouse. We want to include Overtown. We want to include the Performing Arts Center, the park, American Airlines Arena. The CRA -- the Park West/Overtown CRA is really the hole in the doughnut, and the idea here and the concept is to take advantage of that to bring all of the growth and this renaissance that the City of Miami has been realizing into our community because neither Park West or Overtown has really benefited from that. This is an aerial so it gives you a feel for the streetscape and the green. We're talking about green roofs, green streets, public spaces, open environments. This is a great example of what exists currently along 2nd Avenue. We could build similar structures to the west of 2nd Avenue, and it's challenging enough to get people from Biscayne to 2nd and into 1st, into Park West. Our goal -- our hope is to bring people from City of Miami Page 12 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 Biscayne not only to 2nd, straight through to 1st, Miami Avenue, and continue west into Overtown. This is a great diagram that just shows you -- the blue -- it's a little complicated and hard to read so I apologize. But I -- essentially, the blue is what could be built now, and the red is what we're proposing. In every instance, you'll notice that the setbacks are always greater, so it's because we have the critical mass of property we're able to actually design better buildings because we can control what's going on around us. And what we feel that does is allows people to feel comfortable making that walk from the east to all these wonderful amenities east of Biscayne straight back into all the great things that are happening in Overtown. And that's a general overview of where we are. I'd be happy to answer any questions. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. First of all, thank you, Nitin. Is there anybody else from your team that's going to be making any comments, or it's just you? Mr. Nitin: It's just myself. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. And I just -- what I would like to do first -- I don't know if my fellow colleagues want to open up the floor if there's any questions or concerns from the residents or business owners in the area, or do we want to -- does -- do my fellow Commissioners want to ask questions first about the project? Commissioner Sanchez: I want to hear the public. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. You -- same thing? Commissioner Gonzalez: Yeah. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. So this is what we're going to do first. We are going to open up the floor officially -- you can put the mike back up -- and then it'll come back to the Board and then we'll just have discussion from that point. So let's go 'head [sic] and open up the floor, and we're going to keep this in an orderly fashion. So I'm going to say, at least, Madam City Clerk, we'll give each person two minutes to at least put their thoughts or their considerations on the record. So first gentleman, Mr. Grady Muhammad. Grady Muhammad: Good evening, Board of Commissioners, CRA. Grady Muhammad president, Grady Muhammad Associates, Inc., 1730 Biscayne Boulevard, Suite 201 G. Again, as I stated at the town hall meeting, it's a wonderful project that our community needs. I sent all of you all an e-mail (electronic) -- I don't know if you received it -- specifically relating to potential funding from the County's GOB (General Obligation Bond) for the infrastructure project. Overtown is a TUA, a targeted urban area. That's $15 million that they have available. That's job creation, job retentions. This is going to create lots of jobs. In addition to that, I would suggest that, similar to the Midtown, a CDD, a community development district, that would allow all of the current taxing dollars and potential bonding capacity to be able to stay within this Miami Worldcenter, and therefore, it's creating more jobs. The owners are doing a great job by spending their monies. I think we need to help them. They're in enterprise zone. If we can give, you know, some of those condominiums that are here, a project like this definitely would deserve some consideration for enterprise zones, the urban high -crime tax job credit, which is $5, 000 for any inner-city resident, and I think having the Commission and the CRA to work with the community, it'll be a win -win partnership. Thank you. Chair Spence -Jones: Thank you, Mr. Muhammad. Is there anyone else? Mr. Alexander. David Alexander: Good evening, Commissioners, ladies and gentlemen. My name is David Alexander. I'm president of St. John CDC (Community Development Corporation), 1324 Northwest 3rd Avenue. I'd like to make a general comment. Nitin, when he made his presentation, mentioned that Overtown is the hole in the doughnut. I believe that we have a City of Miami Page 13 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 tremendous opportunity right here right now to make sure that this does not continue into the future. The problem is that we're not sure about how the revenue transfers will take place through the CRA and the tax credits that are going to be given to this project. The other thing is there's no overall design theme that relates this project into the rest of Overtown. The third point I'd like to make is that, under Miami 21 right now, the City of Miami is actually pushing an agenda to keep the hole in the doughnut, the black hole in the doughnut. I don't believe that it's fair that Overtown should be restricted in its development and propensities on one side and then encouraged to grow on the other side; otherwise, we'll have a canyon. Again, not just the 95, but very tall buildings surrounding a very small and not -so -prosperous black community. I would like, therefore, to ask the CRA to take specific steps to create a development plan that the black community of Overtown can relate to this project in the highest and best use and most meaningful ways. We don't want a few jobs. We don't want to just be servants in the corridors of power. We want to make sure that if billions of dollars in this atmosphere where Chicken Little has said the sky is falling on the economic system of this country, we want to make sure that the sky is not falling, but it's just maybe some rain, okay? I feel that it's a very positive development step, especially in this economic climate, but I do feel that we're making a terrible, terrible error if we do not use the resources of the CRA to make sure that the tangible development process that surrounds these blocks bleed into our community in such a way that they do not marginalize us any further but help us to develop the community commensurate with the capabilities. Thank you very much. Chair Spence -Jones: Thank you, Mr. Alexander. Any other comments? Samuel E. Sullivan: Reverend Samuel E. Sullivan, the pastor of Greater Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, downtown Overtown. I echo the sentiments of the speaker that stood before me, and my question is a very simple one. I heard the term jobs being created, but I'm concerned about what type of jobs will be created. Will they be skilled or semi -skilled or unskilled? And if they are skilled jobs, will there be skilled job training so the residents of the community can still empower themselves economically while they work these jobs and while this plan is being carried out? Chair Spence -Jones: Thank you, Reverend Sullivan. Any more comments from the public? Okay, so we've opened it up to the public and we appreciate all the comments. We're going to bring it back to the Board and who wants to start first? Chair Spence -Jones: Mr. Chairman [sic]. Commissioner Sanchez: Madam Chair, thank you. I think we're truly blessed to be even considering such a project of such large magnitude during these tough economic times in our country. I know it's been referred as the doughnut hole, but I don't like to use that term. I like to use the term "an area that has lacked economic vitality, " a creation of the sins of this -- of the past of this City. You know, if you look at that area, I think one of the things that we could all be very proud of has been that we have been able, after twenty -something years, to move Camillus House to another location, opening up the avenues for investors to come in and invest in our city. We're blessed to be in such a great city where people, even through economic times, are even dreaming and investing in our city. I think today, with these tough economic times, we have an opportunity, if this project is being -- will be able to be built -- there is some questions that I have, and I have not had the opportunity, although we wear two hats here and over at the City Commission, as City Commissioners, but I realize that this project, to facilitate the project -- and this would be a legal question that I would have -- would be that the Southeast Overtown/Park West DRI (Development of Regional Impact) may need to be amended, subject to the requirements of legal procedures or before we approve this. Madam Attorney, is -- would that be correct, that we would have to amend the DRI? Maria J. Chiaro (Deputy City Attorney): We may. The -- ultimately, we will have to deal City of Miami Page 14 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 specifically with the DRI and the development credits and when we consider an agreement on this matter, we will have to look at that, but we may have to amend the DRI, and the agreement needs to acknowledge that. Commissioner Sanchez: Right. And the whole thing about the DRI is that we need, as we continue to blossom as a world -class city, to make sure that some of the echoes of the concerned citizens are heard not only pertaining to jobs, but also pertaining to housing opportunities in the area because we cannot create a world -class downtown where we're pushing out the people that cannot afford to live in our downtown, so that's very important when we talk about the DRI, and that's something that we will be debating back and forth. But I think that we have an opportunity here to put our differences aside and for our common good and the City to see how this project can be accomplished. One of the things that I like about the project is that the owners own all those properties, and once you do that, you have more assurance of getting this project done. We could all agree on that. If we had 25 players at the table owning different parcels of property, it gets very confusing, very hard to get that -- this project done. However, when they assemble all these properties, they have the ability to really create a truly magnificent project that would really open up the doors to downtown and make downtown what we want to accomplish, which is a world -class 24/7 full of vibrant energy, opportunity, responsibilities 'cause they go hand in hand. You can't have one without the other, and that's what we want to accomplish here today. So having seen the project and the presentation -- and I know that, Muhammad, you sent an e-mail. Well, under Jennings Rule, as you are aware, we cannot reply to those e-mails, so that's why none of the Commissioners responded to your e-mails 'cause we're not allowed to do that by law. So I am very optimistic about this project. I look forward to the CRA working with the developer. I look forward to the City working with the developer, and above all, I look -- work -- forward to looking -- working with the community so when this is all said and done, it's something that we could all stand together and say, you know what, we support it, it's good. And I always ask that the simple thing that we have to do as elected officials is ask one simple question: Is it good for our city? Thank you, Madam Chair. Chair Spence -Jones: Thank you, Commissioner Sanchez. Commissioner Gonzalez. Commissioner Gonzalez: The only comment that I have is that I'm glad to see that finally a neglected area for many, many years is starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel. We're finally seeing that progress and redevelopment and job opportunities arriving at Overtown, and I'm very glad to see that. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Commissioner Sanchez: I have one more question. Chair Spence -Jones: Sure. Commissioner Sanchez: Where did this gambling come from? Chair Spence -Jones: Nitin. Commissioner Sanchez: I read the paper, and it talked about gambling. I mean, gambling is something that Florida legislation [sic] would have to pass. It would have to be voted on by the residents of the great state of Florida, so where would -- where did that even come from, Nick [sic]? Mr. Motwani: That came from the Miami Herald. This project, when you read anything, whether it's our zoning, our development agreement, our plans, everything and anything we've done has continued to be a vibrant, mixed -used 24/7 downtown, as you talked about, Commissioner. I -- there's a lot of rumors that have been circulating around this town for 40,50 City of Miami Page 15 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 years, and we can't really take the credit for them. But unfortunately, an article came out pointing the direction at us. We encourage everyone to read everything we've submitted and to keep in mind that our entire consultant team, headed by Elkis Manfredi, are renowned for creating vibrant, mixed -used downtown environments. Commissioner Sanchez: So there will be no gambling in this project? Mr. Motwani: It's not -- as you've mentioned, it's not legal. It's not even an option. Commissioner Sanchez: It's just -- Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Commissioner Sanchez: -- we need to clam these things -- Mr. Motwani: I appreciate the -- Commissioner Sanchez: -- because at times -- Mr. Motwani: -- opportunity to do that. Commissioner Sanchez: -- people tend to plant seeds that -- Chair Spence -Jones: And we just want to be -- 'cause I have like five things on my list, but I just wanted -- since that was one out of the five -- so are you officially putting on the record right now, Nitin, that there's not going to be any gambling in this project? Is that what you're saying to the public? Mr. Motwani: There's no intention whatsoever to do it. I mean, there is not -- I -- no. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. I just want -- Mr. Motwani: I appreciate that. Chair Spence -Jones: You know, it's an official record now so -- Mr. Motwani: Thank you. Chair Spence -Jones: -- just wanted -- okay, so you've officially put it on the record. Mr. Motwani: Correct. Thank you. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. All right. Thank you. Let me just tell you, you know, my thoughts and my concerns initially. You know, for me it's, you know -- everything is, a lot of times, about perception. It's -- sometimes it's not even about what is realities, but about what is perception, and I think we got here -- one of the reasons we got here today was because there's a project that was actually being worked on for a while now, I believe -- right, Jim? -- which is this particular project, and unfortunately, there was a period or -- a period of time that went by where the community was not as informed as to what was happening regarding the project that created this, I would say, concern. There's two things that was not kind of like true about that comment, and I wanted Jim to officially put it on the record because one of the comments that was made by a community person was that here's a project that was happening that was going to affect the Overtown/Park West CRA and the community didn't know anything about it or no one knew anything about it when I know that we had had a public hearing some time ago, about a year or so -- almost two years ago, that actually this particular project was brought up along with City of Miami Page 16 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 several other projects by -- I believe Nitin was actually at that meeting, and that was the first time we all heard a little bit of something about the project, so I wanted to clear up, you know, that rumor or that information that was out there that this project was never something that was discussed or the community knew anything about. So I just needed for Jim to officially put that on the record when that happened, when that took place, so that that is not floating any longer. Mr. Villacorta: That was in July of 2006. There -- at the CRA's capital improvements programs projects committee meetings. It was an ongoing series of meetings. In July of 2006, Mr. Motwani presented an overview of the project, and members of the Overtown Historic Folklife Village Association were there. The minutes of those meetings and the acknowledgment of who was present at those meetings has been up on the CRA website since the end of July in 2006. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. So I just thought, from my fellow colleagues and those folks that are sitting in this room, it's extremely important when comments are made, you know, by publics, by news -- public, by newspapers or whatever, it's really important that you check your facts because we all have to sit here and make decisions about things and just having that miscommunication floating out was just like not right. Jim just put on the record 2006 is when -- Mr. Villacorta: This project -- Chair Spence -Jones: -- this project along with -- Mr. Villacorta: -- was presented. Chair Spence -Jones: -- several other projects as ideas actually came in front of our Board and several other committee -- community -type meetings as an issue. Commissioner Sanchez: It came in front of the CRA. Chair Spence -Jones: Yeah. This was a part of a series of meetings regarding bond -related projects that could be funded. Mr. Villacorta: Yes. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay, so I just wanted to make sure we put that on the record. I also want to be very clear about the purpose of this meeting. We are not here to approve any money. We're not here to improve -- approve any agreements. We are just here to listen and to make sure that we take public comments. So I just want to be clear that we're sitting up here, but we're not voting on anything. That's not the purpose of this meeting. It's to make sure that we clear up any misunderstandings or anything that's floating out there that might not be clear to the public about what the project is. So my first real issue and concern -- and I want to make sure -- I appreciate Nitin and the group itself really taking the extra step to make sure the community was informed by having those meetings. I want to just add -- but I think that it's extremely important, as the project moves ahead -- and I do understand -- I see my City Manager here, so this must be a huge project. I don't know where -- I saw Pete walk here for -- Pedro G. Hernandez (City Manager): I'm here. Chair Spence -Jones: Oh, he's here. So all I want to say to my Manager in this meeting is that while I understand that the project itself, the City has been working hand in hand with the developers to do this project, which is great and is going to do wonderful things for -- definitely is going to do wonderful things for the Overtown area 'cause those dollars generated will flow back into Overtown. I just want to make sure though that the CRA staff that works every single day to improve the area, to uplift the area, to enhance the area, to attract business to the area, they are in those same meetings. And I think what happens when you have -- when your City City of Miami Page 17 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 staffers have their separate meetings with developers or people that have an interest in doing things in the area and don't include our director or our assistant director, that creates confusion. So I'm going to ask my City Manager to please include members of the CRA staff in these meetings so it doesn't appear that something's happening, you know, in a backroom. Mr. Hernandez: Madam Chair, we'll make sure that that happens. I believe that up to now, I know that Mr. Villacorta has been informed at various points, but I'll make sure that, as we go forward, that they're aware and invited to meetings that they can provide and add value to and be informed. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Just wanted you to put it on the record. I don't have to address the casino issue 'cause Nitin's already said there will not be any gambling happening in downtown, so I don't have to address that. The other thing that I wanted to also clear up real fast, there was issue around infrastructure upgrades as a part of this overall project. Again, we're not voting on any dollars that will go towards doing any infrastructure upgrades today. But this -- I just want to be clear -- Nitin, you can come back to the mike. Eventually, after -- 'cause you need to put it on the record -- whatever agreements we vote on as a City Commission regarding a development agreement, will there be an official request that will be made to the CRA for support? Mr. Motwani: There certainly will. In fact, we've been working with Mr. Villacorta and Chelsa and Clarence on trying to understand the current infrastructure and get the right types of studies going forward not just for Park West but for Park West and Overtown because in order for the community, for the entire CRA, both Park West and Overtown to grow, infrastructure needs to be improved on both sides. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. So, I'm glad you're putting it on the record because people need to know, regardless of what, you know, we're voting on from an agreement standpoint, eventually, you will be coming to this Board to ask -- asking for some assistance with upgrades, infrastructure upgrades. Mr. Motwani: We will be, absolutely. The infrastructure -- Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Motwani: -- is certainly not adequate. Chair Spence -Jones: So I just want to make sure that I say to my City Manager and my fellow colleagues, you know, that is one of the reasons why I have been pushing very hard for avenues or streets in the heart of Overtown to get fixed. That's why 3rd Avenue is done, and we should be finished with that in less than a month. That's why we're moving on to Northwest 2nd Avenue 'cause there is a fear -- and I want to make sure we're clear on this -- is that, you know, this big project, this mega project's going to come, the dollars are going to get sucked up, and then the people in Overtown will not have the opportunity to have the infrastructure upgrades in place. I don't have a problem with supporting this project 100 percent. I just want to make sure the plans that we have in place regarding the infrastructure upgrades for the people that have been waiting for God knows how long, those projects are not put on a backburner to accommodate the upgrades that need to happen for this project. I just want to be very clear with the CRA staff regarding that issue and to make sure that you're very clear on that too. Mr. Motwani: We've worked hand in hand with the CRA in looking at complete infrastructure studies, not just for ourselves, but we want to be a part of the dialogue with the Overtown community that's really welcomed us with open arms. They've got a lot of great ideas, and unfortunately, there's a lot of studies that have been done, but nothing -- not as much implemented as I think a lot of people would like to see, so we agree that it's -- it requires the help of the CRA to help guide us and to put in the best infrastructure for the entire CRA, not just City of Miami Page 18 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 our side. Chair Spence -Jones: No problem. I just wanted to have you say that. You mentioned also earlier -- and I do see some of the members of my Overtown Folklife District folks here. If they're here -- I thought I -- I think I saw Don -- oh, there's Don, and a few of the other members. We have been meeting for the last -- despite what people think, we have been meeting on several projects in the Overtown area for the last two years every Saturday for a while just trying to put together an Overtown Folklife District plan. We do have a plan, which includes several groups from the area developing that plan. We would like to make sure that that particular plan is implemented somehow in what you guys are doing. Of course, it's a separate project altogether, but the stuff needs to be -- needs to coincide with the -- with each other. So I really want to make sure -- and Don is here now. I don't know -- Don, are you -- did you want to put something --? Okay. Don Patterson: Yeah, just a quick blurb. Thank you, Nitin, for presenting, once again, the Miami Worldcenter. As you've mentioned, Commissioner, the historical -- Chair Spence -Jones: Oh, name for the record. Mr. Patterson: I'm sorry. Don Patterson, executive director for Mount Zion Developments, Incorporated, affiliated with Historic Mount Zion Baptist Church. We've actually had the opportunity to see the presentation at least three times. At each event, the developers have taken the opportunity to talk to the communities one on one. Initially, there was some concern with the idea that this project might absorb all the resources necessary to assist not only his project but some of the things that we're doing in the community as well. We've -- after several conversations, we've agreed that there are certain connectivity that can be created in terms of infrastructure, and I could go on, but the point being is that they have been very receptive to the idea that we could work to make sure that not only their community and their development is successful, but what we're doing in the Historic Overtown Folklife District can be successful as well. Chair Spence -Jones: And can you put on the record the number of groups or who the groups are that are part of this Overtown Folklife District Association that we've put together to make sure that people are informed of what's happening in the Overtown area? Mr. Patterson: I can list probably the principals. I know I'm going to leave some out. Chair Spence -Jones: Just list some of them. Please put them on the record. Mr. Patterson: The, of course, Historic Mount Zion Baptist Church, Mount Zion Developments, Incorporated, Greater Bethel AME (African Methodist Episcopal) Church, and BAM Development Corporation, as well as the Longshoremen, the Black Archives, the Collin Center. Again, I know I'm going to forget some, but generally, those are -- oh, the Masonic Lodge, and a number of other residents in the community. Chair Spence -Jones: So inclusion has not been an issue? Mr. Patterson: No, not at all. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Patterson: Now I would like to add just one last comment, and it goes to the discussion that you had before us earlier, whereas in 2006, there was the capital improvements meetings that -- where everybody kind of came out and talked about the projects. I think the perception that things were kind of going on in a vacuum stemmed from the idea that communication was City of Miami Page 19 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 somewhat limited. There are a lot of moving parts in terms of what we're trying to do in the community. We have not done our best at trying to make sure that everybody knows what the other side of the street is doing. I'd ask that Jim Villacorta and Clarence Wood [sic] and the CRA staff work extra hard to try to, you know, not only assist the developer in what he's trying to do but try to communicate with us as well so that we understand exactly what they're doing too. Just a better, a stronger line of communication is all we're asking for. Chair Spence -Jones: No problem, Don. Mr. Patterson: Okay. Chair Spence -Jones: Thank you very much. And this is my last comment in closing, and then we will close out on this issue. While I think that it's extremely important that the jobs element is something that we definitely need to improve the area and to provide opportunities for not just residents living, you know -- just residents period living in City of Miami, but of course, in the Overtown area, I think that we need to also start looking beyond just jobs. And it's great that we have the jobs, but it's also important for us to do whatever we need to do to try to encourage small business participation or some local participation on that level. One of the partnerships that we're forming now with the Miami -Dade Chamber -- and I see Bill Diggs here -- I would definitely like to encourage -- I mean, we're going to be doing an incubator in the heart of Overtown for businesses, whether or not they be, you know, smaller businesses, whether or not they be attorneys, CPAs (Certified Public Accountants), trying to get that level of businesses back into the Overtown area that once existed. So we're going to start with the incubator space first. I would also like to suggest that you also work along with the Miami -Dade Chamber to see if there are some creative ways that you guys can work together on the long term so that it's not just about giving people jobs; it's about providing people with business opportunities. That's the one thing that I actually wanted to make sure that we put on the record. So with that being said, the only thing I want to be very clear from staff on is our next steps. And I don't know if Jim can speak to that or Maria could speak to that or our City Attorney or our Manager. What is the next steps? Is this a project that's coming in front of the City Commission at any time, and when? Just so the City -- just so that the Board members and we know what the next steps are. Mr. Hernandez: Madam Chair, Commissioners, my understanding is that this item, at least the zoning part of it, will be going before the Planning Advisory Board on October 15. Then October 16, the development agreement will be before the City Commission. The development agreement goes before the City Commission twice; it's two readings, so it would be October 16 and then November 13. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Hernandez: The zoning will go to the City Commission October 23, on a first reading, and then November 13 on a second reading. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Mr. Hernandez: So on the agenda, on the combined agenda of November 13, you will have the second reading of the development agreement together with the second reading of zoning. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. I just wanted you to officially put it out there. Thank you, Mr. Manager. Before we close out on this issue, Mr. Villacorta, is there anything that you'd like to officially put on the record as a concern? Mr. Villacorta: Well, I just wanted to say that this project fulfills the elements of the redevelopment plan by removing slum and blight, enhancing the tax base, encouraging a comprehensive large-scale project implemented by a master developer, providing linkages to City of Miami Page20 Printed on 10/24/2008 SEOPW and OMNI Community Redevelopment Agencies Meeting Minutes October 7, 2008 adjacent planned uses, providing connections to Bicentennial and Bayfront Parks, and reducing travel distance for downtown workers. Those are all elements and goals of the Park West section of the redevelopment plan. The plan also calls for the creation of a special zoning district in Park West. And in conjunction with the Overtown goals, it provides for the creation of new employment opportunities. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. So thank you for -- so you're -- I'm getting that you support and -- is that what you're --7 This falls in line with what we should be doing. Mr. Villacorta: Yes. This is fully compliant with the redevelopment plan. Chair Spence -Jones: Okay. Thank you very much. So thank you, Nitin -- Mr. Motwani: Thank you. Chair Spence -Jones: -- and the Worldcenter for coming to officially present to the public and to our Board. We truly appreciate it. Again, I think we all know that it could be a very valuable project for the community, and we just want to make sure that the right steps are put in place so that there's no confusion about what the project is. Mr. Motwani: We appreciate it. Chair Spence -Jones: Thank you very much for coming out. City of Miami Page21 Printed on 10/24/2008