City Commission - Regular Meeting

caffeine, buddy. That's right. No pain, no gain. I did. Yes.

Good morning.

Recording in progress.

Good morning. I'd like to first and foremost thank our staff for being here today and the incredible hard work to start this process and continue through this process over the next few months. I want to thank our finance director, both of them, for their hard work in putting together this capital improvements workshop. all the work that's gone into the analysis and everything that we're going to do over the next few months to finally put together a plan of action for the next 12 months. Thank you, Mr. Manager, Mr. DCM, Madam ACM, all the directors who are here with us, all city employees. Thank you for your leadership on this matter. I also welcome any residents who are here today for the June 3rd CIP CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS PLAN WORKSHOP, WHICH WE'RE ADDRESSING 2027 AND 2031 OPPORTUNITIES AND OBJECTIVES. MR. MANAGER, THE FLOOR IS YOURS.

THANK YOU, MAYOR. WE HAVE OUR DEPUTY FINANCE DIRECTOR WHO WILL BE PRESENTING THE CIP BUDGET. WE WILL ALSO BE DISCUSSING SOME OF THE ISSUES IN TALLAHASSEE AND THE EFFECTS ON OUR FUTURE BUDGETS. WITH THAT, I'LL TURN IT OVER TO OUR DEPUTY DIRECTOR.

Good morning. Paula Rodriguez, deputy finance director. Before I get started, I'd like to thank all of the commission, mayor, vice mayor. The leadership of the city manager is the only reason that we're able to have a smooth budget process. My staff, who does most of the work, thankful to them. I'd like to specifically recognize Pedro Sanchez, our budget officer. He is the point on all capital. He coordinates with every department. all of these various projects and so he is a vital part of this as well as all of the department directors who work diligently to work with budget and make sure that we're providing the best estimates and the most efficient operations to be able to put this together each year so thank you all you hopefully make me look good and make the city look good All right, so today we're here to talk about the draft capital budget. We've met with each of you over the last few weeks and reviewed each of the project requests and funding requests that the departments have put forward. These have either come out of department recommendations, discussions with the commission, or input from the public on projects that they would like to see. As you know, we try to fund as much of these projects each year as possible. And so today we're going to go through those projects and talk about where we recommend funding and the funding that we have available. Before we do that, I do want to mention we normally don't talk too much about this in our capital meeting. And we'll have more detail and review it at our July budget meeting. But we did get our property values, like I mentioned last night. Our property values increased by 6.5%. A notable item is that 1% of that increase is due to new construction. So really, without new construction, our property values would have increased 5.5%. And so thanks to that, you're going to see that we were able to fund many projects this year. With the discussions that are having in Tallahassee, what we've really tried to do, the numbers that I'm bringing to you here today are after we have allocated funds for our operating budget. So in our operating budget, we've contemplated the contracts, the current contracts and the COLAs that are built into those, merits, an estimated increase in health insurance of about 23% So our operating budget has some significant increases in it. What we've tried to do as we develop this budget, knowing that there's uncertainty of what's going to happen in Tallahassee and maybe less uncertainty now because they have gone ahead and decided to put to vote the reduction or an increased exemption for property tax. So we know that that's going to affect us significantly. if and when that passes. Thankfully, that won't affect us for this budget process. It'll affect us for the next budget process. So what we've tried to do is plan the operating budget in a way that we would have as minimal cuts as possible. And we've tried to put the increases in property values into capital, which would be an easier way to reduce our budget because this wouldn't affect necessarily the operations and services. And so we'll continue to discuss and see how that pans out over the next few months and bring you more information in July. So with that said, we were able to put about $20.5 million of general fund recurring funds into capital in this plan. $5 million of that you're going to see goes to City Hall. That's a commitment that we made in 2023 to fund these projects. And $7.3 million of that goes towards our capital matrices. And so I'll start the presentation and you'll see that information. So you have in front of you this worksheet. I know that for some of us it's a little bit small. There is a lot of information on it. I'm going to present that information here, so hopefully it will be easier to see on the screen. So this is the worksheet that you have in front of you. It's a list of all of the capital projects in our five year capital plan. I'll go through the columns very quickly and then I'm gonna hide some columns so it'll make it a little bit easier to review. So first you're gonna have the column with each of the projects. The first column ties to the number in the book that was sent out about a month ago now. So if there's any specific information that you want to know, the page number in column A refers to the capital budget book. And then column D is the 26th budget. That is how much funding we were able to put into each of these projects for the current budget, so in the last year's planning. The following two columns provides the amount of funding that's currently in these projects, so prior year available and encumbered funds, so those funds that are already committed to a purchase order. The next column is the 27 requests. So these are the various amounts that the departments have provided to us of estimates that they are requesting for next fiscal year, and then the total of those columns. And then since this is a five-year plan, we have the out years, what we would plan What we currently estimate would be planned for those projects in the subsequent years. And I'm going to hide everything past 2029 to make this a little bit easier to read. I can always expand it if there's more questions. And then the five-year project total. Going to the right is what we're going to talk about today, which is the recommended funding based on the available funding today. My mouse is not cooperating. Sorry, my worksheet is not cooperating. Okay. i'm going to go ahead and hide the columns from 29 to the five year total as for this discussion. i'm going to hide the project category, just to make it a little bit easier to view. And i'm going to go ahead and. hide the total here as well. Okay. So I know it's not perfect, but it's a lot of information to share at once. So this document is broken out a little bit differently than what you see in your capital budget book. We've reviewed with each of you individually, but this meeting is also for the public. So I'm going to repeat some of that information. And so for the last few years, we have broken out the categories of our projects. in this similar manner. The first section is the capital matrices. These are recurring projects that we fund and estimate based on the useful life of equipment. So this is a program that we began or programs that we began to ensure that we are funding the renewal and replacement of our current assets. So as you go through the list, you see artwork roof replacement, HVAC elevator replacement. So these are matrices that are set up to ensure that we're putting aside funding for the renewal and replacement of those items. This category is a total of 12.5, just under $12.6 million in requests. And we actually passed, the commission actually passed a resolution earlier this year asking that we commit to trying to fund at least 85% of this where possible with recurring revenue. So with the property tax increase that we received this year, we were able to meet that commitment and we're actually funding the entire amount with recurring revenue from the general fund. So in network infrastructure, we are funding $2.7 million. $250 of that is coming from the building fund to make sure that we are using their funds for the replacement of their equipment. Public art comes from the AIPP fund, so that is an allowable use for that. And then we have all of the matrices for roof replacement, HVAC, elevators, fountains. I'm going to skip over the parking items, parks, major repairs, radio system replacement and repairs. This is for all our radios, both public safety and citywide departments. a police rifle replacement program, the gym equipment at both the police and fire stations, and the fire equipment replacement. So from the general fund, we are funding 7.5, just under 7.6 of that, 250,000 of it coming from the building division, 54,000 from art and public places, And then the items that are for the motor vehicle replacement, those are funded out of our automotive division and are charged back to the departments, whether they be in the general fund or other funds in our city. in the operating budget. And so that is $4 million, and we've gone ahead and funded that. Upgrades to city garages and parking lots, we are funding from the parking fund. And so we are fully funding those amounts as well. So you see here that this category, so what I didn't explain is the last column is going, the last two columns is going to show you the total funding that's been put towards each project and any shortfall, so any amount that hasn't been funded. At the beginning of this presentation, you're going to see not that many of them. As we continue, you'll see there are some amounts that were not funded. And so you can see here that the entire capital matrices has been funded. And if there's no questions, I'll continue. So the next section is the priority projects funded in the fiscal year 23 plan. This is the priority project plan that was developed in fiscal year 23 when we received a significant increase in property taxes. The commission and staff worked together to come up with a way to make sure that we were being prudent with the significant property values and not just building up our operating budget. And so we adopted the plan and committed to fund a minimum of $5 million that would escalate to $6 million in any given year were available to fund these projects. So these projects have not changed. They include the City Hall Complex, the Gondola Building, the Venetian Facility, Alhambra Water Tower Restoration, the Ponce Circle Park, which is broken out into two projects now. One of them is for the acquisition of art, which is funded from AIPP, Phillips Park, and the development of Firehouse 4. And so I'm proud to say that many of these projects are already underway and some of them have been finished. So we've been successful in that.

Mayor. Yes, sir. Excuse me, director. I just wanted to point out that the first four projects are historical projects. So when I think when people say we don't fund historical, it's over $60 million in projects that we have here in this five year plan.

And we should run it, right? So we should highlight that as much as possible. For example, the gondola building, for example, City Hall, the water tower, the completion of the whiteway lights. There's a whole host of... Venetian pool, excuse me. We have made it a priority. We have spent a significant amount of taxpayer funding on historic projects. So I appreciate you bringing that up because it's important to highlight that.

Thank you. And so the most notable project on this list right now you'll see is the city hall complex. The 31 million that is listed here is the request for fiscal year 25 is based on the current estimate for that project. As you know, those estimates are still being worked on. They're still doing assessments of what it'll take to renovate that that facility in a historic manner and bring it back to its historic State, thank, grandeur, thank you.

And if I may just add something on that front. I want, not that the manager needs to be reminded, but full faith and confidence in his ability to deliver a simple project like a city hall renovation. If we can't get a GMP with a current contractor, I have no issues, you know, moving forward and trying to find someone else. You have that leeway. You know that. We want to make sure they're getting to the most, you know, a safe price that makes sense, that doesn't put anybody at risk. But we need to make sure that, again, that they're cooperating as much as possible. Going to the market and getting as many subcontractor pricing as possible. We need a contingency But we want to make sure that again that you have every tool in the toolbox to make sure they understand that Things don't work out with them. There's a lot of contractors that have called Asking to do a significant project Not only in regards to the price it's significant but also in regards to the historic nature and the fact that this is a portfolio project that Contract is gonna have on their resume. They're gonna use to get other jobs and I have full faith and confidence in the contractor that we selected. We've done work with them before. As a matter of fact, it's my understanding we did the parking garage next door.

That's correct.

Which by the way turned out great. I've competed against that contractor many times. They're a very good contractor, but we can't afford any fluff because if we can shave two, three million dollars from that project, we can use those two or three million dollars for something else.

As you know, Mayor, that's why we're going to the GMP process, so we can be intimately aware of all the bidding. So we have no issue going out again if that GMP does not work.

My big concern, and I'll tell you one, it was used for politics in the last campaign, the 2023 campaign, and I want to be very clear, I want to put it on the record right now. Burger Bob's was used as an example of... of malfeasance or not having your eye on the ball or a lack of leadership here. What happened there very clearly, and it's a public record, and I welcome anybody to contest it and also pull the records, pull the bids. Once you skin the building in the interior is when you find out the true state of the project. Burger Bob's was used as an example by multiple people. who were running for public office saying that that budget spiraled out of control. Not that it spiraled out of control, is that once you skinned the building, you found out behind you that you had electrical issues, plumbing issues, you had a structural issue where the project had to be stopped. You had to structurally redesign the building. Imagine any manager who was a structural engineer was working on that. And then obviously we had to get a structural price to remedy an issue with the integrity of the structure of the building that resulted in the cost of the project going up. You're not going to leave a structurally, you know, unsound building that way and just cover it back up with drywall and say, hey, it will be somebody else's problem. We had an issue with a parapet, as the manager can tell you in great detail, and it cost hundreds of thousands of dollars additional to the project. I'm not saying this is going to happen here. Not what I'm saying, but I want to make sure that we're very clear and very aware that once you skin the building, especially a building of this magnitude that hasn't that's had a lot of water intrusion. Just look at the walls right now, for example, next to the mayor's office. You know, you have a lot of buckling on the existing drywall, you know, from years of water intrusion from the windows in the hallway. You're going to find issues. You're going to find issues and certain things that were not considered as part of the scope are going to have to be included because, again, We cannot, as a city, this is not what we do here. Maybe other cities do that, but we don't. We're not going to turn a blind eye to issues that are large scope items because they're costly. We're going to address it. We're going to have to figure out how to get it done. I think we have the best team, as we mentioned yesterday in the commission meeting. We have an exceptional team before us here. We're going to get to the bottom of it. But I want to make sure that the contractor knows that I'm willing, more than willing, to go back to market if I have to, if we can get this to a good number.

Through the mayor? Yes, sir. You're exactly correct in what you said. So we are doing a more exploratory demo now. We're trying to uncover as much as possible prior to that final price. And that's what we're doing now.

Through the mayor? Yes. Mr. Mayor, I agree with 100%. I think that one of the biggest concerns that we've always discussed with the manager is the materials that are used for this building and the permeability of the moisture until we really get in there and start figuring out what's gone on BEHIND THE SCENES, SO TO SAY. WE REALLY DON'T KNOW WHAT THE TRUE COST IS. AND WE NEED TO MAKE SURE IT'S DONE RIGHT. BECAUSE THIS IS A RENOVATION THAT'S NOT GOING TO TAKE FIVE DAYS TO DO. IT'S GOING TO TAKE SOME TIME. AND IF WE DON'T DO IT RIGHT, IN 20 YEARS ANOTHER COMMISSION UP HERE IS GOING TO HAVE TO SPEND TWICE AS MUCH MONEY TO REDO THE WORK THAT WE DO. WE NEED TO ENSURE THAT WHATEVER WE DO NOW LASTS 100 OR OVER 100 YEARS TO ENSURE THAT CITY HALL STAYS STANDING. Thank you, Mr. Manager.

Thank you. So with that said, this project, we have committed to fund the $5 million that we had put into this plan each year towards City Hall. And so knowing that the cost of this project is going to be significant, the idea is that this would be funded likely with a bond. And so that $5 million that we've been building up each year or committing each year will go towards financing that. In addition, this project is actually called the City Hall Complex. So some of the funding that you see in that 5.9 comes from the building department to fund any renewal and replacement at their building from their funds. The gondola restoration, and so as you know, the gondola has a new location. The gondola building has a new location, and so 215,000 will complete the construction needs for the renovation and the interiors that are being planned for that location. The Venetian facility improvements, there's no additional funding. However, you're all aware that that phase of renovation is essentially completed. And there are still some items pending, but the funding is in place for that right now. The Alhambra Water Tower restoration, this project has had many iterations as far as funding. That facility has proven to be a facility that needs to be renovated every few years because of the nature of how it was built. The estimate that is shown here for the $1.7 million is an estimate that is for construction that would renovate it in a way that would not require the city to do renovations every five years would harden that facility and make it so that investment would last. And so that is the estimate that is there. Each of these items are being funded with general fund revenue. The 5 million is certainly coming from recurring revenue as was committed in this plan. And the other items could, could be considered that as well so for a total of 7.9 million dollar investment in this plan so if there's no other comments in this section i'm going to go down to critical projects and so critical projects is a category that we have so i'm going to ask you one question absolutely mayor um when we receive monies for historical preservation from tdrs uh will this

budget estimate be updated at that time?

So in recent years, we had received TDR funding that we have placed in some of these projects. I don't have that list with me right now, but I could pull it up. That decision would come to Commission when we accept TDRs or the sale of TDRs, and we would come to you with a decision and our recommendation of where we recommend using those TDRs, which project to fund, If we, there is the opportunity that let's say we funded the Ala Humber water tower and within the same year we could always swap out general funds for TDR funds and open up the ability to use general funds somewhere else. So at that time we would bring it to commission, recommend what projects we believe should be funded with these TDRs and the commission would pass that.

Thank you.

My pleasure. And we welcome that. Critical projects is a category where we've listed projects that we consider to be life safety. So while the others are priority projects that may have some life safety components, these are really projects that deal with the life safety of our facilities. And so emergency generator installation, the $1.8 million that's listed here, includes a generator at the adult activity center where we house one of our rescue recon teams as part of hurricane or disaster response and the other project would be beginning to fund a generator at the youth center and The other funding would be for funding a generator at the Coral Gables Country Club where we also hope to be able to service Any debris response or any hurricane response? So I know

May I ask you a question?

Absolutely.

Yesterday in the commission meeting, we passed legislation to ensure that we would not make any additional, again, unless it's necessary, maintenance to the youth center. Where does that put the $700,000 line item here for generator?

So I think that's a discussion that we could have now because we also have two other projects that have to do with the youth center. So we have a youth center project that deals with the fire suppression system and the intercom system.

I think we would all agree.

That's life safety. And then there's also some ADA improvements that I think are also required later on in this package. So for the generator, I'll defer to the manager on the necessity of that.

Through the mayor.

Yes, sir. The reason we picked the adult activity center number one is because the house is one of our rescue teams and we needed the facility there. And the reason we picked the youth center number two is we didn't look at, we looked at this as an enhancement because it was very popular after Irma. uh for for for for the uh kids and and the parents to have this this this facility open uh it also can help as a secondary as a secondary facility for uh for district for distribution uh water etc if if if needed depending on on the hurricane uh We don't look at it, we don't use it anymore because it is not really a type of structure that is recommended by FEMA nor would I recommend that kind of a gym as a facility that SHOULD HOUSE ANYONE, ESPECIALLY DURING A MAJOR STORM. BUT HAVING GONE THROUGH IRMA AND SEEN WHAT THE YOUTH CENTER CAN PROVIDE AFTER A STORM, THAT'S WHY WE CHOSE THE YOUTH CENTER NUMBER TWO. OKAY. FROM A RESIDENT PERSPECTIVE.

And through the mayor, you know, in addition to generators could provide necessary air conditioning after a storm if someone who's elderly or whatever needs a location to be able to be set up. So although it's not recommended during a storm, after a storm it could be a life safety issue for some people that are heat sensitive.

Through the mayor, Sue. Through the mayor. We look at this more as a maintenance and resident enhancement after a major event. Perfect. Thank you.

So with that, we recommend funding these projects. You'll see $978,000 coming from the general fund and $800,000 coming from the country club, although that is also a transfer from the general fund to the country club to cover their capital expenses. So we recommend funding the entire project. Recertification of city facilities. You'll recall that over the last couple of years, we made significant investment in funding the recertification needs of our facilities. We still have some funding available, as you can see here. The CIP and Public Works has done all of the assessments or the majority of the assessments of each of the buildings that need to be recertified and are now working on estimates and the work that needs to actually be completed for those. And so the request is for seven hundred and thirty five thousand dollars to be able to continue that Subsequently the Andalusia garage garage for Requires some recertification. This garage is also part of our plan in constructing the mobility hub So the idea is is that we've tried we've separated this from the recertification project so that it's clear to the Commission and to the public that we are funding items that are needed for the recertification of this building and to make it as inhabitable as possible so make sure we can get as many cars in there use all of the space within the garage so that when we begin the mobility hub project we can divert the parking to that garage as well as other garages but this will absorb much of the parking from there

Through the mayor? Yes. Mayor, this garage and also the Davidson parking, we moved quickly on Davidson parking and we're moving quickly on the LaSalle cleaner area to add parking because we've got to bridge parking as we demolish the mobility hub. So we are working on that bridging of that parking for Central Business District to make sure that the effects of losing garage one are minimized.

So the next project, I think we all agree, falls into the life safety category, sidewalk repair and replacement. The request is $1 million for next year. Where we can, we fund as much sidewalk repairs as possible. So we recommend funding that. We are funding it from our roadway revenues, which comes from local option gas tax. This year, the estimate that we received for next year has decreased. So we are expecting a small decrease, but a decrease nonetheless from local option gas tax revenues, but sufficient to fund a few projects. And so we recommend that.

What's the total line item on that budget?

So there's three sidewalk categories. This one is in the life safety section. There's two more, one for new sidewalks and one for extensions and crosswalks. And if you'll indulge me, I'll show a slide that is easier to show. So this is the funding that we've put into that area for the last few years. So you can see that prior to fiscal year 24, we used to only fund one project called citywide pedestrian infrastructure, which was mainly the repair and replacement of existing sidewalks. In 2024, or for the 2024 budget, the city manager requested that we add separate projects for new sidewalks and extensions and crosswalks because those projects are very different in nature, and we wanted to make sure to highlight the cost of adding new sidewalks and make that a decision at the commission of where funding would go to. And so you'll see that in 24, we funded 1.25 in sidewalk repair and replacement, and new sidewalks we were able to fund a half a million dollars. It's also important to note that the funding from this comes not only from the general fund, but where possible, additional roadway money. So when we have increases in revenue, we're able to fund more. So in 25, we funded 1.5 and sidewalk repairs. We were able to increase the budget for new sidewalks, and we were able to start funding extension and crosswalk installations. And this current year, fiscal year 26, we were able to increase the funding for new sidewalks to 2.18, just about $2.18 million. We were able to increase the budget for new sidewalk installations to $750,000 and extensions and crosswalks to half a million. And much of that was because there was available funding. We also used mobility impact fee funds. So where those are available, we're able to divert those into these projects.

And also, don't some of these projects also have matching requirements, correct?

So when we have grant, when we've gotten grants, we've had to fund matching grants as well.

Case in point, Granada, which is forthcoming.

Yes, and that is a separate project that you'll see here.

Yes. Mayor, in 23, at the end of 23 for the 24 budget, I asked the director to split out funding for new sidewalks. If you recall, we were discussing the Blue Road sidewalks, the university sidewalks. To do that is a completely separate project than to do existing sidewalks. Existing sidewalks is you take one out, put one in, look at the grading, look at the tree roots and so forth. New sidewalks, we're putting new sidewalks where there have never been a sidewalk for 100 years. So we have to deal with all kinds of issues there. We have to do drainage, topography, everything else. We have to do meandering sidewalks. If we look at the sidewalk that was done as a pilot between Bird Road and Santa Mero, it shows the kind of work that we can do, but it's costly, and it also requires a lot of engineering. So we split out existing sidewalks, new sidewalks, which is a whole different, and also ADA, the ADA issue, which is the connectivity of the sidewalk to the street. BECAUSE THOSE ARE REALLY THREE SEPARATE ENTITIES AND THAT WAS DONE IN WE DISCUSSED IT FOR DURING THE 23 BUDGET TO DO IT IN THE 24 BUDGET.

THE SIDEWALK REPLACEMENT BUDGET STILL CONTINUES TO BE THE SAME, CORRECT?

The sidewalk replacement budget increased last year to 2 million, but this year we're back down to 1 million because of the funding that we're allocating to other areas.

So, since I've been here 13 years, when we've done projects like Alhambra, for example, like we just did, we just did Blue Road, which is a university, we've always taken the funds based out of project by project basis. We've never taken them out of sidewalk replacement budget, correct?

Yes, within the, sorry.

It's too expensive, Mayor.

Yeah, so I just want to be clear because we can say things like we've tripled the budget in regards to sidewalks. No, we haven't. What we have here, for example, we're going down now this year in regards to our budget of sidewalks. But we have to be very, very careful with the words that we choose. Just like I mentioned before about Burger Bobs. What happened to the money in Burger Bobs? Where did it go? Well, when you're in the hot seat, it's not easy to say that. You've got to say the truth. You can't just say things to get elected. You can't say things, because at the end of the day, it's obvious what happened to the money. We skinned the building, and we found a litany of issues with the building. And we had to spend more money to fix those things. You can't just cover that back up and say, hey, somebody else will fix it. You've got to fix it. But that's what politics has become. When you talk about sidewalks here, this is very, very simple. We can look back. Do you know when the sidewalk budget, the projects for replacement of sidewalks was started? Do you know when that was? I'm pretty sure it was around the time that I got elected.

Yeah.

Yeah. I got elected 2013. was on the neighborhood neighborhood that was with debt the neighborhood renaissance project was 27 million dollars with that we have to study the history of the city because we make comments here that end up being taken as facts on these blogs i agree and then a lot of them and at the end of the day and a lot of them are false and then they're false just like we tripled the budget for this for for the sidewalks which is not true not but you can't say those things Just like you saved millions of dollars with a mobility hub, you didn't save millions of dollars with a mobility hub. It's obvious as of yesterday. So my point is that if you wanna move monies around and you wanna, I'm all for increasing sidewalks. I think it's great. We should do it. I've been working on sidewalks on Granada. I've been working on sidewalks on University. I've been working on sidewalks on Blue Road. By the way, I negotiated a deal with the help of the manager to make sure that University of Miami, excuse me, Doctors Hospital paid for the sidewalks that go around Doctors Hospital. Just like I negotiated with the manager's help and leadership the additional $1.4 million that the vice mayor is talking about right now in regards to TDRs that are forthcoming from publics. Those monies did not exist. That's what is bringing value to opportunities and trying to continue to expand on what we do here in regards to a budget. So the idea that there's a need for sidewalks, immense need for sidewalks, immense. I'm not happy about the fact that we're lowering the amount of money that we're spending this year, but we have no choice. We gotta find the money. We spent $2 million on a cola, but what do we compromise? We compromise certain other things. Can't just find the money. We can't print the money. The money has to be provided through growth. So you saw there was a 23% increase in our health care costs. We're an aging population. At the end of the day, it's only going to continue to go up. Thank God insurance went down a little bit. But how much more is it going to go down? How much has it gone up over the last five years? Through the mayor. Yes, sir. Yes, ma'am. Excuse me.

And manager, you can answer this. In the sidewalk extensions, as budgeted right now, were we able to allocate monies for filling the gaps on Riviera between Byrd and Ponce? There's a few gaps in there. Is that part of the plan right now?

Melissa's shaking her head yes. OK.

Excellent, excellent. We want to get these kids to school safe so they're not out on the road with their scooters or walking.

You will see later on to complete the sidewalk discussion that we are funding the million for sidewalk replacements. We are maintaining the same level for new sidewalks at $750,000, and the request was $250,000 for extensions and crosswalks, and we are funding that, and you'll see that in the green section.

And also to be very clear, and the manager can elaborate more on it, We have major projects, like, for example, the Granada one that's forthcoming, which I have my understanding with, and we can talk to our directors who are here, that I think, and I don't want to speak out of turn, I think that that was already funded through grant money. Is that correct?

Yes. This is shaking your head. Yes.

Mr.

Manager. Thank you, Mayor. It's FDOT money.

FDOT money, yes. So I want to thank our incredible staff for getting that done. Thank you. They deserve all the credit for that. It's a big opportunity to finally connect all the way to Bird Road. And I'm very impressed by the work that Hermes and Melissa have done and the manager have done to get that done. Because something that I've been talking about for a long time, and this is the perfect street to do it on. Why? Because you don't have that many homes. Melissa's smiling because we've talked about this so many times when we've met with residents. You don't have that many homes because they're really big lots. They're expansive and it's not a really a conflict on the property lines because the homes are really set back So it's it's like a really good project and you don't really run into the issues and we ran into Alhambra where we had you know Significantly large trees that you had to find a way to balance that do you cut the trees down? you potentially damage the roots and then miss Bell I think went out there probably 50 times and to meet with residents and to meet with concerned individuals about that. And we were able to find, as you heard yesterday from the resident who was here, that everybody seems to be really happy and that it's slowing traffic down. But that's a really exciting project in Granada because right now you can't walk from, let's say, Lee Lincoln all the way to Blue Road because there isn't sidewalks past Blue Road and Granada. There is, I apologize, but it literally ends at the bridge, correct?

Yeah. Yes, it's sporadic. Yes. There's no sidewalks on the west side, Mayor, at all. There's some sidewalks on the east side.

So if you see, this is going to deliver what university residents got, what Blue Road residents got. And I'm being aspirational now, and I want to take this opportunity to speak in front of my colleagues to maybe they have the same interests I do. Maybe we can talk about it for next year. I would love... to be able to, I think we're planning around Blue Road. I would love to be able to say that we finished Blue Road from University all the way to Alhambra or to 57th Avenue. That is a very complicated street because of how small the lots are, the homes, the trees. That's going to require a lot of staff uh brain damage to figure out uh it's true i mean it's brain damage it literally is she's stressing over it is it is going to require a lot of brain damage but think about this blue road doesn't have a sidewalk on either side you have a beautiful sidewalk i revered a river country club but you don't have any any other side that is something that i would love to see before i'm done here to see that completed because it's such a high traffic cut through street that people deserve a sidewalk there

To the mayor? Yes, sir. Blue Road is also a county road. So we have to deal with also county requirements. The FDOT will also be funding a project from Bird to Segovia. So we should be able to connect Segovia all the way to Ponce. That's coming up in 2029.

Through the mayor, briefly. So I do really appreciate how well the Alhambra project is coming along, because it has slowed down traffic significantly. And I traversed that quite a bit on the way to church. And also, aspirationally, right, thinking about Blue Road, that would be wonderful. Another aspirational goal, and maybe there's an update, city manager, are we considering a sidewalk right next to Coral Gable Senior High School on Riviera Drive? You know, because the kids don't have a way of walking. There is no sidewalk along the fence that goes the length of the parking lot.

For the mayor.

Yes.

That was one of the items that I had brought forward. And there's, you know, I called it sidewalk gaps. I did knock that entire section door by door on Riviera to ascertain whether or not people wanted not only the sidewalks but also their desire or not for a bike lane in that area because we're trying to get kids to school. So while I was talking to those folks, they also would like to see Blue Road finished because that is a route that the children go through. In my conversations with FDOT, not only I but I know Debbie Swain was actively in my first year in office, we both pushed for the sidewalk on Bird Road to connect between Red Road and the gaps that exist to the high school. The other areas knocked included Granada and South Alhambra between Bird and University. So the overall view, just so you have a picture of it, is to take care of that grid between Bird Road, the university, the high school, all the way to Ponce, because that sector has an enormous amount of traffic. And if you look at south of Hamburg, the speeds, the amount of asphalt that exists there already just promotes speeding. It's sort of like Segovia used to be 17, 18 years ago. It used to be four lanes of asphalt, and people People will gun it, because the more asphalt you give them, the faster and more comfortable they feel, because it's more like an expressway. So when I did knock the area on South Alhambra, and there was a resolution that was brought here to lift the moratorium on bike lanes there, I pointed out to folks that there's so much asphalt already there, all you need to do is paint the line. and it becomes illegal for the bicycles to be blocking traffic, taking the lane where you have an existing painted bike lane, you have to be within that. So then you add the rumble strips to the solid painted line, and it makes it uncomfortable for the bicycles to get out of the bike lane. You have to go over the rumble strips and vice versa. It reminds the drivers that the bike lane is not an additional piece of asphalt that you should be driving on. So that's the overall vision. I know it's going to be a piece of the time that we have to do it. Or as the mayor would say, how do you eat an elephant? Small bites. Small bites. Small bites. We'll eventually get there. But that's the picture to get the kids to school safe.

And that corridor will be much safer because there's going to be an additional crosswalk at University, crossing Bird Road, to be able to use the bridge.

to get over the waterway, and then you have to come back. I know it's uncomfortable, but it's better than what we're doing right now, where you're trying to do the, you have to be a ballerina to walk next to that guardrail and try to cross the waterway. Extremely dangerous, okay?

Thank you.

So speaking of bridges, the next project is bridge repairs and improvements. So this request is 615,000. Our recommendation is to fund the full 615,000. We also do have a grant for some bridges, and so this will allow the department to continue the work that they're doing on repairing the necessary repairs at the bridges. And so the total for this category is $4.13 million, and we are currently recommending funding the entirety of this category. Like I mentioned before, $1 million coming from roadway, $800,000 from the country club fund, which is transferred from the general fund, and the remainder coming from recurring general money. Senate, the next section is utility improvements. And so all of the projects in this category are funded from the respective systems. And so these are for our sanitary sewer and our stormwater systems. These projects mostly deal with the repairs needed and the replacement within those programs. And so the full ask for this category is $11.3 million. Of that number, $5 million of it is for the sea level rise mitigation program. That is a separate fee that is collected as part of the water bills. And as the mayor mentioned yesterday, we have a goal of $100 million by fiscal year 2040. And so this will continue funding that goal. And so currently both of the systems have sufficient revenue to fund all of the projects, and so we recommend funding all of the projects. If there's not any questions, I'll continue on to the next category.

I have a question.

Okay.

Maybe just a conversation with the manager. As we have a little bit more information in regards to what's coming out of Tallahassee, And what are going to be the final requirements? I know everything is kind of in flux. We're learning every day. We're constantly getting updates from your team in regards to what's happening and what the approvals are at the House and Senate levels. I mentioned yesterday, this is probably one of the issues that we probably wouldn't be able to fund in an effort to continue funding major projects that, again, this is a quality of life issue. I'm not denying it. We're also doing something that I don't think any other city in the country is doing that I'm aware of. And we've been doing it since I got here. We are hands tied legally anyway in regards to continuing to fund this line item and being able to use a portion of the money that we have placed on this line item in our budget this year for maybe something else that may be needed.

This is coming from the reserve, from this enterprise fund. So I think there's nothing that we can do because it's coming from the sanitary sewer storm sewer enterprise fund. So the blue area is something that we cannot touch for the general fund.

Mayor.

I'm just trying to talk about it now because we may have to start moving around quickly in regards to certain things that we're going to fund that may not fund. As we continue to hear more throughout the budget process, we're going to be hearing more, obviously, from Tallahassee. And obviously, if it does get approved in November, which we'll think it will, we're going to have to take action. Maybe not in this budget cycle, but for sure in the next budget cycle, we're going to have to move things around.

To the mayor? Yes. Is there anything that we are currently using general fund for where these funds could replace the general fund dollars that are being used? So we're not taking it to use in the general fund, but are there any projects that we're currently budgeting from general fund that could use this funding for? Because I know it's earmarked for specific purpose. Is there anything that we could replace it with?

So I don't believe that any of the projects that we fund in the general fund would be considered mitigation for sea level rise, which is the current legislation that allows us to charge and collect this revenue. And so I believe I'd have to look back, whether it's a resolution or an ordinance, I want to say it's probably a resolution establishing this program and whether there's any leeway in changing that, we'd have to really look at that. As it currently stands, taking this funding and using it outside of the system certainly would not be an option within the system. You may say, Well, there are some things that we now believe would mitigate sea level rise right within the project. So but The remaining projects within this category are also funded from the revenue that we receive. So the way that things are written now and how the legislation for this is written, I don't believe that we have any leeway. We can certainly evaluate whether there is something that we can determine another use for. I don't believe that it would mitigate the impact of our property tax revenue. in this manner.

My whole intention is very simple. It's to start having a conversation about flexibility. Because just like we put this year, I think $7.6 million of additional monies to pay down our pension, these are all conversations that we're going to have to have next year if in November this passes. All of these are on the table. Again, and I want to be very clear, I want to continue overfunding the pension. I think it's the right thing to do. Because once you leave here as an elected official, you want to hand the baton off to somebody and say, God willing, you'll have $25 million a year extra money to do great things for this community. But depending on what finally is the outcome and what actually hits the ballot box, we have to be, everything is potentially an option right now.

I guess, Mr. Mayor, something else that we can also consider is how we can adjust our lobbying in Tallahassee for potential changes on how we can use some of these funds going forward. to make sure that we're able to cover some of the expenses with the changes to the taxes. So there's no need to increase taxes or the burden on residents, just the flexibility of the use of some of this funding, which Tallahassee would have the ability to change. So I think that's more of a general conversation to have going forward. maybe something for us to start looking into as to which of these funds may have some sort of flexibility that can be granted to us and to other municipalities so that the funding can be used for some other projects that need to be covered.

Through the mayor. Yes, sir. Just to clarify, the sanitary sewer, this is sanitary sewer, storm sewer. We do augment this through grants, and we try to get as many grants as we can to make this go as far as it can. We do have a small reserve, but this is really geared for storm and sanitary sewer, and our projects there come from this enterprise fund.

Through the mayor. Yes, sir. And I've been the recipient, and I know some of you have been copying on it, about the need for drainage in certain areas. And this is an enterprise fund, meaning that this is what it can be used for, nothing more. You're not going to take this money and somehow replace it in the general budget, because there is a critical need for drainage improvement in certain areas. So you don't want to be robbing Peter to pay Paul and then have to pay Paul back to try to replace the funds. Some residents don't understand how this budget works. And they think it comes from the general fund to be able to fund the drainage projects. The last thing you want to do is take money from allocated funds that cannot be used because they're in an enterprise and start trying to explore other ways to use them. Because we're in a low-lying area. There's no doubt about that. We're not like the Lakeland area where you have 300, foot elevations, and we have to be mindful of that and be proactive going forward. So if we need to replace pumps, if we need to replace pipes and reline pipes, we need to be doing that on an ongoing basis because the infiltration that can happen, the pollution that can happen under our waterways is significant. quality of life piece. So while there might be some flexibility in other areas to determine how we deal with the budget, I don't think this is one of them. Okay.

So as I mentioned, this category is completely funded. As the manager mentioned, the funding is coming from the system, and there is currently a small amount funded from a grant that we have expecting next year. We also, in this category, I'm sorry, last year I included at this point appropriations that we thought we were going to receive and then had to back them out after they were vetoed. So I took a different approach this year. I did not include in this presentation the appropriations that we believe we're going to receive. when i'm going to say i'm going to be positive and i'm going to say when we receive those confirmation that those appropriations are coming i will then incorporate them into this budget and when i get a little bit further down i'll talk about some of those but we're expecting an appropriation for 450 for gravity sanitary sewer pipe rehabilitation We're expecting $400,000 for traffic calming and safety improvements. We're expecting $225,000 for downtown drainage and flood mitigation, and $225,000 for Ponce corridor waterway flood mitigation, as well as, and it'll be in the next section, $900,000 for environmental remediation of the debris site. And so I'll talk about that a little bit when we get to that project.

Thank you.

My pleasure.

So going on to the next section. So the next two sections, I always consider a little bit more of decision points from staff and from the Commission as to what we prioritize funding for now. So this section, the green section, is the recurring projects. These are projects that we try to fund on a recurring basis. These are projects that generally require an investment every year, and so where there is funding available, we try our best to fund each one of these. The next section is more one-time projects, but these are the recurring. So the first project is the citywide litter receptacles. This is to replace litter receptacles throughout the city. They currently have funding to complete the replacement of litter receptacles down Ponce de Leon. Many of them were replaced with the last mile project. And so their request is for 25,000. At this time we did not recommend funding that amount. Although small, we feel like it can go somewhere else. Waterproofing of historic facilities and non-historic facilities. This is a project that we created the direction of the manager a few years ago because preserving the envelope of our facilities is very important to preserving our facilities overall. We have not been able, although we have not been able to fund this project significantly or these projects significantly, we do include it in our major renovations. So for instance, in the city hall project, we will waterproof and seal that building when it is complete. So just because we're not funding it here doesn't mean it won't be in the major project. And we would expect to do so with any other major project that we do for a facility that needs it. You will see later on that we are funding public works facilities. So we are funding the, some of the work that's being done there will be the ceiling of that building through painting the building. ADA remediations at city facilities. And so over the years, we have identified many ADA improvements that are needed, things as small as moving the height of a toilet paper holder to doors or entryways. Most of the money that was in the project this year has gone towards ADA improvements in the youth center. $200,000 is being proposed, much of that to go to the youth center again. And we spoke about that earlier in the meeting. Optimize energy and water efficiency at city facilities. This is funding that we have used in prior years to improve the lighting, to make things more energy efficient, to improve our water usage. And the $100,000 being proposed, I believe, is for work to be done at the public works facility to also optimize that facility. So things as simple as changing the hand dryers in the building make a difference. We've seen savings in electricity and water through these improvements over the years. We're recommending funding that. Citywide environmental remediation, this is the project that I was referring to. So in the prior funding, we were able to fund some remediation that was needed at the golf course. The ask is for 1.3 million dollars, the majority of that is for the remediation at the waste transfer center, I'm sorry, at the location next to 72nd Avenue, the old transfer center. So because we believe we're getting this appropriation, we have currently recommended funding the 1.3 million dollars. If we don't get that appropriation, we probably will come back and not recommend that because we will not be able to complete that project without that supplemental funding.

Madam Director, how much appropriations did we receive from Tallahassee last year? Do you remember?

I believe they vetoed everything except for $725,000.

And the year before, I think it was zero, correct?

That we would have to double check.

Yeah, I think it was zero and then 750. So this is a pretty significant step up for us in regards to appropriations.

Yes, it would be.

Congratulations, Mr. Manager. Well done so far and your team and our government affairs director for doing a really good job. Yes.

It would total $2.2 million this year if we receive all of them.

It's almost three times more than we got last year.

Yes.

That's more than three times, excuse me.

since the next larger one was what we received, the mobility hub. Yeah. And we also got some federal funding. The year before that. And we also got some federal funding. And the Venetian pool.

Coming too.

Yes.

That's correct, Mayor, $2.5 million federal funding. Great. Okay.

maintenance of historic facilities. This is funding that we allocate based on a resolution that the Commission passed two years ago. What we have committed is that each year we would fund that and we would recommend where what facility that 50,000 should go to. And so you saw in the earlier side that we have a significant need in the alhambra water tower and some need in the gondola building and so The $50,000 I think would go the longest way in the gondola building So if the Commission agrees we'll use this $50,000 towards the $200,000 that we were putting towards the gondola building free that $50,000 up and put it somewhere else where there's a need My colleagues have any issues

I don't, through the mayor, I don't have any issue with that. It would be nice to get that project finished.

Yep. And I'm actually happy that we're able to move the gondola building. I think that's a big deal.

Yes.

Huge. That letter paid dividends.

Yes, it did. Thank you.

So we were able to, you know, get the State House and the Senate to cooperate and the governor to cooperate on that front. And I think it's going to pay more dividends to move that gondola building to the new location. Yes. And actually get some use out of it and not get hit by golf balls if you go out there to use it.

We agree. Purchase of land. So I'm sorry, I skipped installation of multi-space pay stations. And so previously this project was implemented to replace the single meters with the pay stations. And so now we have made a significant progress on doing that. I believe there's only a, I'm going to call it a handful, but maybe a hundred or so. 154 exactly of meters that exist. The funding is now being used for the replacement of those pay stations that are beginning to age out. And so as they continue to identify locations where stations can be implemented, they are now starting to replace those stations that have become older. And so we recommend funding that. That will come from the parking fund. The next project is the Miracle Mile, Giralda streetscape maintenance program. And so that is the replacement of the pavers, $250,000. We've discussed this, but we know that as long as they're there, we need to continue maintaining them and replacing them. And so we recommend funding that. That will also come from the parking fund.

So if I may, this is another one that again, it's painful. Obviously the manager and I, not that we disagree on it, but at the end of the day, it's just painful. This is another one that's going to have to be really considered whether we can afford it once we know exactly what happens with Tallahassee and the outcome of it. Because again, is it going to look as beautiful as it looks right now? Obviously not. But if we were just to asphalt and stripe it, we'd probably get five, six, seven years out of it. So this is one of the things that, again, we'd have to have real conversations about because $250,000 is a lot of money.

To the mayor? Yes. I see that there's $580,000 in that fund right now, not assigned to an open PO. Do we need to appropriate the additional $250,000 if we currently have $580,000 in there, or are we expecting to run through those $580,000 in this coming fiscal year?

Let me give you an example why it's important not to touch that line item. I was here. None of you were here. Thank God, because at the end of the day, you wouldn't have wanted to deal with what I had to deal with at that point. Save yourself the brain damage and save yourself everybody thinking that. I got calls along with the manager. Remember those days? If you go curbless, all the stores are going to be flooded. to be flooding everywhere it was caused every single day it was written on the blogs one of the worst decisions ever made this is this is malpractice how could we do that people are going to be hit by the cars as they park because there's no curb there not one person's been hit by a car there hasn't been flooding and we've actually gone through a hurricane that's why we have to be careful where we get our information from trust in the professionals So my point is, why do I think we shouldn't touch that money? Number one, I think we're going to have to see significant repairs. It's been 10 years since we did Miracle Mile. And I think that there's going to have to be significant repairs around certain areas, especially on the crosswalks near McBride Park. You see that there's been some separation of pavers. All those areas are going to have to be redone. And I also think it's important, too, because we may have to come to the table and collaborate with partners like Regions Bank, and we may have to collaborate with other individuals, for example, that have certain covenants that we may have to proffer to be able to work in partnership with them and concert with them in an effort to get away from tiles that are outdated or that are currently ADA issues. And I recommend and I ask everyone on the Commission, please, even the directors here, to take a moment, if you can, and go in front of Regions Bank so you can see firsthand what I'm talking about. You're missing tile. It's a very difficult scenario. And again, there's a covenant in place, which is something that I worked on in a memo with Laura in my office. And we have to find a solution for that. So I think that we have a dedicated revenue stream there. And I think we need to provide as much maintenance as possible to Miracle Mile. And the manager may have to use that additional revenue that's in that line item to provide that maintenance across the board from just deep pavers, maybe there's a lighting issue Maybe there's a curb issue. One of the things that we're having a lot of trouble with, and I talk to the DCM about it all the time, is we have a real problem in front of Mia Cucina with a manhole that's been hit probably five or six times. And it's popped the manhole because it's in a position as cars are parking, they put too much pressure on the curb and it pops a manhole cover. And the manhole cover is basically half in the street, half out. So staff has to go there continuously to find solutions on that. on that front so it's a continued maintenance effort and we've been very lucky over the first 10 years that we haven't had major issues but i i think that keeping a little bit money there in reserves will result in us not having to go find that money later when the manager needs it

Hello, Mayor. Yes, sir. Miracle Mile and Geraldo are very high-end streets. I forgot about Geraldo, excuse me. Yes, they're very high-end streets and resetting pavers, as you mentioned, not only in the crosswalks, but also we have a lot of pavers that have to be reset We have block by block that does continuous maintenance. So it's a beautiful, it's probably one of the most beautiful streets in the country. It's using quartzite, which is a very, very high-end material, but it does require maintenance. Thank you.

And I'm sorry, just to that point, Hermes reminded me that he is in the process of procuring replacement tiles and is probably going to burn through most of that money this year.

Right. So through the mayor. So, City Manager, when it comes to the time to talk about just the crosswalk portion again, maybe we need to evaluate the cost. of repairing those again versus going to asphalt or just cement one way or the other so it's safer to cross. Regarding pavers, cement, asphalt, anything that you do as a surface, it's always going to require some maintenance. There's plenty of locations I've looked at, University of Miami, everywhere. Pavers require maintenance. Asphalt requires maintenance. Tree roots will affect all of those surfaces and cement. It's inevitable that we have to take care of these things.

Through the Mayor?

Yes, sir.

The thing to weigh is that, Vice Mayor, is that we spent about $24 million on that project. So one of the most beautiful streets in the country, I think. I'm not sure whether the street has a court site as a paver. interesting because it's working quite well in the parking area, but it doesn't take a lot of the dynamic loading on the crosswalks. We have sourced it and we're maintaining a good portion of it in public works so we can repair it quickly. However, it will be a downgrading look on the crosswalks and that's something that I think the mayor and I have talked about a number of times, a number of times on that project. So it's an interesting dynamic between what we spent, what the look is and what the repair, but it doesn't fare as well in dynamic loading as it does in the parking areas is doing fine. Because you don't have that hit, you don't have the major trucks going through it. We've tried different systems. We've tried, we have a little more success down here with a different grout.

I mentioned that. It's been holding up.

So let's see how that works.

Mayor, maybe when you have your engineering symposium, we can discuss that as well as the... pedestrian scramble type of intersections.

Good idea.

The next project is purchase of land. And so this project, we have listed the request at a half a million dollars, which is the amount that we tried to fund in prior years. For the last couple of years, however, we have only funded this up until the available park impact fees that are dedicated for purchase of land. And so as of April 30th, the available Impact fees is $167,000. As we update those numbers throughout the budget process, we recommend funding this at whatever that available fund is when we finalize the budget in September.

Can I add something to that, please?

Absolutely.

So I just want to put something for the record. So this is a line item that I placed on the agenda, excuse me, on the budget years ago, along with the park impact fees legislation that passed. That park impact fees legislation has been used to receive monies through permit fees, and then we've been able to purchase a lot of parks in the residential neighborhoods as a result of that. Over the last few years, we basically zeroed out this line item in the budget, which has been perfectly fine. It's something obviously that I would want to see funded because I think it's critically important. But at the end of the day, there's never enough money in the budget. I would like to see us funded this year, but I'm more than willing to zero it out again if it's required as a result of the simple fact that we've gotten a lot of parks, five in the downtown right now coming. And when you include what we're doing with Palm Circle Park, it's basically a new park, six parks. All these pieces of land have been deeded to the city via much negotiations with the manager and myself. And right now, pretty soon, I think in the next few days, we'll be announcing something very big that we've been working on, the manager and I, for the last 10 years. And it's finally coming in for a landing, and I'm very excited about that. So if we need the money for something else that the manager dictates is appropriate, I don't have a problem zeroing it out again. We have money coming in via the mechanism of permits, and then we've also been able to Publix, you know, the Cadre, Colina project, the Boschetti project, the one adjacent to the Plaza, that's four. I know I'm missing one more. You know, these were projects that, again, you're talking about tens of millions of dollars of property that are now in the city coffers that have been deeded over to the city. These are amazing locations that are going to be transformational for our downtown, including the over $12 million that we're spending on Ponce Circle Park, which is going to be something brand new. Oh, and I forgot the adjacent park. to the Trammell Crow site. That's the fifth site with the beautiful Vaughn Spann artwork that's going there. So those are the five sites in our downtown that have taken our downtown from having one open space and now having six, and if you include McBride Park, which we don't own, is seven open spaces.

And we have the rooftop park at the Mobility Home.

And the rooftop park at the Mobility Home. So I'm willing to zero it out if my colleagues have something else that they deem appropriate. I have a few items here that we can talk about later, later that I think are important. And maybe we can just kind of tally up things that we believe we could move some money around as long as the manager is fine with it. I know it's not a lot of money, it's one hundred and something thousand dollars, but a hundred here, one hundred there, two hundred thousand. I'm not sure.

Did you mention the lot across from Salvador Park? that we purchased as well.

We did, we did. But I did not mention that because it's not in the downtown. Right. But that money, again, came. That money from Salvador Park that we purchased for $3 million, that came from where? Where was that money coming from?

From the park.

That's Valencia, right?

Yes.

So 1.8 of that came from this impact fee.

Okay, so that's why the line item is so depleted. Right.

The current balance is a 2.5.

Which is okay. No, I didn't include that because I didn't mention Residential neighborhoods. I'm only mentioning obviously the downtown. I'm very excited about the fact that in the residential neighborhoods. We have a linear different Projects excuse me parks that we've been able to buy using using this this fee that we garner through permits And I hope that we continue to buy in areas that are better appropriate But I want to I want to and we're not talking about this But I just want to put it on my colleagues minds as we finalize this discussion today I would like to spend five or ten minutes to talk about Projects that we deem appropriate so that over the next few months we can start working on this. And if we can build some consensus on these projects that we deem appropriate, maybe we can fund these one way or another. We may not be able to fund any. But here, how much is in the parks acquisition fund?

So $167,000, but that is coming from the park impact fee, which is only for pitches of land.

So we don't really have any money.

And the $50,000 that we're going to redirect from the government.

We used to put $500,000 from the budget and have the impact fee. So there's really no money. So I take that back.

Okay, I'll still do what I can I love you don't worry.

It's okay.

The mayor and if you recall we use also the money from doctors hospital. Yes to acquire.

Yes, we did the problem that is great shows because I put a caveat in the final. Negotiation that that money cannot be using a general fund had to be used to acquire thank you for reminding me I completely forgot about that. Thank you.

I appreciate your openness to try and find ways to fund things.

Been a long time here. We're just trying to figure out things, how we can make the city better. Thank you.

If there's no other questions on that item, Coral Gables Country Club improvements. So this project, the request was increased to $1.6 million. The majority of this project is to address the pool area, the structural renovations at the pool area. And so we are recommending it's for the pool deck, the tennis area, and for restroom improvements, as well as some equipment improvements. lease that we have maintenance lease so we recommend funding this it is funded in the country club fund but that funding is being transferred from general fund revenue

For the mayor? Yes. This is an underground vault that's below the pool. The fact that the air evacuation system was not operational and it was full of chloride below, just destroyed structurally. So we have a shore down and we need to reconstruct that entire underground vault, unfortunately.

Perfect.

The next project is $300,000 for the Granada Golf Course improvements, and so that includes a master plan and the renovation of a pump house that is visible to the public and is in pretty bad shape. Originally, the request was to do some repairs within the Granada Golf Course. However, staff has identified that there's a significant amount of things that need to be done. The better discussion was to have a master plan Developed so that we can really look at what needs to be done and the timing of each and that way we're planning ahead so we can have you know a plan for funding and a plan for operating and

Mr. Manager, that master plan includes the Boy and Girl Scouts area?

It includes the entire site. The tennis center is really in good shape. Our maintenance warehouse is not in good shape. The plan includes the entire site holistically.

Good. Quick question. That pump station renovation, is that located on Coral Way?

Yes.

That's the corner of the corridor that currently is taped off.

Yes.

Much needed. And that's been, I've had many emails about that in reference to what's going on with that area.

So we recommend funding that $300,000 for both of those items. It is also listed under the Country Club Fund, but that'll come from general fund revenue.

Okay, thank you.

So the next project is LPR speed trailers. So this is something that we try to fund the replacement or purchase of those each year. It's a modest request of $10,000, but we're not recommending funding it at this time. There is some funding available for those purchases currently. Body worn cameras so this program is a program that is that has a significant cost to it But it is essentially a requirement of our public safety at this point And so now that we've implemented this this is the cost that we bear so eight hundred thousand dollars annually The cost increases slightly each year, but we are recommending funding it because it is a requirement of our life safety I Park AED camera surveillance stations. And so this is a project that we funded a couple of years ago. We have begun putting those AEDs. What we have done now is we've incorporated the installation of those as part of park projects. And so we are not requesting specific individual funding for this project, but where a park is being renovated, we are including that within the renovation of those parks. Citywide alleyway and paving improvements. I'm going to take a moment and just scroll up so it's easier to see. Citywide alleyway paving improvements, $200,000 is the ask. This is something that we try to fund each year. So we are recommending funding the $200,000. New sidewalk installations, we spoke about. The request is for 750, similar funding as last year. And so we are recommending funding that both out of the general fund and out of mobility impact fees at the $51,000 that is currently available. So similar to the purchase of land as mobility park impact fees come available throughout this year, we will identify if we can replace any of the general fund funding in these projects with mobility or other impact fees that these projects would qualify for. So with this, we recommend funding the full $750,000. Sidewalk extensions and crosswalk installations. And so as we spoke, we're recommending funding the $250,000 requested. Citywide street resurfacing program. And so there is a significant need throughout the city to resurface. This is an ongoing requirement. We try to fund as much as possible each year. Last year, we were able to fund half a million. We are recommending funding the full million dollars this year. I'm going to skip channel markers. That has funding, and we only really need it when we have to replace a significant number, usually after a storm. Citywide traffic calming program. And so I know that this is one that we've spoken at length about. So the request this year was to fund $1.4 million. Last year, we funded $700,000. And this project and the street resurfacing project, so before June 1, we were not expecting to be able to fund these projects at the level that we're recommending now. Because we received a greater increase in our property values, like I stated at the beginning of this meeting, we recommend funding capital with these dollars so that in future years, if those dollars are not recurring, we'll have to remove it from capital first. So we were able to now fund this at the full amount of 1.4 million dollars. Some of that coming from the roadway revenue that we spoke about earlier. Miracle Mile streetscape improvements, there's no additional funding request for this year. Giralda Avenue tree gate installation, so this is something that we've already begun within funding that we have available. The department's asking for $120,000 to continue implementing tree grates along the Giralda Avenue, partially to protect those pavers that we've talked about. Street tree succession plan. So this is a project that we try to fund each year. However, landscaping does receive funding for tree mitigation. So when somebody is not planting a tree, and they're as part of their renovation or remodeling, they have an opportunity to pay into this fund. And thankfully, they have a build up of funding currently that they can use towards this. So at this time, we're not recommending funding that project. So the total ask for the total recurring projects was 10.9, just over $10.9 million. And I'm going to go over to the last column and show you that all but $2.2 million is not being recommended for funding at this time. And so the tree grates, the LPRs, a portion of the $300,000 that we won't fund for purchase of land unless more money becomes available, $30,000 for some of the environmental remediation and the replacement of litter cans because we have funding. the waterproofing of historic and non-historic buildings. And so that's what makes up those $2.2 million that we are not recommending funding at this time.

Mayor, I do have a question. The Biltmore Way streetscape, which is basically the installation of trees, is that project impacted at all based upon the recommendation of not adding additional monies into street succession plan?

I'm going to say that it is not, but I'm going to. Is that a separate project? It's a separate project, right? So the build more streetscape is a separate project that I'm looking forward here on the list. OK. In the back. Yes, it is the last.

Vice-President, this is to keep our urban forest current. Right. There's a small percentage of trees that have to be replaced every year. We have 42,000 of them.

Yeah, this is not really a replacement program job. It's an expansion. But I just wanted to make sure we had clarity because I know a lot of people are looking forward to this.

It's in a later section. It's towards the end of the section. And there is funding currently available, as DCM Gomez mentioned. There is not new funding being requested. And we'll get to that towards the end of the discussion, if that's OK. To the mayor.

Yes. Vice mayor, the projects are funded completely, each individual one, including landscaping.

So moving on to the last section, but also the one that has the most projects. So sorry, um, one time, you know, completely transparent, uh, one time multi-year projects. So these are projects that have, uh, either our one time or have a multi-year need. Um, many of these projects are really decision points because, um, many times we're talking about funding a design, for a future construction that we would have to decide whether is feasible or not and so i'll begin going through those so wi-fi capital improvement no additional funding being requested that project is underway and is funded renovation of the coral gable cinema so 240 aragon so the 440 $442,000 that is in that project now includes the $100,000 that the commission allocated to the art cinema in a recent commission meeting. That full project will be funded both by the city and by the cinema. And so while there is a discussion of a renovation project, the full funding won't be reflected here. That will come from an outside source once an agreement is met. Citywide facility impact glass installation the $60,000 is for impact windows at the Girl Scout house And so we're recommending funding that we're able to recommend this because of the increase in property values so many of these projects as well Before Monday were not being funded because of the increase we were able to add some funding requests here or funding allocations Metal canopy structure for Public Works Fuel Station. They have been asking to replace the canopy for several years now. We recommend funding that so the $245,000 here would give them everything they need to be able to implement that. Public Works Facility.

Where is that?

I'm sorry, can you? That is where the employees gas up within the 72nd Avenue location. Okay. Yeah.

For the awning, you said, right?

Yes, it's a metal structure.

That's the cover of the fueling area. They're currently fueling without a cover. Okay.

Public works facility improvements. This is the project that I mentioned earlier. Although the public works facility is one of our newer facilities, it is beginning to age and therefore we need to start maintaining it so that it doesn't fall into that deterioration of an age per facility that we haven't maintained so last year we were able to give it some funding so that they could get some painting and some work done and so this year we recommend funding it as well so that they can continue painting they have several buildings within that facility and so this will allow them to continue doing that Renovation of Passport Facility is a project that's complete. There's a couple of minor items that need to be paid out, but that is completed. Public Works Maintenance Facility Warehouse 1 also was funded last year, is underway. Biochar Facility at 72nd Avenue. And so with the negotiation, the renegotiation, with the county for the west transfer station and the increase in rent that they are now paying us. The city manager has asked that we fund the existing increase of $740,000 towards a biochar facility at 72nd Avenue and to take the additional $1 million to what we previously received towards that project as well.

To the mayor yes, yes, so I would urge my colleagues, you know to support the allocation of these funds for the biochar and congratulate you, Peter and your team on negotiating a very. aggressive but fair resolution with the with the county it was brilliant well done.

I echo the sentiments of Commissioner Lara and I know the Vice Mayor is going to say the same. Again, this is proper, proper and appropriate planning. And I'll tell you why. We could easily take that extra million dollars that comes in from the county revenue as a result of the renegotiated agreement. for the waste transfer station with Miami-Dade County, which thank you for our District 6 Commissioner, Natalie Orbis, for helping us negotiate that and coming to an agreement with the manager. But I think it's appropriate to allocate it here because the faster we get this biochar facility up and running, in the long run, as garbage becomes even more costly, the green matter that we will be diverting from going to the landfill is more money in our pockets. So right now, as we're seeing, and the county just came out with their numbers right now. In regards to the impact of this new legislation tax package, they're talking about almost $700 million is going to come out of the county. It's a massive hit, and they're talking about detailing on social media. They were detailing where that money would come from and the potential implications of that $700 million loss in revenue. So to us, we've got to find ways, like the biochar facility, to be able to lower our costs. How do we lower our costs? Diverting green matter, and instead of going Facility like for example, Miami-Dade County where it either gets incinerated or goes into the landfill which by the way the landfill will be full in five years Well in five years and currently the incineration plant obviously is down because that was incinerated As you know the Covanta facility and I don't think it's gonna be up for I don't know how many years so The county's back is against the wall. So what are they gonna do? They're gonna end up raising fees They've got to find solutions to remove the garbage. So if we can divert the green matter, this is something that we started working on in 2017. The manager and I started working on this years ago. And finally, it's come to fruition with the help of my colleagues in the commission. I think that we can actually start saving money as we divert the green matter from landfills to the biochar facility.

Through the mayor?

Vice mayor.

And through the mayor. The effort here, too, is to bring down costs for residents because the garbage hauling fees are going to escalate at an exponential rate as we run out of landfill space. So that, together with composting programs like we have at the library, which is about 24% or 25% of our tipping on garbage, is stuff that's compostable. This way we can help bring down costs for residents on garbage fees in the future. It's about $1,300 per year per resident actual hit on the budget, right? Am I correct?

That is the current number. Next year's number will change and we will be presenting that to you as part of our July 1 presentation. So that is based on their current budget.

Current budget. So in other words, it's higher and you're saving that surprise for us for July 1.

Yes. This is the capital meeting. No, I just don't have that information with me yet. I'm just looking at your eyes and I'm like, oh my God.

Mayor, this issue is only going to get worse as landfills fill. And can you imagine having to actually rail garbage out of Dade County? What this provides is really a huge alternative. And when you use a biochar, the volumetrics are just incredible. You're taking something that has a lot of volume and completely minimizing it. Plus, this facility, 72nd Avenue, has rail. And this product can be used in low-grade concrete, low-grade asphalt, fertilizer. It just has quite a number of uses. We're also looking at potentially doing a research project with the University of Miami also for additional uses of biochar. We are working on a potential grant for that with the University of Miami Engineering Department.

Um, so an important aspect of this section is that, like I said, some of these are multi year projects and some of these are really decision points. And so since this is a five year capital plan, um, I have the columns hidden, uh, except for 2028. Many of these projects as we start to go down the list don't have funding requests in the current year, but. we would plan to do in future years and so that planning is all depending on available funding um and so as you as i go through i just wanted to make sure to point that out and a couple of them i will point out to you those numbers um so the biochar facility obviously we recommend funding it we have the available revenue to do so and so that's where we recommend putting that funding Unless there's any questions about some of these projects, I'll kind of go through them very quickly. Merrick House Repair Improvements, there's no additional funding requested for this year. Jean Ward Sculptures, Whiteway Light Restoration, those don't have any requests for additional funding. Those have some funding for the work that's being done there. The Venetian Pool Saltwater Intrusion Mitigation, This is a future project that has been discussed that the pool has issues with water intrusion. And eventually, we're going to have to do something to deal with that. This $600,000 that you see in 2028 is just a small piece of about 2.1, probably more than that by the time we get to it, of a project to deal with that. So at this time, we're not recommending moving forward with it. But we do have it listed as a future year need.

To the Vice Mayor? Yes. I just want to clarify that. What we have here is a saltwater intrusion line moving towards Venetia Pool. It's not there now. Venetia Pool gets fresh water every day. It's minimally treated. So as a saltwater intrusion line gets, if it does get to the Venetia Pool area, then we'll have a saltwater issue there. It might have to turn into a pool, into an actual pool. instead of the recycling that we do now. So it's interesting as to what's happening. It seems to have kind of stopped at that area short, and South Florida Water Management District and Durham are doing a good job in mitigating that. But if it moves, it's very close right now.

Thank you, sir. So again, there's not additional funding being asked for the Centennial Public Art Program or the Fink Building renovation. There are some small items that are being dealt, that are being performed at that building. Miracle Theater restoration, there is not a current request. However, there is future funding requests or plans for work that could be done at that theater. Coral Gables Museum Repairs, as you know, we committed the funding to match a grant, I want to say last year, if not the year before. And so staff is working with the museum to identify eligible grants and work out any details to be able to get them that funding. Alice haycock restoration and lighting, so this is a $25,000 that would come from a IPP to restore some lighting and do some restoration on the sculptures on coral way and build more way. Adler Gurir sculpture, $400,000. This would also come from AIPP. This is a item that was approved by the commission in 2025. And so we're recommending funding from AIPP for that. Installation of closed circuit television systems, that's work that's underway and we are not requesting any funding for that this year. Trolley depot fueling station, concrete slab, that was funded and there's just a minor amount pending in that project to be closed out. Mobility hub design and construction. I'm going to scroll up so this is clear. So the estimate that you see here of 69,000, I'm gonna unhide the total here just because this is relevant in this case. So the estimate of 69,800 includes current estimates for construction, which as the manager presented yesterday are still being negotiated And so this project is another project that as we know and was presented yesterday. We will not be funding Through this process, but will be funded from a special revenue bond Committing the parking fund parking funds that we have been building up the parking fund to absorb and so this is the Listed here for discussion and so that the so that we the public knows that we are planning this project I'm gonna hide that now Menorca Garage Design and Construction, so there is just a couple of pending items within the garage that are, so there's still just some pending funding, but no new requests for this location. Rooftop Solar Photovoltaic Canopy at Menorca Garage, this is a project that has been discussed. We are not currently funding that project. Development of Neighborhood Parks, we have some funding in there. that project nothing new being requested betsy adams park enhancement catalonia and durango park so this is where we get to the park section while the community would always like for us to renovate and enhance parks we're not able to fund or construct new and enhanced parks every year and so we begin planning which parks we could prioritize and when based on available funding and what other Projects we're working at at this time so currently there is not a request for these fundings from staff but we have put them in out years so that we keep track of them and we consider them as funding and and staff is Available for those if I may for the record as part of the negotiations that the manager and I worked on With the properties that are forthcoming in the downtown these parks

Are not going to cost the city a dollar not only for acquisition, but also for programming. Staff has done a wonderful job and I want to come in staff for working with these developers and ensuring that again. A standard of the city of Coral Gables in that already upheld, but surpassed. And you're going to see that in some of the projects that are forthcoming with some of the incredible art that's going to be installed. And a lot of the shade trees that I know the vice mayor worked on also to ensure that, you know, we have some real specimen trees in these areas. And it's something that will really make the city proud. So these are things that are not going to cost the city any money. Obviously, Pond Circle Park is going to cost the city significant, even though we have a lot of money that is forthcoming from developers that they've also as part of the negotiations with their projects. I just wanted to put that on the record.

Thank you. So Hammock Oaks Park is also listed here, but it has prior funding available.

I'm going to scroll up just so it's a little bit easier to follow.

So back to the top of the page on the screen, Merrick Park improvements. There's not currently any funding requested. This would be a future request. It's not on the screen. But in the future, the estimate is $1.3 million. So not something that we're recommending at this time. William and Leona Cooper and Nellie B. Moore Park. So that project has been funded and is underway. So you see the prior funding available there. Salcido Park Development. So this is the park just north of the public safety building along Salcido. And so the $158,000 is for design. and to begin discussions of what that piece of lot can be. It's currently being used as a staging area, so we don't recommend moving forward with construction at the time, but at least to begin the discussions of what that space could be used for. Mayor dorothy Thompson park that park has been constructed, there are some funding available to finish some items nothing new being requested for the current year. San Sebastian park enhancement, so this will be a project that we would want to consider in future years, and you could see that we begin talking about design and. That will be re evaluated as funding becomes available. I'm going to skip the Marsh, I'm sorry, Marsh Street, Place Street. I believe that that is a project that is contemplated in a much future year. That's why you don't see it at all. Yes, in 2029, about $200,000. The Manatee Overlook is a request for this year. We are not currently recommending funding for that, but we do have some other parks that we are recommending funding for.

Let me ask you a question in regards to the Manatee Overlook. That's adjacent to Coral Gables Senior High School, correct? I want to make sure we're on the same page. Can we at least, at a minimum, just put some grass down there and maybe to minimize the amount of parking that's done in that area because if you look at it it's a nice location where people can enjoy you know one of the waterways here in the city crow gables the manatees go there i always see people overlooking that it's a nice coral rock wall i think that we maybe spent a few thousand dollars there we could spruce it up and maybe we could put a curb there like a curb Just on that piece. I know that we don't want to have curbs everywhere, but I mean if we could just put a little curb and Maybe with a sidewalk We could potentially Spruce that that area up and you won't have cars parking there because right now it's a pit.

It's a gravel pit That is one of the sidewalk extension areas. So it might be just best to do it alone. Oh, oh he's his piece. Okay, I

Well, through the mayor, I wanted to say to you, I really appreciate you with so many things that are going on at the city at all times and with the massive budget that we're looking at. You take the time to focus on the Manatee Overlook. It's really impressive because I got to say, you live in the South, but you're concerned with everywhere. And I know that place very well because I used to push my kids around in strollers, and we would stop and overlook the manatees that would gather there in the wintertime. Maybe it was a little warmer there or whatnot, and it was something magical to see the manatee gather. It's a great area. Yeah, and your care and attention to try and put a little bit of sprucing there.

It's just awesome. Thank you for that. The vice mayor makes a good point. I mean, let's not spend good money when we add a sidewalk there. Obviously, maybe just for Mr. Manager for future consideration, a nice curb, like literally just from edge to edge of where the waterway is, just a curb there. And you can stop it. But a simple curb will stop cars from going in there because that's why it's a gravel pit road. Is that an issue of sunlight? Because there is sunlight there. So maybe we can talk to Ms. Bell and she can give us some guidance through the manager's office.

If I can recommend, so the fact that it's- Put it as a note.

I want to put it as a note when we do fund that sidewalk that we think about that as we design it.

Mayor, I think we have an idea.

Okay, cool.

So a couple of projects down- It just doesn't look like Coral Gables when you drive by it, as Commissioner Lara was noting. When you drive by it, it literally is, you have all these beautiful homes, and then it's gravel, and then it's homes, and you're like, why is that like that? It's because people park there.

So a couple of projects down marked as number 95 is the Coral Gables Senior High School Park. We had allocated $50,000 for some conceptual design, but there's now been work done there. And so it's not our, it's our opinion that the $50,000 is not necessarily necessary any longer for that purpose because they've made some improvements there and so what i would recommend is taking that fifty thousand dollars and moving it to the manatee outlook overlook because of the because it's adjacent to that area and doing some improvements i can't speak to the final improvements i'll leave that to uh the dcm and acm and and staff to decide with you why don't we why don't we think about this just for a second and leave it up to my colleagues

Since the vice mayor says there's going to be a sidewalk there, this doesn't really need that much improvement. It doesn't. All it needs is a sidewalk, which is exactly what Commissioner Arreola said, that kids can't walk to school. Well, they can, obviously, but they're walking on the grass and they're walking on the street. It needs a sidewalk with a simple curb in that little section. and just some green grass. Maybe you want to plant a beautiful oak tree, maybe a beautiful oak tree or two oak trees right in front on the overlook. I don't want to see any real programming there. It's a nice green space. You know who uses it a lot? The landscapers. That's where they park.

So, Mayor, we need to look at the infrastructure underneath. You can't plant an oak tree on top of a big drainage pipe. We can have further discussion with staff of what can be done. Just planting grass alone is not going to prevent people from pulling off. They're going to pull off. So we'll have to maybe look at some design to prevent people from pulling over the sidewalk. That's why I mentioned a curb. That's why the curb would be appropriate. And I would think in that area, too, design-wise, you might want to think about a wider sidewalk in the area. Because you're going to have more foot traffic, and you're going to have more bike traffic. And we'd rather keep people off the street. Perfect. I like it.

Through the Mayor. Yes, sir. So I would recommend that my colleagues support in keeping the 50,000 that have been segregated while we still try and work through what might be done at Coral Gables Senior High School with respect to perhaps a joint project, you know, to lease the park. I don't believe it's dead in the water. just hasn't moved with the speed that we all would want and it's an ongoing process you know with uh meetings that the the mayor and i mean the city manager and i have had with uh the chair marita rojas and the residents have come to talk to me about that um if we could just maybe keep it on just for one more turn one more cycle so that we can really exhaust and see if we can push something forward uh there have been vice mayor quite a bit of improvements at the high school no question about it you know you got the new um football field You've got a gymnasium that's coming, right? But there's no park in and around that area. Maybe something can be done there before we even consider doing any serious capital investment. The city needs to have clear, delineated use and rights over it. And that's the push and the pull that we're doing right now with the school board. So that's my request, is that we keep it for one more term.

Okay, so we can certainly.

Through the Mayor. Yes, sir. We can certainly keep that, Commissioner Lara. We thought it was something that was complete, but I guess from what you're telling us, it's not. However, when we do the sidewalk there, I think we can do a special treatment through that right of way. And I think we can incorporate it as part of the construction of that sidewalk, maybe do something a little enhanced right where the waterway right away is, and then come back to a regular sidewalk area. So I think we can incorporate that, Mayor, in that program, in that sidewalk program. Thank you. And keep the $50,000. Perfect.

Thank you. So I will work through the manager and staff to see what a good estimate would be to put in that project. So what comes out of this meeting, based on available funds, is going to go into our July 1 budget. So I will work with staff to see if there is funding, how much the estimate would be, and if there is funding. I will work to include it in the July 1 estimate, but if we're not able to include it in the July 1 estimate, we will continue working through September to see what the estimate is and fund it. So just so that, and we're going to talk about the list of projects and we'll see how all of that pans out. So just so that I state that clearly as to what will result from today's meeting. Citywide pickleball court installation. So there is not any additional funding being requested this year. There is a significant amount of funding in the project currently, and the majority of that was planned for the permanent courts at the Biltmore-Kurdike Center. And so with the move of the gondola building to that site, the space that would have been allocated to pickleball is not necessarily gonna be used. And so I know that staff and the manager plan to have those discussions as to what the broader pickleball conversation is and where pickleball sites will be. Currently, we are not recommending doing anything or allocating we're maintaining that monies and doing the and implementing those courts where where we have already agreed like Phillips Park is included in the Phillips Park project. And so there will be a forthcoming conversation on pickleball and where other sites can be with that funding. Coral Bay Park renovation enhancement. And so the request for $300,000 is to begin design. That is a park that is down south off of Complemental. And so it is a large park that would need significant renovation. And the future estimate for that park is upwards of almost $4 million for construction. So this would be to begin design and see what can be done at that park and what the actual cost would be. So we're recommending funding that at this moment. North Entrance Park, so we've talked much about this. That is the piece of land off of Ponce. This is already funded. I'm sorry, that's a future request of about $1.2 million in fiscal 28. Currently no funding going into that project. rotary park enhancement so this park is partially funded there's a 546 000 asked to complete the construction at that park that is that includes lighting enhancements of playground shaded play areas and landscaping and so we recommend funding that we were hoping to get a grant But the furt up grants that we typically get about two hundred thousand dollars per park for Was not funded this year by the state and therefore no grants were awarded And so that's one of the that's one of the items and excuse me, madam director I had on my list to make sure that was done the Rotary Park.

Yeah, dude. We're on design right now.

Mr Manager, where are we right now?

It's completed design is completed, correct? Yes, but when do you think we start on Rotary Park?

I It's in permitting now this would provide the funding for the construction to begin in October after October.

Yeah, we're we're moving forward for procurement now that we don't have a for that grant so procurements the next step so we've already completed the design and we've done community input we've done all that.

Perfect thank you.

Sorry, I was trying to use both the screen and the paper, and it's not really working out that good for me. OK. James and Sally Jude Park renovation, so $280,000. This is also for design for a future construction that you don't see on the screen, because right now we have it slated for 2029 of about $4 million for that park. This is the previous Sunrise Park. off of Douglas between Sunrise and Morningside. So we are recommending funding the design. We'll see when the construction would happen based on funding availability at that point. Ponce de Leon Park improvement, this is the small triangle off of Ponce de Leon, $250,000. We're recommending funding because this would go right along with the improvements that we're doing all up and down Ponce de Leon, moving into the Flagler section. And you'll see those projects a little bit further down. So we're recommending the $250,000 for this project. uh currently nothing for the diner renovations of that construction has been done as we've discussed salvador park improvements so the 350 000 here is for the tennis pro shop mainly for the tennis pro shop and so we're recommending funding that it's in pretty poor shape and needs um renovations um through the mayor we also have uh impact fees coming from ponte thank you

By the way, I also want to make sure that we're keeping tabs of when the agreement with Miami-Dade County is extinguished. I don't remember how many years were left on that agreement. How many? 20, 30? So we're around the corner. We're around the corner. And I think it's important that we also are as very careful as we are with the youth center to make sure that we allocate funds where residents get priority. As long as residents are getting priority, I'm more than willing to put the funds into those projects. I have a concern in putting any more money in projects where, again, residents are not receiving 110% of the preferred treatment that they deserve. So this is a case point. We spent a lot of money in this park already. We've done a lot of things. We just acquired a piece of land next door. This could be something very spectacular in the future, but I think we need to be very careful also. because the park is already very, very full, very full. And again, I hope that everybody enjoys our parks, everybody's welcome, but I also like to see that some of our neighbors who live next to us get preferential treatment.

Mayor? Yes, sir. We're being very, very careful with outside funding because of that. Very, very careful.

It's very tempting, very tempting, even though, as you see, funding is becoming more and less available. I think on this one, I wish we wouldn't have taken that money.

Thank you, sir. So we spoke a little bit about the next project already, the youth center improvements. We are recommending funding the $419,000, the majority of that going to the fire suppression system and the intercom system, which are necessary to continue housing the, you know, the children and the participants in our programming. Mr.

Manager, in regards to the youth center, can you do me a favor? Would you look at the batting cages just to make sure that they're just up to snuff? I'm not saying to replace all the batting cages. I'm just saying maybe we can, you know, pasar a la mano.

Yes.

And they were telling me some of the nets were torn and, you know, there was a few issues there. I want to make sure that we set up a little bit if we can. Maybe send one of the directors out there to take a look at it and just provide us an email in regards to what we could do. Yes, ma'am. Thank you.

we already spoke about the coral gables senior high project and we'll maintain the fifty thousand dollars that is in that project at this time blue road open space improvements and so as you know this park has a two-phase renovation this hundred and seventy thousand dollars will complete the second phase which um includes an overlook um and some other improvements in that area. And so we're recommending funding that at this time. We also were hoping to get a grant on that. We didn't get the FURDUP grant, but we are hoping to get another grant that we are going to be presenting on in the next couple of weeks. And so hopefully we'll get a grant to offset that cost. Ruth Bryan Owen Waterway Park renovation, $390,000. That $390,000 would complete the renovation of that park. Is that correct? And so we are recommending funding that for a total of $980,000 of funding into that park. JC Park enhancements. So while you don't see a request for funding in this year, that is one of the parks that we are looking at to identify when we would be able to do some enhancements on it. It would be about a $1.7, almost $2 million renovation between design and renovation. in a future year. Installation of closed circuit telephone televisions, security systems in the roadways. So as you know, we have implemented many CCTVs throughout the city, the $250,000 would allow us to continue that program and replace any items that are needed in the existing system. The construction of the public safety building, as you all know, is complete. There's a few items that are pending just with current staff that's in the building as we move out. There's some training room money that needs to be spent, so not too much money in the project, but there is about $350,000 in that project.

Could I make a request through the manager? One of the items that I brought up to the manager is the issue that when you talk about the public safety building, when you walk around it, there's some areas that need to be cleaned and just kept up, a brand new facility. For example, the windows, when you look at the windows on the side here on Salcedo, you look at the windows adjacent to this building right here, these windows outside, they need to be cleaned on a regular basis. The metal is tarnishing. And I know there's a lot of exposure to the sun and to the elements. But I think if we were able to clean it a little bit, we could get rid of some of the cobwebs, get rid of some of the issues there. And similar with the fire station on US 1. We need the firefighters. but really step up and at a minimum provide a checklist of issues that are with the facility. And we can keep these facilities up. When you drive by the facility on US 1, exterior walls are dirty. There's rust. You have the corner beads, and I've sent pictures as the corner beads of that area have major issues with rust. This is their home. This is their facility. They should want it to look its best. It's not just about the fire trucks looking their best. It's about the facility that they're in looking their best. And I'm also concerned about the upkeep of the interiors, kitchens, floors. Again, I would really like to see, because we have spent, when you add the public safety building, fire station on US 1, the parking garage adjacent to the public safety building, the new fire station 4, the remodeling of the fire station at Old Cutler, Mr. Manager, is it safe to say $150 million? Is that safe to say?

Yes. I mean, we've had so much facility cook.

$150 million just in those four facilities alone. I don't want to talk about other municipalities, but other municipalities are talking about passing out $450 million bonds to take care of their facilities. We talk a lot about pensions, and we talk a lot about we're also taking care of the pensions. We fight over these pension issues, but the firefighters have the best facilities in South Florida. No one can compare. At a minimum, the mayor of the city should not be driving by and taking pictures and sending them to the DCM saying, we need to address this, we need to address this, we need to address this. This is dirty. At a minimum. Again, if they're not going to do it, then we have to hire a company to do it for them. But if you go and you look at just, for example, from grade to eight feet up, the walls are so dirty on the US-1. I understand it's a working facility, but just like we spend time doing calisthenics and we spend time washing the trucks and we spend time, let's maintain the building. How much was that renovation, Mr. Manager?

It was over $20 million.

Over $20 million. The one on Sunset, it's a brand new facility. That facility should be impeccable. be picked up if there's an issue with maintenance we need to send notice to the manager the manager can provide in the budget season we have now four months correct correct me if i'm wrong how many months do we have before we ratify the budget four months three months four months if i need to know what you need to make sure that we're putting our best foot forward because it's a bad look for the city of Coral Gables when you have a $20 million facility that was just renovated. And if you'd like, I can walk it with you and I can show you where all the rust is and I can show you where all the walls are. It's not a good look. Those canopies where the cars are, they should be cleaned, hit it with a hose. We should spend the amount of time that we spend on our own personal appearance, we should spend that same also on the building. It's taxpayer money. So that's what I'm, it's a simple request. I mean, if you maintain things, again, at the end of the day, they last much longer. And you're the ones that are living there. So if we could, if I would like, through the manager, please, because you and I have talked about this and we're trying to get this, you know, to be something that, just a continuous maintenance issue. I would like to make sure that you provide us, after speaking with the fire department, and get from the fire department, what do they need? to provide us with information on issues of maintenance. Is it pressure cleaning? Is it routine meetings with your staff just to have a better understanding in regards to what we can do better? Will do, Mayor. Thank you, Mr. Manager. Thank you, because by the way, we turned the keys over. You did an amazing job. Station four, you turn it over, it's impeccable. I want it to remain impeccable. How much was that investment? $15 million was that?

Yeah, by the time it's finished, we've landed everything over $15 million. $15 million.

So, again, I just want to be very, very clear. I hate to be the bad guy who brings this up, but, you know, maintenance is crucial. It's not just about spending $15 million of city money. It's about maintaining it for the future because we're giving the best facilities the best opportunities for our employees to be able to deliver. but also our responsibility as employees and stewards of the city to make sure that we don't cost the city more money due to lack of maintenance. Thank you.

Thank you. So I've moved the construction of the new public safety building to the top of the screen, just for those who are following the charts. The next item is the police mobile command unit. No additional funding being requested. Fire Station 3 telecom tower reinforcement and enhancement, that's something that's been funding, and there's no additional funding needed at this time. Fire Station 1 apparatus bay doors, that's the fire station in this building. And so now that they have seen the great doors that are in Fire Station 4, the request is to put similar doors at this fire station. The doors in this fire station work fine maybe not as well as they're not as preferable they're easy to open the new fire station four they're easier to open but there is not any issues with the doors currently at this building and so staff's recommendation is that we try to get as much life out of the existing doors before we look at replacing them with new doors so we're not recommending funding those mr manager what's the price on those doors the request would be 700 000 to replace those doors

I can't see a justification, unless you're telling me the response times would be better, which they're already amazing. But if they could be better, then I could justify it, obviously. But $700,000 expenditure when we can't even, we're right now looking for pennies.

We'll be looking into that, Mayor. The fire station four doors are truly state-of-the-art and they're amazing. So they're the new standard. So it's going to take a little bit to redo, but they work fantastic.

Let's make sure we can eat off the ground of the building first before we start replacing doors that are less than five years old.

We will keep it as a tickler for future consideration, but we are not recommending funding it at this time. Emergency vehicle response intersection preemption system. And so this is something that we've been waiting on the county from. I know that there's been some communication on that. We currently don't have a request for additional funding at this time. Granada Plaza transportation improvements, we have that funded. We are not looking for any additional funding at this time. Going to scroll up because we now get more into transportation projects. So installation of bike infrastructure. So their request is for $300,000. We are currently recommending funding this. This would allow us to implement bike infrastructure in the Riviera area. And so that is currently recommended and funded from general funds at this time. Granada pedestrian infrastructure improvements from Bird Road to Ponce de Leon. And so as we talk about sidewalks and improvements in that area, this is one of the projects that we are talking about. This $1.7 million in this project comes from Miami-Dade impact fees. And so therefore, we have the funding to implement it. And we are funding it with those impact fees for next year. Granada pedestrian infrastructure improvements from DeSoto Boulevard to Byrd Road. This is the one that you were mentioning has a FDOT grant. And we have some money that's required for this fiscal year, $139,000. $109,000 of that would come from the grant, $30,000 from the city, with the future construction currently planned in 2030. But we are working with FDOT to see if we can get a commitment to fund that sooner. So right now when you look at the book you'll see it outlined in 2030 But as we work with them, we'll we'll move that if it if it comes to fruition. I South Gables neighborhood milling and resurfacing. So this is for milling and resurfacing in three areas. And I do have to look at my book for that. So it would be a request from Cocoa Plum, a request from Solano Prado, and there's one that I can never remember.

And Bella Vista.

So Bella Vista, Solano Prado and the Isles of Cocoa Plum. So that total ask is $2.6 million. Currently, we're not able to allocate funding towards that project. As additional funding becomes available, we will consider whether there's anything that can be allocated there. Biltmore Way streetscape improvements. The vice mayor brought up this project. There is no additional funding being requested at this time, but there is funding for that project in the areas that have been discussed and agreed on.

Quick question. Do we have any funding there for planning and for consultants, for design, anything else left there? I know we did a little bit of work already.

So currently the funding that's in this project is about 570,000, over 570,000, some of it encumbered for design and CEI services. There's a small amount for construction and there's just under $900,000 for landscaping. For the total that's in the project available of $1.5 million.

If I may ask you, and I leave this up to my colleagues on the commission, we don't have to talk about it today. Can we, this is one of the projects along with the north area of Ponce and 8th Street. You know, that area we just talked about Rotary Park, and I'm going to mention also the entrance feature on 37th Avenue and Ponce later. That's one of the projects that I want to bring up. These are two areas to me that are important. I willing over the next two to three years that I believe we should focus in on. I know that the costs are significant. Each one of these areas is probably $25 million, $20 million renovations. We've talked about multiple ways of dealing with the funding. I don't want to incur debt in regards to this project. But what I'd like to do is, at a minimum, get it to where we can have one or two or three conceptual drawings where the residents have given their input. And this is one, two, three. And these are the costs associated with it. And that way, we can at least start budgeting appropriately. I know that costs continue to go up. But at least we can start budgeting for it. We can move in that direction. Do you think that maybe over the next six months to a year, we can actually come up with enough information, enough community input to really deliver on actual design?

Mayor, we're looking at this project along with the sidewalk program. So it would be great to do it along with the sidewalk program. We saw what happened at Coral Way and Grinnell. It was a transformation of that intersection. We feel that this will be a transformation of that circle. And so we could look into a design and see and work on the design concept since the sidewalk is coming up in 28, 29, but it allows us to fund to fund, I think, this transition from the Soto Fountain all the way to Ponce de Leon.

But it also needs a median on Bill Moway. I mean, the median is something that we've talked about, but it's something that I think...

So through the mayor. We had plans and we got community input. I was present at the meeting. And because there was large consensus amongst the residents that were present that they wanted the trees and the sidewalk, I made the recommendation to staff that we break this down into pieces. Let's get the trees and the sidewalk first. I mean, and then we take the next step going forward. This street needs to be paved. There's a traffic study that yielded results recommending a traffic circle at Anderson and Biltmore Way that will help improve pedestrian safety. We've talked about a pedestrian crosswalk area. Further discussions need to be done about that regarding the feasibility based upon what the underground facilities are there and really the location of driveways and how close they are to driveways and where we can put a crosswalk somewhere between Anderson and the Segovia Circle so people don't have to run across the street. Certainly a median down the center I think would be helpful to help protect the pedestrians because it gives you sort of a waylay station to stop at while you're taking off getting across a very, very busy highway, especially in that section, to have a place to wait after you've gotten halfway across. There's a lot of traffic that comes from west to east. There's less that goes from east to west in one section, which gives us an opportunity because it's already been truncated down to one lane as you're heading heading west from the section east to the west. So we do have some plans, but I think we need to do this in steps and get the trees in first. And then people I know, a number of them have wanted to put some kind of a median in between, but we're going to need to grab some asphalt.

Maybe I wasn't clear on my point, but I know that we had plans. I went to one of the meetings also. But what I just want to say, I just want to get started on something.

Mayor? Yes. I'm sorry, Mayor. I thought you had jumped to item 136 on the Biltmore area. The improvements we're doing will improve traffic quite a bit, will improve pedestrian traffic also. We have some problems there because we have a parking garage, two parking garages and underneath that extend one into the right of way and one partially into the right of way. We even had to have a special fire plan for those buildings. We're looking at a potential median. We're also looking at some crosswalks there, but not signalized crosswalks. AND BECAUSE OF THE ACTUAL COST. HOWEVER, THE PLAN THAT THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT HAS WILL CERTAINLY IMPROVE THAT AREA FROM A CONGESTION POINT OF VIEW QUITE A BIT. BUT WE DO HAVE SOME ISSUES AS FAR AS TREES ARE CONCERNED. SOME OF THE TREES CANNOT BE PLACED IN SOME OF THOSE AREAS BECAUSE OF THE UNDERGROUND PARKING. ONE EXTENDS ALMOST INTO THE MIDDLE OF THE RIDEWAY. SO WE ARE PLANNING THAT WITH ALL THOSE IMPROVEMENTS IN MIND.

Thank you.

And I had just mentioned the, through the mayor? Yes. I had just mentioned 136, which was the DeSoto Fountain, which we're trying to look at as far as, along with that sidewalk program, which is the one I mentioned before.

Thank you. How are we doing on time? Do we have much more?

So we have 32 minutes, but I think Our goal was to end a little bit sooner, but I think we can get through the rest of it very quickly. So I will speak quicker. So the manager already spoke about the DeSoto Fountain Traffic Circle. We're recommending funding that design now so that we can line it up with the work that's being done on the Granada Pedestrian project. The next few projects are a little bit different than what was, well, very different than what was listed in your book, because in our discussions, we identified that much of the funding for the Ponce de Leon streetscapes going all the way from Merrick Park to the Flagler section, much of it was planned in our landscaping. on budget the citywide landscaping budget which is two projects down and so we separated the funding so that it was very clear what was going into the various Ponce de Leon phases and so you can see here that we have phase three so Ponce de Leon streetscape improvement phase three from Salamanca avenue to Antiquera avenue and that is the work that is being underway and being completed now The next plan is to continue on through the Flagler section. And so with the direction to also use the Ponce mobility impact fees towards that Flagler section, we'll talk a little bit about how that will impact this project and potentially any work that can be done with park improvements, et cetera, in that area. So we're recommending $400,000 for, I believe that's planning with future construction for the Flagler section. And then the next project is Bird Road to Merrick Park. So this is one of the projects that the funding was within the citywide landscaping project. We've separated it. And so the idea would be to do a significant amount of landscaping improvements and do some milling and resurfacing. There was talks about, you know, that area is very different as far as the median is concerned because of the angle parking. And so for right now, it's milling and resurfacing and landscaping that's being planned in that area. But as staff evaluates it, they'll continue to discuss what work exactly will be done there as it's a future phase that we're planning for. Going down the line, we then have Menorah Avenue to Alhambra Circle, so $340,000 for design and a future project of about $2.3 million. And then Alhambra Circle to Ponce Circle Park, design with a potential $2 million project in the future. And the idea is to get all of Ponce de Leon done and just not have, you know, piecemeal projects. So where funding is available, we're going to continue to fund this work. And staff is looking at exactly what improvements will be done in the future as they design those.

Through the Mayor, this takes care of Ponce de Leon from Flagler to US 1. Perfect.

Great work.

So we're recommending funding that. And where impact fees are available, we're allocating it. There are, I'll just take liberty very quickly to say that there are a few different mobility impact fees from a resolution that was passed a couple of years ago sponsored by you all was the, we separated the Biltmore section. So we've collected as of April $65,000, $66,000 in the Biltmore section. The craft section, $275,000 as of April. The Flagler section has a very small amount right now $1,300 hopefully that will change and we're putting that towards that Flagler section project and then now the resolution to Dedicate anything from Ponce 8 to the Flagler section as well So going down the line North pond streetscape planning we've already funded that Citywide landscaping and irrigation projects that is a much smaller ask than what you saw in your book because we've taken those items out This is then to address landscaping throughout the city and irrigation, which is very important So we are recommending funding That full amount? No, we are recommending funding $470,000 based on the funding availability, $200,000 short on the funding for that area. Miracle Mile Irrigation and Landscaping, however, so although we did not fully fund the citywide landscaping and irrigation, we have heard the need for irrigation and landscaping on Miracle Mile, so we are recommending fully funding that request of $510,000. LED streetlight conversion, so this is an effort that we've been undertaking for a couple of years So we recommend continuing to fund that conversion at three hundred and fifty thousand dollars And that is the last project that has new funding requests for next year And so you will see in this section the total request was 84 84 point four million dollars just under 84 point four million dollars and if I go to the last section the last two columns it You'll see that we're funding $10.4 million with a shortfall of 73. However, within that is the Mobility Hub project. So it's really not a good depiction of what we're funding. We are funding a significant amount of projects that will not go out for debt. Overall, we are funding $55.1 million. The funding that we are not being able to provide is 101. But again, that includes City Hall. the amount that will go to debt, and the mobility hub. So we have really been able to, particularly with the increase in property values, allocate a significant amount of money to the capital this year, very thoughtfully doing so to make sure that we're not funding additional recurring costs in our operating budget, anticipating what may come out of the final vote of the property taxes and having to reduce recurring funds in the operating. So while you all have been sharing with us your ideas of ways to get there in the next budget season, we are also thinking ahead and trying to mitigate the impact on our operating budget of what will likely pass at the next November election. So I know that you had some projects you want to talk about, so we can do that now.

So you've probably taken care of about probably about 60% of the projects already, so I'll be very brief. One of the things that I wanted to put before my colleagues, and it's something that we need to really address, we can continue to put our head in the sand and say that it'll figure itself out, but it's not going to figure itself out. The Granada Golf Course running path slash master plan. As part of the master plan that we're talking about, I think we should talk about a running path. I know that you're going to have people on one side that say, Vince, that's political suicide, and you have other people on the other side that are going to say, that's a great idea, and I understand that. But at the end of the day, what's, in my opinion, personal suicide is not doing anything. So you got to do something here. Because unless Chief Hudak is going to send his forces over there to push people onto the sidewalk or tell people to go home, we are a destination where people want to enjoy running and the outdoors, especially around the ground on a golf course. So we need to have something. Tommy Vince you put a running path on the golf course people are gonna hit by golf court by golf balls They're already running in that path very running on the street. So you run at your risk I'd rather do something that's a little bit more delineated and that is a path where people can actually the police can say or whoever's out there say listen, why don't you run on the path not run on the street and So that's one idea that I think at one point we had somebody who was interested in paying for a running path at a personal level. And I think that we didn't take advantage of that because we couldn't come to some sort of consensus.

So through the mayor, yes, I agree there is somebody that was interested and would have to re-approach that individual. We do need to talk about the type of surface, whether it's a rubberized surface or just asphalt to where perhaps we can have a better service going for the future. There's a number of areas with tree roots that we need to consider and what the impact would be on those, whether we put additional substrate on top of them to Over or not because some trees you can't do that So a few years ago.

I had it with the managers help we had it extended from a little area Coral Way adjacent Behind the behind the fountain where there's a path just died there And we extended it a little further so that people can actually have a surface to run on that's the asphalt That's runs on Coral Way, so I'd like to see a mr. Manager we can just in our next workshop, just have a conversation about what can we do here? You know, what do you think it will cost? What's an opportunity for that? Yeah.

We would like to include everything in that master plan. I think the master plan is a good time to discuss all these options, and that will be a discussion, since we're handling everything holistically, that's certainly part of the discussion of our overall Coral Gables Country Club golf course and tennis facility.

Perfect. Let's have a conversation there so that buys us some time to do it the right way. Another thing that I talked to the ACM about that was brought to my attention from a resident was the park cafe outdoor dining area. So why not potentially do just remove some of the landscaping, which is not major landscaping, and put like a little play area there adjacent to... to the window, not in front, not in front of the park, which faces Burger Bob's, but the adjacent area. Maybe we could do something that we could put some shrubs. We can put something where maybe some kids can play while the parents are having coffee or eating something. Again, something in line with resident approval. We're not talking about a jungle gym. We're not talking about anything crazy, just something simple so that, you know, kids can have a little bit of a good time there.

Mr. Manager, you'll recall there is something under design already for that area.

Yeah, but I want to talk about funding also, and I want to make sure that we have the funding on it. That's something that I've been working with the ACM for about a year now. Yes.

Mayor, I just wanted to highlight something that, you know, when the asphalt was laid around the Granada Golf Course in a place for individuals with disabilities to get connected to the sidewalk was not included. Staff has gone out on site with staff. We came up with a solution to be able to provide that connectivity. Again, we didn't keep everybody happy because something else was wanted, but we did do the ADA compliance there. So when we do this master plan, we need to be mindful of the connectivity for individuals that are using walkers, wheelchairs, any kind of rolling device, getting a safe place to cross, whether it be North Greenway or South Greenway, you have to have some good safe areas to cross.

Thank you. In regards to Sunrise Harbor Park, do we have any funds? I didn't catch it. Available for Sunrise Harbor Park? Because I've been talking to the residents there and they were talking about the basketball court is not really used and they wanted to transform it to pickleball.

Yes.

That's included?

We have $281,000 for design.

Okay. Can we come through the manager's office? Can we have a conversation about that? Fred, do you want to? Director, do you want to talk about that?

it was discussed it's just now sunrise park is known as jude park so then we did discuss it and so what we wanted to do is we wanted to get the financing for the design this year because it's going to be a an extensive project i just want to keep bringing that up because or or coral bay because coral bay and jude are two that are planned in the next two years one this year one next we currently recommended funding the design for the um

I'm sorry, that's a lie. The request was for $281,000. We did not currently recommend funding that one. He asked about the Coral Bay Park. We also did not recommend funding the design of Coral Bay Park. And part of the thought process on that, and while I think we understand the need, is that not knowing the funding availability next year We're trying to focus on funding projects that we know we can complete in a future year.

I completely understand.

And so while, you know, whatever prioritization the commission wants to give, we are funding some items that we may or may not, but we really sat down and thought about what could we actually complete depending on how much money we have.

The intent makes sense. Let's finish things. You know, going, we have some headwinds, let's finish things, and let's not be in a situation where we're planning 20 things.

And we've committed to the community at meetings, and then they expect it in the next year.

This is an easy one, okay? Abandoned parking meters citywide. This is a pet peeve of mine. Especially on ponds adjacent to the underline. How are we doing with that? Do we have funding for that? Or do you want the commission to go out there and do it ourselves? How would you like? Tell me.

Yes, that's within the multi-space. Our assistant parking director says that they're removing 200 right now, and there's another 150,000 that they intend on doing next year.

Tell me those are, tell me the part of those 200 are ponds. I see them every morning, and it just, when you see it next to the underlight of how beautiful it is, it's painful. Awesome, good stuff, thank you for that. For the public, they're going away with the renovation of block 12 and 16. Exciting to see that finally come to fruition. All right, two last ones. The Granada Fountain, beautiful project with the sidewalks and all that. Where are we with that right now, the conversation?

Granada Fountain status?

Yes, it's a, yes. WHATEVER YOU LIKE. I JUST THINK IT'S A BEAUTIFUL PROJECT.

IF SOMEBODY JUST WANTS TO COME UP SO I DON'T HAVE TO TRANSLATE.

WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS WE WANT TO FIRST RESTORE THE FOUNTAIN BEFORE WE DO ALL THOSE STREET IMPROVEMENTS. SO NUMBER ONE IS RESTORE THE FOUNTAIN TO THE STREET IMPROVEMENTS IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE SIDEWALK PROGRAM THAT'S GOING FROM GRANADA DESOTO FOUNTAIN TO PONCEL LEON. So in order to not destroy what we're building, we're looking at the restoration. If it's been hit by cars, it needs restoration. And so number one is restore the fountain and then do the whole DeSoto fountain. As I mentioned, I think Coral Way, GRANALA WAS A BEAUTIFUL TRANSFORMATION, EXCEPTIONAL AMOUNT OF ASPHALT AND TO DO THE SAME THING THERE IN CONJUNCTION AGAIN WITH THE AFTOP PROGRAM.

DO WE HAVE THAT FUNDED?

WE WILL BE FUNDING THE RESTORATION OF GRANALA FOUNTAIN.

We have already allocated the $1.4 million that we have from TDRs from public. Maybe we can use some money there.

We're thinking about using TDR money for the allocation. That's $1.4 million coming that we can use on that particular project. We're looking at the funding right now, but I do think that that funding from the public's part has to go to historical, and this will be a major, major upgrade TO GRANADA WHICH IS A VERY TO GRANADA WHICH IS A VERY TO GRANADA WHICH IS A VERY HISTORICAL STREET. HISTORICAL STREET.

HISTORICAL STREET.

OR THE GONZALEZ BUILDING OR OR THE GONZALEZ BUILDING OR OR THE GONZALEZ BUILDING OR THE ALHAMBRA WATER TURN. THE ALHAMBRA WATER TURN. THE ALHAMBRA WATER TURN. COMMISSIONER? COMMISSIONER? COMMISSIONER? BRIEFLY TO THE CITY MANAGER, BRIEFLY TO THE CITY MANAGER, BRIEFLY TO THE CITY MANAGER, IT DOES LOOK AMAZING, CORWA IT DOES LOOK AMAZING, CORWA IT DOES LOOK AMAZING, CORWA AND GRANADA, ESPECIALLY FUEL AND GRANADA, ESPECI What might be missing is there are two fountains out of three that are not functioning. If we can, just to complete that out, you know, it is such an important historical corner. Oh, okay, very good. Especially since we're gonna be doing DeSoto Fountain, that corridor right there, you know. Oh, there's a connection. Thank you, Joel.

Thank you. Okay. And the last one is the 37th Avenue and Alhambra entrance feature. I'm not talking about rotary. I'm talking about the space that has been used right now as a site to house, I guess, adjacent construction material and infrastructure and kind of stuff like that. How are we doing with that?

So the north entrance that is referred to on our documents as a north entrance park development, we currently have allocated a small amount of funding and prior years, we have not allocated funding for that we do have it on our list, as it is something that we would consider probably with the flagler improvements right.

Can I ask you a quick question?

I mean, yes, the ponds to Flagler.

Are you thinking about using it as a site to basically potentially hold construction material for the forthcoming project? That's why you don't want to build it now?

Yeah.

Staging? One of the things that I, and this is my opinion, again, whatever my colleagues want to do, when I negotiated that project with the manager and Margaret Garcia Serra, and we bought it from the developers, they were going to put four townhouses there. Instead of that, we ended up getting that beautiful entrance feature, the most northern piece of property in the city. I envisioned an entrance feature. Something very, very simple. I don't think we need to budget a lot of money here. I think it's a nice green space, plant some large trees that will grow, maybe something like fuel parks, something beautiful, and a very simple entrance feature that mimics what we have throughout the South. which is a Mediterranean-style columns with a little light feature. Somebody says, welcome to Coral Gables. Welcome to the neighborhood. Something simple. I'm not talking about a playground. There's 37th Avenue there. There's Alhambra. I don't think it's an area for kids to play. Again, you can throw a ball in there if you'd like, but at the end of the day, I think it's just a nice little entrance feature that will pay dividends. Another thing that since we're talking, this is the last thing I want to bring up because I know we have to go, is I would like to see, Mr. Manager, if you work with my colleagues on the commission, and let's figure out I've tried for years, and I would love to finish off here in the city being able to acquire this piece of land and leaving it in the hands of my colleagues here so they could do something with it. I would love to acquire the property on 57th Avenue and Byrd Road. We've been trying for years. I actually tried to negotiate at one point when it came up for sale. The property is, again, not in the best of states. I would like to see through your office if we could potentially reach out to that homeowner and say, would you be interested in selling it to the city? It would be an incredible piece. to the puzzle where we need an entrance feature there. We already have something that's going to happen on Ponce and 57th Avenue with University of Miami there with a church site. We could do something. We have Coral Way. We have Ace Tree. But I think what we're missing is that final piece on Byrd Road. It just doesn't look right. It doesn't look right. And I would love to be able to do something there.

We will look into it, Mayor. Our asset manager looking into that problem. Thank you.

And if you could just give me a report back in a few months, and the commission just saying what the status is. We've reached out to them. They've been interested. They haven't been interested. And it's a very small house on the corner there of Road and 57th Avenue. And again, I think if we make them a decent offer, I think they'll be willing to sell.

To the mayor?

Yes, sir.

And by the way, the Ponce project will be over $700,000 in parking impact fee, $160,000 in over 160 mobility fees. We can use the mobility for Ponce. After staging, after we use it for staging, we can use some of that additional impact fee to develop that corner park also. So, okay. To the mayor. That's what we have planned.

Two points. One, there's a historic drawing. It goes all the way back to, I think, Fink. of the North Flagler Ponce area. I think Anna Parenas has a copy of it, if you could share it with the mayor. I mean, that's the vision I've heard from the residents in the North Ponce area, that they would like to have that design implemented. and it would be compatible with the designs that we have on many other entrance features throughout the city. The second is the resolution that I brought through the impact fees on the Biltmore Way area. If you feel that we need to expand the borders, like the mayor expanded the borders to Ponce 8 to help fund the Flagler area, if you think we need to expand that further, please let me know. You know, whether that street cuts off, if we need to include a little more area to be able to get these projects that are critically important to not only the quality of life, but the appearance of our city as you drive to the Biltmore, you're going down Biltmore Way. It's a critically important corridor for everybody.

The mobility impact fees that are not specifically designated to an area can be used in any area. So as we evaluate available funding with the commission and make the recommendations, we can always bring in any available mobility impact fees that are not specifically designated to a project. So we can have those discussions even at that time without modifying the resolution. No, I realize that.

Residents are anxiously and rightfully anxiously awaiting these projects that have been waiting for decades to get done. So the more that we can funnel it in and get critical projects done like this that have been decades in the plans but never getting off the ground, we need to jumpstart them as much as possible.

Mr. Lara?

No, I just wanted to echo the same thing that there is a vision for the North Ponce that the residents have met with the vice mayor, with the mayor and myself as well, that is in Anna's hands, right? Supportive of that as well.

Perfect. Thank you. Okay. Mr. Manager, anything further for the good of the order?

I think we're finished.

Commission? I'm going to try something different. Staff, would you like to say anything? Anything you'd like to add for the record? Mr. Attorney, Mr. Clerk, nothing, just a nice smile?

OKAY. SO JUST IN CLOSING.

OH, YOU HAVE SOMETHING ELSE. YOU HAVEN'T HAD ENOUGH.

JUST IN CLOSING, THE RESULTS OF TODAY'S CONVERSATION WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE JULY 1 BUDGET ESTIMATE THAT WE WILL PROVIDE TO YOU BY JULY 1 AND DISCUSS AT OUR JULY 8 BUDGET HEARING. OKAY.

MOVE TO ADJOURN.

SECOND. MAY I HAVE A MOTION?

MOTION.

I HAVE A SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR?

AYE. THANK YOU.