2009-0416 Special City Commission Meeting

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Summary Minutes: Special City Commission Meeting April 16.2009 Sunny Isles Beach, Florida years come closer to 25,000, and with a next phase of development of the build-out of available sites, the City is looking at a population of somewhere between 35,000 to 45,000 people. We had basically 25 acres of park land west of Collins Avenue that was within immediate reach of about 80% of the population and that is not enough. It works out to be about .8 acres per 1,000 residents, and this is not counting the beach as it doesn't meet many of the diverse recreational activities that a community broadly seeks. In looking at the available land to come closer to the 2.75 acres per 1,000 per its Comprehensive Plan, it was felt that the City expand where possible. Mr. Luft said the Evaluation and Plan for Open Space and Recreation that he prepared last year dealt at that time with what we knew to be the existing inventory of public lands and parks. At this time we need to update this report with addenda that reflects this most recent acquisition of public land on Sunny Isles Boulevard, the one (1) acre that City Attorney Ottinot referenced, and be included in the Analysis so that the overall Plan would reflect and consider that new addition as it would impact the final recommendations. It is his finding that the basic recommendation for the acquisition of additional land in the vicinity of Sunny Isles Boulevard remains the top priority. He noted that he distributed an update of four sheets to that Open Space Master Plan, maps had been changed to reflect that added park space, addenda text has been added to the report to address how that additional space affected that Plan and its recommendations. The conclusion is that this one (1) acre addition brings us closer to achieving the ultimate objective of a parcel that would be 3 to 4 acres in size and would be capable of addressing some very significant needs, not the least of which is for major community gathering space and parking facilities that address both that new added space and existing facilities, specifically, the old historic pier and the planned restaurant that today has 29 parking spaces assigned to it, and it is going to be in need of additional secured public parking. The existing one acre that the City has is too far west to adequately serve that from a pedestrian outreach standpoint. It is over the 1,600 feet optimal walking distance, and it wouldn't be large enough to provide the parking and it would leave no room for anything else. The preferable location for additional parking facilities is closer to Collins Avenue where you can have it connected by a pedestrian bridge to the Pier, and service the park space to the west. He presented a rendering ofthe recommended area for the open space expansion from North Bay Road east toward Collins Avenue, between the east and west bound lanes of Sunny Isles Boulevard, the optimal and perhaps the only realistic location for achieving these critical public objectives for open space. Mr. Luft noted that the City has already invested over $4 Million in enhancing Sunny Isles Boulevard, preparing it as a true gateway for the community, and consistent with that, potential overpass connections for pedestrians to Town Center and to neighborhoods to the north as well as Collins A venue to the south. Make this a hub, it is really a huge point for the community where things can be connected, it has great visibility, good accessibility particularly from bus and transient serving your neighborhoods into this space. By adding this additional space to the east we can transform this one (1) acre park into a mixed-use public space with cultural recreational active community events. The recommendation has not changed, it has only reinforced the need that was presented to the City last year. 2