City of Miami District 2 - Commission Meeting

LEGISLATIVE NEWSLETTER

Commission Meeting

Sept 28, 2017

Dear Neighbor,

AMAZON!

Have you heard? Amazon is looking for a new headquarter city to complement their main offices in Seattle. I believe that Miami is the perfect partner for Amazon with our development capacity downtown and proximity to local, regional, and international transit. Amazon would bring 50,000 jobs to the area to employ the graduates of our many universities. They have invested over $30 billion dollars in the Seattle area over the past six years. This partnership could transform the City of Miami.

Many cities will bid on this relocation. Over the next week, as Vice Chairman of the City of Miami Commission, Chairman of the Omni Community Redevelopment Agency, and Chairman of the Downtown Development Authority, I am proffering resolutions in support of the Beacon Council’s proposal to attract Amazon, and offering the resources of my staff to help develop the bid package.

Hurricane recovery

Storm debris removal is not happening fast enough. The dangers posed by the debris in our streets is obvious. I will be bringing an urgent pocket resolution, directing the city manager to bring on more contractors and more quickly to help make the city safe and clean.

Budget

On Sept. 19, the Commission conducted its first budget hearing to discuss next year’s proposed budget. I am suggesting several amendments for my colleagues to consider at this week’s final budget hearing, which begins after 5 p.m.. These include:

Notification and Transparency

- Funding for an IT contractor to optimize all notification processes

Quality of Life

- Adding Code Compliance resources during nighttime hours to address noise and other issues

Homeless Outreach

- Hiring a Licensed Social Worker to help with Mental Health Homeless Outreach

- More funding for beds at Camillus House

Tree Protection

- Hiring an Environmental Resource Specialist to reduce the processing time for tree permits

- Specialized training for Code Compliance officers on the tree-specific sections of the City Code

Your Commissioner,

Ken Russell

City of Miami Commissioner

District 2

WHAT I'M SPONSORING

POCKET DISCUSSION

I will be bringing a pocket item to discuss Amazon’s recently announced request for proposals from cities for its proposed HQ2 (second corporate headquarters)

DISCUSSION ITEMS

DI.3: Following up on significant concerns raised by the Virginia Key Advisory Board and other stakeholders, I have brought a discussion item regarding plans for a FIND (Florida Inland Navigation District) Grant allocated for repairs along the water at the area of Virginia Key known as Jimbo’s Lagoon.

Full legislative summary here

FIRST READING ORDINANCE

FR.1: This ordinance would create additional licensing requirements and regulations related to immobilization/booting of cars in privately-owned parking lots.