The purpose of this memorandum is to provide a comprehensive report on the high-impact measures implemented by the City during the recent spring break period in March 2024.

The Administration is grateful to the Mayor and each City Commissioner for the leadership, guidance and determination demonstrated and provided in the year-long planning effort for the City’s high-impact measures. Without the legislative support for these measures, the City’s proactive strategy could not have succeeded. It is also prudent to highlight the significant contributions of City Manager Alina T. Hudak and the senior management team to developing and proposing a thoughtful plan and optimizing our resources to effectuate the same.

In the months leading up to spring break, multiple City departments met weekly to refine plans based on past history, changing projections with respect to crowd size, hotel occupancy rates, college schedules and publicized events. While some of the measures had been employed in the past, the totality of the 2024 spring break measures was unprecedented, particularly with respect to the “Miami Beach is Breaking Up with Spring Break” campaign that reached a global audience and garnered an estimated 19.8 billion media impressions.

The City Administration, residents and business leaders are generally in agreement that the 2024 spring break was the calmest in recent memory — with a visible reduction in crowd size, along with fewer incidents and arrests than in previous years, thanks to an overall strategy that emphasized public safety, traffic plans and enhanced staffing. While the total number of day-trip visitors appears to have declined from prior years, our hospitality industry has, anecdotally, noted the overall positive effect the city’s high-impact measures appeared to have had on their businesses, including both restaurants and hotels. According to the Greater Miami Convention and Visitor Bureau, preliminary hotel performance numbers for March 2024 indicates an 83% hotel occupancy rate (up 2.6% compared to March 2023). We will have better financial analysis when March 2024 resort tax data becomes available on May 15.

Based on college schedules, the entire month of March 2024 was identified as a high-impact period for Miami Beach.

March 7-10 and March 14-17 were expected to generate the largest crowds and highest impacts. As such, additional measures were taken during these two periods.

The following high-impact measures were in place every Thursday through Sunday in March, excluding the weekends of March 7-10 & March 14-17:

• A flat parking rate of $30, excluding March 7-10 and March 14-17, was in effect at city parking garages and surface lots in the Entertainment District, including the garages at 7 Street and Collins Avenue (G1), 12 Street and Washington Avenue (G2), 13 Street and Collins Avenue (G3), 16 Street between Collins and Washington avenues (G4), 17 Street and Convention Center Drive (G5), 18 Street and Meridian Avenue (G7), Pennsylvania Avenue and Lincoln Lane North (G9), 18 Street and Bay Road (G10), and 23 Street and Liberty Avenue (G12).
  
  

The flat parking rate did not apply to residents, access card holders, permit holders or

employees with proper identification.

• The nonresident towing rate became $516 — double the normal rate — plus a $30 administrative fee for vehicles towed in South Beach within the boundaries of 23 Street and Dade Boulevard on the north (including properties fronting the north side of 23 Street or Dade Boulevard), Government Cut on the south, Biscayne Bay on the west, and the Atlantic Ocean on the east.

•  Beach entrances on Ocean Drive were limited to 5, 10 and 12 streets and had security checkpoints to ensure prohibited items did not enter the beach. These entrances were closed at 6 p.m. Coolers, inflatable devices, tents, tables and similar objects were not be permitted on the beach. Amplified music without a city-issued permit was also be restricted.

• Packaged liquor stores in the Entertainment District are always required to close at 8 p.m.

• The Miami Beach Police Department (MBPD) implemented a traffic plan that began at 6 p.m. each Friday through Sunday to reduce traffic impacts around the South of Fifth (SOFI), West Avenue and Flamingo Park neighborhoods. Motorists can access the SOFI neighborhood via Alton Road, Washington Avenue and Collins Avenue. The Flamingo Park neighborhood could only be accessed via Alton Road. Local access restrictions were enforced on some city streets to limit traffic and improve mobility for residents and business patrons.

Additionally, during March 7-10 and March 14-17, the following high-impact measures were implemented:

• Parking garages in South Beach were CLOSED beginning on Thursdays at 6 a.m. through Mondays at 6 a.m., including: 7 Street and Collins Avenue (G1), 12 Street and Washington Avenue (G2), 13 Street and Collins Avenue (G3), 16 Street between Collins and Washington avenues (G4), 17 Street and Convention Center Drive (G5), 18 Street and Meridian Avenue (G7), Pennsylvania Avenue and Lincoln Lane North (G9), 18 Street and Bay Road (G10) and 23 Street and Liberty Avenue (G12).
  
  

• A $100 flat fee parking rate was in effect for the 42 Street garage between Royal Palm and Sheridan avenues (G6).
  

• All surface lots, south of 42 Street were closed Thursdays at 6 a.m. through Mondays at 6 a.m.
  
  

The above parking garage restrictions and flat parking rates did not apply to

residents, access card holders, permit holders or employees with proper

identification.

• There was no sidewalk seating on Ocean Drive on March 8-10 and March 15-17.
  
  

• The Miami Beach Police Department implemented a License Plate Reader (LPR) detail on the eastbound lanes of the MacArthur and Julia Tuttle causeways on March 8-10 and March 15-17. MBPD also had an LPR detail along the 5th Street corridor on March 22-24.
  
  

• A Driving Under the Influence (DUI) sobriety checkpoint was in place along 5 Street over March 8-9 and March 15-16.
  
  
• Businesses renting or leasing golf carts, low-speed vehicles, autocycles (i.e. slingshots), motorized scooters, mopeds, motorcycles powered by motors of 50cc or less and motorized bicycles were suspended from operating on March 7-10 and March 14-17.
  

•  Ocean Drive was only accessible to vehicles via 13 Street with a sole exit at 5 Street on March 7-10, March 14-17 and March 21-24. Barricades lined both sides of Ocean Drive to reduce the potential of pedestrians coming into contact with motor vehicles.
  
  

Each City department involved was asked to assess the results of their efforts and to provide concise recommendations or observations that will be of value for planning with respect to future high-impact periods.

POLICE

The Police Department deployed resources in an alpha/bravo staffing model, meaning that every sworn officer worked 13-hour extended shifts during the month of March to provide increased coverage on peak days. Our Miami Beach coverage was bolstered by partnerships with 18 additional law enforcement agencies, including the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Florida Highway Patrol, Miami-Dade Police Department, Miami-Dade Schools Police Department and other municipal law enforcement agencies. Uniformed officers proactively patrolled the City in motor vehicles, ATVs, bicycles and by foot. The U.S. Coast Guard and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission patrolled Miami Beach waterways alongside MBPD’s Marine Patrol to enforce applicable boating laws.

This concerted effort resulted in an enhanced and highly visible police presence to ensure the safety of residents and visitors. Key initiatives included the establishment of a special event zone, implementation of a modified traffic loop, curfew enforcement, alcohol checks on the beach, beach closures and the positioning of license plate readers and DUI checkpoints along important entry and exit points to the City.

This multilayered approach also included technology such as closed-circuit cameras and drone surveillance to monitor crowd activity in real time, providing valuable insights into crowd conditions and possible threats. As a result of these citywide efforts, particularly in the South Beach entertainment area, the department noted a 10% reduction in the number of overall arrests from the 2023 spring break period citywide and a much more significant decrease with respect to the areas where spring breakers typically congregate.

Most significantly, we recorded a 32% reduction in arrests in the Entertainment District between 2023 and 2024 (188 arrests effectuated in 2023 versus 128 in 2024) with a 51% reduction in arrests between the 2022 and 2024 spring break periods (260 arrests in 2022 versus 128 arrests in 2024). Calls for service in the Entertainment District decreased by 16% between the 2023 and 2024 spring break periods from 1,344 to 1,134 calls for service respectively. We noted a 37% reduction in calls for service in the same areas between 2022 where 1,789 were registered and 2024 with 1,134 calls for service. 

We also recorded 16% fewer arrests this year when we compared our numbers to the 2022 spring break period. The overall decline in arrests was offset somewhat by a 75% increase in DUI arrests as a result of our reinforced checkpoints. We recorded four DUI arrests in 2022 and 2023 compared to seven in 2024. This spring break marked the first year in recent memory where our officers did not respond to any shootings or homicides involving spring break crowds.

We also deployed our license plate reader (LPR) details on our two main arteries into the city — the MacArthur and Julia Tuttle causeways. LPR details were deployed for three weekends, resulting in the reading of 52,962 tags and a total of 2,498 Uniform Traffic Citations issued. We also made 10 Felony arrests and 10 Misdemeanor arrests as a result of these details.   

CODE COMPLIANCE

The Code Compliance Department provided enhanced staffing in the Entertainment District throughout March to include foot patrols and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs). We also arranged proactive citywide patrols, including our dedicated Short-Term Rental (STR) Team. Our proactive patrols focused on licensing compliance, illegal vendors, unapproved events, illegal dumping, illegal charter boat operations and noise concerns.

Coverage at the Miami Beach Marina and the Indian Creek Waterway was increased to seven days a week with 12-hour shifts from 10 a.m. to midnight during spring break. Code Compliance officers conducted special outreach efforts to remind nightclub owners of regulations on promoted and self-promoted events. Scooter shops were also reminded of applicable regulations.

The City’s noise ordinance was aggressively enforced during spring break subject to provisions in any conditional use permits or temporary injunctions.

Each shift began with a roll call and training session, where officers were briefed on high-priority tasks, changes during the high-impact period and officer safety protocols for the period.

Code Compliance officers issued 405 City Code violations, which addressed various infractions, including the absence of business tax receipts, illegal graffiti, unapproved special events, right-of-way violations, a failure to collect resort taxes, short-term rentals being offered without appropriate business tax receipts, unapproved signs, illegal leaf blowers, environmental violations, unlicensed boat charters and operating public marinas outside of permitted hours.

We issued 23 citations for excessive noise, 86 for a failure to perform property maintenance, 253 for sanitation violations, 69 for zoning violations (derelict vehicles, improper signage and illegal storefront coverings). We issued 59 violations on short-term rentals as well as violations for failure to obtain certificates of appropriateness, deteriorated fencing and unpermitted uses. We also issued 11 marine citations ranging from deteriorated dock/seawalls to operating outside of permitted hours.

This year’s spring break period reflected an 18% increase in calls for service and investigations with 5,256 calls for service compared to 4,473 calls for service in 2023. This year also showed a 30% increase in the number of violations issued from 649 in 2023 to 847 in 2024.

PARKING

The City imposed a flat parking rate of $30 at surface lots in the Entertainment District every Thursday through Sunday in March excluding the weekends of March 7-10 and March 14-17. A flat rate of $6 was charged to residents in lots while employees of local businesses were directed to city-owned garages since the system would not allow them to be charged a reduced flat rate otherwise.

The $30 flat rate was imposed at all city-owned parking garages except the garage at 42 Street and Royal Palm Avenue (G6) as well as the Convention Center Garage (G11), where regular rates remained in effect. Residents, permit holders and local business employees with proper credentials were exempted from the $30 flat rate at City-owned garages.

During March 7-10 and March 14-17, parking garages in South Beach were CLOSED and a $100 flat fee parking rate was in effect for the 42 Street garage between Royal Palm and Sheridan avenues (G6).

The city-owned garages in the Entertainment District closed at 6 p.m. on March 21-24.

We were able to accommodate the parking needs of all event attendees around the City Hall area, including patrons of the Miami Beach Convention Center, New World Center and the Fillmore Miami Beach at Jackie Gleason Theater with tickets, vouchers or proof of attendance.

We did not experience any incidents at our parking garages or surface lots during the entire spring break period.

A nonresident towing rate was set at $516 during spring break — double the normal rate — plus a $31 administrative fee for vehicles towed in South Beach south of 23 Street. We implemented enhanced parking enforcement and increased towing of illegally parked vehicles with priority given to residential areas.

This resulted in 868 more tows this year than in March of 2023 as well as an increase in the number of parking citations issued. The enhanced parking measures, however, resulted in a 10% decrease to parking garage revenue this year compared to 2023 with 33% fewer transactions.

Our on-street and surface lot parking also experienced a significant revenue decline over the same period last year. On March 7-11, March 14-18 and March 21-24, parking was restricted on Collins Avenue from 5 Street to Española Way and Washington Avenue from 5-16 streets starting at 5 a.m. Parking along the 100 blocks from 6-14 streets was restricted 24 hours per day from March 7-11, March 14-17 and March 21-24. Residential Zone 5 parking permit holders were exempted from these restrictions unless otherwise noted by posted signage.

Parking along the 200 blocks of 6-15 streets was also restricted nightly from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. on March 7-10, March 14-17 and March 21-24. Residential Zone 5 parking permit holders were exempted from these restrictions unless noted otherwise by posted signage.

PARKS AND RECREATION

The Miami Beach Park Rangers along with our Parks and Recreation maintenance and janitorial staff operated under expanded service hours with increased personnel assignments during March. The core areas of focus were the Lummus Park/South Pointe Park corridor as well as Ocean Drive and the Beachwalk south of 21 Street. Park Rangers also provided assistance on the beach as needed in cooperation with the Miami Beach Police Department, Ocean Rescue and Code Compliance.

Our parks and Beachwalk remained clean, safe and inviting spaces for residents and visitors throughout spring break as a result of these combined efforts. Our staff fielded numerous compliments on the cleanliness of park areas, including our restrooms despite the presence of large crowds at times. Our service enhancements allowed us to maintain established quality levels during spring break.

Park Ranger activity data across multiple enforcement categories dropped for Spring Break 2024 as compared to Spring Break 2023.  Most notably: Verbal Warnings

 -52%, Police Assists -86%, Police Assists with Arrest -100% and Fire Assists -44%.

SANITATION

The Sanitation Division of Public Works activated enhanced staffing every Thursday through Sunday in March with additional pressure washing and mobile street sweeping on weekends as needed. The division coordinated with Miami-Dade County sanitation staff to provide enhanced shoreline cleanups each Thursday through Sunday throughout March.

We added an additional recycling bin at 10 Street on the hardpack beach area in addition to other recycling and trashcans along selected beach entrances to prevent an accumulation of trash and recyclables along the shoreline. We also added a pressure-cleaning unit during the afternoon/evening to assist with addressing any spills and biohazards.

In March 2023 we collected approximately 139 tons of trash for Spring Break related activities. This year, that number increased to 181 tons of trash in 2024, mainly due to the fact we had five weeks in March versus four last year. 

FIRE

Fire Rescue
There was a substantial reduction in citywide incidents between last year’s spring break and 2024. The total number of incidents decreased to 1,472, which marks a 39.8% decline from last year. EMS-related incidents fell to 1,030, a 40.8% decrease. Fire-related incidents dropped by 37.4% to 442. Additionally, the number of patients transported declined by 37% to 359 compared to the 2023 spring break period.

Comparatively, the Entertainment District that includes 5-15 streets and Washington Avenue east to Ocean Drive, also showed a significant decline in incidents. There were a total of 238 incidents, marking a 42.2% decrease. EMS incidents were down by 18.5% for a total of 172 cases. Fire incidents declined by 34.7% to 66 cases. The number of patients transported declined by 39.0% for a total of 47 cases this year compared to the 2023 spring break period.

Ocean Rescue

During the five weekends of Spring Break, every Friday through Sunday, Ocean Rescue doubled and tripled staffing at towers between 5-15 streets, extending duty hours to meet the increased demand from larger-than-normal crowds.

Ocean Rescue lifeguards not only kept watch over our pristine 7.1 miles of coastline, but also sprang into action to rescue bathers in distress along our coastal waters. They administered medical care — ranging from minor first aid to major health emergencies — ensuring the safety of all beachgoers.

Despite a 36% decrease in the overall number of beachgoers compared to last year, our Ocean Rescue lifeguards performed more water rescues (9 in 2024 versus 6 in 2023), saved more victims (14 in 2024 versus 6 in 2023), conducted more minor preventive actions (31,718 in 2024 versus 28,246 in 2023) and were called upon to provide more minor first aid assistance (4,865 in 2024 versus 4,114 in 2023) than last year. 

Emergency Management

The Division of Emergency Management coordinated the planning efforts of departments citywide as well as agencies that provided mutual aid to the City. The division developed the Event Action Plan (EAP) – a single document, updated each weekend, that compiled action plans into one shared document. The purpose of the EAP was to provide comprehensive operational information in a succinct format. In addition, the division organized City Manager briefings with respect to spring break operations and tracked departmental situation reports. The information collected was incorporated into a division after action report for improvement planning. 

The Miami Beach Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) assisted visitors every weekend in March by providing water and administering first aid. Up to six CERT volunteers staffed a temporary first-aid station behind Ocean Rescue headquarters at 10 Street every Friday through Sunday. The CERT volunteers, who were all City residents, treated visitors for minor cuts and bruises while notifying EMS professionals of more serious cases. On the busiest day, our volunteers assisted 170 visitors. In addition to providing much-need services, each contact also provided an opportunity for the City to leave a positive impression of Miami Beach.

TRANSPORTATION AND MOBILITY

Transportation and Mobility Department staff monitored traffic flows during each weekend in March and provided timely traffic updates to the Miami Beach Police Department and Office of Marketing and Communications to manage congestion and disseminate information on major traffic incidents throughout the City.

Traffic monitoring personnel were located at the Miami Beach Traffic Management Center, which was recently opened in partnership with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT). Traffic monitors coordinated with FDOT staff on any incidents affecting traffic flow along the causeways to dispatch Road Rangers and program real-time traffic messages on the overhead digital message boards on I-95, State Road 836 / I-395 / MacArthur Causeway as well as State Road 112 / I-195 / Julia Tuttle Causeway.

Additionally, the City’s traffic management contractor monitored major thoroughfares to detect incidents creating congestion through various resources, including fixed and mobile closed-circuit video cameras. The contractor also monitored the WAZE mobile traffic application and programmed variable message signs with updated traffic/event messaging. City staff worked with Miami-Dade County to modify traffic signal timing to help manage congestion. Traffic monitors operated at an enhanced level of service, from 9 a.m. to 1 a.m., Thursday through Sunday during the second and third weekends of March. Traffic monitors operated from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. during all other times in March

Transportation and Mobility Department staff were on-site to conduct various inspections, including signage, traffic signals, bus shelters and audible pedestrian signals.

Staff also assisted with the coordination, maintenance of traffic (MOT) plan development, permitting and MOT implementation of the LPR detail. During the deployment of the LPR detail each day, Transportation and Mobility staff were on-site monitoring the traffic impact and coordinating with FDOT to ensure compliance with the approved permit conditions. Moreover, staff shared daily feedback and recommendations received from FDOT on traffic impacts and assisted with the implementation of such recommendations.

In addition to the city’s traffic management efforts, the free citywide trolley service operated 15 hours a day throughout March from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week.

FACILITIES AND FLEET MANAGEMENT

During the 2024 spring break high-impact period, the Facilities and Fleet Management Department deployed and retrieved more than 4,000 French barricades weekly (in comparison to 2,700 barricades in 2023) along designated special event areas as determined by MBPD.

In addition, our operations team deployed 46 light towers and distributed 51 all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) for use by City and MBPD staff. Light towers were refueled twice weekly and relocated as needed based on intelligence received by MBPD. A secondary refueling operation was established for all rented ATVs at three designated locations, including deck six of the City Hall garage at 1755 Meridian Ave.

Facilities and Fleet Management also coordinated enhanced staffing from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. every Friday through Sunday over the spring break period. City contractors specializing in electrical, mechanical, plumbing and elevator maintenance were on-site to handle any requests for emergency repairs.

HOUSING AND COMMUNITY SERVICES

This was the first year the homeless outreach team from the Office of Housing and Community Services deployed fully-staffed extended outreach teams during spring break. Each team consisted of four staff members as compared to two staff members last year. The teams operated every weekend in March from Thursday through Sunday. New Hope C.O.R.P.S. was contracted to provide daily specialized outreach after regular business hours from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m.

The additional case workers provided by New Hope C.O.R.P.S. allowed our office to significantly expand our homeless coverage on weekends in March of 2024 compared to March of 2023 as you can see in the following table:

Source: Miami Beach Office of Housing and Community Services

Our average number of homeless contacts increased by 50% during March of this year compared to the period from October 2023 to February 2024.

ENVIRONMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY

Attempting to boost environmental stewardship of beaches during high-impact periods such as spring break, the Environment and Sustainability Department initiated cleanup events in March with environmental partners and Goodwill Ambassadors.

Engagement cleanups took place in areas in which a high concentration of spring break visitors were expected. Our two primary partners were Clean Miami Beach and VolunteerCleanup.org, which have both received MBRisingAbove grants and funding from the department’s professional services account.

The organizations approached our cleanup events in different fashions. Clean Miami Beach used its professional staff to promote and run their own social media reach, registration and the coordination of volunteers for trash collection. Clean Miami Beach also provided equipment, supplies and training.

Volunteer Cleanup educated beachgoers through social science techniques, such as authority of the resource and theory of reciprocity. The group employed posters with positive messaging.

Environment and Sustainability staff also held engagements in partnership with Miami Beach Goodwill Ambassadors and hosted a table with sustainable products to serve as incentives for beachgoers to collect and dispose of litter. The varying approaches of the organizations provided excellent opportunities to support positive behaviors with respect to reducing litter.

MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS

After a number of marketing campaigns over the years aimed at promoting more responsible behavior during spring break, the Office of Marketing and Communications took a decidedly different approach in 2024.

Rather than merely encouraging better behavior — or threatening spring breakers with legal consequences — this year’s campaign positioned the City’s new get-tough safety message as the final straw in an unhealthy relationship. This was a theme with which everyone could relate, but particularly the younger demographic often associated with spring break.

“Miami Beach is Breaking Up with Spring Break,” this year’s campaign proclaimed. The approach became a focal point to describe all of the City’s efforts, which were highlighted in a viral video, six official press releases and 104 organic social media posts issued across all City-owned accounts. These combined efforts reached a global audience with an estimated 19.8 billion media impressions from over 1,086 news stories featured by 197 media organizations, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Miami Herald, all of the U.S. based television news networks to include the Today Show, Good Morning America, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News and many more. Together with our minute-long video, the campaign far exceeded the reach of any prior city media campaign.

The video, which was produced through the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau’s agency of record VML, opened with a straight-up conversation between local actors portraying young, 20-somethings who had grown weary of lawless spring breaks of the past.

“Hey, we need to talk,” said a female actor on the beach to start the video.

“This, isn’t working anymore,” interjected a male counterpart along Ocean Drive.

“And it’s not us. It’s you,” added a second female actor in South Pointe Park. “We just want different things.”

“Our idea of a good time is relaxing on the beach,” the first woman explained.

“Hitting up a spa,” said a third female actor.

“Or checking out a new restaurant,” the male actor replied.

“You just want to get drunk in public and ignore laws,” said the first woman.

“Do you even remember what happened last March,” said another female actor, raising her mobile phone to display video of unruly crowds and unflattering news headlines.

“That was our breaking point so we’re breaking up with you,” said another female.

“And don’t try to apologize and come crawling back,” said the woman from the start of the video. “This isn’t safe so we’re done.”

The male actor came back into frame with a warning: “And just so you know we’re serious…”

“This March, you can expect things like curfews, bag checks and restricted beach access,” said one of the female actors from earlier.

“DUI checkpoints, $100 parking and strong police enforcement for drug possession and violence,” offered another before the video returned to the first woman for parting words.

“Whatever it takes because it’s time to move on,” she said.

“Maybe we can talk when you are done with your spring break phase, but until then … ” the male actor concluded as large text emerged over the video:

“We’re breaking up with spring break,” the text read.

For reference, the following chart shows prior spring break marketing campaigns from 2016 to 2022:

In order to deliver the message to as many people as possible, our communications and marketing efforts spanned across an array of channels, including organic and paid social media, paid digital ads, emails, text messages, web and out-of-home advertising.  

Social media promotions alone resulted in a total of over 39 million impressions that drove 57,645 clicks to the site. From Feb. 13 through March 31, 2024, 104 organic posts were published on city-owned social media channels, returning 6,917,635 organic impressions. Another 4,132 paid social media posts were published from city accounts and the GMCVB’s agency, garnering 32,299,046 total impressions driving 51,539 clicks to the website. Paid social media posts received 80,030 total engagements, 65,584 likes, 11,411 comments and 3,035 shares. Overall, 65% of users engaged on mobile (35% on desktop), with 82% on iOS and 18% on Android. The top five countries reached were the United States, France, Canada, United Kingdom and Georgia (country). The top cities reached were Miami, Atlanta, Chicago, Washington D.C. and Miami Beach.

Search Engine Marketing (SEM) advertising resulted in 433,923 impressions that drove 96,863 clicks to the website. The outside Designated Market Area (DMAs) that drove the most clicks included New York, Tampa, West Palm Beach and Orlando-Daytona Beach. The top keywords included “Spring Break Miami Beach”, “Miami spring break rules” and “Miami spring break curfew” Digital ad placements resulted in 12,308,185 impressions that drove 2,080,567 video plays of our PSA and 15,561 clicks to the website. This represented a high click-through rate (CTR) of 13%. 

Twelve total spring break-related emails were sent out, with eight e-blasts dedicated to Spring Break messaging and four generic E-Briefs with Spring Break messaging included. Each email was sent to an average of 39,670 subscribers with an average open rate of 47%. A total of 96.23% of users opened the emails on desktop and 3.78% opened on mobile. Thirteen dedicated text messages were sent to an average of 10,958 subscribers. Eight of the text messages pertained to traffic, two messages detailed the curfew, two provided information about high-impact measures in general and one text outlined parking restrictions. Many of the text messages included a link to the city’s spring break webpage or e-blasts.

The spring break webpage, www.miamibeachfl.gov/breakup, received 674,120 page views from 227,941 users. A total of 1,884,041 actions were taken from the webpage, including downloads, clicks, etc. The Take Care of Our City webpage, www.miamibeachfl.gov/take-care-of-our-city, received 6,951 page views from 2,854 users with 16,817 actions taken.

In addition to our marketing efforts, staff was out every weekend documenting citywide efforts at various locations such as Ocean Drive, sidewalk cafés, LPRs, DUI checkpoints and city staffing. Our video team captured 302 gigs of imagery, 778 video clips and 131 aerial images. Our photographers took more than 6,000 photographs and edited 300 photographs depicting the collective efforts of city staff, spring break safety measures and law enforcement presence.

RESIDENT AND BUSINESS OUTREACH

Business outreach began very early in October 2023 with a letter to all South Beach businesses holding a valid Business Tax Receipt (BTR). The letter informed business owners of a potential curfew and other anticipated spring break-related impacts.  

A series of public outreach meetings were held in February, including a business-focused webinar on Feb. 8, the Miami Beach Police Department’s annual spring break hotel symposium focused on public safety on Feb. 13, a GMCVB spring break hotelier meeting on Feb. 15 and a resident-focused webinar on Feb. 22 that shared spring break traffic impacts and public safety measures.

In an effort to further inform and educate the South Beach business community about what to expect during spring break, we deployed cross-departmental teams made up of Economic Development, Neighborhood Affairs, Code Compliance and Police staff to visit businesses in the Entertainment District along Ocean Drive, Collins Avenue and Washington Avenue. The purpose of these visits was to share helpful collateral and answer questions. In partnership with the GMCVB, we distributed tent and rack cards to all Miami Beach hotels and the Miami Beach Convention Center to raise awareness of the overall rules in place in March and included a QR code, which redirect to the Break Up webpage. We should consider doing this again next year and send it out earlier to hotels.

RECOMMENDATIONS

We look forward to discussing the lessons learned from the 2024 spring break at the special City Commission meeting scheduled to take place on April 18, 2024 and we also hope to receive direction regarding Spring Break 2025.

The administration believes we must take a similar approach next year in conveying that lawlessness will not be tolerated, and submits the following additional recommendations:

1. Police: It is recommended that the same public safety spring break plan used in 2024, be reactivated in 2025, including the utilization of license plate readers at the entry point of the causeways, DUI checkpoints, implementation of a modified traffic loop, curfew enforcement, alcohol checks on the beach, beach closures and establishment of a special event zone. Incorporating all these strategies and components collectively contributed to the success of this spring break season and ensured the safety of residents and visitors.

2. Parking: Decisions regarding parking must be highlighted and analyzed relative to our success. It is recommended that the $30 flat rate continue to be imposed in all City garages — excluding the garages in Sunset Harbour and 42 Street — throughout all weekends of future spring break periods. Regular rates should remain in effect at all surface parking lots operated by the City. Moreover, we recommend that all city-owned garages and lots in the Entertainment District and Collins Park should be closed at 6 p.m. during all weekends of spring break. Some — but not all — surface parking lots operated by the City should remain open for residents and employees of local businesses but some should be closed to minimize staffing needs. We are not recommending the complete closure of parking garages during the two highest-impact weekends. The complete closure unfortunately had unintended consequences that affected private events.

3. Code Compliance: It is recommended that Code Compliance continue to preposition staff in strategic areas of the City, such as the Entertainment District. This approach benefitted our response times this year and should remain an element of future spring break planning. Proactive investigations of short-term rental properties should continue through our dedicated team of officers. We also recommend maintaining high-visibility patrols at the Indian Creek Waterway and Miami Beach Marina. We found that the use of ATVs and gator utility vehicles was helpful in allowing supervisors and Code officers to navigate the city faster through traffic. We recommend the continued availability of gator utility vehicles in the Entertainment District year-round. In addition to navigating traffic, the vehicles also promote higher visibility of our team members.

4. Outreach: We learned a lot from participating in our court proceedings as a result of imposing a curfew — and it became clear that for the future defense of any curfew decision, it is critical to have robust outreach including letters to businesses. We should continue to communicate our plans to businesses by early fall. We recommend sending emails and conducting door-to-door outreach to ensure businesses are well aware of the city’s plans with as much notice as possible. We should conduct resident and business outreach meetings earlier in the year, including the distribution of tent and rack cards to Miami Beach hotels and businesses.

5. Ocean Drive: It is strongly recommended that Ocean Drive be kept open to vehicular traffic during future spring break periods, preferably in one direction. Limiting sidewalk café/concessions was also helpful during the weekends with the highest impacts. Our staff noted that the presence of motor vehicles kept pedestrians from congregating along Ocean Drive and promoted an orderly flow of pedestrian movement, not only on Ocean Drive but also in Lummus Park throughout the serpentine section of the Beachwalk.

6. Goodwill Ambassadors: One of the highlights this year was the implementation of a Goodwill Ambassador program solely supported by city staff. However, we may need to revisit participation eligibility and potentially limit the number of our essential employees who can be assigned as Goodwill Ambassadors during future spring break periods. We experienced staffing shortages at times in March due to employee fatigue from working overtime and as Goodwill Ambassadors. We hope to align our efforts with Miami-Dade County in respect to the Goodwill Ambassador program as this is essential for high-impact weekends.

7. Traffic: Traffic monitors should continue operating at an enhanced level of service during spring break. Staff should continue to be available during spring break weekends to address situations that may arise while coordinating with FDOT and the Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works.

8. On-Street Parking: It is recommended that the City explore alternative methods of blocking parking spaces, specifically along the Collins Avenue and Washington Avenue corridors. This would reduce both the time it takes for barricade deployment as well as our overall expenditures associated with spring break. Alternatives may include removable bollards or stanchions.

9. Marketing: The City recommends beginning work on a spring break campaign that complements the successful “Miami Beach is Breaking Up with Spring Break” campaign by the end of summer 2024. We recommend launching the next campaign by early January 2025 when most spring breakers begin to book their travel plans. We are thankful for the support of the GMCVB and their agency of record VML — and look forward to a continued collaboration with them in the future.
   
   
10. Activations: We understand that some event activations are being considered for March 2025, however, we advise against scheduling them during the busiest and highest impact weekends. Such activations require significant public safety and city resources, often requiring staff redirection. Therefore, we strongly recommend maintaining the current focus on spring break and advise all plans be finalized by July 2024.