At the February 9, 2022 City Commission meeting, Commissioner Alex Fernandez referred a discussion item regarding the co-naming of a street in South Beach in honor of the late Andrew “Andy” Sweet to the Public Safety and Neighborhood Quality of Life Committee meeting.  Commissioner Fernandez requests that the Committee provide its advisory recommendation for the Mayor and City Commission’s consideration and approval, subject to a public hearing and a 5/7^th vote.  

Whenever a request is made to co-name streets or portions thereof, Section 82-503(c)(2) of the City Code requires the sponsor to submit the proposal in writing to an appropriate committee (in this case, the PSNQLC), which shall include the following: (1) the street, or portion thereof, to be co-named; (2) the proposed co-name of the street, or portion thereof; (3) the reason for the request; and (4) a factual summary confirming that the proposed person falls under the specific criteria outlined in subsection 82-503(c)(1)(a) of the City Code.

Under existing criteria in Section 82-503 of the City Code, City streets may only be co­-named in honor of (1) Miami Beach police officers who died or were killed in the line of duty; (2) a public facility located on the street to be co-named; (3) private not-for-profit organizations with significant historic value to the city and associated with structures which have a significant historical value or architectural significance to the city; (4) geographic areas within the city; (5) a commercial establishment that has been in business in the City of Miami Beach for 100 or more years and which is located on the street to be co-named.

On March 9, 2022, the Mayor and City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 2022-4478, amending Section 82-503(c) of the City Code to provide for additional criteria for the co-naming of streets in honor of a deceased photographer who documented the life and residents of Miami Beach, such as Andy Sweet.

Andrew “Andy” John Sweet was an American photographer known for his documentary photography and street photography of the life and residents of South Beach, with a particular focus on the Jewish community, many of them Holocaust survivors.

Mr. Sweet was born in Miami Beach and attended Miami Beach Senior High School. Mr. Sweet returned home to Miami Beach after receiving a Master’s Degree in Fine Arts from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1977, to photograph the old world Jewish culture that then distinguished South Beach.

In 1982, Mr. Sweet's life and his art were cut tragically short when he was murdered at the age of 29. The Miami Herald Tropic Magazine ran a cover story on his death and documentary photography, writing that "[t]hough young, Sweet was virtually an institution on the Beach, having made thousands of images of the place and the people."

Mr. Sweet's work was appreciated by other documentary photographers --- nationally famed photographer Mary Ellen Mark praised his "strong, humorous, and beautiful images," and wrote that his body of work was "unprecedented for someone so young...He definitely would have gone on to make many more wonderful images and to become  a real photographic force."

On December 14, 2016, the Mayor and City Commission voted to erect a plaque in the Art Deco District in Mr. Sweet's honor.

Andy Sweet left an extensive body of work that exhibits a level of creative maturity far beyond his years, and his photographs are a testimony to a rich but often overlooked period of Miami Beach's cultural heritage.

Should the Public Safety and Neighborhood Quality of Life Committee recommend co-naming a street in honor of Andy Sweet, the City Commission would need to approve the Committee’s recommendation via a duly noticed public hearing and a resolution. Following City Commission approval, the proposed co-naming would need to be sponsored by a Miami-Dade County Commissioner and approved by the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners (BCC) via resolution.  Subsequent to BCC approval, the Transportation and Mobility Department staff would coordinate with the County on the fabrication and installation of the new street co-name signs.

The cost of fabricating and installing new street co-name signs depends upon the number and type/size of signs needed and whether the work is performed by County or City resources.