The concept of developing a regulated mooring field has been examined for many years in the City of Miami Beach.  The mooring field was most recently discussed at the May Finance and Economic Resiliency Committee, with a favorable recommendation to fund the project through the FY 2023 budget process.  Grant funding and city funding have been approved for the design and permitting phase, additional funding will be needed for construction.

The December 2022 City Commission referred an item to the Finance and Economic Resiliency Committee for discussion (Attachment A).   The referral item is to discuss “how the City can work with Miami Dade County to establish anchor limitation area in locations beyond the proposed municipal mooring field.  Neighbors from the Palm, Hibiscus, and Star Islands & Sunset Islands have asked for this to be explored as they fear derelict vessels will invade their neighborhoods once the municipal mooring field is established.”

The Miami Beach Police Marine Patrol works with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), and Miami-Dade County Marine Patrol and Division of Environmental Resources Management to inspect boats, address violations and derelict vessels.

Anchor Limitation Areas (ALAs) are defined by State Statute 327.4108 and can only be established by Counties.  The ALAs could be a tool to help address boats moving to areas near residential properties, however Biscayne Bay is a State waterbody with public access for boating activities.  On July 19, 2022, the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners directed the County Mayor to conduct a one-year study and make recommendations regarding the establishment of additional ALAs in Miami-Dade County (Attachment B).

City staff has met with County staff, our County Commissioner, State Senator, and our lobbyists regarding pursing stronger and additional ALAs, which can help alleviate some of the concerns of residents with respect to concerns about boats moving from the proposed mooring field to other areas.  The County is in a preliminary phase and has not identified locations at this time.

While residents from Palm, Hibiscus, Star, and Sunset Islands have expressed concerns about vessels moving near their homes, there are additional areas of the city that may be impacted as well and should be considered within an ALA.