The Administration recommends that the City Commission discuss the FERC recommendation for additional funding and provide direction as to this policy matter.

On September 21, 2022, the City received a request from the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust (“Homeless Trust”) for $3 million to scale housing needed to further combat homelessness in the City of Miami Beach and beyond. These funds, in conjunction with funding received from Miami-Dade County and other municipalities, would be utilized by the Homeless Trust to acquire and renovate no fewer than four (4) properties to better support individuals and households living on the streets or staying in temporary emergency shelters without viable permanent housing options.

At the September 30, 2022, Finance and Economic Resiliency Committee (FERC) meeting, representatives from the Homeless Trust presented their request for $3 million in funding. After extensive discussion, the FERC recommended initial funding of $1 million, comprised of approximately $277,912 in HOME Investment Partnership American Rescue Plan Program (HOME-ARP) funding received by the City from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that remains unallocated, subject to HUD approval, and approximately $723,000 from projected FY 2022 year-end General Fund surplus, with the commitment to look for additional funds.

However, at the October 26, 2022, Commission meeting, the Mayor and City Commission approved the allocation of $1 million to the Homeless Trust solely from General Fund via Resolution No. 2022-32382.

On November 16, 2022, at the request of Commissioner Meiner, the City Commission referred an item to the Public Safety and Neighborhood Quality of Life Committee (PSNQLC) to discuss the criteria associated with the Interlocal Agreement (Memorandum of Understanding) with the Homeless Trust, including the timing for placements, the total number of placements, the duration of placements, and other factors that could serve as a basis for evaluating any future requests for additional funding from the Homeless Trust.

On December 14, 2022, at the request of Commissioner Fernandez, the City Commission referred an item to the FERC to discuss the performance benchmarks associated with the $1 million allocation to the Homeless Trust.

On February 1, 2023, at the request of Commissioner Richardson, the City Commission referred a discussion item to the FERC to discuss additional funding for the Homeless Trust.

On February 17, 2023, the FERC referred the Agreement to the full City Commission to identify and appropriate additional funding in the amount of $1 million.

The Administration negotiated a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City and the County (Homeless Trust) to allocate the appropriated General Fund reserves of $1 million for a combination of forty-five (45) units and ten (10) beds to house City of Miami Beach homeless clients. 

While the City Commission can approve the MOU in advance, the terms of the MOU will be subject to the approval of the Board of County Commissioners (BCC). If the BCC approves with amendments, the MOU will need to come back to the City Commission for consideration.

Memorandum of Understanding

 The Office of Housing and Community Services will be responsible for administering the MOU and will work in partnership with the Homeless Trust to refer eligible clients (individuals and households) to the program. The attached MOU highlights the shared responsibilities between the City and the Homeless Trust to ensure successful outcomes. Once the MOU is executed, the Administration will provide quarterly updates as part of the current PSNQLC standing update item regarding homeless services and activity.

 The City’s allocation will be utilized for the rehabilitation of permanent supportive housing by the Homeless Trust. This funding provides a combination of forty-five (45) units and ten (10) beds available for the City to refer eligible homeless individuals identified by the City’s Homeless Outreach Services Program. Forty-five (45) single occupancy units will be available at Blue Village, located at 18055 SW 12th Street, Miami, FL 33194, and ten (10) beds for homeless persons 65 years and older at Mia Casa, located at 12221 Harriet Tubman Highway, North Miami, FL 33161.

 As reported by the Homeless Trust, the County has owned the Blue Village property since 1989, but the facility has not been operational in recent times. The Homeless Trust indicated that on January 20, 2023, the Trust bought out a deed restriction on the property at the cost of approximately $4.59 million. The Homeless Trust competitively selected a design firm to renovate the facility from 112 beds to 190+ units and committed $6.5 million toward renovations. Per the Homeless Trust, design plans are being finalized and will be followed by renovations spanning approximately one (1) year.

 The Homeless Trust also advised staff that on January 31, 2023, it finalized the purchase of Mia Casa for approximately $6.4 million, using County and State funding. The property is comprised of 120 beds.

 The following are reporting requirements as described in the MOU:

•  Status report on Blue Village renovations up to and until a Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO) is     obtained (quarterly)
• Total number set-aside beds/units in project(s) utilized by Miami Beach (annually)

The following are goals for clients placed but are not contractual obligations within the MOU: 

• Housing Retention: 90% or 50 clients will not return to homelessness after 1 year.
•  Income Growth: At least 20% or 10 persons placed in permanent housing will obtain or increase income as a result of program participation.

The above goals are aspirational and failure to meet any goal is not a breach of contract and may not be considered as such, nor shall failure to meet any of these goals be the basis for termination of the contract.

Below are the terms of the MOU, which has been form-approved by the City Attorney's Office. The Housing Trust Board and any relevant Miami-Dade County committee will make a recommendation regarding the MOU and final approval of the MOU is subject to the City Commission and the Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners.

                                  MOU Terms

Available Funding

As shown in the table below, the City’s FY 2023 budget includes approximately $5.2 million in funding to provide services for the homeless.  This includes the previously approved $1 million in funding for the Homeless Trust.

Based on the first quarter of the current fiscal year, revenue and expenditure projections through September 30, 2023, reflect a year-end surplus of approximately $8.0 million in the General Fund, a difference of 2%, and $2.1 million year-end surplus in the Resort Tax Fund. During the FERC meeting on February 17, the Administration recommended holding aside as much of the $8 million surplus as possible for capital funding.

At the February 22, 2023 City Commission meeting, the Mayor and Commission approved a budget amendment appropriating $2.833 million of the projected $8 million surplus in the General Fund. At the April 28, 2023 City Commission meeting, the Mayor and Commission will vote on a budget amendment appropriating an additional $542,000. If this amendment is approved, the remaining projected surplus would be  approximately $4.6 million. 

It is important to note that the City’s adopted FY 2023-FY 2027 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), identified a total of approximately $1.6 billion in unfunded capital project needs over the next five (5) years. Further, based on the City’s adopted financial policies regarding the Capital Reserve Fund and Capital Funding, we are recommending that the majority of these funds be set aside for evaluation through the FY 2024 budget process.

The City is working collaboratively with the Homeless Trust to better support homeless households living on the streets or staying in temporary emergency shelters without viable permanent housing options. The Administration is recommending that any additional funding be considered through the FY 2024 budget development process.