Miami-Dade County was given authority by the State of Florida to establish Anchoring Limitation Areas within its jurisdiction with limits such as size. ALAs can be up to a maximum of 10% of the navigable waterways and ALAs cannot be greater than 100 acres in size. Properly permitted waterway markers (signs) and buoys are also required. The Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners (BCC) directed an ALA study and accepted County staff’s report and recommendations at the December 12, 2024 BCC meeting to move forward with proposed pilot project ALAs at Pelican Harbor and 79th Street. For the purposes of Miami Beach, the County will need to approve ALA requests and transmit them to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission on behalf of municipalities.
Waterway Markers Estimate
Resolution No. 2023-32646 established that to commence operations of the City’s proposed Mooring Field, the establishment of ALAs for the residential islands including Sunset Islands I through IV, Star Island, Palm Island, and Hibiscus Island is required. As part of the FY 2025 budget process following Resolution No. 2023-32646, staff proposed to update the project description for previously existing Capital Project #65422 Waterway Markers & Signs to include ALA proposals.
Approximately ten signs can be expected around Palm and Hibiscus Islands, six (6) around Star Island, and four (4) along the western side of the Sunset Islands, but will be dependent on design and permitting and regulatory agency feedback. As part of the FY 2025 Capital Budget process, staff has requested to add $300,000 for design and permitting of the additional markers, plus $700,000 for construction to the project pursuant to the 2023 Resolution. This estimate is based on recent estimates for waterway sign construction via the Job Order Contracting (JOC) process for $31,000 per sign which would total $620,000 plus contingency for 20 new markers.
Resolution No. 2024-32963 defined additional areas for design, permitting, and construction of 24 waterway markers if accepted by the County:
· Along N Bay Road between Sunset Islands and Julia Tuttle Causeway (four signs)
· Surprise Lake (two signs)
· West of La Gorce Golf Club (two signs)
· North of La Gorce Island/surrounding Allison Island (six signs)
· North of Normandy (four signs)
· North of Biscayne Point/surrounding Stillwater (six signs)
For the additional 24 signs, $200,000 for design and permitting plus $818,400 for construction (includes a 10% contingency) is reasonably estimated to implement this project.
If the ALA markers for the 2023 and 2024 Resolutions were to be combined, the cost is estimated at $500,000 for design and permitting plus $1,518,400 for construction. The total estimated cost for the design, permitting and construction for all ALA waterway markers pursuant to the City Commission directed resolutions is $2,018,400. Please note the actual number of markers, estimated at 44, will depend on contractor recommendations and regulatory authority feedback.
Enforcement Estimate
If approved by the County and design, permitting, and construction are completed, enforcement of ALAs would be necessary. The Police Department would require a minimum of one (1) full-time officer to be devoted to the enforcement and maintenance. Ideally, however, two (2) officers would be the best option. The cost per officer would come to $158,110 per year initially based on the following breakdown:
|
Position
|
Quantity
|
Catergory
|
Total
|
Amount
|
|
Officer
|
1
|
Salary
|
|
$88,359
|
|
|
Ammunition and other Police Supplies
|
$2,500
|
|
|
Laptop
|
|
$5,000
|
|
|
Motorola Hand Held Radios
|
|
$5,500
|
|
|
Sig Sauer Firearms
|
|
$751
|
|
|
BWC w/ License
|
|
$2,000
|
|
|
Base Standard Equipment, Training, and Fuel
|
|
$54,000
|
|
|
|
Total
|
$158,110
|