ANALYSIS:
On October 19, 2012, during the construction of the Sunset Harbor Pump Station Retrofit project, an odor and sheen commonly associated with petroleum contamination was identified during excavation work in the southeast corner of Maurice Gibb Park. As a result, Miami Dade County required the City to fully delineate the soil and groundwater contamination on the park property, and to remediate areas with elevated contaminant levels. The City retained Atkins to perform the site assessment and develop a remediation plan.
On August 10, 2015, the Miami Dade County Department of Regulatory and Economic Resources (RER), approved, with comments the Site Assessment Report sampling plan.
A renovation of the park is necessary since the soil remediation is required over most of the surface of the park. The renovation would include the replacement of the playground equipment, new plant material, earthwork, new irrigation, new signage and new park furnishings. The new master plan will locate the existing park elements listed above and depicts potential new uses that will increase recreational activities, while addressing the environmental condition.
On August 28, 2017, a contract was executed with Coastal Systems International, Inc. (Coastal), pursuant to the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) No. 2016-138-KB for Architectural and Engineering Design Services, for the design development for the renovation of the park.
On February 14, 2018, the City Commission approved the referral of the project to the Finance and Citywide Projects Committee (FCWPC) to discuss the following items, and determine if the project’s budget and scope of work:
1. Evaluate the condition of the existing restroom facilities and propose improvements that could include renovation of the existing facilities, expansion, or construction of a new facility. The existing restrooms are part of the marine patrol building. If a renovation or expansion is considered it could trigger significant upgrades to the whole structure to meet current code requirements.
2. Determine the need to add a fire patrol station at the park to provide efficient public safety services in South Beach. The current fire patrol boat is in North Beach, which can cause response times to emergency calls in the south end of the City to be longer than desired.
3. Add recreation greenspace to the park for the community enjoyments by eliminating the on-site surface parking lot. A parking analysis should be conducted to determine if there is enough parking supply at the Sunset Harbor garage to merit the elimination of the 43 parking spaces and the financial impact, if any, to the City’s Parking Enterprise Fund, and related parking revenue bonds.
4. Collaborate with Art in Public Places (AiPP) to conduct a search for an artist or firm that can design an iconic children’s playground that pays tribute to the life and art of Maurice Gibb.
On February 17, 2018, the FCWPC made the following recommendation:
1. For the architect to provide different alternatives for a master plan for the park, to include one option that does not require possible, future funding from the 2019 General Obligation Bond.
2. Start the soil remediation process once a master plan is approved.
3. Use the currently available project funding of $3.2 million to start working on the project.
4. Work with the community to gain feedback on the transient marina, marine/fire patrol building, parking lot and playground.
5. Return to the FCWPC after meeting with the community and getting more details on the master plan.
On May 31, 2018, the Office of Capital Improvements Projects (CIP), held a public meeting with residents from communities adjacent to the park (Sunset Harbor, Sunset Islands, Lower North Bay Road, Belle Isle and West Avenue) to obtain their feedback. There were 38 residents in attendance. The design team presented two options for the master plan, depicting possible locations for the basic park elements, which include, playground, pavilions, dog park, walkways, park furnishings, and landscaping with open sodded areas (Attachment A). The community was asked to select one of the options for the layout of these basic elements which shall be installed in the park.
The design team provided three options for the theme of the playground equipment, described as Artistic, Musical, and Nautical (Attachment B).
The master plan also depicted the proposed, future amenities which include: detached restroom facilities, vita course exercise equipment, marine/fire patrol facility, transient marina and transient facilities (Attachment C). The community was asked to indicate priority of these future amenities, for inclusion in the park’s further development.
The results of the community’s feedback are listed below:
Master Plan:
Option 1: 17 votes
Option 2: 20 votes
Playground Themes:
Artistic: 18 votes
Musical: 12 votes
Nautical: 8 votes
Future Amenities:
High Priority Medium Priority Low Priority
Vita Course: 1 vote 0 votes 18 votes
Living shoreline w/Overlook: 23 votes 5 votes 0 votes
Fishing and Viewing Pier: 1 vote 9 votes 2 votes
Marine/Fire Patrol Facility: 11 votes 10 votes 0 votes
Transient Marina: 2 votes 6 votes 0 votes
Transient Facilities: 1 vote 7 votes 18 votes
Prior to the community meeting, feedback received from the Sunset Harbor Neighborhood Association, and from nearby business owners, indicated their preference that the parking lot remain within the park, versus providing additional recreational greenspace. The master plan options, presented at the community meeting, included the existing parking lot.
The restrooms currently in use by park patrons are located on the first floor of the existing marine patrol building. The restrooms would have to be renovated to meet current building code requirements, which could include a possible expansion. The renovation and expansion could trigger significant upgrades to the existing marine patrol building, which could be costly. A more feasible option could be to include a detached restroom facility. Both of the master plan options included a location for a new detached restroom facility.
The project currently includes the soil remediation, and the resulting renovation of the park, to include the following basic park elements: a new playground with shade canopy, pavilion(s), a dog park, walkways, minor restroom renovations, landscaping with open sodded areas, and park furnishings. These basic elements can be completed within the currently $3.2M available funding.
As funding becomes available, the future amenities listed above, can be developed as separate projects.