Legislative Matter

Miami-Dade Legislative Item
File Number: 112329

Printable PDF Format

Clerk's Official Copy

File Number: 112329

File Type: Resolution

Status: Adopted

Version: 0

Reference: R-1081-11

Control: Board of County Commissioners

File Name: GOB MIAMI CHILDREN'S MUSEUM

Introduced: 11/1/2011

Requester: NONE

Cost:

Final Action: 12/6/2011

Agenda Date: 12/6/2011

Agenda Item Number: 11A1

Notes:

Title:

RESOLUTION APPROVING AMENDMENT TO RESOLUTION NO. R-870-11 RELATED TO ALLOCATION TO MIAMI CHILDREN’S MUSEUM, INC. FROM BUILDING BETTER COMMUNITIES GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND PROGRAM PROJECT NO. 223 – “NOT-FOR-PROFIT COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION CAPITAL FUND”; WAIVING REQUIREMENTS IN STANDARD GRANT AGREEMENT RELATING TO FACILITY ADMISSION FEES

Indexes:

GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND PROGRAM

Sponsors:	Bruno A. Barreiro, Prime Sponsor
	Sally A. Heyman, Co-Sponsor

Sunset Provision: No

Effective Date:

Expiration Date:

Registered Lobbyist:

None Listed

Legislative History
Acting Body	Date	Agenda Item	Action	Sent To	Due Date	Returned	Pass/Fail

Board of County Commissioners	12/6/2011	11A1	Adopted				P
REPORT:	Commissioner Jordan inquired as to whether the City of Miami benefited from the revenues received for parking at the Miami Childrens’ Museum (MCM). Commissioner Barreiro explained that the Off Street Parking Authority was an arm of the City of Miami, responsible for overseeing the parking lot next to the MCM, and received those revenues. Commissioner Jordan inquired as to whether it was true that the City of Miami residents received a discount on admissions to the MCM. Mr. Michael Spring, Director, Cultural Affairs, explained that the Miami Sports and Exhibition Authority (MSEA) leased land to the MCM, and as a condition of the lease required the museum to provide the City’s residents a 50 percent discount on admission to the museum. In response to Commissioner Jordan’s question as to whether the discount to the MCM admission applied to County residents as well, Mr. Spring noted County residents did not receive discounts on the admission fee, but received a free day pass (no admission) to the museum, once a month. Commissioner Monestime noted he raised this issue at Committee level and felt this was a disservice to the County residents since County-wide tax dollars were being used to fund this museum. He said he had no problems with the City’s residents receiving a discount, but he felt the County residents should get a discount too. Commissioner Bell expressed concern that the County proffered $2.9 million in GOB dollars to help build this facility, but had to waive the BBC-GOB standard, which required that this facility not discriminate in its charging of admission fees. She noted her concern that museums would offer discounts when these facilities were not very sustainable to begin with, and asked if the landholders could possibly release or waive the requirement that the museum offer the City residents a 50 percent discount on admissions. Mayor Gimenez expressed the belief that MCM would be more than willing to ask the landholders to waive that requirement; however, he noted, the original requirement was due to the fact that the museum leased land from the City of Miami for free with the caveat that it provide the City of Miami residents a 50 percent discount on admissions. He said he was sure the museum could ask the City to waive the lease condition in light of the County’s GOB contribution. Commissioner Bell said she supported this item, but felt the representatives of the City of Miami and MCM should seriously discuss waiving this condition of the lease agreement. Commissioner Diaz noted families should be able to enjoy museums at an affordable rate, during these difficult times. Chairman Martinez noted he was hesitant to support this item and felt it was unfair for the City residents to receive a 50 percent discount when other areas of the County had poor children who should be given access to the museum. However, he said he would support it based on Commission Barreiro’s urging that the MCM be included in the GOB projects. Commissioner Heyman noted children from schools County-wide got free admission into museums, but this contract was set forth with the City of Miami, and the County had no leverage in it. Chairman Martinez noted it was false to think that children from County-wide schools got free admission into museums, or if so, then some districts were excluded, because his children attended a Broward Museum while on a field trip because the admission was much cheaper than the admission to the MCM. Commissioner Barreiro noted this project was much needed and would benefit the children of this community. He pointed out that the Administrators of the MCM agreed to approach the City about getting this requirement waived. Hearing no further comments or discussion, it was moved by Commissioner Barreiro that the foregoing proposed resolution be adopted. This motion was seconded by Commissioner Diaz, and upon being put to a vote, passed by a vote of 8-0 (Commissioners Souto, Sosa, Suarez, Monestime and Edmonson were absent). Later in the meeting, the Board, by motion duly made, seconded and carried, reconsidered this resolution in order to record Commissioner Edmonson’s vote as a “Yes.” Hearing no further comments, the Board proceeded to vote on this resolution again as presented.

Infrastructure and Land Use Committee	11/9/2011	2A	Forwarded to BCC with a favorable recommendation				P
REPORT:	Assistant County Attorney Geri Bonzon-Keenan read the title of the foregoing proposed resolution into the record. In response to Commissioner Monestime’s question regarding whether grant recipients of Building Better Communities-Government Obligation Bond (BBC-GOB) funds were prohibited from treating County residents differently, Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Jennifer Moon noted that was correct, and it was a requirement in the County’s standard grant agreement for BBC-GOB projects. Commissioner Monestime questioned whether residents of the City of Miami would receive a discount on admission fees to the Miami Children’s Museum. Ms. Moon noted the Miami Sports and Exhibition Authority (MSEA) subleased land to the Museum, whereby, the current lease agreement required a discount be given to the City of Miami residents on the Museum’s admission fees. She pointed out that because the discount was required by the sublease agreement, the Museum could not execute an agreement to receive GOB funding, unless the proposed waiver (to disregard a requirement that recipients of GOB-BBC funds not discriminate when charging facility admission fees) was executed in connection with the Museum. She noted staff would continue seeking alternatives, perhaps by working with the entities that required the discounts, before this resolution was considered by the Commission. Ms. Moon said she was optimistic that the conflict concerning the discount and the GOB requirement would be resolved. Hearing no further comments or questions, the Committee voted on the foregoing proposed resolution as presented.

County Attorney	11/1/2011		Assigned	Monica Rizo		11/2/2011

County Attorney	11/1/2011		Referred	Infrastructure and Land Use Committee	11/9/2011

Legislative Text

TITLE
RESOLUTION APPROVING AMENDMENT TO RESOLUTION NO. R-870-11 RELATED TO ALLOCATION TO MIAMI CHILDREN�S MUSEUM, INC. FROM BUILDING BETTER COMMUNITIES GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND PROGRAM PROJECT NO. 223 � �NOT-FOR-PROFIT COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION CAPITAL FUND�; WAIVING REQUIREMENTS IN STANDARD GRANT AGREEMENT RELATING TO FACILITY ADMISSION FEES

BODY

WHEREAS, on November 2, 2004, voters overwhelmingly approved eight referendum questions to fund more than 300 capital improvement projects throughout Miami-Dade County over an approximately 18 to 20 year period, comprising the Building Better Communities General Obligation Bond (�BBC GOB�) Program; and
WHEREAS, BBC GOB Project No. 223 - �Not-for-Profit Community Organization Capital Fund�, with a total allocation of $30 million, was approved as a part of the BBC GOB Program; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to Resolution No. R-870-11, this Board authorized the award of $2,438,000 of BBC GOB Project No. 223 funds to the Miami Children�s Museum, Inc. (�Children�s Museum�) to be disbursed to the Children�s Museum only after the recordation of a declaration of restrictive covenants on the property and museum facility by the Children�s Museum; and
WHEREAS, the declaration of restrictive covenants was to run with the land and was to require the Children�s Museum to continuously operate the facility for the public purpose of providing interactive exhibits with learning activities focused on the themes of arts, culture, community, and communication; public programs and events that sustain and advance our cultural goals and provide opportunities for families to grow together; and
WHEREAS, however, the land underlying the museum facility and the museum facility itself is owned by the City of Miami (�City�) and would therefore require the City to approve and execute the declaration of restrictive covenants; and
WHEREAS, the City leased the land and museum facility to the Miami Sports and Exhibition Authority (�MSEA�), an independent and autonomous instrumentality of the City, who in turn sub-leased the land and museum facility to the Children�s Museum pursuant to a sublease agreement entered into between MSEA and the Children�s Museum in 2001 (�Sublease�); and
WHEREAS, the Sublease is for a fifty (50) year term and requires that the premises be used by the Children�s Museum solely for the development, construction, management and operation of a regional children�s museum and related facilities and improvements, with the primary purpose being to offer participatory educational interactive exhibits and programs that are designed to stimulate understanding through involvement for infants through school-age children, and includes the ability to use the museum facilities for camps, environmental programs, theater, music and dance performances and programming, lectures and workshops for families and educators, arts classes, and multicultural activities; and
WHEREAS, therefore, because the Sublease already requires that the Children�s Museum operate and manage the premises solely for educational and cultural purposes and because the premises are owned by the City, it is not expedient that the County record a restrictive covenant as the risk is minimal that the premises would be utilized for anything other than a charitable and not-for-profit purpose; and
WHEREAS, the Sublease also requires that the Children�s Museum provide in-kind services to the City, to include a year-round discount of fifty-percent (50%) off the standard entrance fee to the museum facilities for City residents; and
WHEREAS, however, the County�s standard BBC GOB grant agreement, approved by this Board pursuant to Resolution No. R-595-05, requires that recipients of BBC GOB grant funds, �allow all Miami-Dade County residents equal access and use of the project and not discriminate when charging facility admission fees�; and
WHEREAS, the Children�s Museum is required, pursuant to the Sublease, to charge discounted admission fees for entrance to the museum facilities for City residents and cannot, therefore, agree to the language in the County�s standard BBC GOB grant agreement prohibiting such a practice; and
WHEREAS, this Board recognizes that it is not within the control of the Children�s Museum to charge all County residents equal admission fees because the pre-existing Sublease requires it do to otherwise, or else risk being in breach of its agreement with MSEA; and
WHEREAS, this Board therefore desires to amend Resolution No. R-870-11 to delete the condition that a declaration of restrictive covenants be recorded prior to disbursement of BBC GOB funds to the Children�s Museum and, with respect to the Children�s Museum, to waive the requirement in the standard BBC GOB grant agreement that the grantee �not discriminate when charging facility admission fees,�
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that:
Section 1. All of the foregoing recital clauses are incorporated herein by referenced and adopted by this Board.
Section 2. This Board hereby amends Section 3 of Resolution No. R-870-11 to remove the requirement that a declaration of restrictive covenants be recorded and to instead read as follows: �This Board hereby approves the disbursement of BBC GOB funds to the Children�s Museum after the execution of the BBC GOB Grant Agreement.�
Section 3. This Board hereby waives, with respect to the Children�s Museum, the requirement in the standard BBC GOB grant agreement that the grantee �not discriminate when charging facility admission fees� for admission into the museum facilities operated by the Children�s Museum.