TITLE
RESOLUTION APPROVING THE EXECUTION OF TWO RAILROAD REIMBURSEMENT AGREEMENTS FOR GRADE CROSSING TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES BETWEEN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, AND THE FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY, LLC FOR GRADE CROSSINGS AT EAST AND WEST CARIBBEAN WAY ON THE PORT OF MIAMI FOR AN ESTIMATED TOTAL ANNUAL MAINTENANCE COST OF $13,452.00

BODY
WHEREAS, this Board desires to accomplish the purposes outlined in the accompanying memorandum, a copy of which is incorporated herein by reference,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that this Board approves the two (2) Railroad Reimbursement Agreements � Grade Crossing Traffic Control Devices between the County, the State of Florida Department of Transportation, and the Florida East Coast Railway, L.L.C. (�Reimbursement Agreements�) in substantially the form attached hereto and made a part hereof and authorizes the Mayor or the Mayor�s designee to execute the two Reimbursement Agreements for and on behalf of Miami-Dade County.

HEADER
Date:
To: Honorable Chairwoman Rebeca Sosa
and Members, Board of County Commissioners
From: Carlos A. Gimenez
Mayor

Subject: Railroad Reimbursement Agreements between Miami-Dade County, the Florida Department of Transportation
and the Florida East Coast Railway, L.L.C.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the Board approve the two attached Railroad Reimbursement Agreements for Grade Crossing Traffic Control Devices between Miami-Dade County (�County�), the Florida Department of Transportation (�FDOT�), and the Florida East Coast Railway, L.L.C. (�FEC�). These Reimbursement Agreements will allow the FEC to furnish and install two (2) Automatic Grade Crossing Signals and other associated traffic control devices on Dodge Island at the at-grade railroad tracks crossing two public roadways, (Caribbean Way East and Caribbean Way West). The FDOT shall reimburse the FEC for all costs associated with the construction of all traffic control devices at these two crossings. After installation of these signals is completed, the FEC will service, operate and maintain the on-port crossings, and the County will be responsible for reimbursing the FEC for the annual maintenance costs as stipulated in the Schedule of Annual Cost of Automatic Highway Grade Crossing Devices in the Reimbursement Agreements.

SCOPE
PortMiami (�Port�) is located within District 5 � Commissioner Bruno A. Barreiro. The impact of this agenda item is countywide as the Port is a regional asset and generates employment for residents throughout Miami-Dade County. The on-Port, at-grade railroad tracks and associated right-of-way on Dodge Island within the project limits are fully owned by the County.

FISCAL IMPACT/FUNDING SOURCE
The project cost to install the automatic grade crossings signals and associated traffic control devices at Caribbean Way East and Caribbean Way West is estimated by the FEC at $360,010 and $333,480, respectively. Per the Reimbursement Agreements, the FEC shall furnish and install all equipment on an actual cost basis, and the FDOT shall reimburse the FEC for all costs incurred in the installation of these facilities. There is no fiscal impact to the County for the costs of construction of these railroad crossing facilities. However, the County will be responsible for all future maintenance expenses, currently capped at an annual cost of $6,726 per each railroad crossing at Caribbean Way East and Caribbean Way West, for a total annual maintenance cost of $13,452. These costs are enumerated in the Schedule of Annual Cost of Automatic Highway Grade Crossing Devices under the authority of the Florida Administrative Rule 14-57.011 Public Railroad- Highway Grade Crossing Costs, as attached to the Reimbursement Agreements. The current schedule became effective on July 1, 2011, and is reviewed every 5 years and revised as appropriate based on the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers published by the U.S. Department of Labor. The funding for this project will be paid by Seaport Revenues.

TRACK RECORD/MONITOR
Port staff members responsible for monitoring these agreements are Juan Kuryla, Director Designee, and Kevin Lynskey, Assistant Director for Business Initiatives.

MANAGER'S BACKGROUND
BACKGROUND
The Port is undergoing its most significant cargo facility expansion in 30 years, putting in place three critical pieces of infrastructure that are timed with - and in anticipation of � the Panama Canal expansion. These assets all revolve around access: deeper waters to accommodate a new Post-Panamax class of mega-container vessel; twin tunnels to provide direct highway access; and an on-dock intermodal rail system to facilitate the movement of goods to distant markets. PortMiami�s intermodal and rail reconnection project was developed jointly with the FEC and resulted in a successful 2010 U.S Department of Transportation TIGER II Grant. The project entails approximately $49M in investment in on-Port ($25M) and off-Port ($24M) improvements. The Tiger II Grant was made available to cover the costs of the on-Port Railroad bridge rehabilitation, upgrade to the mainline access tracks, and the implementation of the on-dock rail intermodal yard.

To support the expected increase in rail movement accessing the rail intermodal yard, there is a need to upgrade and add active advance warning devices, associated traffic control devices, and railroad crossing pavement markings to the two existing at-grade highway railroad crossings on Port at the Caribbean Way East and Caribbean Way West intersections in order to enhance safety as the FEC moves cargo to and from the Port. FDOT has agreed to provide the funds required for the FEC to develop and implement the automatic grade crossing signals and support traffic control devices project on these County-owned facilities under the State�s Highway-Rail Grade Crossing Safety Improvement Program. Board approval of these two tri-party Reimbursement Agreements will allow the FEC to move forward with the development and implementation of the highway-railroad crossing upgrades to Caribbean Way East and West with the FDOT reimbursing the FEC for all implementation costs upon final approval of all goods and services, and will direct the County to establish an annual maintenance payment schedule as enumerated in the Schedule of Annual Cost of Automatic Highway Grade Crossing Devices for the reimbursement to the FEC for the costs incurred during the annual maintenance of the highway rail crossings.


DELEGATED AUTHORITY
In accordance with Section 2-8.3 of the Miami-Dade County Code related to identifying delegation of Board authority, there are no authorities beyond those specific in the resolution which include the authority for the Mayor or designee to execute the Agree and to exercise any cancellation or renewal provisions.

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Jack Osterholt, Deputy Mayor