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RESOLUTION DECLARING CERTAIN GEOGRAPHIC AREA OF UNINCORPORATED MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA DESCRIBED GENERALLY AS BOUNDED ON THE NORTH BY SW 152 STREET, ON THE WEST BY SW 137 AVENUE, ON THE SOUTH BY SW 184 STREET, AND ON THE EAST BY SW 117 AVENUE TO BE A SLUM OR BLIGHTED AREA; DECLARING THE REBUILDING, REHABILITATION, CONSERVATION AND REDEVELOPMENT OF THE AREA TO BE IN THE INTEREST OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH, SAFETY, MORALS AND WELFARE OF RESIDENTS OF RICHMOND HEIGHTS/METROZOO AREA, AND MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA; FINDING NEED FOR CREATION OF COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY; AND DIRECTING THE COUNTY MAYOR OR COUNTY MAYOR�S DESIGNEE TO PREPARE A REDEVELOPMENT PLAN

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WHEREAS, the Florida Legislature during its 1969 Legislative Session enacted the Community Redevelopment Act of 1969 which is presently codified in the Florida Statutes at Part III of Chapter 163, Sections 163.330 through 163.450, as amended, (�Act�); and

WHEREAS, all powers arising pursuant to the Act are conferred upon counties with Home Rule charters, which counties in turn are authorized to delegate certain such powers to municipalities within their boundaries; and

WHEREAS, the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners (�Board�) adopted Resolution No. R-137-14, which directed the County Mayor or the County Mayor�s designee to update the Finding of Necessity for the Richmond Heights/Metrozoo area; and

WHEREAS, the Board considered the �Finding of Necessity� Study attached as Exhibit A (the �Study�), concerning the existence of a slum or blighted area within the unincorporated area of Miami-Dade County bounded on the North by SW 152 Street, on the West by SW 137 Avenue, on the South by SW 184 Street, and on the East by SW 117 Avenue, which is specifically described in the Study and is referred to as the �Richmond Heights/Metrozoo Redevelopment Area� in such Study; and

WHEREAS, the Board concurs with the Study and finds that one or more slum or blighted areas, as defined in Section 163.340(7) and (8), respectively, of the Act exist within the area identified in the Study; and

WHEREAS, the Board finds that rebuilding, rehabilitation, conservation, and/or redevelopment of said slum or blighted area is necessary in the interest of the public health, safety, morals, and welfare of the residents of Richmond Heights/Metrozoo Area and of Miami-Dade County; and

WHEREAS, the Board finds that said slum or blighted area is appropriate for redevelopment; and

WHEREAS, the Board finds that there is a need for a community redevelopment agency to carry out the community redevelopment purposes of the Act; and

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:

Section 1. The foregoing recitations are incorporated as a part of this resolution by reference.

Section 2. The Board declares and finds that based on findings in the Study, a blighted or slum area exists in an area of unincorporated Miami-Dade County generally as bounded on the North by SW 152 Street, on the West by SW 137 Avenue, on the South by SW 184 Street, and on the East by SW 117 Avenue, which is specifically described in the Study and is referred to as the �Richmond Heights/Metrozoo Redevelopment Area�

Section 3. The Board declares and finds that the rebuilding, rehabilitation, conservation and redevelopment of the Richmond Heights/Metrozoo Redevelopment Area is necessary and in the best interest of the public health, safety, morals, and welfare of the residents of Miami-Dade County as a whole.

Section 4. The Board declares and finds that that the Richmond Heights/Metrozoo Redevelopment Area is a slum or blighted area as defined in Section 163.340 of the Act as applied to Miami-Dade County.

Section 5. The Board declares and finds that there is a need for an Agency to function and carry out the community redevelopment purposes of the Act.

Section 6. The Board directs the County Mayor or the County Mayor�s designee to prepare an action item that includes a plan of redevelopment for the Richmond Heights/Metrozoo Redevelopment Area, and to submit such action items to the Board, with appropriate commissioner sponsorship and committee review, for approval after notice and public hearing.

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Date: January 21, 2015

To: Honorable Chairwoman Rebeca Sosa
and Members, Board of County Commissioners

From: Carlos A. Gimenez
Mayor

Subject: Resolution Approving the Finding of Necessity for the Richmond Heights/Metrozoo Area

STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
It is recommended that the Board of County Commissioners (Board) consider taking the following actions:
1. The Board, based on the Finding of Necessity (Study), declares and finds a geographic area within Miami-Dade County (County), bounded on the North by SW 152 Street, on the West by SW 137 Avenue, on the South by SW 184 Street, and on the East by SW 117 Avenue, which is specifically described in the Study, attached as Exhibit A, and is referred to as the Richmond Heights/Metrozoo Redevelopment Area (Area) to be a slum or blighted area, pursuant to Chapter 163, Part III, Florida Statutes (Act);
2. The Board declares and finds that the rebuilding, rehabilitation, conservation and redevelopment of the Area is necessary in the interest of the public health, safety, morals, and welfare of the residents of Miami-Dade County as a whole;
3. The Board declares and finds that the Area is a slum or blighted area as defined in Section 163.340 of the Act as applied to Miami-Dade County;
4. The Board declares and finds that there is a need for a community redevelopment agency to function and carry out the community redevelopment purposes of the Act; and
5. The Board directs the County Mayor or the County Mayor�s designee to prepare a plan of redevelopment for the Area, and to submit the plan of redevelopment to the Board for approval after notice and public hearing.

Scope of Agenda Item
This item accepts the Study identifying approximately 2,146 acres within the unincorporated municipal service area (UMSA), which lie entirely in Commission District 9 represented by Commissioner Dennis C. Moss, to be slum and blighted (see Exhibit B).

Should a community redevelopment agency be created, the Area covered will make it the second largest in the County, with only the North Miami Community Redevelopment Agency larger at 3,540 acres. The Study includes the Zoo Miami, Coast Guard, and the former [MM1]University of Miami [FJ(2]properties.

Fiscal Impact / Funding Source
A community redevelopment agency�s revenue source is generated through the incremental growth of ad valorem revenues generated on real property beyond an established base year, tax increment financing, as defined in Section 163.387 of the Florida State Statutes. As provided in the Study, should this area become a community redevelopment agency, the countywide and UMSA revenues will be deposited into a trust fund and will be used within the redevelopment area to fund projects that will eradicate the slum and blight in the community pursuant to the redevelopment plan. The approval of this item will not create the trust fund for the agency. A subsequent legislative item will be presented to the Board at a later date for consideration.

Track Record / Monitor
This resolution does not provide for contracting with any specific entity. It declares the Area as a slum or blighted area.

MANAGER'S BACKGROUND
Background
In 1969, the Florida Legislature enacted the Act, as it is presently codified in Part III of Chapter 163, Florida Statutes, as amended. The Act authorizes counties and municipalities in the State of Florida to create community redevelopment agencies, to prepare redevelopment plans for certain defined areas within their boundaries designed as community redevelopment areas, within which community redevelopment projects may be undertaken to eliminate and prevent the development and spread of slum and blighted areas through the use of creative financing mechanisms. Pursuant to the Act, the Board is the governing body over community redevelopment agencies in the County, but the Board can delegate redevelopment powers at its discretion, after a finding has been made determining that slum or blight exists within a defined area. In order to implement the Act, the Board must adopt a resolution finding that:
* One or more slum or blighted areas exists within the proposed area; and
* That rehabilitation, conservation, or redevelopment, or a combination thereof, of the redevelopment area is necessary in the interest of the public health, safety, morals or welfare of the residents of the County.

Resolution R-137-14 adopted by the Board on February 4, 2014, requested that a study previously prepared for the Area be updated. It is important to note that the Study before the Board includes a smaller geographic area than the previous study based on a recommendation from the County�s Tax Increment Financing and Coordinating Committee (Committee) as explained further below. The Study as part of this item, prepared by Calvin, Giordano & Associates, examines the conditions in the proposed redevelopment area and concludes that conditions of slum and blight, as defined in the Act, exist. The Study identifies conditions including inadequate provision for sanitation, high population density and overcrowding, defective parking facilities and roadways, faulty lot layout, unsanitary conditions, inadequate and outdated building density pattern and high vacancy rates.

Adoption of the Study is the first step in the process to create a community redevelopment agency. Acceptance of the Study does not automatically create a community redevelopment agency nor does it fund any improvements in the area. The Board must approve a redevelopment plan with redevelopment strategies for the area and, in order to fund those improvements, the Board must then enact an ordinance to establish a trust fund.

The Tax Increment Financing and Coordinating Committee (Committee) reviewed the Study on July 9, 2014. During the meeting, the Committee discussed the boundaries and recommended that the Board adopt a more compact boundary inclusive of only the ZooMiami and Coast Guard properties currently under consideration for development by Fox Studios and the former University of Miami property, which is now being privately developed for housing [MM3]and r[FJ(4]etail purposes. The proposed boundaries, which are more fully described in Exhibit B, are based on the Committee�s recommendation.


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Edward Marquez
Deputy Mayor