Legislative Matter

Miami-Dade Legislative Item
File Number: 241784

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Clerk's Official Copy

File Number: 241784

File Type: Resolution

Status: Adopted

Version: 0

Reference: R-139-25

Control: Pending BCC Assignment

File Name: AMENDMENT TO FROST SCIENCE MUSEUM GRANT AGREEMENT

Introduced: 9/25/2024

Requester: NONE

Cost:

Final Action: 2/4/2025

Agenda Date: 2/4/2025

Agenda Item Number: 11A9

Notes:

Title:

RESOLUTION APPROVING AMENDMENT NO. 1 TO GRANT AWARD AGREEMENT BETWEEN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY AND THE PHILLIP AND PATRICIA FROST MUSEUM OF SCIENCE, INC. (“MUSEUM”), A FLORIDA NONPROFIT CORPORATION, TO REMOVE RESTRICTIONS PROHIBITING MUSEUM FROM SEEKING FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM THE COUNTY; AUTHORIZING THE COUNTY MAYOR OR COUNTY MAYOR’S DESIGNEE TO EXECUTE SAID AMENDMENT AND EXERCISE ALL PROVISIONS CONTAINED THEREIN

Indexes:

MUSEUM

Sponsors:	Keon Hardemon, Prime Sponsor
	Juan Carlos Bermudez, Co-Sponsor
	Sen. Rene Garcia, 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	2/4/2025	11A9	Adopted				P
REPORT:	County Attorney Bonzon-Keenan advised that Agenda Item 11A9 contained a scrivener's error, which should be corrected as follows: on page MDC002, the checklist was corrected to reflect that this item requires a 2/3 vote of the Board's full membership to approve. Commissioner Gilbert III expressed his support, noting that the item provided no funds to the Frost Museum (Museum), and concurred with Commissioner Hardemon's general proposition that the Board should not limit itself. He cautioned, however, that the County was still servicing the debt it had issued to satisfy the Museum's initial request, and urged the Board to keep that in mind and proceed carefully when the Museum returned. He added that, once the Board entered into a deal, particularly one based on consideration, it should revisit that deal only upon substantially changed circumstances. Commissioner Bermudez spoke in support of the resolution and opined that previous decisions should not be precluded from being revisited, especially when there was merit to it. He noted the museum was a cultural institution that had been a staple for Miami-Dade County and whatever agreement that was previously made may not be as applicable today. Commissioner Bermudez noted there was no reason the Board could not revisit deals that were made by a prior Commission, and requested to be added as a co-sponsor to the foregoing resolution. Commissioner Regalado stated the Frost Museum had exceeded its engagement which resulted in a detrimental effect on their capital and maintenance plan. She pointed out the Museum was not asking for money but the opportunity to have the conversation and the manner in which the Museum received funds had changed. Commissioner Regalado expressed support for the foregoing resolution noting the Museum’s request was reasonable, and the Board was not allocating any funds but allowing conversations to occur, and allowing the Board to partner with the Museum in seeking other funds. Commissioner Cabrera stated that he had intended to vote "no" on the resolution and agreed with Commissioner Gilbert III that any deal made should be honored; however, in light of Commissioner Hardemon's point that the Board should not limit itself based on prior decisions, he would support the resolution. He added that he likely would not support providing the Museum additional funds, as it should adhere to the deal made with the County. Commissioner Cohen Higgins spoke in support of the resolution, noting that the Frost Museum had indicated it might face financial difficulties in the future and, in that event, wished to have the opportunity to partner with the County in seeking grant funding or other forms of assistance. Commissioner Hardemon stated the Board had a responsibility to support entities and organizations that attracted visitors to Miami-Dade County and made it a more cultural destination. He noted beyond the deal that was made, the Board had a responsibility to ensure that Miami-Dade County was attractive for people to visit. There being no further discussion, the Board proceeded to vote on the foregoing resolution, as presented.

Office of the Chairperson	2/3/2025		Scrivener's Errors
REPORT:	On page MDC002, the checklist was corrected to reflect that this item requires a 2/3 vote of the Board’s full membership to approve

Housing, Recreation, Culture & Community Dev. Cmte	11/12/2024	2D	Forwarded to BCC with a favorable recommendation
REPORT:	Senator Garcia questioned Frost Museum of Science staff about the museum's background and the reasons for presenting the proposed resolution to the committee. Ms. Adel Valencia provided details of the museum’s opening in 1950 and the evolution of the existing facility that was the result of a 2004 voter approved bond resulting in a $165 million taxpayer investment encompassing a museum, planetarium and aquarium. Ms. Valencia pointed out that despite the $45 million donation from Mr. Phillip and Ms. Patricia Frost, there were challenges in getting the museum completed. Ms. Valencia explained that the obstacles prompted the museum’s Executive Board to enter into a Grant Agreement with Miami-Dade County for a $45 million advance in convention development tax money to complete the construction. She explained that the agreement restructured the Board to include County members and prohibited the museum from seeking support or operational funds from Miami-Dade County until 2031. Ms. Valencia requested the removal of this prohibition, emphasizing that while it would allow the museum to request financial support if needed, it would not obligate the County to provide funding. Senator Garcia inquired about the financial management during the museum's construction and discussed the possibility of using his commission's discretionary funds to support the museum. Assistant County Attorney Melanie Spencer clarified that the museum could not seek funds to complete the construction of the facilities and cautioned that monies donated could become the subject of inquiry based on the allocation of said funds. Senator Garcia inquired about the costs of the museum's educational programs and discussed the broader philanthropic contributions that Phillip and Patricia Frost had made throughout the community. Mr. John Roberts, President and CEO of Frost Museum of Science, commented that the annual budget for the museum’s educational program, along with curriculum development was about $2 million a year. He highlighted the Frosts' extensive contributions to the County's cultural and educational institutions, including the Frost Institute and Frost School of Music at the University of Miami, and the Frost Art Museum at Florida International University, along with their support of various capital campaigns. Commissioner Gonzalez expressed support for the museum while acknowledging concerns about amending the current agreement. He emphasized the need to help the museum thrive and continue serving the community, suggesting a diversified funding approach that included discount programs for students, seniors, and veterans to improve accessibility. Commissioner Gonzalez recognized however that providing discounted admission was difficult for the museum without local government partnership. Ms. Valencia clarified that the proposed amendment was only a request to delete the provision that prohibited the museum from requesting support. She assured the committee members that deleting this particular provision of the agreement did not guarantee financial support and all other provisions remain in place. Ms. Valencia advised that while the discounted ticket pricing for Miami-Dade County residents was terminated effective October 1, 2024, the museum continued to provide various pricing options for weekdays and holidays. Mr. Roberts noted that the museum offered discount programs for first responders including veterans, in addition to reduced membership fee for teachers and golden ticket holders. He noted that the museum's single admission price, which included access to the science museum, aquarium, and planetarium, was comparable to the combined cost of visiting these facilities separately in other major cities. Vice Chairwoman Higgins stated her review of the County’s cultural institutions located directly within the City of Miami (City) discovered that the City did not offer any type of financial support. Ms. Marialaura Leslie, Director of Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural, confirmed that the City did not provide capital or operational funding to the Perez Art Museum Miami (PAMM), History Miami Museum or Bay of Pigs Museum & Library. In response to Vice Chairwoman Higgins’ inquiry as to whether the museum had requested funding from the City that the museum had not requested funding during the city's budget hearing, noting that the only funding from the City came through the Miami Downtown Development Authority (DDA). Vice Chairwoman Higgins criticized the City of Miami's lack of financial support for cultural institutions within its boundaries. She expressed concern about supporting the amendment given the County's significant financial commitments, including the new constitutional offices, courthouse construction, Judge Leifman Center, and funding for domestic violence, homelessness, and housing initiatives. Vice Chairwoman Higgins noted that the Frost Museum had received more funding than any other non-County-owned cultural institution and had chosen to exchange its annual $4 million operating budget for capital expenses. Vice Chairwoman Higgins requested Ms. Leslie to examine the Executive Board structure of cultural institutions, noting their fundraising challenges. She recommended evaluating fundraising strategies and cost reduction methods and stated she would oppose any amendment unless it was deferred pending review of the following year's budget projections. Senator Garcia stressed that local municipalities should financially support cultural institutions and characterized the proposed amendment as a strategic approach rather than exploratory. He proposed requiring institutions to seek local government funding before requesting County assistance, emphasizing the County's broader responsibility to support diverse needs across multiple communities. In response to Chairwoman Bastien’s question whether the museum had requested any funding from the City of Miami, Ms. Valencia confirmed ongoing discussions with the City of Miami regarding potential funding through the Omni Community Redevelopment Agency (Omni CRA), and added that the museum had previously secured federal grants and state grants prior to the dissolution of the State's Art & Cultural budget. There being no other questions or comments, the Committee proceeded to vote on the foregoing proposed resolution, as presented.

Housing, Recreation, Culture & Community Dev. Cmte	10/7/2024	2F	Deferred

County Attorney	9/26/2024 2:39:04 PM		Referred	Housing, Recreation, Culture & Community Dev. Cmte		10/7/2024

County Attorney	9/25/2024		Assigned	Monica Rizo		10/1/2024

Legislative Text

TITLE
RESOLUTION APPROVING AMENDMENT NO. 1 TO GRANT AWARD AGREEMENT BETWEEN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY AND THE PHILLIP AND PATRICIA FROST MUSEUM OF SCIENCE, INC. (�MUSEUM�), A FLORIDA NONPROFIT CORPORATION, TO REMOVE RESTRICTIONS PROHIBITING MUSEUM FROM SEEKING FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM THE COUNTY; AUTHORIZING THE COUNTY MAYOR OR COUNTY MAYOR�S DESIGNEE TO EXECUTE SAID AMENDMENT AND EXERCISE ALL PROVISIONS CONTAINED THEREIN

BODY
WHEREAS, on July 20, 2004, this Board adopted Resolution No. R-919-04 authorizing the issuance of general obligation bonds for cultural, library and multicultural educational capital projects and on November 2, 2004, a majority of voters of Miami-Dade County approved the Building Better Communities General Obligation Bond Program (�Bond Program�); and
WHEREAS, the Bond Program specifically included funding for a new Miami Museum of Science and Planetarium Facility (�Science Museum�) in the amount of $165,000,000.00 which the County provided to the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science, Inc., a Florida nonprofit corporation (�Frost Museum Inc.�) for the construction of the Science Museum; and
WHEREAS, the Science Museum was completed in 2017 and has been a wild success with over 3.8 million visitors to date since opening in May of 2017 and currently has over 13,000 member households; and
WHEREAS, average, the Science Museums receives around 800 visitors on weekdays and 2,500 visitors on weekends and is projecting an annual attendance of 718,000 visitors this year; and
WHEREAS, the Science Museum also offers many programs to benefit children and families in our community, including but not limited to:
* Working with Miami-Dade County Public Schools to provide�science�experiences throughout the 2023-2024 school year for 36 Title I schools (1,700 students) at no cost to the schools;
* Operating an Early Childhood Hands on�Science�(ECHOS) program provided at no cost to 13 schools (one school in each County Commission District) where pre-K teachers will receive curriculum, materials, professional learning opportunities and at-home activities for families; and
* Being recognized by the University of Miami�s NSU Center for Autism and Related Disabilities for creating welcoming spaces for individuals on the autism spectrum, related disabilities, and their family members;
WHEREAS, Science Museum�s operating budget for this fiscal year is $24,500,000.00, and each year since opening, Frost Museum Inc. has been successful in generating additional earned revenue through pricing optimization, new partnerships with a focus on tourism, and effective marketing campaigns; and
WHEREAS, the Science Museum�s earned revenue has increased by over $7,300,000.00 since its fiscal year 2022; and
WHEREAS, back in 2016, during the construction of the Science Museum, Frost Museum Inc.�s total project costs increased significantly, and Frost Museum, Inc. did not timely meet its fundraising goals leading to this Board�s approval of Resolution No. R-266-16 to allow the County to issue an additional $45,000,000.00 of debt backed by conventional development tax (�CDT�) bonds to grant to the Frost Museum Inc. to cover its funding shortfall; and
WHEREAS, the County and Frost Museum Inc. entered into a Grant Award Agreement for the $45,000,000.00 of CDT bond funds in April of 2016 and said Grant Agreement contained certain terms and conditions relating to the funding of Grantee�s operations that are no longer applicable or necessary; and
WHEREAS, specifically, the Grant Agreement required the Frost Museum Inc.�s board of trustees to pass a resolution and to agree in the Grant Agreement that the Frost Museum Inc. would not seek County operational subsidies or County financial support before the County retired and paid off the financing debt for the $45,000,000.00 of CDT bonds; and
WHEREAS, since its opening, the Science Museum has operated with a balanced budget; and
WHEREAS, the County and the Frost Museum Inc. desire to amend the CDT Grant Agreement to remove these restrictions,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that this Board:
Section 1. Approves the foregoing recitals and incorporates them into this resolution.
Section 2. Approves Amendment No. 1 to the Grant Award Agreement between the County and the Frost Museum, Inc. in substantially the form attached hereto and authorizes the County Mayor or County Mayor�s designee to execute same and exercise all provisions contained therein.