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HomeMy WebLinkAbout24531 - MINUTES - CRA MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING CITY OF DANIA BEACH COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2007 — 6:00 P.M. 1. Call to Order Chairman Anton called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Present: Chairman: Robert Anton Vice-Chairman Albert Jones Commissioners: Anne Castro Patricia Flury City Manager: Ivan Pato City Attorney: Thomas Ansbro City Clerk Louise Stilson CRA Consultant: William Salim Absent: Commissioner: John Bertino Commissioner Castro motioned to excuse the absence of Commissioner Bertino; seconded by Vice-Chairman Jones. The motion carried on the following 3-1 Roll Call vote: Commissioner Castro Yes Vice-Chairman Jones Yes Commissioner Flury No Chairman Anton Yes 2. Approval of Minutes of June 6, 2007 Vice-Chairman Jones motioned to approve the Minutes of June 6, 2007; seconded by Commissioner Castro. The motion carried on the following 4-0 Roll Call vote: Commissioner Castro Yes Vice-Chairman Jones Yes Commissioner Flury Yes Chairman Anton Yes 3. Library Master Plan Update Laurence Leeds, A1CP, Community Development Director, advised that at the Commission's request, staff and PGAL representatives met with Broward County Library staff to review the recommended Scheme B for the Library project. Library staff had several comments, some of which are: • Reduce Library size from 12,000 to 10,000 square feet. (Library staff indicated 10,000 square feet is the maximum size of neighborhood libraries built today.) • Provide back-in loading space along SW ls`Avenue. • Provide a covered canopy entrance in front of the Library entrance (south elevation). This may require modifying the garage location and the loss of some parking. • Library staff requested a separate Library pedestrian drop off lane and relocating the parking garage stairway closest to the Library. The Architect is looking into these design details. • Library staff indicated glass surfaces will be limited along the east and west building elevations to conserve energy. Additional glass will be allowed along Dania Beach Boulevard (not shown on plan). • Library staff indicated there is no construction funding available for this project at this time. Commissioner Castro pointed out that when she met with County Commissioner Rodstrom about a year ago there was still some money left in the County Library Bond Fund. She thought it would be useful if Attorney Salim would contact the Library staff to obtain more information. Commissioner Castro noted she would communicate with Commissioner Rodstrom to discuss this matter further. Konrad Kwok, AIA, Planner, PGAL and Associates, presented a revised Scheme B showing the suggested revisions. He advised that Director Leeds had confirmed with City Attorney Ansbro that if Park Street is vacated, we could only use half of the street. Based on this information, they revised the parking for the project and reduced it from 425 parking spaces to approximately 370 parking spaces. Director Leeds noted that Attorney Tim Ryan advised we have airspace rights. He indicated that instead of vacating Park Street we could cantilever 2/3 of the parking structure over the street which would provide about 30 additional parking spaces. It was the consensus of the Commission not to cantilever the parking structure over Park Street. City Attorney Ansbro advised that appraisers are currently reviewing the appraisal received from Israel Kushnir for the 109 Park Street property. Director Leeds indicated that we need to look at cost per space for the parking structure. If the Commission decides to proceed with the revised Plan B using the north half of Park Street, PGAL will prepare the Master Plan within the next 30-60 days. Minutes of Regular Meeting 2 City of Dania Beach Community Redevelopment Agency Wednesday, August 1,2007—6:00 p.m. Commissioner Castro questioned if all of the County Library suggestions had been addressed. Maureen, Project Coordinator for the Library construction, noted all of their concerns have been addressed and they agree with the revised plan. Commissioner Flury asked what would be the approximate cost of a 370-parking space garage structure. Mr. Kwok responded the construction price would be about $12,000 per space. Director Leeds confirmed for Commissioner Flury that the entire City Hall parking lot has approximately 90-100 parking spaces. He believes the area where the proposed parking garage would be located currently has about 50 spaces on the ground. Chairman Anton indicated that County Commissioner Rodstrom needs to put this item in the County's 5-Year Capital Improvement Plan. He felt the rest of the Commission needed to support Commissioner Castro's efforts with the County. Chairman Anton wanted to make sure our Library is not combined with the Stirling Road County Library because Dania Beach definitely wants its own Library. Commissioner Castro pointed out that we also need to lobby the other County Commissioners for the Library project to be included in their CIP. She questioned what would be the total cost of the Library building. Mr. Kwok advised that currently the cost of a Library building is $300 per square foot, which equals $3M. The cost of a parking garage is $12,000 or more, per space. Commissioner Castro questioned if we could partner with a parking garage company. City Manager Palo advised he spoke with USA Parking and they would need to build the parking structure themselves. They would also require a minimum of 400 parking spaces before it becomes cost effective for them. He clarified this would be a for-profit operation. Vice-Chairman Jones confirmed with City Manager Palo that the G.O. Bond approved by the voters refers to a parking garage that would accommodate the Library as well as additional parking for the downtown area. Chairman Anton noted we do not need 370 parking spaces at this time. He would like the consultants to bring back options for partial construction now, with the possibility of additional parking at a later date. Commissioner Castro questioned where we could get the money if the County does not contribute to the construction of the Library. She also mentioned looking for alternative parking spaces for City employees at a site near City Hall. Minutes of Regular Meeting 3 City of Dania Beach Community Redevelopment Agency Wednesday,August 1,2007—6:00 p.m. City Manager Pato asked what the procedure would be with regards to staffing. If we build the Library, would staffing be the responsibility of the County or the City. Maureen, County Library representative, commented they have different partnerships with other cities, but she would need to discuss this matter with the County Library Director. Commissioner Castro thought if the County contributed with construction costs, they would probably want to staff it. Commissioner Flury commented we could lease parking from surrounding churches, if needed. The parking garage should be based on what we can afford, not on the number of parking spaces. She noted everyone was agreeable to the revised drawings and asked when we were going to resolve this issue. Commissioner Flury thought the County could pay us for the lease, the same way they are currently paying CitiBank. She noted we need to put together a list of options to present to Commissioner Rodstrom. Chairman Anton indicated that the next steps should be: 1) ask the Friends of the Library to contact Commissioner Rodstrom, and our Commissioners also need to contact him to get this item in the County CIP; and 2) we have to find out if the 5-year lease with CitiBank can be broken. Commissioner Flury advised their lease expires in 2.5 years. Chairman Anton opened the meeting to the public. Claire Satin, a member of the County Library Advisory Council, was encouraged to finally see the plan come through. She was discouraged by the downsizing of the Library which might not meet the needs of the residents in the City. Ms. Satin also commented this would be called a Neighborhood Library, not the Dania Beach Branch Library. She finally indicated she would be happy to meet with Commissioner Rodstrom and other County Commissioners to discuss adding the Library to the County CIP. Sandy Mitzel, Vice-President of Friends of Paul DeMaio Library, thought that in addition to contacting Commissioner Rodstrom, we should get in touch with County Commissioners Gunzburger and Keechl. She clarified that Commissioner Keechl is our District Representative for the Library. Chairman Anton reaffirmed that Commissioner Rodstrom has 90% of Dania Beach and needs to be the contact person. Ms. Mitzel indicated they are also unhappy with the reduced size of the Library. She suggested building a structure strong enough so that it can support a second story at a later date. NJ Terrace, 105 NW 151 Avenue, questioned if it would be cheaper to purchase the property across the street and use it for the Library and parking garage. Minutes of Regular Meeting 4 City of Dania Beach Community Redevelopment Agency Wednesday,August 1,2007-6:00 p.m. Commissioner Castro would like Attorney Salim to check on the Library Bond funds. Maureen clarified there is no money left in the Library Bond Fund. Vice-Chairman Jones supported the plan. He was not concerned about the reduced size of the Library provided we make good use of the space available. Commissioner Flury thought the Commissioners should contact the County Commissioners during the next two weeks. Once this is done, she suggested City Manager Palo and Commissioner Castro meet with Commissioners Rodstrom and Keechl and give them some clear options. Chairman Anton thought we had a good plan in place and suggested moving forward without delay. Director Leeds clarified that Mr. Kwok will finish the Master Plan and meet with City and County Library staff within the next sixty days. They will then bring the plan before the CRA Board in October. He indicated he asked PGAL what it would cost to design the Library building so that a second floor could be added at a later date. Director Leeds also noted that we are working with the 10,000 square feet model, as requested by the County Library staff. Chairman Anton pointed out that we are currently working with their suggested 10,000 square feet model, but we will do our best to bring it to 12,000 square feet. City Manager Palo noted he received a call from The Miami Herald regarding Dania Jai Alai. The reporter said he spoke with Boyd Gaming and they are delaying the Dania Beach project. He reported they are revisiting their plan which will add a 6-9 month delay to the start of construction due to the disappointing numbers the other casinos are receiving, as well as other issues relating to gaming in Broward County. 4. Adiournment Chairman Anton adjourned the meeting at 7:06 p.m. ATTEST: COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY , LOUISE STILSON, CMC BOB ANTON CITY CLERK CHAIRMAN— CRA Approved: September 5, 2007 Minutes of Regular Meeting 5 City of Dania Beach Community Redevelopment Agency Wednesday,August 1,2007—6:00 p.m.