FYI Miami: February 6, 2020
Below are some of the FYIs in this week’s edition. The entire content of this week’s FYIs and Insider sections is available by subscription only. To subscribe click here.
CONSTRUCTION DOWN FOR YEAR: The value of construction starts in South Florida fell 2% last year from 2018 to total $12.586 billion, Dodge Data & Analytics reported last week. The value of residential starts in the region fell 5% to $6.545 billion, and the value of nonresidential construction starts rose to $6.041 billion. In December alone, the value of starts for the area – Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties – fell 14%, with residential start values rising 15% to $388 million but nonresidential starts falling 31% to $350 million.
BAPTIST AT ST. THOMAS: Baptist Health South Florida is now managing an on-campus health clinic at St. Thomas University, open 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Services will include annual physical exams, sick visits, chronic disease management and annual flu vaccine. Baptist will also offer programming for university staff including sponsored lectures on health and wellness, and will collaborate with the university’s nursing school on health promotion initiatives, a university announcement said. “We are proud to partner with St. Thomas University on this initiative and do our part in keeping its students, faculty and staff healthy,” said Bernie Fernandez, CEO of the Baptist Health Medical Group.
VENETIAN CYCLING: Nonprofit Transit Alliance has begun a new campaign: Safer Venetian Causeway. The campaign says the causeway, which the organization claims is crossed by more than 1,500 cyclists daily, has unsafe and unprotected bike lanes. The group is advocating for the bike lane to be improved, protected and extended to the City of Miami. In a video, Miami Beach Commissioner Mark Samuelian and Miami City Commissioner Ken Russell voice their support for the campaign.
CARBON-NEUTRAL BRIGHTLINE: The private train that connects Miami to West Palm Beach announced that its five-train fleet will run carbon-neutral throughout the month of February. Brightline credits its partner, FPL, which will offset all the carbon emissions with renewable energy credits.
MORE PROCEDURAL CHANGE: The Miami City Commission approved on a preliminary vote an ordinance to allow items not considered at a meeting to roll over to the next regular commission meeting. Most months, the commission meets twice. An item not considered before adjournment is continued to the next month. After the commission adjourned its first January meeting without acting on more than 50 items, those items made their way to February’s first meeting. The commission recently changed city code to allow for planning and zoning items to be heard on either meeting.