FLPD & the GMCA Advisory Board

Power Amplifiers and Keyless Entry

Geek War: Crooks vs. Carmakers

It Gets Worse

FLPD: Protecting Your Ride

2017 FLPD Security Update

FYI, other cities have seen a trend with residents shopping at Publix and possibly being followed back to their residence where a minor car accident is staged. At this time the driver exits the vehicle and is unfortunately robbed of belongings. This can very easily happen along the Galt and any of its local businesses.

Another trend which seems to be making a re-appearance is bank follow outs. This is when a person of age withdraws money from their local bank and goes on to do some shopping and either leaves the cash in the car which gets burglarized or followed only to be victimized.

My tips to the residents for the first mentioned would be to remain in the car and immediately pick up their cell phone allowing the suspect to see you have a phone and call the police, DO NOT EXIT VEHICLE, if this is an honest accident the suspect will understand and remain on scene, if not they will hopefully leave.

Tip for the second mentioned would be to be aware of your surroundings when exiting the bank, do not leave cash in the vehicle, if you feel uncomfortable leaving the bank have an employee escort you out to your vehicle, or conduct your banking when you are in the company of another person.

Tom Gestal

The Rest of the Story

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Commissioner Bruce Roberts

Galleria || || Galt A1A

From The Desk of
Commissioner Bruce G. Roberts

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DISTRICT 4 BROWARD COMMISSIONER CHIP LAMARCA

April 6, 2017 - In his March / April 2017 LaMarca Letter, District 4 Broward Commissioner Chip LaMarca describes how a staged photo shoot of our recently widened beach will carry multiple messages to the State and Federal agencies charged with funding beach projects, including an expression of appreciation, a polite �past due� notice and a cordial reminder that their investment will yield a whopping tourism dividend, shield $billions in upland properties from storm surge, and save lives.

LaMarca also details how NEPA surveys mandated by the proposed navigational improvements at Port Everglades will safeguard the environment; notes how a Port pilot program to enhance turn times expedited its first shipment of perishable cargo (Chinese snow peas en route to Europe); welcomes Silversea Cruises' newest luxury cruise ship � Silver Muse � to its new winter homeport; explains how thousands of new parking spaces at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport will accommodate FLL�s unprecedented growth in passenger traffic and a worldwide proliferation of destination sites; applauds recognition of Broward's green communities by �Keep America Beautiful�; and announces the expansion of an Animal Care and Adoption Division web portal that facilitates spay and neuter services for �community cats�.

FLL Busts a Move

FORT LAUD-HOLLYWOOD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

LaMarca's March / April 2017 newsletter spins the white-hot growth of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL). While FLL has always been one of the county's most productive economic enginesc, its January 2017 stats may foreshadow a banner year.

AIRPORT SHOOTER ESTEBAN SANTIAGO

In January 2016, 2,572,187 passengers arrived at or departed from FLL. In reporting this January�s 9.4% increase in total traffic over last January, LaMarca asserts that the 2,803,913 passengers who used the airport this January did so despite a murderous January 6 killing spree by 26-year old Iraq war veteran Esteban Santiago that sent 6 people to the hospital and 5 to the morgue. While such brutal acts ordinarily deter air travel, the combination of FLL�s new services, new flights, new infrastructure and a new aviation director seems to have offset the incident�s impact.

Featuring one of the world�s most formidable fleets, Emirates Airlines commenced a new daily service between FLL and Dubai International Airport on December 15, 2016. Fort Lauderdale was the 11^th city in the United States serviced by Emirates Airlines and January was the carrier's first full month of service at FLL. The Emirates inbound load factor was 88 percent, averaging 234 inbound passengers and 197 departing passengers - an outbound load factor of slightly less at 74 percent.

Despite the ominous Zika virus, a recent outbreak of Yellow Fever and the unstable political / economic climate in Brazil, low cost Brazilian carrier Azul Airlines carried an average of 235 passengers in both directions for January, filling an impressive 87 percent of their seats. In fact, five of FLL�s ten busiest carriers saw double digit growth in January, topped by Norwegian�s huge 61% increase, Allegiant Air�s 24% growth and JetBlue Airways� 19% jump in traffic. Passenger traffic on Spirit Airlines was up 16% and United Airlines jumped 12%.

On the Down Side

Canadian tourism to the region was adversely impacted by the exchange rate (1 Canadian dollar = $.75 US). While savvy Canadian snowbirds often segregate a float for their US dollars, most visiting tourists are getting clobbered. While load factors were in a healthy 80 percent range for the month, seat capacity dropped 9 percent � commensurate with traffic. Compared to last January, passenger traffic on Air Canada dropped by 4% - from 92,560 to 89,026. Westjet and Sunwing Airlines took much larger hits, with respective declines of 22% and 19%.

Hoping to exploit the first commercial flights to Cuba in more than 50 years, JetBlue, Silver, Southwest and Spirit Airlines offered flights to nine Cuban cities by the end of 2016. Since the anticipated monsoon of visitors to Cuba never materialized, carriers adjusted to the disappointing passenger demand. While maintaining the same number of daily flights to Cuba, JetBlue is using smaller aircraft. Beginning in May, the airline will trim their available seats by 25 percent.

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Silver Airways has reduced service to Cuba from an average of four daily departures to three and will go to two in August. Silver is re-evaluating its service, and has stopped selling Cuba flights in September. If Silver pulls out of Cuba, FLL will be down to 12 daily departures by September. However, FLL will still feature more flights to Cuba than any other airport, as competing Miami International Airport will only offer 11 daily departures in September.

FLL CEO Mark Gale hits the Ground Running

FLL CEO MARK GALE

Last year, FLL CEO Mark Gale replaced retiring Kent George as the airport�s director of aviation. Looking ahead, Gale said �Based on projections we�ve done, at annual growth rates of between 4 - 7 percent the airport is poised to welcome 38 million passengers by 2020.� Gale characterized his growth estimate as �conservative�.

THE NEW SOUTH RUNWAY

The short-term traffic outlook is even rosier. Based on scheduled available seats, total FLL traffic should increase by 6% in February, followed by monthly growth of 15% through August. FLL is currently ranked the 21^st busiest airport in the U.S. To insure the airport�s continued growth, Gale said �We must balance four major components: airspace, airfield, terminals and landside facilities including roadways and parking.� Explaining how �The new South Runway addressed some of the airfield concerns,� Gale expects to now focus on the terminals, roadways, garages and �ultimately on how the airport connects to the outside world.�

If Gale delivers, FLL could soon move up the chain, and elbow its way past LaGuardia Airport - currently the 20^th busiest airport in the country. From Gale�s perspective, surpassing LaGuardia could be a stepping stone. Before taking the Broward job, Gale retired from Philadelphia International Airport after nearly 28 years, seven as its CEO. ce Philadelphia International Airport is currently ranked number 19, outshining his old stomping ground would earmark his career with a storybook milestone while pumping additional $millions into county coffers. FLL's continued growth should resonate with Broward taxpayers, since Enterprise Fund windfalls help cap the County�s Millage. For the rest of LaMarca�s March / April 2017 message to constituents, read on... � [editor]

SEGMENT II - GALT MILE BEACH REPLENISHED

April 25, 2017 - The recently completed Segment II beach renourishment capped an 18-year struggle to salvage our shrinking beach. For many Galt Mile residents, nearly two decades of crushing disappointments replaced enthusiastic support for the project with a thinly veiled rage. When construction vehicles rolled into north Broward beachfront staging sites on January 4, 2016, the mind-numbing frustration began melting away.

Although virtually every Galt Mile resident and visitor is delighted with their reclaimed beach, few have forgotten nearly twenty years of bureaucratic abuse, an ordeal that provided hundreds of local residents with first-hand insight into the structural consequences of tidal erosion. While watching the new sand migrate south along the coast, many are understandably apprehensive about County intentions to maintain their newly widened beach � without revisiting the dilatory state and Federal regulatory meat grinders.

To this end, Broward beach boss Nicole Sharp is overhauling the County�s Beach maintenance protocols, while Broward Commissioner Chip LaMarca and Statehouse Representative George Moraitis probe a more reliable funding source in Tallahassee. For the benefit of recent arrivals to our neighborhood � some background...

In 1965, the 89^th U.S. Congress authorized funding to fortify Broward�s shrinking beaches (Section 301 of Public Law 89-298, October 27, 1965). Twenty years ago, former Broward Beach Administrator Stephen Higgins complied with the Congressional intent by designing the Broward County Shore Protection Project.

FORMER BROWARD BEACH ADMINISTRATOR STEVE HIGGINS

After beating back unprecedented regulatory obstacles for 14 years, Higgins rehabilitated the Segment III South County beaches in 2005 and was preparing to fix the county�s Segment II northern shoreline. When Higgins retired in 2011 amid relentless bickering among Segment II stakeholders, it was mistakenly construed as the project�s death knell. A few weeks later, when Higgin's former boss - Eric Myers � asked Galt Mile officials if they would help revive the Segment II beach fix, they placed him on an upcoming meeting agenda.

BROWARD BEACH ADMINISTRATOR ERIC MYERS

At a February 7, 2011 Presidents Council meeting in Coral Ridge Towers (Original), Myers announced his intention to reorganize the dormant project. The project�s recovery hinged on two contingencies, a recrafted plan that eliminated the most egregious regulatory obstacles and unilateral cooperation by coastal jurisdictions and beachfront homeowners. A few months later, when Myers pitched the Segment II Beach renourishment at the May 17, 2011 Fort Lauderdale City Commission meeting, Commissioner Bruce Roberts backed his play.

COMMISSIONER BRUCE ROBERTS

Roberts told the Commission that Galt Mile residents � whose staunch project advocacy was grounded in the belief that a healthy beach was critical to the protection of beach neighborhoods, the area�s economy, and the lives of their families � have been waiting since 1998 for the County to make good on promises to renourish the Segment II beaches. As the newly appointed Broward Beach Administrator, Myers spent the next three years convincing stakeholder jurisdictions to merge their political capitol just long enough to accomplish this shared objective.

BROWARD COMMISSIONER CHIP LAMARCA

With the backing of Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach and Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, Myers recruited Chip LaMarca and headed to the State Capitol. After two years of dismantling bureaucratic opposition in Tallahassee, when Myers retired and passed the baton to Nicole Sharp, the fight moved to Washington DC.

After a year of battling with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) and an unresponsive Commerce Department, the Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works Committee finally gave Sharp the green light to negotiate Interlocal Agreements with Segment II Stakeholders and draft a Project Participation Agreement (PPA) that detailed the shared Federal, State and local fiscal obligations.

Once the project was farmed out, the PPA became a reimbursement blueprint - a Hefty Bag of open-ended promissory obligations. Funds laid out by the County on behalf of stakeholders were technically secured by the PPA. However, given the County�s skeletal leverage in Tallahassee and Washington DC, County officials are forced to discretely beg the respective funding agencies to loosen the State and Federal purse strings. The slow-moving Feds still haven�t reduced their $30 million Segment II obligation. Although Tallahassee already kicked in its $11.4 million share of Segment II, the County is still seeking $87,860 to monitor the beach fill�s impact on nearby coral reefs.

Since the County is also preparing to fund a long-awaited $19.2 million sand bypass at Port Everglades, wherein migrating sand accumulating on the north side of the Port�s entrance channel is trucked to sand-starved beaches in Hollywood, Hallandale and Dania, Broward bean counters plan to roll over funds due on the Segment II renourishment while tweaking the current legislative session for additional beach revenues.

Beautiful Broward Beaches Thank You Photo Shoot

Hoping to cajole the county�s State and Federal funding �partners� into paying their Segment II debt without dampening their predisposition to future projects, LaMarca decided to disguise a dunning notice as a love letter. Recruiting political beefcake from stakeholder jurisdictions (District 3 Broward Commissioner Michael Udine, Mayor Jack Seiler and Vice Mayor Bruce Roberts from Fort Lauderdale, Vice Mayor Mark Brown from Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, etc.), Broward officials merged an invoice and a supplication for future funding with a customized �Thank You� card � an aerial beach graphic generated at LaMarca�s March 4^th �photo op�.

LaMarca�s blended message also housed a request for a reliable funding source for beach projects that fuel the State�s tourism economy. LaMarca�s planned photo op was hatched in late February; about the same time that Governor Rick Scott asked lawmakers to approve a proposed $50 million cash bucket for beach projects, doubling the negligible $25 million he proposed in each of the past four years. Although the allocation is the largest proposed by Scott since he took office, it�s a pittance when compared to the resources needed to rescue more than 410 miles of Florida�s critically eroded coast.

Created by the Florida Legislature in 1963 to offset damage by commercial polluters and urban creep, the Land Acquisition Trust Fund (LATF) was designed to fund the purchase of recreation and conservation lands that would otherwise fall prey to overdevelopment. Since the original funding mechanism, a five percent tax on outdoor clothing and equipment (like bathing suits), proved wildly unpopular with tourists (disparaged as the �bathing suit tax�), it was abandoned in 1968, when the legislature opted to fund LATF through the sale of recreation bonds paid for by a documentary stamp tax on real estate transactions and financial documents (i.e., mortgages and other loans, stocks, bonds, etc.).

Having shifted the cost from the residents and visitors who benefit from conservation, to the polluters and developers who threatened the State�s natural resources, lawmakers would later adapt the income stream into a recurring funding mechanism for the 1979 Conservation and Recreation Lands (CARL) Program, and the 1999 Florida Forever Program, a conservation catch-all for natural resources. Since the parent legislation also mandated management of acquired conservation lands, a spectrum of management programs were developed to oversee compliance with environmental objectives. Trust funds were established to reverse ecological damage, either by polluters, encroaching development, or Mother Nature (as in the case of tidal erosion).

PRO LATF GOVS CLAUDE R. KIRK, JEB BUSH, ROBERT MARTINEZ SEATED: WAYNE MIXSON, REUBIN ASKEW AND FARRIS BRYANT

In 1998, Florida lawmakers dedicated a portion of the Ecosystem Management and Restoration Trust Fund to restore the critically eroded coast. Funded by the documentary stamp tax, $30 million was annually allocated to the Beach Management Funding Assistance (BMFA) Program � for cost-sharing projects matched by federal and local contributions

To safeguard an environmental legacy that fuels critical tourism revenues, the Land Acquisition Trust Fund was supported by every Florida Administration since its 1963 inception � until Governor Rick Scott took office in 2011. To balance the budget, Governor Scott annually gutted appropriations to virtually every State environmental program, including the enforcement of safe drinking water standards. Angry Florida voters approved Constitutional Amendment 1 in 2014, reinstating a funding source for the State�s Land Acquisition Trust Fund.

Although the fund was originally created to manage and restore natural systems while enhancing public access and recreational use of conservation lands � LATF conservation projects would now include the aquifer, wetlands, drinking water, the Everglades, clean air, fish and wildlife habitat, rivers, lakes, beaches, forests and a panoply of other natural resources. As an unintended consequence of Amendment 1, eroded beaches would have to compete with water quality projects, wetlands restoration, the Everglades and other environmental projects for funding.

Of the $50 million in beach revenues proposed by Scott, only $10 million would be annually disbursed from the trust fund. Since the remaining $40 million would come from general revenue, it is a one-time allocation. Jurisdictions would still need an annual source of State revenues for beach and inlet cost-sharing projects.

As the sole Republican on the Broward Board, LaMarca is annually charged with carrying the County�s legislative wish list to Republican Tallahassee, which typically included a beach funding presentation that addressed its impact on tourism and the threat posed by storm surge to people and property. Last year, LaMarca bulked up his arsenal with a January 2015 study by the Office of Economic and Demographic Research (EDR � research arm of the Florida Legislature).

Entitled �Economic Evaluation of Florida�s Investment in Beaches�, the EDR report calculated the Return on Investment (ROI) of Beach Restoration, assessed the economic risk of disasters and concluded that beaches are the most important feature of Florida's �Brand�. During the study�s 3-year review period (covering FY 2011, 2012 and 2013), the state invested $44 million in the Beach and Management Restoration Program (roughly 30.5% of the total cost shared by Federal, State, and local sources). This investment directly increased State GDP an average $2.4 billion per year.

By identifying each revenue source and calculating its tax impact, the study tracks how the incremental GDP plumped state revenues by $237.9 million over the three year period. After crunching complex funding formulas to validate the raw data, the report concluded that $44 million invested in the State Beach Program �generated a positive return on investment of 5.4�, based solely on tangible financial gains or losses to state revenues. Since in-state tourism was not included in the analysis, the actual ROI exceeds 5.4. Apparently, it worked. Even inland lawmakers who disparage beach funds as coastal pork were intrigued. In the 2017 legislative session, lawmakers filed bills that could reinstate reliable funding for beach and inlet cost-sharing projects.

FSBPA PRESIDENT DEBBIE FLACK

Snatching the Photo and a legislative wish list, LaMarca headed to Tallahassee with President Debbie Flack of the Florida Shore & Beach Preservation Association to lobby lawmakers for a dedicated funding source for beach projects. In order to file the required legislation, they would meet with Statehouse Representatives George Moraitis (R � Fort Lauderdale), Evan Jenne (D � Dania Beach), Broward Commissioner Steve Geller's brother Joe Geller (D � Aventura) - and other members of the County�s legislative delegation.

SENATOR JOE NEGRON

In the Senate, they had an ally in Chairman Jack Latvala (R-Clearwater) of the Senate Appropriations Committee, who said that he considers increasing beach funding to at least $50 million �a top priority�. Although one-third of the annual stamp tax revenues were constitutionally allocated to LATF for conservation - less the debt sevice on specified environmental bonds (Florida Forever bonds, Everglades restoration bonds, etc.), budget wonks pilfered $millions for general expenses. In 2016, as polluted discharges from Lake Okeechobee triggered a state of emergency in Martin, St. Lucie and Lee counties, and Brown Tides caused a fish die-off in Brevard County, incoming Senate President Joe Negron spearheaded efforts to protect the water supply by filing legislation entitled "The Legacy Florida Act". Lawmakers enacted companion legislation in the other chamber House Bill 989, creating ch. 2016-201, Laws of Florida), which annually dedicates $200 million for Everglades restoration and $50 million for Florida springs. Beach fills and inlet sand by-passing would have to slug it out with scores of other environmental projects for funding table scraps.

SENATOR JACK LATVALA

On March 3, 2017, Latvala filed Senate Bill 1590, which revises how Florida prioritizes beach and inlet projects, and annually dedicates $50 million from the Land Acquisition Trust Fund to rehabilitate eroded beaches. On March 22, Latvala�s bill was unanimously approved by the Senate Committee on Environmental Preservation and Conservation (7 Yeas vs. 0 Nays). On April 13, it was unanimously approved by the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on the Environment and Natural Resources (6 Yeas vs. 0 Nays). On April 20, the bill cruised to a 16 Yeas vs. 0 Nays approval in its final vetting committee - the Senate Committee on Appropriations - which Latvala chairs - before being sent to the floor for a vote by the full Senate. On April 27, 2017, the Senate unanimously approved the bill (37 Yeas vs. 0 Nays) before sending it to the House for consideration.

REPRESENTATIVE GEORGE MORAITIS

The companion bill, House Bill 1213, was filed by Representatives George Moraitis (R � Fort Lauderdale), Bill Hagar (R � Delray Beach), and Kathleen M. Peters (R � Treasure Island) on March 3, 2017. On March 20, it was unanimously approved by the House Natural Resources & Public Lands Subcommittee (15 Yeas vs. 0 Nays) and voted favorably by the House Agriculture & Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee on March 28 (14 Yeas vs. 0 Nays). The bill is currently under review by the House Government Accountability Committee, its final House Committee stop.

The beach bills have excellent prospects for enactment, and lame duck Governor Scott seems to have reversed his tenure-long aversion to salvaging the State�s natural resources, having indicated his support for a more stable source of beach funding. That said, Scott's desk is always a crap shoot.

At a December 16, 2015 pre-project public meeting in the Sonesta Hotel, when Galt Mile officials inquired about maintaining the beach after it was renourished, Broward Beach Administrator Nicole Sharp outlined a sea change in the County�s Shore Preservation protocols. Describing the historical �segmented� approach to beach management as �an anachronistic exercise in futility,� Sharp adopted a long-term regional plan. Mindful of the accelerated rate that natural resources are degraded by climate change and rising sea levels, Sharp�s beach management program proactively meets the growing risks.

The Port Everglades sand bypass should help stabilize the south county beaches. Sand that ordinarily migrates south along the coast collects at the north side of the Port Everglades inlet (adjacent to Point of Americas), where 85% is lost seaward to tidal erosion. As a result, when sand placed along south county beaches during the 2005 Segment III renourishment drifted south into Miami-Dade County, it was never replenished by sand migrating south from beaches in Fort Lauderdale and points north.

PORT EVERGLADES INLET

Within five years, south county beaches lost two-thirds of the sand received in 2005, as the ocean once again laps against Hollywood, Hallandale and Dania Beach seawalls. To preserve the $billions they generate in tourism revenues, and resurrect storm surge protection for infrastructure and inhabitants, a second Segment III renourishment is being planned. After installation of the Port Everglades Sand Bypass restores the coastal flow of sand that will naturally replenish those beaches, a $53.7 million truck haul project will salvage the depleted shoreline in 2020.

The Port Everglades sand bypass project would transfer 50,000 to 80,000 cubic yards of sand annually from the north to the south side of the Port entrance channel, restoring the currently disrupted littoral drift. It entails constructing an offshore sand trap to collect alongshore migrating sand for transport to the south side of the inlet. When adjacent Point of Americas residents opposed blasting the sea bottom, the plan was redesigned by raising the lower elevation above the hard rock and widening the trap to maintain sufficient storage capacity.

HILLSBORO BBEACH INLET

Just as the Port Everglades inlet impedes the flow of sand to South Broward beaches, sand migrating south from beaches in South Palm Beach and Deerfield would be blocked by the Hillsboro Inlet if not for the Hillsboro Beach Sand Bypass. A special taxing district created in 1957 oversees an FDEP management plan to perform regular maintenance dredging of the inlet�s navigational channel and sand bypassing to beaches downdrift of the inlet. Following expansion of the exterior inlet channel and sand trap in 2003, the District acquired a new hydraulic cutterhead dredge in 2008 to facilitate in-house maintenance. Without the Hillsboro Inlet sand bypass, newly expanded beaches in Pompano, L-B-T-S, the Galt Mile and Fort Lauderdale would also be back to square one within 5 years. Instead, approximately 120,000 cubic yards of sand will be transferred annually to replenish our Segment II beaches.

BROWARD NATURAL RESOURCE ADMINISTRATOR NICOLE SHARP

Sharp outlined how re-establishing the natural southerly flow of sand along the coast would also substantially reduce the frequency and scope of future renourishments, explaining, �It�s a cheaper way to put sand into the system on the southern beaches.� Instead, occasional beach fills could address �hot spots� along a more stable County coastline. Armed with Federal and State Permits that extend to 2020 and 2029, Sharp can unilaterally repair stretches of beach reduced by accelerated erosion or cyclonic weather events. Federal, State and local parties to the cost-sharing agreements ultimately fund these projects with tax revenues. Taken together with the new energy-absorbing dune system crested with sea oats, Sharp�s stabilization plan to triage emerging �hot spots� with a few truckloads of sand would save taxpayers $hundreds of millions over the next decade.

PORT EVERGLADES ENTRANCE CHANNEL

The sand bypass was originally proposed by former Broward beach Guru Stephen Higgins, who observed �Unless the entire Broward coast is treated and maintained like a single structural entity, this project will fail. The stability of every segment depends on the stability of its adjacent segments.� In 2014, Eric Myers remarked �Every big deep-water inlet is a huge barrier to the drift of sand along the East Coast. It really starves beaches to the south.�

Myers� observation begs the question, �Why didn�t they first build the sand bypass at Port Everglades,� as Higgins� recommended? Since Point of Americas is home to some of the region�s �Masters of the Universe�, when they hinted to the Fort Lauderdale City Commission that the project would disrupt their Karma, the Sand Bypass was DOA. City officials shrugged off a threatened County legal action, until Myers later explained �Had we built the sand bypass at Port Everglades, beaches in South Broward County would still be healthy.� adding that Fort Lauderdale�s decision will cost taxpayers another $50 million. The City Commission sucked it up and relented, as long as the Segment II project preceded the bypass. After once again crawling through Tallahassee�s regulatory sewage dump, FDEP finally granted Sharp State Permit 0289308-004-JC on February 3, 2017, authorizing the elusive Port Everglades Sand Bypass.

If enacted, the new legislation will help facilitate Sharp�s plan. However, the bills could still wind up in the cornfield. Until Scott pockets his veto pen a few weeks after Sine Die, anything goes. For the endgame... clock in next month.

DISTRICT 4 COMMISSIONER CHIP LAMARCA

May 10, 2017 - In his April 2017 constituent update, District 4 Broward Commissioner Chip LaMarca uses a pictorial roadmap to demonstrate how the Broward Convention Center will evolve into a full blown Exposition Community featuring a Headquarters Hotel surrounded by venues for entertainment, shopping, dining, and recreation - for both visitors and residents, announces the precursor to a lucrative long-term agreement between Port Everglades and Royal Caribbean Cruises, invites constituents to share in a rebate for promoting water conservation to friends and neighbors and details how a newly installed State-of-the-Art Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) system will expedite emergency response times countywide - benchmarking one of the largest Emergency 911 consolidations in the nation.

Broward E-911 Runs a Gauntlet

BSO COMMUNICATIONS DISPATCH CENTER

RICK CARPANI WALKS

Ever ce the Broward County Office of Regional Communications and Technology (ORCAT) was empowered to install, oversee and govern the consolidated emergency 911 dispatch operated by the Broward Sheriff's Office (BSO), the County Board and BSO have been locked in a struggle for control of the County-wide system. However, stakeholders and system advocates were perplexed by the County�s refusal to replace former ORCAT Director and Broward�s primary E-911 system architect Rick Carpani, who resigned in favor of the private sector on November 13, 2015, leaving subordinates and backup personnel to run an untested regional emergency dispatch operated by trainees who were admittedly poorly prepared.

While leaving a system necessary to the survival of both victims and responders in the hands of those who lacked the requisite E-911 training and/or experience, on January 5, 2016, the County Board hired consultant Fitch & Associates to examine the system, inspect the dispatch centers (AKA Public Safety Access Points or PSAPs) and identify the changes required to meet stakeholder expectations. Skull-blocked by the County decision to leave the system rudderless for months while awaiting the Consultant�s prognosis, municipalities that supported the consolidation suddenly threatened to withdraw - including Fort Lauderdale.

Bolting Stakeholders

GALT MILE ADVISORY BOARD

CITY COMMISSIONER BRUCE ROBERTS

On February 18, 2016, Fort Lauderdale City Commissioner Bruce Roberts informed the Galt Mile Advisory Board that Fort Lauderdale was considering an independent emergency service. A few months earlier, when City Manager Lee Feldman expressed concern about �delays in dispatching, dispatching to the wrong addresses, dispatching with the wrong information.� a discouraged Roberts added, �I don�t think we can wait too much longer. We were assured we would not have any degradation of services.� Roberts told Galt Mile officials that Feldman had already begun laying the groundwork since the consolidated County plan had repeatedly failed to meet stakeholder expectations.

FORT LAUD. CITY MANAGER LEE FELDMAN

PEMBROKE PINES CITY COMM. JAY SCHWARTZ

In his May 2016 Newsletter, Roberts reported that a team had been formed with �key members from Information Technology Services (ITS), Fire, Police, Human Resources, Public Works and the City Manager�s Office. The team meets weekly to discuss options regarding location, layout, technology needs, hiring and training of 911 staff, and project management.� Roberts said the team planned to hire �a consultant with expertise in developing, managing and operating a 911 Communications Center.� Fort Lauderdale officials claimed they no longer believed that the Broward Board either could - or would - fulfill its promise to build a countywide 911 Emergency System - and they weren�t alone. Pembroke Pines City Commissioner Jay Schwartz and other municipal stakeholders also threatened to cut bait.

SUNRISE MAYOR MIKE RYAN

Sunrise Mayor Mike Ryan had consistently been one of the consolidation effort�s most vocal advocates. Like Roberts and Feldman, Ryan rationalized the steady stream of inaugural-year fiascos as growing pains. When Carpani skated, Ryan and other apprehensive municipal stakeholders began tracking a litany of dispatch failures attributable to the absence of expert oversight.

Ryan bitterly complained that a system responsible for the lives of Broward residents was being mangled by inexperienced departmental subordinates who were unqualified to manage any E911 program, much less one of the largest and most complex emergency response consolidations ever attempted in the United States.

COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR BERTHA HENRY

Stonewalled by the county for months, Ryan was joined by the Broward County Chiefs of Police Association and the Fire Chiefs Association of Broward County, which crafted a Joint Position Statement detailing how County PSAPs were operating �in a vacuum devoid of experience and expertise.� Along with the Broward League of Cities, they collectively sent a letter to the County Commission, which they copied to the local media. They requested that the County Board or the Charter Review Commission create a new County Bureau to manage the Emergency 911 system. Calling it �The Office of the Director of Public Safety Communications,� Ryan insisted that the new agency remain �independent of the county administration�s office.�

With discontent and confusion spreading across the County and Stakeholders jumping ship, County Administrator Bertha Henry embarked on a �Hearts and Minds� tour of Broward municipalities. After plying the Fire and Police Chiefs Associations with assurances of heightened collaboration, improving statistical response and a skybox view of the project, Henry launched her PowerPoint presentation at whistle stops in Oakland Park, Pembroke Pines, West Park, Wilton Manors and other waffling municipalities.

Fitch Phase I

Released on August 29, 2016, the first of two consecutive Fitch and Associates E-911 studies was contracted by County Administrator Bertha Henry to comparatively assess the system�s performance metrics against national best practices. Information was distilled from interviews with County and BSO officials, ORCAT senior management, PSAP site managers and supervisory personnel, surveys submitted by call takers and admittedly unreliable data harvested from erratic legacy systems.

Given the longstanding conflict between BSO and the County Commission, a study recommendation to better define stakeholder roles was hardly a revelation. Another suggestion to measure response performance of the PSAPs by collecting public feedback might have proven productive if every high profile screw-up hadn�t first been mulched into media fodder. Among its few contributive insights, the study confirmed that Stakeholder reservations about the County�s E-911 program may have been overstated (not exactly a ringing endorsement).

In fact, Henry admitted that the issues addressed in the study were long known to stakeholders - and many were proactively corrected prior to the study�s release. Although it packaged rote observations with recommendations that appeared superficial � almost cosmetic, a more definitive analysis promised in the second phase convinced troubled stakeholders to postpone abandoning the system.

Fitch Phase II

In contrast, the second Fitch report identified many of the issues that fueled stakeholder pessimism, and rolled out credible remedies. The Phase II assessment - published on December 22, 2016 - includes observational findings and 21 recommendations in four areas: Technology, Governance and Oversight, Performance Measures, and Effectiveness and Efficiency. When Fitch Phase II was released, raging criticism of the controversial consolidation cooled, as stakeholders anxiously awaited an indication that the County would act on this guidance.

Explaining that the recommendations will require significant organizational and cultural change, the Phase II Executive Summary underscores how carefully planning this change �is key to the System�s ultimate success.� Since the recommended improvements should only be introduced when they can be effectively assimilated, Fitch suggests implementing major changes sequentially rather than simultaneously.

Although the System utilizes emergency medical dispatching (EMD) software � a best practice for 911 centers, it lacks similar programs for fire or law enforcement call types. When BSO finally implements Emergency Fire Dispatch (EFD), it should be executed to completion before additional changes are initiated, such as certifying operators for Emergency Police Dispatch (EPD). Each certification area provides structured call processing for the respective discipline. While specialized EFD and EPD certifications are also considered best practices, implementing them in a deliberate and measured manner will help insure that each is layered onto a stable base service.

Tweaking the Technology

The report lists technological pitfalls that muddy any analysis of the system�s shortcomings. The absence of an effective link between the County�s PSAP phone system and Computer-Aided Dispatch system (CAD) impairs any comprehensive evaluation of System performance. Also, County staff is unable to directly access phone and radio system data. In roughly half the calls, an event in the CAD could not be linked to the unique Call Detail Record (CDR) that initiated the incident. The Phase II report states that linking the 911 phone records with the associated CAD incident records is �An absolute priority�.

The report recognizes that many system limitations due to obsolete legacy technology would be resolved by the installation of new software and hardware, such as the PremierOne CAD and PremierOne Mobile systems that were recently installed and discussed by LaMarca. Other snags should be cured when the County dumps the archaic Public Safety Radio System in 2018, and replaces it with a $40 million APCO (Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials) Project 25 trunked radio system.

APCO PROJECT 25 TRUNKED RADIO SYSTEM

ORCAT ACTING DIRECTOR BRETT BAYAG

In describing the upgraded CAD functionality, ORCAT Acting Director Brett Bayag said �This multi-jurisdictional, multi-agency, and multi-discipline CAD system interfaces with all Broward County Regional Consolidated E-911 systems vital to receiving, processing and implementing rapid response to 911 calls, and will greatly enhance service to people in Broward County during emergency situations.� Bayag leaked some butter, �Over the past three years the project team�s focused efforts included working collaboratively with professionals and experts in the fields of public safety technology, dispatch operations, law enforcement, and fire rescue, all of whom worked tirelessly to implement this new state-of-the-art system.� According to Fitch, Bayag�s �Kumbaya� working relationship is somewhat overstated, as public safety officials were often omitted from the loop.

Cooler Heads and Best Practices

Under �Governance and Oversight�, Phase II seeks to remedy the ongoing slugfest between ORCAT and BSO for control of the system. ce �Low levels of trust exist among major stakeholders,� the report recommends that �Operational Oversight (by BSO) and System Governance (by the County) should be redefined to strengthen the role of end-users,� referring to public safety officials whose input had been marginalized by the two Big Dogs.

MOBILE DATA TERMINAL (MDT)

Fitch disparages how the County commonly usurps operational decisions that should instead be determined by public safety officials. It cites the need to better balance �the logistical concerns of the Operator (BSO), and the financial and system governance responsibilities of Broward County.� To more productively use the airways, the report also recommends a reduction in radio traffic by both fire/EMS and law enforcement units that fail to effectively utilize mobile data terminals (MDTs) and mobile computing devices (MCDs).

While the system is capable of closest unit response to life-threatening emergencies, which was demanded by Broward voters in 2002, response was still dictated by jurisdiction. Seemingly a holdover from when each of Broward�s eleven disjointed dispatch systems placed a higher priority on turf protection than on saving lives, officials in Plantation, Fort Lauderdale and Miramar have ce expressed trepidations about subsidizing adjacent municipalities. From 2012 to 2014, Sunrise, Tamarac, Davie, North Lauderdale and Lauderhill used vehicle locaters in each of their fire-rescue fleets to dispatch the closest unit anywhere within the five cities. It worked like a charm.

Although Broward complied with a mandate to fund first unit response infrastructure, the charter doesn�t specifically require implementation, a semantic loophole exploited by foot-draggers. Fitch concluded that this had to go. Instead, a Phase II no-brainer directed fire-rescue agencies to develop, approve and implement countywide nearest unit response protocols irrespective of municipal boundaries.

This second report didn�t endear Fitch to system operator BSO. Blowing off a BSO request for an additional $2.3 million to hire more staff, Fitch retorts �In total, the current funding of the system is sufficient. There should be no need for further overall funding.� In fact, they consider BSO overstaffed in call taker and Fire Assignment positions. In stating �recommendations to increase resources in certain areas are balanced by recommendations intended to improve the overall efficiency of the System,� Fitch exhorts BSO to work smarter.

For example, BSO dispatchers filed a class action grievance over excessive mandatory overtime last August, as they are routinely forced to work three or four additional hours each day. The grievance states �BSO has failed to staff the communications operator�s classification, causing an unreasonable amount of mandatory overtime which is negatively affecting their professional and personal lives.� Fitch admonishes BSO that filling vacant positions expeditiously would reduce excessive mandatory overtime that could alternatively be used to maintain full staffing.

County call centers in Coconut Creek, Sunrise and Pembroke Pines service the North, central and South Broward regions. Except for Coral Springs and Plantation, which fund in-house dispatch services, Broward�s remaining 29 municipalities participate in the consolidated County system. The report prompts the County to warehouse revenues sufficient to complement the three PSAPs with two additional 911 facilities in the future.

Pieces Fall into Place

As the County began implementing actionable Phase II recommendations and response times plummeted, so did stakeholder concerns. In addition to a new system-wide Incident Management Tracking System and Quality Improvement Program, a tidal wave of new technology streamlined access to accurate performance data. The resulting scorecard meets best practices benchmarks and exceeds average nationwide response times.

While stakeholders haven�t yet recaptured their initial enthusiasm, the complaints have abated, and have often been replaced by accolades. For medical calls, EMDs now serve as first responders. Specially trained operators are certified to relay medical instructions in life-threatening situations, including CPR, relief from respiratory distress, labor/delivery protocols, stroke and seizure triage, and other life-saving medical interventions.

Originally, 911 calls routed to any of the three PSAPs could only be fielded by that center�s operators, whose geographical training was limited to the surrounding area. After ramping up a countywide geographical training program, the network installed an automatic call distributor. All incoming calls are now accessible to each of the three regional centers on a single queue, enabling operators in every PSAP to take calls from anywhere in Broward on a first in � first answered basis. This enhancement expedites response times while buffering the impact of regional staffing shortfalls.

The County used a $346,828 grant from the Department of Homeland Security to install a single site 700 MHz Overlay System that will strengthen back-up capability in the event that the primary system becomes impaired or overloaded and strengthen interoperable communications capabilities with other existing 700MHz interoperable systems.

A new fire station alerting (FSA) system is interfaced with the new CAD system, while an upgraded Alphanumeric Paging System (APS) provides fire rescue and other personnel alphanumeric pages of emergency dispatch calls for service. The System will be fully upgraded by next year, when the $40 million state-of-the-art radio system replaces the 30-year-old inherited clunker. On May 23, 2017, the Broward Board cut a deal with Motorola to install a new 700 MHz APCO Project 25 Phase II system (the most advanced system of its kind). In the interim, County staff will specify the final tower sites in Hollywood, Tamarac and Parkland.

Unfortunately, plans to install a new Local Government Radio System were delayed when Davie contractor and low-bidder Control Communications, Inc. � a dealer for Motorola � declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy before completing the project. The company�s cash-flow dilemma was fueled by the Broward Aviation Department�s failure to timely perform its part while installing of a new aviation system in Fort Lauderdale � Hollywood International Airport. The County has since embarked on a procurement process with a Motorola-authorized channel partner qualified to successfully complete the project by 2018.

The sloppy BSO training regimen that triggered the initial high-profile gaffes is now fully accredited � certified by the Commission on Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA), the National Academy of Emergency Dispatch (NAED) and Project 33 certification from the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials (APCO). Medical dispatch is also certified for EMD by the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch (IAED), the gold standard for emergency dispatch centers and public safety agencies. Comparable certifications for fire-rescue (EFD) and law enforcement (EPD) are undergoing the arduous multi-year process required for Accredited Center of Excellence (ACE).

The beefed up training and improved employee discipline have immeasurably increased the productivity of caller interviews, enabling dispatch to better equip response units with accurate addresses, reliable descriptions of suspects and/or victims and otherwise relevant incident data. Bound by new management protocols that meet national best practice standards, supervisory personnel insure that the system exceeds a County requirement that 90% of the calls are answered within 10 seconds, after which the data is crunched and seamlessly forwarded to first responders.

Watch and Wait...

The steady stream of eerie blunders that reliably provided local media with a ghoulish libretto of slapstick anecdotes has dried up. The response times in Broward County are consistently among the fastest in the U.S. In short, if forced to rely on Emergency 911 in Broward County, your chances of getting out with your skin have never been better.

That said, stakeholders are closely monitoring how ORCAT and BSO adhere to the Fitch script, which could determine if Broward�s E-911 Dispatch remains among the nation�s most effective emergency response networks. Specifically, stakeholders are leery about whether the County and BSO can refrain from reviving the smack down over control of the system, a conflict which Fitch blames for undermining their mutual objectives and alienating stakeholders � and a fast track back to square one. For Commissioner LaMarca�s April 2017 constituent newsletter, read on... � [editor]

COMMISSIONER BRUCE ROBERTS

May 27, 2017 - In his May 2017 Newsletter, City Commissioner Bruce Roberts notes how Fort Lauderdale is in one of the nation�s fastest growing metropolitan regions; celebrates the 70^th birthday of Fort Lauderdale�s Executive Airport (FXE); announces new LauderWorks and LauderStreet websites that provide information about road closures, special events and Public Works projects throughout the City; honors FLPD Sergeant Monica Ferrer for facilitating Fort Lauderdale�s recognition as a Purple Heart City; invites constituents to attend The Great American Beach Party on May 27; applauds this year�s nominees for induction into the annual Fort Lauderdale Walk of Fame; and closes by welcoming participation in the upcoming 2017 Telephone Town Hall Meetings� (speak with Roberts on June 14 at 7 p.m.).

Commentary � Snowbelt to Sunbelt

G. SCOTT THOMAS

Roberts opens his May 2017 Newsletter with a review of data recently released by the U.S. Census Bureau reflecting the growth or decline of populations in U.S. metropolitan regions. Originally published in Buffalo Business First, a report by projects editor G. Scott Thomas observed that the Miami-Fort Lauderdale metropolitan area experienced the fifth highest growth rate in the nation. Since Roberts is always trawling for media fodder that distinguishes our home town, this piqued Roberts' interest, and prompted its inclusion in his newsletter. In contrast, the Buffalo author wrote the piece because the Buffalo region showed the 7^th largest decline in population growth. Ironically, Roberts and Thomas are looking at different sides of the same coin, a domestic migration that triggered both demographic events.

Although the U.S. population grew by 3.7% during the last 5 years, growth tumbled to less than 1% last year (.71%), one of the slowest growth rates in decades. Americans are still moving from rural areas to metropolitan centers. While nationwide population growth slowed to a crawl, it exploded in certain urban regions. Over the last five years, the populations of nearly 30 metropolitan areas grew by more than 10%.

Populations can grow in several ways. One is by natural growth, as measured in local births than deaths. The other is migration � domestic and/or international. Natural growth accounted for less than one-third of the five-year population growth rate in 20 of the fastest growing cities. As such, whether a region's population grows, shrinks - or remains static, overwhelmingly depends on migration to and from that region. Demographers all agree that two factors primarily impact migration � economics and the sun.

BROOKINGS INSTITUTE SENIOR DEMOGRAPHER WILLIAM FREY

Almost all of the 20 cities with the fastest growing populations are in the South and Southwestern United States, inflating regional populations in Texas, Arizona, and Florida. Senior demographer William Frey at public policy think tank Brookings Institute explained �This is indicative of the long-term U.S. migratory trend of Americans moving from the Northeast and the Midwest � including the Rust Belt � to the Sun Belt.�

New Census data released in March shows that the fastest growing U.S. metropolitan regions and counties from 2015 to 2016 surround Sunbelt cities like Phoenix, Orlando, Las Vegas, Houston, and Dallas. An exception to the trend is King County, Washington, where 1,100 new residents who migrate to the Seattle region each week trade a balmy climate for explosive wages and ample employment opportunities.

Not surprisingly, those chasing the Sun are bleeding from metropolitan regions and counties enveloping northern, inland cities like St. Louis, Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, and Buffalo - the Snowbelt. From 2015 to 2016, Chicago lost more residents than any other big city in the country, mostly to Phoenix, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Dallas (as per a new collaborative study by Moving.com & Sparefoot). An influx of overpaid Yuppies was far outweighed by a loss of those craving a better climate and/or a stronger economy. Snowbelt cities weren�t alone in leaking residents. Over the last year, net domestic migration slowed in big coastal cities like New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, where a skyrocketing cost of living practically eliminated affordable housing.

While Snowbelt to Sunbelt migration is a reliably consistent trend, an exception during 2007 and 2008 illuminates another massive impact on migration - the economy. During the recessionary downturn, record foreclosures and underwater mortgages created a housing crisis that temporarily blocked the rapid growth in Sun Belt cities. As the economy recovered, so did the Snowbelt to Sunbelt migratory trend.

Economic factors that drive migration include a healthy job market, wage growth and affordable housing. In a majority of these fast growing metropolitan areas, January unemployment rates were far below the national rate of 4.7%, underscoring how the promise of employment opportunities fuels an influx of new residents. Since young people constitute the largest job hunting migratory population, this also affects the changing composition of these fast-growing cities. Each year, Sun Belt demographics reflect a growing number of young families and individuals who relocated pursuant to employment.

However, the biggest factor affecting Snowbelt-to-Sunbelt migration is the flight of the boomers. After dropping out of the workforce en masse, this enormous segment of the population appears to be abandoning cities. This has been attributed to the lack of walkable, affordable housing that allows seniors to age in place. In Florida - where exceptions often prove the rule - not all fast growing metropolitan regions feature a declining average age.

About 26.5% of the nation�s population is 55 and older. In The Villages (a master-planned, age-restricted retirement community outside Orlando), 70.4% of the residents are at least 55. Over the last five years, The Villages population increased by 25.8%. With an increase of 4.3% between 2015 and 2016, for the fourth consecutive year, the Census Bureau ranked The Villages as the fastest growing metropolitan area in the United States.

Purple Heart Cop on the Galt Mile

Roberts also reported that Sergeant Monica Ferrer was recognized for securing the City of Fort Lauderdale's designation as a Purple Heart City. This designation is bestowed on jurisdictions that honor those who have sacrificed for their country, including local veteran populations. Every Galt Mile resident also owes Sergeant Monica Ferrer a debt of gratitude.

COMMISSIONER BRUCE ROBERTS

Like every major municipal police force that prioritizes resources according to the need exhibited by each neighborhood, FLPD allocates manpower and equipment to neighborhoods victimized by astronomical crime rates and/or significant �Part 1� crimes. The Department�s strategy for areas victimized by �Quality-of-Life� crimes is to send occasional patrols while distributing pamphlets in shopping areas and community centers alerting residents to avoid leaving valuables in plain sight of their unattended vehicles. Since a beach considered �private� warranted no protection, it was a post-sundown �no-mans-land� for residents � and a convenient staging site for association break-ins. As exclaimed by virtually every District 1 FLPD liaison, �You must be aware of your surroundings� � spin for �Sorry wolf-bait � you are on your own.�

For decades, officials from the Galt Mile Community Association (GMCA) and the Lauderdale Beach Homeowners Association (LBHA) explored security options to combat the steady stream of thefts, muggings and burglaries that afflicted their neighborhoods. As if trapped in a revolving door, association officials annually argued about neighborhood watch, citizen patrols, or overpriced private security by uniformed senior citizens and inexperienced part-time college students. After suffering 45 reported crimes and hundreds of �incidents� in 1999, the Lauderdale Beach Homeowners Association sought guidance from Fort Lauderdale Police Captain Todd Peney, the recipient of 23 Departmental and 57 Public Commendations.

RET FLPD CAPTAIN TODD PENEY

Peney explained that the success of neighborhood patrols depends primarily upon how they�re administered. To properly utilize the skills of active police officers, they must be organized under an equally professional chain of command � not a group of concerned, yet inexperienced, homeowners. At LBHA�s request, Captain Peney crafted a security program in which active police officers deployed FLPD patrol protocols.

FLPD CRUISER - DETERRENT IS MOVED REGULARLY

Along with L�Hermitage I and II, LBHA launched the patrol. Off-duty FLPD officers have 24/7 access to FLPD backup and are automatically elevated to �active duty� when faced with evidence of criminal activity. Although provided with an ATV for the beach and a Police Jeep to patrol the street, the officers ordinarily use their dedicated FLPD cruisers and work out of a headquarters fitted with full communication capabilities just south of Oakland Park Boulevard off A1A. Working with FLPD Sergeant Monica Ferrer, Peney developed the most successful private security program in South Florida. One year after implementing Peney�s plan, the number of reported crimes in Lauderdale Beach dropped precipitously � to two.

PATROL KICKOFF EVENT - FRONT (L TO R): ERIC BERKOWITZ, PIO IERACI, ROSE GUTTMAN, THEN CHIEF BRUCE ROBERTS, LEAH GLICKFIELD, KEVIN SONGER, FERN MCBRIDE, MAJOR PAUL KILEY REAR L TO R): SGT TODD JACKSON, OFFICER STEVE KRAFT, CAPT TODD PENEY, CAPT JAN JORDAN

Seven years later, the patrol was expanded to include beachfront Galt Mile associations in Fort Lauderdale. Its impact was swift and incisive. The historically high number of reported residential �Quality of Life� crimes that long plagued the neighborhood plummeted as burglars, thieves, muggers and drifters are cleared from the adjacent beach and streets. As a result, Galt Mile residents can safely stroll the beach in the evening and walk along Galt Ocean Drive after dark. Equally important, the number of association infiltrations dropped significantly, relieving the strain on association security.

Since the off-duty police officers are already protected by a full complement of job benefits, patrol costs are even less than �bare bones� private security. Comprised primarily of single family homes, Lauderdale Beach homeowners pay $650 annually for beachfront properties, others pay $400. Given the Galt Mile community�s high density demographics, our cost drops to a meager $20 per unit annually - the most cost-effective security patrol in Fort Lauderdale. The Galt Mile crime rate has since remained among the City�s lowest - a fraction of those in adjacent communities (i.e. Coral Ridge, Imperial Point).

TODD PENEY LOBBIES FOR BILL

Peney�s acclaimed FLPD career was in part driven by the January 6, 1996 shooting death of his twin brother Bryant Peney, who was also on the force. The 27-year-old Peney was fatally shot while questioning a drifter who is now serving a life sentence in prison. Upon losing his brother, Todd Peney spearheaded a drive to make the killing of a law enforcement officer during the commission of a felony, escape or while resisting with violence, a crime of first-degree murder. The Bryant Peney Act was signed into law in 2001 by Governor Jeb Bush. When Todd Peney was about to retire and relocate in March of 2009, the northwest corner of Southeast 15^th Street and South Miami Road � a few blocks from the shooting � was ceremonially renamed after his brother.

GOV JEB BUSH AND TODD PENEY

Bryant Peney also worked with the police explorers, a hands-on program for 14 � 21 year-old kids who are interested in law enforcement. One of the youngsters Peney taught was Monica Ferrer, who ultimately joined the force and achieved the rank of Sergeant. Along with Todd Peney, she spent a year arranging her former mentor�s street dedication.

BUSH SIGNS BRYANT PENEY ACT INTO LAW

Since the security patrol�s success is based on a professional chain of command, it was placed at risk by Peney�s impending relocation. While serving as one of the patrol officers, Ferrer was recruited to fill Peney's shoes and administer the patrol. Despite her stated aversion to the unavoidable community politics previously handled by Peney, she agreed to hold the program together. While maintaining the patrol�s professional standards and participating in the patrol rotation, Ferrer spent the following year meeting with new condo managers or newly elected board members. She also helped train her replacement (Sgt. Darren Ogden), which enabled a return to her preferred duties as a patrol officer. To this day, she remains a bulwark of our security patrol.

If Ferrer hadn't temporarily stepped in for the departing Peney, operational oversight would have fallen to association officials - homeowners who admittedly know nothing about police procedures. Peney had repeatedly admonished how this would undermine the program � an observation that was subsequently confirmed by Commissioner Bruce Roberts � our former Fort Lauderdale Police Chief. In short, Ferrer�s sacrifice salvaged our best protection against a skyrocketing crime rate. If you run into Ferrer while on patrol - you may want to thank her for keeping our neighborhood - and families - safe. To peruse Commissioner Roberts� May 2017 Newsletter in it's entirety, read on � [editor]

DISTRICT 1 COMMISSIONER BRUCE G. ROBERTS

WHERE ARE AMERICANS MOVING? HERE ARE THE FASTEST-GROWING � AND SHRINKING� CITIES IN THE U.S.:: As reported in the Triangle Business Journal by G.Scott Thomas: Eleven major metropolitan areas, led by the Texas duo of Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth, are growing at a pace of more than 1,000 persons per week, based on population estimates issued Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau. The federal agency released July 2016 estimates for 382 metros and 3,142 counties across the nation. American City Business Journals, the parent company of Triangle Business Journal, used the new federal data to calculate weekly growth rates. Topping the list was the Houston metropolitan area, which soared from an April 2010 population of 5.92 million to a July 2016 estimate of 6.77 million, translating to a net increase of 2,612.3 persons per week. The Dallas-Fort Worth area was second with a weekly net gain of 2,474.6 persons. Rounding out the top five were the New York City, Atlanta and Miami-Fort Lauderdale metros, all with population increases larger than 1,500 persons per week. The other metros above the weekly threshold of 1,000 were Washington, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Seattle, San Francisco-Oakland and Austin.

FXE IS 70 AND STILL SOARING: March 11, 2017 was a historical day in the City of Fort Lauderdale. Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport (FXE) turned 70! Formerly a training center for World War II Navy pilots, including former President George H.W. Bush, today FXE is home to more than 900 based aircraft. Nearly 160,000 aircraft take off and land at the airport annually, ranking it as one of the top 10 of busiest general aviation airports in U.S. Located in the heart of the City's Uptown Business District, Executive Airport plays a vital role in South Florida and the national airport system, serving a variety of private, corporate, and government aviation needs through services and amenities including four fixed-base operators; a 24-hour Air Traffic Control Tower; a Customs and Border Protection facility; 24-hour on-site aircraft rescue, firefighting services, and airport security; a Fort Lauderdale Police Substation; and the John Fuhrer Downtown Helistop (DT1), the only public-use helistop in Florida. A dedicated team of 23 Community Builders provides a safe and secure environment for the 900-acre facility, manages 37 leases, fosters continued business growth for existing tenants, and continually builds community with neighbors. In addition, the City's Aviation Advisory Board makes recommendations to the City Commission regarding airport planning, development, construction, improvements, maintenance, operations, regulations, etc. With a direct economic impact of more than $839 million, FXE creates jobs, promotes business, provides critical general aviation and emergency services, and serves as a reliever airport for Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, and other nearby airports, when needed.

NEW PUBLIC WORKS �LAUDERWORKS� WEBSITE (getting the scoop on Neighborhood Projects underway): Wondering what infrastructure improvements are underway in your neighborhood? The City of Fort Lauderdale has launched a new website that maps-out Public Works projects throughout the City. The fascinating clickable map highlights each of the projects that are underway or planned for the near future. A pull-down feature provides the project title, detailed project description, location, project phase, budget amount, Commission District and managing department. The clickable map is color-coded to indicate the type of project, such as bridges, canals, parks, roadway improvements, seawalls, stormwater, water and sewer.

• Link to visit the new LauderWorks website: http://www.fortlauderdale.gov/Lauderworks

  The LauderWorks website compliments the City�s recently launched LauderStreet website which provides information about road closures, partial road closures and special events.

• Link to the LauderStreet website: http://gis.fortlauderdale.gov/lauderstreet/

  Both websites are updated monthly. For more information, contact the 24-Hour Neighbor Call Center at (954) 828-8000 or visit: www.fortlauderdale.gov

SGT MONICA FERRER GETS AWARD

RECOGNIZING AN OFFICER�S EFFORTS: Sergeant Monica Ferrer was recognized for her work in helping Fort Lauderdale obtain the designation of a Purple Heart City. Sergeant Ferrer brought this to the Commission�s attention after she discovered a member of her staff was a veteran. There was an overwhelming response thus creating a proclamation �Recognizing the City of Fort Lauderdale as a Purple Heart City.� The Purple Heart was the first American service award or decoration made available to soldiers and is specifically awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces who have been wounded or paid the ultimate sacrifice in combat with a declared enemy of the United States. The original Purple Heart was designated as the Badge of Military Merit and was established by George Washington in 1782. The City has a large highly decorated veteran population including many Purple Heart recipients, and appreciates the sacrifices the recipients made in defending our freedom and believe it is important that we acknowledge them for their courage and show them the honor and support they have earned. This proclamation was presented at a regular commission meeting. Thank you Sergeant Ferrer for making this possible!

GREAT AMERICAN BEACH PARTY: The Great American Beach Party returns Saturday, May 27 with rock legend Eddie Money! The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. at A1A and Las Olas Boulevard and will feature live bands, a kid�s zone, classic car show, sandcastle contest, art show, military tribute and an amazing precision parachute jump by the U.S. SOCOM Para-Commandoes! Take the stress out of driving and parking by using the Water Shuttle, Water Taxi or Sun Trolley to get to the beach. Look for details soon on the City website.

2017 WALK OF FAME HONOREES: One of the best parts of the Great American Beach Party is the annual Fort Lauderdale Walk of Fame Induction Ceremony. The City of Fort Lauderdale established the Walk of Fame in 2010 at the inaugural Great American Beach Party to pay tribute to the legendary Connie Francis on the 50th Anniversary of "Where the Boys Are," the 1960 film which made Fort Lauderdale an overnight sensation and a "must see" destination for visitors. Walk of Fame Honorees are recognized for their outstanding work and positive contributions to the City of Fort Lauderdale. This year's inductees are Kaye Pearson, founder of the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show; the Motwani Family, longtime leaders in Fort Lauderdale's Tourism and Hospitality industry; Dr. George L. Hanbury, former Fort Lauderdale City Manager and current President and CEO of NOVA Southeastern University; and the Zloch Brothers - Senior U.S. District Judge William, Jim and Chuck Zloch - for their judicial, business, legal and civic leadership. The Walk of Fame Induction Ceremony will take place on Saturday, May 27 at 6 p.m. immediately following Eddie Money's performance at the Great American Beach Party. The Walk of Fame is a great way to recognize the contributions of our neighbors and their integral role in building community in Fort Lauderdale.

TELEPHONE TOWN HALL MEETING: The telephone town hall meetings facilitate public access to our government and provides us with an opportunity to obtain essential input from our neighbors on a variety of services, initiatives and ongoing projects. The feedback we receive from the questions and polling results help ensure that we are focusing on the issues that matter most to our neighbors and allocating our resources appropriately. If you are available, I will be hosting the evening of June 13 from 7 - 8 p.m. To join, simply call toll free 855-840-6970 from your home or cell phone. Each of our elected officials will host a call this year. To get more information, visit our web page:

http://www.fortlauderdale.gov/departments/city-manager-s-office/public-affairs-office/telephone-town-hall-meetings.

ROBBI UPTEGROVE

OFFICE CONTACT: Robbi Uptegrove � 954-828-5033; email: [email protected]. In addition to hosting the pre-agenda meetings twice a month, I am also available to attend your HOA meetings to update your neighborhood on what is going on in the City as well as answer any questions/concerns you may have. Please contact Robbi to schedule.

EMAIL LIST: If you would like to be on our email list so that you receive information pertaining to the City � especially District 1 (i.e. news releases, meeting notices, events), please let Robbi know and she will add you.

Bruce G. Roberts                

If you need to reach Commissioner Bruce Roberts, please contact his assistant Robbi Uptegrove at 954-828-5033 or by e-mail at [email protected]. To access the City Commission Meeting Agendas and Minutes, Click Here. To actually watch the meetings recorded and archived on the Commission Meetings Video Webcast and Archives web site, Click Here.

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COMMISSIONER BRUCE ROBERTS

July 2, 2017 - In his June / July 2017 message to constituents, District 1 City Commissioner Bruce Roberts notes how the values of South Florida retail markets are currently among the highest in the nation, as Fort Lauderdale's prosperity is bolstered by a robust economy, an unemployment rate below the national average, and total employment figures that reached a record high in 2016; announces the Sun Trolley's 25^th year as the city's Community Bus Service; outlines a snakebit plan to insure the navigability of the city's canals by charging the cost of dredging to the owners of properties that line the canals. Ironically, a week after Roberts placed the article this newsletter, the plan was vaporized. Roberts laments how the legislature's placement of an additional $25,000 Homestead Exemption on the November 2018 ballot will tank City revenues; applauds 4 District 1 participants in the City of Fort Lauderdale's first Neighbor Leadership Academy Class and reviews a litany of planned improvements to the stretch of Sunrise Boulevard from Searstown eastward to the Gateway Shopping Plaza, an FDOT brainchild waitlisted for funding by Broward MPO.

Retail Ring Toss

Ten-X.Com is a leading online real estate transaction marketplace. The Ten-X report referenced by Roberts highlights the nation�s 5 most and least attractive retail environments. The brightest retail market opportunities are in Florida and Texas, where Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Tampa are joined by Houston and Austin in defying pessimistic national trends, primarily due to robust local economies nourished by consistent job and population growth. On the down side, retail assets in Baltimore, Milwaukee, Oakland, Memphis and Cleveland are dubiously distinguished as top flight selling opportunities.

In the past, retail market ratings were spun from the housing climate, employment opportunities, population growth, etc., in competing regional or municipal economies. Currently, both flourishing and languishing markets are under siege, as e-commerce has evolved into the single largest secular threat to traditional retail. The online market now hosts more than 13 percent of all retail sales, and shows no sign of weakening, prompting retailers to either close or downsize brick and mortar outlets.

TEN-X CHIEF ECONOMIST PETER MUOIO

By shorting real estate investment trusts and bonds that underwrite shopping malls, Hedge funds are intensifying sector obstacles. According to Ten-X Chief Economist Peter Muoio, �The problems inhibiting retail�s growth are anything but a passing phase, and the mounting shift toward online shopping ensures the sector will continue to face a steep climb on its road to recovery.� Even in regions like South Florida, where healthy economic conditions and strong housing markets are carrying the sector, Muoio fears that retail �would bear the brunt of weakening absorption and falling rents that could push vacancies to recession-era levels in the event of any cyclical economic headwinds.� If Wall Street sours, Muzio advises all retail investors to duck and cover � not exactly a revelation.

BCT: Sun Trolley Folly

As Sun Trolley officials welcomed its 25^th year, the slimy bureaucrats at Broward County Transit (BCT) celebrated by defunding the Galt Mile Route. Not to worry - the Galt Link will continue to serve our residents. As observed by Galt Mile President Pio Ieraci �BCT is no friend to the Galt Mile.� A BCT Bus layover has been blocking a handicap access ramp near Playa Del Mar ever since construction began along A1A. The busses often park on the sidewalk, and extend into the street, impeding traffic along Galt Ocean Drive.

FORMER LBTS TOWN MANAGER CONNIE HOFFMANN

After causing significant damage to town property, and ignoring official requests to avoid parking on the sidewalk, BCT was evicted from a layover site in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea by former Town Manager Connie Hoffmann. At the November 24, 2015 LBTS Commission meeting, Hoffmann advised Town Board members �I have given the County Mass Transit folks the 30 days� notice that we promised them - that we are withdrawing our approval of their use of El Mar Drive as a rest layover for their busses. The reasons for this action are excessive noise, documented damage to our property, and their drivers� failure to follow instructions on where to park the busses. The County will cease to use that area by December 21^st and has promised to repair the damage they have done to light fixtures, our sidewalks, and water meters.�

TRAFFIC MUST PASS THROUGH PLAYA DEL MAR BUS GAUNTLET

FDOT protocols require that bus layovers be located on thoroughfares with multiple lanes in the direction of traffic, enabling vehicles to bypass busses that are either double parked, or parked a sufficient distance from the curb to accommodate handicap devices. Although the street is too narrow to safely support a layover, BCT moved the ousted Route 72 layover to a privately owned Galt Ocean Drive cutout near Playa Del Mar and Regency Tower, where the busses damaged the curb and sidewalk, trampled sidewalk beds and crashed into a sign. In selecting the site, BCT determined that endangering residents was an acceptable collateral consequence of providing bus drivers with convenient access to robust luncheon options. Nearly two years ago, Broward County Transit officials promised to expeditiously remove the layover from Galt Ocean Drive. They didn�t.

SUN TROLLEY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ROBYN CHIARELLI

These beacons of public safety pulled the funding plug from the Galt Mile Sun Trolley when ridership dipped below 7.1 passengers per hour. Sun Trolley Executive Director Robyn Chiarelli has tendered assurances that the service will not be interrupted or reduced. As for the bus barricade, BCT has vowed to relocate the Route 72 bus layover to its original site at 41^st Street and A1A when construction along A1A is complete, presumably in September. Given their track record, we'll believe it when we see it. That said; if you haven�t tried the latest incarnation of the Galt Mile Sun Trolley, give it a whirl. It�s convenient, comfortable, cheap as dirt, and sure beats trying to remember where you parked your car when shopping in Galleria.

Slippery Tallahassee Tax Cut

STATEHOUSE SPEAKER RICHARD CORCORAN

As lawmakers in Tallahassee pump $billions into pork projects that benefit business partners, family members, or high dollar campaign contributors, they often ignite political fireworks aimed at distracting a potentially antagonistic electorate. Florida Representative Richard Corcoran (R - Land O' Lakes) is arguably the most prolific Statehouse Speaker in decades. As a testament to his tenure, Corcoran sought to enact the largest tax cut in Florida History. To immunize this legislative �selfie� from a prospective veto, Corcoran decided to place it on the November Ballot, since a Constitutional Amendment is outside the lame duck Governor�s purview.

FLORIDA STATE SENATOR TOM LEE

Corcoran is dangling an opportunity to snag an additional $25,000 homestead exemption - but only on homes valued in excess of $100,000. Sponsored by Senator Tom Lee (R-Thonotosassa), House Joint Resolution 7105 (HJR 7105) scored a green light in the Senate by a vote of 28 Yeas vs. 10 Nays, as six Senate Democrats joined 22 Republicans in approving the measure. It was later approved on the House floor by a vote of 83 Yeas vs. 35 Nays. By placing this ad valorem carrot on the November 2018 ballot, State lawmakers can claim credit for a huge tax cut, while distancing themselves from the unavoidable fiscal fallout.

Of course, the tax cut won�t affect the State piggy bank. Instead, roughly $645 million will be siphoned from cities and counties - placing local officials between a rock and a hard place. Since the lost property tax income ordinarily funds public services, City and County Commissioners will be forced to offset the shortfall. They can cut funding for police and fire-rescue, EMS, parks, libraries, code enforcement, community health centers, fighting the drug plague, fixing streets, sewers, and other heavily eroded infrastructure, or they can raise local taxes.

By raising millage [tax] rates, local governments transfer much of the outstanding tax burden to businesses, renters and low-income residents - those who can least afford it. Local officials in every Florida jurisdiction - spearheaded by the Florida Association of Counties - are apoplectically lobbying voters to deprive the measure of the 60% approval required for Constitutional incorporation.

None of this will matter. Since the average savings for homeowners is about $200 - the November amendment will pass with a bullet. Roberts points out that the exemption will annually cost the City about $2.5 million. In contrast, Broward County - including all of its cities and special taxing districts - would lose a combined $73.5 million. If the City and County both tweak their respective millage rates, a sizable slice of the $200 savings for homeowners will be added back to their TRIM notices, which should cloud the measure's appeal.

The Legislature has recently embarked on a troubling campaign to usurp the right of local jurisdictions to self-governance � supplanting decisions traditionally reserved for cities and counties with one-size-fits-all state mandates. The beneficiaries of deep-pocketed industry lobbyists, key lawmakers tried to bar local governments from regulating local businesses, enforcing zoning regulations, addressing neighborhood issues with illegal vacation rentals, or creating Community Redevelopment Agencies. Ironically, the same legislative leadership relentlessly accuses Congress of violating the right of Floridians to Home Rule.

FLORIDA STATE SENATOR JEFF CLEMENS

Not surprisingly, the bill strained longstanding working relationships between local officials and their counterparts in Tallahassee. To help mitigate the pressure on lawmakers from their home districts, Corcoran personally lobbied wavering Senators. In doing so, he revealed that the damage to local governments wasn�t an unavoidable consequence of the amendment, but its primary objective, exclaiming �I�ve had numerous conversations with tons of senators about making sure that we fight for the people, and not wasteful, unaccountable, lazy governments.� Angered by Corcoran�s intention to starve local governments without disclosing how the statewide funding shortfalls would cripple local services, Senator Jeff Clemens (D-Lake Worth) told colleagues �It�s absolutely unfair and irresponsible for us to pass a potential tax cut without telling people what the cuts are going to be.�

BROWARD COUNTY MAYOR BARBARA SHARIEF

Corcoran also equipped potential supporters with political boilerplate inveighing how they were not cutting taxes, but empowering voters. If a lawmaker remained recalcitrant about triggering a statewide blizzard of local deficits, Corcoran unveilfd his legislative �WMD.� Broward County Mayor Barbara Sharief joined scores of other local officials from across the State to lobby against the bill in Tallahassee. While trying to convince Broward lawmakers to oppose placing the exemption on the ballot, Sharief learned that several were told that that their local projects wouldn�t survive the budget process unless they supported the amendment.

FLORIDA STATE SENATOR LAUREN BOOK

LOBBYIST RON BOOK

In voting for the measure, Senator Lauren Book (D-Plantation) created a dilemma for the local city and county officials who helped Book win her Senate seat. Her father is Ron Book, a lobbyist whose client list of 23 cities and six counties includes Miami-Dade, Broward and Pinellas, where deficits will skyrocket. Having deliberately undermined key supporters, political allies and her Dad, when asked why she voted for the bill, Book whipped out Corcoran's playbook, �This is a matter for all Floridians to decide.� Corcoran's boilerplate won't help in November, when some incumbent candidates for state office in 2018 seek endorsements from the same local officials they plastered with deficits. It could get ugly � just ask Roberts. For Commissioner Roberts� June / July 2017 Newsletter in its entirety, read on � [editor]

DISTRICT 1 COMMISSIONER BRUCE G. ROBERTS

MIAMI, FORT LAUDERDALE RANK AS TOP �BUY� MARKETS FOR RETAIL ASSETS (as reported in the RealDeal)! As the nation�s retail market struggles amid store closings and mounting pressure from online shopping, South Florida stands out as a top market for retail assets, according to a newly released report. Ten-X�s Retail Market Outlook ranked Miami as the top long-term �buy� market, based on demand, followed by Fort Lauderdale, Houston, Austin and Tampa. In Miami, retail vacancies dropped by 0.05 percent to 5.7 percent at the end of last year. Rents averaged $23.37, and are projected to rise to $25.79 by 2020, according to the report. Fort Lauderdale retail vacancies fell to 8.9 percent last year, with rents averaging $17.86. Rents in Fort Lauderdale are forecast to rise to $20.20 in 2020. Overall, retail vacancies were 9.9 percent nationwide at the close of 2016 and are projected to remain at that level in 2020.

SUN TROLLEY CELEBRATES 25^TH ANNIVERSARY: In 1992, the transit service launched with Lolly the Trolley. Today, it's fully modernized with a new Tracker App that lets customers track each bus in real time; an updated website and a 24/7 customer service hotline. Riders run the gamut from snowbirds who spend a few months in town to locals who take the trolley to work. The nonprofit LifeNet4Families depends on it to deliver meals to the needy. Its busiest route - based on ridership per hour - is the airport link. Folks ride between Fort Lauderdale's international airport and the city's historic arts and entertainment district downtown. Additionally, the free on-demand Riverwalk Water Trolley ferries riders to eight points around the channel and to the Las Olas shopping and restaurant row. Folks can call the hotline and take the option to speak with the captain for personalized service. In the future, the association plans to start guided tours for visitors. Areas under consideration include the developing Flagler Village Arts and Technology District.

CANAL ON BAYVIEW DRIVE

PROPOSED CANAL CLEANING ASSESSMENT! The City of Fort Lauderdale owns 57 miles of navigable canals that require periodic dredging to remain navigable. In an effort to improve the level of service to our neighbors and maintain property values, we are considering implementing a proactive program to dredge City-owned canals on a seven-year cycle. The first two years of each seven year cycle of the dredging program would consist of surveying the condition of the City-owned canal system, prioritizing the dredging program for the upcoming five years, and designing and permitting of the canal dredging plan. During each year of the dredging plan, the canals to be dredged that year would be surveyed again to verify the current conditions prior to commencing dredging. A canal must also be surveyed after dredging to confirm that the construction work authorized was completed according to the specifications set during the design stage and shown in the plans.

Funding Needed Improvements: Implementing a proactive canal dredging program will incur costs associated with surveying, permitting and dredging. In order to fund the associated dredging costs, the City is considering an annual assessment for properties along the City-owned navigable canals. An ongoing dredging program could benefit property owners by maintaining access to the navigable canal and preserving property values. The assessment would be based on the number of linear feet of private property that front a City-owned canal. Only the cost of dredging navigable canals will be included in the assessment � the cost of dredging non-navigable drainage canals will be funded through the City�s stormwater program.

For more information you can visit www.fortlauderdale.gov/canal. As part of the public input, please email or call us with your viewpoint on this issue.

ESTIMATED IMPACT OF APPROVED HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION BILL! As you may be aware, the Florida House voted 83-35 to put a constitutional amendment on the 2018 ballot that would allow homeowners to shield an additional $25,000 of the value of their home from most property taxes. The additional exemption would not apply to taxes charged by school districts. The Senate approved the measure (HB 7105) in April. The measure calls for the average homestead exemption to jump to $75,000 from $50,000 on the first $125,000 of a home�s taxable value. The measure must be approved by at least 60 percent of voters to take effect. As a proposed statewide amendment to Florida�s constitution, it cannot be vetoed by Governor Rick Scott. If approved by voters, this would apply to over 25,000 parcels in the City and the estimated annual revenue loss at the current millage rate would be $2.5 million or 2.1% of the city�s current ad valorem revenues. I will keep you updated as time goes on.

COMMISSIONER BRUCE ROBERTS AND DISTRICT 1 MEMBERS OF FIRST NEIGHBOR LEADERSHIP ACADEMY CLASS

RECOGNIZING PARTICIPANTS OF THE FIRST NEIGHBOR LEADERSHIP ACADEMY: Office of Neighbor Support recognized the participants in the first City of Fort Lauderdale's Neighbor Leadership Academy Class at a Commission Meeting. The goal of the Neighbor Leadership Academy is to build community leaders. The first 20 participants in the Neighbor Leadership Academy are from all four Districts and were selected in conjunction with the Council of Civic Associations. The participants are ready to put their learned skills into action and will be organizing a Meet Your Neighbor Block Party in September 2017 as part of a Community Service Project. Each participant was presented with a City of Fort Lauderdale's Neighbor Leadership Academy Certificate and a Neighbor Support Pin in recognition of their participation. The following people represented District 1:

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR DISTRICT ONE PARTICIPANTS!

SEARSTOWN ON SUNRISE BOULEVARD IN FORT LAUDERDALE

RECOMMENDED IMPROVEMENTS FOR SUNRISE BOULEVARD BETWEEN THE SEARSTOWN AND GATEWAY SHOPPING PLAZAS: The Florida Department of Transportation, District 4, Planning and Environmental Management Office (FOOT) recently completed a planning study focused on improving traffic operations and safety along SR 838/Sunrise Boulevard between SR-5/US-1 at Searstown Shopping Plaza and the Gateway Shopping Plaza. Under existing conditions, the corridor is operating at capacity with heavy vehicular congestion and queues throughout the day. By year 2040, traffic volumes are expected to increase up to 66,500 vpd (vehicles per day). In general, existing intersection delays can be expected to double and vehicular queues are expected to increase up to 34% at the critical left-turn movements. More notable, the existing triple eastbound left-turn lane at US 1/Gateway will exceed its capacity and significant delay and queues are expected. FDOT recommends the following improvements to address existing and expected conditions:

• Corridor wide Improvements: Includes upgrades to crosswalk ramps and sidewalks within the project limits to comply with ADA requirements, and signage modifications and additional pavement marking at specific locations.

• Sunrise Boulevard at US 1/Searstown: Improving the operations of the intersection by constructing an additional westbound left-turning lane (provides queue reduction of 28%) and installing a queue detection system on the eastbound direction. The queue detection system will be designed to relieve eastbound stopped traffic if queues reach a point close to the railroad tracks.

• Sunrise Boulevard at NE 15^th eastbound direction: Install a dynamic lane system for the eastbound direction. It consists of the use of the inside through lane to be converted to a shared through/left by using a dynamic display signal creating an effective dual left-turn lane which will operate during peak hours only. It includes widening in the north approach to receive the dual lanes.

• SUNRISE BOULEVARD ROUNDABOUT AND FLYOVER RAMP

  Sunrise Boulevard at US 1/Gateway: Convert the existing signalized intersection to a multilane roundabout with an eastbound to northbound grade separated movement. This proposed 'flyover' ramp carries traffic destined to US 1 northbound relieving the at-grade movements. The combined improvements are expected to reduce delays by up to 58% during the peak hours. In addition, the roundabout conversion is expected to reduce the total intersection crashes by 44% based on nationwide studies and creates fewer pedestrian conflicts with less crossing distance. Bicyclists were considered in the roundabout concept for the Sunrise Boulevard intersection at Gateway. Bicycles are accommodated in the proposed design by providing a bike ramp from the roadway to a multiuse path around the circle.

A Project Development and Environment (PD&E) Study for the improvements recommended above is proposed as an addition to the 2018/2019 Multimodal Surface Transportation Priorities List which will enable the programming of future available funds through the Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization's 5-Year Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) as well as the Florida Department of Transportation's Draft Tentative Work Plan. The PD&E will further evaluate the recommendations listed above to determine the associated social, economic, natural and physical environmental impacts in order to develop the best solution for the multimodal, operational and congestion management challenges in this area. If you would like the entire memo and drawing attachment, let Robbi know and she will email it to you.

ROBBI UPTEGROVE

OFFICE CONTACT: Robbi Uptegrove � 954-828-5033; email: [email protected]. In addition to hosting the pre-agenda meetings twice a month, I am also available to attend your HOA meetings to update your neighborhood on what is going on in the City as well as answer any questions/concerns you may have. Please contact Robbi to schedule.

EMAIL LIST: If you would like to be on our email list so that you receive information pertaining to the City � especially District 1 (i.e. news releases, meeting notices, events), please let Robbi know and she will add you.

Bruce G. Roberts                

If you need to reach Commissioner Bruce Roberts, please contact his assistant Robbi Uptegrove at 954-828-5033 or by e-mail at [email protected]. To access the City Commission Meeting Agendas and Minutes, Click Here. To actually watch the meetings recorded and archived on the Commission Meetings Video Webcast and Archives web site, Click Here.