| REPORT: |
Chairman Martinez noted that in 2001, he thought about what Hollywood and Los Angeles, California had that Miami, Florida did not have. He said Miami was closer to South America, to the financial capital of the world, New York, and to Europe, and had better light and warmer waters. His idea was to have a movie studio industry in Miami. He noted he met with Commissioner Moss about it and a special presentation was made before the county commission in 2001 regarding the idea. He indicated the idea was discussed at a Sunshine Meeting. He said in 2001 the special presentation occurred. He said if two year term limits had been established, this proposal would likely not be where it was that day (5/16).
Chairman Martinez noted there was disagreement on why Disney World did not locate in Miami, and this was Miami’s second shot. He indicated that as a younger commissioner in 2001, he did not know how to make his idea a reality; but, if he had, ‘The Legend of the Red Tails,’ a movie that was just released last year (2011), would have been filmed in Miami. Chairman Martinez noted he partnered with someone else with $50 million, but his name was not Donald Trump.
Chairman Martinez said now, he was partnered with Donald Trump. He said the Homestead Air Reserve Base (HARB) had 600 to 800 acres available for use, and the amount was 800 acres according to the Property Appraiser. Chairman Martinez noted the County Attorney’s Office said issues existed with the land, including that some of the land was deeded and leased; but that nothing was insurmountable. He said the question was whether the commission was willing today (6/5) to give the County Attorney’s Office 90 days to work on the issue if the project was to the commissioners’ liking. He said the proposed project would bring thousands of jobs to the county; and would be built by the private sector, which meant it would be completed quickly and on time and only cost the county the money for the land.
Chairman Martinez noted he met yesterday with Colonel Donald R. Lindberg is Commander, 482nd Fighter Wing, HARB who was very excited about the project, which did not conflict with the base. He said he believed HARB was working on making the land available for dual use, due to the possibility of the Wings Over Homestead Air Show, which would enhance the project and generate money for the county’s aviation budget.
Chairman Martinez introduced Michael Cohen, Executive Vice President of the Trump Organization and Special Counsel to Donald Trump. He noted the fact that Mr. Trump had already invested a lot of money in this proposed project showed the interest he had in it.
Mr. Cohen, he expressed appreciation on behalf of Mr. Trump and the Trump Organization for the opportunity to present a concept that they believed would be a spectacular use for the property in Homestead. He noted a few moments ago, in response to his request for an opinion about the schematic of the concept done by Architect John Fotiadis, Mr. Michael Bay, film director and producer residing in Miami who was present at today’s (6/5) meeting) noted he thought the backlots of movie studios were the most important element in making a modern movie and bringing people to Florida from Los Angeles and other locations.
Mr. Cohen noted Mr. Trump believed the use for HARB property that would create the greatest impact for the area was the proposed “Trump Studio City.” He noted it would be more than twice the size of Universal Studios without a theme park and consist of state-of-the art, 21st century studios of various sizes that could meet the needs of any film project. He said according to the Association of Film Commissioners (AFCI), when a feature film was shot on location, it could inject up to $260,000 per day into local revenue. He noted a television series could inject up to $300,000 per day. Mr. Cohen noted in Fiscal Year (FY) 2009-2010, local direct spending in the county amounted to $157 million and increased to $294 million in FY 2010-2011, which showed that film and television continued to expand. The question, he said, was how to bring the dollars to Florida. Mr. Cohen noted the same year, 85 certified projects created 2,737 production days, and that number multiplied by the 260,00 to 300,00 dollars was a significant amount for the county. He said 16,066 positions, with more than 70.5 million dollars in wages, and 24,269 lodging and room nights were created from the film industry. Mr. Cohen noted if approved, the facility and Mr. Trump’s relationships with the industry would drive film and TV production to Miami, create jobs, reduce the county’s 9% unemployment rate, yield tax revenue, and increase land values.
Mr. John Fotiadis of John Fotiadis Architect (JFA) PLLC, based in New York City, made a PowerPoint presentation of the design concept of Trump Studio City. He noted it would marry all types of media in one location and make Miami a world renowned hub for media, TV, and film activity.
Mr. Fotiadis noted the benefit of the land was that it was large and its typography lent itself to being organized to allow for maximum circulation and visibility. He showed an image of the entrance into the proposed facility and described it as a gateway and grand central plaza. He noted office and administrative buildings were being considered for the face of the facility to draw administrative uses in addition to film production uses, enabling whole productions to move there. He said a plaza with a holographic mechanism showcasing films under production at the time was envisioned, which would be a signpost to the broader area. He showed one of many boulevards that would allow people to connect nodes of the city and circulate through it. Mr. Fotiadis said the sound stages could range from 25-250 thousand square feet, which was unprecedented for sound studios worldwide. He showed a concept of the organization of the city, which would be accessed from an east-west corridor, leading to the central plaza and providing v-shaped type of circulation to the north and south. Mr. Fotiadis indicated where office and administrative buildings would be placed as the front face and media hub. He said just to the north of that would be the sound stages and studios of more traditional industry-standard size. To the north of that, he continued, would be mega-stages with tremendous backlots. Mr. Fotiadis noted he spoke with Mr. Bay regarding the need for larger and larger backlots, which were areas outside of studios, to be able to construct enormous sets; and therefore, he tried to organize the studios so that most were adjacent to larger open spaces. He said to the south would be more office space, where productions from overseas could set up shop for the duration of their production work, house and feed their staff, and run all their business. Mr. Fotiadis showed the vehicular and general circulation of the site as mentioned before. He noted nodes and open spaces would define areas and zones, based on traditional urban planning principles. He showed an image of the location of sound stages and studios, indicating traditional studios in light blue that would be 25,000-35,000 square feet; larger stages in dark blue varying from 60,000-250,000; and backlots in green. He noted the goal was to accommodate productions in parallel, to have all the buildings occupied. Mr. Fotiadis noted that regionally, the proposed location provided an immense opportunity for the 21st century.
Chairman Martinez noted surely, challenges existed. He said after speaking with the County Attorney’s Office, he found out that some of the HARB parcels contained arsenic, some were deeded to the federal government, and other issues existed. The Chairman noted as a real estate expert, Mr. Trump said “know your property.” He said Mr. Trump was going to be present today (6/5), but due to the issues, he did not; however, he sent his architect and vice president, which showed he definitely wanted to execute the project. He noted he was trying to find out if the commission approved of the concept. The Chairman said Hurricane Andrew destroyed the land, and it was given to the county. He noted a ten-year fight occurred regarding Homestead Air Base Developers, Inc. (HABDI), and the land was deeded to the Homeless Trust, Miami-Dade Public Schools, and other entities; but it had basically been sitting there.
Chairman Martinez asked the county commission to ask the County Attorney to refrain from approving and/or executing any leases on all or a portion of the Homestead Air Reserve Base (HARB) for a period of 180 days from June 5, 2012 and to submit a report to the county commission within 90 days regarding legal issues associated with the conveyance of HARB parcels to the Trump Organization. He noted that would be phase I. The Chairman said phase II would be negotiating the county’s terms with the Trump Organization, including any reverter clauses. He said if the Trump Organization knew the acreage available, it could develop a conceptual plan, and the county could limit it however it wanted to.
Chairman Martinez noted the county’s most depressed real estate market was in the Homestead/Florida City area, where many foreclosures had occurred. He said the economy declined mainly because of the construction industry. He said if the commission approved this, it was delaying nothing and hurting nothing, only allowing itself to explore the feasibility of the proposal. Chairman Martinez noted it may not be feasible in 90 days. He said those who got the new jobs would move to buy homes in the area, which may kickstart the construction industry. He said when the Latin Video Music Awards (VMA’s) were held in Miami, but it returned to its home. The Chairman noted the commission could make the county the home of those VMA’s, noting South Beach was here. He said some noted the project would be too far from South Beach; but if productions came to Homestead and a hotel was built there, considering Tamiami Airport and Homestead General Aviation Airport, if HARB became a dual-use site as mentioned before, the private planes could be flown there. He mentioned that the Florida Turnpike was two minutes from the proposed site, and noted helicopters could transport the movie stars to South Beach if landing pads were available, as they were in Fontainebleau. He indicated when Burbank was built, it was built far away from the center of activity, yet people went to it.
Chairman Martinez indicated if the project was feasible after the County Attorney’s Office submitted the report, he wanted to present the findings/the county’s terms to the Trump Organization. He said the organization’s representatives wanted to be good community partners, but they were business people first, so they would look at what was presented. The Chairman said if the commission approved the request for a 180-day moratorium and report within 90 days, Mr. Trump could make presentations and meet with each commissioner at some point.
Commissioner Diaz congratulated Chairman Martinez, noting it was harder to build than to cut. He noted his belief that this was a viable undertaking, which was evidenced by the presence of the two gentlemen from Mr. Trump’s organization. Commissioner Diaz commented about meeting Mr. Trump at a recent golf tournament and that Mr. Trump had purchased the Doral Golf Resort & Spa, located in District 12. He noted he collaborated with Commissioner Moss previously and recently on the Wings Over Homestead Air Show. Commissioner Diaz said the prior county administration did not know that the proposed property was full of uncovered manholes as much as 30 feet deep; and to prevent people from falling into the holes, they had to hurry to fill the holes through the former General Services Administration department. He said the property was abandoned by the county, which was hard to say, when the county was fining other people while its own property was not in proper condition.
Commissioner Diaz noted the military was seeking sites that could serve a dual purpose and spoke in support of the film industry in South Florida. He also commented that South Florida possessed the largest, most beautiful underwater reefs, and the Everglades, which were resources that could be used in the movie industry. Commissioner Diaz noted he would move or second the adoption of this initiative and expressed appreciation for Mr. Trump’s support of and confidence in its success.
Commissioner Sosa recalled the first time Chairman Martinez brought this idea before the Commission and commented on Mr. Trump’s integrity and success with numerous ventures. She noted she had no problem authorizing the proper county departments to handle this issue; however, she questioned whether the film industry could flourish in South Florida. Commissioner Sosa stated the county’s procurement process needed to be followed and noted questions regarding the cost of construction, who owned the land and whether it would it be taxed, the cost for cleaning the land, etc. needed to be answered.
Chairman Martinez pointed out that it was too soon to focus on the questions Commissioner Sosa asked. He noted the question before the Board today was whether it was a good idea to request the delay on leases and the report in 90 days identifying the owner, whether the owner would give the land back to the county, and other pertinent information about the land. He advised that upon receipt of the report, the commission would decide whether to continue the process.
Commissioner Sosa expressed concerns related to dealing with private investors and noted the need for this transaction to follow the county’s procurement process. She questioned what guarantee the county would have that this proposal would benefit the Miami-Dade community.
Mr. Cohen stated The Trump Organization shared her concerns and this proposed project was in the preliminary stage and the procurement process should not be focused on yet. He noted its representatives needed to know more about the property and were awaiting the report that would provide that information.
Commissioner Sosa asked the County Attorney to inform members of the county Commission of any company that approached the county to construct on the Homestead Air Reserve Base during the 180-day stay on the approval and/or execution of leases on all or a portion of the Base.
In response to Commissioner Moss’ question of whether the proposed 180-day stay on the signing of any leases would trigger any legal issues, Assistant County Attorney Geri Bonzon-Keenan noted it would not.
Commissioner Moss expressed his support for this project pending receipt of the 90-report. He expressed concern regarding whether a potential conflict existed between this proposed project and the Wings Over Homestead Air Show.
Chairman Martinez noted the potential for a conflict existed, although a third letter stating there was no conflict had been received. He advised that the air show was currently inactive; however, it could be revived in the future. Chairman Martinez explained that if the joint-use was approved by the Department of Defense and the Secretary of the Air Force, it might not be an issue of concern.
Commissioner Moss indicated an area of potential conflict was that some of the properties in the Homestead Air Reserve Base Master Plan were targeted for development for an air show similar to the one in Paris. He described the scenario surrounding the Paris Air Show and noted the potential to attract many visitors to this community.
Mr. Cohen stated he believed that if advanced notice of the Air Show was given, the potential for conflict could be eliminated. He noted the buildings would be sound-proofed and as long as there was cooperation between the industry and the Air Show, he saw no potential for conflict.
In response to Chairman Martinez’ question of whether the Air Show operated one week every two years, Commissioner Moss noted he was unsure of the time span for the Air Show.
Mr. Fotiadis advised that this project was being designed in phases that would allow the master plan to be adjusted to accommodate other uses being explored. He noted the organization valued Commissioner Moss’ input as the Commissioner of the District (District 9) where the project would be located, and acknowledged his considerable knowledge of the area.
Commissioner Moss expressed his support of the idea and the opportunity for the Board to be bold in its thinking.
In response to Commissioner Bovo’s inquiry as to whether there was pending litigation with respect to the base, Ms. Bonzon-Keenan advised the county was not aware of any.
In response to Commissioner Bovo’s concern regarding whether the county had buy-in from the film industry, Chairman Martinez stated he recently served on a panel for the film industry and witnessed a tremendous amount of buy-in from that industry. He noted filmmakers were unable to film the movie “Iron Man 4” in this county due to inadequate studio space. Chairman Martinez noted there would be many opponents to this proposed project and location, for various reasons. He said 600-700 acres as part of Miami Beach or beside Miami International Airport was ideal, but indicated that amount of land was unavailable in those places.
Chairman Martinez noted those without money would take a car from Miami International Airport to the proposed facility. He indicated that despite the complaints, closing the causeway for the filming of the movie, Bad Boys, turned out to be a good thing for Miami Beach. Chairman Martinez noted the majority would buy into the concept because it grew the industry. He said a parcel belonging to the School Board of Miami-Dade County could be used to create a magnet school to train students, who could then work and buy homes in the community.
Commissioner Bovo concurred with Chairman Martinez, noting he did not want to fall into the ‘Lets build it, they will come’ mentality.
In response to Chairman Martinez’ request for Mr. Cohen’s opinion, Mr. Cohen concurred with Chairman Martinez that he did not believe Mr. Trump would build anything that would not make him money.
Commissioner Bovo noted he encouraged the commission to do what was necessary to move forward once industry buy-in was obtained.
Mr. Cohen noted one of the reasons that the show, CSI Miami, left this community was due to permitting issues due to filming being performed on local streets, which resulted in traffic congestion. He said he understood why the show left, since this community did not have a 40-60 acre back lot on which to film street scenes; but this property would provide that. Mr. Cohen noted the proposed facility would be approximately 15 acres which was substantially larger than the football field sized facility operated by Universal Studios. He said this location would be appreciated by producers and would also save them a substantial amount of money.
Commissioner Bell noted she supported this plan; however, noted the facility appeared to be over the military overlay that protected the HARB from encroachment. She expressed concern regarding this project proposal as related to the federal government’s current lawsuit against the City of Homestead for encroachment on the base’s landing strip. Commissioner Bell commented that arsenic existed in the ground and as a result, environmental clean-up would be necessary. She noted another project in Homestead had similar issues. Commissioner Bell said she was glad the proposed buildings would be soundproofed, since many F-15 and F-16 planes flew overhead.
Mr. Cohen noted The Trump Organization was requesting a lengthy due diligence period in order to satisfy the concerns expressed by Commissioner Bell. He said he was previously project executive for a redevelopment landfill project in New Jersey which required the environmental clean-up of 1,000 acres.
Commissioner Bell noted she would support the proposal and asked that due diligence be done with the issues she mentioned.
In response to Commissioner Bell’s comment that the base was an active joint reserve use facility and her question regarding whether much of the county property adjacent to the HARB that was given away after Hurricane Andrew would be part of the project, Chairman Martinez noted that was correct.
Commissioner Souto noted the City of Orlando experienced significant growth and an infusion of cash after Disney World moved into that area. He said it was necessary to look to the future, and nothing happened if one did not take a first step. Commissioner Souto noted it was the county’s duty to take all precautions possible in looking at the proposal and consider the future of this community.
Commissioner Edmonson expressed support for the feasibility study and moratorium. She said Miami-Dade County this was a chance to make the county a true destination community. Commissioner Edmonson noted the county should proceed with caution, which was the reason Chairman Martinez requested a report be submitted to the County Commission.
Chairman Martinez noted the proposal would require political will, and the only way it would not come to fruition was if bureaucracy prevented it. He said no local companies had the money to build a studio like the one proposed. Chairman Martinez said that this was the building of a dream, was about changing the county and the State of Florida. He noted the State provided a lot of money for production and may provide funds for capital requirements, which he spoke with Governor Rick Scott about. He said he met twice with the governor, expressed interested in obtaining more information about the return on the proposed investment and noted he had money to help. Chairman Martinez noted he was unsure what types of funds the governor meant and unsure of his thoughts on the project. He said he needed to follow-up with the governor’s office. The Chairman noted that through this project, Miami would become a destination point which would encourage the State to contribute funds.
Mayor Gimenez clarified that his administration looked forward to working with the Trump Organization in moving this proposal forward, noting it was in agreement with the One Community One Goal to diversify the economy. He said a movie studio would be a tremendous asset, noting the administration would do everything within its ability to make it happen.
It was moved by Commissioner Moss that the approval and/or execution of any leases on all or a portion of the Homestead Air Reserve Base be stayed for a period of 180 days from today (6/5), and the County Attorney’s Office be directed to determine legal issues associated with conveyance of HARB parcels to the Trump Organization for the purposes discussed today and to report back to the County Commission within 90 days, as proposed by Chairman Martinez. This motion was seconded by Commissioner Bell and upon being put to a vote, passed 12-0 (Commissioner Suarez was absent). |
