Village of Key Biscayne Leaders Continue Misinformation Campaign to Sink Boat Show, Destroy Local Middle-Class Jobs
(Miami, FL – December 7, 2015) – The Village of Key Biscayne’s leaders continue to fight tooth and nail against the Miami International Boat Show and the thousands of Miamians employed through the event, including local electricians, laborers, hospitality and catering staff, manufacturing plant workers, and small business owners. Key Biscayne leaders are spending hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars on lawsuits and negative PR to prevent the Show from moving to – and activating – Miami’s long-underutilized Marine Stadium Park & Basin. Key Biscayne leaders, driven by the possibility of being inconvenienced by Show-related traffic for a few days a year, are sharing misinformation about the Show’s environmental impact to advance their cause.
In the process, these Key Biscayne leaders are putting thousands of local workers from across the Causeway at risk of losing their jobs, and therefore jeopardizing Miami-Dade families, so that Key Biscayne doesn’t suffer the perceived traffic inconveniences of a five-day event that has been a Miami institution since 1941. In their tireless efforts to sink the Boat Show, Key Biscayne leaders have not let the facts get in the way of the environmental tall tale that they are selling to County residents.
Below are some of the claims being shared by Village leadership about the Boat Show’s environmental impacts and the FACTS that debunk them:
CLAIM:
The Miami Marine Stadium & Basin are environmentally sensitive areas that will be paved over and damaged by the Boat Show.
FACT:
Neither the Marine Stadium property nor the Basin itself are located in areas deemed environmentally sensitive by any state, local or federal agency. The only land on Virginia Key that has been dedicated as environmentally sensitive is on the opposite side of the Virginia Key island, separate from the Marine Stadium & Basin and far from where the Boat Show is located.
The land surrounding the long-dormant Marine Stadium has been an un-used, paved-over surface parking lot for decades and is now being reinvigorated as a public community flex park by the City of Miami. The Basin itself is manmade: it was created by dredging and was subsequently used for powerboat races and concerts. During a two-day independent marine survey by Coastal Systems International of the submerged lands adjacent to the Marine Stadium – and beneath the proposed area for the Show’s floating docks – researchers found minimal seagrasses on the submerged floor of the Basin:
“While there were occasional areas with mixed seagrass, the majority of the Project site was silty sand…”
– Coastal Systems International, Inc. Field Observation Report Summary
Furthermore, the Boat Show has a proven 30-year track record of working successfully and collaboratively with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Miami-Dade County’s Department of Environmental Resource Management (DERM) to produce in-water events that respect Biscayne Bay’s natural habitats. That track record continues today.
CLAIM:
The Boat Show will have water taxis that come too close for comfort to protected manatee zones.
FACT:
The protected manatee zones around the Marine Stadium are clearly marked channels that legally permit vessels to navigate through the area at slow or idle speed. During any given week of the year, numerous watercraft move slowly and safely through these well-marked manatee protection zones. All vessels associated with the Boat Show will follow the very same rules. Furthermore, the Boat Show has developed a map that identifies the channels and appropriate routes of access to the Marine Stadium. The map will be provided to all water taxi operators and exhibitors prior to arrival at the Boat Show and all licensed captains will be required to confirm via signature their understanding and adherence to these zones. DERM staff, which have -recommended the Boat Show’s Special Use permit for approval, explain further in their report:
“…the Intracoastal Waterway provides marked deep-water access to the Marine Stadium Basin from both the northern and southern directions. The (Boat Show) has developed a map that identifies channels and appropriate routes of access to the Marine Stadium that will be provided to all exhibitors and water taxi operators prior to arrival at the Boat Show…the map also indicates the locations of environmentally sensitive areas that are required to be avoided.”
– Miami-Dade County Department of Regulatory and Economic Resources
CLAIM:
Up to 800 boats in the Miami Marine Stadium will put Biscayne Bay at Risk…putting the natural habitats of manatees, sea turtles and birds in jeopardy.
FACT:
On any given weekend throughout the year, numerous vessels move through the waters adjacent to the Miami Marine Stadium. The Boat Show plans to display 400-500 boats at floating docks in the Basin during the five-day event. These 100% EPA-compliant docks will be installed in deeper water where minimal sea grasses were documented by Coastal Systems International environmental surveyors, and away from any sensitive shoreline habitats. DERM staff explain:
“To avoid impacts to dense benthic resources located near the shoreline, the docking facility and all associated non-water dependent structures have been configured to be in deeper water areas in locations where only sparse seagrasses were documented.”
“Due to the temporary nature of the project, long-term shading impacts to seagrasses are not anticipated...”
– Miami-Dade County Department of Regulatory and Economic Resources
Closer to shore, the Boat Show has worked with DERM to ensure minimal impact on shoreline habitats. The terms that DERM staff are recommending to the Boat Show include:
“that walkway locations be placed to avoid and minimize impacts to wetlands and wetland vegetation and be approved by DERM prior to installation.”
“The proposed project has been designed in accordance with all…relevant Miami-Dade County coastal construction criteria and is consistent with all other Miami-Dade County coastal protection provisions.”
– Miami-Dade County Department of Regulatory and Economic Resources
CLAIM:
The Boat Show will cause year-round traffic in and around Coconut Grove, Downtown and Key Biscayne.
FACT:
The Boat Show is a five-day event – nine full days shorter than the Miami Open Tennis Tournament which takes place on Key Biscayne each year. Boat Show or no Boat Show, Miami has traffic.
The reality is that Boat Show organizers have invested an unprecedented $800,000 to mitigate traffic congestion. Working diligently with the police and fire departments of Miami-Dade County, the City of Miami and the Village of Key Biscayne, Boat Show organizers developed a plan that maintains traffic flow for Key Biscayne residents and emergency vehicles during the Show.
Here are additional facts about Boat Show traffic and parking:
- There will be a dedicated traffic lane on the Causeway in both directions for local vehicles only
- There are 3,800 parking spaces on Virginia Key, and those will only be available to Boat Show attendees if pre-paid
- The vast majority of Boat Show attendees will park at offsite locations housing nearly 10,000 parking spaces outside of Virginia Key and arrive by water taxi or shuttle bus (ironically, Key Biscayne also opposes water taxis which will ease Causeway traffic)
- Water taxis are capable of transporting as many as 25,000 people per day
- Click here for details on the transportation plan, including a traffic study conducted by the City of Miami during the Coconut Grove Arts Festival showing that additional traffic will be mitigated
CLAIM: City of Miami taxpayers are paying $20 million to move the Boat Show to the Miami Marine Stadium Park & Basin
FACT: City of Miami taxpayers are NOT underwriting the Miami International Boat Show’s move. Rather, the City of Miami is investing about $20 million to make the improvements necessary for the area to be turned into a year-round public flex park available to the community.
The Boat Show is covering ALL costs related to the event. Additionally, the Boat Show is investing more than $3 million to cover infrastructure needed for the Show itself and is paying the City $1 million a year in license fees, plus a share of net parking and concessions revenue.
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About the Progressive Insurance Miami International Boat Show & Strictly Sail Show:
The Progressive Insurance Miami International Boat Show & Strictly Sail Show is produced by the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA), the world’s largest producer of boat shows and the leading association representing the recreational boating industry. The boat show generates $600 million of economic activity in South Florida, supports 55,000 jobs and generates $32 million in Florida state sales tax. In 2016, the show will celebrate its 75th year and a new location at Miami Marine Stadium Park & Basin. For more information, visit http://www.miamiboatshow.com.
About the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA):
NMMA is a not-for-profit trade association with member companies that produce more than 80 percent of the boats, engines, trailers, accessories and gear used by boaters and anglers throughout the U.S. and Canada. The association is dedicated to recreational boating through programs in public policy advocacy, market statistics and research, product quality assurance and promotion of the boating lifestyle. For more information, visit www.nmma.org.