Palmetto Bay leaders are concerned about safety
Who in their right mind would put the words “Munilla” and “bridge” in the same sentence only six years after the pedestrian bridge at Florida International University collapsed, killing six on Tamiami Trail and providing a lifetime of PTSD to hundreds if not thousands of Miami commuters?
Someone at the Miami-Dade County decided that Magnum Construction Management, which used to be Munilla Construction Management — they changed the name to rebrand after the collapse, but saved money on letterhead by keeping the same initials, MCM — was best suited to build the road that is really a bridge over the C-100 canal connecting Southwest 163rd Terrace to 164th Street.
The Palmetto Bay council has opposed the bridge from the get go. The Village sued to stop construction and has called for an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss the new developments, which could include a recent court ruling in their favor.
“Dear Palmetto Bay residents, your urgent action is needed,” Mayor Karyn Cunningham wrote in a mass text Monday. “On Friday, we learned that the 87th Avenue bridge contract has been awarded to the company responsible for the FIU pedestrian bridge collapse that claimed six innocent lives.
“This is a direct threat to the safety of our families and our community,” Cunningham wrote. “As your mayor, I’m fighting to stop this dangerous project. But I need your voice to amplify my demand to our county mayor to stand with us and terminate this dangerous project now.”
The Village also received the news recently that the Third District Court of Deal has granted the Village’s motion to hear oral arguments in the lawsuit brought by the Village and a group of residents against the county.
“As the Third District court does not automatically grant oral argument in each case that is filed in the court, granting the Village’s motion is significant,” said City Attorney John Dellagloria.
CBS4 Miami reached out to Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who has opposed the bridge since she was the District 8 commissioner, about these new developments.
“My top priority is the safety of all our residents and neighborhoods,” La Alcaldesa told them. “I have opposed the construction of a bridge on 87th Avenue since I was a Commissioner in the District and worked hard to support and put in place different measures to address traffic congestion in the area. Some of these measures include the construction of traffic circles at key intersections, additional Bus Rapid Transit stations on US 1, and extending smart traffic lights on US 1.”
The construction of the bridge was approved by a majority of the county commissioners in 2021 and the county’s Department of Transportation and Public works began the process. But residents haven’t given up on stopping it. There was a recent protest at the bridge by a small group .
Levine Cava said she had spoke to Cunningham and had requested an “immediate review” of the process that he could share with the council at Thursday’s meeting.
“I have been in touch with Mayor Cunningham over the last few days and requested an immediate review of the contract process in response to concerns from Palmetto Bay residents. The Department will be prepared to share all the facts at the upcoming Council Meeting on Thursday.”
Munilla Construction Management was one of the companies behind the deadly pedestrian bridge collapse. The president of the family owned company told WPLG Local 10 that he wrestled with what could have been done differently to prevent the tragedy.
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“We have had many restless nights,” Munilla is quoted as saying. “We wish we would have done more.”
Well here’s an idea: Don’t do bridges. Not for a while. It’s too soon, dude. Magnum/Munilla is involved in other contracts, with water and sewer, at the airport. Be happy with that.
Miami-Dade picks FIU bridge builder for 87th Avenue bridge project added by Ladra on
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It is great to see that the County chose a company with such close ties to Corrupt Congressman Carlos Giménez…
The bridge should have been built years ago. It should be Palmetto Bay that pays for it instead of Miami Dade County. The majority of crossing will be Palmetto Bay residents and it will reduce response times for Palmetto Bay emergency services. I think the opposition has all been staged to get the county to foot the bill. I mean how can you argue that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line?
So this will stretch 87Ave for 12 blocks.
That straight stretch is broken in 12 block. What a waste of taxpayers’ money.
How do you spell corruption? Miami-Dade County.
I totally disagree with the construction of the 87th Avenue Bridge. It will not serve a purpose and it will be a constant reminder of the FIU Pedestrian Walkway. What is wrong with LA ALCALDESA? Is she getting any money out of these bribes?
I do not disagree with anyone about bribes but in Florida politicians which include city council can legally get a ”consultation ” fee from any developer , etc .
So the same big money players own most of them and quality of work is irrelevant .
While I am not a cheerleader for MCM, it should be noted that the FIU bridge and the proposed 87th Ave. bridge are totally different animals.
The FIU bridge employed novel concepts and a lengthy unsupported span to create a unique design to highlight the FIU engineering program. There are enough actors in this project to share the blame starting with the lack of redundancy, which is always an important part of bridge design. I´ll grant that, given the alarming cracks that appeared prior to collapse, MCM (along with FDOT) should’ve been more pro-active in raising the red flag and securing the safety of 8th Street traffic and the on-site construction workers but, it appears they followed whatever best management practices were in force at that time.
The 87th Ave. bridge appears to be a design that is, and has been used, in the dozens of canal crossings throughout the county (for the expected level of traffic). If MDPW does their job and inspects the work as it progresses, anyone with a modicum of bridge construction experience can safely carry out this work…even MCM.
Now, if this was a ‘no-bid’ contract assignment, then further scrutiny is warranted as to why other construction companies were not allowed to bid. If MCM was the lowest bidder, the selection committee, sometimes analyzes the bids to ascertain that the bidders are all bidding on the same items and are not leaving something out only to later submit change-orders for the missing items.
This proposed bridge has been unpopular for a long time and the focus on whether to build or not to build should be based on the will of the people, not on whether MCM will build a dangerous bridge.
It would be nice to know how many miles is that stretch of roadway. From the bridge to 144 street. I don’t believe that that stretch will make traffic easier but it will damage the quality of life for homeowners on 87ave.
The bridge is sourly needed to finally have a straight north south drive on Galloway Road without detours.
However, picking a company that built a defective bridge that caused unnecessary deaths, indicates how faulty the County’s permitting and contracting process really is.
We are still reeling from the failed construction of a tiny bridge on Caribbean Blvd at the entrance to the Town or Cutler Bay (over three years and never built, with construction equipment still littering the side of the existing bridge).
Commissioner Higgins and the rest should investigate the process currently being used by the county to award these contracts, which is indicative that something is definitely wrong and the same goes for Mayor Lavin Cava who we are not very happy with when she decided to support the purchase of the Motel Six on Caribbean Blvd by the Homeless Trust, against the will of the City of Cutler Bay and its residents and paying above market value to add insult to injury.
$$$$$$ Donations/Bribes keep Pouring in a COUNTY run By LOBBYIST ?$$$$
Munilla NKA Magnum has always been about corruption. They pay bribes. They pay lobbyists to bribe elected officials. Their bridge collapsed. People were killed. Painful deaths. Squashed. Mushed. Pounded dead. WTF. Is Mayor Danilla’s lobbyist working for Munilla?
STOP THE BRIDGE ASAP. IT WILL SERVE NO PURPOSE AND WILL DEGRADE THE RESIDENTIAL AREA. FIX US1 WITH TAFFIC LIGHT COORDINATION.