Officials with the village of Palmetto Bay have expressed their disagreement with one of the companies involved in the FIU pedestrian bridge collapse being awarded the 87th Avenue bridge contract, however the Third District Court of Appeal ruled Wednesday that decisions related to the bridge project lie solely with the county.
“For nearly two decades, residents have debated the proposed construction of a bridge over Cutler Drain Canal C-100 at Southwest 87th Avenue from Southwest 164th Street to 163rd Terrace (the “Bridge Project”),” the opinion stated. “Proponents of the Bridge Project argue it will alleviate traffic congestion and allow for more efficient movement of vehicles from south to north. Opponents contend construction will erode the quality of the neighborhoods abutting the project, increase local traffic, and divert some vehicles to another heavily traversed street. Because 87th Avenue is a countycontrolled road, Miami-Dade County possesses ultimate decision-making authority over the Bridge Project.”
In August, the village of Palmetto Bay posted on its website that awarding the project to a company involved in the FIU bridge collapse, which killed six people, “is a direct threat to the safety of our families and our community.”
That company is Magnum Construction Management, (MCM), which was rebranded after the collapse when it was known as Munilla Construction Management.
The FIU bridge collapsed on March 15, 2018, as it was still under construction. A section splintered just outside Florida International University’s main campus in Miami-Dade.
The bridge crossed over Southwest Eighth Street, which remained open during the construction, and aimed to connect the southern area of the city of Sweetwater with University Park.
Federal investigators determined the probable cause of the deadly collapse was related to engineers’ calculation errors, according to a National Transportation Safety Board report.
The Louis Berger Group peer review failed to detect the load and capacity calculation errors by Tallahassee-based FIGG Bridge Engineers, according to the NTSB report.
Investigators also reported that FIGG failed to identify the significance of the structural cracking observed before the collapse and to obtain an independent peer review of the remedial plan to address the cracking.
In August, MCM responded to the Village of Palmetto Bay mayor and councilmembers in a letter shared with Local 10 News:
After the ruling came down, Palmetto Bay Vice Mayor-Elect Mark Merwitzer emailed residents to say that while the ruling ends “the village’s challenge to the bridge, I understand the very real concerns many residents have about traffic impacts on our neighborhoods.
“My focus now is on working proactively to protect our community’s quality of life. I am fully committed to rebuilding productive relationships with Miami-Dade County and our neighboring municipalities to address traffic concerns comprehensively. We need strong partnerships to implement effective traffic management solutions.”
READ THE FULL ORDER FROM THE THIRD DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL BELOW:
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