§ 25B-24. Grant proposals.

(a)

Any adjustments to the amount available from the bond proceeds which are required to be made to satisfy the costs of providing staff or other services to administer the bonds shall be made to the amounts available under this bond program, not to exceed one (1) percent.

(b)

The following provisions of this Section 25B-24(b) shall apply to all grants to be awarded pursuant to this article:

(1)

Individual applications for grants or per capita allocations pursuant to Section 25B-22 shall be submitted to the Committee for approval as to conformity with the requirements of this article and for Committee review and recommendation. The application shall be accompanied by an authorizing resolution from the governing body of the applicant public agency that the project (or projects) for which the grant or allocation is sought is an important park and recreation project (or projects) which will benefit all residents of Miami-Dade County and that operating, management and programming funds are included in budget.

(2)

Not more than seventeen (17) percent of monies awarded under any grant may be utilized for project planning, design and administration.

(3)

The interest earned on proceeds of the bonds which have been sold but not allocated shall be used for acquisition of park, open space and natural areas to meet the future needs of the growing population of Miami-Dade County. Requests for use of these interest funds may be made to the Committee by public agencies and not-for-profit organizations, with all title vesting in a public agency.

(4)

After approval of this article by special election, administrative rules governing the implementation of the Ordinance shall be prepared by the County Manager. Such rules shall include a timeline for the grant programs identified in Section 25B-22 of this article, criteria and procedures for evaluating such grants, notification of affected public agencies and not-for-profit organizations of the proposed criteria and procedures and of the dates of public workshops to be held throughout the County for the purpose of receiving public input on the proposed criteria and procedures. After at least one (1) public workshop for each of the grant programs referenced in Section 25B-22, the Committee shall adopt final criteria and procedures for evaluating grants for each program, and shall notify affected public agencies and not-for-profit organizations as to the application timeline, criteria and procedures for evaluating challenge grants for each program. Grants shall be awarded by the Board of County Commissioners upon recommendation of the Committee in accordance with this article and the rules adopted in accordance with this provision.

(5)

A public agency may enter into an agreement with one (1) or more not-for-profit organizations for the purpose of carrying out a grant pursuant to this article, subject to the requirements of Section 25B-28.

(6)

Each public agency shall make every effort to employ local residents, and particularly youth, from the area in which proposed projects are located.

(7)

Each public agency shall make every effort to work with not-for-profit organizations with a demonstrated history of youth employment and training, gang prevention and intervention, and environmental preservation and land conservation.

(8)

Funds that are granted pursuant to Section 25B-22 for the purposes of development, improvement, rehabilitation or restoration shall be expended for these purposes only on lands owned or leased by a public agency. Funds may also be utilized for projects on lands for which the public agency holds a lease or other use agreement for an unexpired minimum term of twenty-five (25) years.

(9)

In projects where funds are allocated pursuant to Section 25B-22 for park and facility development, every effort shall be made to use non-invasive, drought-resistant, or xeriscape landscape material, water-conserving irrigation systems and energy-efficient fixtures, except when such use can be shown to be unfeasible. When projects involve the rehabilitation of existing irrigation systems or the creation of new irrigation systems, reclaimed water should be used whenever possible and priority shall be given to development of reclaimed water irrigation systems.

(10)

The minimum amount that an applicant may request for any individual project is ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00). Any agency may allocate all or a portion of its per capita share to a regional or state project or another neighboring city, and all agencies shall be encouraged to form partnerships to leverage other available funds with the Miami-Dade County School Board, other public agencies, and not-for-profit organizations for park and recreation purposes.

(11)

Funds made available for approved projects from grants shall be expended or encumbered by the recipient within three (3) years of the date when such funds are first made available unless an extension is authorized pursuant to the express terms of this article. Any such grant funds that are not expended or encumbered by the recipient within such period, shall be made available for award for one (1) or more of the classes of expenditures specified in Section 25B-22 that the Committee deems to be of the highest priority.

i.

Upon deposit into the Trust Account, the original recipient of the ends shall have no further claim to the funds.

ii.

Trust Account funds shall be made available pursuant to the programs outlined in Section 25B-22, and shall be prioritized for heavily used parks and recreation facilities in underserved areas of the County or municipalities. When funds are to be used for the acquisition of property, priority shall be given to acquiring land for park, recreation or natural areas purposes in densely populated, underserved areas with documented deficiencies in park, recreation or open space opportunities.

(12)

The scope of each per capita project, shall remain as defined in the application for bond funds and this article. If there are required modifications to the scope of the specific project, the recipient may alter the scope of the specific project, as defined by the administrative rules. The modifications shall be subject to approval by the Committee. The full amount allocated for a specific project as detailed within the application and this article shall be used for the designated project and not transferred to another project.

(13)

If bond proceeds have not been expended or encumbered within the periods allowed, the recipient agencies may submit to the Committee for review and approval in its discretion a plan for expenditure or encumbrance of the funds in accordance with the purposes of this article within the municipality or area of the County in which the funds were originally authorized to be expended.

(c)

Challenge grants. In addition to those provisions contained in Section 25B-24(b) above, the following provisions shall apply to challenge grants to be awarded pursuant to Section 25B-22(c) of this article.

(1)

The funds authorized in Section 25B-22(c) shall be available as grants on a challenge basis to public agencies and not-for-profit organizations.

(2)

An extension not to exceed two (2) years beyond the three-year time limit for expenditure or encumbrance of grant funds may be authorized by the Committee for reasonable cause.

(3)

These grants shall be limited for acquisition of lands for public use, and improvements or development to publicly owned lands and facilities.

(4)

Pursuant to Section 25B-22(c)(1), an amount not to exceed seven million dollars ($7,000,000.00), shall be dedicated to park, recreation and open space acquisition and development in areas which: (i) are identified as economically and/or socially disadvantaged consistent with Federal guidelines, where at least fifty-one (51) percent of residents live at or below 80 percent of the County's median income, and (ii) which possess a documented deficiency in recreation and open space opportunities defined as the difference between area supply and area demand for facilities, programs and services.

(5)

In the evaluation of grant applications pursuant to Section 25B-22(c)(i), priority shall be given first to correct vestiges of past discrimination and second to those which meet one (1) or more of the following criteria: (i) joint application by a public agency and a not-for-profit organization whose primary focus is working with youth; (ii) application by a not-for-profit organization with a demonstrated history of gang intervention, gang prevention, ability to work with at-risk youth, and prior experience in such activities through grants from public agencies; (iii) application by not-for-profit organization which agrees to and can demonstrate the ability to operate and maintain the facility to be constructed or developed on a long-term basis; (iv) application by a not-for-profit organization with experience in park and open space acquisition and preservation.

(d)

Grants for specific county and municipal projects. In addition to those provisions contained in Section 25B-24(b) above, the following provisions shall apply to the grants for specific County and municipal projects to be awarded pursuant to Sections 25B-22(a)(2) and (b) of this article.

(1)

These grants shall be limited for acquisition of lands for public use, and improvements or development to publicly owned lands and facilities for the purposes set forth in Sections 25B-22(a)(2) and (b) of this article.

(2)

An extension not to exceed two (2) years beyond the three-year time limit for expenditure or encumbrance of grant funds may be authorized by the Committee for reasonable cause.

(Ord. No. 96-115, § 5, 7-16-96)