§ 2-1114. Trust authority.

Commencing on the effective date of this Ordinance, the powers of the Trust shall be the plenary powers necessary and incidental to winding up Trust affairs and providing for the orderly transition of the management and operation of Vizcaya Museum and Gardens to Vizcaya Museum and Gardens Trust, Inc., a contractor of Miami-Dade County, including the following:

1.

Power to act. The Trust shall be empowered to sue and be sued, to plead and be impleaded, to contract and be contracted with, and to have an official seal and alter the same. This provision shall not be construed to in any way affect the laws relating to governmental immunity.

2.

Contracts. Except as otherwise provided by this chapter, the Trust as agent and instrumentality of Miami-Dade County, shall be authorized to act for Miami-Dade County in the performance and enforcement of all contracts pertaining to the Trust and designated facilities and existing on the effective date of this chapter, and shall additionally be empowered to negotiate and execute, subsequent to the effective date of this chapter, such contracts as are properly within the powers and duties of the Trust subject to the following limitations:

a.

The Trust shall not, without prior approval of the Board of County Commissioners, enter into or amend any contract which shall require the expenditure of funds in excess of the amounts appropriated in the contractual services category of the section of the County budget pertaining to the operation of the Trust.

b.

The Trust shall not, without prior approval of the County Commission, enter into or alter any contract the effect of which is to change substantially policies established by the Board of County Commissioners.

c.

The Trust shall not be authorized to enter into a contract with any labor union or other organization representing employees without first having obtained the approval of the Board of County Commissioners.

d.

The Trust shall comply with the formal bid requirements of Section 5.03(D) of the Charter of Metropolitan Miami-Dade County, Florida, and for such purpose the term "Board" as used in Section 5.03(D) shall be construed to be the "Trust" and the term "Mayor" shall be construed to be "the Trust Chairperson."

e.

For all construction contracts, the Trust shall comply with the provisions of Article 11 of Chapter 10 of the County Code and the administrative procedures adopted pursuant to said section.

f.

For all purchases of commodities and services, the Trust shall comply with the provisions of Section 2-8.2 of the County Code and the administrative procedures adopted pursuant to said section.

g.

It is specifically provided that contracts and amendments thereto executed by the Trust or other obligations incurred by the Trust, shall not be binding upon Miami-Dade County. In the event that the Trust is abolished, obligations of the Trust shall only be enforceable against Miami-Dade County to the extent that such obligations would have been enforceable with regard to business income which would have come into the possession of the Trust had the Trust not been abolished.

h.

The Trust shall have the power to fulfill, assign, or terminate contracts, including but not limited to those with the Trust's support organizations. The Trust shall have the power to fulfill the terms of any grants or donations made to or in trust for the Trust and to transfer the same to the operator of Vizcaya. The Trust shall have the power to reconcile the Trust's fund balance at the conclusion of all contractual commitments and transfer of same to the operator of Vizcaya for the sole benefit of Vizcaya.

i.

The Trust shall not, without prior approval of Vizcaya Museum and Gardens Trust, Inc., the non-profit entity to which the Board of County Commissioners has delegated the management and operation of Vizcaya, enter into or alter any contract.

3.

Property. The Trust shall not be authorized to sell, convey, mortgage, or otherwise impair or encumber the title to real property.

The Trust shall not, without having previously obtained the approval of the Commission, destroy, replace, or abandon real property.

4.

The Trust shall provide a report of the conduct of its affairs to the Board of County Commissioners on a quarterly basis. Not later than two years following the effective date of this Ordinance, as may be extended by the Board of County Commissioners by resolution upon written request by the Trust Chairperson, the Trust shall provide a final report to the Board of County Commissioners (the "Final Report").

(Ord. No. 17-42, § 1, 7-6-17)

Editor's note

Ord. No. 17-42, § 1, adopted July 6, 2017, repealed the former §§ 2-1114—2-1122, and enacted new §§ 2-1114—2-1118 as set out herein. Former §§ 2-1114—2-1122 pertained to initial transitional scope of Trust authority; scheduled expanded scope of Trust authority; requirements for complete transition; budget and finances; executive director; continuing role of the Park and Recreation Department; relationship with Miami-Dade County; liberal construction of effectuate public purpose; and replacement of policy committee by the Trust, and derived from Ord. No. 98-112, §§ 1, 4—6, 8, 11, 12, adopted Feb. 21, 1998.