C7C - Consult on 72nd St Murals

Resolutions - C7 C

COMMISSION MEMORANDUM

RECOMMENDATION

The Administration recommends that the Mayor and City Commission (City Commission) adopt a resolution accepting the Land Use and Sustainability Committee (LUSC) recommendation to direct the Administration to consult with the design team and construction manager for the 72nd St. Community Complex Project on the potential to include "The Glory of Old Glory," (Murals) a series of murals by Enzo Gallo, within the Project, and present any recommendations to the LUSC during their regularly scheduled June 2025 meeting.

BACKGROUND/HISTORY

The Murals were created in 1971 by Italian artist and sculptor Enzo Gallo, an immigrant who fled Italy for Cuba and subsequently emigrated to South Florida. The Murals depict the U.S. flag over time through scenes of American historical figures and events, including Abraham Lincoln, Betsy Ross, Man Lands on the Moon, and Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima. The mosaics also depict important U.S. government buildings as well as the State of Florida and its flag. They were previously installed and displayed on the Wells Fargo Bank building at 1200 Lincoln Road. The Murals (also referred to as the “Enzo Gallo Murals” or the “Murals”) were commissioned by the building's former owner, Shepard Broad, developer of the Bay Harbor Islands, and were displayed on the prominent corner of Alton Road and Lincoln Road for more than 50 years. The Enzo Gallo Murals are part of Miami Beach history and have high artistic value. They are one of the few public art works in the City depicting key elements of American history, making the preservation thereof important not just artistically, but as a matter of civic pride.

Prior to the building being demolished, members of the Miami Beach preservation community urged the City to take action to save the Murals as the private property owner had no obligation to save them. Subject to City confirmation, the owner's representatives indicated the owner would take steps to cut and remove the Enzo Gallo Murals in an effort to preserve them so long as the owner is not responsible for storing the Murals for future installation and provided that the removal does not delay the owner' s private project.

Consequently, on June 22, 2022, the City Commission adopted Resolution No. 2022-32204 directing the Administration to take all steps necessary to assist with the efforts to remove and

store the Murals at an appropriate to-be-determined temporary location, pending selection and approval of a suitable permanent location for the Murals. Additionally, said Resolution accepted the owner's donation of the Murals to the City, and referred the foregoing to the Art in Public Places (“AiPP”) Committee for an advisory recommendation as to potential locations for the placement of the Murals.

In June 2022, the AiPP Committee issued a Letter to Commission (LTC # 244-2022), stating that while the Committee supports the preservation of the Murals and would offer professional guidance as needed, it does not recommend the use of AiPP funds to undertake expenses involved with relocating, storing, maintaining, restoring and re-installation of the Murals. Since then, there has been no further action from the AiPP Committee on this matter.

In January 2023, the Miami Design Preservation League (“MDPL”) entered into a 12-month storage space lease agreement with a private landlord to temporarily store the Murals at no cost, at 1656 Alton Road (the “Storage Facility”). Prior to the expiration of the Storage Facility lease, the Administration identified a storage space to temporarily house the Murals.

Consequently, on October 18, 2023, the City Commission adopted Resolution No. 2023-32798 which authorized the Administration to negotiate a three (3) year lease agreement for approximately 5,000 square feet of storage space to house the Enzo Gallo Murals and the Jack Stewart “Apollo” mural. Said lease has an initial term of three (3) years, commencing on November 15, 2023, with one (1) renewal term for an additional three (3) years. On December 22, 2023, the Murals were relocated to this storage facility and deeded to the City thereafter.

On May 15, 2024, at the request of Commissioner Alex Fernandez, the City Commission approved the referral of item C4 AJ to the LUSC to discuss and identify potential sites for the installation of the Murals.

Subsequently, at the Feb 15, 2025 City Commission meeting, at the request of Commissioner Alex Fernandez, the City Commission approved the referral of item C4 O to LUSC to discuss an expanded list of sites, to include the 72nd Street Community Complex currently under design.

ANALYSIS

In January 2023, at the request of the MDPL, RLA Conservation submitted “Proposal for Treatment and Reinstallation of Enzo Gallo’s Murals (“Proposal”) (Exhibit A). The Proposal describes how the Murals were to be removed from the structure and preserved for later restoration and reassembly. The Proposal offers a rough estimate based off the best-case scenario in which the mosaic Murals are installed at ground-level and can be easily stitched back together. The estimated cost of this work, inclusive of the 3-5% annual price increase over three years (2023-2026), ranges from $1,637,500 to $2,024,700. Complexity of the installation will also affect the final cost. Estimates provided do not include costs for the redesign of projects already in progress, or unfunded projects.

The Facilities and Fleet Management Department and Office of Capital Improvement Projects (“CIP”) considered City facilities with upcoming construction projects for which designs have not been finalized and that may be of acceptable size and location to accommodate the Murals in a prominent fashion. Several locations were identified and discussed. Among them, the Bass Museum expansion, the Art Deco Museum expansion, and the 72nd Street Community Complex.

These options were then reviewed by the Planning Department to determine if the Murals were an appropriate addition to these projects. It was concluded that the architecture of these spaces and the nature of some of the expansions were not compatible with the Murals and that other options should be explored to keep the murals in proximity to their original location. One suggestion was to include the Murals in the design of a potential West Avenue garage project.

Another option discussed was to explore the viability of incorporating the Murals in the Scott Rakow Youth Center. Although there is no planned construction at the Scott Rakow Youth Center at this time, a project to incorporate the Murals into the courtyard walls could be explored.

The Administration also considered presenting the Murals as a standalone installation in an open greenspace. This option was rejected because the sizable structure required to support the Murals would compromise the intended purpose of an open greenspace area.

The 72nd St. Community Complex (currently at 30% design completion) does present opportunities for incorporating the murals into the new design, if it is deemed desirable and appropriate to relocate them to North Beach from their original location at the intersection of Lincoln Road and Alton Road.

On April 15, 2025, the LUSC held a discussion regarding the possible locations which could accommodate the future installation of the Murals. City staff reported that they had reviewed various locations, including the 72nd Street Community Complex, currently under design. As such, the LUSC passed a motion recommending that the City Commission direct the Administration to consult with the 72nd Street Community Complex Project’s design consultant and construction manager on the feasibility of including the Murals at this location.

FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT

Fiscal impact to the 72nd Street Community Complex Project cannot be determined without further analysis and evaluation. Any necessary amendments to the agreements with the design team and/or the construction manager will be presented to the City Commission for approval.

Does this Ordinance require a Business Impact Estimate? (FOR ORDINANCES ONLY)

If applicable, the Business Impact Estimate (BIE) was published on: See BIE at: https://www.miamibeachfl.gov/city-hall/city-clerk/meeting-notices/

FINANCIAL INFORMATION

CONCLUSION

The LUSC recommends that the Mayor and City Commission adopt a resolution directing the Administration to consult with the design team and construction manager for the 72nd St Community Complex Project on the potential to include the Murals by Enzo Gallo, within the 72nd St Community Complex Project, and present any recommendations to the LUSC during their regularly scheduled June, 2025 meeting.

Applicable Area

North Beach

Was this Agenda Item initially requested by a lobbyist which, as defined in Code Sec. 2-481, includes a principal engaged in lobbying? No

If so, specify the name of lobbyist(s) and principal(s):

Department

Capital Improvement Projects

Sponsor(s)

Commissioner Alex Fernandez

Co-sponsor(s)

Commissioner Tanya K. Bhatt

Condensed Title

Accept Rec/Explore Installation of "The Glory of Old Glory" at 72nd St Community Complex. (AF/TB) CIP

Previous Action (For City Clerk Use Only)