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Record of Proceedings

Virginia Key Advisory Board Meeting Summary - February 24, 2026

Meeting Portal — Tuesday, February 24, 2026
BodyMiami, Florida
SessionMeeting Portal
DateTuesday, February 24, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 41:46

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it
0:16

Good evening.

0:18

Thank you.

0:18

Thank you all very much for attending this Virginia Key Advisory Board meeting on Tuesday, February 24th.

0:26

We're getting started about 5:40.

0:29

We don't have a quorum, but we're gonna go through our agenda for discussion, and we'll we'll be finished a little bit early tonight.

0:37

Um Rafa, would you like to start with lobbyist note or pledge of allegiance?

0:50

So we'll start with a pledge of allegiance.

0:52

Thank you.

1:04

One nation.

1:17

Thank you very much.

1:20

Do you want to do a roll call?

1:22

Yes.

1:23

Rafa.

1:25

Andrew Frey.

1:27

Peter Ehrlich.

1:29

Here.

1:30

Luis Casamayor.

1:33

Steven Leiner.

1:35

Lynn Lewis.

1:37

Gary Milano.

1:40

Vincent Richter.

1:42

Monty Trainer.

1:45

Nicholas Lopez Jenkins.

1:47

Here.

1:48

Jackie Collier.

1:50

Carrie Johnson.

1:52

Present.

1:54

Andres Rivero.

1:57

Chuck Ellis.

1:58

Here.

2:01

Thank thank you very much.

2:03

We're there any requests for absence waivers.

2:07

No.

2:08

All right.

2:11

We're gonna have it go through the items quickly for discussion because we don't have a quorum.

2:18

We'd very much like to welcome two new board members, both of whom have showed up at the last meeting.

2:25

And I apologize for that meeting not taking place.

2:28

Thank you very much for showing up at our last meeting and showing up tonight.

2:32

But we have Chuck Ellis, who's the director of the parks department, who's sitting with us tonight, and Andres Rivero, who is an appointee of Mayor Francis Suarez, and brings a wealth of information also to our board.

2:49

Um Chuck, would you like to say anything?

2:55

No, not really.

2:55

Just happy to be here.

2:56

Um happy to keep learning more and more about the whole park system, including Virginia Key.

3:01

So I'm here to work with you in any way possible.

3:04

Thank you so much.

3:05

Thanks for being here.

3:07

Andres, any comments?

3:18

Thank you very much.

3:19

It's very nice of you to put the time in, and I know you're busy attorney.

3:25

Um meeting dates.

3:28

We're here on February 24th.

3:31

And it looks like the next meeting is that right?

3:35

April 28th.

3:39

Yes, it was decided um after speaking and reviewing with the assistant city attorney that the bylaws of Virginia Key Advisory Board is for us to meet every other month.

3:49

So we started incorporating that in October.

3:52

Um, and moving forward, we'll be doing so every other month.

3:56

Okay, thank you very much.

3:57

And and I know our board, we have a motion and legislation pending to that affects our quorum.

4:06

Is that been scheduled for to be heard by a city commission?

4:09

So it was scheduled um previously on an agenda.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural██████████████████████22%
Parks and Recreation████████████████████20%
Board Appointments███████████████15%
Planning and Zoning█████████████13%
Public-Private Partnerships██████████10%
Public Engagement█████████9%
Transportation Safety█████5%
Budget Equity Analysis████4%
Historic Preservation██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Virginia Key Advisory Board Meeting Summary - February 24, 2026

The Virginia Key Advisory Board met on Tuesday, February 24, 2026, starting at 5:40 PM. The meeting lacked a quorum, so discussions were held without voting. Key topics included welcoming new board members, board member term expirations, an update on the Marine Stadium management agreement, and plans for the next meeting.

Discussion Items

  • Welcome of New Board Members: The board welcomed Chuck Ellis, Director of Parks, and Andres Rivero, appointee of Mayor Francis Suarez. Both expressed commitment to learning about Virginia Key Park.
  • Meeting Schedule: The board confirmed they meet every other month per bylaws, with the next meeting scheduled for April 28, 2026.
  • Quorum Legislation: Pending legislation to reduce the quorum requirement is expected to be scheduled before the city commission. Board members expressed interest in attending to speak in favor.
  • 2025 Annual Report: Rafaela sent the annual report to the city manager’s office in January 2026. Board members were asked to review it; future modifications are possible.
  • Board Member Term Expirations: Several long-serving members (up to 8 years) face term limits under City Code Section 2-885 (maximum 8 consecutive years). The board discussed whether a member could be reappointed by a different appointing organization, but the city attorney indicated the code may not allow that and will confirm. Appointing organizations have not yet been contacted to nominate successors.
  • Marine Stadium / Flex Park Management Update: Andrew Frey reported that on February 17, 2026, the City Commission unanimously awarded the RFP to Oak View Group (Global Spectrum). The agreement is split into three phases:
    1. A short-term management agreement (up to 5 years) for the existing Flex Park, allowing Oak View to proactively book events.
    2. A business consulting agreement to develop a financial and business model for renovating Marine Stadium, including evaluating revenue sources and design requirements.
    3. A long-term management agreement contingent on voter approval in an August 2026 special election (since it involves waterfront property). Discussion included concerns about renovation costs (previously estimated at $65 million for a different design), the timeline for the business plan, and traffic management for events on the Rickenbacker Causeway. The board noted the importance of institutional memory and community input.
  • Election of New Chair and Vice Chair: Postponed to the April 2026 meeting, when new board members are expected to be appointed.

Key Outcomes

  • No votes were taken due to lack of quorum.
  • The city attorney will research whether a board member termed out can be reappointed by a different organization.
  • Appointing organizations will be contacted to nominate new members for expiring seats.
  • Oak View Group will begin managing the Flex Park; further updates on the Marine Stadium renovation will be provided at future meetings.
  • The next meeting is scheduled for April 28, 2026.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening. Thank you. Thank you all very much for attending this Virginia Key Advisory Board meeting on Tuesday, February 24th. We're getting started about 5:40. We don't have a quorum, but we're gonna go through our agenda for discussion, and we'll we'll be finished a little bit early tonight. Um Rafa, would you like to start with lobbyist note or pledge of allegiance? So we'll start with a pledge of allegiance. Thank you. One nation. Thank you very much. Do you want to do a roll call? Yes. Rafa. Andrew Frey. Peter Ehrlich. Here. Luis Casamayor. Steven Leiner. Lynn Lewis. Gary Milano. Vincent Richter. Monty Trainer. Nicholas Lopez Jenkins. Here. Jackie Collier. Carrie Johnson. Present. Andres Rivero. Chuck Ellis. Here. Thank thank you very much. We're there any requests for absence waivers. No. All right. We're gonna have it go through the items quickly for discussion because we don't have a quorum. We'd very much like to welcome two new board members, both of whom have showed up at the last meeting. And I apologize for that meeting not taking place. Thank you very much for showing up at our last meeting and showing up tonight. But we have Chuck Ellis, who's the director of the parks department, who's sitting with us tonight, and Andres Rivero, who is an appointee of Mayor Francis Suarez, and brings a wealth of information also to our board. Um Chuck, would you like to say anything? No, not really. Just happy to be here. Um happy to keep learning more and more about the whole park system, including Virginia Key. So I'm here to work with you in any way possible. Thank you so much. Thanks for being here. Andres, any comments? Thank you very much. It's very nice of you to put the time in, and I know you're busy attorney. Um meeting dates.

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