Palmetto Bay’s bridge fight gets a new spark: County hired contractor on FIU collapse
Work has already begun on the county bridge over a Palmetto Bay drainage canal that has divided suburban leaders, and now the mayor fighting the project has a new objection: Miami-Dade hiring the same contractor who had the contract for the fatal bridge collapse at Florida International University six years ago.
Palmetto Bay Mayor Karyn Cunningham called for a special meeting for Thursday to decide on next steps after learning MCM is the country contractor that won a $4.5 million contract for the 66-foot-long bridge on Southwest 87th Avenue. MCM oversaw construction of the $14 million FIU bridge, which investigators said was doomed by a flawed design created by a different company that was part of MCM’s bid for the state-funded effort.
“This is a direct threat to the safety of our families and our community,” Cunningham wrote in a text sent to residents Sunday. “As your Mayor, I’m fighting to stop this dangerous project.”
READ MORE: Polarizing 87th Avenue bridge in South Dade heads to a crucial vote amid legal threats
Federal investigators blamed the FIU bridge’s design flaw on FIGG, the engineering company on the project. MCM also received criticism for not acting on red flags in the lead-up to the March 15, 2018, collapse that killed six people, with a federal report citing the company, as well Florida’s Department of Transportation and others on the project site, for failing “to cease bridge work when the structure cracking reached unacceptable levels and to take appropriate action to close SW 8th Street as necessary to protect public safety. “
MCM filed for bankruptcy after the collapse and agreed to a $42 million payout to victims. It has also remained active in government contracts, including overseeing small construction projects at Miami International Airport, escalator replacements and roadwork.
The county bridge would allow 87th Avenue to continue over a canal near Southwest 164th Street, creating a new north-south route between suburbs south of Palmetto Bay and the Miami area. While Palmetto Bay objected to the county plan to link 87th Avenue with a small bridge, office holders to the south in Cutler Bay endorsed the project.
In a letter Monday to Cunningham, MCM asked the mayor to retract her claim that MCM was “responsible” for the FIU collapse and linked the email to the village’s failed campaign to block the bridge.
“Most respectfully, casting aspersions on MCM integrity and capabilities is not right,” wrote Eric Zichella, an MCM lobbyist. He wrote that since the FIU bridge collapse, MCM has presided over construction of 14 bridges across Florida. “We trust that the Village will take the necessary steps to correct its factually incorrect statements...”
MCM won the Miami-Dade bridge contract through a bidding process used for small-dollar projects that didn’t require approval by the County Commission. The administration of Mayor Daniella Levine Cava did not respond to requests for information on the bidding process Monday. A county document provided by MCM shows four companies bid on the 87th Avenue bridge contract, and MCM submitted the lowest price at about $4.5 million. A Pembroke Pines company, RJ Behar, is the designer of the bridge.
In her email, Cunnigham asked residents to join her in urging Levine Cava to “terminate this dangerous project.” In an interview, Cunningham noted the village continues its court challenge of the bridge plan and said she’s hoping Miami-Dade will “put a hold on the project to address some of the questions the community is asking as it relates to public safety with this particular contractor.”
“If those questions are answered, they’re answered,” she said. “I can’t answer them. Because it’s not a Palmetto Bay contract.”
In a brief interview Monday Levine Cava, who is up for reelection Aug. 20, declined to get into specifics on the bridge.
“I’m looking at everything here,” she said.
