Miami Beach authorizes staff to pursue hearings and appeals after FDOT orders removal of Ocean Drive rainbow crosswalk

The City of Miami Beach on Sept. 3 authorized city staff and the city attorney to pursue administrative review and, if necessary, an appeal after the Florida Department of Transportation ordered removal of the rainbow crosswalk at Twelfth Street and Ocean Drive. The action was unanimous. The commission cited both public-safety data and local control as reasons to pursue the formal process.

Commissioners and several residents said the painted crosswalk, installed in 2018 after community review, has been safe and accepted by residents and visitors. Police crash counts cited at the meeting showed Twelfth Street with fewer accidents than nearby crossings, and commissioners and public commenters pointed to national studies and local records indicating surface treatments can slow drivers and reduce certain collisions. The commission directed the administration to exhaust the administrative remedies available through FDOT and, where necessary, pursue further review.

Mayor and commissioners described the item as a defense of home-rule authority and the city’s ability to manage Ocean Drive. Several speakers called for a careful, non‑confrontational approach — asking staff to pursue the administrative hearing process the department provides and to consider an appeal if the outcome is adverse. The city manager submitted an initial administrative hearing request to FDOT during the meeting, and the commission’s vote gave staff authority to continue the city’s legal options without returning to the dais for separate approvals for each step.

Public comments on the item were extensive and strongly supportive of maintaining the crosswalk. Local LGBTQ organizations, tourism advocates and small-business owners told the commission the crosswalk is both a safety feature and an important symbol of visibility that supports tourism and the local economy. Several speakers urged the city to use “every tool” to preserve the crosswalk, including administrative appeals and, if necessary, litigation. Speakers opposing FDOT’s order characterized it as state overreach into local decisions on design and placemaking.

Commissioners emphasized process: the city will follow administrative rules and seek adjudication at the administrative level first. If a final adverse administrative decision is issued, the city may then pursue any further review available under the law. The commission underscored that pursuing administrative review is not intended as an immediate act of escalation against the state, but rather as exercising the procedural rights FDOT’s own rules provide.

The vote: Commission action to authorize staff to seek an administrative hearing and to exhaust administrative appeal options passed unanimously.