Community VoicesNine-month project will create a public transit plan.
Riviera Beach leaders have approved a nine-month study of how to make it easier for city residents to use public transportation.
Why it matters: As Riviera Beach grows, there will be more places to go and more traffic trying to get there.
What’s happening: The City Council serving as the Community Redevelopment Agency board approved the mobility study by a 4-1 vote on Dec. 10. Council Member KaShamba Miller-Anderson voted no, saying she supports a mobility study but not the consultant selected.
What they’re saying: “This project is probably as important or more important than bringing a building out of the ground,” Council Member Glen Spiritis said at the meeting. “Without this mobility project, we will have no development. It will never work.”
Council Member Fercella Davis Panier pointed to West Palm Beach’s Rose Trolley free pickup and dropoff service as an example of something that could work in Riviera Beach.
Miami Lakes-based E.L. Waters and Co., which has a $24,000-a-month consulting contract with the CRA, will lead the Riviera Beach study with the Miami-based Corradino Group planning firm. “The focus is the residents,” principal Elbert Waters told the board.
The big picture: Rivera Beach’s project comes at the same time as Palm Beach County’s $1 million transportation master planning effort.
Of note: Planners will study the potential for a water taxi between the Marina Village and Singer Island.
What’s next: Two public workshops are planned this year to gather information.
- The CRA will explore ways to coordinate public transportation connections with neighboring cities, CRA Executive Director Gedel Merzius told the board.
Who wrote this story: This story was reported by Community Voices writer Abigail Guillaume.
What is CV: Community Voices is a partnership between Stet News and Inlet Grove High School. Stet News is underwriting the pilot to train and pay students to cover Riviera Beach.
Inlet Grove High School journalism teacher C.B. Hanif and Stet’s Carolyn DiPaolo contributed to this story.
