Ultra: Under Review By City of Miami?

Traffic backs up on the Bear Cut Bridge during the first day of the Ultra Music Festival, March 29, 2019 (Key News/Tony Winton)

In the wake of miles-long traffic snarls, bus transportation foul-ups, and loud complaints about noise from the Ultra Music Festival, Miami city officials are bringing the concert’s future on Virginia Key up for a discussion this week.

The discussion item was proposed by City Commissioner Joe Carollo, who appeared to be the swing vote when the Ultra contract came up for a vote last November.

Ultra organizers have acknowledged problems, but are planning to return to the site next year. The terms of the City’s agreement with Ultra mean the concert will stay on Virginia Key unless the deal is revoked by the City before a deadline in late May.

Key Biscayne officials say they hope to formulate a plan at Tuesday’s Village Council meeting, but it’s unclear what role the Village will take. Officials are still gathering traffic and environmental data, said Village Manager Andrea Agha. And while Mayor Mike Davey said he hopes to address the Miami Commission meeting, he wants to discuss it with his colleagues first.

Brickell Homeowners Association President Ernesto Cuesta said his group got many complaints of noise and garbage after the event, confirming his group’s view that Virginia Key is the wrong location for the concert.  Association attorney David Winker says a lawsuit against the City’s approval process for Ultra is continuing, despite a judge’s denial of a request for an injunction. “Our ongoing lawsuit against the City of Miami and Ultra predicted exactly what transpired last weekend: an environmental and logistical disaster that received worldwide coverage of the City of Miami’s incompetence,” Winker said.

On environmental matters, however, at least one study for water quality came up negative. “We’ve run post-Ultra water samples twice at five sites,” said Andrew Carter, research director for Miami Waterkeeper. “We have not observed any significant change from our baseline sampling carried out before Ultra.”

The University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science closed its campus for Ultra, but conducted monitoring of the school’s experimental fish hatchery for any impact on the animals due to increased noise levels. “No determination has been made on that at this time,” said Diana Udel, a spokeswoman.

The Miami Commission meeting is set for Thursday at 11 a.m. at 3500 Pan American Drive in Coconut Grove.