We are pleased to announce that we are revamping our marketing program to include more blog and social media updates on a regular basis. This past 18 months with the COVID-19 pandemic has been extremely challenging for everyone and Ross Engineering (Ross) was not immune to the impact. However, we had an extremely productive 8-10 months since our last blog and wanted to update our clients, colleagues, and the general public. Business has been improving since around the Fall of 2020, below are some highlights of our accomplishments. On the Government side, we have been very active with our Miami Dade County Water and Sewer Department (MDWASD) pipeline design contact, Broward County Public Schools Continuing Civil Engineering contract, City of North Miami engineering consulting contract, Miami Dade County Jackson Health contract, and FPL continuing engineering contract. Additionally, on the private side, we have seen tremendous growth in multi-family residential, mixed use, and residential in general.

Recently we won a 6.5 acre redevelopment educational project with Zyscovich Architects for Miami Dade County Public Schools, Herbert Ammons Middle School in Southwest Miami Dade County, which is a new building. Additionally, we have new projects including a civil engineering continuing consulting contract with the City of Sunny Isles Beach. Our first project with Sunny Isles is to provide Civil Engineering Services to convert an existing skatepark into a meditation relaxation park. As a subconsultant we have been contracted to work on other projects for parks and public works for the City of North Miami, City of Hollywood, City of Pembroke Pines, City of Miami Gardens, City of Plantation, City of Deerfield Beach and City of Weston. Some projects that have recently been constructed/expanded and are now in service include Seminole Indian Brothers Market, Miami Palmetto Senior High School, FPL Port Everglades, FPL Martin Terminal, which included additional parking drainage and utility improvements.

A highlight in our transportation engineering workload is the contract with EAC Consulting and Broward County Aviation Department for a Planning Engineering Services continuing contract. Ross Engineering, as a CBE subconsultant to EAC Consulting, is currently working on its first assignment under this contract, Peer Review services. Under this task work order, Ross is responsible to peer review and provide feedback and comments for the Broward County-Fort Lauderdale International Airport’s update to its Stormwater Master Plan currently being updated by Chen Moore & Associates under a similar consulting contract with the County. In this capacity, Robert J. Ross, P.E. and staff are reviewing comprehensive ICPR 4.0 hydrologic and hydraulic model(s) for existing conditions and future 2060 conditions that include sea level rise and complicated outfall discharge permitting impacts. The overall goal of the stormwater master plan is to allow for future growth at the airport while managing challenging engineering permitting criteria in terms of future groundwater map elevations and higher finished floor criteria dictated by FEMA.

Ross is working on a number of park and recreation projects throughout the tri-county area of South Florida. Some park projects we are expanding parking, providing utilities to new buildings, providing adequate drainage infrastructure for flood control and providing traffic control design. Under a civil engineering continuing consulting contract with the City of Sunny Isles Beach, we are working on a new Meditation Park with drainage plans for the new garden area. Other scope includes the grading of proposed sidewalk to meet ADA requirements while maintaining existing drainage patterns for the new gardens. Additionally, we are working closely with Synaolvski Romanik and Saye (SRS) on a rehabilitation project to a 1940s US Military armory at Dowdy Park in the City of Hollywood and on Lester Brown Park in the City of Miami Gardens. For Lester Brown, the utilities for the new building need to be connected along with a parking expansion that comes with new drainage infrastructure to meet Miami-Dade DERM (RER) standards.

As part of our ongoing civil engineering consulting agreement with Broward County School Board we are assisting their environmental division in bringing their schools up to date with their operations and maintenance permit renewals for each school’s surface water license. The operations and maintenance permit renewals are on a 5 year interval and are required as part of the Clean Water Act from the 1970s. Below are a few of the schools that we have been working on for Broward County School Board:

• West Broward High School

• Margate Middle School

• Piper High School

• New River Middle School

• Gator Run Elementary School

• Manatee Bay Elementary School

Another very busy area of our business is Educational Facility planning and design projects including work as a subconsultant to various engineering and architectural companies for Palm Beach County School Board, School Board of Broward County, Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Miami-Dade College and Broward College. Below are a select few of the ongoing projects in our Educational planning and design group :

Herbert Ammons Middle School - Miami-Dade County Public Schools

• New Classroom Building in West Miami-Dade County

West Brickell Middle School - Miami-Dade County Public Schools

• New high rise school / residential building in downtown Miami

Rickards Middle School - School Board of Broward County

• Emergency portables project to allow students to utilize while building is repaired in Fort Lauderdale FL

Broward College Central Campus - Thompson & Associates/Broward College

• ICPR 4 update to the stormwater master plan permit with CBWCD and SFWMD