What began as a solemn plan to house two World Trade Center relics at Miramar Regional Park has turned into a yearslong construction headache for the city. Five years after a site dedication, the 9/11 and Veterans Memorial remains unfinished and the bill keeps growing. City leaders face a decision this week that could add roughly half a million dollars to the project and accept an insurance payment tied to the original contractor's performance bond.
The city's published agenda for Wednesday's meeting shows Temp. Reso. #R8710 would award a construction contract to Sagaris Corporation for $556,700 with a $40,000 contingency, for a total project cost of $596,700. It also calls for the city to accept about $309,670.15 from Ohio Casualty Insurance Company and Liberty Mutual Surety tied to the original contractor's performance bond, according to the City of Miramar.
City records and local reporting show the memorial has been hit by repeated change orders and a contractor dispute that delayed work and pushed costs higher, as reported by the Miami Herald. The memorial, built around two steel beams Miramar secured from Ground Zero, was dedicated on Sept. 11, 2021, according to the City of Miramar. Residents and veterans groups have used the site for remembrance ceremonies even while construction has remained incomplete.
How change orders piled up
Meeting records show commissioners approved multiple change orders to the original contract as the city tried to keep the job moving. In November 2023 the commission ratified a change order that added as much as $150,000 for additional construction services, according to the Miramar meeting video and agenda. In June 2024 the commission ratified another escalation charge of about $89,313.36 tied to JZT Utilities, per the city's June 11 meeting packet. Those additions, along with further change orders in the record, help explain why the city is now weighing a new contract and a partial surety payout.
What commissioners will decide and why it matters
If commissioners vote to award the Sagaris contract and accept the surety payment, the city would complete the memorial using a new contractor while relying on insurance proceeds tied to the prior contractor’s performance bond. The agenda asks the commission to waive the standard competitive-bidding rules with a four-fifths vote, which would move this work forward without a fresh full bidding process. The outcome will determine whether the monument is finished quickly and whether taxpayers pick up any remaining tab.
Legal and financial note
A performance bond and surety payout are a common mechanism when a contractor fails to finish public work: the surety can either pay to complete the job or compensate the owner up to the bond amount. For background on how performance bonds operate, see Cornell’s Legal Information Institute.
What to watch Wednesday
The commission will take up the item at its regular meeting, and the agenda lists public participation time for residents who want to speak. If approved, the resolution would authorize Sagaris to finish the 9/11 monument and accept the insurance funds tied to the project’s performance bond. Some backup material for the agenda item was flagged as "forthcoming" in the packet, and commissioners may ask for additional detail before voting.
