Your Miami Dade County taxes at work!
THEN:
The $255 million Performing Arts Center has already broken ground, and is well underway to meeting a 2004 target date for completion. Nov, 2002 by J.P. Faber http://www.floridarealtyfinder.com
NOW:
The cost to build the Carnival Center (new name) for the Performing Arts jumped by $12.5 million -- to a total of $472.97 million.
February 21, 2007 Miami Herald
18 comments:
Wow. Good blog from my hometown. I left nearly 20 years ago but visit every year, and the city has ceased to be anything recognizable to me. The yawning gap between rich and poor and the middle class squeeze there has become a tragedy.
I suppose the PAC Center/Carnival Center is losing $1 Mil per month. Only 60% attendence. Who pays? The taxpayers. Who benefitted? Favored insiders.
Wait for the proposed $200 Mil Streetcar. That will end up costing $400 Mil and lose millions monthly as well. And no one will ride it either.
Why be so critical? Sometimes things go over budget. Have you studied the inflation on material costs in the construction industry in the last 10 years? At least we got some benefit for the "commons" on these costly projects. Just think how much more expensive the Skyway is going to be then we are being told by those special interests advocating its construction. Honestly now, you know that the estimates on that kind of bridge are low-balls meant to make it look affordable, no one is seriously bidding the project in the "advertised" price range and yet does that mean we shouldn't do it?
I really disagree with the previous blogger's "sometimes things go over budget". The biggest problem with the Performing Arts Center is that it was oversold with fraudulent "projections" of need by local performing arts and producing organizations. Never mind what the spin masters say today That 500 million could have been invested in building a generation of audiences for the performing arts, and cultivation of artists, not a white elephant whose principal purpose is to provide a backdrop for society photo-ops in the Herald. At least the Skyway could pay for itself. This PAC boondoggle will go on for how long? I can't wait to hear how many tickets the county has been giving away to its employees and whoever will take them, to maintain the illusion of use. Let's see that story in the Herald or Miami Today?
Good dialogue. What worries me is, it was recently reported that Aventura is going ahead with a 300 seat performing arts center. Miami Beach has the Jackie Gleason. Coral Gables has 2 theatres at least. People do not want to go downtown. They would rather stay local and see what might be considered an inferior show just for the convenience. I went to the performing arts center twice, there were no police on the street either time. It is dark and sort of scary right now. When the AA Arena has a show there are police all over the place, what gives?
Cutler Ridge has a Performing Arts Center going up at the South Dade Complex. It is amazing... It will seat a 1000.
How many people live in the county? 2.3 million? ...we could have given everyone 1 million a piece and season tickets to our museums and existing performing arts programs and had money left over for a stadium for the folks that dislike artistic performances...We could have had change left over...
Can you imagine? We could have affordable housing for everyone... You get a million and you go buy your 300k house, and still get to go to the theater. WOW.
I like you last anonymous. I want my million now! I never looked at it that way before. wow.
CORRECTION:
i knew i should have paid attention in math:
spouse said it is $206.52 each. Multiply that times 2.3 million. They can have the $200 dollars.
The cost to build the Carnival Center (new name) for the Performing Arts jumped by $12.5 million -- to a total of $472.97 million.
This is where I was getting my millions... we could not built the Carnival Center and used the money like I suggested.
This sounds very much like Ronald Regan, who said that the Federal government could have bought everyone who used public transit a Cadillac instead of building Metrorail in Miami. Well, if the Feds had spent even more money, say a Rolls for every rider, and built a better transit system, even with our poor land planning, we would be better off today then we are now. I haven't heard anyone complain about corruption on the PAC. It was just a poor design that ended up costing more than expected. Sometimes you need to make these investments in the central downtown business district to get people to go or live downtown. In some ways I am amazed that many here are so critical of the PAC when it represents the kind of planning/infrastructure investment that is needed to build a New Urbanist community. The one time I went to the PAC is was absolutely crawling with police. I really disagree with the assumption that a the costs overruns typical of any road project, and not magnified by a bridge like the Skyway, are going to be covered by any user fees. However, I do support it, even if sea level rise may eliminate the Everglades anyways in 50 years or so.
Confused by PAC defender's comments. Is it a good thing to have the PAC crawling outside with police so that we can soothe our ears inside? Is it good to put a $500 million white elephant in a place that has no parking or easy way for audiences to get in and out of the city? In a New Urbanist community served by an empty PAC serving 30,000 new empty condos? Anyhow, before sea level rise "eliminates" the Everglades, concert goers to the PAC will have to be issued lifejackets, face masks and snorkels.
I still think we need to sell it... I need my million. I want a house that is paid off, so I can pay my windstorm insurance. My insurances cost as much monthly as my mortgage, so the million would be great since my paycheck does not cover either.
My spouse thinks that the stadium would have been better used than the PAC,since more "regular" people could have afforded to attend and park.
Whatever.
It is here and now we can either fix it and enjoy it or belly ache.
I am not really interested in trying an evening event there at the PAC. I have not done the Arena at night either. I am just not interested in worrying about shadows jumping out at me.
I do go to the Lincoln Theater on the Beach, sometimes. Feels different, and you park close.
When you consider the bond money used to finance public projects the actual costs go even higher. The silly Miami $200 Mil streetcar scheme will cost $400 Mil. But wait until you add up P & I and the costs double and triple. So when you see empty trains and buses on the road know that each trip costs taxpayers $20 to $40.
Perhaps the PAC was not done right, poor architecture, over budget, and no convenient parking, however, how can you all argue against investment in the downtown core? As New Urbanist shouldn't you be arguing against all of these other "suburban" performing arts centers instead of patronizing them? Shouldn't you take the risk to leave your comfortable bedroom communities to go downtown and encounter some dark-skin "shadow people" to build a better community? Does this not make sense, or does one wait till the artsy homosexuals gentrify the place before proper white people should visit. I thought this blog was about corruption, and yet no one has accused the PAC of being a den of graft. In fact, the chief complaint is that it is located downtown and not surrounded by acres of parking(garages)! You may not have noticed but it is convenient to public transit you know. Public transit that could have been even better if more was spent back in the day on a building a bigger network.
Furthermore, some or you argue against public transit because of empty buses. However, if you had to rely on public transit it needs to be there when you need it not when it makes the most money for the city. This is why bare bones public transit fails. Weekend, after-hours, and holiday services are essential to allow riders to flexibility to rely on public transit. For example, if you call your nanny in to do work on weekends and the gala benefit runs late or when you are just too drunk to come home to your children; how is the nanny to get home if you are too drunk to drive her? Your help needs public transit, even if they are the only one on that bus. Now maybe you give taxi money, however not all of your club are so generous. Ask yourself what kind of logic is this: build the Skyway for the critters but don't spend any money building the downtown core or investing in public transit. Then please ask yourself who is going to support this political program? What kind of coalition can you build on this basis? Sure a sports stadium might be perceived to be more democratic, however given the ticket prices lately in reality it might not be.
Thank you New Urbanist:
This blog is also about wasting taxpayer money, see the heading. And it is a forum for citizens to express frustration in the county.
Should we be concerned that almost every Project the county starts ends up always seriously over budget?
Dark unlit streets with much construction, to the South of the PAC where there is parking and restaurants, is a real concern. You could fall as well as anything else. A need for safety takes many forms. I don't mind walking 8 or 9 blocks to park but you must walk under that underpass and frankly - it is not safe. if you park to the south. I instead walk from the North and yes there are many people on the street.
There have been so many historic mistakes in providing public space downtown and a scale around which cultural institutions could grow... Bayside, Bayfront Park: the City never gets it right, and the County should too(American Airlines Arena)... We've wedged components of cultural institutions onto a landscape that is friendly not to autos or to people... Add a new baseball stadium anyone? Funny how County Commissioner Joe Martinez is suddenly concerned about traffic downtown around the stadium, but when it came to moving the Urban Development Boundary near his own district, he wasn't so concerned enough about traffic. Maybe it's because Martinez wants to make the guy sell the franchise, so some other owners can get the better deal. You see, whatever gets built downtown, is built for a reason that doesn't have to do with the needs of people. For the PAC, it was the nearby Herald real estate. Who knows how Bayside got built, but blocking public access to the waterfront was one of the worst things that could ever happen to Miami... as far as the waterfront is concerned, the PAC could be in downtown Des Moines.
The PAC Center is pretty ugly. And at 60% attendence it is losing money as well. I heard there was lots of corruption. The budget went up $150 Mil didn't it? And who builds without planning on parking? Only idiots.
Just to flesh out the picture, when the Performing Arts Center Trust was first formed roughly 15 years ago, the "rock solid" cost estimate for the two halls was -- are you ready? -- $168 million! Chairman Parker Thomson presented that budget with a completely straight face! The few quibbles that were heard were hooted down by the - then - Five Major Users. That thundering herd of artistic hubris has since been thinned by the assassination of the Philharmonic, the large-scale retreat to Miami Beach of the New World Symphony, the financial near-death of the Miami City Ballet and the looming loss of the Concert Association whenever sparkplug Judy Drucker arrives at the inevitable. Only the Opera stands on firm financial ground, and THEY just announced a truncated 2008 season in light of the skimpy attendance thus far this season at The Carnival. By the way, that name has been derided by some, but Ted Arison and his organization deserve the recognition. For whatever the shortcomings of the actual development, he had the vision and frankly the balls to make the first sizable pledge that made the dream of a major arts center a viable reality; much as he – who knew nothing of basketball – financed the Miami Heat franchise simply because he thought it would be good for the City he loved.
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