In the absence of credible sources, anything passes for a reasonable idea in Miami. When the Miami Heat arena was pushed through the sausage grinder by then mayor Alex Penelas, Parcel B was a piece of adjacent property held out to the public as "a future park". It mollified critics until the deal was signed, then promptly ignored by both city and county officials.
Breaking the compact made made with the public of Parcel B by former Miami mayor Manny Diaz and city commissioners including Johnny Winton, makes the holy tone of their recent letter expressing concern for Miami's waterfront a parody. The issue: whether elected officials ought to approve or reject a plan for a David Beckham Soccer Stadium on the bay.
"Let us not purge this gift by building a stadium where it does not belong. Let us keep the waterfront in public hands."
Miami's waterfront and water quality was lost a long time ago by these self-same authorities who stained Miami by turning their backs on Biscayne Bay.
Here is what they ought to have pointed out.
There are some insurmountable problems with filling the FEC slip, as matters of regulatory authority. But the most practical problem is they made horrible mistakes piling traffic gridlock around and into their "world class" museum and cultural venue investments on Biscayne Bay.
"We apologize for creating the traffic nightmare of Biscayne Boulevard and Brickell Avenues," they should have written. "And now it is time to back off until you voters and taxpayers fork over more money to build subway lines in the Biscayne aquifer to move people around like they do in Tokyo or Boston or New York City."
There ought to a special law, then enforcement, trial and prison for past elected officials who impose traffic nightmares on Miami residents and visitors with thoughtless zoning and permitting decisions. And a cellblock for lobbyists and the Great Destroyers.
Instead, they give each other awards and buy plaques on buildings to imprint their names.
Miami, according to a recent survey, is one of the most stressful cities in the US. Why? Because the Great Destroyers fomented so much development without planning or investing for either protecting quality of life or concern for mass transit. Great cities provide for their citizens. They don't just build colosseums. This is plain common sense.
We don't feel sorry for David Beckham, who is just another wealthy guy flying into town in a spiffy squirrel suit. (And by the way, Gimleteye loves soccer and played NCAA Division 1 for four years. Go Liverpool.)
David Beckham said the boat slip is a great stadium site:
"The site, formally known as the Florida East Coast Railway slip, falls under the city of Miami’s jurisdiction, as does the adjacent Museum Park. The county only owns Parcel B, the waterfront property behind the basketball arena. Gimenez asked Beckham’s group to turn Parcel B into a park and connect it, perhaps with a bayfront promenade, to the museums."
Filling in the slip is such a bad idea, even the City Commission thought so:
An open letter from Former Mayor Manny Diaz:
During the early part of the last decade, a professional sports team came to us requesting that we turn over Bicentennial Park (now Museum Park) to build a baseball stadium. We refused to hand over one of the few remaining public waterfront locations to them because we wanted to safeguard public access to Biscayne Bay.
Today, we are shocked to hear that another professional sports team wants to build a soccer stadium on the same waterfront. A sports stadium no more belongs on the scarce waterfront today than it did in the year 2000.
With thousands of new urban dwellers and thousands more on the way, the need for green space has never been greater. There is no reason that Miami, a city graced with unrivaled natural beauty, should not also be graced with great civic and green spaces, with public parks, plazas and museums.
Great cities, large and small, are all embracing the opportunity to enhance the public realm by creating the zones, spaces, and buildings that create pride, areas equally owned by the people, irrespective of economic or social circumstance.
Through the efforts of many, we are creating an unrivaled public space, with museums, an opera house, a symphony hall and a beautiful park all set against the background of the beautiful vista that is Biscayne Bay. This work must continue.
We have done this because we owe a lasting legacy to those who will call Miami home long after we have gone. Miami has become one of the world’s leading urban centers, fulfilling its long awaited destiny. This is our gift to the future. Let us not purge this gift by building a stadium where it does not belong. Let us keep the waterfront in public hands.
Manny Diaz, former Mayor, City of Miami
Johnny Winton, former Commissioner, City of Miami
Joe Sanchez, former Commissioner, City of Miami
Angel Gonzalez, former Commissioner, City of Miami
Breaking the compact made made with the public of Parcel B by former Miami mayor Manny Diaz and city commissioners including Johnny Winton, makes the holy tone of their recent letter expressing concern for Miami's waterfront a parody. The issue: whether elected officials ought to approve or reject a plan for a David Beckham Soccer Stadium on the bay.
"Let us not purge this gift by building a stadium where it does not belong. Let us keep the waterfront in public hands."
Miami's waterfront and water quality was lost a long time ago by these self-same authorities who stained Miami by turning their backs on Biscayne Bay.
Here is what they ought to have pointed out.
There are some insurmountable problems with filling the FEC slip, as matters of regulatory authority. But the most practical problem is they made horrible mistakes piling traffic gridlock around and into their "world class" museum and cultural venue investments on Biscayne Bay.
"We apologize for creating the traffic nightmare of Biscayne Boulevard and Brickell Avenues," they should have written. "And now it is time to back off until you voters and taxpayers fork over more money to build subway lines in the Biscayne aquifer to move people around like they do in Tokyo or Boston or New York City."
There ought to a special law, then enforcement, trial and prison for past elected officials who impose traffic nightmares on Miami residents and visitors with thoughtless zoning and permitting decisions. And a cellblock for lobbyists and the Great Destroyers.
Instead, they give each other awards and buy plaques on buildings to imprint their names.
Miami, according to a recent survey, is one of the most stressful cities in the US. Why? Because the Great Destroyers fomented so much development without planning or investing for either protecting quality of life or concern for mass transit. Great cities provide for their citizens. They don't just build colosseums. This is plain common sense.
We don't feel sorry for David Beckham, who is just another wealthy guy flying into town in a spiffy squirrel suit. (And by the way, Gimleteye loves soccer and played NCAA Division 1 for four years. Go Liverpool.)
David Beckham said the boat slip is a great stadium site:
"The site, formally known as the Florida East Coast Railway slip, falls under the city of Miami’s jurisdiction, as does the adjacent Museum Park. The county only owns Parcel B, the waterfront property behind the basketball arena. Gimenez asked Beckham’s group to turn Parcel B into a park and connect it, perhaps with a bayfront promenade, to the museums."
Filling in the slip is such a bad idea, even the City Commission thought so:
KEEPING MIAMI’S WATERFRONT IN PUBLIC HANDS
SOCCER STADIUM WOULD ESSENTIALLY DESTROY VISION OF
MUSEUM PARK
During the early part of the last decade, a professional sports team came to us requesting that we turn over Bicentennial Park (now Museum Park) to build a baseball stadium. We refused to hand over one of the few remaining public waterfront locations to them because we wanted to safeguard public access to Biscayne Bay.
Today, we are shocked to hear that another professional sports team wants to build a soccer stadium on the same waterfront. A sports stadium no more belongs on the scarce waterfront today than it did in the year 2000.
With thousands of new urban dwellers and thousands more on the way, the need for green space has never been greater. There is no reason that Miami, a city graced with unrivaled natural beauty, should not also be graced with great civic and green spaces, with public parks, plazas and museums.
Great cities, large and small, are all embracing the opportunity to enhance the public realm by creating the zones, spaces, and buildings that create pride, areas equally owned by the people, irrespective of economic or social circumstance.
Through the efforts of many, we are creating an unrivaled public space, with museums, an opera house, a symphony hall and a beautiful park all set against the background of the beautiful vista that is Biscayne Bay. This work must continue.
We have done this because we owe a lasting legacy to those who will call Miami home long after we have gone. Miami has become one of the world’s leading urban centers, fulfilling its long awaited destiny. This is our gift to the future. Let us not purge this gift by building a stadium where it does not belong. Let us keep the waterfront in public hands.
Manny Diaz, former Mayor, City of Miami
Johnny Winton, former Commissioner, City of Miami
Joe Sanchez, former Commissioner, City of Miami
Angel Gonzalez, former Commissioner, City of Miami
16 comments:
City of Miami and Miami Dade County officials would be well served to visit Chicago & New York City. Spend a week their in the urban centers on Lake Michigan in Chicago and Central Park in New York. They don't give away waterfront land or park space for private development. Their mass transit systems are excellent.
This isn't rocket science. Even the lowest IQ elected official would get it. The problem is, they wouldn't get deep pocket campaign contributions.
Miami/Miami Dade County is eternally screwed by our politicians putting the public last and their campaign account and/or nepotism first.
Let's put the soccer stadium adjacent to the Marlins Stadium. We already have parking in place and we've worked out the kinks in mass transit to get people there. But let's not kid ourselves. The people in Miami aren't going to support another professional team. We don't support the Dolphins and we don't support the Marlins. And our love for the Heat was lukewarm until LeBron James was added to the roster. We only love winners. So, pressures on road infrastructures aren't going to be a problem.
No one does stupid, like we do stupid. Where is the younger generation to relieve us from the burdens of the past.
Manny Diaz should try to be a leader here. Diaz can direct his massive self promotion efforts to keeping this proposed sports stadium off the slip site and off Bicentennial Park. Swartz PR, Kelly Penton et la can all work full time lobbying elected officials. In addition, we should all write and lobby our elected officials. (If this campaign is successful Manny Diaz can go back to promoting himself.)
Bend it like Beckham has met its match in Bending the truth Gimenez! Noone kicks harder balow the belt than our blue blooded wanna be mayor.
This stadium fits the Gimenez re-election campaign schedule to be opened just as he's running for his office. Seems the communication guy recently hired has his majority of experience in running election campaigns. It's all about power positioning for his future.
I think that as all world class cities go, sports venues and entertainment spaces add to the experience. It's not about how much we support the local teams, Miami as a whole gets amazing exposure around the world due to our high profile issues, and stadium hoopla. We may dislike it, we may out right not support a single stadium, but like it or not everything we do makes Miami and amazing place to call home, and these franchises market us for others to want to call Miami home too!
Bring on the stadiums, just in appropriate sites.
Carlos Gimenez is on a roll. He makes unilaterally bad decisions without any historical context, any environmental background, or any quality of life impact.
With 2,000 square miles to rule over, he's supposed to be promoting the entire county as a remarkable and desirable development opportunity. Instead, he is fixated on one of the most congested sites in the area.
I understand that Jungle Island isn't doing very well financially and had issues with their county lease requiring renegotiations due to poor business. How about a stadium there?
How about buying the Cultural Center (where the Main Library has been overcharged for rent and is already evicted from their basement and third floor?) The Art Museum has already moved and the History Museum can move into the old Science Museum site.
It's right on the MetroRail Line! It's got parking garages!
"The Miami-Dade Cultural Center plaza, that painfully isolated fortress of cultural solitude raised above Miami's mean streets" has almost hit its 30 year anniversary. In Carlos-time, that more than enough for a tear down (and he's proven how he feels about libraries.)
This can be a brilliant idea! With an open air stadium, Carlos can watch the games from his 29th floor county hall office with a pair of binoculars.
Kudos for Diaz, Winton, Sanchez and
Gonzales for a letter to szave the waterfront. To bad these jokers did not craft a decent set of one time Impact Fees for Parks to be collected from the developers who add population to our city.
Diaz increased fees but they only took effect after his developer buddies had pulled over thirty condo permits....Miami government is all about smoke and mirrors and politicians have zero backbone or sense of community until they leave office. Steve Hagen
An urgent message from
Steve Hagen, Miami Green Park Advocate
Dear Friends who I believe vote and or own property in the City of Miami. If you do not vote or own property in the City, please forward to some friends who do.
If you agree Miami leadership is not doing enough for Miami parks, then please take action. The time is now before our parks and water front are
totally leased away to private interests.
1) Take 30 seconds to sign a comprehensive petition named More Parks For Miami NOW at http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/more-parks-for-miami
PLEASE, if you live or own property in the City of Miami, sign with your physical address and email address. Note you may have signed a similar petition on other site, but please sign this one because the new web site does more for helping the cause than the previous site.
2) Take 30 more seconds to keep informed and add your comments by joining the Facebook GROUP https://www.facebook.com/groups/MoreParksForMiamiNow/
3) Lastly, take 30 seconds to copy and past this important email and send to at least ten friends who live or own property in the City of Miami.
If you think your action is not necessary, consider the following. Why do we have a shopping center on the bay called Bayside? Why do we have AA Arena on the bay which is inward looking? Why do we have three museums on the bay which are inward looking? Why do we have a Jungle attraction
on Watson Island that can not afford to pay rent? Why are we about to have a banquet hall (potential casino) with massive parking structure on the bay in Coconut Grove? Why do we not have proper water access to our bayfront in Miami backed up with great green landscaping? Why has Virginia Key sat for decades without residents being able to fully access the water? Why do we have the Joe Carollo ordinance to protect our waterfront lands, but our leaders use various scams to get around the ordinance? Why?
Beckham, world class carpetbagger,
and we welcome them all. We must
all have "sucker" branded on our
foreheads. Best government money
can buy. Sell it all, give it away.
Come one, come all. Our Philistines
running the County just cannot wait for your brilliant ideas. Beckham, Genting, Ross, Loria,
any one else? Step right up! Need the address for County Hall? P.T Barnum at your service!
Beckham is nothing more than a spokes-model for the real estate developers/casino interests that would take over this city. His posing with children in our town's soccer fields is the same as his posing with children on the other side of the world where he works for Adelson and the Sands Casino empire.
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2013/12/24/2003579672
WOW. Here it is:
"David Beckham to promote casinos in Singapore, Macau
AP and Bloomberg, LAS VEGAS
Retired soccer star and sometime underwear model David Beckham has signed on to help promote Las Vegas Sands Corp’s properties in Singapore and the Chinese gambling enclave of Macau.
Sands said in a statement that it hoped to cash in on Beckham’s popularity in the region.
The Las Vegas-based company is the largest casino operator in Macau, the center of the modern-day gambling world.
The deal may help Sands win attention in mainland China, where casinos are illegal and casino advertising is also banned. Soccer is hugely popular in China......."
Is Gimenez in on this? Or is the public the last to know?
Somewhere in a fancy high rise tower a PR Agency or law office has a playbook with all the pre-written press releases, talking points and a list of "influencers" they plan to use as surrogates to talk up this Beckham soccer stadium plan.
WE. ARE. BEING. PLAYED.
People living out near Tropical Park claim that this is also an alternative...that makes more sense to me.
Last anon, the problem is this isn't about soccer. It's about stealing public land for another purpose with Soccer as a side show. Beckham doesn't even know we only have one Governor. In an interview, he said he spoke to "Governors" plural.....He has a script and is making mega bucks saying whatever to whoever his owner tells him.
Beckham and Fuller et al want taxpayer owned waterfront land for nothing, or almost nothing. David Samson and Jeffrey Loria are briefing them on how to steal from dim witted Miami politicians. Remember the Marlins Scam!
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