Palmetto Bay: The Village of Lights. By Geniusofdespair

Before the Council:

Agenda Item 12B (scroll down to “B”) includes changes to Ordinance 30-110 sponsored by Councilman Timothy Schaffer. These proposed changes will allow stadium style lighting across all the residential districts of the village on outdoor athletic fields/recreational areas at religious facilities, private schools, child care facilities, and other non-governmental public assembly. These proposed changes will apply to current and future facilities.

The Neighborhood Protection Charter Amendment approved by 67% of the residents of Palmetto Bay was meant to protect residents from the negative impact of non-single family residential uses. This change in ordinance is against the amendment and will allow 90 foot light towers to be placed adjacent to single family homes without controls such as proximity or wattage. It will allow lights and hours of use to 10 PM and 11 PM every day. Currently, there is an athletic field lighting plan submitted to the Village’s Zoning Department that includes over 40 light poles (with rows of lights) ranging in height from 60 to 90 feet. The poles had almost 300 bulbs - each 1500 watts.

This proposed ordinance change will dramatically alter the quality of life for residents across the Village now and in the future.

Forget stargazing in Palmetto Bay. Dexter, this is stupid, you should tell the Council so.

According to Net Doctor:

In fact, according to new research published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, exposure to certain types of electric light before bed and at night can increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and cancer.

From BreastCancer.Org:

The results of several studies suggest that women who work at night -- factory workers, doctors, nurses, and police officers, for example -- have a higher risk of breast cancer compared to women who work during the day. Other research suggests that women who live in areas with high levels of external light at night (street lights, for example) have a higher risk of breast cancer.

Palmer Trinity has applied for 90 foot light poles (but needs this passed first) - Shielded, of course, but ambient light is pretty hard to hide. Why would anyone want to live by a school in Palmetto Bay? Why would anyone want to live in a place that enacts stupid laws? Palmetto Bay, vying for the title of worst place in the South of Miami Dade County to live, that Homestead has held for years.

Watching the climate deniers, flip … now what? … by gimleteye

Not all bears are dangerous, but when one is, you act. Isn't it time your elected representatives helped solve the climate crisis? Share with friends and family. Pass it along.

Florida State Government: Too Much Cash? Spend it Stupidly on Turkeys, Why Save? By Geniusofdespair

The excess money came from somewhere: Like us!

The State of Florida is flush with extra money according to the Miami Herald: 1.2 Billion dollars. Why don't they save it? Instead they are spending it on pet projects all over the state. Is there something I am missing? I have a nest egg, why don't they?
The State: 

Senate President Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, defended local projects, which have been long derided as “turkeys” because they aren’t fully vetted by professionals at state agencies.

Now Look at Miami Dade County in contrast (probably gives the most to the State of any county except Broward):

"A $285 million deficit in 2013 dings the county’s balance sheet as Moody’s warns of a debt squeeze from the new port tunnel. Deficit spending and a nearly $17 billion debt load lowered the county’s overall “net position” in 2013, according to a new financial report. The equivalent of a person’s net worth, the county’s $6.3 billion net position measures the difference between assets and liabilities." Miami Herald

Some pet projects of State Lawmakers:

A $350,000 fountain in the state’s richest town, Palm Beach, and $123,000 for a dog park in an affluent Jacksonville neighborhood. Others are big: $12 million for Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford’s alma mater, the private Jacksonville University, and $3 million for an industrial park in Walton County.

Okay what gives? Why are they spending every penny when we are broke here? Someone please explain why there is no fund for extra funds for a rainy day that could be invested and grow? A fountain will not get us develop jobs or feed the hungry. Why not, if you are going to spend it, spend it on something that will help the whole State as the surplus doesn't come from Will Weatherford's and Don Gaetz's districts that is for sure.

David Rivera to run for Congress? The erasure of meaning … by gimleteye

The absence of honesty in American political culture leads exactly to the point where discredited and disgraced former elected officials believe that they can run for re-election or for another political office without any concern for their past behaviors or record.

This is the case for a former Miami Congressman, David Rivera, who is implicated in one of the most egregious cases of electioneering fraud in recent South Florida history. And that is saying ALOT, given the fact that rising to the top of this unsavory stew means pushing past bunches of corrupt former officials.

Part of the pathology is inexplicable to ordinary citizens and voters. But part of the pathology is not so difficult to understand: especially the insistence that history is wrong, that the Miami Herald is to blame, or some other object or reason.

The party of personal responsibility -- that would be the GOP -- is most entangled in the erasure of meaning. This point applies far beyond the edges of Rivera-style obsession with revisionism.

Look at the war in Iraq. The trillions spent, blood and treasure of American soldiers; these are, today, vanished as Iraq disappears into chaos. What did we mean to accomplish in Iraq? Does anyone remember?

From personal responsibility to national security, the erasure of meaning guarantees that anyone can say anything and be taken at face value as though history did not happen. This defines American exceptionalism in 2014.

Blame the Russians for Allowing Development of the Worst City in North Miami Dade County. By Geniusofdespair

Ocean Front: Sunny Isles Beach -- What a Crappy Place to Live. See Any Trees?

Now who would have allowed a city government to put up all those ocean front monstrosities on a 3 mile strip of narrow land? It was the Arlen House people (on the Bay side of Sunny Isles Beach). They were the voters as there were no voters on the ocean front, because the oceanfront was mostly low-rise hotels, until they put up all these crappy condos. Many Arlen House residents are seniors and Russians.  They call Sunny Isles "Little Moscow." How did the mayor con them to vote to ruin their own views of the ocean with a wall of high rises? What the hell happened? Anyone know?

They give Norman Edelcup, the current Mayor, accolades for this unfortunate  transformation of Sunny Isles Beach into a condo canyon, when the real damage was done and begun by the first Mayor David Samson who was this big fat bully. I looked everywhere for a photo of him but could not find one. Very unattractive guy. I guess I have to call this City Tacky Town. No stores to speak of; just very, very, large --waiting to flood-- highrise buildings.

Arlen House on the bay side of Sunny Isles Beach where the voters lived.

Sunny Isles Beach not so long ago....

Oh goody, I found a Mayor Samson photo (bad one, he is in the center) and a great article on him in New Times written in 2000. Samson is dead. Very good history on how this City lost its way.

Believe it or not, they are building more, I took this yesterday.

 

Scary Stuff: Renier Diaz de La Portilla as a Judge? By Geniusofdespair

This couldn't be good...Erik Fresen and Carlos Gimenez are endorsing him.

He is running against Sandy Karlan?

Did I See a Manatee In the Throes of Death Yesterday? By Geniusofdespair

Yesterday when we saw this manatee hanging out between the boats at about 9:45 am. He looked in distress. We called the Manatee Help Hotline 1-888-404-FWCC twice yesterday. After the first call, a very nice guy from Fish and Wildlife came in a boat 4 or 5 hours later. I was told he was down South. He said the Manatee shouldn't be hanging around the surface like that, he called someone who said the breathing was timing okay at about 3 minutes. The soonest they could come back to check on the Manatee was Friday -- 3 days? Some quick service. The Manatee Slowline I would call it.

It looked likes a piece of tape on the Manatee's back. When the Manatee took a breath it would swell up in that area.

It was breathing. The Manatee was about 8 feet long.

It was hardly moving, but then they aren't exactly greyhounds of the sea. It shouldn't be this far out of the water. I was told that what looked like white tape is actually boat scarring.

This is near dusk, about 7 hours later. The Manatee was so still I thought it was dead, just floating in the middle of the pond. The Manatee was taking breaths not that often. I went 1/2 an hour before this one and it was near the seawall, it was taking breaths every 30 to 60 seconds, which I am told is not good. This was one big manatee, as long as the width of the boats.

When I called Fish and Wildlife at about 5:30 or 6 pm I started talking and the girl said, don't go near Manatees before I had a chance to say anything. Geez, I was standing at a seawall looking down at it. What a putz she was. You have to LISTEN first girl before you lecture someone calling for help.

I am going now to take a picture now and see how (Lets call him Smokey, the same name as my virtural dog/cat) Smokey is doing. I hope Smokey is gone, foraging in deeper water.

Morale of this story: There isn't much you can do to help with a sea mammal weighing almost a ton. I am not ragging on Fish and Wildlife. It is a big area to patrol.

Just got back: He is gone this morning. Goodbye Smokey, I hope it wasn't just the tide that took you away.

Normal Manatee, what looked like tape on Smokey is boat propeller scarring (see the side of this Manatee).

Senator Marco Rubio silent on US Army Corps of Engineers fiasco … why? … by gimleteye

If the massive rainfall associated with yet another bizarre jet stream configuration had positioned itself over Lake Okeechobee and not the Florida Panhandle, there might have been a flood crisis the likes of which the state has never experienced since the 1940's; a wet weather hurricane that caused Congress to authorize the Central and South Florida Flood Control Project under the supervision of the US Army Corps of Engineers.

It is that project and its consequences that have lead to the current impasse, where billions of dollars are being spent to save the dying Everglades and still the rivers and estuaries are being trashed. The US Army Corps of Engineers dodged a bullet this week, and the agency knows it.

Environmentalists and policy makers have been struggling against the political might of Big Sugar to regain equity for Florida taxpayers and the national interest in fixing what's wrong with the Everglades. A piece of the massive puzzle -- the Central Everglades Planning Project -- is meant to address the pollution of the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee Rivers by providing additional water storage and treatment through the creation of a more integrated central flow-way that could, eventually, also serve the purpose of relieving pressure from the leaky Herbert Hoover Dike surrounding the Lake.

It is possible that this week's rainfall, more than 20 inches in less than 24 hours, could have created a disaster for South Florida had it been positioned only a hundred miles to the southeast by causing a feared breach in the dike surrounding Lake Okeechobee. The damage in the Panhandle will preoccupy decision makers for months to come. It could have been much, much worse.

Last week before the severe weather event, U.S. Representative Patrick E. Murphy, D-Jupiter led a bipartisan Florida delegation letter to U.S. Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works) Jo-Ellen Darcy urging the Army Corps to move forward as quickly as possible with finalizing the Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP). According to a press statement, "This project would move more water south of Lake Okeechobee, helping reduce harmful freshwater discharges into the St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon. Joining Murphy in sending the letter is Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) and Reps. Ander Crenshaw (R-FL), Ted Deutch (D-FL), Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), Lois Frankel (D-FL), Joe Garcia (D-FL), Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL), Bill Posey (R-FL), Tom J. Rooney (R-FL), and Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL)."

Interesting that US Senator Marco Rubio failed to sign the letter. Why?


Press Release:

MURPHY LEADS BIPARTISAN LETTER DEMANDING ARMY CORPS APPROVE EVERGLADES PROJECT IMMEDIATELY

Washington, DC - Today, U.S. Representative Patrick E. Murphy (FL-18) led a bipartisan Florida delegation letter to U.S. Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works) Jo-Ellen Darcy urging the Army Corps to move forward as quickly as possible with finalizing the Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP). This project would move more water south of Lake Okeechobee, helping reduce harmful freshwater discharges into the St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon. Joining Murphy in sending the letter is Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) and Reps. Ander Crenshaw (R-FL), Ted Deutch (D-FL), Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), Lois Frankel (D-FL), Joe Garcia (D-FL), Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL), Bill Posey (R-FL), Tom J. Rooney (R-FL), and Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL). (Please find below and attached a copy of the letter.)

April 25, 2014

The Honorable Jo-Ellen Darcy
Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works)
108 Army Pentagon, Room 3E446
Washington, DC 20310-0108

Dear Assistant Secretary:

We are writing to express our extreme disappointment with the Army Corps Civil Works Review Board’s decision to delay proceeding forward with finalizing the Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP) and to urge the Corps to reconvene as quickly as possible in order to finalize the CEPP Chief’s Report.

State Rep. Jose Javier Rodriguez Hosts FPL Meeting May 5th. By Geniusofdespair

Maybe you will get to meet Jose Javier Rodriguez' future wife Sonia Succar Ferre at the meeting! They are getting married very soon.

Dear Friends,

On Monday, May 5th I will host a town hall forum on FP&L’s plans to build high-voltage transmission lines along U.S. 1. Please join me and help to spread the word. It is important for the community to be heard.

The placement of Florida Power & Light’s transmission lines could be determined by Florida's Governor and Cabinet. Their decision is anticipated soon. FP&L’s current plan is to place these high-voltage transmission poles, approximately 80 to 105 feet in height, along U.S. 1 from Pinecrest to downtown Miami. If built, such transmission lines will impact our community. Please come and allow your voice to be heard.

WHEN: Monday, May 5th from 6:30-8:30p.m.
WHERE: Coral Gables Museum, 285 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables, FL 33134

Sincerely,

José Javier Rodríguez

MERS in Saudi Arabia … by gimleteye

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS)

There has been heightened public awareness about virulent viral epidemics since SARS alarmed the world in 2002 and then the scare about the H1N5 virus called bird flu. Why am I writing about this? I just returned from Japan with a family sitting behind me who all were coughing and hacking through the 10 hour flight. It is no surprise that airports are vectors for easily transmissible diseases. On that count alone, Miami needs to pay attention.

SARS, a decade ago, and outbreaks of flu in chicken processing plants and markets -- again, mostly in Asia -- have sharpened the expertise of WHO epidemiologists who track highly infectious diseases, especially those that shows signs of becoming easily transmissible between humans.

Now there is a nasty virus called MERS has been percolating in Saudi Arabia. It is believed to have originated in bats or camels and can infect people. There is evidence the virus is now transmissible between people.

On April 29, the Wall Street Journal reported, "Thirty new cases in the kingdom since Saturday—at least 11 of them among health workers—brought Saudi Arabia's total confirmed instances of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, or MERS, to 345, with 105 fatalities, since the disease was identified in September 2012. Egypt became the latest of five countries—including Malaysia, the Philippines, Greece and Yemen—to confirm its first cases in April, all in travelers from the Gulf."

Distribution of confirmed cases of MERS-Cov by month of onset and probable place of infection (Source: European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control)

Helen Branswell, the Canadian journalist who has done outstanding reporting on the science and on-the-ground policy makers on emerging viruses, writes that -- so far -- the MERS virus has not gone through the genetic changes that make easy human-to-human transmission.

But her most recent report was qualified, since the entire genomic sequence of the virus had not yet been untangled to compare to earlier versions. Moreover, Branswell notes that the late April spike in viral cases in Saudi Arabia, including many health care workers tending to the ill, was uncharacteristic of what had been to that point in time a relatively slow spread of MERS. The geographical distribution of cases has widened. This obviously puts a stressed medical response effort at risk as well.

Few are aware of the intense, dangerous work by policy makers, health care professionals and law enforcement -- really a miracle of modern technology and heroic, individual initiatives -- to contain the SARS epidemic in 2002. SARS was highly contagious with tragic consequences mostly in Asia, although the disease did spread to Canada before it was contained. MERS is also proving to be lethal, with fatalities reported in about 30 percent of reported cases.

With MERS, the World Health Organization and its dedicated first responders have not had any easy time in the secretive Saudi kingdom. According to Branswell, the Saudi government is gradually elevating the MERS problem to a public health emergency requiring significant international cooperation.

The world needs full transparency because there will be very little time to react, if a virulent virus like MERS does become easily transmittable.

Distribution of confirmed cases of MERS-CoV by reporting country, March 2012 - April 2014 (Source: European Cenre for Disease Prevention and Control)

With world economies and industrial supply lines dependent on uninterrupted flow of goods and services across national boundaries, think of the impacts of a tornado or hurricane but on a global scale.

The best course for people is to stay informed. It would also help, if people would do a better job of separating paranoia about our enemies, founded or unfounded, from the need for real cooperation between all nations to protect peoples' health from dangerous viruses, wherever and whenever they pop up. Today, for example, polio has re-emerged in Syria and Pakistan because military conflicts, intransigent generals and political officials are preventing doctors from administering to the ill and providing easily available vaccines.

To paraphrase, people are entitled to their own politics, but they are not entitled to stupidity when it comes to dealing with a killer virus.

Shouldn't the County Stop Giving Raises to Top Brass and Give Money to Stadiums Instead? By Geniusofdespair

Two weeks ago, according to an informant, Lourdes Gomez was given a promotion to Assistant to the Deputy Mayor, Jack Osterholt. Who cares? Well I care about the $47,000 raise she was given. Doesn't it take money out of the pockets of Billionaire sports owners?

I found this on a Chinese website, about Osterholt:

Mayor Gimenez was suspiciously absent from the meeting.

Former Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina get's an Acquital

I also care about the acquittal given to the Robaina's - if the glove don't fit you have to acquit. They must have had one or two jurors that refused to budge and got tired of trying to convince them and just wanted the damn thing to end. According to the Miami Herald:

After the verdicts were read, U.S. District Judge Ursula Ungaro excused the jurors and ordered that the courtroom be locked for 15 minutes so that reporters could not follow them as they left the federal courthouse.

This verdict sucks.

CLEO Climate Change Briefing attracts crowd of hundreds (Miami Herald fails to report) … by gimleteye

It is a mystery why The Miami Herald failed to report an important community event like this … The following from the sponsors of the recent climate change workshop:

"Thank you for supporting Friday's CLEO Climate Science Briefing Panel & Climate Action Rally. We are especially grateful to those of you who participated, contributed, attended and/or sent people to join us. It was an EXCELLENT event - by any standard. Our honored guest, U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (RI), addressed the crowd of about 200 and got excellent perspective on the depth and breadth of South Florida’s support for climate resilience.

The two-part event took place at Pinecrest Gardens' Banyan Bowl from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Senator Whitehouse served as the moderator for the one-hour climate science briefing & panel and as our featured speaker at the rally. Briefing panel experts included Pinecrest Mayor Cindy Lerner (Village of Pinecrest), Climate Scietists- Dr Harold Wanless and Dr Ben Kirtman, and Health specialist, Dr MaryBeth Gidley.

As part of the rally, representatives from local and regional groups shared statements summarizing their commitment to climate action. And rally attendees and spokespersons were out in full force!

They included several mayors and council members from Pinecrest, South Miami, Surfside, Miami Shores, Cutler Bay, Palmetto Bay and The Seminole Tribe.

Additionally, there were representatives from: Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s office; FIU, UM and FAU; Miami-Dade and Broward County staff; businesses and chambers of commerce; Youth and student government groups; and dozens of civic and environmental groups who join CLEO in demanding a climate-ready future.

These included: 350.org; Sierra Club, Miami; Sierra Club, Calusa; Citizens Climate Lobby; League of Women Voters, Miami; Urban Paradise Guild; ECOMB; Dream In Green; Tropical Audubon Society; Southern Alliance for Clean Energy; Organizing for Action, Miami; In-Harmony Institute, Union of Concerned Scientists, World Resources Institute; and, the CLEO Institute whose statement read: We are committed to providing opportunities to bridge the divide between scientists and every nook and cranny of society on this urgent issue. CLEO stands for Climate Leadership and Engagement Opportunities.

Senator Whitehouse invigorated the crowd with his message of hope and his determination to have us all help WAKE UP CONGRESS to take action on climate change. The Senator also praised the scope of climate engagement by our diverse community in South Florida, and left, as we did, with a clear feeling that our numbers are growing and our voices are getting louder.

Thank you for your part in all of this. We are appreciative of your tremendous support."

Miami Dade County Clerk Harvey Ruvin and the Gang Talk About.... by Geniusofdespair

If I could, I would have a pet pink flamingo instead of my virtual dog/cat Smokey. They take my breath away (Smokey not so much). I took this picture, well I took all the pictures.

The County's Sea Level Rise Task Force, headed by County Clerk Harvey Ruvin and the brainchild of Rebeca Sosa, is now in the planning stage. If I said this in the title your eyes would glaze over so I tried to trick you. They have a July deadline to figure out what, if anything, can be done about the 3 feet of sea level rise predicted by 2100. That prediction comes from Swiss Re an insurance reinsurer. Lets face it, if Floridians can't get insurance we are pretty much toast. If insurers believe there is sea level rise it doesn't matter if you do. They set the price, they are in control. According to the Miami Herald:

Parts of Florida could become uninsurable with seas projected to rise three feet by 2100, an insurance analyst with Swiss Re, the world’s second largest reinsurer, testified at a Senate field hearing on sea rise in Miami Beach last week. In February, another Swiss Re expert told Ruvin’s task force that $6.4 billion in global losses from weather events were reported in the 1980s compared with $40 billion between 2000 and 2010. By taking steps to shore up infrastructure and incorporate climate change in planning, about $30 billion in losses projected for 2050 could be avoided, the expert said.

Miami Beach is ground zero for sea level rise. It is bubbling up from underground. I took these pictures of a Flamingo and a Flying Spoonbill to try to get you to read this article. I love pink birds, they have nothing to do with the article.

Spoonbill Flying in Palm Beach

Miami Dade County's Sea Level Rise Task Force

Read the reports from the presentations at the last meeting (lots of pictures so don't despair.) You can manage it.

Report 1
Report 2

An Inconvenient Truth for Miami: Sports Stadiums, Arts Centers, Museums and no way to get there. The Irrefutable Costs of Traffic Gridlock … by gimleteye

The Miami Herald limps to the issue of poor fan attendance to professional sporting events. In its publishers' view -- professional sports are a positive form of civic boosterism, apple as American pie.

But the David Beckham soccer stadium, following on the fiascos of the American Airlines/ Miami Heat and Florida Marlins / Miami Marlins deals, couldn't help but draw attention by the international press to question of Miami's fickle fans for professional sports. Even the UK Guardian football blog questioned the relation of Miami to its sports teams, without getting to the underlying point: you can't GET to the games.

"The Dolphins ranked 21st in attendance at 64,319 per game last season and played to only 85.8 percent capacity — 30th worst in the NFL and ahead of only Washington and Oakland. The Marlins ranked 29th, ahead of only Tampa, in attendance last season, at 19,584 per game. This year’s team is playing better and is averaging 21,865, worst in the National League and 25th overall. The Panthers finished this past season 29th of 30 teams in attendance at 14,177, ahead of only Phoenix."

So here you go, David Beckham and your lobbyists; the cost of gridlock is robbing families across the region of quality of life. If you are spending ten to twenty hours a week commuting to and from work, what are the chances you will want to invest your little remaining free time in a costly professional sporting match or performance?

In the Herald's "David Beckham's Miami soccer gamble: If they build the stadium, will fans come?", the traffic problem in Miami-Dade scarcely rates a yellow light. Never mind commuters from Broward or Palm Beach who would be "discouraged" from driving to games in downtown Miami. How about Coral Gables? I've spent an hour in traffic just trying to get from Biscayne Boulevard to the I95 on-ramp when the Performing Arsht Center lets out! Report THAT! So here you go, international press:

Traffic is the elephant in David Beckham's Miami telly room.

By George! The Herald itself moved to the Broward border in part to liberate capital but also to liberate staff from the terrible costs of commuting through gridlock. (How often is Tom Fiedler, the great proponent of the Marlins Stadium, going to baseball games in Miami?)

Miamians know that a soccer stadium at the Port of Miami will require a commitment at the end of a long work day or week. The game is 90 minutes. What is the time and cost budget for commuting to and from home to a soccer game in the Port of Miami?

For failing to highlight for its readers the irrefutable costs of traffic and poor planning for access to Miami sports and cultural venues, EOM gives the Miami Herald a red card.

MAGIC CITY BLOG SUCKS. By Geniusofdespair

They are stealing all the content from other blogs and not even linking to them, yet they get all the advertising revenue. 

Apparently they don't read what they post. They just steal it.

Daniella Levine Cava Video: Running in District 8 Miami Dade County. By Geniusofdespair

Nice to meet the rest of the family in this video.  From daughter Eliza Cava:

It's been exciting to be a part, however small, of my mother's journey to be the next County Commissioner for District 8.

Her dedication to service and public advocacy has had a significant impact not just on my life and career, but on those of thousands of people she has touched through her work with Catalyst Miami and the community at large.

My mom is my inspiration, and if you've met her, you know why. She has the vision and integrity needed to get the results that Miami-Dade County residents deserve.

Another blogger....

Miami Heat Blackmail's the Public With Ad in the Miami Herald. By Geniusofdespair

Ad in The Miami Herald

This ad with its selective facts and meta message, "We want Miami to be our home, but, we want money (from an ailing county with a short budget) to have that happen." The stupid public once again gets targeted on a Sports Arena without any knowledge of how they are being bilked by THE RICHEST MAN IN FLORIDA, A BILLIONAIRE: Mikey Arison.


Take into consideration After 14 years of profit sharing with the Heat we collected $300,000. $21 thousand a year from the Heat as profit sharing? I pay more in insurance a year.

Here is the Miami Heat deal according to the Miami Herald:

Taking into account the increased subsidies minus the rent the team would pay between now and 2040, the agreement would cost Miami-Dade an additional $121 million through 2040. That’s on top of the $6.4 million the county must pay yearly for the next 15 years under the terms of the 1996 agreement in which Arison financed construction of the $240 million arena. The yearly subsidy would increase to $12 million in 2031 — the first year of the extended lease — and hit $17 million nine years later.

In the ad they talk about guaranteed payments of $26 million. They are asking for $96 million. And I wouldn't trust them with a payment as far as I can throw Lebron James.

Micky Arison according to Forbes Magazine is worth $6.2 Billion dollars and they say the Miami Heat are worth $770 Million. And we get $21 thousand a year and we gave them free land. And they use the soccer field they promised us for parking. Are we rubes or what?

NO WELFARE FOR BILLIONAIRES MIKEY ARISON. 

From Forbes:

NOTE: MAGIC CITY BLOG SUCKS