Homestead Gets a Makeover! Lipstick on a pig.
Not to be outdone by the Taj Mahal in India or the Rotunda (U.S. Capital Building) in Washington, D. C., Hudstead has built itself a miniature combination of both. Their City Hall reflects just about nothing that Homestead stands for, it is architecture run amok. I was expecting something more with the rodeo look for Homestead not doric columns and a rotunda. Let me tell you something Homesteaders: Ayn Rand would be very upset if she were alive to see this City Hall of yours. As an Ayn Rand aficionado, Former Lynda Bell must hate this City Hall building. I hope you all note that Munilla Construction appears to be building it.
 |
| Washington DC Rotunda. |
More in line with the Homestead tradition of Architecture is their version of the space needle or the Washington Monument, except theirs is ugly. Will there be stairs to climb? Where do you tie up your horse? I suppose the private investor mentioned is Wayne Rosen. Who else?
Homesteaders are such good sports. I am sure they are laughing about these projects.
 |
| It says it is the library, but I was in a building like this as their current city hall. One square building looks like the next. Now they will have a round one! |
21 comments:
Just following the model of Key Biscayne and the monstrosities built in order to award contracts to insiders. The same way that nature abhors a vacuum, government officials cannot stand to have nothing to build, to reward insiders. It's a constant game in Florida and the reason why laws are needed to protect taxpayers. Oh well, long live Flor-i-duh.
Munilla is building city hall and the new police station and renovating the seminole theater. They also gave Jeff Porter's political committee $10,000 which must be totally unrelated.
That ten grand is already over half gone....paid to Mark Goodrich, the same person who ran the failed petition campaign to keep Waldman in office.
Homestead, the most corrupt little town in America. Only surprised the police department fake sting happened in Bal Harbor and not Bill Losner's hometown.
I am so shocked about this crap. I live in Homestead and was shocked the other day when I was over by the college. This building is a giant thing. I don't know why the police department is not housed in this new structure. Why did they NOT foresee that the police had outgrown their structure? And why can't they amend the design to take in the police department.
I am on a fixed income and the increase in taxes with 40 million+ in new buildings is going to screw us seniors and new homeowners.
The corruption in Homestead took a year off after Steve Bateman's arrest. Rest assured it is back. Homestead voters need to pay attention to the connections this year by sending Porter packing and with Waldman retiring that is a start.
Keep Fairclough and Burgess make one of them vicemayor just in case Porter is mistakenly reelected he won't be there long.
The Homestead Space Needle is not to be confused with the many syringes that are swept up on Monday mornings in the downtown area and busway.
This city hall is the worst I have seen in a long time. It favors the Greek Parthenon, I am sure George Gretsas can relate to this building. The Homestead Space Needle is a JOKE! I visit the Everglades National Park 3 times a year. Many visitors come from around the world to see the largest ecosystem in the world and one of a kind. Why would they want to see our natural wonders from downtown Homestead? Downtown Homestead is a MESS! Buildings closed and shuttered. Motels of questionable character. Poor homeless people sleeping on the benches. Don't believe me take a drive to the main "drag" of Homestead.
You claim you went to Las Vegas to bring businesses and tourist here.
Did you send the Vegas Chamber and Tourism Bureau pictures of this God forsaken town? I have a feeling you took your vacation on my tax payer "dime"
Homestead strap on your leather and get ready for your taxes to go up.
The old police station on Krome Ave was once owned by the Losners? Now we are building a new station. They should share the new city hall. I guess they can't with the wasted space in the Parthenon.
Really Homestead? Was this really necessary?
All you really needed was a backroom. I think there are a few in the Gables you have already been using.
What a joke.
This is their way to attract tourism, Iconic attraction overlooking the ghetto of Florida City... ...What a joke.
Homestead is an imitation city. The state should strip it of it's charter. Fake non-profits like GALATA and the Carrie Meek Business Incubator. Fake petitions accusing the city of mistreating veterans and those currently in uniform. Mayors and council who use city government to line their own pockets. A CRA that just gives away money without any accounting. Nobody cares about Homestead and what goes on there.
Everything about Homestead is made up crap except the kickbacks and arm twisting of campaign donors. Another ten years like the last ten and the place will be total concrete. The farms, the air force base and the reason for living there in the first place will all be lost.
Let's see what happens when sea levels rise, the water table lifts and hits concrete. That means it moves north to Cutler Bay, Palmetto Bay, Pinecrest, Kendall and South Miami. The buffer that used to be rural Homestead and Florida City is disappearing. The nitwits in Homestead and their greedy decisions will haunt all of South Dade so keep supporting the status quo just have a life jacket handy. Somebody has to think for those who can't.
It's easy to sit back and snipe and criticize, but what's the alternative? Leave things as they were? Sure these buildings aren't perfect and may not cure all of Downtown Homesteads ills but at lease its an actionable step.
The question is will this revitalize Homesteads downtown, it does then great, If it doesn't some folks will have some explaining to do and a political price to pay, and its back to the drawing board.
As for the Seminole and Police Station, we had an election that we all were informed on if you didn't vote then you should know that voting would had make your voice count more than griping on a blog (even a good one like the Eye).
We may all question some aspect of all this construction but to do nothing about the conditions Downtown were not an acceptable option.
Yeah okay, go to EOM Index and click on Homestead. Scams and boondoggles are in Homestead's DNA.
Ousted Lynda Bell started the City Hall plan. Now it is much more environmentally friendly. Obviously she missed Ayn Rand's point completely with that derivative design.
Actually Steve Shiver talked about it in the 90s, Roscoe Warren initiated it and Lynda Bell put it out to bid in 2009. Bids were $18-$20 million. Steve Bateman killed it, started new bid process after three years on hold. Bateman neighbor Janet Legrand had lowest bid, they were all thrown out and now Munilla won the rebid at $25 million. Maybe it doesn't pay to wait.
WHAT A WASTE OF TAX PAYER FUNDS WHEN RADON-MOLD SWEPT CENTER STAGE AT CITY HALL WHEN IT WAS A LAND MARK OF BEAUTY GRACING THE GROUNDS OF US #1 AND
CAMPBELL DR. RESIDENTS--VOTERS OF HOMESTEAD WILL BE PAYING LONG FOR THE
ILLUSIONS OF GRANDEUR HELD IN THE MINDS OF FORMER & PRESENT POLITICIANS.
THE RADON-MOLD BASEMENT ORDEAL COULD HAVE BEEN CORRECTED MORE PRUDENTLY HAD MORE RESEARCH & LESS FEAR BEEN APPLIED TO THIS ARCHITECTURAL MASTERPIECE.
RILEY
last anon- seriously? that pos of a town hall was the worst government building just about anywhere in the county.
EOM points to the shitty squat ugly library next door. thats what the people of homestead got for decades. shitty squat ugly.
good for them for investing in their downtown instead of continuing as a rest-stop town on the way to the keys
the community is finally escaping the grip of suburban thinking and trying to grow up a bit
its a good first step
and the building is 79,000 square feet. less than most decent sized office buildings. three stories with a community plaza. it looks way more impressive in the sketches than it will in reality
http://www.rodriguezquiroga.com/?projects=homestead-city-hall
This issue of a architectural masterpiece for a city hall, and an absurd space needle that overlooks an impoverished area, can not be discussed intelligently without acknowledging the fact that South Dade has become a wasteland, blighted with government subsidized housing with high vacancy rates, and an atrociously high crime rate. The new grandiose structures will not mitigate those problems. They will only serve to load the taxpayers with an unsustainable debt.
Who will be expected to pay for this, the people who live on welfare and food stamps and the rapidly disappearing middle class???
MCM has bid on all the Homestead projects and is expected to "win" the bid on the new, state of the art, library that is being planned. Are MCM the only construction company in Miami or South Florida, for that matter?
Interesting connection with Porter and Mark Goodrich. How come nobody is making a huge deal about this? If Lynda does run for mayor I'll bet this comes up. Porter needs to take a look at his current list of buddies and reevaluate. I hear he takes advice from Steve Shiver!!! I wouldn't be surprised if Shiver ran for Mayor one day and used this against Porter. There are no true friendships in politics.
Faircloth will run for re-election and certainly win and she will be elected Vice Mayor. She is probably the most qualified on that council besides Shelley.
We all thought this was going to be a fairly quiet election season in Homestead. Guess not. Let the games begin.
EOM, have you noticed that the Libertarians are running in Homestead? Brianna Kirkland is running against Patricia and Steve McDuffie running against Porter.
City spin on the iconic attraction.
Police can ask you what the perp was wearing and his last position.
Nothing like the smell of El Presidente and urine at 300' in the air.
For comfort in case of lightning wear rubber soled shoes.
No that's our city hall the Taj Mahal is in Agra, India.
It was not an orca sighting that was the mayor of Florida City.
Those chalk outlines are street art not a crime scene.
Come on man this isn't even real.
Post a Comment