Wednesday, March 9, 2005
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CONTENTS:Election Update: Part 2 of a Series
Emerald Society to Host St. Patrick's Day Festival March 12
Join Five Bestselling Authors at the Biltmore
for Jazz Brunch March 19
Coral Gables SWAT Team Ranks High
in Annual SWAT Roundup Competition
Gables Police Join Cutting Edge Data Sharing System
Study Suggests Coral Gables Trolleys
Encourage Use of Public Transport
Remembering Our Fallen Officers: Part 1 of 8
Venetian Pool to Host Breakfast with the Easter Bunny
Five Coral Gables Families Honored for Beautiful Yards
Gables Police Quickly Nab Suspected Carjacker
Early Music Expert from Italy to Speak at Tropical Baroque Music Festival VI
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Election Update: Part 2 of a Series >>> On Tuesday, April 12, the City of Coral Gables will hold a Special Municipal Referendum Election where Coral Gables voters will be asked to vote on two proposed changes to the City Charter. The Charter is the City's Constitution. It defines what powers the citizens agree to give City government, and how that government should be structured. One of the proposed changes would extend the Mayor's term of service to four years. Currently, City Commissioners serve four years, while the Mayor serves a two-year term. Historically, all members of the City Commission served for two years each. In 1991, the Commissioners' terms were extended to four years. The proposed Charter change would extend the Mayor's term to four years as well, in order to equalize the terms of all members of the City Commission. This change was proposed by the Charter Review Committee, a group of citizens who met periodically last summer to review the City Charter and recommend updates where the Committee felt necessary. If approved, the extended Mayor's term will take effect on April 10, 2007. The Charter Review Committee also proposed another change: to raise the threshold for formal bidding on public works projects from $7,500 to $25,000. This proposal will be discussed in the next e-News. Stay tuned.
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Emerald Society to Host St. Patrick's Day Festival March 12 >>> Put on something green and bring the family to downtown Coral Gables on Saturday, March 12, for the Emerald Society's 27th Annual St. Patrick's Day Festival. The event runs from Noon to Sunset at Fred B. Hartnett Ponce Circle Park, 2800 Ponce de Leon Boulevard. The park is named after the late former Mayor Hartnett, who was of Irish descent and a Knight of St. Gregory. Dan Fitzgerald, historian of the Society, will emcee for a full day of Irish music and dance, authentic Irish food, and the ever-popular "Miss Colleen Pageant" for beauties of all ages. There will be clowns, face painting, a giant slide, and rock climbing for the kids. The event is free and open to the public. The Emerald Society began in 1949 as an informal association of Irishmen who wanted to remember and honor their homeland. Over the years, the organization grew more structured, with a charter and officers. Today, the Society continues to hold social functions to promote the Irish culture, and puts on a yearly festival in honor of St. Patrick, the patron Saint of Ireland. For more information, call 305-949-8400.
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Join Five Bestselling Authors at the Biltmore for Jazz Brunch March 19 >>> Come to the historic Biltmore Hotel on Saturday, March 19, and mingle with five bestselling authors at a literary jazz brunch hosted by the non-profit group, "And the Women Gather." Titled, "Five Best," the event features authors Geralyn Lucas, Victoria Moran, Lisa Nichols, Kimberla Lawson Roby, and Brenda Thomas. Entertainment is by local jazz singer Wendy Pedersen. The brunch is from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Biltmore Hotel, 1200 Anastasia Ave. Tickets are $65 per person, or $95 at the door. All proceeds go to women's charities. For more information, call Lorna Owens, founder of "And the Women Gather," at 305-573-8423.
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Coral Gables SWAT Team Ranks High in Annual SWAT Roundup Competition >>> Members of the Coral Gables SWAT Team snagged top scores and a trophy in Orlando recently at the annual SWAT Roundup, an event where the very best tactical teams from around the world compete. Two groups from the Coral Gables Police Department's SWAT Team — the "Young Guns" and the "Old Guns" — endured a week of trials and earned the highest placing the Gables SWAT Team has ever enjoyed. The "Young Guns" came in at 22nd place overall, a ranking that normally takes years to accomplish. The "Old Guns" placed in the Top Twenty and came home with the Department's first Roundup Trophy. Congratulations to the following SWAT Team members: Lt. Robert Johnson, Sgt. Tom Carrigan, Detectives Robert Brown and Guido Antezana, and Officers Miguel Cancel, Eugenio Arencibia, Horace Jackson, Jesus Garcia, Edward Pagan, Eduardo Orbe, Joseph Foster, and William Barrow.
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Gables Police Join Cutting Edge Data Sharing System >>> Always striving to stay one step ahead of the common — and not-so-common — criminal, the Coral Gables Police Department is joining the Florida Law Enforcement Data Sharing Consortium, the only data and intelligence-sharing coalition in the United States. As a member of this system, the Department will be able to identify and catch criminals more quickly by having access to all Florida law enforcement databases for criminal background information and activity records. This type of system has been credited with the speedy capture of suspected sex offenders and the quick recovery of stolen property that ends up across city or county lines. Other state law enforcement agencies have contacted the Florida Consortium to assist in setting up their own information-sharing systems. This is the type of data-sharing recommended by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, also known as the 9-11 Commission, in its report last fall.
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Study Suggests Coral Gables Trolleys Encourage Use of Public Transport >>> A recent study of Miami-Dade Transit statistics by the City's traffic consultants at David Plummer and Associates shows that MetroRail boardings at the Douglas Station jumped by 20 percent after the trolleys were implemented in the fall of 2003. Boardings at nearby stations also showed increases: by four percent at the Coconut Grove station, and by 10 percent at the University station. Three months' worth of data were studied: February, March and April of 2003 (pre-trolley), and the same period in 2004 (post-trolley). Complete statistics on 2004 are expected in the next few months. More people using public transportation means less air pollution and less traffic on the roads, changes welcomed by all.
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Remembering Our Fallen Officers: Part 1 of 8 >>> Over the next few weeks leading up to the May 5th Police Memorial Service, the Coral Gables Police Department would like to honor those officers who lost their lives while protecting the public. In this edition of e-News, we remember Cyril "Cy" Guest. Sgt. Guest was 41 and a two-year veteran of the Gables Police Department in 1928 when he was struck and killed by a drunk driver that Christmas night. He and another officer had been directing traffic around a fire truck at the scene of a fire at Douglas Road and Alhambra Circle. Witnesses said the drunk driver, 23-year-old Herman Brantley Dove, was driving at about 50 mph when he struck Guest. Dove pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to two years in prison. Guest was born in Rochelle, Illinois, and was the only child of Francis J. Guest and Lydia Jane Mallory Guest. He left behind a wife, Leona Grant Adkins Guest, and a 5-year-old daughter, Kathryn Jane.
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Venetian Pool to Host Breakfast with the Easter Bunny >>> Parents, dress the kids up in their Easter best and bring them to the historic Venetian Pool on Saturday, March 26, for a morning of food and fun with the Easter Bunny. Breakfast is served at 9 a.m., followed by an Easter bonnet contest. The children will also get to work on a spring craft project. Cost for Coral Gables residents is $17 for one adult and one child, and $6 for each additional person. Non-residents pay $22 for one adult and one child, and $8 for each additional person. The Venetian Pool is at 2701 De Soto Blvd. Reservations with payment should be made by Wednesday, March 23. For more information, call 305-460-5306 or 305-460-5357.
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Five Coral Gables Families Honored for Beautiful Yards >>> Congratulations to the following five families for their contributions to keeping The City Beautiful: Mr. and Mrs. Howard Umansky, Ms. Maria E. Garcia-Villalta, Mr. and Mrs. Alfonso Martinez, Mr. and Mrs. Edward F. Lores, and Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Varat. They are this year's winners of the Landscape Beautification Awards, a nearly 30-year tradition in Coral Gables. Anyone can nominate a Gables home or business for well-designed and maintained landscaping, and the Landscape Beautification Advisory Board selects the winners. The winning families receive a photo and plaque, and have pictures of their homes on display at City Hall throughout the year. The City will start accepting nominations for next year's awards in the fall.
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Gables Police Quickly Nab Suspected Carjacker >>> Congratulations to Officers Robert Thomson and Tom Salcedo, and the rest of the Coral Gables Police Department for the speedy arrest of a suspected carjacker. At about 6:57 p.m. Monday, Feb. 28, a man called police to say he was leaving the Circle K convenience store at 4900 LeJeune Rd. when a man robbed him at gunpoint, then took off in his car. The car, a Mercedes-Benz, was equipped with a Lo-Jack anti-theft device, which helped police locate it and the subject within 28 minutes of being called to the scene of the crime. Police caught up with the suspected carjacker and the car at Bird Rd. and Matilda Ave. and made the arrest.
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Early Music Expert from Italy to Speak at Tropical Baroque Music Festival VI >>> Come to City Hall at 5 p.m. on March 11 for a talk on the rich musical heritage of the region of Tuscany. The lecture is part of the Tropical Baroque Music Festival VI and will be led by Carlo Ipata, director of Tesori Musicali Toscani, the early music archives from Coral Gables' sister city of Pisa, Italy. The event is free and open to the public. The Festival, now in its sixth year, is presented by the Miami Bach Society to celebrate classical musical works written before 1800. For more information, call the Society at 305-669-1376 or visit their website at www.miamibachsociety.org.
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