Politics

Village Council discusses Brown House, Glass House, Playhouse

Determined to help beautify historic Charles Avenue, Renita Samuels-Dixon recently told the Coconut Grove Village Council that “the oldest street in Coconut Grove” needs and deserves some attention.

One of two members representing the West Grove on the Village Council, Samuels-Dixon said the street’s historic homes include E.W.F. Stirrup Residence, 3242 Charles Ave., and the Mariah Brown House, 3298 Charles Ave. The Stirrup home was built by one of Miami’s first black millionaires, the Rev. Ebenezer Stirrup, a Bahamian who made his fortune in real estate. The Brown House is a replica of the original house built in 1889 by Mariah Brown, one of the first black Bahamians to settle in Coconut Grove. Plans have been under way to do repairs and enhancements to the Brown House and later open it as a museum.  But the effort needs money, Samuels-Dixon said.
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Grove Village Council might get back
City Hall meeting place

The Coconut Grove Village Council still is without a permanent meeting place, but a decision might come as early as this week about whether the group can return to City Hall.

The Village Council was forced to move its monthly meetings from City Hall after Miami Mayor Tomás Regalado, who was elected in November, said he wanted to allow more access to City Hall to non-governmental groups. The council has met at the Abanico Theater at the Academy of Arts & Minds Charter High School and at middle school campus of Ransom Everglades.
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Village Council still without a permanent meeting place

A new policy from Miami Mayor Tomás Regalado has forced the Cocoanut Grove Village Council to change its meeting location from City Hall to Ransom Everglades Middle School, where the council met on Jan. 21 for its first meeting of the year.

“It is unfathomable to me that the Village Council has had our meeting venue taken away with very little notice and no real explanation,” newly elected Village Council member Stephen Murray said on a recent blog post. Murray is one of two councilmen representing the West Grove.

The Village Council had to find a new location after Regalado, who was elected in November, said he wanted to allow more access to City Hall to non-city affiliated meetings, said Village Council Chairman Patrick Sessions.

“The city manager then told us we couldn’t meet there every month. We thought we had approval, but now we have to meet elsewhere,” Sessions said.
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3-5AM Bar Closings debate – feedback is requested

December 7, 2009

To:         All Coconut Grove Residents, Residential Associations, Business Owners, Commercial  Associations, and interested individual parties.

From:    Patrick Sessions, Chairman-elect, The Cocoanut Grove Village Council

As you are undoubtedly aware, there is an ongoing debate in Coconut Grove regarding the 3 AM versus 5 AM bar/restaurant closing times.  In June, 2008, a revision to the Miami City Code went into effect which changed the closing times to 3 AM for Coconut Grove. Specifically, the underlined language was added at that time:
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What time should the bars close?

Here is a summary of the discussions about the 3 a.m. versus the 5 a.m. closing times for bars that occurred on the Coconut Grove Village Council meeting on Nov. 18.

Video by Paul Franz and Jesse Swanson – Full video of the meeting coming soon.

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Meet the new Coconut grove Village Council

Meet the newsly elected Coconut Grove Village Council. View their video interviews here.

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Village West residents gain two representatives in Village Council elections

Village West residents now have two people from the community to represent them on the Coconut Grove Village Council – Stephen Murray and Renita Ross Samuels-Dixon.

The two candidates were among the top 9 vote-getters from a field of 17 candidates in the Nov. 3 election, in which Patrick Sessions, a developer and Grove resident for 45 years, received the highest percentage of votes – 9.2 percent. Samuels-Dixon received nearly 7 percent and Murray about 6.3 percent of the 10,555 votes cast in the race

Lottie Person, an outgoing Village Council member from Village West, stood outside the Frankie Rolle Center, 3750 S. Dixie Hwy., on Election Day encouraging people to vote. Samuels-Dixon volunteers waved signs and passed out brochures at almost every precinct in Coconut Grove yesterday.

“113. Who is that? 113. Who is that? Re-ni-ta,” she yelled.
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Election Day 2009: Results in

Election Day 2009 is over. The polls are closed. The results are in.

No single candidate for the Coconut Grove Village Council received an overwhelming majority of the 10,555 votes cast in the race, according to the Miami-Dade Elections Department.

But, the nine candidates that had the highest percentage of votes are as follows: Patrick Sessions with about 9.2 percent; David B. Collins with about 8 percent; Kate Callahan with about 7.4 percent; Michelle Niemeyer with about 7.3 percent; David Eric Wells with about 7 percent; Renita Ross Samuels-Dixon with about 6.8 percent; Heather Bettner with about 6.5 percent; Stephen P. Murray with about 6.3 percent; and Felice Dubin with about 6 percent.

Voter turnout countywide was low, as is the case in most off-year elections.  About 22 percent of Miami-Dade County’s 312, 392 registered voters showed up to the polls Tuesday, the Elections Department said.

The canvassing board must still certify the results.

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Barack Obama Visits Miami

In his two-day visit to Florida this week, President Barack Obama left behind $1.5 million to buoy Democrat congressional races and $200 million in federal stimulus to boost the state’s energy capabilities.

“The president showed a real commitment to Florida for only having had nine months in office,” said Adam Sharon, a spokesperson for U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek of Miami.

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Coconut Grove Village Council Elections

On November 3, Coconut Grove residents will go to the polls to elect their Village Council representatives. All nine spots on the advisory board are up for grabs as the current members’ four year terms expired this fall.

Two incumbents are not seeking reelection, current chair Martin Zilber and Village West activist Lottie Person. Person, who has lived in the Grove since 1999, said she wanted to give young voices an opportunity to be heard.

“Four years is enough for any one person. It is time to give someone else a chance,” she said.

The body was created in 1991 when the Grove was advocating secession. It communicates residents’ concerns over municipal services and development to the Miami City Council. While the council deals with issues affecting the entire Grove, Person is the only currently serving member representing the Village West.
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