Improving Miami (Tampa, Kendall, Jupiter: appointed, real estate, apartments)

[Motörhead]

Can we have a discussion on ways to improve Miami and solutions to Miami's problems, as opposed to just complaining about the problems themselves?

Here are some of my suggestions, for starters:

- The creation of urban parks (I'd love to see a Central Park type park, built Downtown). Not everyone has access to the beach, many people live in condos and apartments, and therefore, they don't have anywhere to run, walk their dogs or cycle.

- The cleaning up of the canals and other waterways and the creation of cycle/walking paths alongside them.

- Reduction in such rampant overbuilding and overdevelopment (better zoning, maybe?). It seems to me that Miami's skyline will be dominated by dozens of faceless, empty condos, unless something is done now.

- A crackdown on dangerous drivers (I've already 'ranted' on this, so I won't repeat myself)

- Major investment in mass transit, particularly in South Miami, Kendall and Homestead. I know the plans are out there, but mass transit is a far better solution in the long run than simply building more roads.

- Improvements to major freeway interchanges, such as Golden Glades and the Dolphin/Palmetto mess. In the case of the Palmetto, it would help ease traffic far more than simply adding lanes.

- English -- should be compulsary in all fields, including retail, doctor's offices, etc. I have nothing against Spanish, but the main language here is English.

- Something needs to be done to tackle the horrible customer service in general. I'm not sure what this is - perhaps is more people complained to the retailer's corporate office (if it's a chain store/restaurant).

- People somehow need to be unified with some sort of sense of greater community, because there doesn't seem to be much of that here in Miami. The phrase "love thy neighbor" simply doesn't apply here - why?

- Dowtown is in major need of of a major overhaul (I know, that's obvious). Make Downtown a place to work, play, go see a movie, go to the theater and dine out. If that happens, I'm sure that people will actually want to move into those empty condos. The Central Park-type idea would help, along with say, a major bookstore, a bigger library and establishments that actually stay open after 6pm (not just those cheap luggage/electrical stores).

If you have any other ideas, feel free to add. I enjoy these types of discussions!

[Chelito23]

I think the damage has been done, and it this point things are so expensive here...for anything to get done, like purchasing waterfront property or private proerty for mass transit is so exhorbitantly expensive...it will not be easy.

I agree with your sugestions, and I can't help but wonder if it is too late? I don't think densifying the region will be the answer, only beacause we don't have a decent basic infrastructure of parks and transit. Also, the pricing in all of these projects is so out of line for local salaries, that if someone can afford a condo, they obviously have car(s)...and will not be out waiting for that good old Metro Bus in a tropical downpur and 90 degree heat and humidity.

Maybe one of the most practical pices of advices in the short term is beutifying the area with tropical trees and foliage, since there are so many monstrosities nowadays...at least if we covered out streets with tropical trees and foliage, it would kind of bring a feeling of a park to our main throughoufares.

I actually planted about 6 trees on SW 22 Ave 3 years ago. There are African Tulips, Royal Poinciana, Yellow Poinciana and another flowering tree from Venezuela that I can't remember the name now. They are at the corner of 22 Ave and 10th St if anyone wants to see what I tried to contribue to the city. The swale was devoid of trees for years and I got sick of the neighbors not planting trees. Fortunately, they survived the hurricanes, are drought tolerant, and don't require any care. I hope other people take on similar initiatives...as they don't take much time. I just watered every other day in the dry season when I walked my dog in the AMs...and now they are there for all to enjoy.

[eufo]

Originally Posted by Motörhead

Since negative posts are frowned on, can we have a discussion on ways to improve Miami and solutions to Miami's problems, as opposed to just complaining about the problems themselves?

Negative posts are not frowned on. Get on with it.

Originally Posted by Motörhead

Here are some of my suggestions, for starters:

- The creation of urban parks (I'd love to see a Central Park type park, built Downtown). Not everyone has access to the beach, many people live in condos and apartments, and therefore, they don't have anywhere to run, walk their dogs or cycle.

- The cleaning up of the canals and other waterways and the creation of cycle/walking paths alongside them.

I'd like to see these things as well, as they tend to beautify the city and improve the morale of the citizens.

Originally Posted by Motörhead

- Reduction in such rampant overbuilding and overdevelopment (better zoning, maybe?). It seems to me that Miami's skyline will be dominated by dozens of faceless, empty condos, unless something is done now.

South Florida will always have land issues since it cannot just freely expand into the Everglades. We need high-rises to house everyone, period. We have recently witnessed probably one of the largest (if not the largest) overbuilding spurt of condos that South Florida has ever seen. Many of the builders are paying dearly for it. Market forces are a better method of control than government mandation in this arena. Those "empty condos" will fill for the correct price. Let the market work.

Originally Posted by Motörhead

- A crackdown on dangerous drivers (I've already 'ranted' on this, so I won't repeat myself)

I totally agree.

Originally Posted by Motörhead

- Major investment in mass transit, particularly in South Miami, Kendall and Homestead. I know the plans are out there, but mass transit is a far better solution in the long run than simply building more roads.

The places you mentioned (other than Homestead) have much more mass transit than most areas of South Florida. Homestead is on the fringe of the metro, so I don't think it deserves any more attention than the other areas of the city.

Originally Posted by Motörhead

- Improvements to major freeway interchanges, such as Golden Glades and the Dolphin/Palmetto mess. In the case of the Palmetto, it would help ease traffic far more than simply adding lanes.

The Palmetto (as you surely know) has been undergoing major revamping to improve traffic flow, not just more lanes, but better entrance/exit ramps. When will they be done? Who knows? Its been under construction for at least the 5+ years I've lived here.

The Golden Glades interchange is truly a disgrace. I've complained about it many times. I would love to see a design change in the future.

Originally Posted by Motörhead

- English -- should be compulsary in all fields, including retail, doctor's offices, etc. I have nothing against Spanish, but the main language here is English.

Most educated people here know English. Many businesses choose to use Spanish to gather more clients, normally as an addition to English, not substitution. I don't really see a problem with this. You'd improve your life a bit if you learn a smattering of Spanish. Not saying you have to, but I recommend it.

Originally Posted by Motörhead

- Something needs to be done to tackle the horrible customer service in general. I'm not sure what this is - perhaps is more people complained to the retailer's corporate office (if it's a chain store/restaurant).

I doubt complaints will do much of anything. I prefer to give my money to places that treat me well and provide excellent products or service. Maybe it takes awhile to find such places, but they really do exist.

Originally Posted by Motörhead

- People somehow need to be unified with some sort of sense of greater community, because there doesn't seem to be much of that here in Miami. The phrase "love thy neighbor" simply doesn't apply here - why?

I think largely due to the transient nature of our citizens and the ever-increasing class gap. I'm not sure how to solve this or even if it is something that can be solved by anyone in particular.

Originally Posted by Motörhead

- Dowtown is in major need of of a major overhaul (I know, that's obvious). Make Downtown a place to work, play, go see a movie, go to the theater and dine out. If that happens, I'm sure that people will actually want to move into those empty condos. The Central Park-type idea would help, along with say, a major bookstore, a bigger library and establishments that actually stay open after 6pm (not just those cheap luggage/electrical stores).

Downtown Miami will never be like a New York, Chicago, or most US cities. It would be nice, but I don't see it ever happening. Miami is less than 0.4 million people in a metro of over 5 million. Downtown Miami is not the central hub of development in the metro; we have none. We are just this crazy long (roughly 125 miles from Jupiter to Homestead) strand of development that has no real primary city or CBD.

Originally Posted by Motörhead

If you have any other ideas, feel free to add. I enjoy these types of discussions!

-Better law enforcement in general, not just traffic enforcement. I like seeing plenty of police officers on the streets. We need more boys in blue.

-Less corruption in all levels of government. Not sure how to accomplish this, but it is desperately needed.

-Better support for the schools and their teachers. The children are our future. Right now the future looks scary.

Thanks for making this thread.

[JimKing]

It has to all start with crime and policing. I lived near Philadelphia when Timoney was in charge there. The mayor then let him do his job. They had little community police stations in every neighborhood. The people learned to work with the police. Criminals learned not to mess with Timoney's guys. They were very firm but very fair. Philadelphia improved dramatically. Since he left, along with his mayor Rendell, Philadelphia's murder rate has done nothing but go up.

Give Timoney the power and money he needs and get a mayor who will support him to the end. Mayor Diaz is too scatter shot. He does not focus and fix one problem and then move on. Go to his web site and he has a new project every week. Thats ambitious, but until you make Miami one of the safest cities instead of one of the worst, its hard to be a great place.

Turn the crime thing around from the worst parts out and then other improvements have a real shot at working. And you start with quality of life issues and crime. Littering, excessive noise from car radios, loitering, aggressive drivers. It is amazing how things domino when you start working those annoyance 'crimes' and get the reputation of not tolerating them.

[Motörhead]

Originally Posted by Chelito23

I think the damage has been done, and it this point things are so expensive here...for anything to get done, like purchasing waterfront property or private proerty for mass transit is so exhorbitantly expensive...it will not be easy.

I agree with your sugestions, and I can't help but wonder if it is too late? I don't think densifying the region will be the answer, only beacause we don't have a decent basic infrastructure of parks and transit. Also, the pricing in all of these projects is so out of line for local salaries, that if someone can afford a condo, they obviously have car(s)...and will not be out waiting for that good old Metro Bus in a tropical downpur and 90 degree heat and humidity.

Maybe one of the most practical pices of advices in the short term is beutifying the area with tropical trees and foliage, since there are so many monstrosities nowadays...at least if we covered out streets with tropical trees and foliage, it would kind of bring a feeling of a park to our main throughoufares.

I actually planted about 6 trees on SW 22 Ave 3 years ago. There are African Tulips, Royal Poinciana, Yellow Poinciana and another flowering tree from Venezuela that I can't remember the name now. They are at the corner of 22 Ave and 10th St if anyone wants to see what I tried to contribue to the city. The swale was devoid of trees for years and I got sick of the neighbors not planting trees. Fortunately, they survived the hurricanes, are drought tolerant, and don't require any care. I hope other people take on similar initiatives...as they don't take much time. I just watered every other day in the dry season when I walked my dog in the AMs...and now they are there for all to enjoy.

The short-sightedness of the city really bothers me, I must admit. I don't like the "build, build, build" mentality at all. It seems that every inch of spare land here is snapped up by greedy developers for $$$. I know we live in a capitalistic society, but it goes way too far here. Miami's climate is IDEAL for creating the most lush, beautiful and varied urban parks in the United States. I know parks don't = $$$, but the bigger picture here is that if they existed, Miami would be a far more attractive city to live in, along with the environmental benefits and the benefits it'd create for the community as a whole.

With regard to the condos (particularly those in Brickell/Downtown/Biscayne), they're not selling. The speculators snapped up most of them and now they're getting burned. Unfortunately, the boom has not helped the local economy at all, aside from a few construction jobs and a few checks in the mail to a few local politicians. All the boom has done is jack up the cost of housing even further, making less and less affordable to locals.

Despite the fact that I plan to leave, I still see Miami as a city that has (or maybe once had) potential. I don't believe it's too late, but there needs to be a major change in attitude in terms of development, urban growth and infrastructure. This is a city that has expanded way too quickly for its own good and a city that is overpopulated in terms of its infrastructure. It has a population of many people who still cling on to the identities of their former countries (countries they chose to leave) as opposed to calling themselves "Americans". Add to that, the endless stream of inept politicians, who personally, I wouldn't put in charge of a small village, never mind a big city like this one.

This may sound funny, but part of the problem is that I feel that Miami as a city is overshadowed by South Beach and the image of South Beach. If you're an outsider and someone says "Miami", the first thoughts and images that come into your head are of what is actually South Beach. Perhaps Miami needs to get over the "party city" thing and promote itself as a major business/convention center, with close ties to the ever-growing/ever-changing economies of Latin America. As regards business conventions, Miami ought to be a #1 destination in the United States, particularly during the winter months, when most businessmen/women would much rather attend a convention in sunny Miami than freezing cold Chicago or New York.

The airport - another problem. Personally, I'd have demolished that poor excuse for an international airport a LONG time ago and relocated it somewhere else (maybe Opa Locka even, where there's more space). However, it's too late for that.

There are many things I do like about this city though. Cuban cuisine is awesome, we're never short in the retail/shopping department and the climate is great, IMO. I say that those who are into clubbing, bar hopping, watersports and the whole Latin flavor will not be disappointed with Miami. Unfortunately, I'm a guy in the wrong place, as none of those things appeal to me (aside from Latin culture).

[Motörhead]

Originally Posted by eufo

South Florida will always have land issues since it cannot just freely expand into the Everglades. We need high-rises to house everyone, period. We have recently witnessed probably one of the largest (if not the largest) overbuilding spurt of condos that South Florida has ever seen. Many of the builders are paying dearly for it. Market forces are a better method of control than government mandation in this arena. Those "empty condos" will fill for the correct price. Let the market work.

Let's hope so. I am not anti-build and actually, high rises are far better for the environment than regular housing/urban sprawl. However, as with anything else, these types of buildings need to be planned and the infrastructure needs to be in place prior to people 'moving in'.

Originally Posted by eufo

The places you mentioned (other than Homestead) have much more mass transit than most areas of South Florida. Homestead is on the fringe of the metro, so I don't think it deserves any more attention than the other areas of the city.

With regard to Homestead, I disagree. There's a lot of development down there and traffic is getting steadily worse. I feel that rail link would benefit Homestead greatly, along with the development of Homestead as a town (especially since it was devastated by Andrew and still hasn't fully recovered).

Originally Posted by eufo

The Palmetto (as you surely know) has been undergoing major revamping to improve traffic flow, not just more lanes, but better entrance/exit ramps. When will they be done? Who knows? Its been under construction for at least the 5+ years I've lived here.

The Golden Glades interchange is truly a disgrace. I've complained about it many times. I would love to see a design change in the future.

I know they're widening the section between Bird Road & the Dolphin, but it's not that section that needed extra lanes. It's the section south of there, which is only 2 lanes. The Dolphin/Palmetto interchange is also a major contributor to insane traffic in the morning....instead of investing in widening a small stretch of the Palmetto, they should have invested in modernizing that, instead (just my 2 cents' worth).

Originally Posted by eufo

Downtown Miami will never be like a New York, Chicago, or most US cities. It would be nice, but I don't see it ever happening. Miami is less than 0.4 million people in a metro of over 5 million. Downtown Miami is not the central hub of development in the metro; we have none. We are just this crazy long (roughly 125 miles from Jupiter to Homestead) strand of development that has no real primary city or CBD.

That's part of the problem. Perhaps we should consider giving incentives or even tax breaks to corporations to relocate Downtown. For a city its size, Miami needs a decent CBD. And why can't we dream about having a Downtown comparable with New York's or Chicago's? Personally, I would love to see it - it'd give Miami a real shot at becoming a world city. With regard to Downtown, why not dream? I realize that any change would not happen overnight, but it'd be worth the wait, even if it took a couple of decades worth of hard work.

Originally Posted by eufo

-Better law enforcement in general, not just traffic enforcement. I like seeing plenty of police officers on the streets. We need more boys in blue.

-Less corruption in all levels of government. Not sure how to accomplish this, but it is desperately needed.

-Better support for the schools and their teachers. The children are our future. Right now the future looks scary.

Agree with all, 100%. I would love to see more cops on the streets, as I'm sure that most other law-abiding citizens would. Schools....agree with that too, although I don't have kids myself. I do think that teachers need to be paid a salary in which they can have a decent standard of living (god knows, being a teacher is one of the most important jobs on the planet).

Thanks for your reply!

[Wild Style]

I agree with what everyone said. I would like to expand on the transit though. I would like to see a elevated train system like Chicago or NYC has. Miami should contract with the engineers in Chicago or New York City to come up with a first class train system, again above ground so it doesn't take up much needed street real estate that regular cars need to go to and from.

Also I agree that Miami needs to attract Multinational Corporations here big time. I would say they should definitely try to bring in companies that do heavy business in the Caribbean and Latin America.

[Motörhead]

Originally Posted by JimKing

It has to all start with crime and policing. I lived near Philadelphia when Timoney was in charge there. The mayor then let him do his job. They had little community police stations in every neighborhood. The people learned to work with the police. Criminals learned not to mess with Timoney's guys. They were very firm but very fair. Philadelphia improved dramatically. Since he left, along with his mayor Rendell, Philadelphia's murder rate has done nothing but go up.

Give Timoney the power and money he needs and get a mayor who will support him to the end. Mayor Diaz is too scatter shot. He does not focus and fix one problem and then move on. Go to his web site and he has a new project every week. Thats ambitious, but until you make Miami one of the safest cities instead of one of the worst, its hard to be a great place.

Turn the crime thing around from the worst parts out and then other improvements have a real shot at working. And you start with quality of life issues and crime. Littering, excessive noise from car radios, loitering, aggressive drivers. It is amazing how things domino when you start working those annoyance 'crimes' and get the reputation of not tolerating them.

I agree with you with regard to getting tough on crime. I believe that many crimes (some minor, some not so minor) can really screw up the quality of life for a lot of people, even when it comes to things such as littering, graffiti, excessive noise, reckless driving. Not only would I want to address crime itself in terms of 'getting tough', but I would also love to see someone take a long hard look at the causes of crime. The ever growing gap between rich and poor in Miami is certainly a major factor, along with different ghettos/communities of different nationalities who refuse to get along. I don't feel that there are enough police out there on the streets either. Maybe it's a lack of resources, but perhaps we should start paying cops a wage that they can actually survive down here on?

I feel that Diaz (and others before him) are trying to force Miami to learn to sprint before it learns to walk first. As you say, they have all these ambitious projects lined up, but no real solutions to Miami's 'grass root' type of problems, including crime. Approving and building a bunch of condos isn't real and sustainable development....not in my eyes anyway. Actually, it's just skirting around the problem. I think of it as putting a cheap rug over a ruined patch of carpet.....a cheap fix, instead of either replacing or repairing the damaged carpet itself.

On another note, something we can all help with, in terms of improving Miami.....a little politeness goes a long way. If everyone here at least had at least a small amount of respect for their fellow man, this would be a better place to live in.

[Chelito23]

I think improving the quality of life, through say transit and beutiful parks and public access to waterways via a functional and user friendly park system would actually draw the right people to Miami.

What happens now is people move here for the brand. They get here, see what it is really about, but they realize it is nice in small doses...but they can also make money here in real estate easily. That's fine and well, but it does not HELP the community. We need sustainable development and we need to attract thoughtful, educated and caring people to the community. We have out share of materialistic, beautiful and unskilled workers. Now we need more substance. I know the fact that developers are willing to overpay, as are buyers...contributes to politicians believing Miami is something it is not...but it could be all that they claim it is and more if they would slow down and do things the right way, not the fast or profitable way.

We also need to realize that density is alright, but we are NOT Taipei, Manhattan or other megacities of the world. When we conglomerate multiple 100 storey buildings in a storm surge zone...we have problems. Add that to a SUBURBAN type infrastructure of highways...and we have what we always have had.

I agree that MIA needs to be torn down and rebuilt, preferable in another location. I was in the new terminal (South) 2 weeks ago, and it is a step up from the rest of the airport...but let me tell you, the design (highly subjective opinion here) is all wrong. It has black flooring...not a Florida or Subtropical feel at all. The immigration entrance is very sterile as well. The ceilings are high, you can tell it all must have cost a fortune before the cost overrides, but it may as well be Chicago NYC or Atlanta. I think they really could have at least used tasteful pastel colors at the very least, but the gray and black decor seems more fitting for a northern city to me. Also, they did not desgin retail space beyond security checkpoints other than stands that sell soda or snack food. And since we all know how easy it is to go back and forth thru security....sigh.

[Sunandsand]

I agree on the Miami Airport. They have a great model in Tampa. why they went with dark flooring in the new part is beyond me.