Is Aventura Mall gutting their food court?

For months rumors floated about a possible renovation of the Aventura Mall food court. My interest concerns the bus stop outside the food court which services Miami-Dade Transit, Broward Transit, and serves as a taxi stand. Any closure of the food court would also seal off the entrance to the mall nearest the bus stop.
Though I tried to gather some information I came up empty handed until last week the press picked up Aventura Mall's proposal to the City for expansion, included a transit facility; the scope of the project obviously much larger than the initial rumor purported.
Unsatisfied with the reports I visited the City of Aventura planning department to view the design and see what Aventura Mall proposed.
While my primary interest is the future of the transit hub (which I use to get to work) I found the proposal altogether interesting: women's Macy's will finally extend their store per a previously approved expansion; seven story parking garage featuring a ground level transit facility. The garage, abutting JC Penny and the mall extension, can potentially unify the different transit options currently available, often at different parts of the mall. Finally, a three story extension of the mall from where the food court already exists.
One wonders what's to happen to current food court tenants when the construction begins. More curious than that is where the food court will be once the construction completes.
I admit total ignorance in the skills of reading design plans. Check if you can see something I don't: the future food court. I can't place it. It gives me the impression that there won't be a food court in the mall. Can anyone see it?

Miami Noted News

Miami Beach

After a judge ruled (days before last Novermber's voting) that the Miami Beach Convention Center bond initiative could not be on the ballot before a contract was available for public presentation, the city commission voted to scrap the plan altogether. Beheading the draft outcome of an already rather long-winded process, the commission claims it wants to focus on the convention center, and not bundling other amenities in to the project.
The city now cancels a proposed project, Lincoln Lane, which Curbed Miami claims faced hampering corruption scandals. The resolution canceling the Lincoln Lane North project RFP claims three reasons for cancelling: the recent change in city leadership; changes in the real estate market; and an impending Lincoln Road Master Plan process.
In both cases I wonder to what extent, if any, the new leadership came to the table with projects of their own already in the works. In either case one hopes their efforts have a better impact on the City of Miami Beach than otherwise.
With public-private partnerships the community should be reasonably weary of the potential for nepotism, mismanagement, and poor oversight. While I don't support any more municipal big-bond projects which seem always to benefit private contractors more than public well-being, I hope the citizens of Miami Beach put pressure on the commission to be responsible and transparent in their dealings.

Aventura

On February 12 Miami Today News broke the story of  an Aventura Mall expansion. They don't specify how they found out, but I was able to hunt down a January City of Aventura Document Titled "CURRENT DEVELOPMENT & APPLICATIONS IN PROGRESS," which Google dates to February 9th. According to the official document this project is in "Developments in Review Process", or phase IV of a four stage process ending in phase I, complete projects. The two in-between stages are approval and construction.

Rumors in the mall for a few months now suggested the food court would close for some renovation. I had no clue it was an expansion until the 12th. Back in January I tweeted Miami-Dade Transit about what this would mean for the transit hub which services both MDT and Broward County Transit:

@premitive1 We'll ask and report back.
— Miami-Dade Transit (@IRideMDT) January 7, 2014

They haven't gotten back to me, but perhaps if they did I could have broken the story about Aventura Mall's expansion. Consider my ego bruised. Especially since in the Miami Today News story Aventura Community Development Director Joanne Carr makes some kind of claim about "transit facility," which may potentially unify the Malls currently somewhat disjointed transportation options. Inquiring minds may want to dive in to an Aventura planning document which gives details on the Mall's request for a zoning ordinance which seems to hold construction of a transit facility as part of the justification for the change.
After a public record request Yemar Reus, MDTs document manager said this regarding the future of Aventura Mall's transit hub,  "Where the mall will be placing the hub you will need to check with the Mall Operation MDT has nothing to do with the temporary relocation."

There are a few aspects of this story I would like to explore further:

• Given the number of people public transit brings to the mall (employees, locals, and droves of tourists) to what extent  does MDT and other transit services behold themselves to the whims of Aventura Mall? The current transit infrastructure is poorly designed and causes undue confusion to riders. Does Aventura Mall have any responsibility to transit organizations and their riders? Is there any written agreements or contractual obligations between any political body and Aventura Mall?
• What kind of transit facility design is being proposed and what are its benefits and short-comings?
• What role, if any, does the promise of a transit facility play in the approval of the zoning ordinance Aventura Mall requested?

I hope to get around to some of these questions in the next week, including photos of the plans proposed by the mall. Anyone one with recommendations on what to look for, or further information are welcome to comment or e-mail me directly.

the two-tiered first ammendment protections of presstitutes and citizenry

The slew of citizen journalist arrests at protests deemed unauthorized demonstrates a clear double standard in the protections municipalities and their police grant regarding the first amendment. While orders to disperse from public streets are constitutionally questionable on face, the arbitrary discrimination between government condoned journalists and anyone else on the scene raises startling questions with human rights violation implications.
As if working together like members of a team, corporate sponsored mainstream media representatives are literally given a game plan by the policy media liason, as everyone else is treated like a criminal for what is a clear expression of the constitutionally protected right to assemble freely.

While I am interested in any cases which have augmented the 1st amendment to allow governments to impose time or place restrictions, the wording itself suggests no scope of time or place, which implies all collective spaces more than any other are subject to this constitutional protection.

Let me tell you why I've brought it up:
When journalists, "the press" are not as much watchdogs of power, but rather than lapdogs, it's becomes increasingly difficult for the population to understand what goes on around them. I won't purport any conspiracy about the unhealthy relationship between the powers that be and those charged to report on them, but rather, take a look at this youtube playlist featuring a segment from the Conan show called,  "media matters" In the segment Conan demonstrates the reality of a corporate local news affiliate feeder system whereby dozens of organizations across the country all report the same stories, in many cases with the same words.
Homogeneity in journalism is a big a problem for society. When everyone is getting the same news from the same voice, and that voice is not a free voice, we should all be terrified.

newspapers as product pushers

While browsing Random Pixels for information about former Miami Commissioner Arthur Teele (who put a bullet into his head, standing in the lobby of the Miami Herald building) I came across an unrelated story about former Herald columnist Joan Fleischman, who apparently used her column to promote her friends real estate dealings.
Of course there's no mention in the article but we all know that product placements cost money.

North Miami's Loss

Local blogger Stephanie Kienzle of votersopinion.com recently ended her journalistic relationship with the city of North Miami. This is a pretty big deal because as I know it she was the only journalist covering North Miami.
Discerning news reader know better than to rely on the information coming out of the Miami Herald, which is more legitimizes the powers that be than producing any actual journalism.
Like another local blogging hero, Al Crespo, Stephanie is a citizen journalist whose work calls in to question the journalistic quality of government-condoned media institutions, like our local TV stations, or aforementioned Herald. Part of what I mean, and I've written about previously, is the habit of mainstream media to plagiarize the journalism of bloggers, and do it poorly so as to lose the relevance of the original efforts.
Although perhaps remembered most for doing the leg work in the Myron Rosner arrest, votersopinion.com has many example of journalism. Rather than parroting press releases and giving politicians favorable quote space, journalists, unlike mainstream media, report on the facts and follow where they lead. The news is the facts, the conclusions we reach about current events need factual underpinnings or we can allow lies to be accepted as truths.

Consider this article by the Miami Herald regarding candidates for a recent election who may not have lived in their cities of candidacy for the time required to run for such offices. If you review the article notice they specifically reference votersopinion.com, and that Stephanie, its author, filed a complaint. They do not, however, reference any of the evidence in the complaint. That means their neither refute nor corroborate the evidence. What's worse though, it means Herald readers know there is an issue, but could not possibly discern why.
Of the three candidates covered in the article, regarding one there is a hear-say quote of the candidate admitting his non-residency. The Herald fails to specify whether this quote was given directly to them, or if they got it from another source. The Herald also fails to investigate the claim. If the candidate did admit on a radio program to being a non-resident of North Miami, that would have been very strong evidence of criminal behavior. Hear-say, however, is not evidence, and would not walk two inches in a court of law against any decent defense attorney. But the Herald is not a part of the justice system, so apparently their standards of journalism are about as mature as George W. Bush's diction.
It's well and good the Herald is a bulletin board for the vaguest representations of current events, but who the HELL do they think is going to investigate the stories they're reporting on if they won't do it?

And so, since our local, government condoned, mainstream news publication, the Miami Herald, is chronically incapable of doing journalism, (a bulletin board is not journalism) what remains is the citizen journalist.
Subject to a level of transparency unrivaled by any, citizen journalists must be on point with their information or the public will eat them alive. Posts on votersopinion often promote discussions involving both members of the community, and those charged with maintaining it.


And so I come full circle. The City of North Miami lost the efforts of Stephanie Kienzle to shed light where there is otherwise a great darkness. As that city is further taken over by organized crime, losing such a light may be catastrophic.
Therefore I call you to arms. Stephanie alone could not possible fill the void of journalism in North Miami. The local bloggers are not enough to fulfill the desperate need for journalism everywhere. I've said something to this effect before and I won't stop now, a grand renaissance of citizen journalism is soon upon us. How can we make it happen sooner? How can we make it now?

the death of a local (Miami) cyclist,

The recent death of 37 year old Andy Cohen, a recent example of an ongoing trend in Miami of terrible unfortunate hit and runs involving cyclists dying. Local bicycle blog Miami Bike Scene drummed interest in the death with an impressive moving memorial.
With a large focus after the unfortunate death of Christophe Le Canne, and the subsequent detention in punishment for it, demonstrate in the interim that retribution is not a sufficient method for deterring accidents involving vehicles hitting cyclists.
The rights of people to use roads at their pleasure have been protected--even if only superficially by laws and regulation. But these laws alone and without a concerted effort focused at deterring the circumstance, rather than condemning its occurrence, surely persist it.
Having personally witnessed promises made about the very road of this more recent bicycle death on the Rickenbacker Causeway, I recognize the frustration of those in the community who would publicly demand the living rights of all people. Bicyclists, though a perceived nuisance to drivers, represent a legitimate and growing demographic of transported people. Public transportation and a personal car are not always sufficient and necessary means of meeting our transportation needs.

If the community gathers to demand justice in response to this recent of various bicycle deaths, it would do best though to focus not on response, rather sharply at the inability of the ongoing approach to adequately or noticeable promote the safety of that community.
The answer is not simple, but do we even ask the right questions of those who act in our names? It is unreasonable for government to approach problem solving by the paradigm of costly studies and lofty schemes promoted by public funds seeking firms.
While drivers mostly advance the conventional wisdom that bicycles belong on the sidewalk, any bicyclist worth their damn uses the streets to get places otherwise far away.  They would tell you the impracticality of relying on the sidewalk.

There are probably many ways to get the idea in the minds of Miami drivers that bicyclists should be respect. (everyone should be respected) Some cheesy in part of me like sharrows; others like bike lanes. More ubiquitous exposure will certainly have its place and unfortunately so too will the accidents.

Why we need the internet

As I've believed for a while, everyone knows, and the Miami Herald reports, Newspapers are failing, and with them comes large amounts of accountability to politicians.

They can get away with much more today than they could before the advent of the internet. What's up with that?
I'll tell you what's up: citizen journalism has yet to truly flourish--yet it is the only viable alternative to Big Media because unlike BM, citizen journalism doesn't depend on sponsorship and special interests. What it does depend on, and the biggest barrier to its proper advent, is effort. We have to make the news ourselves.

I haven't got to that point yet on this blog because it's still so young, and my posting is rather inconsistent, but hopefully this year I can make it a point to push my own limits, and demonstrate in some manner what an individual can do to bring relevant, honest news to others, which in and of itself would be a glimpse of what's possible with a whole citizen journalist network. This is certainly something I should look in to because there are already many example of citizen journalism at work on the internet, but I don't know if anything has been developed to allow communities to better watch themselves.