Miami Today: Week of Thursday, May 26, 2016

WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 26, 2016

A Singular Voice in an Evolving City

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BANKING & FINANCE

Cuba-focused investment fund is packing its portfolio, pg. 13 SOUTH DADE CULTURAL HUB: County commissioners last week directed administrators to solicit ideas for development of a South Dade Cultural Arts Village. The resolution by Dennis Moss, co-sponsored by Daniella Levine Cava, formally announces Miami-Dade’s desire to develop 8.76 acres in the South Dade Government Center. The site is near Southland Mall, the South Dade Government Center and the South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center, Mr. Moss said. “We want to stimulate the development of restaurants, offices, workforce housing and artist lofts to increase visitation to the South Miami-Dade County area and the town of Cutler Bay.” Commissioners said they anticipate the development will create businesses and a multi-attraction entertainment area that will in turn expand the visitor market and improve existing area venues.

Companies await EXIM bank return to normal work, pg. 15

THE ACHIEVER

BY CATHERINE LACKNER

HOLD THAT BEETLE: Community leaders are looking out for the Miami Tiger Beetle and calling for restoration of its habitat. Miami commissioners on May 12 voted to support the designation of the Miami Tiger Beetle as a threatened species and urge the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the US Fish and Wildlife Service to make the same designation. The legislation supports the preservation and restoration of Richmond Pine Rocklands. The area, bounded by Southwest 152nd and 184th streets and 117th and 137th avenues, is one of Miami-Dade County’s last remaining tracts of Pine Rockland, known as the Richmond Tract. The area’s habitats support rare plants, animals and insects including the Tiger Beetle. Development has diminished these habitats greatly in the county, according to the resolution.

A REPLAT FOR RESIDENTIAL: Miami city commissioners on May 12 accepted the final plat of Courtside Apartments, at the southeast corner of Northwest 17th Street and Northwest Fourth Avenue. The intent is to create one tract of land to construct residential units. The apartments will be near the Culmer Community Action Center. The plat was filed by Miami-Dade County; Mourning Family Foundation Inc., executed by Allen S. Furst; and AMC HTG 1 Ltd., executed by Mathew Reiger. The platted area is 72,497 square feet, or 1.664-acres.

FUELING CONSUMER PRICE HIKE: Consumer prices in Miami-Dade and Broward counties rose 0.7% in March and April and 1.4% in the 12 months ended April 30, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The jump in the two-month period was spurred by a 14% increase in combined gasoline and diesel fuel prices for the period, during which the cost of food dipped 0.4%.

Tina Howell

Photo by Marlene Quaroni

Franchisee runs counseling business, writes on growth The profile is on Page 4

Will bid protests swamp city’s waterfront aims?

BY JOHN CHARLES ROBBINS

While the fate of Miami Marine Stadium plays a major role in Virginia Key’s future, what happens to the marina next door might have equal or greater significance.

City commissioners are today (5/26) to consider the protests of two companies that finished second and third in bidding to redevelop Virginia Key Marina and Marine Stadium Marina.

The city owns most of the barrier island, connected to the mainland and Key Biscayne by the Rickenbacker Causeway.

The marina that fills the smaller basin northwest of the abandoned stadium now operates under an old lease. More than a year ago, the city began looking for a new operator.

Last summer, the Department of Real Estate and Asset Management requested proposals for lease and development of city-owned waterfront for “marinas/ restaurant/ ship’s store uses” on Virginia Key. Three companies made proposals. A selection committee chose Virginia Key LLC, also known as RCI Group.

Commissioners will be asked to approve the

AGENDA

Full Nelson in wrestling with bridge

Real Estate and Asset Management director’s decision to deny the protests by New Rickenbacker Marina LLC (also known as Tifon) and Virginia Key SMI LLC (also known as Suntex), and uphold the city manager’s recommendation to negotiate with top-ranked RCI Group.

On June 15, 2015, the city requested proposals for an integrated package to “plan, redesign, renovate or redevelop, lease, manage and operate a mixed-use waterfront facility including, but not limited to, two marinas, a boatyard, dock master’s office, ship’s store, dry storage, wetslip docks, and at least one restaurant.”

The successful proposer was also required to plan and build a public boat ramp and floating dock northwest of Marine Stadium as an additional component of the Virginia Key Master Plan.

RCI’s $100 million redevelopment plan includes a large dry-storage building with an automated system to retrieve boats, a new layout for docks in the smaller basin, a twostory building for a restaurant and a public baywalk.

After RCI was selected as the top-ranked

To help resolve a long-brewing Brickell Avenue Bridge battle over traffic snarls, Miami’s Downtown Development Authority has recruited US Sen. Bill Nelson to insist that bridge lockdown rules be followed and times expanded.

Oversight of the Coast Guard is part of Mr. Nelson’s committee responsibility.

On May 20, he wrote to Admiral Paul F. Zukunft, Coast Guard commandant, and Jim Boxold, new Florida Department of Transportation secretary for District 6, “I believe the Coast Guard and the Florida Department of Transportation need to revisit the 12year-old regulations for the bridge and review how the existing operations can be more stringently enforced.”

For years, the development authority has battled the Florida Department of Transportation and the Coast Guard over what it says are improper bridge openings that jam traffic.

Attorneys at Lydecker-Diaz law firm law firm, at which authority board member Richard Lydecker is senior partner, analyzed bridgekeepers’ logs pro bono and saw rules weren’t being followed. They found most openings during restricted times are for pleasure craft.

“Our comprehensive investigation has revealed more than 100 clear-cut violations of [the lock-down rule] and at least 375 instances where the raising of the Brickell Avenue Bridge has caused a chilling effect on the surrounding area’s already stressed traffic patterns,” Mr. Lydecker wrote in an April 18 letter to Mr. Nelson.

“While we have addressed our findings with appropriate local and national agencies, such as the Florida Department of Transportation and the United States Coast Guard, we believe your attention... is required in order to prevent the ongoing catastrophic effect bridge operators are causing the downtown sector...”

proposer, Tifon and Suntex filed protests that put the process on hold. The general rule is that the award of the agreement is stayed until the city commission resolves any pending protest.

The department director, Daniel Rotenberg, acting as chief procurement officer, reviewed the protests and determined that both are without merit and should be denied.

The successful proposer will be entering into a long-term lease with the city for approximately 26.65 acres (including uplands and submerged land) of waterfront property at 3301, 3605, 3501, 3311, and 3511 Rickenbacker Causeway. Voters would have to approve the deal.

The winning company will be required to contribute at least $3.45 million toward construction of an adjacent public parking garage to be maintained and operated by the Miami Parking Authority.

The city’s newly established Virginia Key Advisory Board, once made aware of the bid protests on the marina, asked that it have a chance to review and weigh in on the matter.

How an 18-year friendship could City staff planned to brief the new board at its solve bridge opening issues, pg. 10 meeting Tuesday evening.

VIRGINIA KEY BOARD SEEKS ‘TRUE’ CITY MASTER PLAN ...

2

MINUS INCENTIVES, FILM CREWS FADING FROM PICTURE ...

9

DOWNTOWNERS HIRE LOBBYIST TO GROW DOCK SPACE ...

3

SUPER-YACHT MARINA MORPHS INTO SOMETHING ELSE ...

10

VIEWPOINT: SOCCER FIELDS NEED NO ROCKET SCIENCE ...

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FUNDS TO SPUR LITTLE HAVANA IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT ... 16

DOWNTOWN JOINS IN PUSH, FUNDING TO LURE TRI-RAIL ...

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12-DAY NORTH MIAMI MISSION LURES CHINATOWN LINKS ... 18

WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 26, 2016

TODAY’S NEWS

MIAMI TODAY

3

To get more dock space, downtown authority hires lobbyist

BY CATHERINE LACKNER

In an effort to offer boaters more opportunities to explore downtown, Miami’s Downtown Development Authority voted Friday to hire Floridian Partners to help get more dockage – especially for boats of less than 100 feet – along Biscayne Bay and the Miami River.

The authority will pay Floridian Partners, a lobbying firm with ties to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, $5,000 per month on a month-to-month contract to navigate the political waters.

“We want to get more linear docks,” said board member Jose Goyanes, owner of Metro Beauty Center and Churchill’s Barbershop and chair of the authority’s Waterfront Committee. Every other county in South Florida except Miami-Dade has managed to do that, he said.

“Floridian Partners knows how to get marinas built,” said board member Richard Lydecker, senior partner of the LydeckerDiaz law firm and member of the Waterfront Committee. Floridian Partners assisted in establishing the deep-water dockage on Watson Island, he noted.

The Miami-Dade Department of Environmental Protection is not keen on issuing more permits for docks out of concern for the Florida manatee, said Brian May, a principal of Floridian Partners. At the same time, efforts are underway to establish a water taxi between Miami and Miami Beach, he said. “The trick here is to get DERM is establish a realistic, viable manatee plan.”

“I sponsored a rewrite of the manatee plan,” said board member Bruno Barreiro, who is a Miami-Dade County commissioner. “The state wants a comprehensive plan. They don’t

‘Floridian Partners knows how to get marinas built.’

Richard Lydecker

Party boats like Seafair can fit, but committee members cite a lack of space for small to mid-size boats.

‘We as a community are ‘I recognize the value of ‘I support bringing missing an asset. Our a lobbyist. Is there a someone in who can get biggest asset is Biscayne specific spot where we something better for the Bay.’ want the docks? community...’

Alvin West

Ken Russell

Bruno Barreiro

want us to kill the manatees, but we’re not about that. I support bringing someone in who can get something better for the community and has the access to do it.”

“Brian has those relationships,” Mr. Lydecker said. “He can contact elected officials and bird-dog it, bring it from the back of the desk to the front.”

Fort Lauderdale, Mr. Goyanes said, has manatee as well, but many more docks and restaurants that allow boats to dock.

In the Florida Keys, Mr. Barreiro said, the concentration of docks far outstrips the population.

“I recognize the value of a lobbyist,” said board chair Ken Russell, who is a Miami city commissioner. But he ques-

tioned whether Floridian Partners was being given too broad an agenda. “Is there a specific spot where we want the docks?”

“We should push as much as we can, because there will be push-back from them,” Mr. Goyanes said.

Floridian Partners, Mr. Lydecker said, can advise the authority about what would be

a reasonable amount of dockage to request. “They should define the scope, tell us if 100 docks would be crazy. They can walk us through it and tell us how to get there.”

Having more dock space downtown “would be a competitive advantage” compared to Miami Beach, where such space is limited, said board member Alicia Cervera, who is managing partner of Cervera Real Estate.

“We as a community are missing an asset,” said board member Alvin West, who is senior vice president and chief financial officer of the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau. “Our biggest asset is Biscayne Bay.” There is a particular lack of dock space for small to midsize boats, Waterfront Committee members said. Mr. Goyanes asked Tim Schmand, executive director of the Bayfront Park Management Trust, how much the park charges mega-yachts to dock at what’s known as the south FEC slip, adjacent to Bicentennial Park. That fee is $3.85 per foot per day, Mr. Schmand responded.

“Boats of 100 feet or less – working-class boats – can’t dock there, in the Intracoastal, the busiest waterway in the country,” Mr. Lydecker objected.

“Upgrade, Richard, upgrade!” jokingly urged board member Nitin Motwani, who is managing director of both Miami Worldcenter Group LLC and the Encore Housing Opportunities Fund.

6

MIAMI TODAY

VIEWPOINT

WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 26, 2016

MIAMITODAY Miami Today is an independent voice of the community, published weekly at 2000 S. Dixie Highway, Suite 100, Miami, Florida 33133. Telephone (305) 358-2663

Soccer fields shouldn’t need detectives or rocket scientists A brand new Miami advisory board this week may probe “The Case of the Missing Soccer Fields,” the latest volume of government whodunits in which promises to voters vanish.

Michael Lewis In this episode, Virginia Key soccer fields that were to open a month after the Miami International Boat Show left for the year never appeared. The city manager just told the Miami commission that they’ll never exist.

They join a long list of governments’ vanished vows.

Think of soccer fields at American Airlines Arena, home of the Miami Heat but never a home to soccer players who were depicted in promotions that got the arena built in Miami’s downtown. That land for soccer was diverted to other uses.

Think too of eight promised transit lines that a voter-approved sales tax was to build. Most of what the tax built was a pot of money that county commissioners diverted to other uses.

Think of the state’s lottery, which was to expand what Florida already spent for schools. The lottery cash went into the fund, but money that had been there was diverted to other uses.

The list goes on of pledges diverted to other uses, fueling suspicion of governments.

Now Miami’s new Virginia Key Advisory Board, just formed to plan for everything on the land linking the mainland and Key Biscayne, can advise the city how to deal with another bait and switch.

When the boat show left as the Miami Beach Convention Center was being rebuilt, Miami spent $20 million to pre-

pare a site for the show beside Marine Stadium. But as edgy Key Biscayners and Miami taxpayers raised concerns, the commission agreed that the show site would be a vast flex park most of the year, featuring four soccer fields.

The rendering on this page was the city showpiece for what was to come.

This month, however, City Manager Daniel Alfonso told commissioners there’ll be no soccer park. While commissioners had promised one and told staff to build it, he said “things came up” when the site was being prepared for the boat show.

Now, he says, because of a change in elevation it would be hard to turn the area into level playing fields “so we started looking at other options” – a series of events to be held there, the

very result that Village of Key Biscayne officials warned last year was the city’s plan. Apparently, they were right.

Key Biscayne’s interest is vital. The Rickenbacker Causeway, which the site borders, is the only road to the village.

Fill it with weekly events, villagers fear, and tough traffic turns to terrible.

Miami had promised last year that that would never happen. Now it appears regular events are Miami’s aim.

Soccer fields were never in a contract or an ordinance. As in most government bait-and-switch games, the public merely believed what officials promised. Silly us.

“Imagine a full-fledged soccer community out there,” then-commissioner Marc Sarnoff said at the time. We can imagine it, but the city manager can’t.

The manager says a soccer park wouldn’t be level. We don’t think that’s on the level. A society that can shoot rockets into space can figure out how to build a flat soccer field – or four of them. If it increases what the city spends on the site, that’s the cost of keeping faith with voters.

Actually, we don’t have much against a weekly show or event on Virginia Key if that’s what was pledged when the boat show deal was sealed. But the city promised the opposite, just as we were promised that we would get new transit from a tax that was spent instead to give employees raises and fix clunker buses. We aren’t against raises or fixing buses, but we favor keeping vital vows.

Now a broken promise goes to a new board whose focus is Virginia Key’s future.

Board members can duck the park issue, sealing the board’s future as a paper tiger.

Or they can tell the public to vote the rascals out or tell commissioners to fire the manager, both of which would be inappropriate.

But what they should actually do is advise the city to find a way to make playing fields flat, which sure isn’t rocket science.

Commissioner Keon Hardemon said this month of the soccer site that “it was part of the deal.” He’s absolutely right.

That’s how the boat show was sold.

The commission needs to keep faith with that, telling Mr. Alfonso not to come back as he plans with a menu of fundraising events at the site but with a detailed plan of how to build the soccer fields and the cost.

If necessary, the city should ask experts. It doesn’t have to go as far as Cape Kennedy to find someone who can design flat soccer fields. It’s not rocketry, just keeping the faith – or restoring it.

And we certainly shouldn’t need a detective to find the vanished fields.

To cut through tech confusion, just whip up the pancakes I took my IT consultant to school today. His parents, a/k/a my daughter and son-in-law, were out of town, so I had to get him to north Coconut Grove in rush hour traffic through three school zones. Susan Kahn At that hour I would normally allow 40 minutes.We got there in 21 minutes flat.

That’s what you can do when you have a personal 13-year-old IT consultant. He just whipped out his WAZE app, and I saw streets in Miami I never knew existed. Viznar Avenue? Secoffee Street?

I’ve lived here for 40 years, but I don’t remember ever using either one.

We have a deal. I make him pancakes, and he solves my tech problems.

No, there’s no more Geek Squad for me. I can’t believe these words are coming out of my mouth, but I would highly recommend that you have a teenager in your family – better yet, a pre-

teen, since computer generations seem to be about three years apart now.

I just wish he’d quit using that word “intuitive” all the time. I hate that word.

Why do tech people always say everything is “intuitive”? Is that “intuitive” like the first time I tried to use Uber?

My husband and I were going to something on Miami Beach, and with parking there running $20 or so, it seemed like the ideal time to try out my new Uber app.

And it seemed so “intuitive.”

I plugged in my address. First mistake – it knows where I am. Then I put in the address of our event and waited. Sure enough, a little car popped up on the screen not far from our house and it said, “8 minutes.”

“Wow,” I said to my husband, “this is great! We have just enough time to let out the dog, lock up the house and we’re ready to roll.”

So I let out the dog, then quick checked my phone again, and it said” 12 minutes.” That made no sense. Why would it suddenly take longer for the little car on the screen to get here?

Then, lo and behold, a second car appeared on the screen. Oh, no, I thought, I’ve got two cars coming to my house! What do I do?

And then, suddenly three cars and then four – and pretty soon, I had a whole caravan, and it said “14 minutes.”

I was in a panic – what am I going to do if seven cars pull in the driveway? I’m going to be blackballed from Uber before I ever even use it!

Well, so much for “intuitive.” (If everything’s so #@&!?! intuitive, why do they have sex ed? Tell me that, Tim Cook!). Somehow I found something that said “Cancel” and you know the end of the story. We drove to Miami Beach.

Unfortunately, my 13-year-old tech consultant wasn’t around, or I am sure I would easily have gotten out of that fix. That’s the problem with teenagers – they disappear when you most need them.

Just this weekend we took him and his brother to the beach for the day. My husband and I were lounging on beach chairs, watching while they happily tossed

a football in the water – when suddenly the game came to an abrupt halt.

Two cute 13-year-old blondes had appeared on the scene. Somehow I don’t think pancakes are going to cut it much longer.

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WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 26, 2016

TODAY’S NEWS

MIAMI TODAY

7

Downtowners join push to bring in Tri-Rail, pledge funds

BY CATHERINE LACKNER

Directors of Miami’s Downtown Development Authority voted unanimously Friday to join the push to bring Tri-Rail into downtown by amending an agreement the authority signed when pledging $1.3 million in financial support. The new contract does not require the Florida Department of Transportation to be part of the deal.

The authority’s financial commitment to the project hasn’t changed, said Alyce Robertson, executive director.

Bringing commuter rail into downtown “has been one of the central tenets in our master plan for the past seven or eight years,” said board Vice Chair Neisen Kasdin, who is office-managing partner of Akerman LLP. “This is a necessary step.”

“This is the station that pins it down,” said Alice Bravo, director of Miami-Dade’s Transportation and Public Works Department. She told the group that MiamiCentral, where both Brightline bullet trains and TriRail will operate, is part of the new Strategic Miami Area Rapid Transit plan, which identified six corridors for transit improvements.

One of them, the Northeast/ FEC Corridor, has been studied

Photo by John Charles Robbins

All Aboard Florida is erecting columns that could bring Tri-Rail service into downtown’s MiamiCentral.

since 1993, she said. “This is a nobrainer; the track is already there,” she said. “The ease of implementation will be a big factor.” She said the county will work with the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority, which manages Tri-Rail, to develop service from Aventura to downtown, with four stations in between.

“You have literally put your money where your mouth is,” Ms. Bravo told the authority’s board. “We need to continue to move forward at an aggressive pace.”

“All of the corridors in the plan lead to downtown,” Mr. Kasdin said. “We are the beneficiaries.”

But, he warned, “in the past everything cratered because of politics. If selecting the first corridor becomes political, it will fail.”

“In the past, we’ve been fragmented,” Ms. Bravo said. “Now, we have consensus. We’ve never had side-by-side comparisons of the six corridors before.

But in a few months, we’ll know cost and ridership projections

for each corridor. We’ve made a lot of progress in the past few months.”

The authority’s approval joins that of Miami-Dade County, the City of Miami and the Citizens’ Independent Transportation Trust, all of which revised agreements to allow the project to move forward. The Bayfront Park Management Trust and both the Omni and Southeast Overtown/Park West community redevelopment agencies will be asked to take similar actions in the coming days. None of the

parties is being asked to contribute more money than was previously agreed.

The state transportation department may drop out of the project over insurance concerns, but the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority has agreed to foot more of the bill if the matter is not resolved in its favor.

On May 2, Ms. Bravo advised all of the parties that agreements had to be made quickly or All Aboard Florida might withdraw its offer to have commuter service operate out of MiamiCentral.

All Aboard Florida, a wholly owned subsidiary of Florida East Coast Industries, “has advanced construction of the commuter rail platforms and is incurring significant costs since the station has gone vertical and columns have been erected,” Ms. Bravo’s letter said. “If we are not able to execute agreements by the aforementioned date, All Aboard Florida has advised us that they will be forced to cease construction on the commuter rail infrastructure.

“Without a definitive plan of action and inter-agency coordination to pursue new agreements, we could forfeit this unique opportunity to bring commuter rail to the central business district.”

Downtown authority might expand north

BY CATHERINE LACKNER

Miami’s Downtown Development Authority might consider expanding its boundaries to include a fast-developing area that is considerably north of the central business district.

At the authority’s meeting Friday, Andres Althabe, president of the Biscayne Neighborhoods Association, said his group would tax itself to join the downtown authority.

The neighborhood association’s boundaries are from I395 on the south to Northeast 39th Street on the north, and from Biscayne Bay west to Miami Avenue. The downtown authority’s northern boundary is now Northeast 24th Street.

Over the next six months to a year, about 6,000 condominium units worth about $1 billion will be delivered to the neighborhood and yet the residents find city services lacking, Mr. Althabe said.

“There is a desperate lack of leadership there” from the city, agreed board member Alicia Cervera, who is managing partner of Cervera Real Estate. She is frequently in that area, and said that improvements are sorely needed.

“We can’t get you more trash pickups,” warned authority chair Ken Russell, who is a Miami commissioner. “We aren’t a cure-all.”

Among other services, which include data collection and marketing, the downtown author-

ity provides a Downtown Enhancement Team, which performs maintenance, and the Downtown Ambassadors, who guide tourists, answer questions, give directions and serve as “extra eyes and ears” for police officers.

If the neighborhoods want to join and the downtown authority is willing, the process would take about six months, including two public hearings before the Miami commission, said John Greco, Miami deputy city attorney.

That means revenues from the area couldn’t be added to the authority’s tax rolls this year, said Alyce Robertson, authority executive director.

Tax bills go out in the fall.

“Is this being done with the support of the neighbors, and is it viable for us to provide services there?” asked board member Jose Goyanes, who is the owner of Metro Beauty Center and Churchill’s Barbershop.

He suggested giving the neighborhoods an idea of what the downtown authority could and could not do. “We could show them, ‘Here’s what you get.’ We also need to know what we’re getting from them.

They are going to want to see their money working on the street.”

“We need to discuss the pros and cons with them,” Mr. Russell said. But he didn’t appear averse to the idea. “Nobody is spending any money in that area.”

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WEEK OF THURSDAY, MAY 26, 2016

TODAY’S NEWS

MIAMI TODAY

9

Minus state incentives, local film crews fading from picture

BY CATHERINE LACKNER

After four consecutive years during which the Florida Legislature failed to add new funding to film and entertainment incentives, some behind-the-cameras workers have relocated to states that offer robust programs, including Georgia, Louisiana and North Carolina. Industry stakeholders worry that the local workforce will follow the jobs elsewhere.

“Our friends think we’re nuts for not just packing up and heading for Georgia, as most sane film professionals have already done,” said Barbara PetersonMalesci, who is a set decorator and production designer. Her husband, Art Malesci, is a stunt coordinator and second-unit director who was responsible for stunt production on the “Burn Notice” series.

“We have both been working in this town for more than 30 years and made a good living here. Until now. In the past year, even though I have been doing ‘Ballers’ and a few pilots and pieces of movies and commercials, the winds of change are in the air.”

Mr. Malesci has worked in Georgia and Louisiana, and Ms. Peterson-Malesci has been offered work in Georgia. But the couple lives in and remains loyal to South Florida.

“Not a week goes by that someone on the phone, at the office of a vendor far away, doesn’t say, ‘Oh, you’re in Miami! Is it really everything they make it look like in the movies and on TV?” and I say, “Yep, it’s exactly that, and more.

Come on down!”

She said she hopes visionary leaders – who understand not only the industry’s direct economic impact but also the free advertising productions here generate – will step in to rescue the industry.

In April, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez announced that his administration is working to offer inducements to productions on a case-by-case basis.

The production would have to prove it was viable, could comply with Miami-Dade’s hiring requirements and would deliver sufficient return on the county’s investment, added Sandy Lighterman, the county’s film commissioner, at that time.

“As support dwindles in Tallahassee, we feel it’s time for our local leaders to step up and assist our industry,” said Mike Zimmer, principal of Unique Producers, a local industry presence for more than 40 years. “It will be a challenge for our business to continue at its current level if that support is not realized. If Miami-Dade County could offer its own rebate program, it would send a message to the industry that we support their projects.

“I know that the majority of the support must come from Tallahassee, but it has failed to act, so we have to be proactive in our support at a local level,” Mr. Zimmer said. “We are at a critical time. We must do something to keep this industry afloat,

Photos by Maxine Usdan

“As support dwindles in Tallahassee, we feel it’s time for our local leaders to step up and assist our industry,” said Mike Zimmer, principal of Unique Producers, a local presence for more than 40 years.

and it’s up to our local leaders to make that commitment.”

“I have worked and lived in Fort Lauderdale for almost 20 years,” said Shona Tuckman, CEO of Kreate Films. The company is headquartered in nearby Hollywood, and its 2012 first feature film, “Finding Joy,” was shot entirely in Broward County with a production team that was 98% local, she said.

“Since then, we have been forced to spend our budgets on out-of-state productions,” Ms. Tuckman said. “It has become financially impossible to convince financiers and executive producers that [filming in Florida] is a good idea. It just doesn’t make sense for the bottom line. There is so much talent and so many amazing locations here, but producers like me have no choice but to look at other states and their incentives when budgeting a film. I would like to see assistance for those of us who are living and trying to work here,” she said.

A program “could start small and allocate funds for producers like me, Florida residents who have projects ready to go.

That would be a start, at least,” Ms. Tuckman said.

“My job is to spend money!” said Jane Johnson, a set decoration buyer and veteran of more than 30 years in the industry. “I

live in Miami but have worked all over the state. I honestly have no idea what I will do if we lose the last of the film jobs in Florida. I do not want to work out of Florida, but I may have to.

“The new game is tax incentives and our state legislators refuse to play,” Ms. Johnson said. “Our county tax base is healthy; so could local incentives happen? I have walked the halls of our state capital and shared my story and my support for the incentive program.

The word is: no tax break, no jobs. I will continue to fight for an industry that I have found to be a wonderful, creative, wellpaying, commerce-generating and a perfect marketing vehicle for our beautiful state.”

“I am a production coordinator working in the film and television industry in Florida since 1996,” said Pam Holdridge, whose credits include “Bloodline,” “The Glades,” “The Finder” and other productions.

“The Florida Legislature has failed to renew the current film incentive program, creating a sense of urgency for me and [other] industry professionals.

Having experienced the ebb and flow of production in Florida prior to the film incentives, I learned to maintain a tight budget for the lean times. However,

it has not prepared me for what is going on in Florida now.”

Ms. Holdridge said she is submitting her resume in other states, thought “it means leaving loved ones for months at a time, not an easy lifestyle. I would like to believe that projects will choose Florida for its locations and beautiful weather yearround. However, I am a realist and recognize the attraction of the film incentive programs in other states,” she said.

“If the Florida film incentive is not part of a statewide program to encourage the film and television industry to bring projects to Florida, I hope that a film incentive will be considered on a county level,” Ms. Holdridge said.

“As a film producer and writer, I try to come up with stories that can be done in Miami and in Florida,” said George Edward Fernandez. “As a producer, I have to look for the financing to get these projects off the ground. I’m the guy who hires the crews to work on the projects.”

The Legislature’s non-action on incentives “is sending a message to possible investors, who become wary of putting dollars into a business that is frowned upon by the state. People I have known the past 30 years have been forced to pick up and leave

Jason Villella, who has worked in the industry since 1997, now works as rigging gaffer on “Bloodline.”

their homes because of the Florida Legislature’s actions,” said Mr. Fernandez, who is currently teaching at the New York Film Academy on South Beach.

The HBO series “Game of Thrones” has bought more than $100 million in tourism revenue into Northern Ireland, he said.

“We easily had that here in just South Florida,” Mr. Fernandez said. “Our Florida Legislature is going in the wrong direction.

We cannot continue to lose the talent behind the camera. That is talent is highly trained, and it is irreplaceable when it leaves.”

“There is nowhere else like South Florida for filming,” said Jason Villella, who has worked in the local industry since 1997 in varying capacities and is now working as the rigging gaffer on “Bloodline.”

“I am a Florida native,” he said. “The people who work in this industry are artistic and creative people, which I believe has made Miami the beautifully eclectic city that it is. Miami is a city of creativity, and filming is another way of expressing that and showcasing how diverse cultures, races, languages and religions can come together to make a great city.”

His message to the industry: “Come, film in Miami, where we are professionals who love our job and our city.”

“I can attest that many projects promote travel and tourism in Florida,” said Bill Marinella, a principal of Extras Casting.

Though extras are temporary employees, “Tens of thousands of extras worked on ‘Magic City’ alone during the two seasons we shot in Miami, creating money that is spent locally,” he said.

“Imagine if there were 10 films shooting at once, as it was during 2011,” when incentives were still in place.

Auxiliary spending boosts the local economy, he said. “It’s not just movie people who are working; it’s all the extra businesses that support our needs.

Bring back the film incentives!”

Mike Savitz, principal of Shoot Collective, a Miami-based production company that has specialized in television commercials for more than 17 years, has a more sanguine outlook.

“We have found that most of the crews that consistently work on our projects are staying put here,” he said. “Commercials come to South Florida because they want the experienced labor force, the best suppliers, the diverse talent pool, the varying landscapes and the beautiful weather. An abundance of accommodation options doesn’t hurt, either. Advertisers and advertising agencies love to be in Miami, and they love the material they take back with them once the project is complete.

“Our hope is that Miami-Dade will begin providing its own film incentive program to lure more feature films and television series back to the area,” Mr. Savitz said. “If the incentives are there, they will come, and as a result our crews and suppliers will stay put. I can tell you this: Shoot Collective is not going anywhere.”

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Banking & Finance Investment fund targeted to Cuba packing its portfolio B Y CAMILA C EPERO

In anticipation of the era when the US trade embargo against Cuba is a thing of the past, Thomas J. Herzfeld’s Caribbean Basin Fund has been packing its portfolio with companies that he believes will get a “large boost in business” when the time comes.

The US embargo against Cuba, which has been in place since the 1960s, maintains a policy of economic sanctions and diplomatic isolation of Cuba.

Now, as the US administration seems to be strengthening its relationship with the Cuban government, some experts point to better prospects for Cuba-US relations “The fund has been in existence for a quarter of a century and it has done quite well,” said Thomas J. Herzfeld, founder of Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc., the investment advisor to The Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund Inc. “Original investors have more than doubled their money as a result of a good portfolio of stocks.”

Since 1994, Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors has managed the publicly traded closed-end Quarter-century-old fund has done well: founder Thomas Herzfeld. Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund.

According to the firm’s website, it is the first-ever fund formed to invest specifically in the Caribbean region, including Cuba (as legally permissible), seeking long-term capital appreciation.

“We’ve selected companies that we think will get a large boost in business” when Cuba opens, Mr. Herzfeld said.

Investors in the fund fall into three categories, he said.

There are the individual investors, the entrepreneurial investors “who maybe would like to start a business in Cuba,” and the large corporate investors “who have been working on strategic plans for many years.”

The fund does well even if there is no economic change, he said. It has investments in hospitality, shipping and construction material companies.

“We also work with corporations. They know we’ve been working with this for 25 years,” Mr. Herzfeld said.

About 5% of the fund’s assets are invested in shares of Carnival Corp., the world’s largest cruise ship operator.

Carnival this month began cruises to Cuba.

“Mom-and-pop CubanAmericans who would like to be involved in Cuba – maybe

they own a hardware store or a pharmacy and would like to expand into Cuba – many people like that are invested in the fund,” Mr. Herzfeld said.

The firm was “rather extensively” involved with Airbnb, a website where people can rent unique accommodations from local hosts in over 191 countries, before the company expanded into Cuba last year, he said. “We gave them some ideas.”

The site now offers over 4,000 Cuban listings and has had over 13,000 bookings in Cuba.

When Cuba-US news makes headlines, the fund “tends to be the focus of attention,” Mr. Herzfeld said. The fund reacts to news – both good and bad.

In 1996, after Cuba shot down a Brothers to the Rescue aircraft flown by members of the exile organization known for its opposition to the Cuban government, the fund’s stocks also took a hit.

But “during the first visit of Pope Francis [in September] shares were up sharply,” Mr. Herzfeld said.

“The stock tends to be very sensitive to news,” he said.

“When Obama made his first remarks in December 2014 – stocks doubled.”

Community bank deposits at high, spotlighting loans targets

BY CATHERINE LACKNER

Community bank deposits are an all-time high right now, but has that created problems in finding worthy loan risks, given government limitations?

“Banks continue to want to increase their deposit base, and there are multiple incentives for banks to do so,” said Lewis Cohen, a partner in the Miami law firm of Cohen Nicoleau, a boutique banking law firm.

“Customer deposits are sources of new customer acquisition and, of course, a means of customer retention.”

Deposit accounts, he said, “are a primary source of checkwriting, wire-transfer and dormant-account fees. An increase in customer base is critical to virtually any bank, and once they have that customer relationship in place, banks have a variety of products and services to offer.

“Lending is a second major sources of bank income, but there are limitations on it,” he added. Banks are prohibited from lending more than 15% of their capital and surplus to any one borrower, he explained.

“The exception is if a loan is secured by a government-

‘Typically, banks are not turning away deposits, as there are still many lending opportunities out there.’

Lewis Cohen backed program,” such as the Small Business Administration, Federal Housing Administration of Department of Housing and Urban Development, he said, because the risk of default is virtually zero.

“Loans themselves are a source of income for banks, so they are certainly motivated to bring in more customers,” who might apply for loans, Mr. Cohen said. “Having a lending relationship with that customer

is part of having a well-rounded bank. Typically, banks are not turning away deposits, as there are still many lending opportunities out there.”

Banks being awash with cash “is a temporary luxury,” said Carlos Fernandez-Guzman, president of Pacific National Bank. “Once rates rise, those dollars will start to flow outside banks. Lending is the big challenge.”

For many banks, that lending will lean more toward commercial, rather than residential, loans, he said. Because of government regulations, some banks, like Bank United, have stepped away from residential lending, he said.

“The regulations have swung so far that it has had this unintended consequence,” Mr. Fernandez-Guzman said. “The risk of error is extremely high.

We’ve stepped up our lending to owner-occupied commercial real estate, where we can compete.”

Pacific Bank can offer attractive rates on small- to midsize commercial loans, which he defines as being between $10 million and $30 million. “We can do a much better job,” than the larger national banks.

‘Once rates rise, those dollars will start to flow outside banks. Lending is the big challenge.’

Carlos Fernandez-Guzman The larger loans, in the $60 million to $80 million range, “the big boys can do under one pen, without partners,” he said.

“We’re not even on the screen for that.” Because they have more assets, the national banks aren’t so hampered by the 15% rule, he added.

Black-market lenders, unfettered by government regulation, have entered the market, Mr. Fernandez-Guzman said. “They can provide working capital, but

at higher rates than the banks can. But for these lenders, it’s strictly about the numbers.”

The relationship between bank and borrower is nonexistent, he said, “whereas with a community bank, you had a history built up, and when hard times hit your clients, you stepped up to the plate to help them make it through.”

“Community banks remain stressed,” agreed Hal Lewis, a partner in the Pathman Lewis law firm who focuses his practice on banking. “The regulatory environment works better for the bigger banks,” because it may require the hiring of more employees to comply with the complicated reporting requirements.

“Lending is on an upward trend, but here’s a lot of pressure,” he said. While banks may encourage more deposits so that they will have money to lend, they also have to raise their deposit rates to attract that business, in an era of very competitive loan rates.

“It’s a very tight spread,” Mr. Lewis said. “It’s becoming difficult for community banks to compete, and they have always been the backbone of the local banking industry.”

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North Miami’s 12-day mission lures Chinatown investors

BY MARCUS LIM

North Miami officials returned last week from a 12-day China trip seeking investors and cultural inspiration to lay the groundwork for the city’s newly designated Chinatown District.

Six delegates traveled to Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai, meeting with government officials and business leaders to discuss opportunities for commerce and to expand the city’s international relations.

The idea of a Chinatown district came from Vice Mayor Alix Desulme, who wanted to revitalize the Seventh Avenue corridor, which has been struggling economically.

“This will be the first official Chinatown in the state of Florida and this would be a great economic and tourism boost,” Mr. Desulme said. “This will transform Seventh Avenue into something where people can see a difference.”

In February the North Miami City Council unanimously designated 15 blocks along Northwest Seventh Avenue between Northwest 119th and 135th streets a Chinatown.

Mr. Desulme said the trip gave him and his staff ideas on making the Chinatown authentic.

“We wanted to do something where we understand the culture and do it justice,” he said.

“And we could only do it by being on the ground, eating the food, talking to the folks to understand their culture.”

Tanya Wilson-Sejour, city planning, zoning and development director, gave presentations to officials and said they were warmly received not only by them, but also by some residents of China who represent their culture.

“The audience were very receptive to the idea and had a strong desire to follow the master plan,” she said. “We seek to celebrate cultures and focus on the need for innovation, great infrastructure, sustainability and technology.”

Other ideas the trip inspired were open spaces in the Chinatown district, spaces for reflections, parks and recreation, and cultural and arts exhibitions. Economic development incentives proposed to Chinese investors and officials included an advantage in transporting goods from China to North Miami due to its strategic location.

“North Miami has a competitive advantage for people flying in or bringing in goods or services from the port,” Ms. Wilson-Sejour said. “The proximity to those ports helps with easy transportation there and

North Miami has taken its inspiration from Chinatowns around the US. San Francisco’s is widely known.

North Miami’s trade team clusters around FIU President Mark Rosenberg at college’s Tianjin graduation.

from, and we think it’s a benefit from a proximity and transportation standpoint. We are centrally located, right between Miami and Fort Lauderdale, so it’s strategic from a geographic standpoint.”

The delegates’ plan piqued the interest of Elizabeth Huang, an independent investor in Shanghai, who said she eagerly supports the project and aims to connect North Miami with Chinese urban planners and other investors.

“We feel strongly that it is part of our patriotic duty to help you as much as we can,” Ms. Huang wrote in an email to Mr. Desulme. “It would be great if our involvement in the project could also lead to some types of business opportunities, but that is not the main purpose of our willingness to contribute.”

Those voicing support for the plan include the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, brewery companies, technological companies and others. Arthur Sorey, deputy city manager, found the potential contacts in China and will

continue working with them.

“We made several contacts, and it’s just us developing a relationship and moving forward,” Mr. Sorey said. “We will continue to cultivate them over the months to let them know how we can support them and how they can support us.”

Even though Seventh Avenue is heavily traveled, said Ms. Wilson-Sejour, there has been a lot of business disinvestment.

In order to find new business, the city hopes to tap into the booming Chinese market.

“Their market is very strong and we want to attract them,” Ms. Wilson-Sejour said. “This was an opportunity to tap into a strong global market to find a way to build a bridge between the availability of foreign funds in the Chinese market, and North Miami has the potential and poised to receive that investment. We aren’t just looking for local businesses; we are looking for global, across the border of America.”

The city has been boosted by the strong presence of Chinese students at Florida International

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seems people are ready to step in to invest and be a part of North Miami.”

The number of Asian Americans and international Chinese students has steadily increased in Miami. Students from China have decided to pursue their undergraduate and graduate studies in South Florida, with the University of Miami and Florida International University’s main campus in Tamiami being popular choices.

The International Students and Scholars Services at FIU and the University of Miami told Miami Today that in the spring semester of 2016, the universities respectively enrolled 567 and 836 students from China.

The idea of a Chinatown district was well received by John Le, a student at UM and the president of the Asian American Students Association, who said a Chinatown would be great for its members.

“I always get questions from freshmen asking where they can get Asian food and items, which is really difficult to get in Coral Gables,” Mr. Le said. “Now that there is a Chinatown it makes it very accessible for us. It’s also great to see our culture represented nearby.”

Mr. Le said he would consider making organized trips to the district and offer community service to the first official Chinatown in Florida.

In the latest US Census, 2014 data estimate that the population of Asians in Miami-Dade is 1.6%, with 12,943 people identifying as Chinese. In North Miami there are only 1,356 Asians, with 139 identifying as Chinese.

While the Chinatown district represents the diversity that Miami has been known for, the China mission delegates say economic development is the real boon for the city. They have taken inspiration from Chinatowns around the nation such as Philadelphia, with an average retail revenue of $125 million a year; Seattle, with an average retail of $41 million per year; and Washington, DC, where tax assessments in 2015 were estimated at $2.5 billion.

“The district is focused on revitalization, and it is a goal and opportunity to represent a culture that has not been done in Florida.

North Miami can be the gateway for this,” Ms. Wilson-Sejour said.

“The area is still struggling from an economic standpoint and needs something vibrant and bold to breathe life into a struggling commercial corridor.”

University’s North Miami campus. Staff and students helped the delegates in their connections and translations.

“We would not have done this without our partners in FIU,” Mr. Desulme said. “There are so many Asian students, and when we went to meet with the students, they were so excited. FIU has longstanding relations in China, and because of that they were able to help us out.”

The main relation FIU has with China is a campus in Tianjin, where a branch from the university’s school of hospitality and tourism management has operated since 2006. The Chinese students will come to the North Miami campus to complete their curriculum, and Ms. Wilson-Sejour sees it as another opportunity for investment in the new Chinatown.

“Since the children are studying here at FIU, how can we get their parents and partners to Details: http:// follow their children and invest www.northmiamifl.gov/ and here?” she asked. “Receiving http://www.northmiamifl.gov/ the reception in China shows that we are on the right path. It Docs/NMiami_English.pdf

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