SFGN'S "Wilton Manors Gazette" by The Gazette

WMG Volume 6 • Issue 2 January 16, 2019

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community

Big Gift for Residents on

Northwest 30th Court The quiet street will be removed from a proposed redevelopment plan By Sallie James the Wilton Manors city limits. This time the little guy won. Northwest 30th Court is a short Residents of a quiet neighborhood south of Oakland Park Boulevard clapped residential street that runs parallel to the and cheered on January 8th after city south side of Oakland Park Boulevard in commissioners agreed to remove their an area east of Interstate 95 and west of street from a redevelopment plan they Andrews Avenue. Approximately 75 single feared could destroy their peace and family homes line this quiet street, with quiet. The proposed Transit Oriented the homes on the south side of Northwest 30th Court bordering Corridor (TOC) would the Middle River. promote redevelopment “I don’t want the by increasing density and city to initiate a change allowing zoning changes on a residential street that would allow a mix of because I’ve seen uses. that backfire,” said “I’m very happy,” said Commissioner Gary longtime resident Ron Resnick. “I don’t see Burr, who lives in the - Ron Burr the City Commission 600 block of Northwest Resident necessarily protecting 30th Court. “There is a the interests of the huge unknown about what the TOC is going to do. We are a 100 residential character of the neighborhood. percent residential neighborhood. There We haven’t done that.” Resnick said he understood why is no reason we should be part of a TOC residents worried that a future amendment. After months of protests from commission might not look out for their residents, city commissioners finally interests. City Manager Leigh Ann Henderson agreed to carve Northwest 30th Court out of a proposed redevelopment corridor had asked the commission for direction that will extend east on Oakland Park on how to proceed after the city was Boulevard from Interstate 95 to Andrews flooded with complaints from residents Avenue and south on Andrews Avenue to who lived on Northwest 30th Court.

“It’s our neighborhood. Leave it alone.”

A view of Northwest 30th Court. Photo courtesy of Sallie James.

Burr, who attended the Jan. 8th commission meeting, spoke with passion before the commission agreed to remove the street from the redevelopment plan. “We ask that you take NW 30th Court out of the TOC and leave us alone,” Burr said. “We have a nice little community here, a closeknit neighborhood and we don’t want to be destroyed. It’s our neighborhood. Leave it alone.”

In the end, commissioners did. If Wilton Manors wants to add the street back into the TOC plan in the future, it will cost $2,500 in consulting fees and take about 60 days to make revisions. Homeowners had worried that future commercial development could mar the tranquility of their quiet neighborhood. Continued on page 4 

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January 16, 2019

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Opinion

Border Protection

The City Commission just erected their own wall in Wilton Manors

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January 16, 2018 • Volume 6 • Issue 2 2520 N. Dixie Highway • Wilton Manors, FL 33305 Phone: 954-530-4970 Fax: 954-530-7943

By Sal Torre On the same evening that President Trump addressed the nation from the Oval Office last week, members of our City Commission seemed to be in lockstep with the notion of building a wall. Locally that wall will begin at NW 30th Court and carve out a small section of the surrounding neighborhood to protect them from the outside world, but especially from the hordes of developers who are invading our borders and stealing our properties. Wow, on the same evening that we heard from our President, claiming of an emergency crisis flooding over our southern border, based on fear mongering and fake news, should it come as any surprise that the majority of our city commission fell prey to the same nonsense? For many years, the city has paid for and commissioned studies from regional planning groups and zoning experts only to be swayed by a few residents driven by misinformation, fear, and fake news.

WMG

One resident who spoke during Public Comments claimed that city bulldozers were already positioned to start demolition of their homes. Others requested that the city inform residents of NW 30th Court when the demolition will begin. Fake news and fear mongering are the new norm, and our City Commission is not immune from this devastating new reality. Instead of having the leadership to plan correctly for the city’s future, most of our commissioners chose to give in to short-term fear and misinformation -- not a good way to begin the New Year, and not a good way to break out of the starting gate for some of our newly elected officials. Vice Mayor Tom Green passionately stated the truth behind the proposed Land Use Changes and explained how future zoning would offer much better protection to our neighbors on 30th Court, our Westside community and our city as a whole. The TOC Mixed Use designation would provide so much more protection and input into the future zoning and development of the area. Unfortunately, a few property owners were able to use the fear of imminent demolition of homes and uncontrollable destruction of their neighborhood to convince not only their neighbors, but also City Commissioners who should know better. The City Commission has had multiple studies by regional planning groups, at a huge cost to the city. Our own Planning and Zoning Board voted unanimously in support of the proposed Land Use Changes in question. We also have advisory boards and community organizations that offer solid community input to our elected officials and city management. We elected our officials to make the tough decisions on what is best for our city. This decision to carve out, to figuratively build a wall around a few city blocks, is not a good example of such decision making. Let us take a closer look at the reality on the ground. A large number of properties along this stretch of NW 30th Court are non-homesteaded properties. Many are not owned by concerned residents, many are rental properties, and who knows how many are vacation rentals. If I were a resident of NW 30th Court, I would be more concerned about the future of these properties and their uncontrolled effect on my

Publisher • Norm Kent norm.kent@sfgn.com Chief Executive Officer • Pier Angelo Guidugli piero@sfgn.com Associate publisher / Executive Editor • Jason Parsley jason.parsley@sfgn.com Copyeditor • Kerri Covington

Editorial

Art Director • Brendon Lies artwork@sfgn.com News Editor • Sallie James

Correspondents

Sal Torre • James Oaksun

Staff Photographers

J.R. Davis • Carina Mask • Steven Shires

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quality of life and my property values. These residents missed a golden opportunity to have a much greater say in what happens in their community. A TOC Mixed Use designation would give the surrounding community a far greater say in what would be permissible uses of surrounding properties. However, due to misinformation, fear, and fake news, the residents of NW 30th Court will be faced with a new reality. Now that the City Commission has directed city staff to begin the process of removing this area from the Land Use changes and future zoning of a TOC Mixed Use Corridor, they will be left to suffer whatever comes their way in the future, having very little or no say whatsoever in what gets developed in the surrounding commercial, multi-unit residential and nonresident properties, while the rest of the city suffers from the poor choices made by a majority of our commissioners. I have to be careful here. Calling out our City Commission when they make bad decisions does not make for pleasant relations. However, doing just that will make us a stronger community. Having a debate on what is the right path for us to take in our community is not a negative as some will claim, but rather a strength that often leads to better decisions. Having such a debate is what will continue to make life just better here. WMG

We elected our officials to make the tough decisions on what is best for our city.

Sales Manager • Justin Wyse justin.wyse@sfgn.com Advertising Sales Associate • Edwin Neimann edwin.neimann@sfgn.com Advertising Sales Associate • Clark Rogers clark.rogers@sfgn.com Accounting Services by CG Bookkeeping South Florida Gay News is published weekly. The opinions expressed in columns, stories, and letters to the editor do not represent the opinions of SFGN, or the Publisher. You should not presume the sexual orientation of individuals based on their names or pictorial representations. Furthermore the word “gay” in SFGN should be interpreted to be inclusive of the entire LGBT community. All of the material/columns that appears in print and online, including articles used in conjunction with the AP, is protected under federal copyright and intellectual property laws, and is jealously guarded by the newspaper. Nothing published may be reprinted in whole or part without getting written consent from the Publisher, at his law office, at Norm@NormKent.com. SFGN, as a private corporation, reserves the right to enforce its own standards regarding the suitability of advertising copy, illustrations and photographs. MEMBER

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The Richardson Historic Park & Nature Preserve is ready and waiting to host your next event! Photo via the City of Wilton Manors, Facebook.

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January 16, 2019

Real Estate

Starting the Year With a Bang By James Oaksun I have chosen to begin my 2019 oeuvre with an inflammatory question: Can we predict where real estate prices may be heading over the short term? There are two related reasons for investigating this. First, should the overall economy continue to expand through July 2019, it will represent the longest economic expansion in this country in its 242-year history. Ever. (Regardless of which political figures take the credit, it is a fact.) In addition, we know that real estate prices in Greater Fort Lauderdale have been increasing briskly since mid-2011. As of last Sept. 30 valuations have advanced, on average, by 81 percent from that trough. For how much longer will this uptrend continue? And are there some early warning markers out there that might give us an inkling of an imminent change in the trendline? To begin to analyze this, I downloaded metro Fort Lauderdale data from the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which go back to 1975. (It is a good thing I didn’t have any questions about the data. As of my writing,

the Federal government is shut down. Sadly, statisticians in the Housing Department are not considered “essential Federal employees.”) From this data, we may easily calculate relationships in prices, comparing what we knew as of a certain date with what then happened over the near-term. Bear in mind that you cannot predict precisely what is coming. Rather, I think there is some value in determining whether established trends might continue, as well as identifying turning points on the major trend. This is especially the case for people who do not have a firm date by which they must buy or sell. In the table included here, you can see how closely pricing in future quarters relates to the current pricing. Perhaps not surprisingly, the closer you are to the present, the more accurate the prediction you can make. As more time elapses, the prediction becomes less robust, holding everything else constant. The results bear similarity to “technical analysis” of security prices, in that an established trend will tend to continue. If

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the pricing trend is up, near-term future pricing tends to be higher, and vice versa. To summarize Stage One of the modeling: 1. If housing values are INCREASING, they will tend to continue to INCREASE over the next year or so (but at a slower rate); AND 2. If housing values are DECREASING, they will tend to continue to DECREASE over the forthcoming 12 months (but at a slower rate); UNLESS 3. “Something happens.”

January 16, 2019

In my next column, I will take a look at whether there is a “something” or “somethings” that can be shown statistically and mathematically to suggest an imminent inflection in the trendline. WMG James Oaksun, Florida’s Real Estate Geek(SM), is Broker-Owner of New Realty Concepts in Oakland Park. In addition to having degrees from Dartmouth and Cornell, he is a Graduate of the Realtor Institute (GRI).

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community

this, justin

Wilton Manors Strategic Plan:

Big Gift for Residents on

Northwest 30th Court Roadmap to Our Future  Continued from page 1

Commissioners Paul Rolli and Julie Carson also agreed that the neighborhood should be pulled from the TOC. Mayor Justin Flippen supported the area’s inclusion in the TOC but agreed to its removal in the spirit of consensus. Vice Mayor Tom Green, however, was the sole dissenter. Green said that changing the area’s land use plan would make residents’ property more valuable and urged the homeowners to consider their request carefully. “This land use change is literally a gift from the city to you for your property values. The triangle area in Wilton Manors was zoned residential, one home, and when we talked about a change there with the zoning everyone was afraid of what it would do to their property values,” Green said. “You know what? It did change their property values. They went up by 25 to 50 percent within two years. Anytime you make something that’s higher in density or the possibility or the potential of it, again, it is a gift.” The city’s Planning and Zoning Board in July 2018 recommended the TOC be approved, saying the changes would help improve the

By Justin Flippen

Photo: Hagen Park Community Center. Photo via the City of Wilton Manors, Facebook.

Oakland Park/Andrews Avenue corridors and encourage redevelopment. Broward County, the state and several other agencies must evaluate the TOC proposal and take action on it before it is ultimately approved, said Robert Moore, Wilton Manors Director of Community Development Services. WMG

Forget morning coffee...

SFGN has what you need to

WAKE UP.

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For the last few months, I’ve been sharing with you the details of the Wilton Manors Strategic Plan. The third priority area of the plan is strategic growth and redevelopment in the Island City. This is an exciting time for Wilton Manors. We are poised on the cusp of transitioning from a traditional single family community to a truly urban village. In order to do so, we must be very careful to preserve the quality of life in those single family home neighborhoods while increasing density on the primary corridors. The devil is in the details on this one, and some might say that the transformation has been too long in coming. Our development standards, unified land development regulations, comprehensive plan, and city code reflect past values (some of which are frankly outdated), and all of these rules which govern how properties get built need to be evaluated and updated. It is rare for a municipality to update all at once, but our city staff has been engaged in this process for about a year and a half and is well on the way to having a finished product. These rules include changing standards to reflect the need to account for sea level rise and energy efficiency in our building code, prepare for increased capacity in our infrastructure (like water and sewer), and encourage building on primary corridors and transit routes. The Andrews Avenue/Oakland Park Boulevard Transit Oriented Corridor is an example of these changes. We have also developed an

affordable housing plan and will be implementing a first time homebuyer assistance program later this year. It’s a small program, since we are a smaller city, but I am committed to doing our part to ensure that Wilton Manors is a community where all are welcome. The essence of this priority area of growth and redevelopment is in the development and execution of an Economic Development Plan. The city now has such a plan, and is in the beginning phases of implementation of the plan. Key initiatives include identifying potential feasibility and locations for a hotel, bringing in new Class A office space, completing a master site plan for a commuter rail station, as well as a master site plan for the city hall property. This goal also includes the creation of additional parking and promoting the city as a tourism destination. Stay tuned for exciting things to come! Next month, we will complete our look back at the City’s Strategic Plan accomplishments with the fourth and final priority area: Innovating and Adapting for the Future. In your service,

Justin S. Flippen, J.D. “The People’s Mayor” Wilton Manors Mayor WMG

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January 16, 2019

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community

Politics

The Wilton Manors Art & Entertainment Expo Adds Something New to Saturdays By Natalya Jones Art Basel is over, but that doesn’t mean you have to wait until next year to pretend to be cultured or post “creative” selfies to Instagram. The Wilton Manors Art & Entertainment Expo will be taking place later this month, perfect for those who have a New Year’s resolution to get out of the house and actually be social. About 13 or more artists will be present including Andrew Mecham (Medium is Water Color). The best part? Admission is free. “There are a lot of great artists that have great pieces of art that fits any decor,” said Jeffrey Sterling, Marketing Coordinator of Wilton Manors Entertainment Group. “There are also artists that make jewelry for men and women. Not only that, but it’s a great way to get out and meet others in the community.” Added Sterling, “Wilton Drive has a multitude of restaurants, food shops, small businesses and bars that are able to appeal to a broad section of people that helps enhance the event.” Not to fret if this event interferes with your

‘Friends of Wilton Manors Library’ Looks to the Future By David Douriez x

January Netflix binge watching. This event, which will be renamed Art Walk Wilton Manor starting in February, occurs every third Saturday of the month and will feature different themes for each art walk. This is due to different sponsors for each event. The Wilton Manors Art & Entertainment Expo is on Saturday, Jan. 19 from 6 to 9 p.m. and is located at 1900-2400 Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors. For more information, visit wmae.org. WMG

Business

The Wilton Manors Public Library was inaugurated in the 1960s. In 1970, local residents created the Friends of the Library of Wilton Manors. Its mission statement supports the continued growth of the library and its resources. To follow the history of the FLWM is to learn of a group of devotees that have continued to help a centerpiece of Wilton Manors. The American Library Association (ALA) recently held its 13th annual “National Friends of Library Week.” The event is meant to commemorate the impact of similar organizations nationwide. These groups partner with local libraries and enhance their specific chapter’s offerings. With contributions made by FLWM, the Wilton Manors library was the first to obtain public access computers in all of Broward County. They continue to support the library’s access to technology, and they maintain the computers they purchased. When the library moved to a new building in 2003, they provided $120,000 dollars in new furnishings. Their more lighthearted projects include a patron subscription to the popular family database, ancestry.com. Benjamin Little, treasurer of the group, is very proud of the group’s contribution to the children’s section. Several years ago, the group installed acoustic paneling to cut down noise in this area of the

library. The treasurer does mention that the children’s story hour on Monday mornings is one to “restore faith in humanity.” The Friends of the Library also tries to organize a quarterly lecture for adults, described as “topical, interesting, and not political.” In October of 2018 they hosted Alyn Darnay, an acclaimed film director/producer. This was a well received event, free and open to the public. Their current promotion is for their next event “The Sea and Me – Prevent a CO2 Calamity,” taking place on Jan. 31, and put together by the Youth Environmental Alliance. The event is at 7 p.m. with Happy Hour at 6:30 p.m , and promises to be a fun event for those interested. They hope to see many members of the community. The FLWM has a history of lobbying the City and external groups for grants. These grants make crucial programs possible. They also remain informed of City budget and planning meetings. On several occasions, Broward County intended a takeover of the library, and they kept constituents informed of the proposed changes. The Wilton Manors Library continues to be an independent institution. Currently, the FLWM is looking for volunteers to tutor younger children, as well as participants for their monthly book tent sales.

The FLWM has a history of lobbying the City and external groups for grants.

Chamber Chat By the Wilton Manors Business Association

In December, the Wilton Manors Business Association held a holiday concert in Richardson Park, Holiday Spectacular in the Park. It was our first annual concert and we plan on doing it again this year. Proceeds from the concert, along with a donation from WMBA allowed us to donate $1,000 each to our beneficiaries, Wilton Manors Elementary School, and The City of Wilton Manors, Department of Leisure Services, for their youth programs. We presented the checks on Tuesday, Jan. 8 at the City Commissioner’s Meeting. Accepting on behalf of Wilton Manors Elementary School were Principal Melissa Holtz, and Magnet Program Coordinator Lori Goldsmith. Accepting on behalf of the City of Wilton Manors was Director of Leisure Services Patrick Cann. WMG

You can become a member of the FLWM by making a donation to their website: FriendsOfTheWiltonManorsLibrary.org/membership.php and questions about joining these events should be directed towards info@ friendsofthewiltonmanorslibrary.org.

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January 16, 2019

Wilton Manors

Photos

Classical Music Concert

By Carina Mask

The Wilton Manors Annual Classical Concert sounded off at the Hagen Park Community Center on Jan. 9.

Doris Stevenson playing the piano.

Marcus Thompson on the viola.

To see more photos and news from WMG, join us at Facebook.com/groups/WMGazette

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Community

A Look Back at Some of the Most Read Gazette Stories of 2018 Walmart, public sex, lesbian bars and more By Nicholas Adkins

File photos.

As we begin 2019, SFGN takes a look back at the most read stories from the Wilton Manors Gazette. Park Walmart in 1. Oakland Final Stages of Approval After news hit that a Walmart would be replacing the Kmart lot on 670 E Oakland Park Blvd, some residents in Oakland Park and Wilton Manors were for the new Walmart and some were against. “The city would have a challenge in defending an action brought in approving the plat. It would be a challenge to defend relative to a ministerial act,” City Attorney D.J. Doody said, advising commissioners that it would be hard for the city to prevail if Walmart had sued before Oakland Park approved the project. The planned Walmart in Oakland Park has now been approved by Broward County and Oakland Park. Now, all that’s left is a review of the plans. There have not been any further updates.

Lesbian Bar Closes Down in Wilton Manors

A little over a year after opening, G Spot Bar was the latest Wilton Drive business to close its doors this past February. Lisette Gomez, coowner of G Spot, Wilton Manors’ only lesbian bar, announced the closing on social media on Feb. 16, with G Spot officially closing Feb. 18. “I would like to thank everyone who supported us from day one and never stopped supporting us. I appreciate you! Unfortunately, it was not enough. This was not my choice and it doesn’t come easy. I worked hard to build a place for the ladies to call their own, investing my retirement because I believed there would be support. My partners trusted me when I said the ladies would support us and that was not always the case,” Gomez wrote. She went on to write that G Spot lost revenue because it was forced to close multiple weeks because of Hurricane Irma, and another incident involving fried air conditioning units. While there is no longer an official place

for the ladies in Wilton Manors, Rumors has won several times for “Best Bar for Lesbians” in South Florida Gay News’ annual contest. Also new to the drive is Club Listen located at 2440 Wilton Drive. While the bar is new the location has been home to several LGBT bars including Chardees, Progress Bar and New Moon, an iconic lesbian bar that closed years ago. Club Listen is a music-themed bar and has featured performers “The Synergy Twins” and singers Dina Martin, Deni Kent, Mickey Havens and Suzy Howard, according to the club’s Facebook page. “Overall the intention is to create a musical environment and I understand they have booked some rather good local entertainers to perform,” a Yelp reviewer writes. It appears the bar has already attracted a strong lesbian following.

in the Park: Colohatchee 3. Sex Still a Hot Spot Colohatchee Park has been used as a sex rendezvous for over a decade, and even appears on a gay cruising website, CruisingGays.com, as a place with “All kinds of guys from twinks to older gents to musclemen looking for a quick blow job.” “Please read and believe the sign posted at the park entrance [...] “Due to environmental and criminal violations, this park will be under video surveillance.” If you play with fire, you’re bound to be burned,” a comment for the park on CruisingGays as far back as 2009 states. It currently holds a 1 star out of 5 rating. Corbin Boyd, who recently ran unsuccessfully against current Wilton Manors Mayor Justin Flippen, made a statement in regards to the park on his campaign website. “Colohatchee Park – don’t take your kids there: The bathrooms are closed due to the sexual activity in this park which has been going on for decades. We spend millions on police and park rangers yet we still have this problem. Our city’s only off leash park where

dogs can run is closed two days a week. Dogs need to be walked every day – the park needs to be open every day,” a dedicated page on the website reads.

Owner Threatens 4. Nightclub Lawsuit Against Wilton Manors The owner of Le Boy Bar in Fort Lauderdale, Sean David, has followed through on his threat to sue the City of Wilton Manors for interfering with the opening of his gay bar, Ballz, in January of 2017. There have so far been no court updates, but the Wilton Manors community has had mixed opinions on the club and the case. “Johnsons is a male dancer / stripper bar. Wilton Manors was concerned because he had private rooms in his old place in FTL (yes they were getting paid for sexual activity in there). Ballz was a stupid name, tacky design and stupid concept that ruined a beloved [sports] bar location - THAT is why it failed,” one Wilton Manors local speculated. “Good for him,” another commented, “If

Hooters can operate in the tourist district on A1A, then so can Ballz in Wilton Manors. This is clearly a case of homophobia and discrimination.”

Now on Wilton Manors 5. Vote Wayfinding Sign Concepts After months of discussions and a vote by the public, commissioners approved a design for the wayfinding sign program. At their May 8 meeting, commissioners voted on concept 1B, which was also the one most favored by the public. According to the public Wilton Manors Economic Development Task Force minutes on Sep. 12 of this past year, Director Roberta Moore stated the Axia firm is currently finalizing all the designs and locations for the wayfinding project. Moore stated the project will be done in phases due to the budget. She also stated she will soon in the future provide the EDTF with the Capital Improvement Plan to show the five year breakdown. WMG

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January 16, 2019