First Call - Wine On Harvest Moon - 2015 event is set for Saturday, October 24, but beware, and purchase your tickets early as tickets are limited to the "A" List event held by the Deering Estate Foundation. CLICK HERE to view the Deering Estate Foundation's Wine On Harvest Moon page for official and detailed information.
Alexandra and I will be there. Will you? Join us for the Foundation’s signature annual fundraising event under
the enchanting glow of the Harvest Moon to celebrate America’s fine
wines and savor exceptional cuisine prepared by top local chefs.
Capacity is limited and tickets are:
$175 General admission
$150 for Deering Estate Foundation Members
Purchase tickets now!
Proceeds from the event are dedicated to environmental conservation and historic preservation of the Deering Estate.
Please take the time to read more than just a budget summary posted in an advertisement. You can (and should) take the time to read through the entire Palmetto Bay budget, proposed for 2015-16 (be patient when downloading as this is a 161 page .PDF document). CLICK HERE TO VIEW the proposed budget. This is the budget to be considered and approved or modified prior to approval at the two budget hearings set for September. These budget hearings will be held at the Village Hall Chambers, 9705 E. Hibiscus Street, Palmetto Bay, FL 33157, and are set as follows: Tuesday, September 8, 2015 - 7 pm -- FIRST BUDGET HEARING
Monday, September 21, 2015 - 7 pm -- SECOND BUDGET HEARING CLICK HERE to view the official meetings notification page for complete information.
As always, I am available to address your questions or concerns. Please feel free to contact me or any other /all members of your village council. CLICK HERE to e-mail Mayor Eugene Flinn (single e-mail address) CLICK HERE to e-mail the entire mayor and village council (all 5 with a single e-mail) Thank you, as always, for your interest and participation. Very truly yours, Eugene Flinn, Mayor, Village of Palmetto Bay
A great day riding, Saturday morning, 8/29/15. The concern of T.S. Erika was lifted and the streets were filled with bicyclists, joggers and walkers (with and without their 4 legged best friends).
Alexandra, Eugene pictured with Ana Rivas Logan and Sue Kawalerski
You never know who you will come across on a ride. We crossed a couple bike riding with their two small dogs in a bike trailer when crossing the Chinese Bridge in Deering. We then stopped to chat with the Hon. Ana Rivas Logan and Bike305's Sue Kawalerski as we turned to head north on Ludlum Road on our way to South Miami.
Its over. Enjoy the remainder of your weekend and, kids; there WILL BE SCHOOL on Monday!
Tropical Storm Erika charged into the teeth of Hispaniola's
high mountains on Friday night, and emerged from the encounter shattered,
without a closed circulation, and is no longer a tropical storm.
Per NOAA: BULLETIN
REMNANTS OF ERIKA SPECIAL ADVISORY NUMBER 19
NWS NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL052015
930 AM EDT SAT AUG 29 2015
...ERIKA
DEGENERATES TO A TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE...
We are pleased that we did not have
the opportunity to meet you TS Erika.
What did we learn from this? I look at it as an opportunity to make sure the updated
Palmetto Bay emergency operation plan was ready and could be implemented
if needed. It is ready. It was implemented professionally and smoothly. Now we
can improve on it and be ready for what will hopefully be the next close call.
Here is the Saturday morning update:
I have now posted the official photograph for the Saturday, 8/29/2015 5 AM advisory for Tropical Storm Erika (soon, hopefully, to become a depression or even a tropical wave).
I had the opportunity to participate yesterday, Friday, in the County
Mayor’s storm briefing at the County Emergency Operations Center.
The
news was good – but continue to prepare. This was part of Federal,
State, Regional, County and local agencies coordinating their efforts.
Side
meetings/updates were held with the County, as well as our sister
cities and the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD).
Storms are unpredictable, and most of the time things move in our favor.
Erika’s track and strength is looking much better today. Staging/prep
work has gone well. AND – as a bonus, TS Erika as both weakened and
tracked away from a direct impact on our South Miami-Dade County
communities.
Good news, but for the event cancellations.
Unfortunately for events, but more important for us all, Palmetto Bay
is a community where our team members are cross trained. Parks and
other personnel were/are needed for storm preparations.
On Friday, forecasters with the National Hurricane Center said a pass over the Dominican Republic and Haiti could weaken Erika to a tropical depression overnight. The struggling storm could even dissipate into a tropical wave, they said. While they warned the storm could regain strength as it slows over warm waters in the Bahamas, they no longer expect it to make landfall in Florida as a hurricane.
Be prepared for a rain event. Thank you all for your preparations and team work!
In Palmetto Bay, Friday, approximately 20 village employees cleared out
storm drains and raked the leaves away. "Debris that are out there in the
roadways, cleaning drains, make sure water is flowing in a good area, the storm
water, make sure everything is up to date as far as making sure the trash piles
are picked up," said ground maintenance worker Jimmy Pruneda.
By the way, Jimmy is an original with Palmetto Bay, one of our first hires. I believe he is employee #3. Great work Jimmy!
The photograph is the 5 AM (Friday, 8/28/15) advisory for Tropical Storm Erika. I often use www.weatherunderground.com to storm track. CLICK HERE to track TS Erika.
Federal, State, County and local officials continue to monitor and prepare for any weather event.
I have posted several important links below for hurricane / Disaster
Preparedness information from FEMA, Miami-Dade County, Cutler Bay,
Pinecrest and Palmetto Bay in one location for you. There is also
information on how to register with
Miami-Dade Alerts, a wireless emergency alerting system. Register for
this free service and receive local weather and hurricane alerts to
your computer or cell phone.
HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS Page - important links http://www.pinecrest-fl.gov/index.aspx?page=344 Listen
to Pinecrest Radio on your car radio at 1590 AM. The station regularly
broadcasts announcements and, during an emergency, will provide
important information to Pinecrest residents.
FEMA - Federal Emergency Management Agency. U.S. Department of Homeland Security: Plan and prepare for a disaster: http://www.fema.gov/plan/index.shtm
Miami-Dade Alerts
Miami-Dade
County has some important resources to help keep you informed and
prepared, like the free Hurricane Guide and Miami-Dade Alerts, a
wireless emergency alerting system. Internet users can register for
this free service and receive local weather and hurricane alerts. I encourage everyone to register online at http://www.inspironlogistics.com/wens/miami_dade/wens.cfm?wens_id=miami_dade
ALDI put on
an outstanding Grand Opening attended by hundreds of customers.There were coupons and giveaways throughout
the day.I, along with Vice Mayor, John
DuBois, and Councilwoman, Karyn Cunningham were there to celebrate. Our County Commissioner Daniella Levine Cava participated along with us.Another great
team effort.
It was great
to see so many friends and neighbors in attendance to provide such an
outstanding Palmetto Bay ‘welcome to the neighborhood.’
Thank you ALDI
USA for bringing your business to Palmetto Bay.
ALDI USA is ready to open. I was honored with a preview today, touring the store during the soft opening with our District 8 Commissioner, Daniella Levine Cava.
ALDI USA- Palmetto Bay appears ready for the full grand opening tomorrow,
Thursday, 8/20/15. Come on out and let’s
give a big Palmetto Bay welcome to a new business opening in Palmetto Bay.
Miami Hal has a preview/teaser for the upcoming opening:
Aldi's Palmetto Bay Grand Opening Tomorrow
Posted by MiamiHal Real Estate on Wednesday, August 19, 2015
I was honored to appear on "Get to Know Your Commissioner" with Jeanette Perez with our District 8 Commissioner, Daniella Levine Cava, to discuss bicycling in our community. CLICK HERE to view some of my past blog posts relating to bicycling/bike commuting.
I look forward to promoting future discussions about realizing "bicycle tourism" for our area (there will be more to follow in later posts).
Bicycling is many things to many people, but it is often described as the 'new golf' in hobby popularity* as well as the main means of transportation for others (just look at how many County buses have bikes on their front bike racks)- biking is green and healthy transportation; competitive and recreational exercise and is just a plain and healthy way to spend time with friends and/or family and view Palmetto Bay and surrounding areas - our Palmetto Bay as well as what is becoming known, under Commissioner Levine Cava's leadership, as "#TheBikeDistrict."
Palmetto Bay is a municipal partner of Miami-Dade County Bike305, and this will continue under my leadership. I will continue to support and work with groups such as the Green Mobility Network. Thank you again for the wonderful bike valets that the volunteers of the Green Mobility Network staff at events too numerous to list fully, but include Palmetto Bay's picnic, Deering Seafood and many events at Fairchild.
Let's all continue to work together and make biking even more accessible, more fun and most of all, safer for all involved. There are many exciting bicycling events and future plans that will be unfolding in the near future (later in 2015 and well into 2016). Keep an eye out.
I am a big supporter of biking. So look to future posts regarding a great Wheels Events slated for November 11 - 15 as well as discussion of the exciting Underline project - an idea discussed and a route taken in part during our last Miami-Dade County "Bike To Work Day." Oh and yes, and Palmetto Bay will have a "Bike to School" event as part of National Bike Month in 2016.
All because, are you ready for it? ... this is how we roll!
There are some great new ideas being proposed for Palmetto Bay, both in general solar/LED lighting for our traffic circles as well as upcoming safety additions for bicycle use of our roadways.
The lights may appear a bright white, but they are quite green as they are charged using the sun, self contained and are LED efficient lights. New technology fit for our green village. I am in full support of the efforts of our Village Manager Edward Silva and our Public Works team, lead by Director Corrice Patterson, who are working hard to continue to maintain and actual upgrade our village infrastructure.
Additional solar powered, LED lighting may be coming soon!
Budgeting is key and we need to ensure that our village budget is lean and controls 'leakage' - allowing us to make investments/improvements without adding to our tax burden.
I hope I am not giving too much away with this photo
There are many new projects on the market that will allow improvements without large retrofitting or ongoing operational costs. I am working to make sure our village manager and directors have the tools they need to maintain and improve our quality of life here in Palmetto Bay.
Some of the new products being reviewed and may be tested soon.
Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available.
Another great event in the "Date Night" series. For a fee of $90, each couple gets hands-on instruction on preparing unique sushi rolls of their own, while overlooking beautiful Biscayne Bay (underneath our covered patio area). Join us.
First Call - Wine On Harvest Moon - 2015 event is set for Saturday, October 24, but beware, and purchase your tickets early as tickets are limited to the "A" List event held by the Deering Estate Foundation. CLICK HERE to view the Deering Estate Foundation's Wine On Harvest Moon page for official and detailed information. 
