Wednesday, August 24, 2016

Important forum - "The What, Where, and Why of Human Trafficking" Forum - Wed., 9/14 - Pinecrest Gardens

This is an important topic.  I join with our County Commissioners: Daniella Levine Cava & Xavier Suarez and fellow Mayors Philip Stoddard of South Miami & Cindy Lerner of Pinecrest to partner with the Miami-Dade County Commission for Women. 

Join the Miami-Dade County Commission for Women in A Human Trafficking Forum.  This event will be held at Pinecrest Gardens on Wednesday, September 14, 2016 from 7:00 to 9:00 PM.

RSVP to the Miami-Dade County Commission for Women at CFW@miami-dade.gov or 305-375-4967

Tuesday, August 23, 2016

Palmetto Bay Mosquito control update - Storm drain 'dunking' has commenced in Palmetto Bay as of Tuesday, 8/23/16

Mosquito control update - (Tuesday, August 23, 2016 - 1:00 PM)

I have just been advised that Palmetto Bay Village Staff has commenced dispensing of dunks into storm drains (and areas such as Bromeliads).  The village is scheduled for treatment every afternoon thereafter until complete.

Miami-Dade County is responsible for Mosquito control.  The actions of your village of Palmetto Bay are to assist and supplement, not replace the County's Mosquito control operations.  You can and still should call 3-1-1 to report issues.

We encourage all residents to visit our Mosquito Protection Awareness page for updates, links and information about mosquito awareness and Zika virus protection.

Mosquito Control County Hotline:    3-1-1
Report Online:    Click here to report online
Village Public Services:    305-969-5011


What is 'dunking"? - here is the information that I am relying upon:
Mosquito Dunks are a biological mosquito control said to contain a natural mosquito larvicide, which kills mosquito larvae, but is harmless to birds, fish, wildlife, and pets. Simply place a Dunk in any standing water to control mosquito larvae for up to 30 days.


This is NOT a fog or a spray.

Monday, August 22, 2016

Photos of the Day - Coral Reef Elementary & Southwood Middle - First day photos

Traffic prevented me from getting to all our area schools today, opening day.  I will get by and stay active with our schools. 

Alexandra and I wish everyone a happy, safe and successful school year.  We all are proud of our public and private schools here in Palmetto Bay.  Student performance off the charts, performing arts, magnets, and participation in and with our community.  One again, we look forward to another year of our students, teachers and administrators making the Palmetto Bay community proud.
The day started with daughter Meredith heading off to begin her senior year at Palmetto HS.
Coral Reef photos above - with the CRE Team: Principal Guerra, AP Pierre-Louis & Counselor Serota and greeting Madeleine (Photo credit: Ryan Baldwin).  The Baez family regularly bikes to CRE. 
Miami-Dade Public School Police officer with members of our Palmetto Bay Policing unit - keeping it safe.  Southwood Principal Raul Garcia saw to it that the talent of Southwood rocked their way to a big first day kick off - members of the Southwood Middle Rock Group (below).
I always enjoy the first day - the big smiles - from parents as they drop their young students off for the new year.  On the less happy side: The Summer traffic holiday is over.  We are back to school in session commuting. 

Please drive carefully and be patient. 

Very truly yours,

Eugene Flinn, Mayor
Palmetto Bay

Saturday, August 20, 2016

Announcing the launching of the Baptist Health Old Cutler Run Club - Sun., Sept. 11, 4:00 PM at Deering Estate

I have another announcement regarding yet another new and exciting outdoor activity in and near Palmetto Bay.  This is another tri-city collaboration in Miami-Dade County District 8. 

As many of you know, I have been working on bringing new and exciting activities to Palmetto Bay. We have a great Get Fit Palmetto Bay program that included the Mayor's Fitness Challenge. We started slow.

We have stood, walked, and biked. We are ready to run! Baptist Health has agreed to be our sponsor. We are collaborating with our sister cities Pinecrest and Cutler Bay.

We are looking forward to the launching of the Baptist Health Old Cutler Run Club that we have been working on for the past few months. The kick-off event is taking place on Sunday, September 11, at 4:00 pm at Deering Estates. Getting the word out is critical to the success of the event and Run Club.

Please put this date on your calendar to attend and help kick off this event.

All are welcome to run! My goal? 5K season is coming up with the cooler weather. I am getting ready and especially looking toward this upcoming Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day.

There is an official Baptist Health Old Cutler Run Club Facebook page set up to share information.  CLICK HERE to reach this page.

Again, this will be a great club for all levels from new to experienced, social to competitor.  Please join me.  This will be a great place to meet up with all those who #WeRunOldCutler, who want to get started and are looking for collaborating on better ways to run smarter, not harder.

Have fun. 

Very truly yours,

Eugene Flinn, Mayor
Village of Palmetto Bay

Monday, August 15, 2016

Announcing Palmetto Bay's Pokemon GO event. Join us for yet another fun activity held in our parks.

Pokémon have infiltrated Palmetto Bay.  We are looking for Pokémon GO Players to join us at the park on Aug 27 as we lure them out to be captured.  Try and take over a gym.  I am looking forward to this event.  Join us for family time in Palmetto Bay (a/k/a "#SmallTownUSA) to take part another event to get out into our fresh air; taking advantage of our parks and green spaces.   

The date is Saturday, August 27, 2016, when we will release Pokémon Lures from 4-8 PM. The best place? Palmetto Bay Park.  There will be prizes, food trucks and a live DJ. It will be fun. Join us.

I have noted many Pokestops (both commercial and public) within our village.  Feel free to share this event (and share event photos using #EventsPalmettoBay to win prizes).

We will have Pokémon specially imported both from Upstate NY and NYC.  Our family had fun capturing them to bring them to Palmetto Bay.  A few even posed for pictures. The time is rapidly approaching when we will release the Poke Lures and the NY Pokémon for our local Pokémon GO players to collect.
 (Photos above were captures from Lake George, Warrensburg and Moreau Lake State Park, NY)

We could not resist asking the Nintendo Store in NYC to 'box up' some of our captures to bring back to Palmetto Bay to share for this event:
 
All ready to be brought back home to Palmetto Bay - ready to be released at Palmetto Bay Park to be enjoyed at this family-friendly event!


Friday, August 12, 2016

Recognizing our Purple Heart Awardees. Palmetto Bay is now a Purple Heart City!

Sunday, August 7, 2016, was the annual Purple Heart Day.  This special day was made even more special in Palmetto Bay as we became a recognized "Purple Heart City" -

See Channel 10 News online: Palmetto Bay becomes first Purple Heart city in South Florida - Flag-raising ceremony held to commemorate honor, By Peter Burke - Local 10.com Managing Editor, posted: 1:22 PM, August 10, 2016.




Palmetto Bay became a "Purple Heart City" as per resolution 2016-40 that I was proud to sponsor as Mayor of Palmetto Bay.

Wednesday, August 10, 2016

Public meeting regarding Chapman field park - located on our Palmetto Bay north east boundary - Wed., Aug 17, 6 PM. The meeting will be held at the Deering Estate in Palmetto Bay

Don't forget our County Parks.  Palmetto Bay may be the "Village of Parks" but it is also home to County Parks including the Deering Estate and Bill Sadowski Park/Preserve.  There is an important meeting scheduled for Wed., Aug 17, at 6 PM to take place at the Deering Estate. Chapman field is located in Coral Gables (on the Palmetto Bay/Coral Gables boundary along Old Cutler Road at 136 Street).

Here is information concerning a very important meeting - this does affect our parks - our County Parks. These County Parks services are brought to you in large part through our Countywide tax bill.

MIAMI (August 08, 2016) — The Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Department, in collaboration with the Department of Regulatory and Economic Resources (RER) Division of Environmental Resources Management (DERM) and Miami-Dade County Health Department/ Florida Department of Health, will be hosting a Public Meeting regarding the environmental findings, the health evaluation for Chapman Field Park and the park’s corrective action plan on Wednesday, August 17, 2016 at 6 p.m. at the Deering Estate, 16701 SW 72nd Ave., Miami, FL 33157.
The meeting will address the community’s concerns over the temporary closure of the athletic fields at Chapman Field Park after samplings conducted by DERM revealed higher than normal concentrations of arsenic in the soil.  To date a total of 215 Miami-Dade Parks sites have been evaluated and determined to be safe for current public use.

Miami-Dade Parks is a world-class parks system supported by the Parks Foundation of Miami-Dade and focused on Placemaking, Health and Fitness, and Conservation and Stewardship.

# # #

Frank Balzebre
Office of Mayor Carlos Gimenez

Tuesday, August 9, 2016

Look to what the professionals say - Palmetto Bay's credit rating raised from "AA" to "AA+" - Good News that reflect outstanding management

From AA-, to AA and now up to AA+ - the hard work over the years continues to be reflected in our bond rating by Standard & Poor's Global Ratings. 

Village Management was notified of the good news via telephone last week, (hence the 'tease' tweet pushed out on August 3, but I wanted the letter in hand before we made the formal announcement. Standard & Poor’s Global Rating Upgrades Palmetto Bay's Revenue Bonds Rating from “AA" to "AA+" ... The Village of Palmetto Bay is proud to announce that S&P Global Ratings upgraded the Village’s rating from “AA” to “AA+” on non-ad valorem bonds issued by Florida Municipal Loan Council.
CLICK HERE to view the actual ratings letter of August 4, 2016.

Financial institutions such as Standard & Poor's are objective based.  The ratings back up our annual unblemished audits.  Ratings such as the 8/4 S & P upgrade are a much better indicator of our financial performance than the hyperbole currently being misdirected in the current Palmetto Bay council campaigns.  I remains available, as always, to discuss this updated financial outlook and what it means for the village.

In the meantime, I am proud to continue to lead a council where the financial ratings continue to rise; this in a time when we read so much about government finances heading south.
As per the official Palmetto Bay press release (8/8/16)- Standard & Poor's Global Rating Upgrades Palmetto Bay's Revenue Bonds Rating from "AA" to "AA+":
   ...
The upgrade reflects the village's strong performance, strong management, and maintenance of an unassigned fund balance exceeding 75% over the past three years," indicated S&P Global Ratings in its Rating Letter and Report to the Village. 
 
"The "AA+" rating reflects our view of:
  • Very strong economy, with access to a broad and diverse metropolitan statistical area (MSA);
  • Strong management, with good financial policies and practices under our Financial Management Assessment methodology;
  • Strong budgetary performance, with operating surpluses in the general fund and at the total governmental fund level in fiscal 2015;
  • Very strong budgetary flexibility, with a high available fund balance in fiscal 2015 of 98% of operating expenditures;
  • Very strong liquidity, with total government available cash at 114.4% of total governmental fund expenditures and 12.6x governmental debt service, and access to external liquidity we consider strong;
  • Adequate debt and contingent liability position, with debt service carrying charges at 9.1% of expenditures and net direct debt that is 95.0% of total governmental fund revenue, as well as low overall net debt; and
  • Strong institutional framework score"
In the Rating Letter, S&P Global Ratings explains that the non-ad valorem bonds are secured by a loan agreement between the Council and the Village.  Supporting the loan "are the village's covenant to budget and appropriate non-ad valorem, legally available revenues, by budget amendment if necessary."
 
In what is still an uncertain local economy, the upgrade is a testament of Palmetto Bay's commitment to financial strength and stability. We are very excited by this news and thank the Village Council, Village Staff and our Village residents for your continued commitment to this organization and this community. ....

Wednesday, August 3, 2016

Update - flyer - KEEPING ZIKA OUT OF YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD

Please- help us in this important fight against the ZIKA virus.  No amount of spray or code enforcement will work unless we all get involved in this situation.  Please take the time to go around your own homes and look for mosquito breeding sites: bromeliads, tarps, empty pots, yard equipment - even children's toys and playhouses can collect water and harbor mosquito larva. 

I am providing an updated flyer: "KEEPING ZIKA OUT OF YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD" - it discusses what you should do to keep your yard from becoming a breeding ground for mosquitoes. And yes, it does discuss ineffectiveness of spraying. This is a serious matter that requires all levels of combat against this serious health hazard. Be your brothers keeper. Consider and help your neighbors.

The village is receiving many phone calls - both questions regarding the facts as well as reporting nuisance locations.  Please keep the calls coming.  Village Hall can be reached during business hours at (305) 259-1234.  The after hours duty phone is (305) 506-7965.

As always, you can reach me via e-mail to eflinn@palmettobay-fl.gov or direct cell: (305) 302-3713. 

Click the link to reach the 2 page .PDF: KEEPING ZIKA OUT OF YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD

Thank you,

Eugene Flinn, Mayor
Palmetto Bay

Tuesday, August 2, 2016

Dogs of Summer - a doggone good time - there were adoptions and microchipping - and fun!

It was a big dog party and a great dog party!
 
I want to officially thank Miami-Dade County Animal Services and our County Commissioner, Daniella Levine Cava, for a wonderful event - the Dogs of Summer: 

Here are the results from the few hours this event was held:

ASD: 4 adoptions
Dogs in Crisis: 4 puppies, 1 adult dog and 1 cat
25 pets micro chipped
2 spay/neuter appointments made at the Humane Society
2 applications to foster dogs at This is the Dog organization  

I am pleased that 25 more pets are now micro chipped - and the service was provided free of charge.  Registered microchips will make a huge difference in reuniting these pets should they ever become lost or stolen from their homes. 
 
I look forward additional similar events at our parks - another outstanding example of tri-city collaboration with our County Commissioner.
 
Thank you to Commissioner Levine Cava, Pinecrest Mayor Cindy Lerner, Cutler Bay Mayor Peggy Bell and PBay council member Tin Schaffer who participated in this event.  Our very own adoptee Tim and our Bailey also participated along with my family.
 
Thank you everyone, the participants and event sponsors who worked to hard to make this event great.  Thank you to Gary Alan Ruse and the Community Newspapers for getting the word out and keeping our community informed. 
 
CLICK HERE for a link to the Palmetto Bay News story (will be updated when the story goes live online)
Click "Read more" immediately below to view additional photos from the event.