News Briefs Along Biscayne Corridor

Juneteenth Coming to the Corridor

North Miami Beach made national news with the approval of Juneteenth as an official holiday. This makes it the first city in Miami-Dade County to observe Juneteenth as a municipal paid holiday for its employees.

“This recognition represents where we are and where we are going as a diverse and vibrant community,” said Commissioner Michael Joseph.

Juneteenth is an annual holiday observing the end of slavery in the U.S. It commemorates June 19, 1865, when news of emancipation reached people in the deepest parts of the former Confederacy in Galveston, Texas. Joseph said NMB intends to be the center of countywide Juneteenth celebrations; details to come.

Garden in the Sky

Developer Celal Ozkan declared his intent to break ground on a 19-story high-rise in the Fulford area of North Miami Beach. To be located at 16300 NE 19th Ave., the mixed-use development is slated to break ground by September and be completed by August 2023.

Skygarden Miami is a 224-feet project that will include 341 apartments,12,635 square feet of ground-floor retail space, 405 parking spaces and a 6th-floor recreational deck with palm trees, a pool and fitness center. It also will include decorative sculptures, balcony gardens and a roof deck accessible to residents. Monthly residential rents are expected to range between $1,618 and $2,154.

As part of a public benefits package, Ozkan said he'll donate $10,000 toward college scholarships for 10 local students (to be divided at $1,000 each) and give at least 10% of the project’s contracts to minority-owned businesses. The project was approved 6-0. Mayor Anthony “Tony” DeFillipo abstained from voting due to his involvement in a previous transaction of that property, said Hans Ottinot, a city attorney.

Garbage Rate Hike

North Miami Beach will be increasing its garbage rates in an effort to address a shortfall in the city’s enterprise fund.

Effective May 1, 2021, the city will have increased its residential monthly rate for single-family homes from $38.33 to $47.91. For apartments and condos with two to four units, garbage rates are increasing from $30.66 to $38.33 a month. For multifamily buildings with more than four units, monthly rates will increase from $23 to $28.75.

Commercial pickups have also increased. Prior to May 1, commercial rates ranged from $155.61 for a single-pick per week for a container holding one cubic yard of garbage to $2,556.58 for seven-times-per-week pickup for a container that can hold eight cubic yards of refuse. After May 1, the rates ranged from $204.80 to $5,101.60, respectively.

Aventura Development

12|12 Marketplace is under construction at 214th Street and Biscayne Boulevard. The residential and business development will comprise two buildings. A four-story building with street-level retail and restaurant space includes 39 offices now leasing. Each office will have 14-foot floor-to-ceiling windows and range from 343 to 885 square feet in size.

A second, 10-story building will provide housing for seniors with numerous amenities, including a parking garage, retail and restaurants. The building will be near Aventura Hospital and offer physician offices for residents who need medical care nearby. In addition, according to Alexandra Cervera of Cervera Real Estate, a new road – 214th Street – is being built so residents will have easier access Biscayne Boulevard.

Aventura Hospital Expansion

Aventura Hospital and Medical Center recently celebrated the opening of its new East Tower. The $60 million three-story building will serve as home for the hospital’s Orthopedic & Spine Institute with 30 beds on both the second and third floors. These beds will serve the elective surgical needs of orthopedic, spine, neuro and general surgery patients in the region and from around the world. The tower has the ability to expand to an additional seven floors.

“Healthgrades [has recognized] Aventura Hospital as among the 100 best for orthopedic and spine surgery for two years in a row,” said Dr. Eric Schiffman, an orthopedic surgeon at the hospital. “I am honored to be a part of this award-winning hospital that seeks to pursue the delivery of excellent patient care, always.”

Also new is the hospital's Aortic Center. Dr. Allan Stewart, a leading cardio-thoracic surgeon who helms the center, hopes to offer a wide variety of aortic surgery programs to best meet the needs of cardiac patients.

“Eventually, the goal is to bring patients in from other areas of the United States and even other nations,” he said.

Surfside Honors Young Artist

Surfside is working to create an anti-litter campaign. Eleven-year-old Natasha De Mier, a

sixth grade student at Ruth K. Broad Bay Harbor K-8 Center, recently won first place in the town's anti-litter artwork competition.

“I wanted to show everyone the beauty of the ocean and all the animals in Surfside that can be getting hurt from littering,” she said. “I wanted to show that the ocean is a great place with so many animals but that litter harms it.”

De Mier loves animals, and has a talent for drawing and a passion for keeping the ocean she loves free of garbage and debris.

Cleaning up Surfside Beach

A drop in a bucket can help the ocean. The town of Surfside is adding four additional Fill-A-Bag stations to its beaches to encourage residents and visitors to help out by keeping the beaches free and clear of litter and debris.

Beachgoers can get a bucket, fill it with any litter they find, discard the trash they collect and return the bucket for others to use. Those in need of community service hours, such as high school students, can even register for those on demand, by scanning the QR code attached to the Fill-A-Bag post and sharing a photo of their cleanup efforts.

These stations will be placed near the beach entrance at 96th Street, the Grand Beach Hotel, the Four Seasons Hotel and the beach entrance at 87th Terrace, in addition to the post on the beach near the town’s community center.

Seaway Villas and Surf Club Apartments

Work continues on the Seaway Villas and Surf Club Apartments at 9133 through 9149 Collins Ave. The project is an aggregation of the two properties, totaling 2.16 acres. The Surf Club Apartments' 30 units will be demolished; the Seaway Villas’ 28 units will include renovation and demolition.

The redeveloped site and 12-story structure will include 48 condo units and 31 hotel units. The restored Seaway Villas will include two units and 1,100 square feet of restaurant and lounge space, as well as 127 parking spaces in an underground garage.