Miami Herald's first online story about Lou Saban's death -wire copy without U-M record. Typical!

Lou Saban, IU football, 1941, 1942, 1942 MVP as QB.

http://iuhoosiers.cstv.com/trads/ind-trads-hof-1982.html

Wrote this first just a little while ago at my other blog, Hallandale Beach Blog.


The Herald's first online story about Lou Saban's death came at 4:40 pm via some wire copy that neglected to include his record at U-M in 1977 and '78 of 3-8 and 6-5, and with a photo that wasn't even of him at Miami, a photo that goes un-credited, like so many photos at the Herald these days not taken by Herald photographers.
I guess the photos just magically appear out of thin air!-

The former IU Hoosier player (IU Hall of Fame, Class of 1982; while I was there) and Hurricanes head coach certainly deserved much better than this crummy lite story, but then so do the much-abused Herald readers!

(A forthcoming blog post here and at South Beach Hoosier, already written, will count the myriad ways that the Herald's sports section has become a veritable laughingstock
over the past five years to any serious sports fan.)

And in case you forgot or never knew, Lou Saban's last game as head coach of the Hurricanes was a 22-21 defeat of the Gators in 1978.
At Gainesville.
That's how you do it!

My guess is that when Randy Shannon finally gets fired early next year, one year too late, it'll be after another in a long line of the very confusing and half-assed losses that have become commonplace under him, begging once more the inevitable question that never really quite goes away: why was someone without any prior major college head coaching
experience ever hired in the first place?-

http://www.miamiherald.com/614/story/973815.html

Longtime football coach Lou Saban dies

BY SPORTS NETWORK

THE SPORTS NETWORK

March 29, 2009

Lou Saban, the longtime college and pro football coach who led the Buffalo Bills to a pair of AFL championships, died early Sunday morning at the age of 87.

Saban coached professional football for 16 years, and most notably led Buffalo to back-to-back AFL titles in 1964-65. He also coached the Boston -- now New England -- Patriots for their first two seasons, in 1960-61 before moving on to Buffalo from 1962-65.

He spent five seasons with Denver (1967-71), overseeing the team through the AFL-NFL merger, and returned to the Bills from 1972-76. Saban's pro teams went 95-99-7.

Away from football, Saban was also president of the New York Yankees from 1981-82.

"He has been my friend and mentor for over 50 years, and one of the people who helped shape my life," Yankees owner and chairperson George M. Steinbrenner said in a statement. "Lou was tough and disciplined, and he earned all the respect and recognition that came his way. He spent a lifetime leading, teaching and inspiring, and took great satisfaction in making the lives around him better. This is a tremendous loss to me personally, and I extend my deepest condolences to his wife, Joyce, and the entire Saban family."

Saban's coaching career also included stints at numerous colleges, Northwestern, Western Illinois, Maryland, Miami, Army and Central Florida.

Saban played college football at Indiana and was with the Cleveland Browns from 1946-49 before moving onto coaching.

___________________________

Former Herald sports writer Jim Martz sets some folks straight who seem

confused about the role of Hurricane QBs in their modern football history.

My first Hurricanes home game was in 1972, and until I left for Bloomington

in August of 1979, I went to well over 95% of their home games at the

Orange Bowl.

Miami Herald

An open letter to UM quarterback Jacory Harris

By Jim Martz, Canesport magazine

October 30, 2008

An open letter to Jacory Harris:

Allow me to invite you to a new history course: Miami Hurricanes Quarterbacks 101. You can bring along fellow freshman quarterbacks Cannon Smith and Taylor Cook. This class should be required for all incoming quarterbacks at the "U." It's not about X's and O's, it's about learning how the great UM quarterbacks became great, how they all needed to be patient and wait their turn.

I'll be the instructor, and I'm not going to talk about reading defenses or calling audibles. I didn't play college football, unless you count being a wide receiver and cornerback on a fraternity flag football team at a Division III school in Michigan. But I have seen every Hurricane team since the 1970s, and I watched the program become Quarterback U, a tradition that has taken a hit lately.

In the modern era of Hurricane football, beginning with 1979 and the arrival of Howard Schnellenberger as coach, there have been seven great quarterbacks: Jim Kelly, Bernie Kosar, Vinny Testaverde, Steve Walsh, Craig Erickson, Gino Torretta and Ken Dorsey. Five of them won national championships. Of the two who didn't, one (Testaverde) won the Heisman Trophy and the other (Kelly) was injured most of his senior year but went on make the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Here's your first quiz: Do you know what these quarterbacks had in common?

True, they were all right-handed. But that's irrelevant. Answer: Each sat on the bench most or all of their freshman season. They waited their turn. Obviously none transferred. There have been several UM quarterbacks who did transfer. And each one virtually disappeared from the face of college football. The ones who stayed, who paid their dues, so to speak, saw their patience rewarded. You've been patient this season, too, and that paid off in a 49-31 victory at Duke. When Robert Marve struggled, you came in and led the Hurricanes to 35 unanswered points and threw four touchdown passes.

I liked what you said after the game on the Hurricane Sports Network: "I appreciate all the times that Coach Shannon puts me into the game. Whenever it is I'm happy to go into the game, whether it's to bring my team back or keep them ahead. It doesn't matter when I get in or if I get in. I just want the team to win, that's all I worry about."

That's the kind of patience the great ones at UM have needed. Take Testaverde, for instance. He sat for three years before he became "the man," then he led the Hurricanes to the Sugar and Fiesta Bowls, came within one play of winning the national championship and won the Heisman Trophy. He also went on to an NFL career that started before you were born and just ended after 22 years.

Kelly, Kosar, Walsh and Torretta all were redshirted their freshman season. They didn't get quality playing time like you are getting in every game. Yet each one, when he got his chance, played well and took command of the offense.

KELLY'S ODYSSEY

I'll begin these history lessons with Kelly, who was part of Lou Saban's great recruiting class of 1978. That was in the days when the Hurricanes invariably had three quarterbacks -- one departing, one coming and one playing. One quarterback quit in the summer. One incumbent, a senior, was moved to receiver. Another, Kenny McMillian, was injured in the first game. Saban had three freshmen -- Kelly, Mark Richt (now coach at Georgia) and Mike Rodrigue. He went with Rodrigue, who spent most of the season handing off to senior tailback Ottis Anderson, who is still UM's all-time rushing leader.

Saban resigned after that 6-5 season, Schnellenberger took over and started Rodrigue the first seven games in 1979. For the eighth game, the coach decided at the last moment to go with Kelly, who barfed in the locker room before the game, then went on to lead a shocking 26-10 victory at Penn State. That was the genesis of Quarterback U.

The next year Kelly spearheaded the Hurricanes to the Peach Bowl, their first bowl game in 13 seasons. His junior year they went 9-2, losing only to fourth-ranked Texas and 16th-ranked Mississippi State on the road in close games. In the third game of his senior year, 1982, he sustained a dislocated shoulder at Virginia Tech in the third game and was lost for the season.

That same season, the Hurricanes had two freshmen quarterbacks, Kosar and a guy listed in the media guide as Vincent Testaverde. Neither was among the six quarterbacks on the Parade Magazine All-American high school team, but Schnellenberger and his staff rated them as two of the top three quarterbacks in the nation. Plus there was Richt, a senior, and Kyle Vanderwende, a redshirt freshman, who had been all-state at Palm Beach Gardens. That year the Hurricanes arguably had the greatest collection of college quarterbacks in history. Earl Morrall, a former Baltimore Colts and Miami Dolphins star quarterback, was their coach. He attended the flag football game between the Canes and Dolphins in the Orange Bowl's farewell several months ago and agreed this was the best quarterback group ever at one college.

And none transferred.

WAITING THEIR TURN

Jacory, if you want to learn about patience, talk to Kosar and Testaverde. Kosar, who had been Mr. Ohio Football, didn't play at all in 1982. Testaverde, an honorable mention All-American in high school, was fourth string and played briefly in the ninth and 10th games, completing 5 of 12 passes for 79 yards.

Going into the 1983 season, Vanderwende, who went 2-1 as the starter at the end of 1982, and Kosar and Testaverde were considered equal. Schnellenberger picked Kosar "by a whisker" based on "a combination of intelligence, leadership and ability." The Hurricanes lost the opener at Florida 28-3, but Kosar's performance convinced Schnellenberger he had made the right pick. They didn't lose another game, knocking off heavily favored Nebraska in the Orange Bowl Classic to win UM's first national championship.

Testaverde didn't play a down that season. And he was the backup in 1984, Jimmy Johnson's first season, playing in six games and completing 17 of 34 for 184 yards and no touchdowns.

In 1985, when Testaverde became the starter, Walsh arrived as a freshman and was redshirted. As the backup on the great 1986 team, he appeared in two games and completed 1 of 2 passes for 5 yards. He started every game in 1987 as the Hurricanes reloaded and went undefeated to win their second national title. In 1988 he was a first-team All-American as the Canes finished No. 2 behind Notre Dame, which beat them 31-30 at South Bend.

Then it was Erickson's turn. He had been Walsh's backup for two seasons, mostly seeing mop-up duties in lopsided victories. He completed 22 of 37 passes for 307 yards and two touchdowns in 1987 and went 26 for 49 for 379 yards and six TDs in 1988. When he got his chance in 1989 (Dennis Erickson's first year as coach), he led the Hurricanes to their third championship, and in 1990 they finished fourth in the nation.

Enter Torretta, who was redshirted in 1988. As a second-year freshman in 1989 he was thrust into the starting job for four games when Erickson was injured, and he played in six other games. He was Erickson's backup again in 1990, playing in nine games and completing 21 of 41 for 210 yards. When Torretta received his turn, he never lost in two years until his final game and he won the Heisman Trophy. The Canes won the 1991 national title and in 1992 their streak ended in the Sugar Bowl against Alabama.

THE LEAN YEARS

After Torretta, the program went into a lull at quarterback. The Hurricanes had good ones but not great ones -- Frank Costa, Ryan Clement, Ryan Collins, Scott Covington, Kenny Kelly. Also, NCAA sanctions in the mid-1990s cost the team several scholarships. At the end of the decade, Butch Davis built the foundation for the program's rise back to the top. Kenny Kelly might have been the quarterback to take them there, but he was doing double duty as an outfielder in the Tampa Bay Devil Rays organization and opted after the 1999 season to leave school for baseball.

And that opened the door for Dorsey, who in 1999 he became the first true freshman to start at quarterback at UM since Rodrigue in 1978 when he filled in for injured Kelly in three games. Then he started every game for three years, losing only once during the regular season (in 2000), winning the national championship in 2001 and nearly repeating in 2002 while winning the Maxwell Award as the nation's top quarterback. Jacory, you know the history since then, how Brock Berlin and Kyle Wright didn't live up to expectations, how the talent level dropped significantly and the program failed to sign a quarterback in 2005 and 2006.

Now you and redshirt freshman Marve are battling it out. Maybe battling is the wrong word. You guys call it a "partnership," which is rare and I believe is healthy competition. You sounded much older than an 18-year-old after the Duke game when you said, "Robert is a great quarterback and I want everybody to know, because Robert is one of my good friends, I love Robert. So whenever Robert is hot, I want him to stay in. That's how I feel. And vice-versa. We care about each other."

Over the years there have been several quarterbacks who became impatient or frustrated and decided to transfer. Can you name any of them?

Since 1980 they have included Bill Turkowski, Greg Jones, Joe Cole, Bryan Fortay, Alan Hall, Chris Walsh, Steve Kelly, Marc Guillon and even Kirby Freeman, who saw the handwriting on the wall when Marve and you became the heirs apparent.

TRANSFER? PERISH THE THOUGHT

A recent newspaper story quoting your father indicated you might transfer. I know this is a different era than the days of Kosar and Testaverde. These are the days of instant gratification.

But if you want to be one of the great Hurricane quarterbacks, if you want to help build something special with your former Miami Northwestern High School teammates who came to UM with you, eliminate "transfer" from your vocabulary.

I know it has been awkward at times. You started the opener because Marve was suspended for a disciplinary reason, and you looked great, though you beat a Charleston Southern team that your Northwestern Bulls might have defeated. Since then Marve has started every game, but you've seen action in the first half each week. That's meaningful game experience.

There's no way to predict how this will unfold. Marve might struggle so much that coaches have to start you.

Conversely, he might settle down and play great. And you might end up being redshirted next year, creating some separation between you. That's what happened in the Kosar-Testaverde situation. It also helped that Kosar earned his degree in three years and turned pro. Or you and Robert might develop into a two-headed quarterback. I'm sure you've heard the adage that if a team has two quarterbacks it really has none. That's not necessarily true. Florida State ranked sixth in the nation in 1979 and reached the Orange Bowl Classic led by the quarterback tandem of Jimmy Jordan and Wally Woodham. And Florida won the national championship two years ago with Chris Leak starting and Tim Tebow contributing significantly.

Jacory, you remind me and other veteran observers of Dorsey, who was as skinny as a freshman as you are. He was smart and tried to get the ball to the playmakers rather than win the game by himself.

You sounded just like him when you said after the Duke game: 'I'm just having fun running coach [Patrick] Nix's offense. It's a great offense to be in. It gives you a lot of opportunities to make things happen but also to put the ball in playmakers' hands."

You don't have the veteran playmakers he had, but you will. And you have something he lacked -- the ability to run. Just don't run from the "U." Your time will come.

Jim Martz is editor of Canesport magazine.

Below, permanent anchors from my other blog, South Beach Hoosier

IT'S ALL ABOUT "THE U"

South Beach Hoosier's first U-M football game at the Orange Bowl was in 1972, age 11, against Tulane in the infamous "Fifth Down" game. In order to drum up support and attendance for the U-M at the Orange Bowl, that game had a promotion whereby South Florida kids who were school safety patrols could get in for freeIF they wore their sash. I did.

Clearly they knew that it was better to let kids in for free, knowing their parents would give them money to buy food and souvenirs, perhaps become a fan and want to return for future games. The ballgame made an interesting impression on The New York Times, resulting in this gem from the "View of Sport" column of Oct, 14, 1990, labeled 'Fifth Down or Not, It's Over When It's Over.' -"In 1972, aided by a fifth-down officiating gift in the last moments of the game, Miami of Florida defeated Tulane, 24-21.

The country and the world was a much different place that fall because The New York Times took time and space to editorialize on the subject.

''Is it right for sportsmen, particularly young athletes, to be penalized or deprived of the goals for which they earnestly competed because responsible officials make mistakes? The ideal of true sportsmanship would be better served if Miami forfeited last week's game.'

South Beach Hoosier hardly needs to tell you that this was YET another New York Times editorial that was completely ignored!

SEBASTIAN THE IBIS, THE SPIRITED MASCOT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI HURRICANES

Before going to my first U-M game at the Orange Bowl in 1972, a friend's father often would bring me home an extra 'Canes game program. That's how I came to have the Alabama at U-M game program from Nov. 16, 1968, which was the first nationally-televised college football night game in color. (A 14-6 loss to the Crimson Tide.) After that first ballgame against Tulane, as l often did for Dolphin games if my father wasn't going, I'd get dropped off at the Levitz parking lot near the State Road 836 & I-95 Cloverleaf in North Miami Beach, and catch a Dade County Park & Ride bus, going straight to the Orange Bowl. Onboard, I'd get next to the window and listen to WIOD's pre-game show on my Radio Shack transistor radio.

A few times, I was just about the only person onboard besides the bus driver, which was alright by me. Once at the Orange Bowl, if I didn't already have a ticket, I'd buy a game program for myself and one or two for friends or teachers before heading to the ticket window, since you usually couldn't find a program vendor once inside. I probaly had a friend or my father with me for just under 40% of the U-M games I ever went to, but you have to remember that the team, though blessed with several talented players, like Chuck Foreman and Burgess Owens, was just so-so to average at best, and the games were usually played on Friday nights, so it wasn't exactly high on everyone's list of things to do.

Depending upon the opponent, if I was alone, I'd often have entire areas of the Orange Bowl to myself. (Wish I had photos of that now!)

For instance, I had a good portion of the East (open) End Zone to myself against Oklahoma in the mid-70's, when the Boomer Schooner and the Schooner Crew went out on the field after an Oklahoma TD, and the Schooner received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty from the refs, as would happen years later in an Orangle Bowl Classic game.

(Against FSU?)

I was there for the wins and losses under Pete Elliott, Carl Selmer & Lou Saban, and the huge on-field fight in '73 when under eventual national champion Notre Dame (under Ara Parseghian), they called a time-out with less than a minute to go, and already up 37-0. Their rationale?

To score another TD and impress the AP football writers;

final score 44-0. Well, they got their wish and beat Alabama 24-23 for the title at the Sugar Bowl.

A year later, thanks to my Mom's boss, she and I saw Ara's last game as head coach of the Irish in the Orange Bowl Game from the East End Zone

-in front of the Alabama cheerleaders!!!- in an exciting 13-11 Notre Dame win over Alabama and Bear Bryant, a rematch of the '73 national title game.

I was also present for the U-M's huge 20-15 win under Pete Elliott against Darrel Royal's Texas Longhorns, the week Sports Illustrated's College Football preview issue came out with Texas on the cover, below.

I was also present for lots of wins against schools called College of the Pacific, UNLV and Cal-Poly San Luis Obsispo, which I'd then never heard of before.

THE ISSUE I TOOK WITH

ME THE NIGHT OF U-M'S

20-15 UPSETOF #1

TEXAS AT THE

ORANGE BOWL

College Football,

Texas No. 1,

Hook 'em Horns,

Sept. 10, 1973.

Living in North Miami

Beach in the '70's,

my Sports Illustrated

usually showed up in

my mailbox on the

Thursday or Friday

before the Monday

cover date.

And was read cover-

to-cover by Sunday

morning.

Canesports is at http://miami.rivals.com/

Hallandale Beach Blog is at http://www.hallandalebeachblog.blogspot.com/

See also: http://www.collegefootballhistory.com/index.htm

Finally! South Beach Hoosier is Back on the Job!

It's hard to be humble when you're a Hoosier-by-choice!

Assembly Hall, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana

One of the places where, once upon a time, it really did all come together.

Sorry for the VERY LONG break from my duties here at South Beach Hoosier, as I've rather foolishly allowed myself to become too preoccupied with the internecine political fighting here in the duchy of Hallandale Beach, Florida and writing on Hallandale Beach Blog, to the neglect of my SBH responsibilities.

Trust me, nobody feels worse about the matter than I do.

Not to worry, as I have a ton of already-written material that I will be posting here over the next few days to get you al back up to speed on what's on my mind as it involves my interests, like the Indiana University Hoosiers; the myriad ups and (mostly) downs of the Dolphins and Hurricanes in this season of inconsistent coaching; the latest doings of South Florida's thoroughly under-reported public policy scene, and the neverending media keffuffle that is South Florida's current sorry state of journalism, where old-fashioned notions about thoroughness and fairness have been completely cast aside for all to see.

Another trend that you may notice is that I will no longer be holding my punches quite so much about individual South Florida and Washington media personalities that I know and have dealt with, as I have done perhaps a bit too much in the past.

That's all in the past, as in the intervening months, per the last paragraph, the gloves have most definitely come off!

No point holding my tongue when I can enlighten everyone to some egregiously bad, sloppy or incomplete reporting.

In another media matter, I will also mention and comments on some recent Hoosier additions to the South Florida news media scene.

By the way, since I last commented in this space, I've had the good fortune to run into the mother of a former IU basketball player a few times, and will hope to fill you in on what she had to share with me about her talented son.

Surprisingly, I've also discovered that a very trustworthy news source is now MUCH CLOSER to someone within the inner orbit of Hoosier athletics than I ever could've guessed.

Could it be, you know, a possible future "South Beach Hoosier World Exclusive" he said, laughing at the very idea.

Not yet, but...

-Dave at South Beach Hoosier

Where's the Disney World gun story in the Miami Herald?

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Below, an email I sent earlier this afternoon to Miami-area resident and longtime South Beach Hoosier favorite Matt Drudge, with the hopes that he'd turn his immensely powerful combination telescope and microscope of The Drudge Report in the general direction of Orlando and Miami.

This illuminating Orlando Sentinel story by Scott Powers and Jason Garcia is perhaps as good an example as any I'm familiar with that properly illuminates both the 'fixer' mentality and backroom-dealing culture of Tallahasseee, and the Miami Herald's own clueless-ness in the year 2008: a large organization that is neither deft enough nor quick enough on the draw to properly use the myriad resources it possesses, to the detriment of its remaining number of readers.

As to my own original thoughts below about the future of the Herald Building itself, consider yourself warned. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:IMG_1642.jpg

And yes, I'll admit, I completely forgot about the Terra Group's purchase of the building, but the general point still holds true.

Winner of the 2005 Best Architectural Eyesore: The Miami Herald Building, 1 Herald Plaza,
Miami, FL 33132-1609
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/bestof/2005/award/best-architectural-eyesore-42698

See also: http://www.miamisunpost.com/archives/2006/07-27-06/eightstoryfrontpage.htm

Sometime soon, I'll share some thoughts on what it was like to be in that huge building in the late 1970's, and look out towards the bay from the desks of the Sports Dept. of the late and much-missed Miami News.
___________________________
Thursday July 3rd, 2008
12:30 p.m.

Dear Matt:

I'm somewhat dumbfounded that you haven't yet linked to the infuriating story about Disney once again playing its Bigfoot card behind the scenes to carve out some special treatment for itself.

The story in today's Orlando Sentinel by Scott Powers and Jason Garcia is as clear and to the point as you could ask for.

Now, personally, me being me, I'd like for the article to have asked State Rep. Stan Mayfield, who helped craft the legislation, to publicly identify these lawyers" (i.e. lobbyists), who were able to $weet talk him and his committee into inserting such a patently deceitful exemption 'exception' on behalf of Disney & Co.
Yeah, I'd really like to know who they are.

The fact that the reputed largest newspaper in the state, the Miami Herald doesn't mention this story anywhere in the paper today, a front page story to be sure, and on its antiquated and third-rate website, rather than have their own reporters ferret out the true facts, runs two AP dispatches, the most recent of which contradicts/clarifies the first, is another larger question worthy of discussion.

Clarification: Parking Lot Guns-Disney story
http://www.miamiherald.com/775/story/591998.html

Disney says it's exempt from new gun law
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking_news/story/592379.html

That's a question that might more reasonably be brought up in the not-too-distant future, when, aping the recent moves of The Tribune Company, McClatchy will likely raise the idea of selling the property where the Herald HQ is located, right on Biscayne Bay, where it's long been the largest eyesore on the Bay.

You can place this example of the Herald once again ignoring the troubles of a large state employer on the agenda/autopsy page, right after that delicious item I told you about the day it happened last September.

That was where the Herald ran a story in their third-rate Sunday opinion section, Issues & Ideas, shortly before a Dem presidential debate at the U-M, where one of their Latin America experts wrote that Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico was actually born in Mexico, which would surely come as shocking news to his mother, who was in Santa Monica, CA when Bill was born.

You'll recall that I stated to you at the time how this merely confirmed my own doubts about the tenuous grasp of the U.S. Constitution by most reporters, other than the Second Amendment, and in this case, not only the individual reporter at the Herald who wrote this, but his editors as well. A two-fer.

That this simple "fact" could've been discovered and refuted by a nine-year old in all of about 30 seconds via Richardson's own presidential or gubernatorial website, or that the newspaper never ran a correction, is just one of the many reasons why the Miami Herald has been in economic and editorial free fall for years.

Matt, I can hardly wait 'till the geniuses at The McClatchy Company try to re-assure their stockholders that they won't have any trouble getting the City of Miami or Miami-Dade County to change their zoning laws to accommodate McClatchy's desire to sell the property, and turn it into bayside luxury condos. (What else!)

That's when I think you'll see South Florida residents (inc. bloggers) decide that "what's good for the goose is good for the gander," and decide it's time for that area to become the beautiful bayside park it should've always been.
(The one the city and county completely botched with Bicentennial Park years and years ago, and are now trying to fix with their current equally flawed project.)

Then we'll see how dedicated to the concept of transparency and accountability the Miami Herald's Editorial Board is, when South Florida civic activists make it their business to give the proposed deal the highest possible degree of scrutiny.
You know, just for ol' times sake.

'Chinese wall' and all that.

Hmm... as of Noon, there were only 346 Orlando Sentinel reader comments on their website. That's like, what, the total of all comments to the Herald in a good week?
Exactly, hence my email to you now.

Please consider adding it before the 4th of July.

Adios!

Dave

Orlando Sentinel
Walt Disney World fires back on guns at work
Scott Powers and Jason Garcia, Sentinel Staff Writers
July 3, 2008

Walt Disney World employees won't be packing any heat in the company parking lots anytime soon.

The giant resort has declared that much of its sprawling property is exempt from a new state law that allows Floridians with concealed-weapons permits to keep firearms locked in their cars at work.

Disney, which has 60,000 employees and a long-standing policy against allowing guns on its land, cites an arcane -- and late-added -- loophole in the new law, which took effect Tuesday.

To see the rest of the story:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/custom/tourism/orl-disneyguns0308jul03,0,4282076.story
________________________________________
Reader comments at:
http://www.topix.net/forum/source/orlando-sentinel/T7AB2CU04R1EK4NK0

Tallahassee Rules Against HB Mayor Cooper and Comm. Ross

Posted earlier on Hallandale Beach Blog www.HallandaleBeachBlog.blogspot.com

Wednesday April 2, 2008
1:00 p.m.

The State of Florida's Dept. of Management Services http://www.dms.myflorida.com/
ruled decisively Monday against the boisterous and all-too-often, self-serving claims of Hallandale Beach Mayor Joy Cooper and Commissioner Dorothy Ross, who voted along with Commissioner William Julian on March 5th to deprive the city's citizens of the opportunity to serve on the Hallandale Beach Police Officers' and Firefighters Retirement Fund.

This decision follows weeks of bitterness and allegations of parochialism and plain-old selfishness against both Cooper and Ross by active duty Hallandale Beach police officers and firefighters at a series of contentious and highly combative City Commission hearings, which featured dozens of members at the night meeting in February.

What was voted on:
An Ordinance of the City of Hallandale Beach, Florida, Amending Ordinance 2004-09, The Hallandale Beach Police and Fire Pension Plan to Provide for the Authority for Two Commissioners to Serve as Members on the Police and Fire Pension Board of Trustees; Providing for Conflicts; Providing for Severability; Providing for an Effective Date (Second Reading)(City Attorney)(see backup) CAD# 002/07

After Julian's Feb. 20th swing vote against the city's first-responders led to a 3-2 decision to amend the city's charter at the first of two hearings, threats of union lawsuits against the city to reverse the decision and members seeking political payback, has animated and roiled much of HB's small political chattering class for the past two months.

The Benefits Administrator further ordered that the original language be reinstated to comply with statutory provisions and warned Mayor Cooper, "No further restrictions or conditions may be placed on these two resident appointees without jeopardizing receipt of future premium tax moneys."

In the near future, Hallandale Beach Blog will seek to discover how much money city taxpayers paid for the privilege of having outside attorney David Tolces sit at the dais for those hearings.
While his legal advice went sour pretty fast, Tolces wasn't without his comic element, as when he said in response to a citizen's question at a hearing asking how much he was charging the city -for telling the mayor what she wanted to hear according to critics- he quipped that the information would be easy enough for someone to find out by simply filing the requisite Public Records request paperwork.

Well, we'll see about that now, won't we, since we know that at least one person will, in fact, try to ferret out that information. For history's sake.

As it happens, the DMS decision was never mentioned at Wednesday morning's regular HB City Commission meeting, which featured city commissioners recommending votes against most of the Broward County Charter Review Committee's recommendations to voters in November.

With rare exceptions, the City Commission largely belittled the efforts and political handiwork of the committee that's worked for months throughtout the state's second-largest county to bring Broward County firmly into the 21st Century, and seeks to take ethical and member districting decisions out of the hands of county commissioners.

As is so often the case at HB city hearings and forums, the agenda ran behind schedule and had the usual procedural screw-ups, as when the mayor plowed thru the agenda items and the City Clerk twice failed to remind her to seek public comment.

So they did a do-over twice.
_________________________________
http://www.miamisunpost.com/archives/2008/03-13/031308newshallandalebeach.htm

Miami Sun Post
Hallandale Beach
Power Play
Firefighters, police rail against amendment to pension board
By Claudia Boyd-Barrett
March 13, 2008

Vigorous protests from police, firefighters and concerned citizens were not enough to sway the Hallandale City Commission last week from approving an amendment that would permanently assign to commissioners two seats on the five-member Police and Fire Pension Board permanently to commissioners.

City Mayor Joy Cooper and Commissioner Dorothy Ross already sit on the board, but its governing ordinance states that city residents, rather than officials, should hold those seats.

The amendment that passed on first reading last Thursday changes that language to specify city commissioners.

Mayor Cooper defended her backing of the amendment, arguing that the pension board needed her and Ross' presence and expertise.

Vice Mayor William Julian, who also voted to pass the amendment, said having commissioners on the board helps protect the interests of citizens, whose taxes fund the pensions.

Their arguments did not sit well with the police, firefighters and some citizens gathered at the commission meeting.

"I think this stinks of impropriety," police Officer Gary McVeigh said. "It looks unethical. We're just wondering why the adamant fight for this? It makes no sense to us."

Daniel Alford, a firefighter paramedic and pension board member, told commissioners he thought the amendment resulted in a conflict of interest for Cooper and Ross because they would be more interested in looking out for taxpayers than the police and firefighters on the pension plan.

Outside the meeting, firefighter union President Jim Bunce echoed concerns that the commission was violating the city charter by passing the amendment without a public vote.

The Hallandale City Charter prohibits commissioners from holding any other office during their term and says any amendments to the charter must be approved by referendum.

Bunce said he would prefer that the pension board seats in question be given to people from the community with professional expertise.

"Out of 50,000 people in this city who could sit on this board, they're saying they're the only two that should," Bunce fumed. "They're stealing power that the public has to give them — they're just taking it!"

However, City Clerk E. Dent McGough said the city was amending an ordinance and not the charter, so it did not need a referendum vote.

Commissioners Keith London and Francine Schiller both voted against the amendment.

It was London who initially questioned the legality of Cooper and Ross sitting on the board after he learned that it is unusual in Florida for commission members to hold such positions.

He said he feared the dual office-holding would open the city to potential lawsuits.

"By having two positions filled on both the Pension Board and the City Commission, we have consolidated the decision-making to fewer people, increasing the odds of a wrong decision being made," he wrote in an e-mail.

"Our City Commission should listen to what the people want."

London said the Police Benevolent Association was threatening to sue the city if the ordinance passes a second reading.

Commissioner Julian said that the $80 million fund is currently in good standing.
_________________________________
Miami Herald
March 6, 2008

Hallandale Beach commissioners on Wednesday voted to allow themselves to serve on the police and fire pension board.

The 3-2 vote angered many members of the police union who have threatened to file a lawsuit.

The union argues that city commissioners are serving two offices, which is against state law.But the city's attorney has said that as long as the city's laws allow commissioners to serve on the board there's no conflict.

Mayor Joy Cooper, Commissioner Dorothy Ross and Vice Mayor Bill Julian voted to keep Ross and Cooper on the pension board that oversees $80 million in investment funds.Commissioners Keith London and Fran Schiller voted against it.
________________________________________
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
STAFF REPORTS
March 6, 2008
Hallandale Beach
Commissioners can be on pension board

Despite the threat of a lawsuit from the Broward County Police Benevolent Association, city commissioners Wednesday approved a law allowing them to serve on the city's police and fire pension board.

The decision, approved 3-2, is mostly a housekeeping change because the mayor and one commissioner already serve on the board.

Under the city's charter, the board must have one police officer, one firefighter and two residents.

Commissioners must approve the appointment of a fifth member who is chosen by the four members.

Union officials say commissioners have a conflict of interest being on the board because they represent the city's interest.

"I do not agree with [the change in the law's language]," said Officer Alex Vera, a union representative. "

The [union's] legal challenge will come unfortunately at the great expense of the city's taxpayers."

Mayor Joy Cooper and Commissioner Dorothy Ross, who have been serving on the board, voted for the change, as did Vice Mayor Bill Julian.

"I don't believe there's a conflict of interest," Julian said.

Commissioners Keith London and Fran Schiller voted against it.

Vera said the union plans to sue the city, Cooper and Ross.
___________________________________________
Miami Herald
HALLANDALE BEACH
POLICE AND FIRE PENSION BOARD
BATTLE BREWS OVER A BOARD PROPOSAL
If passed, a Hallandale Beach law would ban residents from serving on a pension board, but a Broward police union is threatening a lawsuit.

By Jasmine Kripalani
March 1, 2008

A Broward County police union threatened to file a lawsuit against Hallandale Beach after the city introduced a law that would ban residents from serving on the police and fire pension board.

Instead, the law would allow only commissioners to serve.

But Jeff Marano, treasurer of the Broward Police Benevolent Association, said commissioners could be violating state law by holding two offices.

"You cannot serve two masters," he said in a written statement. "How can we expect a commissioner to put pension issues first when they represent the city's interests?"

Commissioners are scheduled to take a final vote on the issue at a 10 a.m. March 5 commission meeting at City Hall, 400 S. Federal Hwy.

The city has hired an outside firm to counsel it on the issue.

"Based upon the attorney general's opinion, it allows public officials to serve on other boards if there's an ordinance that grants them that authority," David Tolces, the attorney hired by the city.

City Commissioner Dorothy Ross, who has served on the pension board for 10 years said there's nothing illegal about it.

She argues that residents lack the experience in overseeing the pension's $80 million investment fund.

"I would be concerned for new people to suddenly be placed on this board making decisions," she said.

Mayor Joy Cooper, who could not be reached for comment, published an editorial in a local newspaper that appeared Thursday.

In the South Florida Sun-Times, Cooper blamed Commissioner Keith London, who brought up the problem of dual office-holding at a commission meeting in January.

"I have been at a loss over this whole circumstance and am not sure of the commissioner's intent," she wrote.

London said his only agenda is to raise the issue before the public.

"When I went to a conference, I learned that this was not best practice throughout the Florida Retirement System," he said.

"This is not the norm, not even close to the norm. It needed to be discussed."
_________________________________
http://www.miamisunpost.com/011708newshallandalebeach.htm

Miami Sun Post
Hallandale BeachBreaking the Law?
City commissioner accuses his colleagues of illegally holding two offices
By Nicole Alibayof
January 17, 2008

A Hallandale Beach city commissioner accused the mayor and one of his colleagues of breaking the law.

Commissioner Keith London raised the question last week about whether or not Mayor Joy Cooper and Commissioner Dorothy Ross can be charged with holding two offices.

Cooper and Ross sit on the city commission and the pension board of the city's police and fire departments.

City Attorney Dave Jove said technically it is not illegal, though holding two offices can be perceived as a conflict of interest.

The commission will discuss whether an amended ordinance or a special election is needed to rectify any problems at its Jan. 22 meeting.

"Certainly I don't believe there's any credibility on concerns that were raised, but I am willing to sit down and talk about the issues that were brought up," Cooper said during the Jan. 9 commission meeting.

"No shame or any bad name has ever been associated with me," Ross said.

"If they ask me to step down, fine, but no one knows more about the pension plan than me."

The pension board consists of five members, two of whom must be residents of Hallandale Beach appointed by the commission, according to the Hallandale Beach City Charter.

Currently Cooper and Ross sit as those Hallandale Beach residents.

However, another section of the city charter forbids the mayor and commissioners from holding any other position, city employment or elected public office during their terms.

Three-year contracts between the city and the police and fire unions have to come before both the commission and the pension board, giving Cooper and Ross greater leverage to negotiate them.

"If that doesn't reflect two bites out of one apple I don't know what does," London said.

The commission wants to amend that ordinance by changing the terminology to refer to elected officials serving on the pension board as ex-officio voting members.

By changing the terminology, elected officials will be allowed to serve on both the pension board and the commission, City Attorney Jove said.

Jim Bunce, union president for Hallandale firefighters, didn't think the language change would be enough.

"An ordinance cannot supersede the charter," he said.

"The charter is clear and there are prohibitions; they should amend the charter and do it right if they want it to be legal."

Bunce worked as a firefighter in Davie for 27 years.

He said the same issue was addressed in Davie and the commissioners were removed from elected office.

His argument worried some commissioners who felt that the charter might have to be amended by referendum.

Cooper, though, said it would take months to create a code to address the problem.

"My primary goal and objective is to make the pension plan successful," she said.

"I don't think you could get more experience or more efficiency than with a commissioner."

A representative for the police union disagreed.

"We are not in favor of commissioners on pension boards," said Michael Braverman, attorney and spokesman for the Police Benevolent Association.

"As the certified collective bargaining agent, it's problematic to go to the same place twice; manipulation by government skews the process."

Vice Mayor Bill Julian and Commissioner Francine Schiller proposed discussing the pension board in greater detail on Jan. 22.

"Let's see how it plays out," Jove said

It's not justice -it's Broward justice!

South Beach Hoosier and Hallandale Beach Blog wanted to call your attention to one of the best blog postings he's seen in quite some time, made all the better because it's an all-too-accurate
account of the way things are often done in this part of the Sunshine State.

This wonderful post ran almost three weeks ago in Justice Building Blog, the blog of the Richard Gerstein Bldg. in downtown Miami.

That building was no stranger to fascinating stories even before the advent of the Internet Revolution or cell phones allowed well-founded whispers to become "common knowledge" within minutes.

South Beach Hoosier knows all too well that's true because he recalls what things were like at the Dade County Courthouse, where he spent quite a lot of time from the mid-'70's to the early '80's, as a kid growing up in North Miami Beach, and still later, while back on Flagler Street as an IU student home on summer break.

(Usually after a trip first to the Dade County Main Library, a SBH favorite, and buying this delicious fruit bar snack that was sold at a Flagler shop right across the street from One Biscayne Tower.)

SBH often caught a taste of American jurisprudence up close and personal, when there was a big or controversial case going on, often swinging by to see what was up on one of his rare days off from one of the three summer jobs he had, in order to pay that out-of-state tuition that was three times what native Hoosiers paid.

This started back when Dick Gerstein was the Dade States Attorney, and sometimes interacted with SBH's father, who worked in that building for years in law enforcement, and when SBH sometimes saw fathers of his NMB childhood/Optimist team friends ply their trade as defense attorneys, or "experts" of one sort or another.

This routine continued once Janet Reno took over when Richard Gerstein retired before the end of his term as DA.

(Still another time, one of my old teammate's father -a really nice guy who not only came to every game we played at Victory Park, but to every evening practice, too- actually served as a juror on an extremely high-profile murder case that had South Florida completely transfixed.)

In case you're a little fuzzy on Gerstein and his career, see:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,723869,00.html and
http://www.crimelibrary.com/notorious_murders/family/jacques_mossler/10.html and
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE4D8143CF93BA15757C0A964958260

I first became aware of this great post on Broward County's brand of justice thru JAABLOG, the wonderful Broward County judicial blog run by Sean Conway.

His efforts to be a straight-shooter who call 'em as he sees them in the area of judicial criticism, has often put him squarely in the sights of some folks who'd like to use ABA protocols like a bludgeon to silence reasonable criticism of Broward judges who think they are not subject to either rules of common sense or decency.

I've mentioned his efforts twice previously at South Beach Hoosier in December:
http://southbeachhoosier.blogspot.com/2007/12/follow-up-to-sean-conway-blogfirst.html

http://southbeachhoosier.blogspot.com/2007/12/lawyer-may-lose-license-for-blog-entry.html
____________________________
Thursday, February 28, 2008
ONE IN A HUNDRED: BROWARD DOES THEIR PART
by RUMPOLE

One in a hundred americans is in prison or jail, and here's why Broward is helping to keep that number high:
The Broward Blog contains the welcome news that Broward Attorney Valerie Small-Williams was acquitted of the misdemeanor charge of failure to obey a police officer.

The disturbing facts of the case are that Ms. Small-Williams was stopped for speeding and then ordered out of her vehicle (a Jaguar) while her small child was in the back because the officer thought he saw a second drivers license in her wallet. She was arrested, cuffed, and initially charged with a slew of crimes, although the "second license" was never located...

To see the rest of the story, see:
http://justicebuilding.blogspot.com/2008/02/one-in-hundred-broward-does-their-part.html

FAQ's on Florida's Open Government Laws

First discovered this wonderful resource on Attorney General Bill McCullom's office website - http://myfloridalegal.com/ - which much like like the one I later discovered at
http://myfloridalegal.com/sunshine , proved invaluable prior to some recent visits to Hallandale Beach city hall, where I sought some reasonable answers to some nagging questions of interest to my two blogs, South Beach Hoosier and Hallandale BeachBlog,
http://www.hallandalebeachblog.blogspot.com/

(To keep up with the latest Consumer news coming out of the AG's office in Tallahassee, you can subscribe to the Attorney General's weekly Electronic Newsletter, which I started receiving about two months ago. You'll be pleasantly surprised.)

I suspect that for many of you, this information may prove somewhat helpful in discerning just what civic-minded folks like you can -and can't- obtain from the myriad state, regional and city goverments and independent agencies who ostensibly work for us, not themselves, though that wasn't the case with the City of Miami.

In my particular case, as I've mentioned in previous posts on Hallandale Beach Blog, being Hallandale Beach, despite my best hopes, I hit a series of rather predictable and proverbial brick walls in the form of official buckpassing and obfuscation, when what I was entitled to was some cooperation and transparency, to say nothing of accountability, from city employees who draw their paychecks from me and the rest of this town's residents.

In the long run, though, as you'll soon see, that will prove to be a very costly mistake to a few
officials in Hallandale Beach, who, even as I write this, have no idea how soon their life is going to get turned upside-down and become MUCH more complicated than they ever bargained for.

All by the simple infusion of some well-placed doses of "sunshine" and "law."
___________________________________________________________
http://myfloridalegal.com/pages.nsf/main/df6796c2c498743985256cc7000ad5cb!OpenDocument
FAQ's on Florida's Open Government Laws

The following questions and answers are intended to be used as a reference only -- interested parties should refer to the Florida Statutes and applicable case law before drawing legal conclusions.
Q. What is the Sunshine Law?
A. Florida's Government-in-the-Sunshine law provides a right of access to governmental proceedings at both the state and local levels. It applies to any gathering of two or more members of the same board to discuss some matter which will foreseeably come before that board for action. There is also a constitutionally guaranteed right of access. Virtually all state and local collegial public bodies are covered by the open meetings requirements with the exception of the judiciary and the state Legislature which has its own constitutional provision relating to access.
Q. What are the requirements of the Sunshine law?
A. The Sunshine law requires that 1) meetings of boards or commissions must be open to the public; 2) reasonable notice of such meetings must be given, and 3) minutes of the meeting must be taken.
Q. What agencies are covered under the Sunshine Law?
A. The Government-in-the-Sunshine Law applies to "any board or commission of any state agency or authority or of any agency or authority of any county, municipal corporation or political subdivision." Thus, it applies to public collegial bodies within the state at both the local as well as state level. It applies equally to elected or appointed boards or commissions.
Q. Are federal agencies covered by the Sunshine Law?
A. Federal agencies operating in the state do not come under Florida's Sunshine law.
Q. Does the Sunshine Law apply to the Legislature?
A. Florida's Constitution provides that meetings of the Legislature be open and noticed except those specifically exempted by the Legislature or specifically closed by the Constitution. Each house is responsible through its rules of procedures for interpreting, implementing and enforcing these provisions. Information on the rules governing openness in the Legislature can be obtained from the respective houses.
Q. Does the Sunshine Law applies to members-elect?
A. Members-elect of public boards or commissions are covered by the Sunshine law immediately upon their election to public off ice.
Q. What qualifies as a meeting?
A. The Sunshine law applies to all discussions or deliberations as well as the formal action taken by a board or commission. The law, in essence, is applicable to any gathering, whether formal or casual, of two or more members of the same board or commission to discuss some matter on which foreseeable action will be taken by the public board or commission. There is no requirement that a quorum be present for a meeting to be covered under the law.
Q. Can a public agency hold closed meetings?
A. There are a limited number of exemptions which would allow a public agency to close a meeting. These include, but are not limited to, certain discussions with the board's attorney over pending litigation and portions of collective bargaining sessions. In addition, specific portions of meetings of some agencies (usually state agencies) may be closed when those agencies are making probable cause determinations or considering confidential records.
Q. Does the law require that a public meeting be audio taped?
A. There is no requirement under the Sunshine law that tape recordings be made by a public board or commission, but if they are made, they become public records.
Q. Can a city restrict a citizen's right to speak at a meeting?
A. Public agencies are allowed to adopt reasonable rules and regulations which ensure the orderly conduct of a public meeting and which require orderly behavior on the part of the public attending. This includes limiting the amount of time an individual can speak and, when a large number of people attend and wish to speak, requesting that a representative of each side of the issue speak rather than every one present.
Q. As a private citizen, can I videotape a public meeting?
A. A public board may not prohibit a citizen from videotaping a public meeting through the use of nondisruptive video recording devices.
Q. Can a board vote by secret ballot?
A. The Sunshine law requires that meetings of public boards or commissions be "open to the public at all times." Thus, use of preassigned numbers, codes or secret ballots would violate the law.
Q. Can two members of a public board attend social functions together?
A. Members of a public board are not prohibited under the Sunshine law from meeting together socially, provided that matters which may come before the board are not discussed at such gatherings.
Q. What is a public record?
A. The Florida Supreme Court has determined that public records are all materials made or received by an agency in connection with official business which are used to perpetuate, communicate or formalize knowledge. They are not limited to traditional written documents. Tapes, photographs, films and sound recordings are also considered public records subject to inspection unless a statutory exemption exists.
Q. Can I request public documents over the telephone and do I have to tell why I want them?
A. Nothing in the public records law requires that a request for public records be in writing or in person, although individuals may wish to make their request in writing to ensure they have an accurate record of what they requested. Unless otherwise exempted, a custodian of public records must honor a request for records, whether it is made in person, over the telephone, or in writing, provided the required fees are paid. In addition, nothing in the law requires the requestor to disclose the reason for the request.
Q. How much can an agency charge for public documents?
A. The law provides that the custodian shall furnish a copy of public records upon payment of the fee prescribed by law. If no fee is prescribed, an agency is normally allowed to charge up to 15 cents per one-sided copy for copies that are 14" x 8 1/2" or less. A charge of up to $1 per copy may be assessed for a certified copy of a public record. If the nature and volume of the records to be copied requires extensive use of information technology resources or extensive clerical or supervisory assistance, or both, the agency may charge a reasonable service charge based on the actual cost incurred.
Q. Does an agency have to explain why it denies access to public records?
A. A custodian of a public record who contends that the record or part of a record is exempt from inspection must state the basis for that exemption, including the statutory citation. Additionally, when asked, the custodian must state in writing the reasons for concluding the record is exempt.
Q. When does a document sent to a public agency become a public document?
A. As soon as a document is received by a public agency, it becomes a public record, unless there is a legislatively created exemption which makes it confidential and not subject to disclosure.
Q. Are public employee personnel records considered public records?
A. The rule on personnel records is the same as for other public documents ... unless the Legislature has specifically exempted an agency's personnel records or authorized the agency to adopt rules limiting public access to the records, personnel records are open to public inspection. There are, however, numerous statutory exemptions that apply to personnel records.
Q. Can an agency refuse to allow public records to be inspected or copied if requested to do so by the maker or sender of the documents?
A. No. To allow the maker or sender of documents to dictate the circumstances under which documents are deemed confidential would permit private parties instead of the Legislature to determine which public records are public and which are not.
Q. Are arrest records public documents?
A. Arrest reports prepared by a law enforcement agency after the arrest of a subject are generally considered to be open for public inspection. At the same time, however, certain information such as the identity of a sexual battery victim is exempt.
Q. Is an agency required to give out information from public records or produce public records in a particular form as requested by an individual?
A. The Sunshine Law provides for a right of access to inspect and copy existing public records. It does not mandate that the custodian give out information from the records nor does it mandate that an agency create new records to accommodate a request for information.
Q. What agency can prosecute violators?
A. The local state attorney has the statutory authority to prosecute alleged criminal violations of the open meetings and public records law. Certain civil remedies are also available.
Q. What is the difference between the Sunshine Amendment and the Sunshine Law?
A. The Sunshine Amendment was added to Florida's Constitution in 1976 and provides for full and public disclosure of the financial interests of all public officers, candidates and employees. The Sunshine Law provides for open meetings for governmental boards.
Q. How can I find out more about the open meetings and public records laws?
A. Probably the most comprehensive guide to understanding the requirements and exemptions to Florida's open government laws is the Government-in-the-Sunshine manual compiled by the Attorney General's Office. The manual is updated each year and is available for purchase through the First Amendment Foundation in Tallahassee. For information on obtaining a copy, contact the First Amendment Foundation at (850) 224-4555.

Hallandale Beach's Newest Policy Failure -Illegal Dumping

Just posted a new entry, with photos, on South Beach Hoosier's companion blog, www.HallandaleBeachBlog.blogspot.com regarding the city's tooth-less, failed illegal dumping policy, a particular pet peeve of mine.
It's now run by the Hallandale Beach Police Department, so you can imagine the results.

Connecting some dots on Miami-based The Related Group & Jorge Perez

Wanted to share with you a connection that South Beach Hoosier made Monday that he doubts you've heard or read anywhere else -yet.

Monday's USA Today had a largely flattering profile on the front page of its Money section (by David J. Lynch) on Jorge Perez, CEO of Miami's own The Related Group -complete with a Tom Wolfe-style "Master of the Universe" photo of Perez towering above a scale model of his Icon Brickell project.
Titled "Executive Suite — Today's Entrepreneur: Miami magnate gives city a makeover," it's the latest in USAT's continuing Executive Suite series.See this link or the copy of the article I made at the bottom of this posting.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/2007-03-11-perez-usat_N.htm

And just so you know, Mr. Perez isn't just any 'billionaire developer" of properties "in what was once a desolate downtown landscape." Heavens, no!
You see, Mr. Perez has bigger dreams; he wants to be one of Hillary Clinton's future ambassadors. "If the New York senator goes all the way to the White House, he muses, an ambassadorial post would be a nice career capstone."
Lest you think Mr. Perez doesn't have true artistic aims for his condos, "The entryway to Icon Brickell, the triple-towered 2,000-unit condo and hotel project, will be adorned with a series of enormous heads modeled on the statues of Easter Island." http://www.iconbrickell.com/

(Personal note: My mother was a secretary for the principal general contractor that built One Biscayne Tower on Flagler Street & Biscayne Blvd. in the early '70's, when it became THE largest skyscraper south of Atlanta.
She still has photos of various phases of the project as it grew, and when you see them, it really gives you a remarkable sense of how small -or should I say short- the downtown Miami area really was.
And I say that as someone who has seen almost all of the photos of old Miami in books and at myriad local museums.
Obviously, this was before Brickell was home to million-dollar condo complexes with iconic holes in them, made world famous by the opening credits of Miami Vice.
While 1BT was going up, her firm had their offices across the street on the north side of Flagler in a building that no longer exists, and one of the perks of that was that familes of the firm could watch the annual Orange Bowl Parade pass by from an immense second-story balcony overlooking Flagler that looked like, well, something out of a large-budget antebellum flick starring Elizabeth Taylor. Or Cleopatra! It was great!!!)

The USAT story is replete with the usual South Florida touches: overblown ego, with lots of hype masquerading as fact or philosophy, and a general glossing over of inconvenient facts, with revisionist history thrown in for good measure.
And, of course, because he lives in South Florida, lots of nuggets are dangled about the CO$T of things:
"Perched in a corner office that offers a sweeping bay view, Perez exudes a spend-what-it-takes ethos. There's enough modern art, much of it from Latin America, to outfit a first-class gallery. He sports a purple-checked shirt, purple tie and matching cufflinks. His driver ferries him between development sites in a gleaming silver Mercedes S550, which carries a list base price around $86,000."
In short, it's what South Florida has come to accept as the norm down here everytime an 'outside' publication has tried to tell part of the confounding story of South Florida and the people who make it so unique or bizarre over the past 40 years.
(Read the excerpt from Joan Didion's "Miami" -to the right- on this blog for a good example of that unreality.)

Even during the 15 years I lived in DC, and would habitually pick up a newspaper or magazine at a great-but-tiny new stand next to the Farragut North Metro, just a few feet away from the WSJ's Washington HQ, I could smell those crazy half-baked assumptions, agenda-driven, slice-of-life stories on Miami or one of its 'personalities' from a mile away.
But for whatever reason, the country has never tired of hearing about South Florida's quirky, dysfunctional nature, and why it was the way it is, even if the people down here were actually suffering under an acute civic leadership shortage while Miami Vice was suddenly making this area seem sexy and wild instead of backward and dowdy, esp. over on South Beach when Lincoln Road was like a crypt.

What's really missing from the USAT story though is the current condo conflict that today's Daily Business Review cover story captures perfectly in a three-page spread by their Oscar Pedro Musibay, who ties together the reality that you and I have seen or heard about for months, no matter where we go: Has the market for expensive or over-the-top condos hit a plateau?
It's a story which should be required reading for everyone in South Florida with a brain and a long-term interest in the area, esp. local TV station news directors, who seem to shy away from giving this kind of story the amount of time it deserves, perhaps for fear of alienating potential advertisers: "Escape Act: In Down Market, Condo Buyers Need Houdini Skills To Break Contracts, Avoid Costly Purchases"
And guess which company the DBR story mentions that seems to be taking the most adversarial p.o.v., and fighting buyers the hardest to get out of contracts when costs, esp. monthly ones, are 100% higher than they were told? That's right, The Related Group.
It recounts a particularly average deal which, when the buyer tried to flip it due to the additional costs, the sticker shock, "Related made it clear the Miami-based developer would fight him."
"They tell us, 'We are not accepting cancellations." If you want to get out, you are going to have to fight them, and in the end you will not win." "They bring you into this trap, and then you are done."
The story gives lots of evidence to the current state of murky FL law that some legislators, inc. usual consumer-friendly local favorites like Sen. Gwen Margolis, are trying to clarify in favor of, yes, developers, though it does say that some efforts are underway to require "developers to prepare budgets using "good-faith estimates" and "keep a record of how the numbers were generated."
The odds of something the developers hate actually passing in Tallahassee are oh, what, a thousand-to-one? About what the Marlins chances of ever getting a stadium in South Florida as long as their current brain trust of Jeffrey Loria and David Samson is running things.

[Giving credit where credit is due, I only first became aware of Mr. Perez and his role in things down here a few weeks ago, when he headlined the Miami SunPost's list of "Super Developers."
http://www.miamisunpost.com/archives/2007/02-01/superdevelopers.htm

Super Developers
What better way to honor some of the pillars of the real estate industry than by having a special section dedicated to them in our Super Bowl issue?
Below are some of the individuals who are now actively reshaping Miami-Dade County with brand-new residential, commercial and mixed-use projects. We say “some” because there are so many more than just the few we have listed below. South Florida still remains one of the most desirable places to live. As such, the demand for new projects is ever present and ever growing.
However, we feel we have compiled a fairly diverse and accurate list of some of the influential and potent players in South Florida real estate development. So for the tens of thousands of Super Bowl visitors, as well as our loyal local readers, we give you the Super Developers.
Jorge Perez
For the Related Group of Florida, there is no such thing as a real estate market slowdown. Even now, the Related Group is actively forging partnerships throughout South Florida and beyond. Among its latest projects: 300 Grove Bay Residence, three condominium towers, the tallest 410 feet high, that will be constructed beside Mercy Hospital in Coconut Grove. The 300 condos will go on the market for between $3 million and $15 million, according to a recent Miami Herald article.
Founded in 1979 by Chairman and CEO Jorge Perez, the Related Group has constructed more than 55,000 condos and apartment buildings all over Florida. Last year, Related racked up sales of more than $3.2 billion while its real estate portfolio assets grew to more than $10.7 billion. Perez has been hailed by his peers as being on the cutting edge of South Florida’s urban growth. Some of his better known projects are Portofino Tower, Murano at Portofino, Murano Grande in Miami Beach and CityPlace in West Palm Beach. In Sunny Isles Beach, Perez partnered with Michael and Gil Dezer and Donald Trump to develop the ultra-luxurious Trump Towers.
A collector of Latin American art, Perez is on the board of directors of the Miami Art Museum and is part of the fundraising campaign for the construction of Museum Park in Bicentennial Park. Perez is also vice chair of the Miami-Dade Cultural Affairs Council, director of the Miami Film Festival, a member of the board of the Downtown Development Authority and a member of the University of Miami’s Board of Trustees. UM’s Architecture Center has been named after Perez, while the Miami Wellness Center has been named after Perez and his wife, Darlene.]

One of Mr. Perez's 11 projects that I'm particularly concerned, dare I say peeved about, is The Beach Club, right on AIA and Hallandale Beach Blvd. http://www.beachclubstyle.com/
It's a triple-tower project like Icon Brickell, and is a property that the incompetent HB mayor, city council and city "experts' approved a few years ago without requiring a 'shadow study' on what was once a popular and family-friendly beach. The results are predictable.

When my family moved down here from Memphis in 1968 when I was seven years old, it was the very first beach we ever saw, and had beautiful Australian Pines and actually had some height to the shore, which made it very unusual, and the iconic HB Water Tower was a greenish color very different from its current beach ball colors.
(While my parents looked for a more permanent place for me and my two sisters, we stayed for a bit at the Holiday Hotel, located where the current HB Fire Dept. Station on A1A is.)

For my blog www.HallandaleBeachBlog.blogspot.com, I've been watching it closely as it continues to pollute the public beach next to it, North Beach, with garbage and debris from the site regularly winding up on the beach, or even greeting you as soon as you walk up to the sidewalk. What sort of things?
Well, ones that people going to the beach would not normally be bringing along, like crumpled up boxes that once contained kitchen, living room and bedroom decorations and supplies, as well as large chunks of Styrofoam.
Last Friday, I found large chunks of insulation material wafting along the beach, and made a point of getting some new photos to add sometime soon to the blog.
Believe me, seeing is believing, and it's all right there in the open.

Last year, I made a point of going into the sales office of The Beach Club underneath the HB Water Tower, and told them in very direct terms that they had a real problem with garbage and debris from their property getting onto the public beach, and that it needed to be solved pronto.
While the City of Hallandale Beach seemed to just wink at the problem and act like it wasn't happening, the residents and citizens of the city had noticed.
In the intervening months, they've made little tangible effort to prevent it from happening over and over on a daily basis, since their large dumpsters on the north side don't even have regular lids -or makeshift ones- to contain their loads.
Practically every day, you can find material from their construction activities on the beach or on the access road that connects to the HB Fire Station and The Beachside Cafe.
The Beach Club really should've listened to the warning I gave them last year.
Now, like HB's own incompetent and apathetic city govt., they'll see that actions have real consequences.
Check out the DBR story where you can, for instance, at Miami-Dade or Broward County libraries, and see for yourself, and then let me know what you think.
________________________________
http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/2007-03-11-perez-usat_N.htm

Executive Suite — Today's Entrepreneur: Miami magnate gives city a makeover
By David J. Lynch, USA TODAY

MIAMI — If you stand in just the right spot on the Brickell Avenue Bridge, it's possible to think that every new building in this rapidly evolving city — every single glass-walled pillar of aspiration and ambition — belongs to one man: Jorge Perez.
Of course, that's not the case. Even an urban developer as ubiquitous as Perez can't be everywhere. But visible from the modest concrete span over sparkling Biscayne Bay are the three towers of the $1.5 billion Icon Brickell hotel and condominium project, the multihued facade of another condo building called 500 Brickell and the eye-catching Loft 2, distinguished by a public transit system that passes through an opening in its midsection.

NEWS, PROFILES, TIPS: Executive Suite index

The three projects are among 11 freshly minted buildings that Perez, chief executive of closely held The Related Group, has under construction in what was once a desolate downtown landscape. Coupled with earlier projects already completed, the distinctive cluster puts Miami on track to have a people-friendly downtown worthy of a city that bills itself as the unofficial capital of South America. And it's cementing the Cuban-American entrepreneur's standing as one of the nation's most prominent Hispanic businessmen.
"We're going to finally have a center!" Perez enthuses. "This is going to be the epicenter right here!"
Yet, even as the contours of Miami's years-long downtown renaissance materialize, Perez, 57, is shifting focus. After a decade-long run, South Florida's real estate wave — like housing markets across the USA — has crested and turned down. So, the developer is turning his attention to foreign turf, seeking to export the dealmaking savvy and creative vision that transformed a one-time municipal planner into a billionaire who hobnobs with A-list celebrities from Donald Trump to Hillary Clinton.
"There's a lot of capital in the world," says the man Forbes magazine ranks No. 197 on its list of richest Americans.
A recent day spent touring his premier South Florida projects provided a glimpse of the Perez style: hands-on, jocular, cost-conscious but intensely focused on the artistic element. His developments are intended to be distinctive, inside and out. Example: The entryway to Icon Brickell, the triple-towered 2,000-unit condo and hotel project, will be adorned with a series of enormous heads modeled on the statues of Easter Island.
A born salesman
Perched in a corner office that offers a sweeping bay view, Perez exudes a spend-what-it-takes ethos. There's enough modern art, much of it from Latin America, to outfit a first-class gallery. He sports a purple-checked shirt, purple tie and matching cufflinks. His driver ferries him between development sites in a gleaming silver Mercedes S550, which carries a list base price around $86,000.
At each development, Perez indulges in the superlatives of a born salesman. Icon Brickell's spa is "like nothing you've ever seen." The French architect Philippe Starck is "the most creative mind I've ever met." 50 Biscayne is "an amazing building." Striding through the morning's fourth lobby, he suddenly pivots: "The mailroom! Let me show you the mailroom!"
And as mailrooms go, this one is a winner, shimmering with mirrored metal, bathed in light from a gleaming chandelier.
But Perez isn't blinded by self-regard. After crawling through northbound traffic on I-95, he reaches Ocean 4, the last in a quartet of condo towers he's erected along Miami's Sunny Isles Beach.
On this day, residents are moving in, although the building still isn't 100% done. As Perez steps into an elevator, he's accosted by Oscar Torres, who's upset that he has to wait while workers use the elevators.
"I'm an owner, and I'm not too happy with the way things are going," he tells Perez. The developer offers sympathetic noises, hands him his business card and tells him to e-mail if the situation doesn't improve. Torres seems mollified.
Later, inspecting a commons room with a sweeping view of the ocean, Perez instantly sizes up deficiencies in the Spartan decor. Comfortable chairs are needed, here, here and here, he gestures. "Have them come back," he orders the building manager, referring to the designer.
"That one is definitely, definitely not finished," Perez says as he climbs into the back seat of the Benz.
Miami's real estate market peaked almost three years ago, and last year's sales of 137,000 units represented a 34% decline from 2004, according to Michael Cannon, managing director of Integra Realty Resources. Perez acknowledges that new sales of his condo units have slowed, but he seems to be insulated from the full brunt of the downturn thanks to heavy pre-sales. A full 100% of the 633 units in the 500 Brickell development, for example, already have been sold.
But Cannon says an unknown number of buyers who've signed contracts to purchase condos may walk away from their down payments. "The real losses haven't arrived yet. We'll see in '08 and '09," he says.
Perez already has begun targeting other domestic markets, such as Atlanta, as well as underserved foreign markets, where his skills will face less competition. He also has minimized his financial exposure to any market plunge, Cannon says. "That's what's smart about Jorge. It's other people's money and his expertise," he says.
Leaving Cuba for good
Perez was born in the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires to Cuban parents. His father was an executive with drugmaker Eli Lilly, his mother, a pro-Castro intellectual. The family returned to Cuba six months before the 1959 revolution to retrieve an inheritance only to see their ancestral wealth nationalized, spurring a decision to leave for good. As they flew out of Cuba for the last time, Perez says, "I remember clearly leaving the airport and the people taking the jewelry away from my mother as we were getting into the plane."
Perez grew up in Colombia before studying urban planning at the University of Michigan. After graduation, a year spent touring Europe — through London, Paris, Rome, Barcelona and Istanbul — launched his life-long romance with the world's great cities.
He worked as a planner for the city of Miami before bureaucratic torpor drove him into the private sector and a successful vocation as an entrepreneur. In 1979, he established The Related Group, which concentrated initially on affordable housing and garden apartment rentals.
The work married his father's gift for sales with his mother's sympathy for the downtrodden. But Perez chafed at the creative limitations involved in affordable housing, ("You had to build boxes") and turned in the mid-1990s to luxury condominiums instead.
As other developers pushed west with new suburban communities, Perez zeroed in on the city. His affinity for authentic urban cores, where people could walk, eat, shop and be entertained, thus made it an easy sell when Miami Mayor Manny Diaz sought his help in revitalizing the city's nondescript downtown.
Among the first residential projects that jump-started the long-overdue redevelopment was a pair of condo towers called One Miami that Perez erected at the mouth of the Miami River. "Developers don't like to be pioneers," Diaz says. But, "Once somebody with the reputation of The Related Group or Jorge is present there, everybody else says 'he must see something.' Lots of people followed."
Today, Related Group says it has built and managed more than 55,000 condo and apartment units in Florida. Revenue grew from $683 million in 2002 to more than $3 billion in 2005 before slumping to $1.4 billion last year. The company blames the drop-off on a decline in the number of projects completed. "This market was insane. It was on fire. We had to exploit that. … We felt we exploited it well," Perez says with a quiet chuckle.
Seeking international buyers
There's long been an international dimension to the company's business. Roughly 50% of the condo units sold in Miami are purchased by foreign buyers, according to Cannon. Many are Latin American business executives, but as the dollar sagged against the euro in recent years, Europeans likewise have poured into the market.
To attract Latin American executives who have frequent business in Miami, Perez is offering a number of furnished floors in Park Suites at 50 Biscayne, slated to open later this year.
As the South Florida market crested a couple of years ago, Perez began scouting for opportunities outside the USA. He ruled out Brazil, Latin America's largest economy, because the main language is Portuguese, not Spanish. Likewise, Venezuelan officials who have sought to lure him into their oil-fueled market, have gone away empty-handed.
To Perez, two Latin markets hold great potential for his Icon brand: Mexico and his native Argentina. For Americans seeking a retirement or vacation home, a familiar name from back home provides comfort. For an affluent Mexican or Argentinean, it promises cachet. "There's a large premium paid in these countries for what I would call branded product," Perez says.
Last month, Perez announced plans to invest $1 billion in Mexican projects over the next two years. First up: Icon Vallarta, an upscale oceanfront condo where units will be marketed at between $200,000 and $1 million. Opportunities in Argentina, which has rebounded from defaulting on its sovereign debt in 2001, he likens to South Florida "10 or 15 years ago."
Yet even as he readies his international foray, Perez, a father of four who married for the second time in 2001, is looking beyond business. A Democratic stalwart who displays prominently in his office a golfing photo of himself with former president Bill Clinton, Perez blasts President Bush for "killing young men for absolutely no reason" in Iraq.
In recent months, several Democratic candidates have come courting, seeking his support. ("I'm a pretty good fundraiser," he says. "I know how to squeeze.") Illinois Sen. Barack Obama and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson have been to his home. But the developer is a Hillary Clinton fan who happily recalls during the Clinton administration when the president would tap his knowledge of Latin America.
Now, Hillary Clinton's status as the front-runner for the 2008 Democratic nomination allows Perez to indulge himself in speculation about his own possible foray into public service. If the New York senator goes all the way to the White House, he muses, an ambassadorial post would be a nice career capstone.
"The money's been made. More money or less will not change my life. Now, the important thing is legacy," he says.