Coral Gables Historical Archive
The Coral Gables Times
Thursday, April 27, 1961, page 1 (of 32)
The page
The text of this pageRead by computer from the scan, so some words may be wrong. The page picture is the original.
THE Coral Gables TIMES
THE CITY BEAUTIFUL Vol. 36 No. 11 Thursday, April 27, 1961 Price 10c
That New Tour It's Not Romantic But It Gets You
Coral Gables is going to have a new guided tour. But this one will not be of the beautiful homes and the University of Miami and other such landmarks. This one will be of the city incinerator, rock and soil pit, sewage disposal plant, equipment yard and other municipal facilities. The new City Commission pioneered this tour this and last week. The trip proved so popular and generated so much interest that commissioners indicated Tuesday that it would be provided to civic groups in the future. "I came away quite impressed," said Commissioner George Wilson to the Coral Gables Citizens Committee at their meeting Tuesday. Wilson, Mayor Robert L. Searle, and Commissioners Joe Murphy and Dr. Franklin J. Evans had been asked by the group to speak briefly. The commissioners agreed that the tour, conducted by City Manager L. W. Robinson Jr., had proved useful in familiarizing themselves with the city's operation.
Gables Tells Metro: We'll Train Firemen
City Sees No Reason To Join By MAURICE LABELLE Times Staffer Coral Gables will oppose a suggested Metro ordinance requiring firemen here to take a 12-week training course with the county. The ordinance is scheduled for first reading at the May 2 meeting of the Metro Commission. The city will also ask that relief be given on temporary policemen before they are required to attend classes. Mayor Robert L. Searle said at Tuesday's City Commission meeting that Coral Gables enjoys a Class 3 fire rating, while Metro's own rating is Class 10, or the lowest. Several factors, such as level of training, equipment, building facilities, manpower, availability of water and others go into the classification. The lower the class number the cheaper are fire insurance rates. City Manager L. W. Robinson Jr. is strongly opposed to certain provisions of the proposed ordinance. "The 12-week required training for fire fighters should not apply to Coral Gables, Miami and Miami Beach or any other city whose fire rating class is higher than Dade County," Robinson said last week. "If we had to have our fire fighters attend this 12-week course, we would still have to spend additional time in training them on our own equipment. "Under our present setup of classroom work and equipment, we are continually training our firefighters," Robinson said. The city manager indicated no strong objections to the police training provisions except where it pertained to new recruits. Coral Gables is already sending its new policemen to the Metro school whenever classes are available.
Chamber Chooses Hamilton Hayes
Related story on page 2 W. Hamilton Hayes, vice president of Daniels Department Store, has been elected president of the Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce. The election took place at a special meeting of the newly elected board of directors at the Coral Gables Country Club last week. Hayes succeeds Bernie Blanck. He has been with Daniels since 1951 and was previously associated with the certified public accounting firm of Pentland, Purvis, Keller & Company. Other offices that he has held are, president of Retail Merchants Division, Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce, and Director of the Coral Gables Rotary Club. He is a member of the South Miami Methodist Church, Coral Gables Country Club, and Treasurer and Steward. Other elected officers were, Warren L. Blackmon, 3900 SW 60th Court, first vice president; Ivan R. Cunningham, 7741 Ponce de Leon Rd., 2nd vice president; and Byron M. Nelson, 3281 SW 16th Ter., treasurer. Lee H. Smith, 1460 SW 4th St., was reappointed secretary-manager. The new officers will be installed May 4 at the annual membership meeting at the Coral Gables Country Club. HAMILTON HAYES
Ducks Live Their Fight For Life Is Paying Off
The ducks will live. They will no longer die of chemical poisoning. "They're doing much better now. I don't think we've had more than one or two die this week." said Truman Smith, au- maintenance director at the bus garage. The flow of poisonous chemicals into the rock pit lake near the garage, on San Lorenzo Avenue and Le Jeune Road, has stopped. Smith said insecticide spray guns are no longer washed on racks where the chemical poison can sweep down into the lake. ith said he is still feeding the ducks sulphur to help fight the pneumonia. "Now I feel as bad about those ducks as if I owned them and if there were anything I could do I would," Smith said. "But after that story came out in the paper, I expect that with groups like the Humane Society and Preservation of Birds and Wildlife and others th they must have taken up about 20 hours of my time."
It Keeps You Going Social Security on Wheels
Mr. and Mrs. Grampp Roll Along ... camera quirk puts them on wrong side By VANGIE GRANT Correspondent If you are elderly and feel that your days of driving a car are over, don't be discouraged. There is another means of transportation around the Gables and that is a golf cart. When Charles Grampp and his wife Helen of 1230 Pizarro St., were advised by their doctor not to drive their car any more, Grampp sold it without hesitation. But then came the problem of buying groceries, visiting friends, getting to and from church and just plain Sunday afternoon drives, which both enjoy. The Grampps had seen neighbors who are golf enthusiasts riding by on their way to the Granada golf course in a cart. Grampp, while not a golfer, decided that this was the answer to his transportation difficulty. So, he bought a golf cart. "I needed something easier to handle," he said. "Cars are too fast when you're 84 years old. Taxis are too expensive. I've been driving since 1908 and this golf cart is the nicest thing I ever had. It puts my mind more at ease." Mrs. Grampp added her enthusiasm. "I drive it too. It took me only five minutes to learn." When asked if she had any fear of traffic, Mrs. Grampp said, "As you go along, you have no fear because it's slow. I go to the drugstore and my husband visits his doctor at Red and Bird Roads. We have no reason to go over five miles distant." The cart fits neatly into the garage of the Grampp home. A cord needs only to be plugged into a socket overnight to recharge the batteries. For every hour of driving, the batteries are charged two hours. Grampp, retired from a moving and storage business in Bayshore, L.I., N.Y., will improve his cart with side rails. He has already rebuilt the rear compartment to hold groceries instead of golf clubs and added a larger steering handle. "It's a lot cheaper than driving a car," he happily commented, "and my parking problems are nil. I can't say enough for it."
'So Many People Wait Until It's Too Late!'
Read this couple's story on page 23
Hey! We're Moving
On Monday, May 8, we'll be moving to new quarters. On that date, our address will be 364 Sevilla Ave., just behind City National Bank and a half block off Le Jeune Ro.... The phone number will be the same, HI 3-1661. The box number will be the same, P.O. Box 580. Please address all communications to us through our post office box.
Still Being Worked On
Coral Gables parking policy is still in the formulation stage following a meeting between Al Jacobson, chairman of the Traffic and Parking Committee of the Chamber of Commerce, and city commissioners Tuesday. More ground work is indicated before a final policy is adopted by the Commission. The Commission Tuesday approved purchase of 33 four-hour meters for the 4000 block of Ponce de Leon Blvd., but held off taking action on any other proposals on parking. A proposal to convert between 600 to 800 meters on Miracle Mile and the downtown area from one hour to 11⁄2 hours was discussed at the Commission meeting.
TEMPORARY JOB
Finance Director Kenneth Allyn served as acting city manager this week in the absence of City Manager L. W. Robinson Jr. who left for Winter Haven over the week end to attend the City Manager's Association meeting. The meeting ended Wednesday.