The Times

THE TIMES

the local community newspaper for all South Dade. John I. Watters, President & Publisher. William von Maurer, Editor. Robert M Slane, Advertising Manager. Subscription: $3.00 year by mail anywhere

3 Accidents In 11 Days

Three pedestrian accidents in less than two weeks would be a serious indictment of any public transportation system's safety record. Coral Gables Municipal Bus System has rolled up just such a grevious toll. There have been two serious injuries and one fatality in 11 days. The two injuries occurred at the bus terminal. In both cases they involved elderly men who were in the vicinity of the terminal. The fatality was that of a junior high school girl who died tragically under the wheels of a bus. The City of Coral Gables has long been aware of the need for a safety training program for drivers employed by our municipally operated bus system. The program, after several delays, is now getting underway. We fervently hope that this program will include a survey of the schedules under which the drivers are required to operate. There is a distinct possibility that the schedules are so tight that they require the drivers to take traffic risks to maintain them. One has only to sit in the vantage point of The Times office overlooking the bus terminal to see the accelerated speed with which buses enter and leave the terminal. At the risk of offending our neighbor, it must be pointed out that employes in this newspaper's newsroom can testify to the reckless speeds with which the buses charge in and out of the terminal. The drivers bull their way through traffic and across the pedestrian walks at the exits and entrances with little regard for safety. The terminal is one of the busiest places in Coral Gables. In the late afternoon it teems with school children on their way home. It is fortunate that the two pedestrian accidents at the terminal mentioned here were not fatalities. The next victim could be. And the next victim could be a school child. An intensified safety training program is clearly in order for the Coral Gables bus system. This should include a check of the schedules to see if they are reasonable from a standpoint of safety and a crackdown on recklessness at the terminal. Three accidents in 11 days are a strong argument for such a program.

"What Passengers? On This Schedule, Who Has Time To Pick 'Em Up?"

Support The Flower Show

The flower show which is being planned for Coral Gables late this month is one of the biggest cooperative ventures undertaken in the city in a long time. Working together to make the event a success are the City of Coral Gables, the Coral Gables Garden Club and various other garden clubs in the area. The dates are Feb. 24, 25 and 26. It is civic endeavors of this nature, calling for cooperation between large groups of people, that will do much towards helping Coral Gables to remain a city. A lot of emphasis of late has been placed on zoning, traffic regulations and building heights as matters which concern the welfare of Coral Gables. Too little attention has been paid to community endeavors which do not affect the pocketbook. These things are just as important in many ways as the concerted efforts to win victories in the City Commission Chamber or the law courts, the kind of endeavor which has been seen all too frequently in Coral Gables of late. The flower show's success will be the kind of victory the city is in need of just at this time. Help do your part by attending the show for which a minimum charge will be made.

Congratulations

Coral Gables High School seniors have been winning one scholastic honor after another, particularly in the field of science. Each honor counteracts the publicity given to juvenile delinquency in the newspapers. Each honor is a reminder that all of our children aren't spending their time casing houses and plotting attacks on adults. The community congratulates our high school scholars. May their honors open up the paths to useful, happy and profitable adulthoods.

Remember The Times

25 Years Ago "Stalin, Hitler, Roosevelt-Who Will Win?" was the talk given by Maurice Hindus, an authority on Russia, when he spoke at the Town Hall meeting at the Miami Biltmore Country Club... Below-zero weather in the north continued as sunny Coral Gables went on enjoying mild temperatures... Mary Fabian, prominent opera star both in the United States and Europe, sang at the Coral Gables Congregational Church ... The newly formed Country Club of Coral Gables had a membership of 510... Gables Mayor Roscoe Brunstter said he was ready to release to the public details of how the city would solve its bond indebtedness. 10 Years Ago Funeral services were held for Coral Gables civic leader and justice of peace O. B. Sutton. The 46-year-old Sutton died of a heart attack... The new Ring Theatre drew back its curtain for the first time as it presented "Harvey," the story of a 6-foot tall rabbit... The City of Coral Gables stood in the spotlight as the main opponent seeking legislation to curb the powers of the Florida Milk Commission... Building boomed in Coral Gables to the tune of almost two million dollars in permits issued... Another new church was added to the Coral Gables scene. Wesley Methodist Church, 113 Ponce de Leon Blvd., began services. 1 Year Ago A group of airmen touched off another round of debate between Coral Gables and Metro on 'Who's the boss' in off-street parking lots. The airmen said that because they drove federal vehicles, they did not have to put money in city meters. The airmen's furor penetrated Coral Gables City Hall and set officials on the trail to try to see if the Gables or Metro had jurisdiction... Joseph Kline, 6001 Twin Lakes Dr., replaced South Miami Councilman Jack Block, who retired... Capt. Carl T. Wallace, who served with the Gables Fire Department for 32 years, was cited by the City Commission.

PROFILE of the week

ARONSON Mrs. Joseph Aronson, 5869 SW 20th St., has been a social worker and club woman since before she came to Miami over 15 years ago. The charming mother of five is currently the president of the West Miami Woman's Club and second vice president of the West Miami Lion's Auxiliary. "Before coming to Miami," said Mrs. Aronson, "I was active in social work at the South End Settlement House in Boston, where I was born." Mr. Aronson is an active member of both the Masons and the Lions in Miami. His hobby is golf. Mrs. Aronson enjoys sculpting, drawing and painting. A graduate of Boston University, Mrs. Aronson enjoys being active. Besides her club work her children, Deborah, 13, Jonathan, 7, Bruce, 10, and twins Laurel and Suzy, 4, manage to keep her time pretty well accounted for. The Aronsons were married and moved to Miami 15 years ago. Mr. Aronson owns AAA Trading, a restaurant supply and equipment store on Miami Ave. Mrs. Aronson has been a pioneer with the West Miami Woman's Club and their welfare project of finding permanent [letters] for Miami's Senior Citizens. Her fellow club members say that [she] is a good worker and accomplishes her [goals]. B-Boston M-Joseph Ch-Deborah, Jonathan, Bruce, Laurel and Suzy Bus-Restaurant Supply Ed-Boston University

South Miami Roundup

By EDWIN KNIGHT KNIGHT BANKS-Look for two more banks in the area if those bank's charters are approved in Washington and Tallahassee, respectively. One is a state bank, the other a national bank. The national bank is planned for South Miami. Backers had hoped to put the financial institution farther south on South Dixie Highway, perhaps in the Kendall area. BUT A NATIONAL bank must be in an incorporated area, the reason South Miami was chosen. Probable location for the national bank is 62nd Ave. directly opposite South Miami Hospital and South Miami Baptist Church. The land is a parking lot now being used by the hospital and owned by the church. South Miami has already been approached about setbacks, variances and other concessions. BACKERS OF THE national bank prefer to remain anonymous until the charter is approved. The state bank is planned for Bird Road at SW 83rd. If the charter is approved, look for this bank to grow by leaps and bounds. Reason: West Dade has everything but a bank. There are umpteen shopping centers, each with supermarkets, hardware stores and dress shops. But there is no bank. WEST DADEITES must travel to South Miami or Coral Gables to bank or do so by mail. Slated to head the bank is Gableite Howard Dale, 823 Palermo. The institution will be named Guaranty Bank of Miami. If the charter is approved, building contract will go to Lyle Roberts, of Coral Gables... Another building for west Dade - a $48,160 medical clinic at 2700 SW 87th Ave. Owner is Florida Key Hotels, Inc. BUILDING - South Miami didn't do any better last month than it has in previous months. Building permit valuations totaled $77,375, compared to $114,053 for January, 1960. There were only two residential permits taken out. These totaled a paltry $24,000. Included in the permits were a $10,000 addition to South Miami City Hall and $600 for a sign and land clearing for South Miami Federal Savings at 6031 Sunset Dr. THE ADDITION to City Hall will be exclusively for the police department, already in cramped quarters. Land was cleared for South Miami Federal's new structure on Sunset Dr. The sign told of the proposed building. A $9000 permit was taken out for alterations at South Miami Junior High School. Work included enclosing stairwells. COUNTY RESIDENTS are hot under the collar because of Metro's lack of trash collection service. Some Christmas trees are still laying in the front parkways of many homes - yet County residents now pay $28 for garbage and trash collection. According to the county, residents will get all the garbage collection they will get. The county's trash collection program will be implemented later this year after sample trash collections in other parts of the county. But Christmas trees still sit in the front of homes - and residents still wonder when they will be picked up. SO YOU THINK women are the weaker sex? Think again. A South Miami woman, walking north in the 6600 block of SW 62nd Ave. Saturday night, Jan. 28, was pulled from behind into the bushes. Her Negro assailant, with his hand over her mouth, only wanted her purse. But during the struggle, the woman took out a letter opener and stabbed the Neg[ro] several times in the stomach. He escaped with her purse containing $15 in cash and valuable papers. South Miami police, notified of the robbery, didn't know the extent of the stab wounds until a Negro was admitted into Jackson Memorial Hospital several days later with similiar wounds. The wounds were described as numerous and severe. Police questioned the Negro as a suspect in this case and the robbery of a children's apparel store on Bird Road. The South Miami Negro, Harvey Lee Beckton, confessed and is in county jail awaiting two counts of robbery. He implicated anoth[er] Negro, John Brantley, in the Bird Road robbery. Letter openers have many uses - by women. SOUTH MIAMI takes possession of the Brown Feed and fertilizer Store, 6110 Sunset Dr., about the middle of February after purchasing the property last year. The huge warehouse, one of the city's landmarks, will be torn down this month to make way for a new entrance to city. Removal of this building will greatly enhance the appearance of Sunset Dr. A NEW SIGN, listing the names, meeting sites and da[tes] of-week times for all of South Miami's civic clubs, is plann[ed] by South Miami Jaycees for the north and south entrances to South Miami on South Dixie Highway. LOOK FOR South Miami to have a change of heart on allowing three lanes of traffic on South Dixie Highway between Red Road and 80th St. South Dixie already is three-laned both ways from Red Road to SW 32nd Road. And certain South Miamians are realizing the need for doing the same in the bottleneck that is South Miami. Before, South Miami fought tooth and nail to prevent the three-laning. It will hurt som[e] businesses on South Dixie. But there's no business on the wes[t] side of the highway in South Miami and few on the east side of the highway that would be hurt.