Coral Gables Historical Archive
The Times
Wednesday, July 21, 1976, page 5 (of 30)
The page
The text of this pageRead by computer from the scan, so some words may be wrong. The page picture is the original.
opinion
• editorials • commentary • letters
Hard to believe
It's almost impossible to believe but parents of children attending Miami Heights Elementary School are not only not going to get the safety oriented cul-de-sac they requested at the accident plagued school, but Metro, in its infinite wisdom, is adding insult to injury. Commissioners have voted to construct a two-lane arterial road with parking on both sides and take away the school's parking lot for good measure as a part of the construction. The cul-de-sac would have cost $30,000. The proposed highway, not so strangely, will cost $500,000. Sort of a typical operation. The school, already an accident trap because of an S-curve near it, will now be doubly dangerous because children will now have to cross two lanes of traffic. We shudder to think of rainy days when parents drive their youngsters to school. Parents are angry because they fought for safety and lost. But it's really alright because Commissioner Beverly Phillips said those parents are getting more for their kids than she has for hers. They'll have a fence around their school. Oh, for a moment we lost our heads. That makes it all fine and dandy.
Rid stop of trash
There are so many much more important things to worry about and various local community governments have so many profound problems to worry about you'd think they wouldn't have to think about the garbage surrounding a bus bench. But they do. Riders waiting for buses on the corner of Sunset Drive and SW 55th Avenue consider the entire situation pretty distasteful both to the eye and the nose. But there seems to be some petty bickering about whose job it is to clean up the mess. Metro says it isn't their job even though the bus stop is on county land. The stop is just outside South Miami limits, ditto Coral Gables. The bench company's territory is just the bench although they have cleaned the area on occasion but don't have a permit to get rid of the garbage. Well, what do you know. A small island, a no-man's land where trash and garbage will be allowed to accumulate and possibly bury any number of poor, innocent bystanders merely waiting for a bus to take them to a better place. There's a simple solution for ridding the area of the unsightly mess and everyone will benefit. It's so simple we hate to mention it. Take turns.
the gables publishing company
serving south dade and coral gables since 1926 jim storey general manager bea moss managing editor gary gibbs news editor carole myers advertising manager bill mc hugh circulation yvonne moss classified manager address: 4627 ponce de leon blvd. coral gables, fla. 33146 telephone: 666-7981.
camera comment
Photo by ELIZABETH OWEN A bridge at SW 94th Avenue and SW 8th Street spans a canal and abruptly ends. Although concrete was laid and guard rails put up, weeds have now overgrown the bridge and it's blocked to any traffic. Why was construction on the bridge halted? Did Dade County's taxpayers pay for this fiasco? Ernesto Nunez, Dade County Highway Operations Engineer, said that the contractor of a subdivision in that area had begun construction on the bridge, but "for some unknown reason, the owner stopped construction, probably for lack of funds. After a bridge is built by a contractor, then the bridge is turned over to the county to maintain. The county did not use any money in building the bridge," Nunez said.
Crack down on handicapped parking violators
EDITOR: Most of us have the required physical limbs and can use them very well. The handicapped people amongst us have developed the fortitude, stamina and skills necessary to live life in a world geared to the people with sufficient use of all their limbs. The Office of Vocational Rehabilitation is the federal government arm responsible for training handicapped persons so that they can become self-sufficient members of our society. They have secured the cooperation of some of the nation's businesses and most governments in establishing specially designated parking area (usually one parking space). These space are located near ramps so that persons with wheelchairs can maneuver without having to cope with "impossible" stairs. What is terribly irritating, very thoughtless and also against the law, being punishable for fines up to $50, is the fact that some people use these special parking spaces at will, although they are not handicapped. This defeats the purpose for the designated spaces when a qualified person wants to make use of it. Only persons with the special red and blue tag for disabled persons or persons with a special certificate from the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation indicating they are disabled are allowed to park in these spaces. An hourly trip through any one of our large shopping centers on a busy day can produce many offenders who could be cited. It's time law enforcement officials promote an effective campaign aimed at those people who have disregard for anything other than their own comfort. AL NADEAU 7912 SW 13th St.
In support of the city's architects
EDITOR: The front-page article in the July 14 issue which reported one architect's criticisms of the Coral Gables Board of Architects prompts me to respond to that criticism. Visitors from throughout the world rave about the beauty of Coral Gables and one aspect of that beauty is the high architectural standards maintained in our city. The harmonious design of our neighborhoods is a credit to the board of architects. These distinguished professionals have prevented a great number of bad plans from becoming reality in Coral Gables. Your reporter notes that plans are judged on taste and style, rather than on adherence to a zoning code or law. This is as it should be, since architecture is in many respects more of an art than a science. I applaud the work of the Board of Architects and will continue to support them. With their assistance, we can keep The City Beautiful. WILLIAM H. KERDYK Commissioner