The Times

Saturday, December 4, 1976, page 1 (of 22)

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Hummel burglar strikes again; hits three Gables stores

By ANA MARIA ALVAREZ Staff Writer During the second week of November three separate stores in Coral Gables were burglarized. In all three cases the burglar was after one thing: Hummel porcelain figurines. Since late September. the Hummel burglar has successfully hit five times in Coral Gables. and has attempted to get into four other local stores which carry the expensive German imported figures. Altogether, the selective burglar has managed to escape with more than $35,000 worth of merchandise from four stores, one of which has been burglarized twice for the same purpose. "This is only happening in Coral Gables," said Coral Gables Det. Richard McEnany. "We have contacted Metro and City of Miami, but they haven't come across a case. "You can only get Hummels from two distributors in the country." McEnany said. "The Florida distributor said there has never been thefts of this kind in Florida or anywhere in the country." Why Coral Gables? "We see a greater number of burglaries because of the type of community we are." said Dennis Koronkiewicz, public information officer for the Coral Gables Police Department. "You wouldn't go to the desert to pick oranges, you would go to an orchard, and we happen to be an orchard." he added. One thing is certain, the Hummel burglar is very See POLICE, Page 7

Times | Guide

Serving The City Beautiful Since 1926 4627 Ponce de Leon Boulevard Coral Gables Florida 33146 Florida's Best Suburban Newspaper Phone 665 7981 24 Pages Vol. 50 No. 98 December 4/5, 1976 10 Cents Weekend Edition

SD marina could save county millions yearly

By KAY SEVERINSEN Staff Writer A 5,000 boat marina in South Dade could save Dade County $35 million a year, says Richard Cummins, vice president of the Marine Council of Greater Miami. The lack of boat slips and marinas in Dade County is costing us $10 million a year right now, he says. Prospective residents, potential businesses and tourists are being rerouted to Broward County, Palm Beach County and the Keys where boating facilities are more adequate. Cummin said. At a meeting of the South Dade Chamber of Commerce Friday. Cummins said a marina in Homestead Bayfront Park would be the largest on the east coast, surpassed in the nation only by a marina in San Diego. The marina would be feasible because the county already owns most of the land site. Cummins said. The rest of the land is owned by Florida Power and Light, which also wants a marina there. "One third of our new residents come for Florida's waters, but there is no place for them to put their boats," he said. "At Dinner Key there is a three-year waiting list. over the next two years, about 1,400 boat slips will be built in Dade, but right now we are already short 2,800 slips." He cited cases of several people from out of state who planned to move to Dade with their large boats, only to discover that they would have to dock them in Broward County. Presently, Dade residents own 38,000 boats and will own 88,000 by the year 2000. Cummins estimated that each boat owner spends 20 per cent of the cost of his boat each year on repairs and maintenance. It is this percentage that Cummins says Dade is losing by not having adequate marinas. In addition, Cummins says that if there were adequate facilities, it would generate 6,000 jobs by 1985. Marinas are being built or expanded at Black Point, Chapman Field and Cocoplum, as well as at some private locations. But these marinas will hardly be adequate to serve local needs. Therefore, the Marine Council also suggests that Dade expand the plans at the present building sites to include more slips. The council will request the County Commission to include boating facilities in the Master Plan at a public hearing early next year. Unofficially, the council's plans have received excellent support from county commissioners Clara Oesterle and Jim Redford, the city manager's office and Dade County Parks and Recreation. Ms. Oesterle said, "I want you to know the commission is not against this. Your problems will come from Tallahassee and environmentalists." Cummins said that environmentalists might suggest that the marina could destroy wildlife. "But the area is fringed by a mangrove barrier. We are going to leave it there, to protect the boats from hurricanes." Cummins said.

There's no place like dome

This spherical object, rising out of the ground like an overstuffed mushroom, is Bob Koger's' dome home. Bob, who has built these sort of things before, is building this one in South Dade. Photo by KAY SEVERINSEN By KAY SEVERINSEN Staff Writer All Bob Koger wanted to do was live in a round house. Not just round. but spherical. He began last May to get Metro's approval to live in a 39-foot geodesic dome, but it took him until three weeks ago to get it approved. Now, Koger, an architect and a general contractor, had already built 26 "Dome Homes" in Chicago and Michigan and he knew that the structures were 12 times as strong as county requirements state, that they are attractive and that they cut energy costs significantly. The county has a clause in its building code that states that a building must be harmonious with its surroundings and, before Metro would approve the dome, Koger had to collect 62 signatures from his neighbors along Galloway Road and 95th Street saying that they would not object to his building such a structure. The neighbors agreed. Metro approved and Koger began the house last week. Dade's first geodesic dome should be completed by early January, a total of about six weeks construction time. Geodesic homes, he says cut energy costs by 30 per cent because of their spherical design. They are faster to build, they can withstand 540 pounds of pressure per square foot, compared to Dade County requirement of only 37 pounds of pressure. They withstand hurricanes better and they are cheaper. Koger says he can build a basic dome home for $17,-200, with three floors, three bedrooms. two baths, a family room, living room, foyer, dining room kitchen, playroom and studio, the home will cost $90.000, however. Much of that cost is for cedar shingles which cover the entire structure. Although there are no upstairs windows in it now, there will be by the time he is through. When they are completed, the windows will look out over naturally growing vegetation, for Koger didn't tear down any trees on the property and the home is surrounded by pines and other trees. Despite county red tape, a lot of people must like the idea of living in a geodesic dome, for Koger has received at least 900 inquiries about them. He has already contracted to build two more.