It was the summer of 1991. I was a teenager hanging with my friends at Hot Wheels Skating Center in Kendall for a concert. I can’t recall who was performing, but I will never forget the flamboyant, muscular Puerto Rican dude in a tight shimmering silver mesh shirt and skinny…
As we wake up this morning in honor of the Pilgrims and Indians of yesteryore by sharing a bountiful meal with friends and relatives, Banana Republican and a few of our friends in the Miami blogosphere wanted to show our gratitude to the jive turkeys passing themselves off as do…
A millionaire accused of massacring mangroves on his property narrowly won the vice-mayor’s post in yesterday’s Palmetto Bay run-off. John DuBois beat Brian Pariser by 28 votes to claim the seat.Those 28 voters apparently didn’t care that the Miami-Dade Department of Environmental Protection has tagged DuBois for “causing irreparable harm…
On Monday, Miami Circuit Court Judge Ellen Leesfield gave Miami Heat minority owner Raanan Katz a clear path to the basket. She granted him a temporary injunction to stop a formerly anonymous blogger from writing “defamatory blogs” about Katz. In her order, Leesfield also hinted that she expects Katz to…
On its website, Design Place at 5175 NE Second Court is billed as the Design District’s most desirable Miami condo rental community for young professionals, graduate students and small families. But a local organization that fights unfair housing practices is suing SPV Realty, a New York company that owns the…
After raising nearly a million bucks to unseat four Miami-Dade County Commissioners in the August 14 primary, it seems billionaire auto magnate Norman Braman threw in the towel. According to the last three financial reports for his political action committee Change Miami Dade Now, Braman only chipped in $80,000 for…
Carlos Miller: Not guilty! As one of Miami’s most fervent free speech activists, Miller was facing a criminal misdemeanor of resisting arrest stemming from a tussle with one particular member of Miami-Dade Police Department’s finest on January 31.While filming county and City of Miami cops clearing out Occupy Miami protesters…
Biscayne Park Pays Mom $100,000 After Son Molested at Summer Camp
Biscayne Park seemed like the perfect place for Maria Elena Molina to raise her son. Tucked between North Miami and Miami Shores, the Village of Biscayne Park is a 3,500-person community of rustic single-family homes, an Episcopal church, a recreation center, and a 1934 log cabin that’s home to the…
As the 2012 presidential election in Miami-Dade County spirals into calamity, alcalde fuerte Carlos Gimenez is doing nothing to stop another embarrassing, national indictment of our Banana Republic’s voting system. Despite long lines of voters who waited two-to-six hours to cast their ballots during the eight days of early voting,…
As the fifth day of early voting gets underway, the Florida Division of Elections says Democrats have opened a significant lead over Republicans in total ballots cast, by a 48,600 margin. Overall, Democrats have 118,000 more early votes than the GOP. With the Nov. 6 election five days away, 30…
Vote No on David Rivera, All 12 Constitutional Amendments, Alex Diaz de la Portilla, Crandon Park Tennis Center renovation, Juan Carlos Zapata
Vote Buying: South Florida’s Richest Are Calling the Shots in This Election
Yesterday, while Julio Rodriguez waited in line to cast his ballot at the John F. Kennedy library, the Hialeah voter noticed his city’s mayor stumping for Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney. No big deal right? Wrong.Carlos Hernandez was ignoring a local election law that prohibits people from campaigning within 100…
When you head to the polls this week to cast a vote for the prez or to throw your weight behind Mittens, you might be surprised to find one of the longest ballots ever created. You’d never know it from the nightly news, but it turns out you’ll have to…
While we’re still anxiously awaiting Rakontur’s Dawg Fight documentary about backyard brawling in Miami-Dade, the P.T. Barnum/Spartan of Perrine Dhafir Harris, AKA Dada 5000, is gearing up for his last big event this Saturday. “I’m calling it Red October,” Harris says. “There is going to be a lot of red…
Wayne Slaton may not unseat Michael Pizzi to win a second go-around as Miami Lakes mayor, but he sure is having some fun skewering his foe. Two weeks ago, Slaton uploaded a short campaign video listing the top 10 reasons why he is the better candidate. “It is the most…
Redland Rental Turned Marijuana Grow House Costs Its Unwitting Owners
To anyone with common sense, a town manager getting into business with his boss — the mayor — would seem like a stupid idea. But Golden Beach Mayor Glenn Singer and his subordinate, Town Manager Alexander Diaz, swore to investigators from the Miami-Dade Ethics Commission that they were completely unaware their…
Last week we reported on a bold conceptual plan by Miami architect Chad Oppenheim and über-hip-hop mogul Pharrell Williams to convert Overtown into Ice Cream City, a whimsical neighborhood that would be home to the nation’s largest indoor and outdoor skate park, a big box retailer, ateliers and specialty shops,…
In early May, Inverness residents John and Pat Wade got a call from their son Darryl with distressing news. Miami-Dade Police had just found a full-scale marijuana grow lab with 49 plants in the detached garage of their three-bedroom Redland ranch.The couple’s 59-year-old tenant, Andres Landin, told the cops the…
A hip-hop icon with a knack for post-skater attire and a Magic City architect have unveiled a very imaginative master plan to transform Overtown into a vibrant urban destination for skateboarders, artists, and fashionistas. But turning that dream into a reality is going to require a monumental effort to convince…
