Local News. Local Matters.
Firefighter overtime that looks like it’s falling but isn’t. Eighteen festival grants replaced by an unidentified $2 million pot. And a capital funding gap that’s much larger than it first appears. Here are a few numbers buried in Miami’s proposed budget ahead of Thursday’s final vote.
Greater St. Paul A.M.E. Church is now accepting applications for its affordable housing units, while the City of Miami considers additional funding to help cover construction cost overruns.
Miami’s Planning, Zoning and Appeals Board voted Wednesday to dust off a long-delayed rezoning plan that city staff says could revitalize an important West Grove corridor.
Police and Fire-Rescue would claim almost two-thirds of the nearly $73 million increase in Miami’s General Fund, while several other corners of City Hall are in line for sizable boosts.
Twice a year, teams fan out across Miami-Dade after dark to estimate how many people are living on the streets. The Spotlight rode along as one team searched Coconut Grove.
The second special hearing on Miami’s surge of tree-removal appeals brought agreements in several disputes, while the contentious question of who has standing to appeal resurfaced.
Proposed Miami-Dade budget cuts would eliminate one Coconut Grove bus route and curtail early-morning and late-night service on three others, disrupting commutes for workers who depend on transit.
After months of challenges to city-issued tree removal permits — and some victories before an oversight board — the fight has reached Miami commissioners, where tree advocates faced a tougher reception.
Commissioners questioned the City of Miami’s spending habits and its chronically underfunded Solid Waste budget last week during the first of two public hearings on the city’s proposed $3.6 billion budget.
For years, Miami has encouraged more development around transit stations and corridors. Along one Coconut Grove gateway, the effects of those policies are beginning to come into view.
