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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.
Residents and tree advocates say the city is increasingly invoking traffic-safety rules to scrutinize long-time hedges and mature trees, raising questions about what the enforcement could mean for Coconut Grove’s lush character.
For 69 years, the Commodore Plaza thrift shop has sold donated goods at bargain prices and turned the proceeds into help for the community. Owning its modest storefront has helped keep that mission alive as the Grove has changed around it.
The Miami City Commission voted 4-to-1 on Thursday to keep City Hall in Coconut Grove rather than move the city’s center of gravity next year to Miami Freedom Park near Miami International Airport.
