Jeffrey Soffer, billionaire and son of real estate developer Donald Soffer, is pushing lawmakers to update Florida gambling laws. According to Miami’s Local 10 News, Miami Beach commissioners have hired lawyers to stop Soffer from building a casino under the Fontainebleau brand.
Miami Beach Mayor Gelber’s mission is to ‘discourage late-night entertainment in the city,’ and Soffer’s plan to build a casino goes against this.
According to Mayor Gelber, “What they are going to want to do apparently is take casino licenses, take gaming licenses, gambling licenses that exist right now in parimutuels — slot machines, card games, and things like that — and allow them to become portable.”
Also reported to be involved in the endeavor includes former President Donald Trump, who wants to open a casino at his current resort, Doral.
The Miami Herald has reported that Governor Ron DeSantis, has met with parimutuel owners to discuss casino openings and guidelines.
As part of he legislation, Genting’s Resort World Miami as well as the Seminole Tribe would be included and would greatly benefit from the legalization.
If this legislation passes, gambling licenses would be allowed to transfer into areas that currently do not allow it and local governments could not enforce any laws prohibiting it. The legislation is currently being drafted and will be released to the public within the next few weeks.
Explore Miami’s Top Places to Live in 2021- Brickell at #1
Niche is a website dedicated to helping consumers understand neighborhoods, schools, and colleges. They utilize comprehensive data of factors like location, quality of local schools, crime rates, housing trends, and employment statistics, to create their rankings. According to Niche, these are the top places to live in Miami!
Miami’s Top 10 Places to Live:
Brickell: Offers an urban-feel with many restaurants, bars, and parks. Home to many young professionals. The public schools are ranked above average.
Pinecrest: Offers a suburban feel and a lot more residential homes. There are a lot of restaurants, coffee shops and parks. Public schools are highly ranked.
Edgewater: Offers an urban-feel with many restaurants, bars, and parks. Home to many young professionals. The public schools are ranked above average.
Coral Gables: Offers an urban-suburban mix feel. There are a lot of restaurants, coffee shops, and parks. The public schools are highly rated.
Coconut Grove: Offers an urban-suburban mix feel. There are a lot of restaurants, coffee shops, and parks. The public schools are highly rated.
Omni (also known as the Arts + Entertained District): Offers a dense urban feel. There are a lot of bars, restaurants, coffee shops, and parks. The public schools are above average.
Palmetto Bay: Offers a suburban feel with a lot of residential homes. There are also a lot of park and the schools are highly rated.
Key Biscayne: Offers an urban-feel with restaurants, coffee, and park. The public schools are highly rated.
Miami Shores: Offers a dense suburban feel and there are a lot of restaurants and parks. The public schools are above average.
Surfside: Offers residents an urban feel and there are a lot of restaurants, coffee shops, and parks. The public schools are highly rated.
Grab Something Green and Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in Miami – 2021
St. Patrick’s Day may be a little different for many this year but there are restaurants and bars in Miami that are still celebrating. Check out the list below for drink specials, bands, and all things green!
The Taurus: Drink specials with St. Patrick’s Day-themed cocktails for $8, Guinness for $5, and Irish whiskey for $5. These specials are from 5pm until midnight.
Tobacco Road: Living Music and drink specials include $5 Green Pabst Blue Ribbon, $6 Irish coffees, $7 Irish Car Bombs and $5 Irish whiskey.
The Wharf: Tonight features live music and games! Food by Spris Artisan Pizza, La Santa Taqueria, and Mojo Donuts! Free Guinness every time you buy a shot of Jameson.
Calle 23 Miami: Beer and Irish whiskey shot specials at $10 each, Guinness for $7 and Irish Mules for $10.
Swarm in Wynwood: This festive street party is free and features live DJ, drink specials and games!
Sunset Skyline Happy Hour Cruise: Departing from Biscayne Bay, this 90 minute happy hour cruise takes you past Star Island, Hibiscus Island, Palm Island, Fischer Island plus the famous Venetian Islands, all while drinking green beer!
Block Capital Group and Kushner Companies LLC Breaks Ground on Wynwood Neighborhood Project
This project will consist of 152 apartments, 46,000 square feet of office space, 33,500 square of retail space, and 232 parking spaces with three roof decks and a large courtyard. There will be one-five and one-eight story buildings located at 129 N.W. 26th Street and 127 N.W. 27th Street, giving it the name WYND 27 and WYND 28.
According to Nicole Kushner Meye, Principal at Kushner, “This project is poised to mesh into the unparalleled Wynwood context and culture, while at the same time expand the vision and limits of this neighborhood with a tremendous addition of creative office, retail, and public space.”
There has been no reported completion date for the construction but we will update this article as the construction and time-line continues.
Subway Corporate Makes its Move to Miami
According to Restaurant Business Online; Subway, the Milford Connecticut based sandwich chain, will be relocating 10% of its operations to Miami. The new location is reported to be near Miami National Airport which also happens to be closer to home of John Chidsey, CEO of Subway, in Coral Gables.
In a statement following the company’s announcement, “A Miami presence allows us to keep our finger on the pulse of more cultural conversations and the evolving tastes of the modern consumer. With its dynamic business climate, diverse population and multicultural influences, it is the ideal place to transition some of our consumer-facing roles.”
The departments that are relocating include; marketing, culinary teams, and global transformation teams. This move will also make their U.S. and Canada based teams have stronger integration with their supply chains. Subway plans to move by the spring of 2022.
This change for Subway comes after a year of layoffs and an ‘executive overhaul,’ with a large number of store closings and buyouts.
Chidsey’s former chain, Burger King, is also located in Miami, as well as its sister company – Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen.
One Thousand Museum Tower Faces Foreclosure Due to Unpaid Loan
According to FinTech Zoom, the court filings include the Motoconb Estates, LTD., agent for David and Simon Reuben (Reuben Brothers), are seeking to overtake the remaining 15 units from the tower.
The Principal investor is Gilberto Bomeny and the co-developer is Louis Birdman. Caught by surprise, Birdman recently stated, “This action by our current lender was completely unexpected, as they are well aware that our sales team had a record-breaking year of sales, and that we are preparing to pay off the construction loan this month. We remain focused on the successful sellout of our limited number of remaining residences at One Thousand Museum during the course of this year.”
FinTech Zoom also reported that the Reuben Brothers are among some of Britain’s wealthiest families but are not well known in South Florida. This year alone, they purchased Kyu restaurant in Wynwood and a few additional properties in South Florida. They also acquired the One Thousand Museum loans in February 2021.
According to Birdman, “We are in the process of raising prices. The building is performing better than ever.” In the past year, over $100 million in units have sold as well as $35 million in quarter 1 of 2021.
Notables that currently reside at One-Thousand Museum include David and Victoria Beckham and French national team soccer player Paul Pogba.
South Florida Welcomes the 69th Miss Universe Pageant at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino
The last time the Miss Universe Pageant was in South Florida was 2015 at the Florida International University. This year the pageant will be held at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood on May 16 and we can’t wait to see what this year’s pageant has in store!
Miss Universe was last held on December 8, 2019 at the Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta and South Africa’s Zozibini Tunzi was crowned. Because of the pandemic, the 2020 pageant was cancelled.
The President of the Miss Universe Organization, Paula Schugart, stated that the event will follow CDC guidelines and that they have spent the past year working on ways to make the pageant as safe as possible including masks mandates, Plexiglass separating contestants and judges. Schugart also stated that “Our goal is to create a safe and engaging place for users to connect over interests and passions.”
It is unclear who the host will be for the 2021 pageant. The pageant will be available for viewing on the Telemundo Network. We will continuously update this article as we learn more information on the Miss Universe Pageant 2021.
Phase 1 of Miami’s ‘The Underline,’ 10-Mile Long Park is Now Open
Miami’s Metrorail has opened its doors and space for the newest 10-mile long park called ‘The Underline.’ It is located on the underside of the Miami Metrorail. Once it is complete, it will begin in Downtown Miami stretching 10-miles all the way to South Miami.
The spaces will be filed with a bike/walking path, exercise areas, butterfly gardens, dog parks, performance areas and even horticultural designs by Fairchild Tropical Garden.
This city has just finished phase 1 of this park with phases continuing through 2025. The first half-mile from Brickell Station to Vizcaya Station is now open for exploration.
According to theUnderline.org, the 10-mile park will be separated into 4 separate areas, with each area having its’ own special purpose and features.
River Room
Separated walking and biking paths
Dog friendly with dog bowls, clean up bags, and play space
Native vegetation
Urban Gym
Strengthening and stretching station
Half-court basketball or soccer field
Running track
Promenade
Sound stage
Gaming station
Outdoor dining area
Oolite Room
20 butterfly gardens along the 10-mile park
The designers are hoping it’ll serve as a space to improve the safety and healthy lifestyles of Miami residents as well as visitors. Phase 2 is set to begin soon and will start at Vizcaya Station.
Heineken Opens Cervecería La Tropical Brewery in Miami’s Wynwood Arts District
Photo Credit: Cerveceria La Tropical
The new Miami brewery Cervecería La Tropical, named after the historic Cuban brewery, Cervecería, was first opened in 1888 in Havana but was seized by the Cuban government in the 1960’s. Located at 42 N.E. 25th Street in the Wynwood Arts District, this brewery will feature an on-site brewing operation with tour, taproom, restaurant, and outdoor botanical garden.
This state of the art brewery has an annual brewing capacity of 32,000 hectoliters per year and can house up to 800 craft beers. According to Brewbound, the brewery will be led by Brew Master Matt Weintraub, who is a graduate and award winner of the Florida International University Brewing Program.
According to the South Florida Business Journal, Cervecería occupies 28,000 square feet, which includes a Latin and Caribbean cuisine restaurant from Chef Cindy Hutson, owner of Zest Miami. It can seat 800 guests and a 10,000 square foot botanical garden, with additional outdoor seating.
Their menu will include 20 handcrafted beers ranging from lagers, IPAs, sours, barrel-aged, and ales infused with local ingredients. They will feature their La Original Ambar Lager, which is inspired by the original recipe from 1888.
“More than a century after La Tropical was originally founded, I am proud and excited to be creating a new cerveza, food and cultural destination that unites La Tropical’s Cuban soul with Miami’s diverse and unique culture that has made the city the gateway of the Americas” states owner, Manny Portuondo.
Their grand opening is tonight, February 19th, 2021 at Cerveceria La Tropical, 42 NE 25th St. Wynwood, Miami, FL 33137 from 9:00pm to 11:00pm with live band Xperimento!
