Coconut Grove Village Council comes out against trolley project

The Coconut Grove Village Council on Thursday joined the chorus of opposition to a new trolley-bus fueling and maintenance garage now under construction on Douglas Road in the predominantly black West Grove.

Meanwhile, West Grove residents have lined up lawyers to fight the project, and a University of Miami law professor is asking federal authorities to assist the residents with possible civil rights issues.

The garage is part of a deal between the city of Coral Gables and Astor Development to build a luxury mixed-use complex on a site that includes the existing trolley garage. It would sit in the 3300 block of Douglas Road amid a single-family, residential neighborhood.

Although its members are elected by Grove voters, the council has no authority over land use. The Grove is a part of the city of Miami bordering the city of Coral Gables.

Council vice chair Kate Callahan cited “improper notice and improper zoning” as the reasons for the council’s objection to the facility. Members also agreed to provide funding “to help defray legal costs to stop the project immediately.” The council’s resolution will be drafted and presented at the next [Miami] City Commission meeting.

“If the Gables is going to have the luxury of the trolleys, then they should have the negative aspect as well — gas and oil spills, maintenance, the beast as well as the beauty. West Grove village is tired of having the beast dumped on their community without public discourse,” Callahan said, referring to the fact that she and other council members learned of the facility’s development through news reports rather than from City Hall.

Meanwhile, council members learned that neighborhood groups opposed to the garage have lined up lawyers to help them.

Pierre Sands, president of the Village West Homeowners and Tenants Association, or HOTA, said he met with two local attorneys and a third by conference call who had agreed to provide pro bono counsel to affected West Grove residents.

“There is a land use attorney on board and very excited about taking us on. They’ve indicated it’s pro bono. That’s the first victory this community has had,” Sands told the council.

Coral Springs-based land use and zoning attorney Ralf Brookes said he is one of the lawyers who has agreed to take the case.

“The minority neighborhood would bear the burdens of trolley maintenance including public health impacts, but has been denied the benefit of federally funded trolley service for years,” Brookes said in an email on Friday.

Also volunteering his services was Lowell Kuvin, who became a lawyer after Coral Gables cited him for violating a city ordinance against parking a pickup truck overnight in a residential neighborhood. Kuvin lost his case in court, but city voters repealed the law at the polls in November.

"I believe there are many issues here,” Kuvin said Friday. Is the West Grove being singled out as a receptacle for industrial complexes that other cities don’t want? Did the city follow its own zoning laws? Were people properly noticed?"

Meanwhile, students under University of Miami professor Anthony Alfieri, who directs the law school’s Center for Ethics and Public Service, have been conducting legal research into some of the issues surrounding the trolley facility, including questions of civil rights.

“We are reaching out to the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District [of Florida] to assist in providing community education and civil rights workshops to residents in the West Grove. We’ll be asking them to explain to affected homeowners and nonprofits how they can initiate a civil rights investigation of the cities of Coral Gables and Miami,” Alfieri said.

Gables officials asked Astor to find a new site for the trolley garage in exchange for the old one. Unable to find a suitable site in Coral Gables, the company found the site in the Grove. Under Miami’s 2010 zoning ordinance, called “Miami 21,” approval of the project did not require a public hearing, according to the city.

Plans call for the garage to be completely enclosed and air-conditioned to contain noise, fumes and odors, and work will be limited to basic maintenance, the city said.

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Sen. Bill Nelson doesn't get his python, but he bags plenty of media attention

Bill Nelson didn’t kill any pythons in the Everglades.

But Florida’s senior senator bagged something bigger Thursday: the rapt attention of the news media.

With a Florida Wildlife commissioner who goes by "Alligator Ron" Bergeron and snake hunters — including one snake wrangler called "Python Dave" — Nelson and a team of biologists and naturalists roamed the River of Grass to raise awareness about the invasive snakes that are gobbling up the creatures of the Everglades.

The wildlife commission has launched a “Python Challenge” cash-prize contest, which began last Saturday, to get more people to kill more of the snakes.

"These pythons eat everything in the Everglades: bobcats, deer, even alligator and maybe endangered Florida panther," Nelson said.

"These snakes are dangerous. There was a child killed in Central Florida by one of these kept as pets," he said. "The pythons don’t belong here."

But Nelson does.

The Everglades is a piece of Florida history and a place for threatened and endangered species. And Nelson, the only statewide elected Florida Democrat, has been a threatened political species since he first won his Senate seat in 2000.

Nelson, 70, has endured and thrived in a state dominated by Republicans. And Thursday’s excursion showed why. Nelson champions and raises awareness of popular causes and knows how to attract press on issues of the day — from the Gulf oil spill to high gas prices to the threat of Chinese drywall to the proliferation of Burmese pythons.

"He has a gift. He knows the value of media exposure and he can earn it," said Rick Wilson, a veteran Republican strategist in Florida who briefly helped run a campaign against Nelson last year.

"Where else but in Florida do you have a U.S. Senator going out to hunt an invasive exotic species that eats alligators and strangles children in their cribs?" Wilson laughed.

Wilson said that, in some ways, Nelson is like the old-time politicians of Florida, a “character” like former Democratic Gov. “Walkin Lawton” Chiles. During his Thursday excursion, some wondered what Nelson’s nickname should be.

Papa Gator? The He-Snake? The King Snake?

“The Last Panther,” said Dan McLaughlin, Nelson’s longtime aide.

“Senator Python,” said Bergeron.

Nelson’s day began as he and Bergeron, a developer and Davie-born Florida cracker, disembarked from the commissioner’s black-and-gold H2 emblazoned with Alligator Ron logos.

As cameras clicked and whirred at a dock off Alligator Alley, Nelson held a brief press conference with Bergeron, who held the head of a live 13-foot python while three others kept it from constricting him. The snake had been captured in a Palmetto Bay swimming pool and brought to the dock as an example of what they hoped to catch and kill.

“These snakes can actually eat an alligator up to about eight feet,” Bergeron said, tightly gripping the python as its tongue occasionally slithered out to taste the air

A TV reporter soon did a stand-up with the snake, warning of the spread of the menace.

But though the snake appears to be spreading at an alarming rate, finding them on a warm day like Thursday is a needle-in-the-haystack exercise.

There could be more than 150,000 pythons in the Everglades and Big Cypress ecosystems that originally covered 4 million acres. So, if the weather isn’t cold and the pythons aren’t sunning themselves on land, they’re almost impossible to find in the shallow, flat expanse of the Everglades, where the snakes blend into the sawgrass and murky water.

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Intel’s revenue forecast short of expectations

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Intel Corp forecast current-quarter revenue that was slightly below expectations as the personal computer industry grapples with falling sales and a shift toward tablets and smartphones.

PC makers are struggling to stop a decline in sales as consumers hold off on buying new laptops in favor of spending on more nimble mobile gadgets.

Microsoft Corp‘s long-awaited launch of Windows 8 in October brought touchscreen features to laptops but failed to spark a resurgence in sales that Intel and many PC manufacturers had hoped for.

Intel said its capital spending in 2013 would be $ 13 billion, plus or minus $ 500 million, exceeding what many analysts had expected.

In the fourth quarter, Intel’s revenue was $ 13.5 billion, compared with $ 13.9 billion a year earlier. Analysts had expected $ 13.53 billion in revenue for the fourth quarter, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Intel estimated first-quarter revenue of $ 12.7 billion, plus or minus $ 500 million. Analysts expected $ 12.91 billion for the current quarter.

Net earnings in the December quarter were $ 2.5 billion, or 48 cents a share, compared with $ 3.4 billion, or 64 cents a share, in the same quarter last year.

(Reporting by Noel Randewich; Editing by Richard Chang)

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The Wanted I Found You Third Strike Max George Music Video

The Wanted's Max George lights up the stage in our special preview of the band's I Found You music video, releasing next week.

PICS: Stars Set to Perform at Grammys

In the video, the 24-year-old singer -- who has been linked to Lindsay Lohan -- is seen belting out lyrics over the roar of hysterical teenage girls.

The single, from the group's upcoming album Third Strike, has been performed at the 2012 American Music Awards as well as Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve. Fans will be happy to know that the full video will premiere on Tuesday, January 22 on ET! But in the meantime, check out the snippet above.

You can see the video in its entirety on Vevo.com and ETonline.com on Tuesday night.

VIDEO: The Wanted Teases I Found You Video

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No charges to be filed in July 4 boat accident that killed three children on LI

No charges will be filed in the July 4 Long Island boat accident that killed three children, law enforcement officials said yesterday.

“No criminal charges are appropriate’’ against the adults on the capsized boat, said Nassau DA Kathleen Rice’s spokesman, John Byrne.

Victoria Gaines, 7, Harley Treanor, 11, and David Aureliano, 12, died in the accident.

“The investigation uncovered a unique combination of circumstances that led to this specific boat’s capsizing,’’ in the Long Island Sound after a fireworks display, said Byrne, who would not elaborate on what the circumstances were.

AP

The FBI dive team and Nassau County Police pull alongside of the Kandi Won after the vessel was raised from the floor of Oyster Bay off New York's Long Island.

The investigation “also uncovered gaping holes in the maritime regulatory system and contributory design flaws in the vessel,” Byrne said.

The boat’s manufacturer suggested a maximum load of 10 people but there were 27 aboard on the night of the tragedy.

“The combination of these factors proved to be deadly but cannot support criminal charges that require proof beyond reasonable doubt,’’ said Byrne.

The DA will continue investigating, he said and will have “recommendations at a later date,’’ said Byrne.

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New look unveiled for evolving American Airlines

Even as American Airlines continues to mull a merger with competitor US Airways, the carrier on Thursday announced a brand new look for its fleet and logo.

The first new design since 1968 includes red, white and blue stripes on the tail and the word “American” in blue letters on the body, which is painted silver.

All new planes delivered to the airline will bear the new look, and the existing fleet will be updated over the course of the next several years. American Eagle planes will be repainted as well.

Thomas Horton, CEO of parent company AMR Corp., told the Associated Press in an interview that planning for the change began in the summer of 2011, when American announced it would buy hundreds of new planes from Boeing and Airbus. The company filed for bankruptcy in November of 2011. Art Torno, American’s vice president for Mexico, Caribbean and Latin America, said the changes go beyond a paint job and new branding to a host of new amenities, including a new interior for international widebody planes, a new “main cabin extra” class and new ways to book flights.

“Really what we unveiled today is a clear view of a new American,” he said. “It’s us building a more exceptional travel experience. It’s really much to do about modernizing and refreshing the airline in everything we do.”

A decision is expected within weeks about whether AMR will move forward with a merger with US Airways or remain on its own; a merged company would be called American Airlines. Horton told the Associated Press that the redesign doesn’t tilt the company toward either outcome.

US Airways spokesman Ed Stewart praised the “compelling result” of the redesign.

The pilots union at American, which supports a merger that would put US Airways executives in charge, was less enthusiastic.

“A new paint job is fine but it does not fix American’s network deficiencies and toxic culture,” said Dennis Tajer, a spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association.

This report was supplemented with information from the Associated Press.

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An Operation Pedro Pan veteran to give benediction at Monday’s inauguration

The legacy of the Cuban children who took part in the famed Operation Pedro Pan will be center stage at Monday’s inauguration.

Rev. Luis Leon of St. John's Episcopal Church, located across the street from the White House, will give the benediction to President Barrack Obama as he begins his second term.

Back in 1961, Leon arrived alone in Miami as an 11-year-old — part of the legion of 14,048 children sent without their parents to the U.S. to escape indoctrination by Fidel Castro’s new regime.

Leon was selected for the honor after the Rev. Louie Giglio, an Atlanta pastor, stepped aside when it was revealed he made an anti-gay sermon he gave in the mid-1990s.

When interviewed in 2009, Leon said: ''I don't think President Obama knows my story,'' said the 63-year-old clergyman, who occasionally hosts the presidential family at his church.

But previous president George W. Bush knew that the Episcopalian clergyman had been sent alone without his parents from Cuba by his parents who feared how he would fall under Communist indoctrination. ''He talked to me about it during a function at the White House,'' he said. ``He was very interested.''

Castro’s rise to power seriously impacted the Leon family — all but disbanding it.

Leon’s father died in Cuba in 1963 after his children left the island. By the time his mother made it to the U.S., Leon was at the Berry Academy in Georgia and his sister was off to college, all thanks to the Catholic church.

His mother landed a job at Agnes School College in Decatur, GA. and they saw each other on weekends,

''We did not live together again as a family,'' he said. ``The clan was never re-gathered. That always bothered my mother.”

Leon said he feels his parents rescued him from the Communist island: "They did the right thing in getting me out of Cuba.'' But adds: "I don't know if I could do the same thing for my children.''

Leon is the second Cuban-American playing a major role at the inauguration. Poet Rick Blanco, whose parents are Cuban but was born in Spain, is the inaugural poet.

It’s not Leon’s first time at an Obama inauguration. Before the 2009 oath taking , Obama and his wife Michelle attended services led by Leon.

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Shaun White is California Dreaming

Snowboarder and two-time Olympic gold medalist Shaun White attributes part of his tremendous success to the place where he was born -- California.

VIDEO: Katy Perry is Truly a California Girl

"Being from California just really allowed me to do whatever I wanted," says Shaun.

Growing up in California, Shaun could take advantage of surfing the waves of the Pacific Ocean and hitting the mountian slopes.

Shaun explains that his passion for snowboarding started as "a family thing."

"My parents were just like, 'Oh this would be fun for the kids. Let's bring them up there,'" Shaun says. "And I just figured it out."

The 26-year-old has also added entrepreneur to his list of professions with the Shaun White Supply Co., which sells action sports equipment such as skateboards, bikes and more.

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Man pinned by car in critical condition

A 55-year-old man is in critical condition after being pinned to a wall by a car in Brooklyn Heights, fire officials said.

The car rammed the pedestrian near Old Fulton Street and the entrance of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, according to the FDNY.

The victim was rushed to Lutheran Hospital in critical condition, officials said.

Shop owners and workers nearby said they did not witness the accident, which occurred near the ramp to the expressway, where the tall brick wall that the victim was pinned against obscured their view.

A traffic agent said the pedestrian was hit by a car that sped around the turn but police said they did not believe there was any criminality.

kconley@nypost.com

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Miami Dolphins bill would bring state money to aging stadiums

A bill drafted by the Miami Dolphins would give Florida sports teams $3 million a year in state money to improve older stadiums, provided the owner pays for at least half the cost of a major renovation.

Under the law, the stadium would need to be 20 years old and the team willing to put in at least $125 million for a $250 million renovation. That’s less than the $400 million redo of Sun Life Stadium that Dolphins owner Stephen Ross proposed this week, which he hopes will win state approval thanks to his offer to fund at least $200 million of the effort to modernize the 1987 facility.

Miami-Dade and Florida would fund the rest through a mix of county hotel taxes and state general funds set aside for stadiums. Sun Life currently receives $2 million a year through the program, and the Dolphins want to create a new category that would give them an additional $3 million.

While the Miami Marlins and Miami Heat both play in stadiums subsidized by county hotel taxes, the Dolphins receive no local dollars. The bill would change that by allowing Miami-Dade to increase the tax charged at mainland hotels to 7 percent from 6 percent, and eliminate the current rule that limits the money to publicly owned stadiums. Sun Life Stadium, in Miami Gardens, is privately owned but sits on county land.

The bill pits enthusiasm for one of Florida’s most popular sports teams against a lean budget climate and lingering backlash against the 2009 deal that had Miami and Miami-Dade borrow about $485 million to build a new ballpark for the Marlins. Ross also must navigate a Republican-led Legislature that has twice rebuffed his requests for public dollars.

“I would be surprised if that bill even got a hearing in committee,” said Mike Fasano, a Republican representative from the Tampa area and a critic of tax-funded sports deals. “I’m a big Dolphin fan, and have been for years. But with all due respect, we’ve got people who are struggling throughout this state right now . .. The last thing we should be doing is giving a professional sports team or facility additional tax dollars.”

While the bill would open up the $3 million subsidy to other the teams, the Dolphins see it as unlikely that another owner would be willing to put up as much money for renovations as Ross, a billionaire real estate developer.

If the bill were enacted today, any stadium opened before 1993 would be eligible for the money, provided it could show the proposed renovation would generate an additional $3 million in sales taxes.

Ross and his backers are pitching the renovation as a boon to tourism, with Sun Life a magnet for the Super Bowl, national college football games and other major events. The National Football League is considering South Florida and San Francisco for the 2016 Super Bowl, and the Dolphins say approval of renovation funding is crucial to winning the bid.

Sen. Oscar Braynon, D-Miami Gardens, who sponsored the Senate bill, said the funding makes sense because when Sun Life hosts a Super Bowl, the entire state benefits from both tourism dollars and publicity.

“It’s a small price to pay for economic development, and for all the shine we get from major sporting events,” said Braynon, whose district includes Sun Life. Rep. Eduardo “Eddy” Gonzalez, R-Hialeah, is the sponsor on the House side.

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