WEDNESDAY, june 11, 2008

City Moves Forward In Country Club Proposals

The City Commission gave the administration the green light to look for new proposals for the long-term management and operations of the Country Club of Coral Gables. The City will issue a formal request for qualifications to find an independent company that will operate the City owned facility at 997 North Greenway Drive. The City is looking for proposals that are consistent with local zoning regulations, prove compatible with the surrounding historic single family neighborhood and that demonstrate community benefit and a stable revenue stream. Proposers may also seek to manage adjacent facilities including the tennis courts and the Granada Golf Course. Following a sufficiency review by a certification committee, qualified proposals will be forwarded to an Evaluation Committee for review and recommendation to the City Commission in September.

Residents Get Free Admission
to Lowe Art Museum

If you’ve never visited the University of Miami Lowe Art Museum, now is the time. The museum is offering residents free admission this summer. Just bring a photo ID with address, such as a driver’s license, and spend an afternoon admiring the vast collection of paintings and sculptures from world renowned artists. Residents will also be one of the first to view a new wing dedicated to the art of glass. The Myrna and Sheldon Palley Pavilion for Contemporary Glass and Studio Arts was named after two University of Miami alumni who donated more than 150 glass art pieces from their personal collection to the museum along with $1.7 million for the construction of the wing. The amazing collection is valued at over $3 million and is considered one of the country’s finest collections of studio glass. Coral Gables is proud to have such a prestigious collection of art in the City. The Lowe Art Museum, 1301 Stanford Drive, is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays; 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursdays and 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays. For more information, click here.

Gables High Students Shine
In Silver Knight Awards

Each year, the most extraordinary high school senior students in Miami-Dade and Broward counties are honored for their achievement in 15 categories ranging from journalism to science to foreign languages. The Miami Herald Silver Knight Award not only recognizes academically outstanding students but those who have unselfishly applied their knowledge and given back to their communities. Three Coral Gables Senior High School students were among this year’s Silver Knight Award winners: Wai Wong for art, Cristina Eloisa Moreno for mathematics; and Michelle Wu for vocational technical. Honorable mention winners were Alain Gonzalez-Mule, Jeissa Martinez, Jia Pan, and Daniela Tagtachian. Wai Wong, originally from China, founded her school’s art club and an after-school art program at Coral Gables Elementary. Cristina Moreno started a local Girl Scout troop and formed an IT girls club at Gables High.  Michelle Wu has been named widely recognized for her volunteer work at Mercy Hospital. Congratulations to these deserving winners and future leaders of our community.

Giving Children A Safe Start

Last month, NBC’s Today show aired a one-of-a-kind drowning prevention program from the Biltmore Hotel pool. Incredibly, children as young as six months learn how to survive in the water by rolling on their backs and floating until rescued. These important lessons are part of Safe Start, a comprehensive swimming and aquatic self-rescue instruction now available to the community. Since its creation Safe Start has provided more than 6 million safe and effective lessons to more than 160,000 children. The program is not your usual swimming lessons. Certified instructors are trained in child psychology, behavioral science, physiology and anatomy. The one-on-one lessons are available to infants and young children six months to six years, and last no more than 10 minutes a day, five days a week, Monday through Friday. The classes are available at Downrite Park Pool, near Coral Gables at 4300 S.W. 58th Avenue. For more information on how to participate, click here.

Seat Belts Save Lives

Do you know that more people die in crashes than as a result of suicide or homicide? Traffic fatalities are the leading cause of accidental deaths for persons of ages 1 through 44. The regular use of a safety belt is the single most effective way to protect people and reduce motor vehicle crash fatalities, according to the Florida Department of Transportation. The “Click It or Ticket” campaign aims at raising the usage of safety belts, which has proven to reduce the risk of fatal injury in a crash by 45 percent in sedans and by 60 percent in SUVs, minivans and trucks. Of every 100 children who die in motor accident crashes, at least 80 percent would have survived if properly secured in an approved child safety seat or with safety belts. Before you head out on the road, take a few minutes to buckle up, every time.

Bail Out Of Jail For Charity

Giardino Gourmet Salads is asking for help to bail owners Kenny and Ody Lugo, all for a good cause. A Charity Bail Out event will be held today to raise moneys for treatment, cure and assistance to local children and adults suffering with muscular dystrophy. The fundraising event will help purchase a wheelchair, leg braces, and will send two local children affected with MD to summer camp. This genetic disease is characterized by progressive weakness and degeneration of the muscles that control movement.