WEDNESDAY, JUNE 9, 2010

Renovations Celebrated At Riviera Park

A ribbon cutting ceremony took place on June 1 to celebrate the renovations of Riviera Park, located at 6611 Yumuri Street. Coral Gables Mayor Don Slesnick, Vice Mayor Bill Kerdyk Jr., and Miami-Dade County Commissioner Carlos Gimenez participated in the ceremony. The park received a complete makeover for the benefit of nearby residents and businesses in the area. Park goers can now stroll through the new concrete walkways, relax at a park bench or get in shape in the new exercise stations. The ceremony took place underneath the gazebo which was also added in the renovations. The dog-friendly park has new electric light poles, site furniture, new playground with synthetic flooring, fencing, landscaping and irrigation system. Total cost for this approximately $490,000 project was made possible through a grant from the Florida Recreational Development Assistance Program and Miami-Dade County’s General Obligation Bond.

 
L-R: Vice Mayor Bill Kerdyk Jr., Mayor Don Slesnick and County Commissioner Carlos Gimenez.

Hurricane Season Is Here: Are You Prepared?

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) expects a busy Atlantic hurricane season. NOAA is projecting 14 to 23 named storms including eight to 14 hurricanes of which three to seven could be major hurricanes with winds of at least 111 mph. This outlook underscores the importance of having a hurricane preparedness plan in place. Commit a weekend to updating telephone numbers, buying emergency supplies and reviewing your emergency plan with everyone at home and at work. The most important message to remember is that you must be ready to be on your own for at least 72 hours after a hurricane or natural disaster strikes the area. The City of Coral Gables will be working non-stop to clear roads, assess damages and remove debris. However, it may take several days before vital services are restored. You must be prepared to survive for three full days without electricity, telephone, cable, water, gas, ice, medicines or any other modern conveniences before help arrives. To make an emergency plan and review a list of disaster supply items you must have, click here.  

Monitoring The Oil Spill In Gables Shoreline

At the request of City Manager Pat Salerno, city workers were sent last week to film and photograph our shoreline to document current conditions prior to any potential impact of the oil spill, currently affecting the Florida Panhandle. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has been designated the lead state agency for responding to potential impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill along Florida’s shoreline. While Florida so far has been mostly spared from direct impacts of the oil spill in its coastal waters, Florida fishermen and coastal communities are already experiencing a significant loss of current and future income because of a mistaken public notion that all of Florida’s waters have been tainted by the oil spill. There are no projected oil impacts to the Coral Gables shoreline at this time, but it is important to be prepared and informed about what to look for and what impacts maybe associated. If you witness tar balls, tar patches or oil sheen in coastal waters, report it to the State Warning Point at 1-877-2-SAVE-FL (1-877-272-8335) or by dialing #DEP from most cell phones. To learn more about the oil spill response latest updates, click here.  

Coral Gables Businesses Network For Success

If you own a business in Coral Gables and need all the help you can get to make it successful, this upcoming free event is right for you. The Counselors to America’s Small Business-SCORE is teaming up with Books & Books to offer a networking event on Thursday, June 10 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Books & Books, 265 Aragon Avenue. Meet SCORE Miami's business experts, both working and retired executives, and learn from their experience how to help your business grow in this tough economy. SCORE offers free one-on-one counseling, low cost workshops and an array of materials to get your business off the ground or to move it to the next level. For more details, click here.  

Technical Assistance Series
For Small & Minority Business Owners Continues

On Tuesday, June 29th, the City of Coral Gables will host the Minority Business Enterprise Center (MBEC) for a group workshop followed by one-on-one counseling sessions available to the local business community.  At the workshop, “Tips on Developing a Marketing Plan,” attendees will review the purpose of a marketing plan, learn how to define their target market, find out how to design an effective marketing campaign, and understand how to assess and categorize the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing their business.  During the MBEC counseling sessions, participants can chat privately with a MBEC professional about developing a marketing plan designed for their business as well as learn about the other services the MBEC offers. The MBEC’s focus is to assist small businesses, including disadvantaged, women-owned and minority-owned enterprises, by providing them with managerial counseling and technical assistance. This June 29th free and informative workshop will take place from 12-2 p.m. and will be followed by private one-on-one counseling sessions from 2-5 p.m. at the City of Coral Gables Economic Sustainability Department, One Alhambra Plaza, Suite 617. To RSVP for the workshop, contact Jessica Wotherspoon at jwotherspoon@coralgables.com or 305-460-5314. To schedule a post-workshop private session, contact the MBEC at 786-316-0888.