There is an indelible struggle between city developers trying to develop, modernize, and raise the value of property and residents of these areas seek to maintain reasonable housing prices. The new Miami Worldcenter has received approval for a prelimenary funding of $1.7 billion. However there is a lot of negative response by residents–including jobs going to workers outside the neighborhood and city and rising property values. In an article by Ben Kennedy, more is explained about the benefits and negatives in the proposed Worldcenter.

Overtown residents voice concern over Miami Worldcenter

The Miami Worldcenter is one step closer to becoming a reality after Miami-Dade County commissioners gave the $1.7 billion project preliminary approval.

Overtown residents packed the Miami-Dade County government center Tuesday morning to voice their concerns with the project.

The nearly $2 billion project will transform the Magic City and connect Museum Park to the proposed downtown train station, 1 million square feet of retail space, new hotels and condominiums.

“It’s hard for people in the communities where these developments are happening to have more of a say,” said Phillip Agnew.

The commission will vote Tuesday on the community development district.

“It means that we are allowing the developer to charge the people that are going to be part of the development, whoever is renting it, etc. to have an extra fee so that they can pay for infrastructure,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez. “Today, Miami-Dade County is not giving any tax dollars to this developer.”

The project is set to create 20,000 construction jobs and thousands of full-time work.

Some residents want developers to lock down competitive wages that can sustain people in their community.

“What we want is in the contract that the permanent jobs will have quality wages and that they will be able to unionize,” said Agnew.

Jay Massirman has been in real estate for 30 years.

Starting in 1986, Massirman worked as a commercial broker at CBRE. Then, in 2008, when he saw a market ripe with opportunity, he became an investor and developer. His first focus was on fractured condo and single-family projects that went belly-up during the financial crisis.

His development firm, Rivergate Companies, today focuses on multifamily projects and building urban infill self-storage facilities. With partners Stephen Garchik and Steve McBride, Massirman runs Miami City Self Storage. The company has snapped up six plots of land across Miami-Dade County in the last two years for about $12 million.

Massirman has also formed a partnership with KW Property Management and Consulting to manage multifamily and commercial properties in Florida and North Carolina.

A big believer in the promise of technology to enhance real-estate development, Massirman has experimented with crowdfunding a rental project in Orlando. He answered questions from the Miami Herald on the future of his companies and South Florida’s real-estate market via email. Here is an interview by the Miami Herald’s Nicholas Nehamas. Article here. 

Q: What trends led you to believe that self-storage would be a good investment in Miami? What are your future plans for that area?

A: Having developed storage in the previous cycle, the timing felt right. My partners Steve Garchik and Steve McBride, veteran storage developers from D.C. and NYC, got together in early 2013 to form a joint venture to build urban infill, high-end self-storage facilities. We found that little self-storage building had taken place in the last 10 years. With the continued growth and expansion of South Florida, it was the opportune time to ramp up our self-storage effort. Currently, we have five deals under construction and 13 deals in process. Our plans are to build out the South Florida market with the best sites we can acquire. Our leading-edge designs have been favorably accepted by most municipalities we have targeted. We are in active discussions to scale our footprint beyond South Florida.

Q: You’ve expressed interest in crowdfunding real-estate developments. How successful has that innovation been?

A: We crowdfunded an apartment community in Orlando with EarlyShares and got a very strong reception from investors. I believe crowdfunding will continue to gain market acceptance for raising capital from both accredited and non-accredited investors. We will continue to explore this emerging marketplace.

Q: Genting has been extremely quiet about its plans for the old Miami Herald site. What do you think is the best use for that land?

A: The Genting land is located in the epicenter of Miami at the confluence of downtown, Edgewater and Miami Beach. The original plan was oriented toward gambling, but its timeline regarding legalization is unknown. I am sure they are working on the strategic plan for their holdings, which could encompass a resort, office, hospitality, condos, retail and beyond. The challenge will be how to integrate this into the competitive landscape with Worldcenter, Midtown, Design District, Brickell City Centre, to name a few.

Q: Where do you think we are in the current real-estate cycle?

A: The South Florida market has been at full tilt since the market reignited in 2010. First, it was the distress wave, which lasted a couple of years morphing into a robust development market for condominiums and luxury rental communities, which is reaching peak levels. Acquisitions are getting pretty tight due to cap rate compression. Current trends in development include mixed-use, urban infill development and high-street retail. It feels like we are in mid-cycle, and the fear of a rise in interest rates is looming. That said, we are truly a unique economy driven by international focus, the emerging tech industry, port expansion, convention center expansion and airport expansion, to name a few major infrastructure projects. Include the arts, professional sports, gentrifying urban markets, and it all spells a very exciting time to be a part of the globalization of Miami.

Q: What under-exposed neighborhoods should developers be targeting next? What kind of developments does Miami need more of?

A: We have seen frantic activity in Wynwood, Little River, downtown Miami, Miami River and Edgewater. I think sticking to these markets and looking for second-generation and backfill opportunities will be a viable strategy. We are in the process of rolling out a platform to explore these opportunities.

Q: Miami is one of the most expensive cities in the country for renters. Why are rents so high compared to incomes? And what can be done to help address this problem?

A: The main factors involved here are high land values, availability of prime sites for rental and construction costs. Couple that with the fact the condo developers have paid a premium on a per-unit basis for land and that we have seen a “land rush” in the last few years — it complicates matters. This makes building affordable rentals virtually out of reach. The affordable housing developers in town just can’t get enough tax credits allocated to meet the rising demand. Affordability is a significant issue in Miami-Dade County. There is a growing need for affordable, clean, safe housing for the people that make our economy function, including teachers, firefighters, police, restaurant, clerical, government, hospitality, retail and domestic workers as an example. These individuals make up the fabric of our economy, and it is a struggle for them to build savings when over half of their earnings goes to rent. Solutions include creating more workforce housing just outside the urban core on less expensive land. These projects will need subsidies to get the numbers to work inclusive of: tax-exempt bond financing, increased allocation of tax credits to urban Miami-Dade County, streamlining of the HUD 221-d4 program, and tax-increment financing, for instance.

Q: Why did you see an opportunity in property management, and where have you directed your resources? How pleased are you with the new venture?

A: Rivergate Management started as a multifamily acquisition platform for its own assets, as well as third-party industry relationships in 2008. In early 2013, I was introduced to Robert White and Paul Kaplan, both CPAs and the founders of KW Property Management & Consulting. In just 10 years, they have built their condo-management business to 60,000 + units and are one of the leading service providers in that industry. They laid out their vision to duplicate their success on the rental side of the business, and Rivergate | KW Management was conceived as a separate entity. Currently, Rivergate | KW Management has close to 10,000 units in the management pipeline, including 2 million square feet of commercial. Our resources are focused on hiring the best people in the business to grow this company into an industry leader. I am very fortunate to have great partners in all of my entities.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/biz-monday/article26934190.html#storylink=cpy

Where to Be: Here at InTheLoop, we know there are always places to be and events to attend. Each Friday, we feature a special “where to be” post on our blog to make sure every day of the week has some sort of cultural event to check out. We hope that you all can come out into the community and learn and commemorate some influential people and events around Miami!

Friday, July 10th

Environmental Impact Film Festival at Colony1 Wynwood 

Saturday, July 11th

Learn about nutrition with Short Chef 

11:00 am – 12:00 pm

Sunday, July 12th

8th Annual Miami Takeover 2015

Monday, July 14th

MAMP Labs Workshop

9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Venture Hive
1010 NE 2 Ave,
Miami, Florida 33132
None Link
Cost: $35

Tuesday, July 15th

A Taste of Haiti at NSU Art Museum Cafe 7/15/15

Wednesday, July 16th

“Starry Nights” at NSU Art Museum 

4:30 pm – 08:00 pm
NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale
One East Las Olas Boulevard,
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301
None Link
Cost: Free

Thursday, July 17th

U.S. Brazil Chamber of Commerce Business Breakfast

Date/Time: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Miami Marriott Biscayne Bay Hotel
1633 N. Bayshore Drive
Miami, FL 33132

Contact Person: info@multiculturaltourism.com

Phone Number: 954-792-2579

http://www.multiculturaltourismsummit.com/

We are so excited to see our younger generations acting as leaders and role models in our city’s discussion about gender and equality. This article was release this morning in the Miami New Times. When leadership is taken on my youth it holds all of us more accountable for our actions.

I AM JAZZ DOCUMENTS THE LIFE OF SOUTH FLORIDA TRANS TEEN JAZZ JENNINGS

Jazz Jennings, whose TLC docuseries I Am Jazz premieres Wednesday Courtesy of TLC

There have been few stories as widely discussed in recent months as Caitlyn Jenner’s journey from Olympic gold-medal-winning male track star to transgender woman. In June, as Vanity Fair’s cover made its rounds online, South Florida native Jazz Jennings sensed her own life would never be the same. The 14-year-old transgender girl, who was assigned male at birth, is an activist for trans rights and a voice for trans youth. She says Jenner is the biggest thing that’s ever happened to the trans community.

“She’s opened her doors for others to learn by watching her,” Jennings says. “It’s certainly impacting my life. When I have to explain to people that I’m trans, I’ll just say I’m a younger version of Caitlyn Jenner.”

Jennings herself has been a face for the trans community since 2007, when, at age 6, she appeared as transgender in a20/20 interview with Barbara Walters. Now she’s about to go even more public about her journey, with a TLC show set to launch next week. I Am Jazz premieres Wednesday at 10 p.m.

The show will invite viewers into Jennings’ home and family life, introducing her parents Greg and Jeanette, sister Ari, and twin brothers Griffen and Sander. It will show Jennings’ typical teenage life, which includes a passion for soccer and art.

Jazz, front center, and her family in their South Florida homeCourtesy of Mark DeLong/TLC

“I’m going to show everyone that I’m just like any other teenager,” she says, “except for the fact that I happen to be transgender.”

But it will also explore how she has battled the dark moments in her life and how she is fighting to change perceptions around trans youth.

Jennings was diagnosed with gender dysphoria at age 3. She first presented as a girl at age 5, but not everyone was immediately accepting. After the United States Soccer Federation would not allow her to play on girls’ teams, her parents fought a two-and-a-half-year battle, which resulted in the USSF changing its policies to allow trans students to play on their gender-identified team. And she has faced her share of harsh words and bullies.

“Over the years, I’ve tried to ignore the bullies at school,” she says. “I surround myself with friends who love and support me… I remind myself that what others think doesn’t matter.”

For her outspoken activism, Jennings was named one of Time‘s 25 Most Influential Teens of 2014 and was the youngest person ever featured on Out’s Out 100 and the Advocate‘s 40 Under 40 lists. She is a spokesmodel for Clean & Clear’s “See the Real Me” digital campaign and the winner of Equality Florida’s 2014’s Voice for Equality Award. Last year, a children’s biographical picture book was published about her life. And she has her own mermaid tail company, Purple Rainbow Tails, which raises money for transgender children.

“I want other transgender kids to know that they aren’t alone and should be proud of themselves for having the courage to live as their authentic selves,” she says.

That’s her hope for I Am Jazz, which comes on the heels of unprecedented change in the LGBT community in the United States.

“It’s obvious now that things are improving for the LGBT community and that our country is more progressive than ever,” she says. “I truly hope the positive energy resonates with others who want to find out more about transgender youth too.”

Today, Miami New Times released the article below focusing on the increase in the cost of living for Miami residents and the growing economic disparity in the city. As our city continues to allow ‘development’ via these luxury large scaled projects, we have to ask the question, Miami for who?

Read the full article below:

ANOTHER GRIM REMINDER THAT MIAMIANS PAY INSANE RENTS YET MAKE LITTLE MONEY

4th of July, 2015

• Front Page 5/19/24

• Seaworthy’s Spring 2024 Startup Showcase 5/23/24

• Chroma Art Film Festival : Presented by Rainbow Oasiiis x Superblue 8/17/2024, 8/18/2024

• Barry University 30th Annual Golf Tournament 5/30/24

• Free-To-Play Thursday Night “As Is” Bingo at IKEA Miami! 5/23/24

• Soul Sunday at âme Spa 6/9/24

• World Reef Day at The Marker Key West Harbor Resort 6/1/24

• Celebrate National Wine Day with Exclusive Wine Discounts at Diplomat Prime 5/24/24, 5/25/24, 5/26/24

• Second Annual International Ocean Film Festival 6/8/24

• Open Registration for Broward Center for the Performing Arts’ Adult Summer Classes 5/14/24-6/9/24

• Live Performance by Shane Duncan Acoustic Duo at Legends Tavern & Grille Plantation 5/26/24

• Museum of Discovery and Science’s Eye of the Storm Hurricane Science, Mitigation and Preparedness 6/1/24

• Art Of Hip Hop to Host Renowned Artist, Bua for an Exclusive Talk And Signing 6/4/24

• Week 3: East Region Ostrow Brasserie’s Culinary Journey Across France with Rotating Regional Menu Series 5/20/24

• Puppy Brunch at Ocean Social Returns 6/2/24

• Live Performance by Shane Duncan Acoustic Duo at Legends Tavern & Grille Plantation 5/31/24

• Pump, Brunch and Daycation Event at The Balfour Hotel 6/15/24

• First Annual Community Prom at Nathan’s Beach Club 6/23/24

• Renovation Celebration Event 5/18/24, 5/19/24

• Redbar Comedy Night 05/20/24

• Dom’s Brickell Comedy Night 5/21/24

• The Killing Joke Mode Miami Comedy Night 5/23/24

• Thank You Miami Comedy Night 5/24/24

• Limonada Comedy Night 5/25/24

• Fierce Creatives 5/18/24

• Nikki Beach Sound Bath and Meditation 5/21/24

• Thank You Miami Comedy Night 5/20/24

• Higher Ground at Arlo Wynwood’s Pride Kickoff Party with Ty Tea 6/1/24

• MidWeek Mixology at Le Chick 5/15/24

• Guy Harvey Meet-And-Greet 5/19/24

Where to Be: Here at InTheLoop, we know there are always places to be and events to attend. Each Friday, we feature a special “where to be” post on our blog to make sure every day of the week has some sort of cultural event to check out. We hope that you all can come out into the community and learn and commemorate some influential people and events around Miami!

1940s USO Swing Dance 7/3/15

Thursday July 9th

Film: La Belle Vie: The Good Life 7/9/15

Here is a translated excerpt from that interview.

Q. You’re helping Cuban artists “break the ice” in regards to U.S.-Cuba relations?

Q. Stephen Ross, who co-founded The Related Group with you, made headlines upon his return to Cuba and his announcement that he didn’t see great investing opportunities there. Do you share this opinion?

A. Neither Steve Ross nor myself held any meetings with Cuban officials to decide or learn if they’re promoting real estate or not. Those were just impressions from what he saw in Havana. What Steve said is, it will be a long time before he invests in Cuba because the infrastructure is in such bad condition.

Q. What would have to happen so that a group such as yours would decide to invest in Cuba?

Q. Do you have any plan designed for that rehabilitation?

Q. Would the luxury hotel industry have potential in Cuba?

Q. Have you thought about how you can help re-urbanize Havana?

Q. Many people are concerned that populations will be displaced in the process of urbanizing Havana.

Q. This is the second time you’ve visited Cuba. What were the greatest changes between your first trip in 2012 and your recent visit?

Q. But with this level of poverty, luxury condominiums seem to be part of a faraway future?