Pinecrest mayor to deliver address
Mayor Gary Matzner will give his annual State of the Village address Tuesday. He is expected to focus on improvements to sewage and Pincrest Gardens.
Getting all Pinecrest residents hooked into the county water system and improving Pinecrest Gardens are top priorities Mayor Gary Matzner plans to focus on in his annual State of the Village address Tuesday night.
The speech will kick off a lengthy agenda for the Village Council, which meets at 7 p.m. at the Pinecrest Municipal Center, 12645 Pinecrest Pkwy.
Council members also will hear an annual report from Police Chief John R. Hohensee and get briefings on planned improvements for Flagler Grove Park and Southwest 79th Avenue.
Almost half of Pinecrest’s 4,500 homes still use wells and are left without water when they lose power. To help residents pay for costly hookups, the village is seeking state funds and already has a commitment for county funds.
The council plans to schedule a meeting to discuss the estimated costs and timetable for installation of water lines. Plans also call for adding fire hydrants to the neighborhoods in question.
“We don’t have any fire hydrants in any of those areas, and so if there is a fire we may lose houses,” Matzner said.
Regarding Pinecrest Gardens, the former Parrot Jungle, Matzner said he will advocate renovating or replacing Bird Bowl, a 500-seat theater in the park.
Administrators also will present final improvement plans for Flagler Grove Park, 7551 SW 104th St., which include two soccer fields, a tot lot, bathrooms and parking. The city expanded the park last May when it bought an extra acre of land for $1.25 million. Matzner said he is looking forward to its completion because Pinecrest lacks a “dedicated soccer field.”
But Vice Mayor Gail Serota will suggest possibly putting the park on hold so the village can consider developing a master plan for all of its parks.
Serota is proposing a study of the need for athletic fields and the availability of parking, as well as querying residents about the types of parks they want.
“I think it would be helpful to have an analysis of what we have,” she said.
The council will also vote on the design of the reconstruction of Southwest 79th Avenue between Southwest 110th and 112th streets. The plans were reviewed at a neighborhood meeting Wednesday.
Also planned is a report on the city’s new radio station, 1590 AM, which is keeping residents informed about upcoming events and community meetings and will be used for announcements during emergencies such as hurricanes.
Council members also will discuss whether to record all of their meetings and broadcast them on cable television and will consider a request from the city of Miami Beach to adopt a resolution supporting gay adoption.