Rolling the sidewalks in early
There are a few people in the Grove who almost want to make it a sleepy retirement community. We joke about that, but they seem to want to roll in the sidwalks at 8 pm.
I found the perfect spot for them -- Venice, Florida.
That's me in the photo above. I am actually lying in Venice's main shopping street (Venice Avenue) at 8 pm last Sunday night. You can see there is not a car or person in sight, they roll in the sidewalks early there. This may be the perfect solution for the Grove few who want no people, no traffic, no business and no noise.
posted by Tom Falco at 9:30 AM
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25 Comments:
You almost run over by the skateboarder..
Please Grape,
Don't give them pictures like this. It makes the activists salivate. They'd love nothing more than this scenario... zombieland!
But rest assured they'd be walking around expecting to come into the village for a cheeseburger or Ceasar salad in the daytime when THEY want to patronize a restaurant or bar.
What these few people clearly don't realize is that in order for them to have their favorite place open in the earlier hours, businesses must stay open for extended hours (sometimes into the wee hours) to pay their bills.
Believe me, I wish I could punch the clock at 6:00PM, go home and enjoy my family but that's not the way my business works.
You ever notice when people are sitting or standing around smoking cigaretts and/or drinking an alcoholic beverage everyone, usually is laughing out very loud. And I've notice in most Grape postings that the word fun appears endlessly. You know Grape, there are many, many more people who wake up each morning throughout the world who actually feel good about being alive. The blue sky, the shoreline, a flight of birds and car that cranks, babies and children sleeping, food in the frig, a job, a happy family. You, and by you I mean you personally try to make it appear that fun is the only ingredient there is to feeling good and living a good life. You cheapen the word fun and equate it along with some of your readers that somehow there is fun somewhere between 3AM and 5AM equated with alcohol. Frankly, this constant drumbeat gives me the impression that you are one really miserable soul and have contempt for individuals and families who are basically normal and content and use the word having fun spareingly because it is a special feeling and a special moment and something to be appreciated that does not involve being out @ 3:00AM or 5:00AM. Rather it is a 24/7 thing. You are one loser Grape. Print this loser
I am actually home every night at 8 pm and I am constantly asked by people "why are you never out at night?" So your theory is all wrong. The way I see it is that we live in a free country and people can do what they want, I am not willing to take the right away of the people who feel that the 5 am closings will help their businesses. I tend to agree with them for many reasons.
But for you to call me out and call me miserable and things like that, you really are wrong, I hardly ever drink and I am not out all night. I am home, just like you are.
I find you and your group to be the misrable ones because those that want to control everyone and have it done their way are usually the miserable ones. You want to impose your rules on the rest of the people. That to me is being a miserable person. Totally miserable and sort of communistic.
Grape is happy and the most UN-miserable guy you could meet, you obviously don't know him at all.
Anon 10:48, I hope you don't teach your children to be as mean and judgmental as your post makes you seem to be. Wow! You bring the evil Anonymi to a new low. Mean, mean, mean. What happened to make you so hateful?
Anon 10:48 - move. Move far away from here. You are clearly not from here, you are not wanted here, your attitude doesn't fit here, your hateful nature doesn't fit here, and certainly your limited idea of happiness and close-minded world view are not what the grove is all about.
Freedom and fun are important here, and you don't want anyone to have either. Most important in any civilized society is respect - respect for other and for their rights and freedoms - which you, you sad, pathetic, narrow minded hateful little person, do not have.
Good day to you.
Grape, what's really irking those few people is that you, like them, aren't particularly interested in staying out and partying til 3:00AM and beyond but you are willing to at least open up your mind and compromise. They feel that you should subscribe to their "It's my way or the highway" mentality.
WE LOVE YOU GRAPE JUST THE WAY YOU ARE!!!
Anon 10:48
Don't let the screen door hit you in the a** on your way out of the Grove.
Thanks!
I went to Venice and heard it was nice and clean, yep it was. But looking around I saw no one young. Going into Publix I suddenly realized everyone had gray hair, nice and quiet, for those who want that. Found myself in Lake Worth on a Monday night after a CRA meeting around 10 p.m. It felt like the Grove 20 years ago. Music drifting into the streets from the bars, people sitting on benches laughing and this was 10 p.m on a MONDAY. Every Thursday is bike night. Every month they have a festival for the community.
I'm still trying to figure this whole thing out. Beacause of some disturbance calls from certain residents to the police dept our local officials decided to essentially create a cerfew for businessses in Cocoanut Grove? It's totally irrelevant if it was one disturbance call or one thousand calls, It's not the government's job to ever curtail business. This was a clear violation of the rights of the businesses effected. Without a doubt this was a Policing issue period. Cocoanut Grove already has laws on the books to protect it's citizens from noise, public drunkeness, tresspassing, urinating on villagers lawns etc.
If these few residents and our commissioner want to try and say that the City of Miami Police Dep. is understaffed and underfunded and that's why we need this governmental paternalism please let them know that that's absolutely BullS#@% and they should know that it's citizens know it.
Take a good look at that picture both residents and merchants because that's where we're headed with our current representation at city hall.
Anonymous 10:48, your ambulance is waiting to take you back to the mental hospital.
Maybe if the rents were not so high in the Grove more businesses could survive?
Michelle, to answer your question, they're not teaching their children to be mean and judgemental because these three to four individuals that I know haven't replicated. I really believe that if the did create a child they'd be far less self centered and self absorbed and just maybe might think of others.
But I digress, having progeny from this group growing up like their narrowminded parents would just be perpetuating this "It's all about me" attitude. Be happy that there won't be any chips off the old block running around the Grove for another generation.
Anon 10:48 You have no BAllS to write that and not put your name. So without balls you for sure cannot have children of your own.
Grape has balls to even print your blog and then to respond, you do not deserve it.
Also anon 7:22 RIGHT ON God forbid these people replicated. I actually have heard 1 of them is looking into cloning himself for prosperity.
Replicated? More like spawned.
It's not the government's job to ever curtail business.
Really? So it's OK if I open up my pig slaughterhouse next door to your house?
Our friends wife went into labor in Venice and so to the local hospital emergency room they go. Sorry at this Hospital there is no OB Doctor on staff. The parking lots are loaded with handicapped parking spots. But please stay away should you be expecting a baby in Venice Florida.
Dear 10:48 in the morning
You state: "You, and by you I mean you personally try to make it appear that fun is the only ingredient there is to feeling good and living a good life."
From my personal experience, fun is pretty much 98% to feeling good. The other 2 percent is for moral responsibility, such as giving away the present you got in the school gift exchange to a needy kid every before unwrapping it when you were in grade school.
Re: anon 9:31PM
Please take a look at the context in which it was said. It's not the government's job to curtail hours of opperation of a business just because a handful of residents call the cops and the commissioner's office everytime they hear a horn beep or ambient music(within the acceptable noise level),people talking or heaven forbid laughing.
Putting a pig slaughter house next to a residential home is a zoning issue and has nothing to do with this argument. The center Grove businesses are ZONED to do what they're doing.
Let me ask you... You don't see any purpose for people to be staying out past 3:00AM, but what happens when YOU who MAY want to stay out say til 1:00AM(or on a really wild night 1:30) and your neighbors and your commissioner decide that midnight would be best for all parties concerned to be tucked in bed. What then???
I'll tell you what...
You'll be screaming from the rooftops saying that your rights have been trampled on!!!
Not to worry my friend because there's people like me and many others who are now standind up for YOUR RIGHTS as well as our own...
Your very welcome.
I think I just woke up and we are in CUBA and we have a dictator!
Putting a pig slaughter house next to a residential home is a zoning issue and has nothing to do with this argument. The center Grove businesses are ZONED to do what they're doing.
Sorry, but you are flat-out wrong. It is a zoning issue that we are discussing. And, [prior to the new 3am ban] according to the zoning ordinances, businesses in center grove were NOT permitted to serve alcohol until 5:00 am without a "Special Exception." That special exception was not supposed to be granted where it would negatively impact mixed-use/residential property.
Oh, and you're welcome ;D
RE: anon 2:43PM
Agreed, and once agiain I repeat...the businesses that had a special exception at the time of the new ordinance went into effect were legally zoned for that special exception.
Now if your argument is that Special exception licences should never have been issued to anyone ever in the Grove then you must be a newcomer because we in the Grove have a long history of establishments that have had 5AM licences.
I think the more important question is where the hell were you and your friends when these establishments went in front of the city commission (Twice I might add) to apply for this horrendous license???
Please don't tell me with a straight face that you weren't alerted of the applicants intent to obtain said licence, because you activists know if a goddamn leaf on a Gumbo Limbo tree is touched without proper permits.
Now to be perfectly honest there were establishments that were NOT good neighbors and didn't follow the rules and were disruptive to some of the residents. Those establishments should have had their certificate of use taken away and booted outta town long before this whole thing blew up.
I propose that 5Am licenses and potential applicants for Special exception licenses apply through the normal process (ie. through the commission) and should only be issued that license after a fair look at the possible adverse effect to their merchant and residential neighbors.
All licenses should renewed ANUALLY!!
This way establishment who are irresponsible Assh@#%# don't get to continue to disrupt neighbors.
What's wrong with three strikes and you're out rule??
I just don't see how any reasonable person would object to allowing ANY business that PLAYS BY THE SET RULES to opperate.
PPfffeeewww, this comment section shows clearly, Coconut Grove is polluted by a few angry, unhappy, overzealous, backstabbing, greedy, territorial, bickering, materialistic, inconsiderate nobodies. No wonder the rest of Miami hot-spots passed this area in their dust. There is so much poisonous action going on in this piece of paradise. It is a shame and an impending cause for disaster. Look in the mirror folks! Heal yourselves. Respect each other.
I am movin out of the grove. In part it is due to the other residents of the grove who are just horrible people. And in very large part, it is to move to a land of freedom. This area has become the new gables and it will only get worse. The beatnik and hippie roots of the grove are gone forever, and Sarnoff and his corrupt political friends will put the wall back up, and turn this place into the gables within a decade.
Sad...
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