Coconut Grove, "What are we going to do there?"

We started the Festidan and have managed to grow and hopefully in the future continue to grow through this event and others.

I can tell you it is quite depressing to walk around the Grove. I am technically a local because my mom lives nearby and I live outside the Gables and am always in the Grove. I am 30 years old and as such I have a large network of young professionals with whom I connect with on a daily basis. Every time I suggest Coconut Grove for an outing to those outside of the Grove, it is very common for me to get a reaction like, "what are we going to do there?"

I recently was advising a client opening up a franchise of a food restaurant which I cannot discuss, but based on demographics and clientele it would attract, I felt the Grove was a nice fit. I got laughed at when I suggested a Grove location. I was surrounded by several individuals familiar with running successful restaurants in Miami. The Grove is beginning (for lack of suggesting it does not already have) to receive a stigma for being a black hole where all businesses that start up fail.

I can tell you the issue with the neighbors you recently brought up is a huge problem. Recently I had some discussions with the Mayfair about hosting my birthday party at the rooftop pool. Except, I totally forgot about the noise ordinance. When discussing the DJ I was told that music would have to shut off by 11 p.m. I felt like they knew this was an issue and tried to get me excited about having my event there and stayed quiet until absolutely necessary to inform me of the shut off time.

Obviously, no music after 11 was a deal breaker. There is no way, I could have 200 people come together on the night of my birthday and tell them, we will have a DJ until 11 and afterwards we will simply stand around. I then considered Olav’s but due to the outdoor nature of the Courtyard, I was afraid of the party being broken up because the neighbors can be so difficult sometimes in that area.

I eventually got frustrated and found a venue in South Beach and ended up having an open bar party for 200 people which was a huge success. It was just frustrating that I tried to bring this business to the Grove, had a great venue (the Mayfair Rooftop Pool on a December day is amazing) and yet here was this roadblock. The thing is, I am sure people encounter these types of situations all the time.

Remember, the event brings people to the area. When you have 200 people, a good 20 or so will end up renting rooms in the area, waking up the next morning, having breakfast, and then possibly shopping around in the area the next day. That type of business adds up.

Lastly, I won’t get started on actually hosting an event in the Grove and going through the motions with the local organizations. Let’s just say that I have heard the rumblings and most of the time it is along the lines of “don’t have your event in the Grove” and it is because of all the roadblocks they encounter with the BID. Luckily, our organizations knows our way around here by now, but at the same time I can easily see why so many would say "why have my event there and go through the hassle". I think you mentioned it recently in an article, it is amazing how a neighborhood which should welcome everyone with arms wide open, turns its back on so many potential opportunities and acts like nothing is wrong.

Jonathan Alfonso, Esq.
Miami