Alexander Adams
Tell City Council that calling a billboard a “Smart Pole” or “Info Kiosk” does not change the fact that it is a billboard and illegal in Coral Gables. Calling a parking garage a “Mobility Hub” doesn’t change the fact that it’s a parking garage and should be Mediterranean architecture. Coral Gables residents do not want the Gables to be Miami.
These new kiosks in downtown are billboards and if they were really informational kiosks then they would have community information like telling people not to litter, show photos of Coral Gables, tell people downtown about the Coral Gables Museum, Miracle Theatre, and Gables Stage, etc. None of this is on there, because it’s just advertising. These billboards do not even show the time and temperature. This is not what a smart city looks like. The fact is these are billboards promoted by lobbyists. Can anyone produce any public resident asking for these kiosk/ billboards?
At a minimum-
Remove all blinking lights on the exterior.
Move these billboards to the back of sidewalk if they are for pedestrians and not distracting cars with ads.
Reduce the size, height and width
NO ADVERTISING
Did the kiosk in front of City Hall to before the historic preservation board?
Laws are there to protect the public and you are stewards of the city. Stop trying to circumvent the laws.
Alexander Adams
Wake Up, smell the coffee everyone! The masses love the blinking lights. Think New York & Tokyo. The politicians give the people who frequent Downtown Gables what they want: lights & irreverent festivals/ music during Lent. Bad Catholic politicians in Miami & Gables. Partying should be before Lent & ending on Mardi Gras. There are very few good restaurants in the Gables. Giralda is more of a Food Court! The Gables’ Ancien Regime spent years & tens of thousands in legal fees to prevail in court banning Pickups & then the politicians say they are OK. All of the successful Gables contractors also drive fancy sports cars & have the money to build a garage for their pickups. We have lost are way! This is a blue collar, service industry, fraudster town. La gente bien moved away.
Please take a look at Miracle Mile. The sidewalks look dirty. The seating in uninviting and with no shade. Those silly looking welcome signs on lampposts should be removed. The entrances on 37th Avenue need to be cleaned up and enhanced. The wall art could be more elegant than pink painted walls. The purple sculpture on the corner of Le Jeune and City Hall clashes with Mediterranean style of the building. The chalk-walk doesn’t fit. You don’t have to be a designer to be confused about what Coral Gables wants to project. I find strolling across the Mile uninviting.
And let’s not forget. Pedestrians in our “walkable” city are continually menaced by scooters, skateboards and bycicles in Miracle Mile’s and Ponce de Leon’s sidewalks for lack of enforcement of the City Code. No one in our city’s administration seems to listen to citizen’s concerns.
To add insult to injury, during the Christmas season these billboards (kiosks) were not providing any advertisements (information) about local Coral Gables merchants, they were providing advertisements for Design District and other local shopping district merchants. Thus sending the few shoppers on Miracle Mile elsewhere for their purchases.
It doesn’t get any stupider.
The mile has become the killing field of entrepreneurial dreams. The churn and turnover are alarming.
And who started the Kioskos ? Was this a left over from a previous administration, the left over City manager and his legacy together with the Glass Box mobility hub? Just saying! Al Cesar lo que es del César!
The entire Commission and Mayor. You are fired !!! My family will not vote for any one of you in the next election. And Mayor Lago, I was one of your biggest fans. You are weak and have allowed this City to continue on the path of the employees deciding what we want and need in Coral Gables. NO MORE. We are going to take back this City with no hub, billboards and new concrete developments. And you will take the underhanded Mayor with you !!!
I will not be voting for any incumbent at the next election, this is too much!
Good points, Mr. Adams. We should take a look at the permit that got them installed.
So unattractive and not compatible with Coral Gables! So disappointed in all our City officials who allowed this. From your idea of “Art” outdoors to your idea of “modernizing” our City, you have failed miserably and wasted our resources. I hope you will remove these ugly boxes.
The multi year renovation of Miracle Mile caused the demise of several businesses, reduced on street parking spaces, resulted in residents creating new shopping and dining habits, aesthetically does not match the city’s Mediterranean style, and the uneven pavers present a fall hazard. If the city seeks to modernize, there are ways to do that and complement existing architectural style. If these are supposed to be informational kiosks, let the Chamber of Commerce establish criteria for content displayed such as maps, parking garage locations, attractions, maybe restaurant and retail lists coordinated to maps…. NO ADS.
Wow! Is this another money maker for our City? If so, were we not told last Commission meeting that the City is doing very well financially? Why are we trying to change what we proudly call our City Beautiful”? What has happened to our tradition of keeping signs to the minimum? Are these “kiosks” not cluttering our public space? Is anyone listening to our residents? Anyone there???????
I agree. One was enough but why do we need more than that. They take away from the aesthetic beauty of the sidewalks.