City Hall Demolition Pictures From Weekend

HR Wall, Copyright 2010 Ramblingmoose.com

By now, on July 30th, the roof on the Wilton Drive side of the building was being removed.  At this point the roof was nibbled away so that the only thing left of this wall was ... the wall.

The wall you're looking at is where the old HR Trailer was at.  This view only happens in a deconstruction.  Looking like a bomb hit it, finally, the sky is visible.
 

East Side of building Copyright 2010 Ramblingmoose.com

This is the back view from the yard looking into the open maw of the building.  When you went to pay your water bill, you'd walk in the door in the center of the picture and talk to Charlie and Joy and the rest, just not here.  There is none of the 1970s fake wood panelling, the Formica counters, and linoleum floors.  You now have a really great view if you are in there...just don't go in there.  Pieces may fall on your head.

East Side of building, Copyright 2010 Ramblingmoose.com

By Sunday, August 1, you have this view of the yard.  More of the building has been staged to be taken away, rubble that was once holding up the walls are waiting to become a reef or landfill somewhere.

North East Corner, Copyright Ramblingmoose.com 2010

You now have the corner of the building here.  The pieces in the pile from the above picture in the frame, sitting in the corner.

That's it for the weekend.  More pictures are coming.  The formatting on this one is awful, but hey the pics are here!

Dogs and Thunderstorms

I am back from the Keys Working Weekend.  I'll have more on the demolition of the Old City Hall once my "backup" gives me the pics from his camera taken on Saturday...  I have my pics from the Keys too so I will have plenty to write about.

This one though is a Guest Post.  My godmother, Kathy sent me this from the ASPCA knowing that I go through a lot of effort when there is a thunderstorm around.   Mrs Dog has fits.  The best thing I have found is to "Make Storm Time Play Time" and get treats and toys to toss to her.

The message below has some great hints if you have a dog that doesn't like noisy storms or fireworks.

Thanks, Kathy.

1. Is Your Dog Afraid of Thunderstorms?



Picture this: As the skies darken overhead, an otherwise amiable dog is panting and pacing around the house with his tail tucked between his legs. When the first crash of thunder hits, he bolts into the bathroom and curls up tightly in the tub, where he remains, panting and trembling, until the storm passes. Sound familiar? Does your dog behave this way during storms? Not to worry, pet parents, the ASPCA has some advice for helping your pooch overcome his fear.

Any dog can develop a fear of thunderstorms, but herding breeds seem more susceptible to developing noise phobias. Age is another risk factor: Dogs who are afraid of thunderstorms can become more distressed with each successive season, so it’s smart to start working with your dog as soon as you notice his fearful behavior. If your adult dog has suddenly become afraid of storms, please start with a visit to your vet. A sick dog may become more sensitive to sounds, and no amount of behavior modification will help if your dog’s fear is medically based.

Try the following strategies to reduce your dog’s anxiety during storms. For dogs with mild thunderstorm phobia, these tricks may get rid of the problem entirely.

    * Let your dog take refuge inside. Storms aren’t as loud and scary with four walls around you! Bringing your dog into the house also ensures that he won’t try to escape from the yard.
    * Having some human company often calms panicked dogs. If your calm, quiet touch brings him comfort or if he comes to you for security, it’s perfectly fine to pet and reassure him.
    * Try turning on some calming music, a TV or radio, or a fan to muffle storm noises. Shutting the drapes may help if lightning also frightens your dog.
    * More active distractions may help, too. See if your dog will eat from a food-filled toy, such as a stuffed Kong, scatter treats in the house for him to find, or try playing tug or fetch with his favorite toy.

If your dog’s quality of life is seriously impaired by thunderstorms, consider speaking with a vet about anti-anxiety medication. Medication can enhance the effectiveness of other efforts to help your dog cope with his fear. A technique called desensitization and counterconditioning can also help. This technique involves gradually increasing the volume of an audio recording of a thunderstorm to help your dog become accustomed to it, while at the same time associating the sound of thunder with good things, like treats and toys. Additionally, there are a number of products on the market that may help your dog remain calm during storms, including close-fitting body wraps, noise-reducing headphones and herbal remedies.

Help is just around the corner! Please visit the ASPCA’s Virtual Behaviorist for more advice and useful resources.

Network Trouble in Paradise

I'll be coming back to Wilton Manors today.

Spent the weekend in Networking Paradise.  Four different PCs, each with a virtual machine on them.  One Macbook without a virtual PC on it.  Getting all of that straightened out so that they can all see the network all at the same time using Virtual PC and VMWare can be a trial.

My own machine, which the blog is written on, gave me some fits in the middle of it all.  Actually the Virtual Machine that runs on the laptop all the sudden decided to forget how to network.  After a couple of virtual cycles, the machine saw the network and all is well. 

That's how I'm writing this.

I'll have the whole network purring before I leave here in the morning Monday.  The nice thing about Laptops are that they're portable.  You can have a network running in the space of a desk if you know what you're doing.  Sometimes, I know what I'm doing, other times... I'm scratching my head.

At least the lot will be working, I'm winding down and it's been a long weekend for me.  If you don't want to pay someone like me, go to a computer store or computer website and buy yourself an external hard drive around 1TB in size.  Find where your machine sets up the backups, and make sure you get a full system backup.

Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Eventually you'll find yourself getting a virus and you'll be glad you did.  In home support like this is expensive in time and in money.  Sometimes you get your data back, sometimes not.  This time, my friend lost nothing but the use of his machines for a weekend.

I may even have gotten to see Duval Street tonight... I haven't gotten that far yet.  It's Sunday Afternoon, and this post is set to go live right around when I'm loading the car to come back home.  I missed the Volunteer Appreciation lunch on Saturday, and really wanted to go see it.  All the reports I have gotten about it were that it was a great party.  This makes...two maybe three years I've missed it.  Next time!

A Carpet of Gold in the Evening - Picture

In M.E. DePalma Park, there are small carpets growing. 

They're glowing in the golden hour when you walk by.  If you are lucky you will catch them just as the light is right.  The little flowers would be in bloom, the sun lighting the leaves will force a green and gold shimmering into your eyes.  The spirit of nature will speak to you to tell you to stop and take notice of this special place.  This special time is fleeting.  Make note of the beauty around you.  Enjoy the spectacle that nature has provided.

This little carpet is not very large, it is a small cookie sheet sized plot of green.  On some nights at just the right time, it is a little green and gold plot of magic.

Grrr Woof Woof! - Picture

Near my house there is a park. 

The park is a place of native plants in a manicured setting.  It's not much from a city park standpoint, it's a small place where you can commune with nature while sitting on a giant copper butterfly.  There is a plinth with another copper butterfly on it.  It's not meant to be an exercise park or a fishing park or a place to run wild with the gators.  This is a place for quiet contemplation of things that are native and watch the world drive by on the way to other places.

That is exactly why I like it.  It is a place reserved for nature in a very crowded South Florida area.  

Unfortunately others aren't so civic minded and walk their dogs by without cleaning up after them.  This gentle reminder of what should happen is one that is used all over North America.  It also serves to get a smile out of me when I see it.

I wonder if we can get a dog bag dispenser and a trash bin for that spot?

The Work Continues - Demolition of Old City Hall

Yesterday, I had pictures of the front and the side of the building.  This is what the inside of the building looks like from the window near the City Clerk and City Manager's office.  Dawn Walker, Joe Gallegos and Bob Mays would have sat near or at this spot.  Now its an open space.

Turning to the right this is the view through what was Finance toward the main entrance where Charlie and Joy sat.  If you walked up the steps to pay your water bill, you'd be roughly where that Bobcat is in the background of the right side of the shot.

Speaking of paying your water bill, this was through the glass at the door of the main entrance.  Now, where they took your money for your bills sits a bobcat parked inside.  You can see clear through to the back lot.   There's a silver coating on the window to reduce the sunlight so it also made for a dark picture.

Sticking with the through the window shots, this one is through the hole in the door left when the doorknob was removed at the back door of the police gym.  You can see all the rubble left from demolishing the roof and the tiled backsplash of the shower in the back.

Here's a slightly less dramatic view of the same spot.  This was from the windowsill in the south corner of the building.  You can see the ledge in the foreground of the shot and the same tiled wall in the background.

From the fence at the back lot you can see the same view from the outside.  They've chewed away the roof and the back wall of the building and it's open to the air.

The last shot for the day.  This is the view from the fence of the back of City Hall.  The wall behind that puddle is the other side of the first three pictures.  This is that open yard behind City Manager and Clerk's offices.

The Work Begins - Demolition of Old City Hall

First, let me make this completely clear.  All pictures were taken from outside of the building. No trespassing occurred.  The shots of interior spaces are with me holding the camera overhead and through a window.  I'm 6'4" and I have a real long reach.  Some pictures were taken through the existing fence between the holes in the wires. 

Please re-read that in case you are unsure, no trespassing occurred. 

This is the view of the building from the street.  Probably the most complete view you're going to get from now on out.  Windows are knocked out, the Siren has been stored, the "HR Trailer Trash Trailer" has been moved off site.  The building actually looks from this distance like it's still in use but its de-energized and the inside has been stripped of what can be reused.

Here's where the "HR Trailer" used to sit.  When I walked over to the spot it still smelled like old cigarette smoke.  Years of it I guess!

Holding the camera through a broken window pane shows what the old Police Gym looks like today.  The little closet in the corner mid frame is where the HVAC unit stood.  Now, its partially removed.

This is an interesting shot.  Its just to the right of the above shot.  I got it standing outside the window, holding the camera up over my head, through a window.  Aiming it to the right angle, I tilted it down to get the Bulldozer in the background that chewed a hole in the building.

You can see the wires of the cyclone fence to the upper right and lower left of the frame in this shot.  This is the yard showing that window from another angle.  The PD Gym never had so much open space!

Here's the Scoop... of the bulldozer and the pile of debris pulled from the carcass of the old building.  No wires in this shot, the angle was just right from outside of the fence.

Finally, here's the view pulled back just a bit looking North East.  You can see the entire scene here.

I will continue taking pictures as long as I can get close enough from OUTSIDE of the fence.  I haven't been invited in and I don't want to step on anyone's toes.

The demolition is starting from this side of the building working toward the front facade that you see in the first picture.   When done, that last wall will be gone and the footprint of the old building will be paved over for a temporary parking lot.

My Speech to the Commission for CAAB

I usually only do a single post a day, but last night was special.  I was reelected by the Commission and the Mayor of the City of Wilton Manors to the Community Affairs Advisory Board.   It was also the first time I had to get up in front of an audience and do public speaking at any level since... college?  SHEESH!  I've got to Lighten Up!

I basically had my head down and muscled through it all, just under 300 words. 

My intent was to stress our work together and how we worked together to help the residents of this City.

Thank you again to the Commissioners and the Mayor of Wilton Manors.

Hello,

I am currently the Vice Chair of the Community Affairs Advisory Board and I am here tonight to ask for my reelection and reinstatement to the Board for the next term of two years.

I have found the Board to be a fascinating position in which to do truly nice things for nice people, the Residents of Wilton Manors.  This is a board that in my mind is here to recognize the improvements that people are making in their properties that go unnoticed, to provide an opportunity for neighbors to meet neighbors and see what good people are doing in the City.

In my tenure, I was selected as Vice Chair shortly after joining the Board and work with Sherrill, Kevin, and the others in order to complete our mission.  I have revived the tradition of recognizing Properties of Distinction by presenting the home owners with the first Home Beautification awards after a couple year absence.  The current award design resembles strongly the original design that I had presented to the board.  That process had brought a spirit of camaraderie as everyone had their input on the final design which was almost identical to the original.

One of my favorite memories of being on CAAB was the Holiday Lighting program.  We were tasked with presenting the winners with awards for the best lights in the city.  It was my suggestion and insistence that the awards should be from as many businesses as possible within the city limits of Wilton Manors.  This way, the winners could use their awards to help keep some struggling business alive and thereby benefit the City. 

Everyone wins when you help your neighbors.

It is my hope that the Mayor and the City Commission will select me for another two year term on CAAB.

Thank you

Commission Meeting - July 27 2010

After having the budget meeting the night before the Commission Meeting was much shorter than what has become normal.  I've gotten used to the meetings stretching past 10PM and having to get up to leave to walk the dog.  This time it was finished at 8:40pm.

The highlight for me kept me quite rattled all night.  I had my first time speaking in front of the Commission and the City.  The Community Affairs Advisory Board had three seats whose terms had expired.  This is the board that I am the Vice Chair of and along with two others, we were all reelected to another two year term. 

Congratulations to current Board Chair Sherrill Mc Carthy, Board Member Kevin Knorr and myself who will continue to serve as volunteers on the Community Affairs Advisory Board for another two years.

My speech was short, and I shall post it as a separate blog posting after this one.  It stressed the Board's accomplishments and our commitment to serve the residents and businesses of Wilton Manors by bringing recognition to things done by people who may not have been noticed. 

Parking on Wilton Drive is not yet running at the budgetary expectations but Lanier Parking fully expects to meet or exceed that amount by "the end of July".  We are currently taking in $1000 a day, and are expecting $1800 a day, however that does not take into account the money from parking tickets.  Parking tickets have not gotten to the point where they are being fully collected because it is too soon to do so in many cases.  The numbers are only for a month so stay tuned.

In the remainder of the meeting there were three resolutions passed.

When City Hall is demolished, the City will place a temporary parking lot on the footprint of the old City Hall.  This will cost the city just under $92,000 and will require their dipping into the reserves for $5,000.  The parking lot will be done "On The Cheap" and is designed to last 3 years.  It will be done that way because there is the open question of the Two Lane Initiative and the Tiger 2 Grant and that property may get re-used and covered over by a mixed use Commercial and Residential building with an interior Garage, or may not.  This all depends on whether the City gets the grant.  We have a strong proposal, but it still is quite open as to whether the Federal Government agrees.

Congratulations to the City for doing it this way should be given.  The design will be done completely in house and was done by Dave Archacki Director of Public Services of the City of Wilton Manors and staff.  His design will save the city approximately $310,000 by bypassing external design firms and engineers and using our own staff.

Building of the new Temporary Lot can start when the old City Hall has been cleared and will begin as soon as the designs are deemed insurable.  Construction will take two weeks from start to finish.

Two short items:

The Wings and Things property will be completed per the original plans.  The building will house a new Sushi Rock restaurant as soon as construction is finished.  The property is now in compliance with code for a construction site so we can look forward to continuing growth in the middle of the Central Business District.

The Yawt Property
Still in flux over the G Resorts, the City has decided to look into any existing code violations by sending in the inspectors from the City and the County.  The City intends to have a "face to face meeting with Sandy Yawt and the other" trustees of the property to get them to follow through with the court orders and remove the blight that is on the East Side of the City.  If the City is not fully satisfied, they will pursue other options - their "Plan B" was alluded to.

Old City Hall - Last Day Picture

This is the last full day for the Old City Hall in Wilton Manors.  Tomorrow it is scheduled for demolition.  What comes in the future for this plot of land is up for discussion.

The view you have here is one you haven't seen in quite a while.  There used to be a trailer for the HR Department bolted down to that site.  What was most surprising to me is that the line of shrubs in the planter were so lush and green.  There must have been just enough light and water to keep them happy, they're even blooming.

The old building is "deenergized", and without power.  Water has been turned off, most likely capped off.  The other services have been identified and triaged as to whether they will be removed or abandoned in place.  There are hieroglyphs spray painted into the pavement all over the property and more flags showing who owns which line than there are American Flags flown on July Fourth. 

This was taken from the corner of NE 21st Court and Wilton Drive, a view which will change from this point onward.  If you're looking forward to seeing the old thing off, today's the day to get your "Before" pictures.  Tomorrow, the site will be a very busy one indeed.