Tim Smith's Fort Lauderdale

…..  Problems between Police Agencies and black communities seem to be at their  worst  ……  And in Fort Lauderdale, the City just reinstated a 20 year Police Officer, Jeff Feldewert,  after he was  initially slated for firing for inappropriate, racially tinged Facebook postings  … Fellow citizens have been asking me if I knew why ….

 

 

……..   Pictures like these seem to be all over the news now a days, and with social media being the rage, nothing is behind the scenes  … ..   A new phrase has been added to the nation’s lexicon –

 

 

……  The race case on FLPD veteran Officer Feldewert  began after he put this post on Facebook –

 

 

………… The caption reads ” Typical hoodrat behavior – black People, because without them the evening news wouldn’t be as much fun to watch  …  ……   Feldewert’s case came to light after a much reported case of four FLPD officers that made a racist “movie trailer” for the internet, and were subsequently fired  ….. Three of the four are suing to reverse their termination  …. …..

 

…….  Word has it that the City Attorney’s office told City Manager Lee Feldman that the case for Feldewert’s  firing was thin at best ….

 

………And  according to an Internal Affairs interview with the Officer,  Feldewert admits the posting was “supposed to get a chuckle”, and that he is not racist, has a good 20 year record with no racial problems, and admits to “poor judgement” … He asked for a second chance, his job back  …

 

 

…….   Chief Adderley agrees with the reinstatement  ….. He told me that Feldewert made mistakes, owned up to them, and that his case doesn’t rise to a firing status like the others ….  He says that the 10 day suspension without pay was adequate, and that Feldewert will be watched and “shouldn’t make any more mistakes” ….   He cites a similar case of a black female FLPD Police Officer, who was also reprimanded and not fired for saying on Facebook  that she didn’t want to work for the “white man” all her life  ….

…..Adderley says he understands the sensitive nature of these cases, and is working with State Attorney Satz to develop a racial sensitivity program where Officers such as Feldewert will talk with young black youth about police/citizen relationships  ….

……   I reminded Adderley that he was one of a very few black Police Chiefs, from big national cities, that grew up in a poor black neighborhood and rose through the ranks to Chief  ……  that he had a special responsibility    …..  As a friend, I told him I hope he takes that humble advice seriously ……

…….. Popeye had gone missing  …… The prolific homeless panhandler of Sunrise Boulevard hadn’t been seen in nearly a year, and I had worried that he had made good on his threat to throw himself under a train,,,

 

 

……  But there he was just yesterday, rolling up the sidewalk, just north of Sunrise – on his spanky new Hov-a-round!

….. He looked much better than the days where he was living in the elevator shaft at Home Depot! He says that he is living at a sober house south of the tunnel, and has to put the scooter on the bus to get to Sunrise to panhandle, so he doesn’t get up here much ……   His head looks better –

 

 

…… but the sunburn from years of outdoor activities has done a permanent number on his legs …

 

  ….

 

……………..   thank God he came in from the cold  …. and please don’t give him any money !!!

…. I hadn’t jogged the beach for awhile. so I thought I’d get some exercise in and  see if any new skyscrapers had appeared since my visit last month …..

 

 

….. Nope, no new skyscrapers, but I was quite surprised to see     …. – Calvin !

…..   Calvin is a giant fellow, a notorious character for the beach … He is on and off homeless, a problem for the Police, and I thought he had been banned from the seaside… ….. He is a little mentally ill, talks very LOUD, and doesn’t like Cops telling him what to do  …. he would relax on the sand and yell at anyone that got too near to him  ….

 

 

… He is so big that the Police couldn’t budge him, so they would entice him with food to get him up and off the beach! ….His weak spot was a McDouble, and the Cops often did what they had to do  …..

….. So it was that I first knew Calvin must be back on the beach  … I jogged up on his calling cards –

 

…..   endless scattered McDonalds wrappers – assorted drink bottles etc. tossed on the sidewalk!

 

…. there he was….larger than life ………” hey Calvin”, I said   ……  “Who you?” , he barked    ..”I’m the guy who got you that pair of low cut army boots you asked for a few years back” I replied ….  “size 14 extra wide”, he shouted   …

……  Calvin says he is a Marine – says he was the youngest lifeguard ever at Nova – (22 years old) ….  says he has slimmed down from his old 880 pound frame, to a wheel chair fit of only 385 lbs.   …..

…….   says he was glad to see me, that he could use a few bucks, and needed a new pair of those low cut army boots – size 14 EXTRA WIDE !   ….   I gave him two bucks, and said I’d let my readers know about the shoes if he would give me one more fun picture –  ……    then  he said “remember I told you I was a Marine?”  …. and let this one off –

 

 

…..   would someone take Calvin some new shoes ?

                     Dateline : Feb. 2018

 

…… In what will most certainly be called the most unusual election in Fort Lauderdale history, Tuesday’s votes will elect a new Mayor, three brand new Commissioners, and, for the first time, elect nobody to represent the wealthiest district – District I ……

 

… Jack Seiler, after serving three terms as Mayor, and being term limited, is running for Governor, islocked in a tough race with Republican Adam Putnam …. Seiler changed his party affiliation to Independent, which is what he used to be before becoming a Democrat .

… Most pundits say that move might have given him a chance in the conservative northern part of Florida  …

 

…. All of the sitting Commissioners are vying for the open Mayor’s post…

… – Commissioners Roberts and Rogers, both term limited, Trantalis, who says he is not term limited as he only served a partial first term to replace Charlotte Elizabeth Rodstrom ( who used to be just Charlotte Rodstrom) , but decided to run for Mayor anyhow, and Commissioner Mckinzie ( who would have guessed ?)

…. Rounding out the mayoral field is Chris Brennan, who gained infamy last year when he chained himself to bulldozer that was about to take down the giant Rain Tree…..

 

Brennan pictured above – before chaining himself to the tree  … After a short stint in Broward General, he says he is doing just fine ….

 

….. But the craziest news is in District I, which is the northern part of the City – Oakland Park Boulevard north …. the folks in that District have always had limited interest in running for Commissioner – saying things like ” everything’s real good up here, why bother”.

…. So with no candidates emerging, the Commission took an unusual step…. They made up a candidate, just so the Florida law would be followed !

 

 

…. He will be listed as Mr. Nobody !

 

… In District II, the candidates are –

Earl Rynerson, who lost so many Mayoral races, no one can remember, is going to try for  Commissioner this time !

 

… Well respected marine industry guy Frank Herhold, who might be in the lead,

 

… Steve Glassman, a sharp cookie, who ran unsuccessfully in 2003, shown here miming that his is to the left of the other candidates…. and,

 

……..Rodstrom … no one is sure if it is former Commissioner Charlotte Elizabeth, or former County Commissioner John who is running, because they filed with just the one name Rodstrom  …

 

….In District III, you have

 

Bernadette Norris Weeks …. and

former Commissioner Bobby Dubose, who quit his State House seat, saying no one knew he was actually in Tallahassee anyhow !

 

..  last but not least, District IV

 

…. Poker magnate Jackie Scott, who won one million dollars in Vegas, and was not seen for two years, before coming home and declaring her candidacy –

 

Marilyn Mammano, long time head of the Council of Fort Lauderdale Civic Associations   …. and

 

Cindi Hutchinson, former Commissioner – I’ll say no more … and

 

 

  …..  Sturdy civic activist Steve Buckingham ( this is not his picture, but I like him, couldn’t find a picture of him,  and thought he deserved an image !)

…… If this all boggles your mind, refer back to the Dateline at the top of the post !

 

thanks, Tim

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hello fellow citizens   …

…….   many of you who have read this blog for years ( almost a decade), have been wondering lately, “where the hell is Tim?” ….. ” he hasn’t blogged in months”!

 

 

…… well I haven’t really been lost, ( at least not literally), but it’s a reasonable question  …. I blogged like a crazy man,  many times a week, for over eight years  …. covered all that is Fort Lauderdale …. with all its’ blemishes !

…… I had written over a million words, 400 + blogs, with hits that maxed out at almost 40,000 in one particularly insane month….

…..until last March, (only God knows why ), I just couldn’t sit down and write a thing ! ……. I was very busy –

 

…… OK, I was having some fun – OK ???

…… I even hung out with ‘Honest Abe” for a bit !

 

……..  Jeez he’s tall!

……Well I’m back, ready to write, and I hope you are still out there  !  Are you ?

……. We’ve got a lot to talk about  ….. Did you know that all four Fort Lauderdale City Commissioners have said they just might run for Mayor in 2018- (that’s the next City election)…..

…. yes, even the new guy !

 

– and Mayor Seiler will be term limited after nine years as Mayor, but will probably run for a statewide office! …what’s he thinking?

……….Governor Seiler ?…. Attorney General Seiler  ?….

I think I’m re-inspiring myself   …… I’ll be back soon –

 

……… Tim

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

………Some of you long time readers will remember that the Middle River Terrace Park in Fort Lauderdale (on Dixie Highway), was being investigated by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection as a possible Federal Superfund site (arsenic poisoning).

 

 

………    MRT Park

 

…….   The park was built on the site of a former plant nursery that had closed in 1979,  and the adjacent property had signs of arsenic in the soil, which could be caused by pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers. But the park had been thoroughly tested before the City purchased the land in 2000, with no problems detected…..

 

……  But a local citizen repeatedly called official after official demanding a new investigation. And the State took the bait.

 

 

………..  Well, guess what !  …… After the State of Florida spent months ( and probably tens of thousands of dollars) with field tests, laboratory work,, analysts, engineers, scientists etc., the results are as follows …..

…………..  groundwater migration is not a concern

…………….  air migration is not a concern

……………   soil migration does not appear to be a major concern at this time

 

         …………………..  this site is not eligible for further superfund action  …..

 

………….  thank goodness !!

 

 

…you missed the Funky Fun Run ?     …….. it happened  a few weeks back, run along NE/NW 13th Street in Fort Lauderdale  .. It was quite the event! …. videotaped by a drone (see below) !  ….. the race was officiated by Mayor Jack Seiler, and run by 300 citizens. Those citizens included me, and newly re-elected Commissioner Dean Trantalis  …. see if you can spot Trantalis   ….. he’s the one that has a little bald spot on the top of his head 🙂

…. You might not know that there is a City Election on Tuesday.

 

….  The election is for just one thing – the District II City Commissioner.

…..  Before I get to who I think you should vote for, let me say that this is way screwed up …. To have an election, in the middle of March, for just one office, where almost no one is paying attention is wrong, costly, UN-American !.. City elections should be in November, tied to either the Gubernatorial election, or the Presidential election…..

…… If you live in District II (and if you don’t know which district you live in, nevermind), you can vote,  but some people estimate that only 5 out of 100 qualified voters will decide this one !

 

 

…….  If you are one of those five people, you should vote for this guy above – I am ….. If you don’t know who that guy is, well – never-mind!

 

……   Here is another picture of him with super activist Steve Glassman –

 

 

….Glassman is one of those that predict a 5% turn- out  …

 

…. If you though you’d turn out out to vote for one of the three people below –   ….

 

 

………..   well, NEVERMIND !!!

 

 

…. For those of you that don’t follow politics …..there was an election this past Tuesday in Fort Lauderdale. And even though there were only two things on the ballot …… the election still costs a boatload of money to hold …

 

 

What’s worse, only 7.2% of the voters turned out to vote …… My rough math tells me it probably costs about $40 per voter !!!!

Anyhow, here are the results –

1.) Mayor Jack Seiler wins re-election big at 72% of the vote …… That wasn’t a big surprise. The only surprise is that perennial candidate, and ferocious anti- Seiler foil Earl Rynerson came in dead last – beaten by Seiler and a mostly unknown bartender – Chris Brennan

 

2.) Robert Mckinzie, after surviving multiple challenges to his candidacy, trounced challenger Donna Guthrie by about a 60/40 margin… I supported Guthrie, but now that Mckinzie is the farmacia24encasa Commissioner, I will support his efforts to make District III a better area ….

Here’s an idea Commissioner –

…..Many years ago, Commissioner Carlton Moore and I banded together to have the wall surrounding the junkyard at I95 and Sunrise Boulevard made pretty …It’s gotten marked up and dirtied over the years…

…… I tried to convince former Commissioner Dubose to get together a make-over on the wall during his tenure, but to no avail

… So Commissioner Mckinzie, how about you? …. Will you do it? …Can I help ?

………Tim

……   So it’s about time to vote for Mayor and Commissioners in Fort Lauderdale…..

 

………   You might not even know that, this being the least active election in my memory. In District One and District Four, the incumbents have already won, because no one even ran against them  ……  So, for the record, I heartily endorse both Commissioner Roberts and Commissioner Rogers 🙂

 

…….  All the real news is in District III, the area of the City with the most problems, the most crime, the most poverty. I’ll get to that in a minute, but first my other pics –

 

I say let’s re-elect Mayor Seiler . Seiler has been good for Fort Lauderdale. This will be his last term ( term limited due to my term limit legislation 🙂 …

……Seiler has two opponents – One is Earl Rynerson, and he hasn’t earned anyone’s vote. He got active for a bit after Seiler voted against gay marriage ( a mistake of Seiler’s , I say)  – so if that is your issue, hold your nose and vote for Rynerson…

 

Hold nose if you vote Rynerson

 

…Seiler’s other opponent is Chris Brennan – 

 

….Brennan was the main guy who opposed moving the Rain Tree, the biggest of it’s species in the continental United States. The Commission voted to let a developer move the tree, though the jury is out on whether the giant tree can survive the move  …..

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Re-elect Dean Trantalis . Trantalis has had a rocky term, but his opponent, Riverwalk Board member David Tabb, has little experience . I liked what I heard out of Tabb when I interviewed him ….Maybe he will be a future contender ….

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…District Three is an election mess –

Appointed Commissioner McKinzie has had to fight in court to retain the right to run  …. Three issues were finally found invalid to disqualify him, but the attention to his residency question might have hurt him……

 

This is a pic in the courtroom ….. That’s City Attorney Everett, second from top, who said nothing during the hearing other than “I’m Cynthia Everett, City Attorney …..

 

But the race is getting even  uglier  …..

…….I just got a mysterious letter in my mailbox maligning McKinzie’s opponent – Donna Guthrie…

 

………  It was a copy of a Palm Beach restraining order against Guthrie from her grown daughter. Guthrie say she was trying to remove her grandchild from a sexually abusive home, and that the child has now been removed and is in foster care…. I was satisfied with the explanation   …

….For me, I think Guthrie would make a better Commissioner than Mckinzie  …I say vote Guthrie …….