Have you spoken out about this project yet? It is so important that you show up and speak. The City Commission needs to see new faces stepping up to the microphone. Please prepare a 1-3 minute speech and show up at City Hall for Citizen Comments! Wednesday, Nov 17 from 5-5:30 pm. 2nd floor. No registration needed- just sign up when you get upstairs. Fill out a comment card and hand it to the city clerk. Thank you!
Commissioner Sherwood accused residents of posting a misleading photo of the 4 acres at 1301 S Ocean Drive. She said it was misleading because it was taken from the beach. Well, here is a photo of the 4 acres taken from the intracoastal side (see photo). As you can see, these are 4 acres of open space. The 4 acres are indicated in blue. There is not a 347 foot tall wall of private condominiums, so that’s why it’s so wide and open.
3 of these acres were deeded to the city for parks, open space, recreation, and public use. (The Summit condominiums to the north were allowed to go higher with the agreement that the land next door would be OPEN SPACE to the public). The other acre of land was purchased with Land and Water Conservation Funds through a grant by the National Park Service & DEP. These 4 acres were not meant for private luxury condominiums. Commissioner Sherwood says she doesn’t know why people are so angry about placing a 30 story private condo on our public land. Commissioner Sherwood was not at the Commission in the Community, so it’s important that she hears from residents.
Commissioner Biederman claimed that his district either doesn’t have an opinion or is for the condo. If you live in District 5, email Kevin Biederman and tell him that you are opposed to the private tower on our public land. Don’t forget to tell him that you live in District 5!
Residents feel that ruining a beautiful piece of oceanfront property (with 3 acres deeded to the public for open space and 1 acre bought with conservation funds) with a 30 story private condo tower is NOT “moving the city forward.” Residents feel that moving the city forward would be keeping that land public (as it was meant to be) and updating the community center with other funding (which Commissioner Shuham says is possible).
The developer was quoted as saying we will be the envy of South Florida if we put a 347 foot tall private condo on this land. We feel we will be “the envy of South Florida” if we DON’T destroy our beach with towers.
To move forward, the project needs at least five “yes” votes from our seven-member commission. Or, they can put it to a public referendum. Do you feel they should let the public vote on their public land?
Don’t forget to send an email to your city commissioner ASAP. Make sure you tell them where you live. Emails:
JLevy@hollywoodfl.org, CShuham@hollywoodfl.org, LSherwood@hollywoodfl.org, KBiederman@hollywoodfl.org, TCallari@hollywoodfl.org, LAnderson@hollywoodfl.org, AGruber@hollywoodfl.org
Is your email being ignored? Phone: 954.967.HELP (4357) and ask if your emails are going to junk mail.
Follow the Facebook page for important updates: https://www.facebook.com/NO-private-condo-tower-on-Hollywood-public-beach-101689205539310
Latest news from Sun Sentinel about this proposal:
The City is blaming residents for not showing up to provide input while the developer is simultaneously deleting/hiding/reporting the public feedback. Are Hollywood commissioners and Mayor Levy actually going to trust these people? How can they say they respect public opinion and feedback about the project? These are real residents who are commenting, not computer generated responses, not fake names, not realtors from other cities. Thank you to all the residents who showed up for Commission in the Community last week. Residents skipped dinner and stood in the rain asking their elected officials to listen to residents and either vote NO or let the public vote. Some residents said that it is a bad financial deal for the City and not worth the risk or the loss of open space.
"The electors shall have the power, in accordance with the provisions of this Article 5, to approve or reject at the polls any measure passed by the commission or submitted by the commission to a vote of the electors, such power being known as a referendum."
The City Commission has not voted yet. But if they vote to pass the condo proposal, voters can override this decision with a referendum.
There are many residents who have volunteered to collect signatures.
Petition signers must be registered voters in the city of Hollywood.
Petitions must be printed DOUBLE SIDED with the notary on the back of each one (each page will need to be notarized by the person collecting the signatures).
Must be NEATLY written. The city clerk will have to verify each signature and voter.
The address is very important. No spelling mistakes.
Signature must match their voter registration signature.
Again, only registered Hollywood voters. More petition signing events will be held in all Hollywood districts. Follow the facebook page (which is run by a group of Hollywood residents) for updates! https://www.facebook.com/NO-private-condo-tower-on-Hollywood-public-beach-101689205539310
And don't forget to send that email!
Thank you!