Posted on 12/22/2023 8:02:31 AM PST by Red Badger
Hoping they will "move to another city," new commissioner David Suarez says removing dock will force live-aboards to break the law to get food and water
In one of their first acts, Miami Beach's newly constituted mayor and commissioners ordered the removal of a dock that dozens of people living on boats in Biscayne Bay have relied for years as a lifeline to the mainland.
The unanimous vote to cut off their easy access to food and water is part of newly elected commissioner David Suarez's effort to force the so-called "live-aboards" out of the waters off Miami Beach.
"They can’t live on a boat forever," Suarez said during discussion of his proposal at the Dec. 13 commission meeting. "They have to come to the land to get food, water and necessary supplies."
By removing the city-owned dock along the canal along Dade Boulevard across from a Publix, "we're cutting off basically their lifeline and then they’re going to have to be forced to do illegal trips to our sea wall," Suarez said.
That can lead to fines and the costs of towing and seizure of the dinghies - the boat owners use to reach the island, where some work and where they obtain food and water.
Suarez said his goal is to make their situation "so cumbersome … they'll move to another city."
Suarez and the new mayor Steven Meiner said residents have complained about the people who live on boats docking their dinghies and coming onto the island.
Carlos Leon, who's lived with his wife and Apollo - their social-media-popular German Shepherd - called the city's action cruel and un-American.
"Saying we have to cut peoples’ lifeline - we are not in a Third World country. We're in the United States," said Leon.
But the city owns the dock, which was built about 10 years ago as part of a road construction project, and police and public works crew appeared Tuesday night to remove the deck, erect a "no trespassing" sign and block access to the road with a barrier where boaters would walk ashore.
"The city is following the direction given at the Dec. 13 commission meeting," city spokeswoman Melissa Berthier wrote in a statement Wednesday. "The dock is permanently closed and will be removed after the city obtains the required permits."
Suarez, who said he was out of town, declined to comment this week about his actions or to identify any of the residents he said complained about the live-aboards coming on shore.
Leon, who married his wife Jana on board their 41-foot sailboat anchored in the bay, said he was drawn to the live-aboard community during the isolation and storm of COVID, finding the bay a refuge.
"I told my wife Jana, they look so happy and we’re so miserable right now stuck on the house," Leon recalled.
They and dozens of others live on boats there, some of whom protested Suarez and the city Wednesday morning at the now-closed dock site.
"We're going to fight," Leon said, adding, "We’re talking to lawyers right now. We’re going to go to all the commissioners."
There are people who get elected to public office just to make others miserable.
What is this actually about? Are the live-aboards causing problems? Or is it just elitism.
What a confusing mess of an article.
Wondering if their call to close is legal. It’s really part of a right of way....and there are strict rules for abandonment.
Property taxes...?
It seems to be about Tax Dollars. Live abroad’s do not pay an assortment of city taxes…
My sister lives on an island, this would be like the nearest city saying we are going to close the only place you can legally dock your boat so you can either starve, or move somewhere else.
Granted it is easier for these people to move since they are on a boat, but it is still wrong (from what little I can tell from the article)
Yes, Pipitone is a horrible writer. This head-spinner made my head spin: “In one of their first acts, Miami Beach’s newly constituted mayor and commissioners ordered the removal of a dock that dozens of people living on boats in Biscayne Bay have relied for years as a lifeline to the mainland.”
It took two or three head-spinning reads to untangle that mess.
Can't be that. They want them to move away.
My bet is some rich donor doesn't like the view and put the strong arm on the council.
Start an Uber grocery delivery service to boats.
I’m not sure, but I think I stayed in that hotel in the background when I was 14.
I was one of 20 paperboys from Birmingham News that won a trip to Miami in 1969.
We went to Monkey Jungle, Parrot Jungle, Silver Springs, Cypress Gardens and Miami Beach...........
I live in an area with hundreds of boats that people live on. Most are derelict and awful. Many wash up on shore and it is up to taxpayers or property owners to remove them. A little dig will show that most are abusing an area and needs to go.
It sounds like elitism. I live along the water further north. There are people here who reside on their boats. Nobody has a problem with them. I don’t know why those people in Miami don’t like it. I can understand if the boats are not maintained but if that’s the case, pass legislation that requires they be seaworthy and maintained.
It’s morally reprehensible to remove someone’s only access to land and roads. Doesn’t matter what the law is - it’s wrong.
Property taxes...?
~~~
That would be my take on it.
If you live on a boat or in an RV then you are an enemy of the state. Heh.
The one big exception seems to be if you live in a tent or in cardboard boxes on the street and do drugs. Then you’re okay
Lots of Houseboats used to reside in my area, until a few county mayors begin complaining about those boater who didn’t properly dispose of their sewage or repeatedly took local utilities without paying.
About 7 years ago, many boat people from Sausalito, Mill Valley areas were pushed out, but a few stubborn souls remain. As long as properly maintained, I liked seeing the houseboats there.
It reminded me of certain parts of Jamaica and the Carribean.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.