Archive for November 2024

 
 

Watchdog Report Vol.24 No.79 November 17, 2024:EST:06.06.00 – A free community education resource for 24-years

WATCHDOG REPORT

DRicker

Miami-Dade, Fla.

Vol.24 No 79, November 17, 2024, Celebrating May 5th,2000: 24 -years of free weekly publishing! www.watchdogreport.net  & Former Miami Herald news & editorial education resource & news service, without the attitude.

 

>>> Just because you do not take an interest in politics does not mean politics will not take an interest in you. –Pericles (430 B.C.)

 

knight-logo-300

 
 
 

>>> ARGUS REPORT: HEARD SEEN ON the STREETS

>>> Tough times if you can support thank you to my supporters who did: Further, if you would rather send a check send it made out to Daniel Ricker and mail it to 3109 Grand Ave., #125 Miami, Fla. 33133.  Thank you, Dan. I feel hypocritical when compared to the devastation and human misery after Hurricane Milton asking for help during these challenging times.
 

 
Zero support help last few weeks, sorry to ask. I will be back next week trying to raise funds this week. 

 

ARGUS REPORT: Heard & Seen on the STREETS

COMMUNITYEVENTS: https://www.margulieswarehouse.com/

 

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY HOMELESS TRUST

>>> A crossroad moment is coming up Nov 20 at the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust with the need for the Miami-Dade County commission to grant long time board Chair Ron Book a waiver for his term limit issue and residency on the 27-member diverse board with a Miami Beach commissioner Alex Fernandez on it. 

After the recent media coverage of a homeless funding dispute on Miami Beach. Book like Stanley G. Tate of Florida Prepaid plan fame was a passionate defender of the college education plan and Book has been the same way with the Trust over the ears with no real scandals under his leadership. No, scandals something not in consequential in the county after many scandals there over the years. Further, he said another 400 housing units are coming on line in 2025 at the board meeting.  And while I am biased, he has done a great job I have watched since 2003 and onward and the commissioners should approve the waivers for the good of the community, I think.

The county commission has to pass a two third vote of members present to approve the waiver, after, Book called a variety of “more nasty abuse in my lifetime,” had been aimed at him, said Book at Friday’s trust televised meeting.

Book a prominent state lobbyist, said Friday in a Miami Beach email to residents he is called “a convicted criminal,” and county commissioner Eileen Cohen Higgins was called a “extortionist,” by the Miami Beach commissioner, I suspect being David Suarez, who initiated the rescinding of a one cent sales tax to assist the trust because hotels were excluded from the tax he has said. 

The trust over the years has had to fight off attempts by the commission to tap into the organizations finances to fill a need and the commissioners have done that to other trust’s Like the PHT overseeing Jackson Health System back around 2001-2002 when a variety of county costs were transferred to the trust. 

>>> Editor’s disclosure Note: Book is a long-time supporter of the WDR, and kept me off the streets myself in the early years. I even went undercover onetime as a homeless person at government center laying outside on the plaza. 

People I knew flicked cigarettes at me and I learned these people needed help and many were veterans with mental issues, and why I have kept track of the trust all these years. In case I ever needed its services but thank God haven’t yet but could be getting close if I can just make the New Year. 

>>> THE COCONUT GROVE CRISIS FOOD PANTRY needs help and donations to this 501c-3 organization for more go to; https://coconutgrovecrisisfoodpantry.com/ 

>>> The Miami-Dade Commission will be voting on its new commission leadership on the 13-member board Tuesday Nov. 20 as well as the Book waiver issue.

 

>>> May we take time to salute our veterans Monday who allowed this election to take place on Veterans Day from centuries past, and may we all come together as a nation.

The nation is taking a long deep breath, after Tuesday’s historic election with the House still up in the air. The WDR has stayed out of this because of the deep divisions in America. A month ago, I started to feel the same way when Hillary Clinton ran. 

But locally we already have GOP partisan action after county Mayor Daniella Levine Cava was stopped and unable to congratulate Republican sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz, at her victor party attended by a host of politicians, including Sally Heyman, who just bought a house in Tallahassee, most republican county commissioners and Katherine Fernandez Rundle were among the people surrounding the new sheriff at the podium accepting the win against the mayor’s candidate Jamie Reyes. 

Further new Supervisor of Elections Alina Garcia said she is keeping current supervisor Christina White, who ran a smooth election.

Also, Tomas Regalado,77, won his race as the proper appraiser as did his daughter Raquel Regalado a county commissioner of Dist. 7. And the former Miami mayor said the community “needs to understand this is an independent office,” he stated at his victor speech at the sheriff’s event. 

The man will need to bring in expertise since a journalist by trade and has in the past brought in friends and supporters, including some with little authority or experience for the job and I am going to keep watch on him in this critical job that in the past had some tax examiners being friends with certain appealing attorneys and getting property taxes reduced.

PUBLIC HEALTH TRUST

>>> Former state Rep. Mike Abrams honored for help getting half-cent sales tax, approved by legislators and countywide voters in 1992 when hospital administrators agreed one really outstanding one was necessary, hence Ryder Trauma Center & UM.  

Agenda not edited: RECOGNITION FOR MR. MIKE ABRAMS (Continued) Mr. Migoya explained that during a critical period when Miami-Dade County was facing the closure of trauma centers due to profitability issues, Jackson Health System remained the only hospital treating trauma patients. This led to the establishment of a separate trauma center, now known as the Ryder Trauma Center. To facilitate this initiative, Mr. Jay Weiss, a former member of the Public Health Trust Board of Trustees, approached Mr. Mike Abrams, who was then a Florida State Representative. Together, they developed a proposal for a half-penny sales tax to benefit Jackson Health System, while also maintaining a percentage of the ad valorem tax directly for Jackson. Mr. Abrams played a crucial role in passing the legislation that implemented the half-penny sales tax, which has provided ongoing support for Jackson ever since. In addition to his work on this initiative, Mr. Abrams has served on the University of Miami Board for many years. He continues to be a strong ambassador for Jackson, providing lobbying support for decades. To honor Mr. Abrams, a formal recognition event will take place in November. This recognition will include a plaque prominently displayed at the entrance of the Ryder Trauma Center Resuscitation Unit, ensuring that his decades of support for Jackson and the Ryder Trauma Center are acknowledged by medical staff, patients, and visitors. Amadeo Lopez-Castro, Chairman, expressed his appreciation for Mr. Abrams’ continuous support of Jackson Health System and the State of Florida. Laurie Weiss Nuell congratulated Mr. Abrams on his many years of public service and his significant impact on the community. She also expressed her personal gratitude for his mentorship and guidance, highlighting his commitment to being a role model in the community. Senator Calatayud thanked Mr. Abrams for his leadership at Jackson Health System and for being an exemplary figure in the Florida State Legislature and as a community leader. Mr. Abrams expressed his heartfelt gratitude and emotions upon receiving this recognition.  

>>> Miami-Dade County Inspecter General (IG) Jimenez, rather than take up his contract, jut waits expected blowback, by community not a good look for the body

>>> County Commission makes IG Jimenez cool his heals

Wednesday at the commission meeting the county’s IG Feliz Jimenez, sat in the audience waiting to see if his contract extension is brought up and he went through a selection committee I attended years ago. The office was created after extensive corruption arrests including three commissioners and has been a boon to residents who support the independent office.  

Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust: UPDATE:

The County is waiting Miami Beach’s response to being asked to contribute $10 million for services received by the county, and new retired judge Steven Leifman’s mental health facility as one example.  

>>> Miami-Beach Commissioners voting Wednesday to rescind the vote for a 1percent food & beverage tax for the homeless trust vote approving the tax. The new funding was   contributing $10 million to the trust and 15 percent to the county’s Domestic Violence Trust Wednesday. After voters already going to the polls to vote on the referendum were shocked. A commissioner new elected last November told the media he was unaware of the item, that staff say he was briefed on with a memo. The Mayor Steven Meiner on www.wplg.com with Glenna Milberg said while legal, it was bad timing with the ongoing vote happening. He said the city is spending money on homeless and questioned why the hotels were exempted, he said.

What’s the new controversy?

>>> Last week 50 homeless at Camillus House were bused by Miami to a Miami Beach hostel. And commissioners claim this is retribution for rescinding the food & beverage1% tax, to help fund two county service agencies.

The WDR contacted long time trust chair Ron Book by text and he responded, “the city did the right thing, one man was in their seventies, six were in wheelchairs, and one person was blind, the only opportunity to shelter them last night was the bikini hostel at $33.50 night rate and includes two hot meals a day,” texted Book. 

>>> The issue also heated up at the Miami-Dade County Commission where Chair Oliver Gilbert, III has a November 6 agenda item asking “the mayor to take all necessary steps to amend the interlocal cooperation agreement with the City of Miami Beach Community Redevelopment Agency.” 

homeless countywide, trust also supports county’s domestic violence trust, badly needed after Covid, when domestic violence increased countywide. 

The Miami- Dade County Homeless Trust is at a pivotal point with the vote Nov. 5., to expand the food and beverage tax at three municipal cities not participating since 1992, when the trust was created and some 8,000 homeless were in Miami and even had their own mayor at the encampment. The number now is about 1,000 and if passed the expansion is estimated to bring in $10 million in new revenue and could provide the resources if voters pass to end homeless countywide, said long time trust Chair Ron Book. The cities being asked to approve this new measure are Miami Beach, Surfside, and Bal Harbour and voters will determine to help the trust and end homeless in our tourist driven economy. The trust has been free of any scandals and Book’s favorite word is “free,” he has said many times at trust meetings televised in the commission chambers with a diverse board.

>>> Lotus House Village is full of 240 families and children as Miami reels from economic homeless residents with rents through the roof as well as food etc. And the city of Miami approved some shelter funding for this important service not-for-profit founded by CEO Constance Collins and is a great community asset. www.lotushouse.org 

>> Last week WDR: Gabella changes mind re pension & retirement package for commissioners, mayor Suarez who benefits unlikely to veto if past outside income a trend, will hurt any higher political aspirations, Suarez did veto legislation

>>> In 2002 the Miami Commission boosted their salary after some 7 attempts by ballot to get a raise, and all failed. The issue came up Thursday when a discussion of pensions and retirement for commissioners. The pension passed with commissioners Pardo, Reyes, voting no, but Gabella wants to bring the item back after a firestorm with only Mayor Suarez, unlikely vetoing it as he also benefits with the legislation and will be an important test if the young man runs for higher office in the future. For if he does not veto it, he shows his true colors at the expense to the public. 

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

>>>> The war on where to put an incinerator in Miami-Dade County has expanded too another municipality in Broward County. Pembroke Pines has joined the location battle contributing to Miramar’s court case against Miami $100,000, at a recent commission meeting on Facebook from a commissioner.

The City of Pembroke Pines (voted to contribute $100,000 to Miramar’s lawsuit” to help suing Miami-Dade on the incinerator’s location possible in Doral and just miles from the location and residents objecting to smell and air pollution such a facility produces. 

>>> The Miami Dade Count Homeless Trust Thursday met. The Chapman Partnership, as at “full operational capacity, “said the representative I thought was the CEO. Further, she said, “1,841 homeless were placed by reunification,” and “400 [were placed in] permanent opportunities, said the Chapman spokeswomen not listed on the organization’s web page. The organization along with Camillus House, and Lotus Village for women with children are sheltered are critical components to the county’s efforts to end homeless and three municipalities’ voters Miami Beach, Surfside, and Bal Harbour have the opportunity to assist Nov.5 by approving adding the food & beverage tax now exempted to the trust’s efforts. www.chapmanpartnership.org & www.lotushouse.org       

>>> Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust: at pivotal point if voters in three municipalities vote yes to an expansion of the food & beverage sales tax estimated to bring in $10 million in new funding if passed could end 

CITY OF MIAMI 

>>> Public Record being shredded, by poor minutes officials not speaking into mics at Miami, and County commission meeting where a budget vote number was not announced a number of times and makes for incorrect minutes. 

An attorney in an appeal when the taped minutes were not clear. “He asked is that God talking from a burning bush,” he asked because of any gaps or confusion. Televised meetings only work if there heard. 

>>> May South Florida pray for those victims of Hurricane Milton and its devastation and loss of life, and flooding storm surge at a new height and severe damage, and to help try www.redcross.org in any way you can. Further president Biden announces $612 million in federal aid today. 

Editor’s note: Double whammy hits Florida after the storm insurance rates will go up but citrus revenue to state will go down as well as tourism with resorts in shambles. 

Further, I have been asked many times why I wrote so much about the county public Jackson Health System, it is because so important to everyone regardless of income and of course the community crown jewel Ryder Trama Center, created in 1992 when local hospital administrators agreed to one great Trauma Center versus smaller less specialized ERs, and staffing. 

The center has trained hundreds of military surgeons in America and Israel, and anyone in a bad car crash, or gunshot wound  and survives will thank Ryder, and once when I was with Cordis Corp. here in Miami I had to wait for a certified check (because of their bad finances) in the OR suite before I could give Dr. Richard Thurer a pacing electrode, to the nurse, and that always stayed with me and why a healthy JHS had a major impact on the community but wasn’t getting the attention it deserved at the time under community icon Ira Clark, who had failing health in 2002. 

But JHS was in financial trouble after rebuffing an offer to share indigent care costs I think $12 million in Homestead with Baptist Health after executives made the offer that was rejected at the time and began JHS losing money when the county had some 500,00 residents without health insurance and JHS by 2004 was giving $500 million in charity care and the countywide half-cent sales tax going to JHS could not keep up to the vast number of patients. 

>>> Another hot topic is the powers of the new Inspector General’s office, that voters overwhelming approved after years of scandals in the city. Carollo wants all investigations begun be sworn statements to limit bogus claims, but IG has own decision to make on credibility of accuser passes.

Miami commissioner Carollo is demanding all investigations be a “sworn complaint,” by the IG too reduce frivolous complaints and ultimately the IG at the county can initiate investigations own their own and the system and inspector at the county has worked well.

The voters overwhelmingly voted for the IG., but given Miami’s history with creating voter IG legislation but many are skeptical how they will create this new oversight office. 

>>> Here’s AI’s take on me and the WDR: I assume you are asking about the Watchdog Report by Daniel A. Ricker. The Watchdog Report is a weekly e-mail newsletter that covers government news from the nation, Florida, Miami-Dade County, Miami-Dade Public Schools, the Public Health Trust, Miami and other municipalities in the county 1. Daniel A. Ricker is the publisher and editor of the Watchdog Report 1The Watchdog Report is widely read by government insiders and a veritable who’s who of Miami 2It is a compilation of the tidbits and observations he synthesizes from his tireless rounds 2The Watchdog Report is estimated to bring in about $30,000 a year 2

OPINION

>>>> “The lesser of two evils,” is the refrain I hear from young voters, and their role in the election as the first batch of voting on up children with iPhones introduced in 2007, and will they vote, many want competent efficient government, and honest leaders with no insider stock trades, insider gripe with these voters. Now what you didn’t run ourself will you at least vote?

 

>>>> Miami-Dade County starting new era, 5 new constitutional offices, each will have a public information officer, maybe sgt. -of-arms, political conflict on budgets expected, if history a predicter of behavior.

 

With five new constitutional offices’ being voted on Nov.5., Miami-Dade County joins the other 57 counties after a statewide vote created the new offices, currently under the county administration and are now political offices with a standalone budget funded by the county and if Broward County is an example the clash of these two political offices can be a  spectacle, look at Sheriff Gregory Tony and past supervisor of elections Miriam Oliphant, who sent her self-flowers ever week on her office budget. Both had a contested time with their county counterparts. Further, the new Sheriff’s office in Miami-Dade County will take over all the municipal police service provided to the smaller communities.

>>> Jackson Health System (JHS) kicks off “culture & safety,” survey, last one done in 2022 reduced “harm incidents by 35%,” said CEO Migoya, too the public health trust board, passes 2025 $3. 471.billion budget and capital budget for 2026 to, 2034, jumps to $2.7 billion in future state fiscal documents.

Jackson Health System Tuesday kicked off a survey of “culture & safety” and involves a wide array of questions that are confidential and employees are encouraged to speak up. The last such survey in 2022 “reduced harm events by “35 percent,” said CEO Carlos Migoya at Tuesday’s Public Health Trust meeting 

>>> Will Miami billionaires help keep good government oversight by supporting media of all kinds with $20 billion in public tax dollars in play?

With early voting starting Monday the money is rolling in for the candidates and people sometimes billionaires should consider helping the community by having a vibrant diverse media and the blogs and I say this having spent some  $365,000 of my own money and why I have worked so hard to try to keep the community informed and these billionaires have cut a wide swath in medical and education endeavors but oversight of government is slowly passing regarding historical knowledge and the thousands of financial disclosure forms I have. I write this since these very successful people are also making political donations to some local races including $500,000 to Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, from philanthropist Ken Griffin, and people who financially can should consider stepping up to the local level for there is almost $20 billion in public government funded by your tax dollars.

>>> History Miami needs to archive the digital data from all the investigative blogs including the WDR for residents will not have access to the past and for reporters’ citizens need to go to the lower-level public meetings and see the lobbyists there.

>> For Miami is like a giant tapestry getting additions constantly. The public schools audit committee is a key one as well as Miami’s finance committee etc. In my case I did this like a job that I self- financed to the tune of $165,000, which at my age was a disaster since not planning living this long but someone had to do it back in 2000. Here’s more on early year’s national story: https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-2003-01-20-0301190045-story.html 

 

>>> History Miami needs to archive the digital data from all the investigative blogs including the WDR for residents will not have access to the past and for reporters’ citizens need to go to the lower-level public meetings and see the lobbyists there.>>For Miami is like a giant tapestry getting additions constantly. The public schools audit committee is a key one as well as Miami’s finance committee etc. In my case I did this like a job that I self-financed, which at my age was a disaster since not living this long but someone had to do it back in 2000. Here’s more on early year’s national story: https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-2003-01-20-0301190045-story.html 

 

But I also have to move after ten years with a benevolent hand lord who kept rent same, but taxes pushed him over and is selling the property and I am looking for an efficiency, and also selling Chinese Art from feudal age to 1977 after artists were over the cultural revolution. The Miami Commissioners are all millionaires from small to large and most are in property value increase except Joe Carollo with a million negative net worth disclosure forms show

>>> The Watchdog Report celebrated its 24th anniversary, May 5, 2024, and much has changed since then when I saw our public institutions employees treating residents like only a nuisance and “working there was a right, not a privilege,” and savings could be seen, but ignored especially at MIA where director Gary De Lappa, kept saying regarding overruns “it’s not county money,” only challenged by Raul Martinez, “ who said “its someone’s money,” and you better find out whose,” the Hialeah mayor suggested. And why no low-cost carriers are at MIA because landing fees are so high.

>>> Inflation impact impacting healthcare not just JHS, & after Steward Medical declares bankruptcy with $9 billion debt and going higher, many owners’ equity firm over the years. Update: Company looking for buyers, for profit system. 

>>> Community periodicals running campaign stories on candidates receive roughly $1 million in county funding in periodical contributions IG found 18 periodicals got funding and six could not be found wrote the IG back in 2000 following an audit of the program that can be helpful to candidates in a host of languages.

>>> Community Event the Miami Warehouse has a new exhibit open to the public and for more go to: https://thewarehousemia.com/ 

>>> With the upcoming election on everyone’s lips and many noting the recount of 2000 in Miami That I attended including the first recount in the glass room on the election department’s floor, along with Republican Sue Cobb and a Democrat Joe Geller, both glued to their phones. 

The election night earlier I was on WLRN’s Topical Currents, with host Joe Cooper, Robert Steinbeck, Tony Doris, and independent candidate John Anderson. And at the time predictions where Gore had won Florida, but I “disagreed saying it was too soon,” and I was criticized because super computers were projecting Gore in the polls, and they teased me while getting phone calls from Palm Beach County asking about “butterfly ballots,” up there. They would later say “good call” and to many voters the candidates were two Ivy League white guys with a trust fund, and the political passion would only erupt later. Days later the election outcome really heated up and hanging chads left people wanting to know how this could happen.

 

>>> At the county level elections were the stepchild of government (where reluctantly they had to hold them) but keep funding to a minimum i.e… would you maintain the machines or spend money on vaccinating the children of Miami and a newgroup of leaders should read two books. 

And they should read the 1999, two volume Miami-Dade County “Empowerment Zone books” to get a real sense of what the challenges to the community really are, including all the polluted super fund sites, yet to be addressed etc. It is a must read and I still have some since I was giving them out to leaders, including Katherine Harris, and later too Tom Fiedler in county commission chambers for the Miami circle debate that is still festering and not open to the public.

 

Financial support critical now if you can help. Thank you, Dan., I want to thank the recent supporters for helping me keep at this after the cost to the community after Covid, and inflation decimated many of our healthcare systems and ER diversions were widespread with healthcare stretched to the max and have yet to recover, still facing “head winds,” like Jackson Health System, said CEO Migoya recently at a board meeting.

 

The United Way of Miami celebrated its one hundred anniversaries, and the organization is a frequent pass through for funding of CBOs by the county has evolved over the years and is where The Children’s Trust holds its board meetings. THE WDR gives it a Tip OF The Hat for all it does in our community.

 

>>> You need real proof to convict corruption, but fundraising while legal is part of it for politicians. A woman on Miami Beach once told me “I don’t mind we are corrupt, but what bothers me is we are so cheap,” the older women said (Further it was so blatant and obvious, that prompted the WDR. 

 

Since I was single with “no children, or wife when someone asked if my wife had a scar on her face?” Or “did I know where my children we’re.” back in the early days. Good governance has been elusive but may come yet from a federal judge hearing the city’s redistricting case.

>>> NO progress on synchronizing traffic lights county wide 2027 deadline in question, sold to public back in 2002, transit funding vote.

In 2002 Miami-Dade County passed a one-half cent sales tax to upgrade the transportation system and one of the big hooks to its passage was synchronizing the traffic lights county-wide, that has yet to be achieved by the county and these monies have been siphoned off over the years for a variety of uses, and last Tuesday the county once again was still sending millions to a politically connected vender for the conversion and Commissioner Raquel Regalado when the issue of software problems that she has been working on this when a school board member and their performance gives “her heart burn,” she said.

EDITORIAL

>>> Anniversary of life saving procedure when I was septic at South Miami Hospital, Baptist Health, hospital in 2009, and I thank you Dr. Jorge Rabaza for saving my life, back then.

 

The next few days is the anniversary of my almost passing in 2009. I was septic and operated on at 2;00 p.m., “because I could not wait,” not something you don’t want to hear from a surgeon, said Jorge Rabaza, M.D. at South Miami Hospital back ’then and he said, “I was a flip of the coin,” that I survived, he said and since then every day is a free day.,

SPONSERS:

Published on September 9, 1999, Page 1EA, Miami Herald, the (FL)

CITIZEN ADVOCATE’ KEEPS TABS ON POLITICIANS

Published on January 3, 2000, Page 1B, Miami Herald, the (FL) 

MIAMI-DADE WATCHDOG WILL BE MISSED 

Published on January 20, 2003, Page 1E, Orlando Sentinel, PAPERWORK TIGER, Miami’s citizen watchdog piles up government files in his quest to keep the “little people” informed. https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-2003-01-20-0301190045-story.html 

>>> Watchdog Report publisher named ‘Best Citizen’ 2003 by the Miami New Times

The publisher would like to thank the weekly alternative paper Miami New Times for bestowing their 2003 Best of Miami, ‘Best Citizen’ award to me and I am honored. Thank you. To read the full story go to http://www.miaminewtimes.com/best-of/2003/people-and-places/best-citizen-6399517 

 

 
>>> And to support the WDR go to my Pay Pal account that is easy to use and right now would be a great time: http://paypal.me/WatchdogReport    

Further, if you would rather send a check send it made out to Daniel Ricker and mail it to 3109 Grand Ave., #125 Miami, Fla. 33133.  Thank you, Dan.  

>>> And having a member of the press at public meetings gives teeth to the Florida Sunshine Law (and why you get a Flu Shot) and open meetings tape recorded keeps good governance in place and reduces waste fraud and abuse, and public corruption, and is why you don’t speed in front of a state trooper for example. And hope you can support the WDR efforts to have informed residents of public institutions issues, in our community.

>>> Further the www.watchdogreport.net  in South Florida is an established news service presence, because most people are too busy to go to these important meetings., and all the information comes through me as a central point allowing me to see things at a 100-mile altitude and being an early warning system when projects have overruns or other issues. But my job is to sound the alarm and I have done so many times over the past years in a host of ways.  

 

Publisher’s Statement on the mission of the Watchdog Report and the special people and organizations that make it possible:  Government Subscribers/Corporate Subscribers/Sustaining Sponsors/Supporting Sponsors

 

Sponsors

 

***** LIFETIME FOUNDING MEMBERS & Initial sponsors since 2000

 

Mr. ANGEL ESPINOSA – (Deceased) owner COCONUT GROVE DRY CLEANER’S

HUGH CULVERHOUSE, Jr (The first contributor to the WDR)

FLORIDA POWER & LIGHT www.fpl.com .

THE MIAMI HERALD www.miamiherald.com (2000-2007)

ARTHUR HERTZ, deceased one of the first supporters 

WILLIAM HUGGETT, Seamen Attorney (Deceased)

ALFRED NOVAK

LINDA E. RICKER (Deceased)

JOHN S. and JAMES L. KNIGHT FOUNDATION www.knightfoundation.org

THE HONORABLE STANLEY G. TATE

 

>>> Watchdog Report supporters – $2,000 a year

 

BADIA SPICES www.badiaspices.com

RONALD Hall

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY www.miamidade.gov

UNITED WAY OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY   

 

>>> Watchdog Report supporters – $1,000 to $5,000 a year

 

BADIA SPICES www.badiaspices.com 

BERKOWITZ POLLACK BRANT Advisors and Accountants www.bpbcpa.com

JEFFREY L. BERKOWITZ TRUST

BERCOW RADELL FERNANDEZ & LARKIN & Tapanes www.brzoninglaw.com 

RON BOOK

BENEDICT P. KUEHNE http://www.kuehnelaw.com/ 

LINDA MURPHY: Gave a new laptop in Oct. 2001 to keep me going.

Rbb www.rbbcommmunications.com

SHUBIN & BASS www.shubinbass.com

WILLIAMSOM AUTOMOTIVE GROUP http://williamsonautomotivegroup.com/

>>> Public, Educational & Social institutions – subscribers at $1,000 or less

 

CITY OF MIAMI www.miamigov.com.

CITY OF CORAL GABLES www.coralgables.com

CITY OF MIAMI BEACH www.miamibeachfl.gov

CHAPMAN PARTNERSHIP FOR HOMELESS www.chapmanpartnership.org

FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY www.fiu.edu

THE STATE OF FLORIDA www.myflorida.gov

GREATER MIAMI CHAMBER OF COMMERCE www.miamichamber.com

GREATER MIAMI CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU www.miamiandbeaches.com

HEALTH FOUNDATION OF SOUTH FLORIDA www.hfsf.org

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY COMMISSION www.miamidade.gov

MIAMI-DADE COMMISSION OFFICE OF THE CHAIR www.miamidade.gov

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY ETHICS & PUBLIC TRUST COMMISSION

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY HOMELESS TRUST: www.miamidade.gov/homeless/

MIAMI-DADE COLLEGE www.mdc.edu

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY INSPECTOR GENERAL www.miamidade.gov/ig

MIAMI-DADE PUBLIC SCHOOLS BOARD www.dadeschools.net

MIAMI-DADE PUBLIC SCHOOLS SUPT. http://superintendent.dadeschools.net/

MIAMI DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY www.miamidda.com

PUBLIC HEALTH TRUST & JACKSON HEALTH SYSTEM www.jhsmiami.org

THE CHILDREN’S TRUST www.thechildrenstrust.org

THE GOOD GOVERNMENT INITIATIVE http://goodgov.net/

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA http://www.firstgov.gov/

 

>>> Public, Educational & Social institutions – subscribers at $1,000 or less

CITY OF MIAMI www.miamigov.com.

CITY OF CORAL GABLES www.coralgables.com

CHAPMAN PARTNERSHIP FOR HOMELESS www.chapmanpartnership.org

FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY www.fiu.edu

THE STATE OF FLORIDA www.myflorida.gov

 

>>>>> General subscriber’s names will not be published in the Report. To subscribe to the Watchdog Report please use the form below as a subscription invoice. 

 

To contribute to the WDR send and make it payable to Daniel A. Ricker

 

Daniel A. Ricker

3109 Grand Ave. #125

Miami, Fla. 33133