From the desk of Lewis J. Thaler
By Vice Mayor Lewis J. Thaler

Sunny Isles Beach is all decked out for the holidays – there are new plantings all through the City and holiday lights in the parks and banners on the light poles. And as the holidays arrive, so do many new owners.

For those who are permanent Florida residents, it is never too early to fill out your “Homestead” forms. It not only saves you at least $25,000 in deductions, but your real estate taxes cannot go up more than three percent each year in future years. The paper work must be submitted by March 31, 2007 to be eligible for next years’ taxes. If you have any questions, please call me or any of the commissioners for more information.

A new city park at Collins Avenue and 192nd Street is on the drawing board. A workshop was held on December 5th to learn what our residents would like to see in the park and we appreciated everyone’s input. An opening date has not been set. Our “active park” on182nd Street and North Bay is moving along, and is expected to be ready in the middle of 2007. It will be home to our own Little League teams, a ball field, indoor basketball court and a community center. The K-8 school is scheduled to open in August 2008. It is an exciting time for Sunny Isles Beach residents and gives us all a lot to look forward to.

The new machines that accept credit cards or cash have been installed at the four parking locations in the City. The parking lots are the Pier Park near the Newport, under the Lehman Bridge, in front of Ocean II and the Ellen Wynne Beach Access.

For information about forthcoming trips to theaters, sporting events, etc read the Sunny Isles Beach Sun newspaper, and watch SIB Television, Cable Channel 77. Our phone number at City Hall is 305-947-0606.

Madi and I wish you all a very happy holiday season and most of all, good health and happiness for the coming year.

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