Aerial view of The ArtsPark at Young Circle, via Google Maps
public policy + financial decision by City of #HollywoodFL. This time, re The ArtsPark Improvement Project @ #YoungCircle. What's that? Funny that you ask...
The city's not-so-funny public engagement. 
Came across something rather odd on the city's so-called Sunshine Board outside of City Hall on Monday afternoon, which, for the record, as I am constantly mentioning on the Hollywood Residents - Speak Up Facebook page, as well as my blog, Hallandale Beach/Hollywood Blog, does NOT always have the required public notices it is supposed to have.
(Never had a notice about Hollywood City Hall closing and, specifically why, using any statistical data, nor anything about what had changed that allowed it to now be open.)Now perhaps I've missed it being discussed somewhere else on the Facebook group page -as I'm constantly perplexed at the random order of things posted there, as opposed to them being in a logical chron order, so that I can recall things more accurately- but has anyone else commented on what the City of Hollywood's Dept. of Design and Construction Management is doing?
They are seeking public input on the so-called ArtsPark Improvement Project, something that most people in the city have likely never heard nothing about or could not otherwise accurately describe to you.
Could THAT possibly be, in part, because there is nothing, physically, at The ArtsPark itself, telling you anything at all about it?
But then this just continues the city and CRA's truly appalling public engagement practices for anything involving that area, since there is nowhere to be found there a simple posted calendar of upcoming events.
So simple, yet, apparently, too complex for the city's Rec. Dept. and CRA to figure out.
The City of Hollywood has been so busy the past 19 months trying to brainwash the public on what is and isn't appropriate for the public to comment directly to its elected officials on public policy that the brainwashing is now starting to affect the city employees as well.
Rather than having the city officials involved in that Dept. physically meeting with members of the public who actually uses that site and who'd have opinions, whether good or bad or something in-between, say, on a Friday night at 7 pm when parents and kids are actually THERE, before the city's own ArtsPark Movie Night film starts a bit after 8 pm, guess what the city is doing?
Yes, they are limiting public input to one of their horrendous WebEx experiences, from 6-7:30 pm on Monday November 15th?
So why is the city doing that? Why are they consciously refusing to adapt to the changing facts on the ground, after finally reopening City Hall, and simply doing what is both the simplest thing and the most intelligent thing?
So why is the city doing that? Why are they consciously refusing to adapt to the changing facts on the ground, after finally reopening City Hall, and simply doing what is both the simplest thing and the most intelligent thing?
Why are they ignoring... #science?
Because they like having and maintaining control, even if it is inconvenient and NOT as useful to the public that may actually have something to say on the subject.
I called the Dept. of Design and Construction Management this afternoon and spoke to a woman named Alex Iglesias who's in charge of the project, DCM-19-001199.
I called the Dept. of Design and Construction Management this afternoon and spoke to a woman named Alex Iglesias who's in charge of the project, DCM-19-001199.
She could not explain why there were no other opportunities in the immediate future for the public to meet and hear her presentation other than via WebEx, whether at now-opened City Hall, one of the now-opened Community Centers, or even at the outdoor ArtsPark itself, as I had specifically suggested.
She told me that, among other things, the city's Parks Dept., per the Go Bonds, has decided it wants and needs a 6-8 foot fence for ticketed events that the city charges promoters for when it rents out the public's park.
She told me that, among other things, the city's Parks Dept., per the Go Bonds, has decided it wants and needs a 6-8 foot fence for ticketed events that the city charges promoters for when it rents out the public's park.
Estimated costs of fencing? $496,019.
Specifically, there will be 6-8 foot fences built towards the eastern and western entrances to the park, as well as around the grassy areas of the amphitheater, and around the water fountain area where the food trucks congregate, so that the city can get more money from renting out the park, since right now, promoters usually have to bring or rent fencing for these events.
Specifically, there will be 6-8 foot fences built towards the eastern and western entrances to the park, as well as around the grassy areas of the amphitheater, and around the water fountain area where the food trucks congregate, so that the city can get more money from renting out the park, since right now, promoters usually have to bring or rent fencing for these events.
So, the city's Parks Dept. wants to keep the prospective promoters happy!
The gates would be open when there is no ticketed event scheduled, but the fences would remain, obviously.
The gates would be open when there is no ticketed event scheduled, but the fences would remain, obviously.
Looking east from the western sidewalk of Young Circle, via the bust of Hollywood founder and first mayor, Joseph W. Young, with The Circ Hotel in distance to the left. My photo of October 23rd, 2021.
Looking east from the central plaza area and water fountain where many food trucks once congregated in pre-pandemic times on Monday nights. My photo of October 23rd, 2021.
Looking west, toward Downtown Hollywood, with the busy under-construction Block 40 that will be a 19-story tower 166 apartments and a 103-room Hilton Garden Inn in a 19-story tower, being built on the site of the Great Southern Hotel, built by city founder Joseph W. Young in 1924.
My photo of October 23rd, 2021.
I'd like to know from the Hollywood Parks Dept. how much revenue has been generated from rental use of The ArtsPark for the past five years, so that we can determine whether or not the costs of the fence -rapidly increasing according to her- plus the costs of its installation, makes going forward worthwhile.
ICYMI: My last blog post, with more photos than my email of last week,
Some preliminary thoughts about #Broward's 2021 #redistricting process.
Final map gets voted on at what's likely to be a very spirited December 7th meeting,
where some political careers may well be snuffed out
Dave
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