Things have gone sour for Banah Sugar. The fledgling, troubled Hialeah-based sugar company has filed for bankruptcy protection less than a year after city and county leaders renamed a local roadway “Banah Sweet Way” and promised to give the firm $400,000 in tax breaks if it hired 300 people. On…
Yikes! Michael Samuel has some explaining to do in New Orleans. The co-developer of Midtown Miami has reportedly been fingered in an federal indictment of Ray Nagin, the former mayor of the Big Easy who rose to national prominence in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Nagin is accused…
U.S. Century Bank Heads Got Rich Off Insider Deals, Lawsuit Alleges
Assault Rifles Are Big Business in Florida as Federal Ban Looms
Ari Pregen picked the wrong strip club to throw his weight around. On January 26, the Miami-Dade assistant state attorney gained free admission for himself and two pals into downtown Miami’s Goldrush by flashing his work badge at the club’s executive manager, Jeff Levy. A few hours later, Pregen again…
For this week’s cover story, I dove headfirst into South Florida’s gun culture to find out why so many people in the tri-county area — and the Sunshine State — are into firearms. While President Barack Obama and other Democratic leaders are pushing to reinstate the federal assault-weapons ban that…
The latest chapter in the tumultuous saga of Doral’s U.S. Century Bank could spell trouble for some of the biggest names in Miami-Dade politics, with accusations of shady boardroom deals.It all began last November, when a group of minority shareholders — including real estate developer Masoud Shojaee and Coral Gables…
Miami Beach City Commissioner Deede Weithorn’s husband is literally trying to cash in on the city’s name. Mark Weithorn is auctioning off “www.CityOfMiamiBeach.net.” Minimum bid: 50 cool Benjamin Franklin notes or 100,000 nickels. The deadline is March 8. Highest bidder wins, of course.And here Banana Republican thought cyber-squatting was so…
Miami Man Says Soho Beach House Tried to Ban Him After Valets Wrecked His Porsche
Soho Beach House Valet Porsche Crash Ban
If you thought Miami-Dade County had nothing left to build at Miami International Airport, think again. Today, Aviation Department Director Jose Abreu will unveil the county’s ambitious plan to convert the main terminal into a futuristic hotel and mall that will cost a little more than half-a-billion dollars.The estimated $512…
Adding a state-of-the-art casino with 1,035 slot machines has turned one of Miami’s oldest parimutuel sites into an enormous money maker. Last year, Casino Miami Jai-Alai, located near Miami International Airport, collected $17.3 million in third quarter revenue compared to $1.8 million for the same period in 2011. No wonder…
What’s worse than emerging from a delicious meal at a hip hotel to find your six-figure Porsche wrecked by valet drivers? Getting banned for life from the hotel chain over the crash.That’s what one Key Biscayne resident alleges happened to him at SoBe hot spot Soho Beach House. Now, in…
Angelina and Michele Mastrangelo seemingly reveled in “popping it” for two Miami Beach police officers who arrested them a couple of days before Christmas. Police station video footage — first published on local blog Random Pixels — shows the hand-cuffed Toronto siblings voraciously showing off some comical booty-shaking for cops…
Back in 2008, Galata Inc., a social service agency that assists minorities and low income residents in Homestead, was one of 37 local non-profit organizations that received a no-questions-asked Miami-Dade County grant. Galata got $500,000 from a $30 million pot that was part of the county’s Building Better Communities general…
Jeb Bush Jr. Shot Down for MDX Board Slot
Jeb Bush Jr. is one of the future faces of the Republican Party. He is the 29-year-old president of Bush Realty and sits on the boards of several local corporations. The youngest son of Florida’s former governor is even considered a possible contender against Democratic Congressman Joe Garcia in 2014…
While conducting research for an upcoming article, Banana Republican came across this nifty tool on the Miami-Dade County Police Department’s website called “Crime Mapping.” Basically you can track criminal activity in any neighborhood in the city of Miami and unincorporated Miami-Dade.Imagine Google maps allowing you to pinpoint where the highest…
Miami-Dade Sewer System Is Crappy, Lawsuit Alleges
Disabled Miami Vet Nadia Wright Booted From Housing Program for Complaining, She Says
A nonprofit organization that fights housing discrimination recently scored a partial court victory against SPV Realty, the New York-based company that owns Little Haiti apartment complex Design Place. HOPE Fair Housing Center is suing SPV in Miami federal court, alleging the rental real estate firm discriminates against African-American renters.On January…
For Nadia Wright, a veteran suffering from anxiety, depression, and a debilitating organ condition, the cozy north Miami Beach duplex seemed like the perfect place to try to get back on her feet. So in September, the ex-Merchant Marine and her two teenage kids moved into the three-bedroom abode off…
Judi Kolson used to love paddling the waters of Biscayne Bay until a recent outing allegedly gave her a leg infection after her skin came into contact with contaminated water. Now, the breast cancer survivor from Key Biscayne is careful not come into contact with sea water when she hits…
