For the Aventura City Commission The SunPost Recommends… 

Bob Diamond

For decades the residents of Miami-Dade’s unincorporated Northeast Dade region faithfully went to the polls in droves to all election races—from county commission and judicial races to races on a state and national level. In 1995, when it became evident that the Northeast was not receiving what it paid out in taxes, most of the residents of this enclave voted to incorporate as the City of Aventura. The following year residents of Aventura elected its first elected officials.

On March 2003, residents will have an opportunity to once again vote on their region’s destiny.  In the most contested election since 1996, a long-time city commissioner is facing a challenge for the first time while three residents face each other for an “open seat.”

Seat Three has been held by Arthur Berger since the city’s incorporation. After Berger opted not to run for re-election in order to pursue other interests, a trio of Aventura residents have decided to take the plunge.  Sid Gersh is a former activist from Miami Beach now living and working in Aventura.  A well meaning individual with many tales of his political life in South Florida, the SunPost feels he still has to evolve as a political activist in his new home prior to becoming a commissioner. Charles Radlauer, on the other hand, has immersed himself in the issues affecting Aventura.  A former physician who has recently earned a law degree in employment discrimination and health law, Radlauer is a very impressive man with a lot of excellent ideas regarding his city’s future.  He indeed does make a tempting choice for commissioner. However, in this three-way race, the SunPost must give its nod to another challenger.

An attorney for 35 years, Bob Diamond was an elected official in New Jersey, serving two terms as a member of the Hillside City Commission, overseeing such departments as police, fire, finance and planning. He also served as a municipal judge. Moving to the Aventura area in the 1980s, Diamond soon became active in his community, including serving as president and director of the Williams Island 3000 Condominium.  Soon after Aventura incorporated he became chair of the Aventura Mayor’s Advisory Committee which set the groundwork for the city’s structure. He later was named on the Aventura Beautification Advisory Committee and Aventura Community Services Advisory Board.  Diamond’s record  of civic activism and participation in government has made him a trusted member of this community.  It is for this reason that the SunPost recommends Bob Diamond for Seat Three.

Patricia Rogers-Libert

Seat Five has also been held by Patricia Rogers-Libert since incorporation and, for the first time, she has drawn a challenger.  Zev Auerbach came from humble beginnings and to become a successful advertising executive.  Due to that success Auerbach said he now wants to devote his energy and time to making Aventura a better place to live.  Indeed this challenger does have some good ideas on how to solve—or alleviate—Aventura’s increasingly horrendous traffic conditions.

But the SunPost believes that the City of Aventura must retain Rogers-Libert for another term.  Literally one of the “founders” of Aventura’s incorporation (she was part of a county incorporation committee back in 1992), Rogers-Libert left a secure job at the Metro-Dade Transit Agency to run for city commissioner.  Since then, Rogers-Libert has served the city faithfully and has become quite adept at navigating through Aventura’s many issues—from traffic congestion and future development, to the economy, green space and schools. The SunPost believes that Rogers-Libert has a genuine passion for public service, as well as a proven track record, and has earned another term.  For Seat Five the SunPost recommends Patricia Rogers-Libert.

At least on two other occasions Miami Beach vehicles have run over sunbathers.   

Officer George Varon was responding to a call when he drove a Miami Beach Police Department SUV onto the beach at 14^th Street.  And then Varon, an officer, according to reports, with a good police record, made a horrible mistake: he ran over two sisters—27 year-old Stephanie and 26 year-old Sandrine Tunc—who were visiting Miami Beach from Europe.  Witnesses say they screamed at first as Stephanie succumbed to her wounds and died.  Sandrine is still fighting for her life in Jackson Memorial Hospital.  The city and police are now investigating how this accident could have happened.

But there is a clue.  This isn’t the first time this has occurred.

At least on two other occasions Miami Beach vehicles have run over sunbathers.  In 1993 it was a Peruvian tourist, according to a Miami Herald article.  In 1999 it was a pregnant woman who, miraculously, survived.

Not anyone can drive on the beach.  As signs posted on the beach advise, the beach is limited to official vehicles, i.e., to Beach Patrol vehicles and beachfront concessionaires who weave past joggers, Frisbee players and semi-comatose sunbathers stretched on the white sand to get to wherever they are headed.  Granted, they don’t usually hit people—at least not seriously enough to get reported on in the media—but on the surface at least it does seem to be a formula for disaster.  And the disaster came about this past Saturday.

Besides continuing the investigation on the tragedy of the Tunc sisters, Miami Beach authorities should strongly consider placing a moratorium on vehicle use on the beach during times of the day when people are lying on the sand sunbathing.  At the very least, Beach officials should formulate guidelines for those empowered to drive on the sand—limits as to where specifically they are allowed to drive, how fast and who exactly is authorized to be behind the wheel. 

The beach is a beautiful, tranquil place and, under the right circumstances, it’s easy to drift off while absorbing the sun’s ultra-violet rays and gazing at the blue-green ocean.  And, in these conditions, it’s very easy for someone to be totally unaware that a six-ton vehicle is approaching.  Likewise, it’s easy for someone driving a vehicle, especially an SUV, not to see figures lying flat on the sand. 

And if Miami Beach doesn’t do something about it, a tragedy such as befell the Tunc sisters will occur again…. and again. 

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