HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-00501 05-31-2011-Editorial Submittal14A I TUESDAY, MAY 31, 2011
JOHN S. KNIGIII (1894-1981)
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OPINION
DAVID IANDSU[RG. PUBLISHERi ANIMA MAROU[S GONBA[E. EXE(UTIYE EDITOR I MYRIAM MARQUE. EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR
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• THE MIAMI HERALD'I EDITORIAL
A promising lesson p
MiamiHerald.com I THE MIAMI HERALD
OUR OPINION: School district, CRA take innovative approach to reenergize Overtown
For too long, the words "bro-
ken"1H� and "promise" have
been inextricably linked
'when civic concern 1 irns to Over -
town. The residents ill this storied
and once -vibrant African -Ameri-
can neighborhood now are strug-
gling economically, socially and
academically. Redevelopment
plans have come about in fits and
starts, and there has been no mag-
ic wand to wave to improve the
quality of life there. t+
But an incipient partnership be-
tween the Miami -Dade County
School District and the Communi-
ty Redevelopment Agency could
provide the key to reenergizing
Overtown with safe affordable
housing. The attraction would be
a newly renovated K-12 school —
specifically the now -dilapidated
Frederick pouglass Elementary
School on Northivest 12th Street
and Third Avenue. Throw in
stores and services thatcould fill
the needs of new residents,
school staffers and the students,
and you've got a creative plan that
can succeed in spite of tight pub-
lic,budgets_
The school district and the
CRA have agreed to enter into ne-
gotiations. to renovate Frederick
Douglass, which is falling apart
around the few students and em-
ployees left at the schooL
That has fantastic potential —
if it's done right and the CRA
money is used as a loan to the
district
There are about 400 students
at Douglass, but it can handle 800,
so it is woefully underutilized.
Under initial plans, the school
would be converted to a K-8 facil-
ity. It's a *pular approach that's
attractive to parents and students
alike. It offers continuity for fami-
lies; students don't have to trans-
fer to a middle schooL In addition,
the new and improved Frederick
Douglass, a magnet school, would
have what's called a STEM curric-
ulum, emphasizing science, tech-
nology, engineering and math,
which should excite downtown
Miami workers nearby who might
consider enrolling their children
at Douglass.
The project is in keeping with
the missions of both partners:
The CRA collects taxes in the
downtown/Overtown area to
keep it spruced up, encourage
economic development there, ex-
pand the tax!ase, create jobs and
improve the quality of life. The
school district is in the business
of providing students a quality
education. But plummeting prop-
erty values have taken a toll on
the district's construction fund.
Plus, the state has stopped giving
it money for construction or
maintenance.
The CRA would be able to cov-
er the cost of renovating this ele-
mentary school — at about $20
million — now that construction
costs are low. However, this mon-
ey should not necessarily be a gift,
especially at the risk of taxing
some property owners twice for
education: once through property
taxes collected by the county,
then again in the CRAB tax -incre-
ment district. Both the CRA and
the school district should commit
to a loan that would eventually be
repaid to the CRA to use for other
economic development projects.
JAMBS L. KNIGHT 0909-1991)
There is precedent for this
community -building partnership:
In 2000, another quasi -indepen-
dent Miami agency, the Down-
town Development Authority,
contributed $100,000 to help cre-
ate the K-6 Downtown Miami
Charter School — again part of a
strategy to make the area more
appealing to families to live in; the
city of Sunny Isles Beach gave the
district resources for a K-8 schooL
In 2002, when the CRA, under
different leadership, failed to help
ailing businesses remodel; and in
2002 a high -stakes megaplan to .
redevelop downtown risked
breaking yet another promise to
Overtown areas.
Enough: Renovating Douglass
Elementary — and revitalizing a
neighborhood — should be a
promise kept.
Submitted into the public
record in connection with
items #144•bn 5131) I i .
Priscilla A. Thompson
City Clerk