Dear residents,

We are preparing to approve the Fiscal year 2014-2015 County Budget and as always, I am looking at alternatives on where we can cut back but still ensure the most important services to our residents are not disturbed.

There will be two budget public hearings taking place at the Stephen P. Clark building, 111 NW 1^st Street on September 4, 2014 and September 18, 2014, starting at 5 p.m.  If you would like to view the budget on-line, please visit http://www.miamidade.gov/managementandbudget/

I also want to take this opportunity to say thank you to all District 12 residents for re-electing me for four more years and allowing me to represent you. I value your confidence in me and look forward to working together to better improve our community for you – the people I proudly serve!

Sincerely,

Commissioner Jose 'Pepe' Diaz
District 12

Commissioner Jose 'Pepe' Diaz held his annual back to school event on August 9, where six hundred children received new book bags and school supplies donated by Florida East Coast Industries while enjoying bounce houses, giveaways from the Miami Marlins Energy Team, and refreshments courtesy of Trans Florida Development Corp. The event also featured vaccination shots provided by Walgreens and information from CauseMo Marketing. In addition to District 12 youngsters, children from the North Trail Park Summer Camp, Town of Medley Summer Camp, and Village of Virginia Gardens Summer Camp also benefited from the event. The event took place at North Trail Park. For more information, please visit http://www.miamidade.gov/district12/

Commissioner Diaz attended the grand opening of IKEA in the City of Sweetwater on August 27. This is the first store in Miami-Dade County. IKEA Miami sits on 14.6 acres has nearly 1,500 parking spaces and is located near Dolphin Mall, near Dolphin Expressway (SR 836) and Florida Turnpike.  IKEA Miami created more than 500 construction jobs and has hired more than 350 people locally for the IKEA Miami store.  Founded in Sweden in 1943, IKEA offers home furnishings of good design and function, at low prices. For more information, visit http://info.ikea-usa.com/miami/ 

Commissioner Diaz attended the groundbreaking event for the new animal shelter in the City of Doral on August 22nd. The new animal shelter is located at 3651 NW 79^th Avenue and replaces the existing animal service in Medley. The new location will be a two story building comprised of 70,018 square feet and will include feline adoption area, canine adoption area, an educational court, inside clinic as well as outside clinic with prep and operation rooms. This new facility will help us obtain a “no kill shelter” status, which Commissioner Diaz sponsored a resolution in July 2012. “No Kill Shelter” means  having a 90 percent or better rate of animals saved at the County’s animal shelter due to specific programs developed by the no-kill movement in the United States, which provide alternatives to shelter killing. The resolution is modeled after the No Kill Equation, a program model which changes the way shelters operate and gives the animal-loving public an integral role in that operation. The new animal shelter is expected to be complete November 2015. For more information please visit www.miamidade.gov/animals/

On August 3rd, Commissioner Diaz attended the opening of PortMiami Tunnel. The tunnel will provide two dedicated lanes in each direction connecting the airport and interstate highway directly to and from PortMiami. Both cruise and cargo traffic will be able to use the tunnel to access PortMiami. The tunnel restrictions are a maximum height of 15 feet, a maximum width of 8 feet 6 inches, and no placard and hazmat cargo are allowed in the tunnel. Restricted cargo will continue to use the Port Boulevard Bridge. For more information, drivers are encouraged to call 511 or log on to www.fl511.com to get real-time traffic and lane closure information.

Commissioner Diaz joined Miami-Dade Transit, Commissioner Bovo, City of Hialeah Mayor Carlos Hernandez and Senator Rene Garcia to encourage Miami-Dade County seniors 65 and older to register for the Golden Passport Easy Card. The Golden Passport Easy Card offers a senior citizen 65 years and over to ride transit for free in Miami-Dade County. For more information, please visit  http://www.miamidade.gov/transit/golden-passport.asp

The premier touring big band for the United States Army, the Jazz Ambassadors will be coming to South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center on Saturday, September 20, at 3 p.m. The Jazz Ambassadors present a diverse program of big band swing, Latin music, contemporary jazz, popular tunes, standards, Dixieland, and patriotic selections. The concert is FREE, but tickets are required with a limit of four tickets per person. Tickets may be reserved in person beginning Saturday, August 2, at noon at the Center’s Box Office or online at SMDCAC.org.  For ticket information please contact the theater Box Office (Tuesday-Friday 12 p.m. – 7 p.m. and Saturday 12 p.m. – 5 p.m.) at 786-573-5300. The South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center is managed by the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, with funding support from the Office of the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners.  The Center is dedicated to presenting and supporting arts and culture and providing access to the arts to the entire Miami-Dade County community. More information about the Center and its programs can be found at www.smdcac.org.                                                  

Pérez Art Museum Miami announced the launch of Blue Star Museums, a collaboration among the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense, and more than 2,000 museums across America to offer free admission to the nation’s active duty military personnel including National Guard and Reserve and their families from Memorial Day through Labor Day 2014.

On November 30, 2009, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) District Six in partnership with the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority (MDX) began a reconstruction project of the State Road (S.R.) 826 (Palmetto Expressway) and S.R. 836 (Dolphin Expressway) Interchange. Now that construction has begun, there will be many upcoming lane and ramp closures on the Dolphin Expressway. For more information about construction-related activities, please contact Oscar Gonzalez at 786-280-0983 or via e-mail at [email protected]. General information can be found at www.826-836.com. Motorists are encouraged to call 511 before they drive, or log on to www.fl511.com for real-time traffic and lane closure information.

[email protected]

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