Open letter to the mayor and commissioners of Coral Gables

After carefully listening to the arguments presented against Mr. DiDonato’s proposal for outdoor seating at the Coral Gables Country Club, it would appear that the objections to the outdoor seating is a red herring and that the real objection is to revitalizing the Country Club and all the increased traffic it would bring to the neighborhood. This is a valid objection and should be discussed and debated openly – not hidden behind the irrelevant issue of a few outdoor tables.

The city needs to decide whether it wants a busy, successful and profitable Country Club to operate in a residential neighborhood. If the answer is yes – then Mr. DiDonato should be given the powers to operate it successfully. If the answer is no, then the building should be rezoned as a museum or knocked down and made into a park, for example. The third alternative is to send Mr. DiDonato back to Toronto and to leave the club as an expensive and abandoned eyesore. If we do so, however, it is unlikely that any other developer will wish to follow in Mr. DiDonato’s footsteps.

What most of the community wants is a place where we can walk to, to meet friends, relax and have a quiet coffee or lunch. To compare this proposed small café to The Globe, which offers music, a South Beach ambience and central location, is entirely disingenuous. I’m sure Mr. DiDonato does not want to risk losing the café during or after the 18-month trial period for the café. My guess is that he’ll do whatever it takes to stay under the radar and be a good neighbor. Certainly, the quality of life will not be negatively affected by the addition of a few outdoor tables, especially since the closest house in view of the café is .2 miles away.

If the city does indeed want the Country Club to be successful, then there are two very compelling arguments in favor of the “neighborhood” café and outdoor seating. Without the full-time staff needed to operate the café and restaurant, the club would only be able to offer service for major functions like weddings and reunions. The local residents again would be shut out and the club would mostly likely return to its mausoleum status. Secondly, without the visual welcome of outdoor seating to invite passing residents into the club, people would not realize that the club was open to the public and it would remain the closed and exclusionary façade that it has always been.

It was very clear from the meeting on November 3rd that the vast majority of Gables residents, taxpayers and voters strongly favor Mr. DiDonato’s proposals. It was equally clear that the small but vocal opposition was limited to the residents of North Greenway. When my friends and I voted for you, Mr. Mayor, and voted for your fellow commissioners, we voted for you to represent the citizens of the city of Coral Gables. We did not vote you to be mayor of North Greenway Drive. Please do what is right and help create a sense of community that will make us all proud.

Regards,
Bill Richardson
Minorca Avenue
Coral Gables