Coconut Grove Gallery Walk is Saturday night

The Coconut Grove Gallery Walk is tonight, Saturday, June 1,  from 7 to 10 pm.

Featured this month: Barbara Tejada and Pilar Gray Benitez at FrameWorks; Matachos Art at Vinos in the Grove; Final Show of the Season at Boswell Mourot Fine Art; Ray Lopez at the Ccoonut Grove Arts Festival Gallery.

While out and about you may stop in at the Improv where Tone Bell, one of the stars of NBC's "Whitney" will be peforming. 

Parklets coming to Miami

Remember Park(ing) Days that we had a few years back? Where we turned parking spaces in the street into mini parks? Well, the Miami Parking Authority (MPA) apparently loved the idea because they have a new concept called Parklets, that they are offering businesses, namely restaurants. The Miami City Commission has agreed to the plan. Parklets are used in San Francisco often.

Restaurants would be able to put tables and seating in the spaces in areas that don't have much sidewalk space, like Wynwood and downtown. The MPA would be paid a fee for use of the spaces.

The commissioners like the idea of adding green space and amenities. Some are kind of overkill, as you can see from the image above from San Francisco. Others are more green-y and calm as you see below.

Good news is that it's clever and something new. Bad news -- less parking.

Here's what we did with Park(ing) Day in Coconut Grove one year. It only lasted for the day.

Help TreeMendous Miami plant some trees

Saturday, June 1, rain or shine, TreeMendous Miami is planting the beautiful flowering trees and plants along US 1 that we all admire so often.

Come join in the fun at US 1 between 24th and 22nd Avenues at 8:30 am. Come one and come all. It is a reminder every time you drive down US 1 that you planted that flowering tree. It's a great feeling.

Benefit concert at Music Conservatory

Tonight, May 31, the Miami Conservatory of Music is hosting a benefit concert for Katherine Mohr.  It's donations only... even a buck will be accepted.  The concert starts at 7 pm.  Pianist Junko Kainosho will accompany Mohr as they perform Broadway show tunes and operatic staples.

Katherine Mohr has been accepted into this Summer's Hawaii Performing Art Festival. She has been offered several roles, such as Second Woman in Dido and Aeneas, Sister Osmina in Suor Angelica and also understudy for Fiordiligi in Cosi fan tutte. Not only she will be performing in these operas, but she will be also taking voice lessons and coachings as well as participating in Master Classes and concerts.

This is a wonderful opportunity for her and Katherine is giving this benefit concert to help her pay for this program.

Miami Conservatory of Music Hall is at the Mayfair Promenade, next to The Improv in Coconut Grove.

Art Auction tonight at The Hangar

Help support the Nika Healing Arts Foundation Summer Art workshops at tonight's art auction (Friday, May 31, 2013) at The Hangar.

The Nika Healing Arts Foundation was founded with the goal to inspire, instill hope and motivate children suffering from cancer through the healing power of art and raise money for cancer research. 

The proceeds of this auction will go directly to funding free summer art classes for children diagnosed with cancer. The Hangar is home to dozens of local artists including; painters, sculptors, writers, musicians, performers, muralists, the curious and the creative. Dedicated to the collective movement of creative exhibition.

The event starts at 7 pm. The Hanger is located at 2235 NW 2nd Avenue in Wynwood.

New MPA/Miami Maps program

The Miami Parking Authority (MPA) has approved Parking Meter Map Systems, a division of Miami Maps, to conduct a one-year pilot program in Coconut Grove to determine the viability and acceptance of displaying walking maps on the sides and back of 30 master meter parking stations.

As part of the one-year test, Parking Meter Maps Systems will offer affordable advertising on each meter. The ads will be rotated every six months to accommodate new advertisers and will be maintained on a regular basis in order to assure a clean, high-quality presentation. Community activities, such as festivals and meetings highlighted on the map, will also be updated.  In addition, a QR code will appear on each map to allow merchants to target potential customers in the area via SmartPhone technology in order to offer special promotions or discounts in real time, thus creating new business and valuable revenue for Coconut Grove businesses.

“We are always looking for innovative ways to generate new revenue streams for the City of Miami while adding value to the local community,” said Arthur Noriega, Chief Executive Officer of Miami Parking Authority.

MPA will receive 25 percent of all advertising revenues. The Authority will not be responsible for expenses in connection with the operation, installation or maintenance of the project. “Although actual value of the ads will be determined during the test period, it is anticipated that a gross annual revenue exceeding $40,000 from 30 meters is a realistic working number, which could generate $10,000 for MPA,” stated Marshall Steingold,” President of Parking Meter Map Systems.

The pilot project will be supported by a public information campaign aimed at raising awareness and sparking interest in the community. 

It would be cool if the MPA used the money earned to offset parking fees, in other words, give us free parking in Coconut Grove, but then we are back to square one because what would we need the parking meters for then? They would end up being just billboards, which I guess they are now with the maps. But honestly, maybe only Sundays we could have free parking or weekends.

Critical Mass ride is Friday night

Critical Mass will be riding through the Grove and other neighborhoods on Friday night, May 31. Bicyclists will meet at Government Center downtown and they leave for the ride at 7:15 pm. It's a ride, not a race.

They will be riding through Little Havana, West Flagler, Coral Gables/Miracle Mile, Coconut Grove, Silver Bluff, Shenandoah, Riverside, and Downtown. The route is about 14.5 miles. You can join or end whenever you like, you don't have to complete the whole 14.5 miles. There is a map at Miami Bike Scene, so you can use that if you get lost or start late.

The Filling Station and Garage Bar (95 SE 2nd Street) is the ending point.

They are asking that you wear red, in remembrance of Bella.