‘We must be vigilant’ as we watch Miami’s latest moves on Virginia Key Beach Park Trust | Opinion
On Oct. 13, 2022, the Miami City Commission ousted the sitting board members of the Virginia Key Beach Park Trust and named themselves the new board to oversee the future of the historic site.
My heart sank.
In fact, I felt that I, and the entire Black community had been cheated out of our dream of completely reviving the historic beach/park.
Now, a few months later, the City Commission seems to be playing make-up by appointing two Black lawyers to the new board, led by Commission Chairwoman Christine King, also Black.
I suppose I should rest a bit easier. After all, the new appointees are Black. Who would know our history better?
I am usually optimistic about such matters. This time, my mind tells me to take a wait-and-see position. The trouble with that is by the time we actually see what is happening to our historic beach, it just might be too late.
Don’t get me wrong. I believe Chairwoman Christine King is a woman of integrity. I want to believe what she said at the meeting: “I am not building a hotel out there, a Marriott, a Hilton… Whatever is done will be historically and environmentally respectful…”
King went on to say that she doesn’t believe the problem is about her or the new body: “It is about the community, and it is about revitalizing that space. Period.”
Oh, how I want to believe Commissioner King. I want to believe that she has the best interest of the community and especially our Black history at heart.
But it’s like N. Patrick Range II said: “Obviously, the city officials don’t respect the volunteer stewards who have a solid history with the park. The former board was made up of Black volunteers who gave of their time and effort for years, only to be tossed aside. The former trustees gave their time to serve the community.”
Range is the grandson of the late M. Athalie Range, a former Miami Commissioner, who was a strong advocate to preserve Virginia Beach. She knew the history of the beach, as do I.
Memories of Virginia Beach
Mrs. Range’s children and I grew up in the 1950’s spending many summer days playing in the surf, riding the mini-train, and dancing to the tune of “My Little Red Top” blasting from a jukebox that was nailed to a coconut tree.
By the time her grandson Patrick II, came along, the glamour and gaiety of Virginia Beach was just a memory to most of us, and a history tale to the younger generation of Blacks like him.
READ MORE: It started as a Blacks-only beach. A lot of Miami history has been made on Virginia Key
But the stories his grandmother told him about Virginia Key Beach Park endeared him to the effort. “We don’t know what they [the new trustees] will do. But we will continue to fight for the right thing to be done with the park,” he said.
Before the appointment of the current board, the trust that was in place was made up of people who knew the history of Virginia Key Beach Park. And while under the former Trust the wheels of getting the park to where the community wants it to be moved ever so slowly, I was confident the goal would one day be reached.
But with the commission’s action back in October, I wasn’t so sure. I thought: There goes our history. I learned that many in the community shared my concerns.
Even so, through the confusion, there was a glimmer of light flickering through, with the appointment of Commission Chairwoman Christine King, who now as the chair of Virginia Key Beach Park is doing double duty.
At the meeting on Jan. 13, commissioners voted to give King two appointments to the seven-person board. The new appointees are attorneys Bonita Jones-Peabody, an assistant public defender, and Vincent Brown, a former Opa-locka city attorney. Both are Black.
Yet for longtime supporters of the park like Gene Tinnie, the concern is that the future of the park reflects local Black history.
“The idea was for the entire park to be a museum experience; to tell of both its social and natural history,“ Tinnie said.
One of the reasons the commission ousted the former board was that it was unhappy with the lack of progress on the beach. Although Miami-Dade County has nearly $20 million set aside for the museum’s development, it hasn’t happened yet.
“But it’s absolutely not true that nothing has been done with the park in the past 18 years,” Tinnie said. “The former Trust acquired the vintage mini-train and the antique merry-go-round that is there now. We were trying to recreate the historic experience of the park when it was in its heyday and was known as the Colored Beach.”
Tinnie said the former Trust also had made other improvements like rebuilding the parking lot and the ongoing maintenance of the park.
“I am more concerned that our adversaries and allies alike will be caught up in presenting this as merely a Black issue. The original idea was for the entire park to be a museum experience for the entire community,” he said.
“The big question now is: What is the path forward? Some are saying we need to restore the original trust. Even if that were done, it is no guarantee that would be the answer. The current commission can always appoint people to do their bidding.”
It’s like Range said: “We must be vigilant.”
I agree. Otherwise, the history thieves can, and will, snatch our history right from under our nose.
Dr. Deepak Chopra to speak
The New York Times best-selling author Dr. Deepak Chopra has chosen Miami to launch his newest book, “Living in the Light.” Hosted by Unity on the Bay, the event will be at 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 24, at Barry University, 11300 NE Second Ave. in Miami Shores.
Chopra is the founder of The Chopra Foundation, a nonprofit entity for research on well-being and humanitarianism, and Chopra Global, a health company that meshes science and spirituality. He also is a world-renowned pioneer in integrative medicine and personal transformation.
The author of more than 90 books — many of them New York Times bestsellers — that have been translated into over 43 languages, Chopra is a clinical professor of Family Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, San Diego. He has been described by TIME Magazine as “… one of the top 10 heroes and icons of the century.”
The event will follow a private reception with the author at 6 p.m. for all Platinum ticket holders. Everyone in attendance will get a free copy of Chopra’s new book.
Tickets to the event can be purchased through Unity on the Bay’s website, www.unityonthebay.org or, by calling Jason Weeks at 305-573-9191.
Bea L. Hines can be reached at bea.hines@gmail.com
