The new year, 2016, isn’t just a clean slate upon which to write things. In the case of Palmetto Bay and Cutler Bay there are already some important things going on that will play out during the months of the new year. Two in particular will have an impact upon many of their residents.
The Village of Palmetto Bay is launching year long programming through its Parks and Recreation Department that is geared toward helping its citizens improve their health in various ways, ranging from exercise to healthy food choices and wellness information. Mayor Eugene Flinn clued everyone in about the programming during his Annual State of the Village address in October. “We’ll let you have the holidays, but, beginning January 10, the Mayor’s Get Fit Challenge begins. I look forward to a healthier Palmetto Bay,” said Mayor Flinn. He also displayed a number of possible logo designs for the program and urged residents to vote for their favorite in a survey to pick one. People responded and a design was selected (see story in this issue).
And in the Town of Cutler Bay efforts by town officials have paid off for those who have golf carts and would like to use them to go places, either for convenience sake or to reduce air pollution and help create a “greener” community. Before, the carts could be used on some of the town’s streets but not on those streets controlled by the county, which had restrictions blocking that. Efforts to get the county to change its rules hadn’t yielded results, so the town’s elected leaders packed their overnight bags for Tallahassee and went up to the state capitol building to plead their case, rallying support from a number of legislators. It worked, and the state law was changed, superseding county regs. This helps not only Cutler Bay but all other municipalities in Florida as well.
For more health tips, check out Community Newspapers monthly publication, Inspire Health, which is distributed in medical centers and can re read online at communitynewspapers.com/category/inspire-health/.
Wishing all our readers a happy, healthy and productive year, and reminding everyone to take an active part in helping make their community a better place.
Thought of the Day:
The secret to getting ahead is getting started.
— Mark Twain
Gary Alan Ruse contributed to this column.
Got any tips? Contact me at 305-669- 7355, ext. 249, or send emails to Michael@communitynewspapers.com.
