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Rally seeks to kill Wave Streetcar

Plans for the Wave Streetcar might be on life support amid cost overruns, growing public opposition and lack of support from Fort Lauderdale’s mayoral candidates. There’s even an anti-Wave rally scheduled at 6 p.m. on Feb. 6.

The nearly 3-mile system in downtown Fort Lauderdale was envisioned to originally cost $142 million, but bids presented last fall indicated the price could hit $270 million. The state plans to seek new bids by tweaking some of the components to lower the cost.

The Wave squeaked by in a 5-4 vote by the Broward County commission in late January, but the commission wanted to make sure the city and Downtown Development Authority still support the project.

On Friday, the DDA still showed strong support with all five board members present at the meeting voting in favor of continuing.

The bigger problem is that all of the Fort Lauderdale mayor candidates have opposed the project. The race is now down to two candidates, Commissioner Dean Trantalis, who signed a pledge to derail the Wave at the first commission meeting after the election, and Vice Mayor Bruce Roberts, who didn’t sign the pledge but says he opposes the Wave.

Public concern have included dislike of the planned overhead wires to power it, questioning whether it will really help the city’s traffic, noting the relatively small area it will service and contending it might be technologically obsolete when completed.

Opponents are taking out full page ads in the Sun Sentinel, which question its financial feasibility.

“The City and County taxpayers will be responsible for the overruns and a survey of 9 recently completed systems revealed average overruns of over 80%. Six recent systems had ridership projection shortfalls averaging 45%,” the ad states.

Proponents say prospects of the Wave are already spurring economic development, and is it is a key part of solving the city’s traffic woes. It could also be the foundation for a more countywide solution.

Opponents were planning the rally at the city commission meeting at 6 p.m. on Feb 6. As outlined on wavegoodbye.net, they are trying to flip one of three city commissioners supporting the project: Mayor Jack Seiler, Romney Rogers and Robert McKenzie. However, I couldn’t find any item about the Wave on the Feb. 6 city commission agenda when I checked on Monday.

Seiler, who is term limited, wrote an opinion piece for the Feb. 5 Sun Sentinel that was supportive of the project.

“At its core, the Wave is a key investment in the future of Fort Lauderdale, Broward County, and South Florida. It will provide enhanced mobility and connectivity, create jobs, stimulate economic development, and promote long-term sustainability by offering residents and visitors a quick, convenient, and environmentally-friendly public transportation alternative,” Seiler wrote.

Seiler contends that millions in state funding ($52.6 million) and federal funding ($82.7 million) took years to obtain and the city could face tight purse strings on other projects if the Wave is abandoned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Drew Limsky

Drew Limsky

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BIOGRAPHY

Drew Limsky joined Lifestyle Media Group in August 2020 as Editor-in-Chief of South Florida Business & Wealth. His first issue of SFBW, October 2020, heralded a reimagined structure, with new content categories and a slew of fresh visual themes. “As sort of a cross between Forbes and Robb Report, with a dash of GQ and Vogue,” Limsky says, “SFBW reflects South Florida’s increasingly sophisticated and dynamic business and cultural landscape.”

Limsky, an avid traveler, swimmer and film buff who holds a law degree and Ph.D. from New York University, likes to say, “I’m a doctor, but I can’t operate—except on your brand.” He wrote his dissertation on the nonfiction work of Joan Didion. Prior to that, Limsky received his B.A. in English, summa cum laude, from Emory University and earned his M.A. in literature at American University in connection with a Masters Scholar Award fellowship.

Limsky came to SFBW at the apex of a storied career in journalism and publishing that includes six previous lead editorial roles, including for some of the world’s best-known brands. He served as global editor-in-chief of Lexus magazine, founding editor-in-chief of custom lifestyle magazines for Cadillac and Holland America Line, and was the founding editor-in-chief of Modern Luxury Interiors South Florida. He also was the executive editor for B2B magazines for Acura and Honda Financial Services, and he served as travel editor for Conde Nast. Magazines under Limsky’s editorship have garnered more than 75 industry awards.

He has also written for many of the country’s top newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Miami Herald, Boston Globe, USA Today, Worth, Robb Report, Afar, Time Out New York, National Geographic Traveler, Men’s Journal, Ritz-Carlton, Elite Traveler, Florida Design, Metropolis and Architectural Digest Mexico. His other clients have included Four Seasons, Acqualina Resort & Residences, Yahoo!, American Airlines, Wynn, Douglas Elliman and Corcoran. As an adjunct assistant professor, Limsky has taught journalism, film and creative writing at the City University of New York, Pace University, American University and other colleges.