Speaking of talent scouting (See: Ana Garcia/Biscayne Park), along comes another riveting column by Random Pixels about the island from whence our new City Attorney hails.  In Miami Beach police responded more than 500 times in 2013 to three Washington Ave. nightclubs, RP took his turn bitch-slapping City Manager Jimmy Morales – again – after Jose Smith also did the honors.

In addition to being outed by Random Pixels for encouraging the Miami Beach Police Department to withhold information from the press, Jimmy is now under fire for threatening to close a Miami Beach club for not paying resort taxes it was under no obligation to pay in the first place.

Both acts are forms of bullying, the first by manipulation, the second by sheer incompetence.

City Attorney Jose Smith, who left Miami Beach to work here in North Miami Beach, smacked Morales in a two-page opinion stating, “Our office did not review or have prior knowledge of your letter to Club Madonna,” as reported by Random Pixels on April 3, 2014.

Had Smith been consulted before Morales led the charge, perhaps club owner Leroy Griffith might not have sent out “the best press release we’ve ever seen,” as quoted by RP:

“It is disturbing that top leaders at City Hall were not on the same page with one another, and were jumping to unfounded conclusions, with some not knowing what others were saying, doing, implementing or authorizing – or whether any of it was even factual or legal. Alarmingly, this is a case of the right hand not aware of what the left was doing.”

I’d say that compared to Jimmy Morales, North Miami’s as-recently-as-yesterday’s resigned City Manager Stephen Johnson did a stellar job.  At least Johnson never accused local business owners of not paying their taxes or tried to put them out of business.  Start worrying if Jimmy applies for Stephen’s job!

Luckily for North Miami Beach, Jose Smith resigned “just 10 days after he publicly bitch-slapped City Manager Jimmy Morales,” since we are in dire need of a City Attorney.

Especially one who’s damn good at bitch-slapping.

I could use some help around here.

Stephanie Kienzle
“Spreading the Wealth”