Florida Agenda

In last week’s column (Open for Business, August 11, 2011: “No West, Young Man”), we reported about the ongoing fallout from the invitation to speak last month by the Wilton Manors Business Association (WMBA, “Wimba”) to Congressman Allen West. Among reactions to the invitation and subsequent cancellation of the planned August 8th meeting, an email [...]

By Cliff Dunn In this column last week (Open for Business, August 4, 2011, “Go, West!”), Your Kindly Writer advised you, Gentle Reader, to “Stay tuned for the fallout,” a reference to the after effects of what began for some as a polite invitation to a Member of Congress to address the monthly meeting of [...]

By Cliff Dunn The Dale Russell Network, part of the Atlantic Properties International realty empire, is the exclusive listings agent for Forest Trace, the luxury senior living resort community in the Lauderhill subdivision of Inverrary (does the name Jackie Gleason ring a bell, or is Open for Business getting old? – don’t answer that). According [...]

By Cliff Dunn Club members at Island City Health & Fitness may recall a few days last month when their gym’s facilities (showers, bathrooms) were without water due to the theft of the backflow valve connection behind the club and its mutual backyard with the now-former location of the Poverello Food Bank. Broward Sheriff’s Office [...]

By Cliff Dunn The multi-talented and multi-faceted A.J. Cross, general manager of Johnny’s Club, Bar & Lounge in Fort Lauderdale, is pleased to announce his 9th Annual Birthday Fundraiser (the reputedly 40-something Cross looks like he could pass for a man at least half his age – the little %@#$), to be held at Johnny’s [...]

A familiar face you should make a point of familiarizing yourself with belongs to the ubiquitous Krishan Manners, President and CEO of Wilton Manors Main Street (WMMS), who has spent the past six months taking the non-profit from its original mission (converting Wilton Drive into a more merchant- and pedestrian-friendly throughway) into a true community [...]

By Cliff Dunn Invoking the legendary 1970s and 1980s T-Dances at Fort Lauderdale’s long-dead Marlin Beach Resort, and the 1990s version at Club Caribbean Resort, The Depot Cabana Bar & Grill on Federal Highway has launched its Sunday T with a cross-promotion at the adjacent America’s Best Inn & Suites, which makes for an affordable [...]

There has been a great deal of ink devoted elsewhere recently to the doom and gloom related to the long and dark shadow said to be cast over the future of Wilton Manors, with reports of the closure of 17 businesses in the Island City over the past 18 months, as well as the projections [...]

By Cliff Dunn Events for Stonewall Pride Weekend are cropping up faster than one of Jonathan Bleiweiss’ victims, with a number of local establishments and watering holes teaming up to support charitable and service organizations, while serving up products to help shore up the summer slows. To The Depot Cabana Bar & Grill’s Stonewall Saturday [...]

Tongues have been wagging – and without apparent justification (go figure) – regarding an imminent/eventual demolition of some/all of the Shoppes of Wilton Manors, the strip shopping center at the corner of Wilton Drive and Northeast 7 Avenue in Wilton Manors, home to such businesses as Island City Health & Fitness (ICHF), Georgie’s Alibi, Juiceblendz [...]