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1663-7 Art Deco - 3 rwww. miami . com F SUNDAY, JANUARY 20, 2002 SECTION . METRO MIAMI B ilENTARY STEINBACK ONCE - GRAND HOTEL AWAITS REBIRTH School .xdistrict, ,J . ,@herald.com -.. f Nazi-era gets resonates _ . lelieves growing up isl o difficultshould poor eaof growing up 'many. fans-Jiirgen Massa- ek African diplomat f German mother,is both an inspiring gradetale of individual survival and tri- umph,and a trou- bling reminder of P rI n C I pa I S' survey the seemingly inexhaustible human capacity cites myriad failings for cruelty. 1 "Americans NII BY CHARLES SAVAGE should understand V csavage@herald.com that evil as well as I virtue comes in all Miami-Dade County public school Massaquoi,76, G principals overwhelmingly believe the tending Florida district is riddled by cronyism,incom- versity's annual f\ petenceand political interference breakfast to honor from the School Board,according to a other King Jr.on Fri- g new survey of more than 320 adminis- 1 trators. ears under Nazi rule, R ` Superintendent Merrett Stierheim if age as a typical,if • ,< called the numbers"explosive": erman boy.He,like - 11 I Eighty-four percent of principals hool peers,was ' r' F'' believe the system does not"weed out .. :citement of Adolf bad or marginal employees." wer—he once ': I Eighty-seven percent think"pro- Hitler Youth orga- R , motions have been influenced by cro gradually became nyism/nepotism." -er's vision of an 1 Sixty-nine percent think teacher 004001000 r't include those who hiring has been similarly tainted. :04400000040.1 1 Seventy-nine percent do not thimug,"one pro Nazi , nk"decisions concerning the selec- ar old Hans, tion of administrative positions are have finished with based on the qualifications and com e you will be next." • petencies of the individual." as he has retold his And,revealinga pervasive sense of the former manag- ��� u - low morale, 79 perent said the dis- y magazine,was s I'•• p rcome with emotion " I PLEASE SEE PRINCIPALS'SURVEY,5B ed two reasons why ;. d it around to eater- RICHARD PATTERSON/FOR THE HERALD SHUTTERED JEWEL:When the Victor opened in 1938,it was billed as'The Ocean Front's Smartest Hotel.' (7 ;noted,so few black 3 victim's )urg that the Nazis les for its pogroms. ared its end,the .. family dealtimies stormed Rehabilitation pquickly that the time to exterminate a third blow igetectfor death. eludes tVictor � bns for his survival 4999 memoir. am knack for innova BY LISA ARTHUR liking under duress. BY ANDRES VIGLUCCI ballroom remain darkened ' s larthurPherald.com tple serendipity: aviglucci®herald.com and badly scarred by water � ,. 4 the bowels of the damage. 3YL` g For Doreen Minick, the sadness egime the modern The last unretouched After years of foreclo- Imo', had been welling up for weeks as the young Massaquoi tropical-deco gem on Ocean sures and false starts, the 18th anniversary of her daughter's 'age and integrity Drive, the Victor hotel, Victor, at Ocean Drive and : .' , ` brutal killing approached. Then on fvntances and strang- stands fenced off and for- 12th Street,has been prom- Dec.22,the phone call she had hoped Allied bombecaanhistori- . g a black yearsain South Beach's call accurate thorough restoration by ''`A her melancholy.come again jolted her out of ended bya venom- gap ' � y ;,� her melancholy. eary Hamburg citi- polished smile. new owners. They would '''K �'` .. . For the third time, the Florida !he was a downed Even as the Miami also erect a five-story addi- I A. ,, Supreme Court had overturned the le was saved when Design Preservation League, tion that respects the 1937 , tl '', n fi Y conviction of Death Row inmate e lieutenant _ li Wf.,:; ' o-` ` which launched the Art original's scale but doesn't WALTER MICHOT/HERALD STAFF Joseph Ramirez, accused of stabbing where,checked Deco district revival, cele- ape its design. and bludgeoning to death 27-year-old m,and sent him brates its 25th anniversary Nearly a year after Miami ART DECO WEEKEND, Gabriela Mary Jane Minick Quinn on Christ- -with bus fare. this Art Deco Weekend,the Beach issued a construction I mas Eve 1983. cape the racism of eight-story Victor's soaring permit to the developer, Goldbaum carries the tropical-deco The latest ruling centers on the assaquoi emigrated lobby, once-sparkling ter- same issue that led to the two earlier es in 1950—and ran razzo floors and expansive I PLEASE SEE VICTOR,2B theme to extremes. Story,3B reversals.The justices deemed unsci- in style racism entific and "self-serving" a Miami- is new challenge Massaquoi told the I PLEASE SEE RAMIREZ,2B ause unlike his v Once-elegant eachotel's rehabilitation an elusive LL. I VICTOR,FROM 1B tion was halted last year. J I W 1 December," I. - . _ The project architect,Blake 12 ST Miami iii• , ney,the city however, work has yet to Thorson, said the Carlyle's _ _ I ervation ma heard ant] Begin. ZOM Ocean Drive, ^`� owner has not decided a � any ti permit expires in ' ,fr ._ — __ whether to proceed but noted Z Victor Hotel going forwa I March,won't publiclydiscuss .r,= "' K, �e`' that extensive structural work Mooney a �" o the project. — y . t was completed, ensuring the _ __!` Casuarina, promptly,h REASON UNCLEAR : $ '' ,. building's survival. Yersace's able to rem ,` ii,.',A 11 ST. 1 former lapses, how 4 ^-4,.‘:-' I._ "It will come back,one way z I p City officials say they don't ! ,! I or another," Thorson said. 1I r in o residence could be in! Theyadd that there is no cause (, �' The Victor,in contrast,has approved t know the reason for the delay. ! f _� �' I —II yet to receive needed struc- i' A version of to think the project is off and tural repairs,city building offi- AA J code.The c; speculate that the economic ' cials said.It's in no immediate - 'tj not allow tl slowdown, which has hit 4 ;`N I danger,however. Mohammed Miami contemplate hotels hard,may be to blame. "' Partovi, Miami Beach's chief ebb,} Q Beach Robins Worried preservationists, �, structural plans examiner,said Miami ZOM, whic meanwhile, pray that this r the structure passed a demand- 0' Area detailed massive r won't be the latest rehab prom- ' i , ing load test last year"with fly- ML0012002_ rHE HERALD tower on WI ise for the Victor to fizzle. ing colors." waiting for They have long wondered why i , - ,,r _._,, The long neglect of the Vic- "It is really a fabulous recover. the Victor sat boarded up, I' I ' tor may carry a hidden benefitdevelopment plan,and they're "A lot exposed to what one called '� * Other South Beach deco build- a real legitimate developer,' affected by "demolition by neglect,"while -----� ';, - ings were stripped of original Robins said. and that's I • lesser examples of art deco interior features during reno- City officials say there is on new ho nearby received lavish—if not vations before city officials every indication that ZOM is Mooney sai always historically faithful — I< _'k •-, I tightened preservation guide- proceeding with the project. projects ma' redos. `, lines. Most of the Victor's are "The last I heard,they were until they re "We would all love to see it :- extant, if weathered. putting together some revi- "It's a vei done," said Victor Diaz, a law _ sions on structural aspects of I doubt the yer who was co-chairman of (c RANDY JUSTER/REDISCOVERING ART DECO U.S.A.,1980 COSMETIC MAKEOVER the project. That was in go." the city's Historic Preservation The hotel was untouched INTERIOR:The lobby rises over a colorful geometric terrazzo floor Board when it approved the to a second-story mezzanine. except for a largely cosmetic EVENTS FOR MARTIN LUTHER KING JI rehab three years ago. makeover by preservationists Diaz vacationed at the Vic- Designed by one of the The lobby was a sumptuous about 1980,when it was owned for as a child and once patron saints of Miami Beach tropical contrast to the Vic- by Andrew Capitman, son of Here are some of the events planned dreamed of owning his name- deco architecture, L. Murray tor's sober exterior. It rises the late Barbara Capitman, commemorate the Rev.Martin Luther sake hotel. Dixon, the Victor was among over a colorful geometric ter- cofounder of the preservation MONDAY "I thought I would be the the earliest high-rise hotels on razzo floor to a second-story league.The Capitmans and the 1 A Mass commemorating King's birthda; guy with the Panama hat in the the oceanfront. When it mezzanine.Three jazzy glass- league stubbornly defended for noon,Gesu Catholic Church,118 NE Se lobby,which is,or was,one of opened in January 1938 with and-chrome chandeliers—one the unfashionable deco dis- Call 305-762-1120. the most significant lobbies in 103 rooms, it was billed by its of them survives — hung from trict's potential at a time when 1 Camillus House holds its fourth annual i all Ocean Drive,"he said."It's owners as"The Ocean Front's the ceiling,and columns were city leaders wanted nothing feed 500 homeless people.Volunteers wil such an important building, Smartest Hotel"and catered to adorned by almost 30 match- more than to tear it all down. canned goods for the poor,10:30 a.m.,721 and it should be one of the a Jewish clientele.It was one of ing sconces. But South Beach's revival Miami.Call 305-374-1065. showcase restorations in the few with a restaurant. High above, flamingos was still years away.The deco 1 A Prayer&Unity Breakfast,8:30 to 11a. Miami Beach." cavort amid an Everglades pioneers,broke,lost control of Renaissance Miami Biscayne Bay,1601 Bi. SIMPLE ON OUTSIDE marsh in a mural by Earl the Victor and several neigh- Miami.Call 305-995-2451. Everywhere You Turn: Unlike some of the Victor's LaPan, a noted artist of the boring hotels.The Victor was 1 Most Miami-Dade County parks are off } fanciful,curvaceous neighbors, time. The mural, badly dam- shuttered for good in 1984, with supervised activities for children or successful its exterior is not ornate. The aged by water intrusion,would going into foreclosure and equipment available for checkout. For m Victor prefigured modernist be restored as part of the changing hands several times call your neighborhood park. Beach architecture in its hotel's rehab. since then. ft squared-off simplicity of line. Off the lobby is a feature From 1992 to 2000, it was Alumni A pelican relief fountain sculp- unusual for Ocean Drive's typ- co-owned by DACRA, a Sup- HOLIDAY SCHEDULE ture on the ballroom's street ically no-frills hotels— a spa- cessful South Beach-based facade is a modest nod to its cious ballroom.Early Art Deco developer that specialized in larkier neighbors. So are two Weekend balls were held historic properties, and hote- The following is a list of closings for Monday in large "moon gates" built into there. Tier Chris Blackwell. Martin Luther King Day: the low masonry wall that runs The partners renovated a Banks Check along Ocean Drive. FEELING OF GLAMOUR string of South Beach hotels Buses 11/ Devotees say the exterior "The building is totally and were saving the Victor — Federal offices/courts draws its strength from the unimposing in scale.Yet it still "the best" — for last, said County offices/courts unbroken horizontal "eye- gave the entire feeling of DACRA's Craig Robins.They City of Miami garbage/recycling brows"over the windows at its entering someplace exalted shepherded the current rehab Unincorporated Dade garbage front and sides and a soaring, and glamorous," Cerwinske plan to approval by the city, Unincorporated Dade recycling ribbed pylon at the southeast- said. but a breakup in the partner- Libraries ern corner. The Victor is not the only ship forced a sale,Robins said. Malls Chi �' "It's such a perfect piece of noted hotel on Ocean Drive Metrorail Nat Moore geometry," said Laura Cer- awaiting improvements. The PAID$11.75 MILLION Post offices President,Nat Moore&Associates,Inc. winske, author of Deco Carlyle, which helped launch ZOM, an experienced firm Schools and former Miami Dolphin Delights,one of the first books the art deco revival when it that Robins felt confident Stock markets VIIMiami-Dade to extol the virtues of South received a pastel face-lift in the could carry out the planned Tri-Rail COMMUNITY COLLEGE Beach's then-blighted architec- early 1980s, is also shuttered renovation,paid$11.75 million ture when published in 1981. after a top-to-bottom renova- for the Victor in 2000. 4 g e-e e ant Beach hotel9s rehabilitation an elusive goa tion was halted last year. _J(-- 1 t. .;__J i December,"said Thomas Moo- has yet to The project architect,Blake 12 ST [.1 MiamiBach ney,the city's design and pres- ervation Thorson, said the Carlyle's _ r( � ervation manager. "I have not cean Drive, owner has not decided a Victor Hotel i heard anything about it not expires in whether to proceed but noted blicly discuss :- :K that extensive structural work going forward.' Casa Mooney said ZOM must act. A was completed, ensuring the ! Casuarina, promptly,however. It may be; building's survival. - Versace's able to renew its permit. If it: EAR Baa"`"+_ "It will come back, one wa 11 ST' former lapses, however, Y __ p the project' say they don't 1 or another,"Thorson said. 1 residence could be in peril because it was for the dela j —_ T_� '` yet to receive needed struc- o version of the city' zoning) Y The Victor,in contrast,has approved under a previous il ere is no cause a i ject is off and �l ' tural repairs,citybuildingoffi- AIA code.The current code�:ould. P he economic + cials said.It's in no immediate not allow the expansion now', ich has hit k ',li danger, however.Mohammed Miami contemplated, Mooney said. be to blame. : '�� Partovi, Miami Beach's chief -IL s kd II Q Beach Robins and Mooney said servationists, I structural plans examiner, said I! Miami ZOM, which recently built a ay that this ; '� I the structure passed a demand- O rea demassive rental apartment t rehab prom- s i ., ing load test last year"with fly- MLD012002 THE HERALD tower on West Avenue,may be tor to fizzle. ! , - ;, ing colors." waiting for the economy to ,ondered why • I. ,.: The long neglect of the Vic- "It is really a fabulous recover. boarded up, r e,3. ; - / tor may carry a hidden benefit. development plan,and they're "A lot of hotels were at one called }`, Other South Beach deco build- a real legitimate developer," affected by the events of 9/11, icglect,"while '---,moi_ ', ' r' ings were stripped of original Robins said. and that's had a ripple effect s of art deco -- " } interior features during reno- City officials say there is on new hotel construction," lavish—if not "'.--�,..„, h, vations before city officials every indication that ZOM is Mooney said. "A lot of these ly faithful — 4:. t 4 ( i tightened preservation guide- proceeding with the project. projects may be waiting a little lines.Most of the Victor's are The last I heard,they were until they restart. love to see it extant, if weathered. putting together some revi- "It's a very valuable project. •r Diaz,a law -___ sions on structural aspects of I doubt they would let it just i-chairman of (c)RANDY JUSTER/REDISCOVERING ART DECO U.S.A.,1980 COSMETIC MAKEOVER the project. That was in go." Preservation INTERIOR:The lobby rises over a colorful geometric terrazzo floor The hotel was untouched approved the except for a largely cosmetic ago. to a second-story mezzanine. makeover by preservationists EVENTS FOR MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY ed at the Vic- Designed by one of the The lobby was a sumptuous about 1980,when it was owned and once patron saints of Miami Beach tropical contrast to the Vic- by Andrew Capitman, son of Here are some of the events planned to iing his name- deco architecture, L. Murray tor's sober exterior. It rises the late Barbara Capitman, commemorate the Rev.Martin Luther King Jr.Day: Dixon, the Victor was among over a colorful geometric ter- cofounder of the preservation MONDAY would be the the earliest high-rise hotels on razzo floor to a second-story league.The Capitmans and the 1 A Mass commemorating King's birthday is scheduled Lama hat in the the oceanfront. When it mezzanine.Three jazzy glass- league stubbornly defended for noon,Gesu Catholic Church,118 NE Second St., Miami. or was,one of opened in January 1938 with and-chrome chandeliers—one the unfashionable deco dis- Call 305-762-1120. :ant lobbies in 103 rooms, it was billed by its of them survives— hung from trict's potential at a time when P Camillus House holds its fourth annual celebration to c''he said."It's owners as"The Ocean Front's the ceiling,and columns were city leaders wanted nothing feed 500 homeless people.Volunteers will be collecting ant building, Smartest Hotel"and catered to adorned by almost 30 match- more than to tear it all down. canned goods for the poor,10:30 a.m.,726 NE First Ave., be one of the a Jewish clientele.It was one of ing sconces. But South Beach's revival Miami.Call 305-374-1065. Rorations in the few with a restaurant. High above, flamingos was still years away.The deco 1 A Prayer&Unity Breakfast,8:30 to 11 a.m.,the SIMPLE ON OUTSIDE cavort amid an Everglades pioneers,broke,lost control of Renaissance Miami Biscayne Bay,1601 Biscayne Blvd., marsh in a mural by Earl the Victor and several neigh- Miami.Call 305-995-2451. Unlike some of the Victor's LaPan, a noted artist of the boring hotels.The Victor was 1 Most Miami-Dade County parks are offering day camps You Turn: fanciful,curvaceous neighbors, time. The mural, badly dam- shuttered for good in 1984, with supervised activities for children or offering sports S� 1 its exterior is not ornate. The aged by water intrusion,would going into foreclosure and equipment available for checkout. For more information, Victor prefigured modernist be restored as part of the changing hands several times call your neighborhood park. Beach architecture in its hotel's rehab. since then. • squared-off simplicity of line. Off the lobby is a feature From 1992 to 2000, it was flfl1 A pelican relief fountain sculp- unusual for Ocean Drive's typ- co-owned by DACRA, a suc- HOLIDAY SCHEDULE ture on the ballroom's street ically no-frills hotels—a spa- cessful South Beach-based facade is a modest nod to its cious ballroom.Early Art Deco developer that specialized in larkier neighbors. So are two Weekend balls were held historic properties, and hote- The following is a list of closings for Monday in honor of the Rev. large "moon gates" built into there. Tier Chris Blackwell. Martin Luther King Day: the low masonry wall that runs The partners renovated a Banks Check your local branch along Ocean Drive. FEELING OF GLAMOUR string of South Beach hotels Buses Regular schedule Devotees say the exterior "The building is totally and were saving the Victor— Federal offices/courts Closed draws its strength from the unimposing in scale.Yet it still "the best" for last, said County offices/courts Closed unbroken horizontal "eye- gave the entire feeling of DACRA's Craig Robins. They City of Miami garbage/recycling No pickups brows"over the windows at its entering someplace exalted shepherded the current rehab Unincorporated Dade garbage No pickups front and sides and a soaring, and glamorous," Cerwinske plan to approval by the city, Unincorporated Dade recycling Regular pickups ribbed pylon at the southeast- said. but a breakup in the partner- Libraries Closed ern corner. The Victor is not the only ship forced a sale,Robins said. Malls Check your local mall "It's such a perfect piece of noted hotel on Ocean Drive Metrorail 4 Regular schedule re geometry," said Laura Cer- awaiting improvements. The PAID $11.75 MILLION Post offices Closed Associates,Inc. winske, author of Deco Carlyle, which helped launch ZOM, an experienced firm Schools Closed i Dolphin Delights,one of the first books the art deco revival when it that Robins felt confident Stock markets Closed •-Dade to extol the virtues of South received a pastel face-lift in the could carry out the planned Tri-Rail Regular schedule ITY COLLEGE Beach's then-blighted architec- early 1980s, is also shuttered renovation,paid$11.75 million ture when published in 1981. after a top-to-bottom renova- for the Victor in 2000.