Greetings as we start a new year, with new beginnings for our SOMIonline Lifestyle Magazine and the reality of a new “Decade of Development” for our hometown business district in the City of South Miami.
SOMI Magazine has reached a twenty-year milestone in presenting and promoting our local business community and over the years emerging as the definitive high-end publication serving our greater south Miami community. It’s been a great journey witnessing the changes, trials and tribulations of our shopkeepers and restaurateurs, the challenges of the COVID-19 years, the onslaught of the cyber world and declining in-store purchases. Over the years, getting to know and appreciate the commitment of the business owners has been a great privilege. With this new year, we are unveiling an entirely new look for our online lifestyle feature magazine, while continuing our companion and exclusive SOMI Guide both in print and online. I join with the many of our readers who still like to hold a magazine in their hands. In this issue’s Branding Our Hometown for Twenty Years, you’ll see some of the SOMI covers that were popular with our readers.
Big changes are coming to South Miami in what I call the “Decade of Development.” In 2025, the mixed-use redevelopment of the Winn/Dixie site will open in the fall. This project is the first major transformative development in our town center. Coupled with that is the prospect of additional residential development along US1 from 73 Street to Sunset Drive. Changes in the city’s land use plan and zoning amendments will usher in many new projects in the coming years.
They say, “third time is the charm.” And this leads to the most visionary and transformative $250million project in South Miami – a total redo of the 10-acre parcel on US1, known over the years as the Holsum bakery, The Bakery Centre and The Shops at Sunset Place. In this issue you’ll learn of the vision and plans to build a vibrant village within our town center environment.
And coming online by 2026 is the completion of The Underline, a ten-mile linear park, urban trail and community destination. Phase three of the project, a seven-mile corridor from SW 19 Street to Dadeland South is now under construction. The Underline will transform 120 acres of land under the Metrorail into a world-class multimodal urban trail. SOMI Magazine has partnered with The Underline over the last ten years and will continue to provide updates in each of our issues going forward.
In this Volume XX, No. 1 issue you’ll get to meet Dr. Tina Carroll-Scott, the medical director of the South Miami Children’s Clinic. Dr. Scott was recently selected by The Miami Foundation as a Saltwater $100,000 grant recipient for her humanitarian work here in South Miami.
As as we battle the ongoing challenges of the digital world, our own el Happy Coach, Roberto Suarez will lead us in some breathing exercises to relieve stress and reclaim your tranquility.
in this issue, you’ll meet some of our new business owners who are investing in our community and bringing their design and culinary creativity to the forefront in our hometown.
Best wishes for the new year. Let me know your take on our new look.
John Edward Smith
Creative Director/Publisher
