Proposed e-bike rules would reach scooters, hoverboards and Onewheels too
Plus how to request a water meter test, new barricades in Himmarshee and the Las Olas Art Fair.
Sixteen is the number to know if anyone in your house rides an e-bike, scooter or Onewheel around Fort Lauderdale. Commissioners are weighing it as a minimum riding age, and nothing is final yet.
Riders in Fort Lauderdale would need a government-issued ID, every e-bike would have to be registered with the city, and riding inside city parks would be off limits under rules commissioners are weighing. The proposed minimum riding age is 16. Commissioners hope the changes improve safety after a rise in e-bike crashes. Once adopted, the rules would also cover hoverboards, Onewheels, e-scooters and e-skateboards. Breaking one would mean a $250 fine the first time and $500 for each violation after that. None of this is law yet. Approval is expected by year's end, so nothing changes for riders today. Families with riders under 16 have the most at stake in the age rule.
Wine Watch may be eyeing more room on NE 3rd Avenue
A recent license filing for Wine Watch Private Club LLC lists 835 NE 3rd Ave., the space directly beside the shop's current Fort Lauderdale home at 837 NE 3rd Ave. Nothing in the filing points to a move away from the current spot. It also does not say what the added space will become, whether a bigger version of the current business, a separate piece of it or something else entirely. The company's website still shows its existing location. For now, this is a paperwork signal, not an announced opening.
City plans more patrols, K-9 units and mounted officers for Himmarshee
Police Chief William Schultz said fights and large gatherings, along with underage drinking, are the biggest problems in the Himmarshee entertainment district, where violence has recently ticked up. City leaders plan to add patrol officers, K-9 units and officers on horseback. Barricades are already up, and officials say they will stay indefinitely, along with extra lighting the city plans to add. Businesses have been asked to check IDs and stop over-serving. Officials have not said how long the bigger police presence will last. For anyone who goes out in Himmarshee, the barricades and lights are the part officials have committed to keeping.
An $896 water bill, cut to $244.90 after a city adjustment
Fort Lauderdale is moving about 65,000 water meters to a smart system. Shana Roberts said her bills usually ran $111 to $140. After the city changed her meter in mid-August, she got one for $896. The city approved her request for an "Unexplained high water consumption adjustment," which cut her balance due to $244.90. The city also said her usage spike started before the new meter went in. One household's bill is not proof of a problem with the rollout. If you doubt your own meter, you can ask the city for a meter test. A meter found faulty gets replaced, and the city says overcharges are credited to your account.
County mayor and commissioners turned away at BSO training center
Questions over how Sheriff Gregory Tony spends a budget of more than $870 million have county leaders and the sheriff at odds. On Oct. 12, Broward County Mayor Mark Bogen and several commissioners went to the Broward Sheriff's Office training center, and a deputy told them tours must be scheduled through the sheriff's office. County leaders say they are having the county's auditor look into the sheriff's spending. Weeks earlier, the commission voted to take fire rescue services out of Tony's control. Tony has called the allegations about a gym bill "False." An audit order is a starting point, not a finding.
The 39th Las Olas Art Fair arrives this weekend
- When
- Oct. 17-18 · 10 a.m.
- Where
- East Las Olas Boulevard
Look for the fair along East Las Olas Boulevard on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 17-18, starting at 10 a.m. Two more fair weekends follow in January and March.