WSVN’s parent company Sunbeam Television is in a fight to keep from being forced to move out of the current studios in North Bay Village!
They ran a 5-minute story twice during the news today regarding the developer who bought the adjacent WIOD property and their plans to erect two 21-story condo buildings eliminating all of WSVN’s parking spaces along with the main driveway, which is on the developer’s side, effectively forcing Channel 7 to move out or close up shop.
In 2005 a circuit court and an appelate court sided with Sunbeam Television enforcing a contract they signed with WIOD in 1962 which forbids either of the two parties from making property modifications without prior approval from the other side.
Despite that court decision however the developer is proceeding with the plans, North Bay Village zoning board has approved those plans and the city is about to vote with Mayor Geller stating on camera they are not going to let the court opinion influence their decision.
This week Sunbeam went back to the courts and asked them to enforce their previous court order and Ed Ansin says they’ll have no choice but to file lawsuit against the city itself if it makes decisionsin before the legal issues have been resolved.
He also said he wants to be reasonable and to work out a compromise with the developers so they could build some condos on some of the property.
Screen capture from the 7News report showing what would happen if the condo project proceeds
See the condo plan here /PDF file/ – scroll to page 14 – ‘Lexi on the Bay’
WSVN.com – video of the story that aired during the newscast
WSVN.com – Developer threatening WSVN’s existence
While I would like to see SVN in a new location, state of the art equipment, etc., I also would like to see Ansin tell North Bay Village to go to h*ll with the loss of their tax $$ and negative ad.
Bottom line, I hope 7 prevails. – although I doubt it.
Ansin was, is and always will be a cheap SOB. Guess he never thought of buying the property and developing it himself. SVN Village? Sanchez Plaza? Nerey Place? It’s fun to see one media company shaft another one,isn’t it? Now another developer is putting it to Ansin, who made his money in developing. Unfortunately I guess 7 will end up in my backyard, since Ansin owns a chunk of Miramar. There goes the neighborhood!
just move the driveway and add parking.
Im pretty sure Ansin will prevail, its pretty simple what they could do with the condos, build a new driveway and a parking garage maybe. It just seems the developer and the city are being a little stuborn.
This is sad. Like Miami really needs anymore towering unaffordable condos. SVN was there first and should keep its location. A news station delivering well produced and informative news would benefit the community much greater than more condos no one can afford these days.
“Developer threatening WSVN’s existence”
PLEASE… A little over-exageration
I have no sympathy for Ed Ansion after he bought chanel 56 up here in Boston and left a whole station of employees out in the cold a week before Christmas.
And I’m pretty sure they could find another location without a problem.
Ansin…you should’ve listened to people who gave you advice about buying the WIOD property, as well as buying the lot for sale next to the station a few years ago. Some things aren’t taught at Wharton.
File a counterclaim against the developer.
because it’s all Ansin’s fault that Tribune rejected WLVI lol…
there is no room to build additional parking on that facility for the svn side