Wedding venue in Blue Ridge, GA for couples in Kendall, FL

October 30, 2023 – HCA Florida Kendall Hospital, a 447-bed facility, and part of HCA Florida Healthcare, the largest healthcare system in the state, is pleased to announce the latest accolades from Healthgrades. HCA Florida Kendall Hospital has been named as one of America’s 100 Best Hospitals for critical care, America’s 100 Best Hospitals for orthopedic surgery and America’s 100 Best Hosptial for prostate surgery according to new research released by Healthgrades, the leading marketplace connecting doctors and patients.

‌Healthgrades evaluated patient mortality and complication rates for 31 of the most common conditions and procedures at nearly 4,500 hospitals across the country to identify the top-performing hospitals for specialty care.‌

“We commend HCA Florida Kendall Hospital for their ongoing commitment to providing high-quality patient care,” said Brad Bowman, MD, Chief Medical Officer and Head of Data Science at Healthgrades. “Consumers can feel confident that America’s 100 Best Hospitals for orthopedic surgery and critical care have demonstrated their ability to deliver consistently exceptional outcomes.”‌

Consumers can visit Healthgrades.com to learn more about how Healthgrades measures hospital quality and access a patient-friendly overview of the complete methodology here.‌

‌”These awards are reflective of Kendall’s commitment to delivering superior care to our patients. Excellent outcomes are what make HCA Florida Kendall Hospital a destination facility for patients across the state and Caribbean. We treat the most acutely ill patients through our Level 1 Trauma Center, as well as our verified burn program. Additionally, Kendall has a thriving pediatric program with a dedicated emergency room and pediatric ICU.” said Ben Harris, Chief Executive Officer.

About HCA Florida Kendall Hospital

As a 24/7 acute care facility, Kendall Hospital is one of only two adult Level 1 Trauma Centers in Miami-Dade County verified by the American College of Surgeons. Kendall Hospital boasts a network of over 750 physicians’ specialties. Kendall Hospital is ranked by Healthgrades in the Top 100 Best Hospitals in America for Critical Care, Prostate Surgery, Gastroenterology, Orthopedic Surgery and Stroke Care.

HCA Florida Kendall Hospital is a part of HCA Florida Healthcare, the leading provider of healthcare in the state of Florida. With an employee base of 77,000, HCA Florida Healthcare’s comprehensive network includes 49 hospital campuses and more than 450 other care sites.

Kendall Jenner is serving drinks!

The model was spotted in Athens, Georgia and Tuscaloosa, Alabama on Tuesday and in Gainesville, Florida Wednesday serving shots and promoting her liquor brand 818 Tequila as part of "Kendall's College Tour". Jenner had undertaken a similar tour in October last year, visiting four college campuses across the Midwest.

The Los Angeles-based celebrity's appearance in college towns across the Southeast sent crowds flocking to bars near the campuses of the University of Georgia, University of Alabama and University of Florida.

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First stop: Alabama

Jenner, 28, first stopped in Tuscaloosa, according to AL.com, where she served $2 shots of 818 Tequila Blanco and $4 margaritas at two bars that afternoon.

Up next: Athens, Georgia

Just a few hours later, Jenner was in Athens serving shots of liquor at a local bar in a red and black Georgia crew neck, according to Athens-Banner Herald, part of the USA TODAY Network.

She was later also seen signing bottles of her 818 Tequila at a liquor store.

Packed bar in Gainesville

The next day, Jenner traveled to Gainesville in Florida, where she served drinks at packed bars.

Fans had lined up as early as 1 p.m. outside the bar she was visiting to get a prime spot, reported The Gainesville Sun, part of the USA TODAY Network.

As Jenner's arrival neared, the crowd inside and out began chants of "Kendall" and "818." People outside got a quick glimpse of her before she slipped inside the restaurant. She made her way to the inside bar to the music of "Jaws" and "Go Gators."

Dozens of people at the back of the room stood on chairs with cellphones held high hoping to see the star.

As she later moved outside, people began to fight through the crowd for position. The tables that were once full remained covered with plates of food and purses left behind. Jenner served shots, signed autographs and posed for pictures.

A 21-year-old fan Amy Smith told the Gainesville Sun that she grew up watching Jenner on "Keeping Up with the Kardashians," and was excited to catch a glimpse of the star.

"She definitely holds a lot of nostalgic memories for me, so I'm excited to see her in person," Smith said.

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What is 818?

Jenner launched her tequila brand in 2021, with the name inspired by an area code in the Los Angeles metro area.

“The area code 818 is home to me,” Jenner says on the 818 website.

818 works "closely with local, family-owned farms in Jalisco, Mexico" to create "the smoothest, most natural, and best tasting tequila possible," says the brand on the website, adding that "only the highest quality ingredients are used in its creation".

Sorry to break it to you, but your childhood is dead.

Beloved Kendall rollerskating rink Super Wheels Miami is soon to be no more. The neighborhood landmark that’s been the site of countless birthday parties, Sweet 16s and first dates is another victim of tough economic times.

On Facebook, owner Thomas Mitchell, who has been running Super Wheels since opening it on June, 9, 2001, broke the news to his followers with a cryptic post on Tuesday.

Just three words appeared across a black screen on his page: “One last time.”

On the venue’s Facebook page is a similar post that simply says, “End of an era.”

Details were scarce, but underneath in the comments is a note basically explaining that the entertainment facility is unfortunately, not immune to the out of control real estate development in South Florida.

The rink’s home of Crystal Plaza is reportedly transforming into “a condo style shopping center,” and big changes are afoot.

Mitchell confirmed to the Miami Herald on Wednesday that the building was sold about two weeks ago for $6 million to unidentified local buyers, and that he now has a few options:

“We are in intense negotiations to either remain as a tenant, sell our assets and retire or to move to find and move to a new location,” said the Miami native who was the director of operations at the previous rink called Hot Wheels, which first opened in 1986.

But does he have the means to remain as a tenant? Rent is currently $25,000 a month and that number is sure to rise if the new owner decides to keep it as a skating center.

Mitchell said he went to scout a new location, which wanted $135,000 a month.

“That would mean admission would increase from $15 to around the $90 mark,” he said. “Those are South Beach prices.”

So what will become of the 30,000 square foot, hulking, beige space with the signature swirl out front? Mitchell heard rumors that the treasured hangout will be turned into a storage facility or possibly, ironically, even a church.

The businessman admits the past two weeks have been challenging, not just for him, but his patrons. He constantly hears positive feedback from grateful parents who adore the place because it keeps their children engaged in real life, albeit briefly.

“In the tech era, many kids are losing their interactive skills and that is what we try to keep alive,” Mitchell said. “Families tell me that they talk to their kids more here at the rink than they do at the dinner table, when they all have their phones out.”

Mitchell is also aware of Super Wheels’ nostalgic appeal:

“This is where some people had their first jobs or held hands with someone for the first time,” he says. “They made unforgettable memories.”

In fact, in the comments section under Mitchell’s post, many social media users acknowledged how important Super Wheels was for them in their formative years.

“You did a great job...,” wrote one. “This building saved a lot of us and turned us into great adults… on to the next adventure.”

Speaking of the next adventure, there is one bright spot on the horizon: The night of Nov. 25, DJ Laz will host a blowout party that will take you back to your youth for the night.

“I guess that will be our last hurrah,” Mitchell said, adding that details will be forthcoming on his social media. “Because Super Wheels as it is now will no longer exist. It’s a very, very emotional time.”

This story was originally published November 1, 2023, 3:02 PM.

Celebrity/real time news reporter Madeleine Marr has been with The Miami Herald since 2003. She has covered such features as travel, fashion and food. In 2007, she helped launch the newspaper’s daily People Page, attending red carpet events, awards ceremonies and press junkets; interviewing some of the biggest names in show business; and hosting her own online show. She is originally from New York City and has two daughters.

Kimco Realty wants to redevelop a portion of Kendall’s Palms at Town and Country, adding 630 apartments, amid the trend of repurposing South Florida shopping plazas into multifamily projects.

The Jericho, New York-based real estate investment trust proposes a pair of 12-story apartment buildings with retail on the site of a Kohl’s-leased building at 11800 Mills Drive, according to Kimco’s application filed to Miami-Dade County last month. Palms at Town and Country is in an unincorporated area on the northeast corner of Southwest 88th Street and the turnpike.

Kimco plans one building with 269 units and nearly 13,000 square feet of retail, and the second building with 361 units and nearly 22,000 square feet of retail. Apartments will range from studios to three-bedroom units.

First, Kimco would replace the Kohl’s building with a new structure proposed for a parking lot owned by Kimco on the north side of Mills Drive, filings show.

The developer is asking for a pre-application meeting with Miami-Dade officials, which would allow it to get county departments’ insight on the proposed zoning change before filing an official application.

Kimco owns the majority of Palms at Town and Country, acquiring the property in 2021 when former plaza owner Weingarten Realty Investors merged into Kimco. The existing Kohl’s building and the parking lot for the new retail building span roughly 7 acres, according to property records.

Led by Conor Flynn, publicly traded Kimco focuses on open-air shopping centers, and has been growing its pipeline of mixed-use developments. In Dania Beach, Kimco was the lead developer of Dania Pointe, which includes 1 million square feet of retail and restaurants, as well as apartments, hotels and offices east of the I-95 and south of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

Kimco’s retail portfolio consists of 528 properties nationwide, spanning 90 million square feet, according to its website.

Across South Florida, developers are repurposing shopping plazas into multifamily projects, in a push to breathe life into aging retail centers by adding foot traffic from renters. Like Kimco, many are preserving the existing retail space.

Miami-based Terra, led by David Martin, is developing a seven-building apartment complex with roughly 1,200 units behind the Central Shopping Plaza at 3825 Northwest Seventh Street in Miami’s Flagami neighborhood. The existing shopping center will remain.

In Miami, we are used to waiting. We are experts here at delayed gratification. We have to be.

We wait for traffic to clear on the Palmetto and I-95. We wait for slow bridges and fast trains. We wait in school pick-up lines and at the DMV, for home repairs to be finished and for highway construction to end.

And at the Killian Greens Golf Club in Kendall, we wait for some of the best barbecue in Miami.

At Apocalypse BBQ, the insanely popular spot at which you will always see a string of hungry customers lining up outside for ribs, brisket, pulled pork and cornbread made in a skull mold, the question of how long is too long is not theoretical. It’s reality. Despite the hard work of its staff, the wait at Apocalypse can stretch on for an hour, two hours. On the weekend, sometimes three.

And yet the crowds keep lining up, because the barbecue is transcendent.

Managing the popularity of the small, frantically busy restaurant has been a challenge, says owner Jeff Budnechky.

“It’s definitely been a wild ride,” he says. “Learning how to handle this workload has pushed us.”

Like so many other Miami entrepreneurs, Budnechky, who grew up in Coral Gables, created Apocalypse BBQ in 2020 at home. With help from his wife Laura, then his girlfriend, he started smoking meats in his Kendall backyard on a 22-inch Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker.

Eventually, they began to sell the smoked meats at a Coconut Grove farmers market, then gravitated to that one-time (and long gone) food incubator Boxelder Craft Beer Market in Wynwood. The beloved neighborhood spot, which closed in 2021, gave birth to many new concepts including the popular El Bagel, which later opened in Miami’s MiMo neighborhood and is opening a second location in Coconut Grove.

Apocalypse BBQ was a hit at Boxelder and went on set up shop at the golf course a year ago in December 2022. Two months later at the 2023 South Beach Wine & Food Festival, Budnechky and Co. won the Swine & Wine competition for its delicious cafecito ribs, slow-smoked spare ribs seasoned with the most Miami of ingredients: a Cuban coffee-based rub and finished with Oro Negro, a colada-infused barbecue sauce.

“It was our way of giving Miami flair in our barbecue,” Budnechky explains. “It’s a nod to our city and what makes it special. When we started talking about the parallels between our city and our barbecue and culture, the first thing that stood out was that you eat barbecue with family and friends. It’s communal. You never have a colada by yourself. You share with your co-workers or your family. This was the foundation.”

Budnechky and his staff started putting coffee in the rub on the ribs, and the customers went wild. But Budnechky wanted to expand on the theme by incorporating the flavors of a colada. There was just one problem.

“I did not actually know how to make a colada,” he confesses.

Laura Budnechky, a nurse at Baptist Health who helps out at Apocalypse in her spare time, taught her husband how to make a colada, and after word of the Swine & Wine win got around, the crowds began to arrive, and a new struggle began. Even though Apocalypse was light years beyond its modest Weber beginnings, with two 2,000 gallon smokers and a couple of smaller smokers, keeping up with the huge number of customers became an issue.

The first course of action was making sure people kept coming. Budnechky knew the waits would be long, especially on weekends, and that the weather would be hot and sticky most days outside the small restaurant. How to make patrons more comfortable became a priority.

“I thought, ‘What would I do if these people were coming to my house?’ “ he says. “What I’d do is offer them a drink. Barbecue places in Texas do that all the time. If I were out there, I’d love a beer.”

Now, waiting guests are offered a cold beer or soda, and sometimes French fries when the lines get long. Most are good-natured about the wait, Budnechky says, sipping their drinks and chatting with others, making the experience something of a social occasion.

“For the most part people are very understanding,” Budnechky says. “There are always going to be unfortunate situations, but it’s about managing the conversation and expectations. We try to be communicative so they have the right expectations.”

The staff is making efforts to lessen the wait times, pushing to move tables more quickly, and Apocalypse is adding two more smokers to its four-smoker stable. Budnechky is considering his options in expanding the outdoor space, and the restaurant no longer accepts take-out orders, because take-out only made them run out of food faster, which felt unfair.

“When we were doing takeout, the people who were waiting two or three hours, who were looking forward to the experience, were getting the short end of the stick,” Budnechky says. “We weren’t getting a chance to take care of people. We made the really tough decision to prioritize the people waiting. Besides, the food is better when it’s hot and fresh.”

The best tips for getting a seat? Go during the week and avoid the weekend. Go early or try less popular hours, like 3 p.m. Don’t arrive with a large group; in fact, go by yourself, grab a seat at the bar and let your friends and family fend for themselves. But none of these methods are foolproof. Everybody is going to have to wait, so have a beer, and have patience.

Despite the limitations of the restaurant’s space, Budnechky says he’s committed to staying at Killian Greens for the foreseeable future. A Kendall resident, he feels that the loyal neighborhood deserves a place where everybody in Miami wants to go.

“I have bones to pick with the way we perceive Miami, how everybody thinks Miami happens east of 95,” he says. “We have amazing things here in Kendall. We have really cool places to eat. You don’t have to go to Wynwood or Miami Beach. This is my community, and I want to see my community have really great culture. I want to participate in that culture.”

Where: Killian Greens Golf Club, 9980 SW 104th St., Miami

Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday; closed Monday-Tuesday