Seth H. Bramson - Surfside

IMAGES
of America

SURFSIDE

Looking west from the recently completed Surf Club around 19301931, only a few homes are visible. Indian Creek Island is connected to Surfside by a bridge, while the vast expanse of northeast Dade County, in the far background, is completely undeveloped. (Courtesy The Bramson Archive.)

ON THE COVER: This marvelous view of Surfside looks south on Collins Avenue from the roof of the Americana Hotel on June 26, 1968. (Courtesy The Bramson Archive.)

IMAGES
of America

SURFSIDE

Seth H. Bramson
Foreword by Mayor Daniel Dietch

Copyright 2015 by Seth H. Bramson
ISBN 978-1-4671-1457-8
Ebook ISBN 9781439652961

Published by Arcadia Publishing
Charleston, South Carolina

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015935036

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CONTENTS

FOREWORD

Welcome to the first-ever book on and about the history of Surfside, Florida. Surfside is a unique coastal community nestled between the city of Miami Beach to the south; the village of Bal Harbour to the north; the village of Indian Creek, the Intracoastal Waterway, and the town of Bay Harbor Islands to the west; and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Since its incorporation in 1935, Surfside residents and visitors have contributed to and experienced its rich history and witnessed its evolution into a beloved community in which to live, work, visit, raise a family, and enjoy life.

Throughout its history, Surfside has been home to and the host of many iconic figures. In the late 1940s, Winston Churchill was a frequent guest of the Surf Club. In 1964, Sonny Liston trained for his historic fight against Cassius Clay at the Surfside Community Center. Nobel laureate Isaac Bashevis Singer resided here in his later years, until his passing in 1991. In addition, renowned songwriter Sid Tepper and his family lived here from 1971 to 1997. Surfside is also home to historic and culturally significant establishments, including the Surf Club and The Shul, as well as other architecturally important properties designed by renowned architects Russell Pancoast, Wahl Snyder, Igor Polivetsky, Richard Meier, Bernardo Fort-Brescia, Luis Revuelta, and Robert Swedroe.

Surfside continues to evolve through proper planning, sensible developmental controls, appropriate oversight, and stewardship. Surfside is currently experiencing a revival of new hotel development so visitors can fully enjoy and appreciate its coastline. The towns business district is similarly thriving, with many beautification projects and new businesses supporting the communitys needs. At the same time, the multifamily and single-family districts are benefitting from homeowners investments in their properties, in turn improving the quality, functionality, and aesthetic of Surfsides housing stock. Surfside is truly experiencing a renaissance.

Surfside has so much to be proud of, including its vast recreation programs, beautiful beaches and parks, a diverse downtown shopping district, caring residents, and a town staff dedicated to serving the community and its residents. As Surfsides mayor, I could not be prouder of its history, its residents, and the many engaged stakeholders helping to shape a very exciting future. By working collaboratively to responsibly manage the needs and desires of the community, we are collectively putting the shine back in Surfside.

Warmly,
Daniel Dietch
Mayor, Town of Surfside

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Fortunately, this is not a Where do I start? situation for the acknowledgments because it is without question that I express my appreciation for help and assistance to, first, Surfside mayor Daniel Dietch and his wonderful wife, Dana Kulvin, who was vice chair of the Surfside 75th anniversary committee. Both immediate past town manager Michael Crotty and his executive assistant, Dawn Hunziker, were most gracious and never failed to welcome me warmly. Town clerk Sandra Novoa was of great help and shared many of Surfsides historical photographs with me. Duncan E. Tavares, tourism, economic development, and community services director, was always of help, and Chief of Police David Allen and his executive assistant, Dina Goldstein, graciously answered all my questions and provided me with photographs and information on the department. Former mayor Paul Novack was only great, and I am very grateful for his and former councilman and vice mayor Joe Graubarts help.

The story of Surfside began with the work of Henry Levy; his daughter, June Levy Newbauer, allowed me to noodge her endlessly as she shared all of the material that she had saved from her dear fathers work in building the lower third of the town in the 1920s. This book would have been incomplete and the could not have been done without the help of Mrs. Newbauer. I am endlessly grateful to her for her gracious assistance and her friendship, and I thank her for never saying no and never turning down my requests to use her material.

The employees of the Surf Club, including Walid Sfeir, Barbara Levy, and Lorenzo Restivo, among others, were beyond accommodating as they allowed me to search through their incredible historical files, and I am very grateful to them for being so kind.

Both current and former Surfsiders were beyond kind in their willingness to assist, and I thank Dory Lurie, who, before leaving for California, bestowed all her and her late husband Elis Surfside memorabilia on me. The great architect and Surfside resident Robert Swedroe furnished me with photographs of all his Surfside projects, while his wonderful assistant, Cathleen Sheeley-Thompson, provided all variety of background material and information. Famed architect Kobi Karp was always warm and welcoming and provided me with numerous Surf Club photographs and information.

A special thank-you must go to Reggie Hui and the Library of America, who were kind enough to permit me to use the cover of Isaac Bashevis Singer: An Album in the Surfsiders chapter, and I greatly appreciate their helpfulness and cooperation.

Dear and longtime friends Ricky Neross and Charlie Clark were marvelous in sharing their Surfside recollections. Famed songstress Hazel Lee, now a Surfside resident, gave me a number of fine Surfside photographs to use, and Sharon Katz Higgins sent a terrific photograph of Sheldons Drugs. Mary Csar, of the Boca Raton Historical Society and Museum, provided me with a great early Surfside foldout image, and I sincerely thank her and all named above for their kind and generous help.

Unless otherwise noted, all photographs are from the Bramson Archive.

INTRODUCTION

What a great place to live, raise children, own a home, have an office, open a business, go out to eat or shop, and, yes, even vacation. And if one cannot find exactly what he or she needs or is looking for, a very short walk (as in right across Ninety-sixth Street) leads to Bal Harbour Shops, one of Americas finest and most famous malls. Surfside is a great town.

But howand whendid it begin? And what has happened since?

The wonderful story of Surfside began in France when Henri (Henry) Levy, disturbed by the anti-Semitism that he and other Jewish people were regularly being exposed to, moved to Cincinnati, where Levy entered the emerging movie theater business and opened a chain of cinemas. Eventually, though, the bitterly cold winters and his older daughters health issues forced him and his family to relocate to a sunnier clime, and in 1922, they moved south, first to Miami and then to Miami Beach.