Now on DVD
Anti-Home Depot video premieres Oct. 7

Now on DVD
Anti-Home Depot video premieres Oct. 7

A grassroots organization goes hitech in its fight against Home Depot this month as The Grove First releases its documentary, "Don't Box Me In." The DVD will premiere October 7 at the Woman's Club (corner of McFarlane Road and S. Bayshore Drive) at 7 p.m. Everyone is invited to attend. Immediately following the presentation, thousands of copies will be handed out to residents who are interested in joining the cause, enlisting others in the fight against the big box retailer, and gathering signatures on a petition to stop Home Depot from building on U.S. 1 and McDonald Avenue.

Meanwhile, the group is also seeking to legally challenge the City of Miami's assertion that an establishment of the size and scope of Home Depot fits into the zoning code for the site.

Leading the charge to stand up to City Hall is a relatively small core of activists, many of whom appear in the documentary: Mark Sarnoff, Sue McConnell, David Collins, Kathleen Morris, Jack King, Ron Nelson, Will Johnson, Andy Parrish and Mel Meinhardt among others. The video opens and closes with footage of the late Sue Billig who devoted much of her life to community activism, making typically pointed comments and pleas.

Filmed and edited by Richard Fendelman of Expect a Miracle Productions, the 30-minute documentary provides an overview of the history of Coconut Grove, Home Depot's efforts to secure the site, the city's response and the community's reaction. Costing roughly $10,000, it was financed through private donations says Mark Sarnoff, founder of The Grove First, a not for profit organization designed to "put the Grove on the City of Miami agenda."

Miami Monthly

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