Thirty-eight teams faced off at the third annual OwlBots VEX IQ Robotics Tournament at Miami Lakes K-8 Center.       The competition on Jan. 18 drew teams from across the district and Hollywood. Elementary and middle schools competed in a variety of robotics skills tests.         Students showed off their programming and driving talents, and presented their engineering notebooks that...

      Business professionals gathered at Gauchos Gourmet Market on Jan. 29 for the first Business Networking Social of 2025.  Organized by the Miami Lakes Chamber of Commerce, BNI Excellence Miami Lakes and the Miami Lakes Economic Development Committee, the free mixer fostered networking and the exchange of ideas. The restaurant, at 7357 Miami Lakes Drive, poured wine and served its famous empanadas.    ...

 With the Florida legislative session set to begin in March, the Miami Lakes Blasting Advisory Board is working to get elected officials to help residents, who say their properties have been damaged by limestone mining.      The board, which advocates for the town and communities in northwest Miami-Dade County is recruiting other municipalities to the cause. The mining industry operates on the west side of the...

     Students in grades K-5 can compete to have their original drawing or painting launched into space.      The Florida Space Art Contest will accept works that measure 8.5 inches x 11 inches and are submitted by mail to Space Florida in Exploration Park by 5 p.m. on May 23.      Artists should express this year’s theme: the Spaceship of the Future.      Judges will...

     Charles James has a full life in retirement: The 83-year-old volunteer supporter of the arts and veterans in Miami Lakes is a husband and grandfather, and an actor and model.         A recent role was as an extra, playing a doctor in the Netflix film, “Wish You Were Here” that is currently streaming, he said.       He also participated in a TV special about...