🌱 Patch AM: Is Aventura Mall’s GameStop on the chopping block? Here’s the answer

Good day Aventura! We're here again with what you need to know today. Grab a cup of coffee and read on. ☕️️

In today's newsletter:

• Is Aventura Mall’s GameStop on the chopping block? Here’s the answer
• Why a convicted Miami killer’s past Aventura condos still matter now
• How an Aventura commissioner remembers the Jewish community he left in Caracas

Also on today's calendar: Gregg L. Friedman MD Psychiatry and 7 more events.

Today's riddle: I am on a seafood diet. 🤔 (Answer below!)

Weather forecast:

• Sunday: Times of sun and clouds, with a high of 81 and low of 68 degrees.
• Monday: A bit of morning rain; breezy, temps: high: 75, low: 69.
• Tuesday: A couple of showers, with a high of 76 and low of 69 degrees.

📰 News we're reading

• Major Retailer Closing 20 FL Locations (patch.com) — Aventura shoppers will soon lose their GameStop at Aventura Mall, one of 20 Florida locations the retailer is closing as part of a nationwide downsizing. The company has already shut hundreds of stores and plans more closures through early 2026 as it shifts toward digital gaming and new revenue streams.
   

• Filmmaker who killed man in Miami now gets to make pizzas in Italy (miamiherald.com) — An Italian filmmaker convicted of a notorious Miami murder once owned two condos in a luxury Watson Island complex in Aventura, tying this international legal saga to local real estate. After his transfer from Florida to Italy, he’s now allowed daytime work release there, learning pizza-making and teaching windsurfing, even as Miami-Dade prosecutors and the victim’s family remain opposed. The case highlights how foreign laws can reshape sentences for crimes rooted in South Florida.
   

• After years in exile, Venezuelan Jews celebrate the fall of Maduro (jewishinsider.com) — An Aventura city commissioner and bagel shop owner shares how Venezuela’s turmoil devastated the once-thriving Jewish community he left behind, as local Venezuelan Jews in South Florida celebrate Nicolás Maduro’s capture. Their stories highlight deep emotional ties to Caracas, mixed reactions to U.S. military action, and parallels they see between global responses to Venezuela and to Israel’s war in Gaza.
   

📸 Around Aventura

Show off your photography skills and the sights around town! Click here to submit your Photo of the Day to Patch AM!

🗓 Upcoming Events in Aventura

Add your event to our calendar and newsletter!

Monday January 12

• Gregg L. Friedman MD Psychiatry
  2500 E Hallandale Beach Blvd, Suite 702, Hallandale Beach, FL, 33009
  9:00 am
• Talking is Teaching - Talk, Read, Sing for Preschoolers
  Sunny Isles Beach Branch Library Sunny Isles Beach Branch -
  11:00 am
• Talking is Teaching - Talk, Read, Sing for Toddlers
  Northeast Dade-Aventura Branch -
  11:30 am
• Chess Club
  Northeast Dade-Aventura Branch -
  4:00 pm

Tuesday January 13

• Chess Club for Tweens and Teens
  Sunny Isles Beach Branch Library Sunny Isles Beach Branch -
  4:00 pm
• Talking is Teaching - Talk, Read, Sing for Preschoolers
  Northeast Dade-Aventura Branch -
  4:30 pm
• City Commission Regular Meeting
  Aventura, FL Calendar , 19200 West Country Club Drive , Aventura
  6:00 pm

Wednesday January 14

• Talking is Teaching - Talk, Read, Sing for Toddlers
  Sunny Isles Beach Branch Library Sunny Isles Beach Branch -
  11:00 am
• Talking is Teaching - Talk, Read, Sing for Preschoolers
  Northeast Dade-Aventura Branch -
  6:30 pm

Friday January 23

• Antinori Wine Dinner at Casa D'Angelo Aventura
  Casa D'Angelo , 2906 NE 207th St , Aventura
  7:30 pm

📣 Aventura Shout Outs!

Want to say something great about someone in town? Click here to submit your Shout Out to Patch AM! It's free!

🗓 Events Nearby

Sunday January 11

• 2026 Fitness Challenge
  Miami Gardens, FL Calendar , 3000 NW 199th Street , Miami Gardens
  6:30 pm

Monday January 12

• Ignite Your Year Fitness Challenge
  North Miami, FL Calendar , 1600 NE 126 Street , North Miami
• Winter Zumbini
  North Miami, FL Calendar , 835 NE 132 Street , North Miami
  10:00 am
• Talking is Teaching - Talk, Read, Sing for Preschoolers
  Sunny Isles Beach Branch Library Sunny Isles Beach Branch -
  11:00 am

Have we missed something on our calendar? Add an event yourself! As always, before attending confirm event details to ensure accuracy.

Thank you 👏👏👏 to the local businesses for making Aventura PatchAM possible:

• Charlotte Tomic Real Estate Associate — (917) 882-5243
  New York Savvy Florida Style Realtor
• Mindsee.it — (646) 663-8317
  Teach your kids they can achieve the impossible!

Click here to show your appreciation! 💚

Want to see your business here? Click here to connect with local customers.

💬 Chatter

What your neighbors are talking about on social media

• Save this!
  If you don't need it today, one day you will! And when that moment comes, you’ll know who to call! That loose cabinet door, a wobbly toilet seat, a… (Nextdoor Aventura South)

🗞 Nearby News

Sunny Isles Beach

• Brian Ferdinand, Founder Of Collapsed Hotel Chain, Files For Bankruptcy (bisnow.com)

North Miami Beach

• Gisele Bundchen's Family Thinks Her Wedding to ‘Penniless' Joaquim Valente Was ‘a Mistake' (nationalenquirer.com)
• Basketball Recap: Northwestern Piles Up the Points Against American (maxpreps.com)

North Miami

Ok Aventura! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!

-- The Patch AM Team

P.S. The answer to today's riddle: I see food and I eat it.
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Send it to us!

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