A rendering of part of the planned, nearly 18-acre Magic City Innovation District in Little Haiti. It would rise between Northeast Second Avenue and the Florida East Coast Railway tracks and from the Little Haiti Soccer Park and the Little Haiti Cultural Center. Courtesy image. A rendering of part of the planned, nearly 18-acre Magic City Innovation District in Little Haiti. It would rise between Northeast Second Avenue and the Florida East Coast Railway tracks and from the Little Haiti Soccer Park and the Little Haiti Cultural Center. Courtesy image.

Two big Miami commercial ventures are in a trademark dispute over the use of the city's Magic City nickname.

The owner of the Magic City Casino is suing the developers of Little Haiti's Magic City Innovation District over the right to the name.

West Flagler Associates Ltd., which owns the casino and other entertainment and merchandise offerings, filed its federal complaint under the Lanham Act and the Trademark Act of 1946. It lays out the case that it's been hurt by confusion with the proposed real estate project.

Mix-ups include a Twitter post by a sports columnist and a Facebook post by an event manager. Also, the casino was incorrectly associated with an unauthorized Banksy art exhibit at an event held by the district development team, according to the complaint.

The confusion has “irreparably harmed and damaged the name, mark and reputation of Magic City, by causing members of the public to assume a connection between the controversial … real estate development and its participants, with the longstanding Magic City, and family members who have contributed to the community over the course of many decades and three generations,” Leslie Lott, West Flagler's attorney, wrote in the complaint filed Tuesday. Lott is a founding partner at Lott & Fischer in Coral Gables.

The Magic City Innovation District developers called the lawsuit “frivolous” and vowed to fight it.

The project name stems from the Magic City Tourist Camp, which was formerly on the site, and is an homage to Little Haiti's history and culture, said Plaza Equity Partners' Anthony Burns, one of the three companies pursuing the district development plan. Metro 1 and the Dragon Global venture capital company also are involved.

“Our name, Magic City Innovation District in Little Haiti, pays tribute to the history and century-old name of the site, honors the Haitian culture that has thrived in the community for decades and connects us to the future,” Burns said in a statement.

West Flagler has trademarks for the names Magic City Casino and Put a Little Magic in Your Night, which were registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office database before the developers started using the name.

Burns' statement said MCD Miami LLC, an affiliate of the development trio, also has trademarks using Magic City.

“The history and the identity of this community cannot be erased, and we are confident that this lawsuit has no merit,” he said.

West Flagler makes a claim to unregistered, common-law marks, saying it has used the Magic City moniker since at least 2009 in ads and other media. Its other entertainment offerings are Magic City Racing and Magic City Jai-Alai. The company said it spent nearly $15 million since 2012 on ads to promote its brands.

West Flagler also is suing for false designation of origin, unfair competition, contributory trademark infringement and Florida common-law trademark infringement.

The lawsuit seeks an order to stop the innovation district from using the Magic City name.

Most of its complaint is dedicated to drawing contrasts between the two ventures in favorable and unfavorable lights.

West Flagler's many ventures are run by the Havenick-Hecht family. Their names appear on the Isadore Hecht Athletic Center at the University of Miami, the Fred Havenick Intensive Care Unit at Sylvester Cancer Center and the Isadore Hecht X-Ray Lab at Bascom-Palmer Eye Institute.

Patriarch Isadore Hecht bought the Flagler Greyhound Park in the 1950s. His wife, Florence Hecht, was a UM board trustee.

The mixed-use, 17-building Magic City Innovation District has faced opposition from residents and activists who fear gentrification of economically struggling Little Haiti. At over 8 million square feet and towers as tall as 24 stories, they argue the 18-acre project would ruin the fabric of the community, which is dominated by warehouses and one- and two-story houses and apartments.

Also, the complaint makes note of the difference between the Havenick-Hecht family and some of the district developers.

In contrast, Dragon founder Robert Zangrillo was charged in the nationwide Varsity Blues college admissions bribery scandal.

Zangrillo, who has stepped away from involvement in the project, was charged with fraud, money laundering and conspiracy over his efforts to get his daughter into the University of Southern California.

The final City Commission vote on the district is expected June 27, although the project still needs state review.

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