The Rebbe's Discussion With Rabbi Shmuel Tuvia Stern About the Miami Eruv, Yud Shevat 5743
Rabbi Shmuel Zajac relates that Rabbi Shmuel Tuvia Stern told the Rebbe that he had made an eruv in Miami and that the Rebbe asked whether Miami had shishim ribo.
Rabbi Stern told the Rebbe about the Miami eruv
Rabbi Shmuel Zajac relates that Rabbi Shmuel Tuvia Stern told the Rebbe he had made an eruv in Miami. The Rebbe responded by asking whether Miami had shishim ribo.
Rabbi Zajac gives the exchange as an actual conversation at the Yud Shevat 5743 farbrengen. His account is accepted here in his name and used for the point he records.
The population question came first
The Rebbe's question goes to the halachic status of the city before the construction of the route. If Miami had the public scale relevant to reshus harabim, poles and wires alone could not settle the problem.
Shishim ribo can be defined differently by different poskim, but it cannot be dismissed without examining the population and public movement of the actual city.
The Yud Shevat farbrengen
The complete farbrengen is preserved in six audio tracks. The brief Miami exchange has not yet been located to a dependable timestamp, so Rabbi Zajac's wording is not placed in quotation marks as though it had been transcribed directly from the audio.
The full event remains useful for its date and setting, while the substance of the exchange rests on Rabbi Zajac's report.