I. STANELY LEVINE, 1928-2010

I. Stanley Levine | Man of the arts changed South Florida scene

He didn't need it; knowing he'd enriched life for his family and community, for neighbors in Colorado's Archuleta County -- where he owns a ranch -- and on the Bahamian island of Bimini -- where he loved to fish -- was sufficient thanks.

``I could have died 10 years ago and been happy with my life,'' he told son Robert Levine when he recently decided to forgo kidney dialysis.

It might have prolonged his life, but surely would have limited his quality of life.

``It's my time to go,'' he declared.

Born Irvin Stanley Levine in Cleveland, Ohio, on Nov. 26, 1928, he died Monday at South Miami Hospital of chronic myelomonocytic leukemia, a rare cancer that caused kidney failure.

ENERGETIC

Until April, ``he was a very healthy guy,'' Robert said. ``He was horseback riding on his ranch. He was incredibly energetic. He worked 10 hours a day, seven days a week.

A skilled negotiator, Levine raised millions for the Concert Association of Florida, the Miami City Ballet, the Performing Arts Center Trust -- which planned and built the Adrienne Arscht Center -- and the New World Symphony.

He supported cultural programs for inner-city kids, the Linda Ray Children's Center for at-risk infants, and Mount Sinai Medical Center.

He generally operated behind the scenes, making deals that produced revenue for the groups he supported.

He grew up in Rochester, N.Y., and Warsaw, Ill. After losing everything in the Great Depression, the family moved to Miami Beach in the 1940s, where Levine's father, once a cab-company owner, started over.

After earning a bachelor's degree from Hobart College, Levine graduated from the University of Miami law school, and began practicing in 1955.

At the time of his death, he was retired from the Brickell Avenue law firm Levine & Partners -- two of the latter being sons Robert and Alan.

``But he had an office at the firm and came in every day and was running investments and trusts,'' Robert said.

Robert recalls his father ``lamenting at the dinner table: `This town is devoid of culture. There's nothing -- no performing arts, no dance.' I think I was 12, and I said: `Why don't you do something about it?' ''

Levine headed the Concert Association's board for 12 years, as it evolved into South Florida's premier performing-arts promoter, and handled its legal work gratis.

``He was the one who made the budgets and told me everything I should do,'' founder Judy Drucker said.

A talented singer in his own right, Levine ``went to Carnegie Hall all his life, and he knew music. . . . He had an incredible mind. You would tell him something and he could analyze what the problem was immediately.''

Opera superstar Luciano Pavarotti ``adored talking to him,'' Drucker said.

LINCOLN ROAD

In the early 1990s, when Levine was a senior partner at the law firm Levine & Geiger, then-Miami Beach Mayor Seymour Gelber tapped him to co-chair the Lincoln Road Task Force, which would create the master plan for the pedestrian mall's future.

``The vision we want is for Lincoln Road to become a public place, where high schools can have band awards ceremonies, where people can meet and greet and hang out and have a produce market on Sunday mornings,'' Levine told The Miami Herald in 1993.

It was a good fit for Levine, a preservationist who owned property on the mall and had been involved with Lincoln Road arts groups since the mid-1980s, including the ballet, and the South Florida Arts Center: three blocks of subsidized studio space and galleries.

His partner in the latter, clay artist Ellie Schneiderman, joined Levine in establishing ArtSouth, a 3.5-acre artist colony in Homestead's downtown historic district that opened in 2001.

``His love was to bring more of the arts to the public,'' Schneiderman said. ``His mission was to help the arts and educate the community. He was brilliant and very caring -- the eternal optimist.''

In a 1993 newspaper interview, Levine talked about what motivated him to work so hard in the community.

``I really believe that culture, used in a broader sense, helps define who we are, is the fabric of our society,'' Levine said.

Selling culture ``in a society that's so beleaguered . . . is a problem, when we're facing crises in education, in medical services, in housing. . . . But one without the other is a pretty base existence.''

In addition to sons Robert and Alan, Levine is survived by wife Elaine; son Kenneth, of Pagosa Springs; and daughter Tina Levine Fitch.

A memorial service will is planned for 3 p.m. Sunday at Temple Beth Sholom, 4144 Chase Ave., Miami Beach.

Instead of flowers, the family asks that mourners ``open your hearts to your family, friends and community.''