Empty tough talk

Benny Avni

Mere hours after North Korea seemingly carried out an underground nuclear test Tuesday morning, our UN ambassador, Susan Rice, vowed to take “swift” and “significant action” against Pyongyang’s rogue regime at the Security Council.

To bolster her efforts, new Secretary of State John Kerry picked up the phone Wednesday to consult with his counterparts in all relevant capitals.

Well, almost all: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was unavailable, apparently too busy.

After the phone sessions, Kerry announced, “The international community now needs to come together with a swift and clear, strong, credible response.” And added, “What our response is with respect to this will have an impact on all other nonproliferation efforts,” including Iran’s.

REUTERS

The most bizarre personality cult ever: North Korean synchronized swimmers perform at a celebration on the birthday of late leader Kim Jong-il.

So Turtle Bay diplomats are sharpening their resolution-drafting pencils, as higher-ups in Washington, Beijing, Seoul, Tokyo and (when available) Moscow work to coordinate the response to the latest provocation by “Dear Respected” Kim Jong-un. (“Dear Respected” is the regime’s term for the new tyrant, after “Dear Leader” for his dad and “Eternal Leader” for his grandpop.)

Expect the council to impose a new set of sanctions soon. As Rice vowed Tuesday, the council “will not only tighten the existing measures, but we aim to augment the sanctions regime.”

But what does the tough talk mean?

The United Nations has already sanctioned pretty much everything that moves in Pyongyang. The best it’ll be able to do now is add new hard-to-pronounce names to its sanction lists and designate more North Korean banks and companies (which change names faster than UN bureaucrats can identify their designation) for embargo. Oh, and maybe add more materials of possible use to North Korea’s nuclear programs to the no-commerce lists.

Later, America and others may follow by adding some names to our own additional-sanctions lists.

All this may slow down North Korea somewhat. But very little of Pyongyang’s business with the outside world is done formally (or legally). Instead, it deals with other sanctioned regimes, like Iran’s, and with rogue Russian, Pakistani and other nuclear and ballistic technicians.

This kind of shadowy business is financed by bagfuls of cash, rather than banking systems. To seriously limit it, America and its allies have to aggressively intercept deliveries of illicit materials and funds.

The good news: Such interceptions are largely already authorized by past UN resolutions. Also, the Bush administration created a treaty, the Proliferation Security Initiative, which authorizes its nearly 100 members (including Russia) to search and seize vessels suspected of illicitly proliferating WMD-related items.

The bad news: China isn’t a PSI member and it takes its Security Council obligations quite lightly. Aircrafts carrying nuclear- and missile-related items between, say, Iran and North Korea feel quite safe flying through Chinese airspace, where they’re virtually immune from interception.

So even if America and our allies manage to hermetically seal traffic at sea (a huge if, when our president compares costly aircraft carriers to “horses and bayonets”), North Korea and its partners in crime can safely do business via air and land.

Beijing, you see, would rather ignore the behavior of Pyongyang’s erratic and ever-annoying regime — even as Kim tests a nuclear device mere 62 miles away from the Chinese border — than let it collapse. And this calculation seems to stand despite Beijing’s recent change, with Xi Jinping now Communist Party chairman.

So no amount of “international community” pressure is going to impress young Kim.

To start changing the equation, America must signal to Xi that the West can no longer live with it. Start by talking publicly and often about the need to rid the world of its most evil regime and to reunify the Korean peninsula. Mr. Kim, tear down this DMZ!

But for that, much more than mere “consultation with allies” will be needed.

Unless America shows bold leadership in the current crisis, President Obama’s “global zero” dreams of a nuclear-free world will (as Kerry so astutely observed) quickly turn into a nightmare world, filled with nuclear-empowered rogues.

Twitter: @bennyavni

Have a comment on this PostOpinion column? Send it in to LETTERS@NYPOST.COM!

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Sign up for Feb. 21 Miami Herald Small Business Forum

Prepare your best pitch for the Miami Herald’s Small Business Forum, Feb. 21 at the south campus of our sponsor, Florida International University.

In addition to how-to panels and inspirational stories from successful entrepreneurs, our annual small business forum will include interactive opportunities with experts to learn about financing options and polish your personal and business brands.

During our finance panel, audience volunteers will be invited to explain their financing needs to the group. During our box-lunch session, they will be invited to pitch their business or personal brand to our coaches.

Those who prefer just to listen will be treated to a keynote address by Alberto Perlman, co-founder of the global fitness craze Zumba. Panels include success stories from the local entrepreneurs who founded Sedano’s, Jennifer’s Homemade and ReStockIt.com; finance tips from experts in small business loans, venture capital, angel investments and traditional bank loans; and insiders in the burgeoning South Florida tech start-up scene.

Plus, it’s a real bargain. $25 includes the half-day seminar, continental breakfast and a box lunch.

Register here.

Program

8 a.m.

Registration and continental breakfast, provided by Bill Hansen Catering

8:30 a.m. Welcome

Host: David Suarez, president and CEO, Interactive Training Solutions, LLC

•  Jerry Haar, PhD, associate dean & director, FIU Eugenio Pino and Family Global

Entrepreneurship Center

•  Alice Horn, executive director, Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE South Florida)

•  Jane Wooldridge, Business editor, The Miami Herald

Miami Herald Business Plan Challenge Overview:

•  Nancy Dahlberg, Business Plan Challenge coordinator, The Miami Herald

8:45 a.m. Session I – Success Stories

Moderator: Jerry Haar, PhD, associate dean & director, FIU Eugenio Pino and Family Global

Entrepreneurship Center

Speakers:

•  Jennifer Behar, founder, Jennifer’s Homemade

•  Matt Kuttler, co-president of ReStockIt.com

•  Javier Herrán, chief marketing officer, Sedano’s Supermarkets

10 a.m. Session II – All about Tech

Moderator: Jane Wooldridge, Business editor, The Miami Herald

Speakers

•  Susan Amat, founder, Launch Pad Tech

•  Nancy Borkowski, executive director, Health Management Programs, Chapman Graduate School of

Business, Florida International University

•  Chris Fleck, vice president of mobility solutions at Citrix and a director of the South Florida Tech Alliance

•  Charles Irizarry, co-founder and director of product architecture, Rokk3r Labs

11:15 a.m. Keynote

Speaker: Alberto Perlman, CEO and co-founder of Zumba® Fitness

Introduction: Jane Wooldridge, business editor, The Miami Herald

11:45 a.m. Session III – Show me the money: Financing your small business

An interactive session featuring audience volunteers who will be invited to make a short investment pitch before a panel, including experts in microlending, SBA loans, traditional bank loans, venture capital and angel investing. Audience volunteers should come prepared with a two-minute presentation that includes details about current backing, how much money they are seeking and a brief synosis of ow that money would be used.

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Miami-Dade packed for weekend of events

Lured by sailboats and megayachts, urban street art and Romero Britto — and, of course, the lack of snow — thousands of visitors are expected to pour into Miami-Dade this holiday weekend.

The activities started Thursday morning with the opening day of the 72nd annual Progressive Miami International Boat Show at the Miami Beach Convention Center and the Yacht & Brokerage Show on the Indian Creek Waterway. Art Wynwood kicked off with a VIP preview Thursday night. And the Coconut Grove Arts Festival, in its 50th year, opens its gates on Saturday.

Combined, the events expect nearly 250,000 attendees over Presidents’ Day weekend — many of them from out of town.

“Presidents’ Day weekend is the busiest weekend here in South Florida,” said Nick Korniloff, founder and director of Art Wynwood. “It’s when the 30 five-star resorts are at the highest occupancy, when the Europeans and South Americans and Northeast residents come here. It’s a very diverse, well-cultured audience.”

Expecting similarities in audiences interested in yachts and art, Korniloff will have shuttles running between Art Wynwood in the Midtown Miami neighborhood and the Yacht & Brokerage Show near the Fontainebleau.

In its second year, the fair features 70 dealers from around the world, many representing urban street artists or selling Latin American and Asian art. That’s a jump from last year’s 53 dealers. Korniloff said he expects about 30,000 attendees this year, up from 25,000 at the inaugural event.

At the boat show, which includes locations in Miami Beach and downtown Miami, organizers anticipate more than 100,000 visitors. About 40 percent are from outside the state and a quarter of visitors are international, said Cathy Rick-Joule, show manager and vice president of the boat shows division for the National Marine Manufacturers Association.

“We’ve definitely seen a continued influence of Brazilians; you hear Portuguese spoken everywhere,” Rick-Joule said, adding that Russian, Chinese and Korean visitors have also been increasing.

Monty Trainer, president of the Coconut Grove Arts Festival, has been busy publicizing the 50th year of the event with pop artist Romero Britto, who designed this year’s festival poster and will attend at some points during the weekend.

“This is the best year for all our exposure,” Trainer said. “Romero Britto is going to be a big draw.”

The show will feature 380 artists this year, 30 more than last year, when about 118,000 people attended. Of those, nearly 40 percent were overnight visitors who came to town for the festival.

Trainer expects this year’s activities to draw a bigger crowd — with a caveat.

“If this weather holds up, we’re in business,” he said. “But if you get bad rain, all your promotions are out the window.”

On that front, the forecast is mixed. The National Weather Service calls for a 60 percent chance of rain in Miami on Friday, dropping to 20 percent for Saturday with a high near 77. Sunday should be sunny and cool, with a high only in the mid-60s. By Monday, the weather should be just about perfect for February: sunny and topping out around 74.

“When other folks unfortunately have it bad, we have it good,” said Rolando Aedo, chief marketing officer for the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau. “I think the country as a whole, with the exception of us, has been experiencing severe weather. It bodes well for our hoteliers and frankly bodes well for our winter season. We’re hearing very, very good things.”

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Simon Baker Gets Star on Walk of Fame

Today was a very special Valentine's Day for Simon Baker, as he received the 2, 490th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

PICS: Candid Celeb Sightings

"It's about inspiration -- not for me, but for anyone else," said Baker when asked what the honor meant to him. "Nine out of ten people might walk across that star and not know who my name is, but someone might come along and it might inspire them."

As a young actor, Baker drew on the inspiration of those around him to gain the confidence needed to get to where he is today.

"Like a lot of young actors, I was filled with self-doubt," said The Mentalist star. "I was incredibly fortunate to meet people who believed in me more than I believed in myself."

Perhaps his biggest supporter was his wife Rebecca, whom he wed in 1998.

"My wife once gave me a card that said, 'Opportunity, having knocked, moves on.' And the most important opportunity that I took advantage of in my life was marrying her," Baker said before kissing his wife who was in attendance.

Click the video to hear what Naomi Watts had to say about her friend of more than 20 years.

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Retiring Lautenberg paving way for Cory

Sen. Frank Lautenberg, the New Jersey Democrat who at 89 is the Senate’s oldest member, said yesterday he will not seek re-election next year to a sixth term.

His decision opens a clearer path to the seat for Newark Mayor Cory Booker, the front-runner for the Democratic nomination in 2014.

Before Lautenberg had announced his intentions, Booker said he would seek the seat.

Ads by Lautenberg, a self-made multimillionaire businessman who became a leading liberal voice in the Senate, offered no reason for his decision to retire from Congress but vowed to keep working for constituents until his term ends in January 2015.

Getty Images

'Sen. Lautenberg has been a strong model of leadership and service to me.' — Cory Booker after Frank Lautenberg (above) said yesterday he wouldn’t seek re-election

Getty Images

Cory Booker

“This is not the end of anything, but rather the beginning of a two-year mission to pass new gun-safety laws, protect children from toxic chemicals, and create more opportunities for working families in New Jersey,” he said in a statement.

Booker, 43, is a rising star in the Democratic Party, known as much for his rescue of a woman from her burning home last year as he is for running a city troubled by high crime and unemployment.

Booker announced he would explore running for Lautenberg’s seat in December, then filed papers in January, drawing criticism from Lautenberg supporters who suggested the mayor should focus on his own struggling city.

“Senator Lautenberg has been a strong model of leadership and service to me since before I even considered entering elected office,” Booker said in a statement after Lautenberg’s announcement. “I look forward to continuing to work with him for the remainder of his term in the Senate and for many years to come.”

A survey by Public Policy Polling released last November found most New Jersey Democratic voters wanted to see Lautenberg retire at the end of his term rather than seek re-election.

The same survey found Booker leading the pack of potential Democratic candidates for the Senate seat, with six in 10 voters saying they want to see him run.

Lautenberg was first elected to the Senate in 1982, after incumbent Democrat Harrison Williams quit in a bribery scandal.

Lautenberg had retired from the Senate in 2000, but returned to win his seat again in 2002 after successor Robert Torricelli became embroiled in a corruption scandal. saying he was tired of chasing campaign contributions. But in 2002 he came out of political retirement at age 78, again helping the Democrats retain a seat after Senator Robert Torricelli dropped his re-election bid amid corruption charges involving improper gifts from a businessman.

He was last re-elected in 2008 at age 84.

The World War Two veteran was a co-founder, former chairman and chief executive of the payroll services company Automatic Data Processing.

Booker, a former Rhodes Scholar, burst on the political scene with a failed attempt to unseat entrenched Newark Mayor Sharpe James in 2002. Booker succeeded in ousting James in 2006.

One of the first public figures to understand the significance of social media, Booker uses Twitter incessantly to field questions about potholes, talk about policy and disseminate inspirational quotes.

More than a quarter of Newark’s residents still live in poverty. Critics say that as his national profile has soared, he has failed to grapple with problems in his city.

He contemplated a possible gubernatorial run against Republican Gov. Chris Christie, a powerhouse with high poll numbers, but opted instead for Lautenberg’s seat, forcing the elder statesman’s hand.

“This is still a Democratic state and the high likelihood is that this seat gets held by a Democrat,” said David Redlawsk, director of the Rutgers-Eagleton Poll.

Lautenberg’s office said in February 2010 the senator had been diagnosed with cancer and would undergo chemotherapy. That June Lautenberg said he had recovered completely.

He accomplished a number of things during his tenure in the Senate. He convinced Congress to bar smoking on domestic airline flights and in federal buildings. He has been a strong supporter of gun control and was behind the 1996 law prohibiting people convicted of domestic abuse from owning guns.

He also wrote the law that required U.S. states to set 21 as the drinking age in order to continue to get federal highway aid, a move he says has saved tens of thousands of lives.

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Carnival Triumph finally arrives in port

MOBILE, Ala. --
Exhausted, grubby and almost five days late, the 3,143 passengers and 1,086 crew aboard the disabled Carnival Triumph returned to the U.S. late Thursday — to a city almost 500 miles from its home port.

Thousands of passengers aboard the Carnival Triumph cheered, screamed and waved from outside balconies as the ship was pulled in shortly after 10 p.m.

Families were excited and relieved as passengers began disembarking about an hour after the ship docked.

“This is the best Valentine’s Day ever,” said Jon Hair, of Lake Charles, La., grabbing the hand of his son, 8-year-old Jace, whose mom, sister, aunt and cousins were aboard. “It’s great,” Jace said as he left for the terminal, where dozens of other families waited.

And as Julie Hair and her 12-year-old daughter Juliana came off the ship, Jon kissed his wife. “I feel blessed,” she said.

Earlier, Gerry Cahill, Carnival president and CEO, said at a brief news conference Thursday night, while the Triumph was docking, that he appreciated the patience of the 3,000 passengers on board.

He said Carnival prides itself on providing people with a great vacation “and clearly we failed in this particular case.” He also said he planned to go aboard the ship and personally apologize to passengers.

As the ship inched closer to the dock in Mobile — bringing and end to the saga — relatives of passengers aboard became more excited.

Larry Butterfras of Houston, whose wife Pat had taken the Triumph cruise from its home port in Galveston, Texas, with seven friends on a birthday celebration, said he and a few other husbands drove down so they could be there to greet their wives as soon as they stepped off the ship. “When I was able to talk to her today and tell her we were here, she cried. She told her friends and they cried. It was very emotional.”

“I just want her home,” said Matthew Minyard, of Fate, Texas, anxiously waiting to greet his wife Bethany. “It’s been hard.”

Three tugs were needed to pull the 100,000-ton cruise ship back to the U.S. from waters off Mexico, where fire broke out Sunday morning in the engine room. The cause of the blaze, extinguished by automatic systems, is still not known.

The ship lost propulsion and had to rely on emergency generator power, leaving passengers with a limited number of working bathrooms and no air conditioning. No one was hurt in the fire. Sister ships delivered additional food and supplies. The cruise line has canceled sailings through April 13 and promised to compensate passengers with a full refund, $500 in cash and a discount on a future cruise.

That may be meager comfort for frustrated passengers, who have complained to family members via email and text about foul odors, dark hallways and food shortages. Television images from CNN showed passengers with signs of “Help” and “I love you” hanging from their cabin rooms.

There were stories of meals consisting of cucumber and onion or peanut butter and onion sandwiches, but Minyard said his wife told him they had lobster and eggs, bacon and sausage Thursday morning. With landfall only a few hours away, the Triumph suffered another misfortune when the towline snapped, bringing the vessel to a dead stop. The line was quickly replaced, and the crawl to Mobile resumed.

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Jewish liturgical music festival continues through Sunday

The Fifth International Festival of New Jewish Liturgical Music is being celebrated in Miami through Sunday. It will feature new works from composers from throughout the United States, Canada, Israel and the United Kingdom. The music reflects a diverse range of musical styles and traditions.

The six-day festival is presented by Shalshelet: The Foundation for New Jewish Liturgical Music and will include school and youth workshops and Shalshelet composers in residence at area congregations over Shabbat.

The main festival events will include workshops from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday at Beth Torah Benny Rok Campus, 20350 NE 26th Ave., and the Festival Concert at 7 p.m.

As a part of the festival, composer Raquel Pomerantz Gershon, who is known for her uplifting, original take on Jewish sacred music, will sing her own songs and traditional prayers in the Kabbalat Shabbat service at 6 p.m. Friday at Beth David Congregaton, 2625 SW Third Ave. The service will be followed by a Shabbat dinner.

Gershon started composing songs in her teens and has won awards at past Shalshelet festivals. She has performed throughout the United States, Europe and Israel. She has recorded three CDs, including "Jerusalem on My Mind," and lives in Dallas with her husband Rabbi Bill Gershon and their three children.

For more information on the Kabbalat service and the dinner following the service, call 305-854-3911 or go to www.bethdavidmiami.org.

Wenski to say Mass for members of religious orders

Archbishop Thomas Wenski will celebrate a thanksgiving Mass for all consecrated men and women, who have chosen religious life. The Mass will be at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at St. Mary Cathedral, 7525 NW Second Ave. The Archdiocese of Miami will also celebrate those who this year will celebrate their 25th, 50th and 60th anniversaries of consecrated life.

Also, on Feb. 24, the 2013 Archbishop's Motorcycle Poker Run will take place at Our Lady of the Holy Rosary-St. Richard Catholic Church at 7500 SW 152nd St. in Palmetto Bay.

The event starts at 8 a.m. with Mass; registration at 9 a.m., and Kick Stands up at 9:30 a.m., with the poker run concluding at Peterson's Harley Davidson, 19400 NW Second Ave in Miami Gardens.

Registration is $25 for rider entrance fee, and includes a commemorative T-shirt. The winning hand receives a $500 Peterson's Harley Davidson gift card. Proceeds will benefit Catholic Charities and St. Luke's Center.

Art exhibit highlights graffiti

Catalyst, a program geared toward reaching out to the hip-hop youth culture in Miami and its sponsor, Greater Miami Youth For Christ, will have its first Graffiti Art Exhibit from 7 to 10 p.m. Friday at Pyramid Art Studios, 8890 SW 129th Terr in The Falls Art District.

Vivian Stigale, Catalyst spokeswoman said the exhibit is called "26," and will feature the work of 26 different street artists.

"It takes much skill, dedication and strength to do graffiti — aerosol art and street-style murals — and is often misunderstood and is frequently criminalized," Stigale said.

The Catalyst program, founded nearly a decade ago in Miami Springs by Joel Stigale, allows emcees, break dancers, graffiti artists and DJs to practice their art in a safe, drug-free environment while being challenged to embrace a relationship with Jesus Christ.

For more information call Bonnie Rodriguez or Vivian Stigale at 305-271-2442.

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Artists You Should Know: Emeli Sande

British recording artist and songwriter Emeli Sandé is already making waves in the UK and hopes to become the latest in a growing list of British musicians that have taken over the world in recent times. Her debut album Our Version of Events is the UK's biggest selling album of 2012 and with her lyrically rich songs powered by an incredible voice, I have no doubt she is the next Global superstar. I recently chatted with Emeli before her gig at the ChapStick Sessions Concert in partnership with MySpace. Check out our full interview below and be sure to watch the concert footage above for a special performance of her latest single, Next To Me.

PICS: Candid Celeb Sightings

ETonline: You are one of music's rising stars, have a number one album (UK) for Our Version of Events, sang at the open and closing of the Olympics, and a new hit single Next To Me, how has the ride to fame been for you?

Emeli: It definitely feels surreal. It's been an incredible year and so much has happened that I didn't expect to happen so quickly. It's definitely been the type of year that you dream about as a kid so I'm very happy.

How much would you say your life has changed?

Dramatically it's definitely changed a lot. But I try to keep grounded by just focusing on the music so that part hasn't changed. But day to day it's so busy and you have less and less time to have alone and to write but it's all good that's why you do it in the first place.

A lot of wonderful talent has emerged from the UK in recent years so I've got to ask you, what's in the water over there??

(Laughs) Yeah I'm not sure! It feels like a really good time and I'm really proud to be part of this kind of new generation of musicians that are doing something quite creative. I think we all feel kind of free to experiment with different genres and it's such a small place so we all know each other and can learn from one another.

Tell me about your writing process. Are certain types of songs more easily driven by a lyric or music?

Sometimes when I play something on piano, the tone of it can inspire a feeling. But usually it's a concept that will pop in to my mind or a phrase or if I'm reading something it will spark something or a different way of thinking about the same subject. Usually it's the words but sometimes when I sit at the piano it all falls into place.

What would you say is your favorite lyric you've ever written?

I really like "when the floor is more familiar than the ceiling," just because whenever I sing that lyric I imagine somebody stuck to the floor, someone stuck to the ceiling. I've always been inspired by people that can make you see things so clearly with few words. And that's what I try to channel when I'm writing.

Is there any artist you're hoping to collaborate with in the future? Who are you currently listening to?

I think Drake is amazing lyrically; he's really doing something different I think. I love Frank Ocean as well. There's a lot of new people too, Ed Sheeran ... there's a lot of people I think are great. I love Rihanna, everyone does, and I think what she's doing is very honest and I really respect that.

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Best Buy boner

Best Buy won’t be coming home to daddy, after all.

Dick Schulze, the Minnesota entrepreneur who created the nation’s biggest electronics chain 30 years ago, has all but given up his bid to take the company private, sources told The Post.

The 71-year-old former chairman of the chain has been scrambling since last summer to corral a team of buyout firms to acquire Best Buy in a deal valued at upwards of $8 billion.

Private-equity firms, however, have been on the fence about a full-fledged takeover, concerned about the risks of piling as much as $6 billion of debt atop an already struggling retailer.

PE players are instead considering the purchase of a minority stake, a sign, people close to the situation said, of optimism about the company’s turnaround prospects.

“People think [Chief Executive Hubert] Joly is basically doing a good job,” according to one insider, referring to the French-born hotel exec who was hired as CEO last August after Schulze had made his initial buyout approach.

Schulze, who owns 20 percent of the chain, is in talks to participate in a downsized deal for a larger minority stake, sources said.

Nevertheless, he won’t be in the driver’s seat in the deal under discussion, according to insiders.

“At this point, this is something [Schulze] is sort of going along with,” according to one source briefed on the situation.

While the deal could create a sizable minority stakeholder, sources said it’s unlikely it would create an entity that controls more than the 35 percent of the shares needed to effectively control the company.

“That would create a shareholder revolt,” one Best Buy investor said of such a deal.

In another possible scenario, sources said Best Buy would grant one or two board seats to the prospective investor team, and the founder isn’t likely to be one of the nominees.

“[Schulze] already quit the board, and people don’t see a lot of sense in putting him back on,” one insider said.

While the identity of the investment firms couldn’t be learned, Best Buy’s tires lately have been kicked by KKR, TPG and Leonard Green — buyout firms with deep benches when it comes to retail management.

Billionaire John Malone’s Liberty Media, whose investments include Sirius XM Radio, Live Nation and Barnes & Noble, is also said to have mulled a stake.

A Best Buy spokesman declined to comment and reps for Schulze didn’t respond to requests for comment.

james.covert@nypost.com

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Bobby Flay’s Burger Palace coming to Dadeland as part of expansion wing

When Dadeland Mall opens its new expansion wing later this year, diners will be able to enjoy the first Bobby Flay Burger Palace in Florida and nearly a half dozen new dining options.

The highlight of the new two-story expansion is the outdoor terrace offering diners a view of the bustling Kendall Drive. This area aims to turn the mall into more of an entertainment destination, following a trend set years ago by others areas malls including Aventura Mall, Sawgrass Mills and Dolphin Mall.

The first phase of the 102,000 square foot expansion wing will open starting in May with the arrival of 18 new retailers, including Tommy Bahama, Hugo Boss, Microsoft, Stuart Weitzman, PUMA, Donald J Pliner, Porsche Design, Urban Outfitters, Express and Original Penguin.

The restaurants are expected to open in the fall.

The new wing, which was built on the site of the former Limited store location, is designed to open the mall up to Kendall Drive.

“It feels like a whole new Dadeland,” said Maria Prado, the mall’s general manager. “We’re going to have that entertainment component that we’ve been missing. This is going to take us to the next level and give people more reason to come and stay longer.”

Joining Chef Bobby Flay’s restaurant will be Aoki Teppanyaki, Balans, Earls Kitchen + Bar and Aroma Espresso Bar located on the ground floor. Aoki Teppanyaki is the first of a new concept by Kevin Aoki, the son of Benihana’s late founder Rocky Aoki. Earls is an upscale casual dining chain based out of Canada and this will be its first location on the east coast.

Aoki’s restaurant, which is designed to feel like a Kyoto-style Japanese Village, will include teppanyaki tables, a sushi bar and sake bar.

“It’s a tribute to my father and all his hard work in creating Benihana,” Kevin Aoki said. “I’m not trying to compete with Benihana. I’m trying to open a restaurant and create excitement using the things I’ve learned from my father and my experience.”

A spokesman for Bobby Flay said he chose Dadeland for his first Florida location because of the traffic and demographics in the area. This is the beginning of plans by Flay to expand Bobby’s Burger Palace to other locations in South Florida.

The other new retailers coming to Dadeland: Vince Camuto, Tesla Motors, Everything But Water, Fit2Run, babycottons, Luggage & More and ALO Diamonds.

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