First reading of either doing away with Community Councils or making the elected positions appointed instead, passed 8 to 5 a few minutes ago. Commissioner Katy Sorenson gave: "an emphatic NO." Also voting NO: Moss, Sosa, Souto and Gimenez. Sally Heyman -- What were you thinking? There was no discussion at this point, there will be a public hearing. I recently reported on the issue and Paola Iuspa-Abbott has a report today in the Daily Business Review, an excerpt provided in "read more".
Oh, and Vile Natacha Seijas is going on a new globe-trotting trip on our dime: This time to Brazil. Last time Warsaw.
Residents of nearly 90 homes in Kendall no longer get their water from a well with a high arsenic concentration. With the help of the Kendall Community Council, new water mains now bring clean municipal water to the Glenvar Heights area.
In addition to lobbying for neighborhoods within their jurisdictions, community councils also help bring some order to development in unincorporated Miami-Dade. The councils, which were established by the County Commission in 1996, are popular among residents, but developers argue the panels make the permitting process cumbersome and inefficient.
Developers may get relief. Today, county commissioners will discuss cutting the number of community councils from 10 to four or simply replacing them with a central zoning appeals board. Commissioner Jose “Pepe” Diaz is sponsoring the proposed ordinances.
Diaz also wants council members to be appointed by the County Commission — instead of being elected, as they now are.
Opponents of appointed councils argue the commission would populate them with political cronies.
10 comments:
How sad. The community councils are the closest thing to a local government for unincorporated MD. The councils have performed well, at least as well as the commission. People need to turn out in droves at the public hearing which will be before the subcommittee during working hours and downtown. Too bad it's not at the council meetings, in the evening and in the neighborhoods. Duh, think that's why the builders want them to go away? Wonder how much Diaz got for his ordinance. Maybe some more fat surgery or, could it be, campaign money.
Why should Hayman care? Her voter base is Aventura; no coucils there. So let's see, unincorporated MD cannot incorporate and now they don't have a say in local zoning. Remember Joe "Napolian" Martinez' vote when he runs for mayor. He sure does not represent the unincorporated voter.
Sally's voter base is in North Miami Beach... where she is from and had served as a commissioner at one time...not Aventura.
In Martinez's defense, his is about the worst of the community councils, mainly because HE DID A LOT OF APPOINTING.
Lets not forget the arrested developer Curbelo who was convicted on bribery charges, he was on that Community Council and he also ran again Joe Martinez for County comish.
This makes me want to barf. community councils are elected officials how can they just make them go away without a referendum?
WAIT A MINUTE WAIT A MINUTE!!!! she is going to Brazil? where is the herald on this?
The Miami-Dade electorate is slapped in the face once again. How can Commission appointment be superior to the voice of the people? This is clearly about tightening the control on BOCC Districts and "limiting" public exposure to those so annointed, safe choices who would never dare challenges their "bosses" for a commission seat.
The Commission is a totally dysfunctional operation. Just watching the circus today proves that this county government needs a complete overhaul. They just voted to put back hundreds of millions of dollars in spending without any earthly idea of how to pay for it. What a bad joke.
I want to get myself all riled up but the Commission blows off the Council's recommendations whenever they find it to be inconvenient for their developer cronies. It won't actually change anything.
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