Gonzalo Sanabria loaned his campaign $100,000 and hired Armando Gutierrez for ideas to run for Coral Gables City Commission against popular incumbent, Maria Anderson. What does Sanabria's experience have to do with municipal government in Coral Gables? Not much, compared to his experience advocating for big development and big infrastructure at the county level.
The Planning Advisory Board where Gonzalo Sanabria served, business associates like Rodney Barreto, and the record of sprawling developments seeking zoning outside the Urban Development Boundary helps focus public attention on the wave of foreclosures and a failed economic model. During the housing boom, the beneficiaries became very wealthy.
Today, the remaining speculators who purchased large acreage properties at the top of the market from 2003 to 2006 are burning cash and treading water while the Obama fiscal stimulus moves money into Florida. Miami's production homebuilders represented by the Latin Builders Association-- where Sanabria was a director-- need change.
Within a short number of years, the leadership at the county commission will change. War horses for developers on zoning issues like county commissioners and charter members of the unreformable majority like Javier Souto and Natacha Seijas can't count on surviving the outcome of the economic troubles. One or more of the current county commissioners will be running for county mayor in 2010. Inevitably, top lobbyists will be pushing new county commissioners who will advocate for real estate development, failed model or not.
Development interests and big land owners need the next wave of public officials to fill in; that is the appropriate context to consider Gonzalo Sanabria's election campaign in Coral Gables.
7 comments:
Although I agree that Mr. Sanabria is not a good candidate, Maria is not wildly popular pilar of Coral Gables that you make her out to be.
She has flip-flopped on many of the issues since she first ran.
Term Limits
Anti-Development (Merrick Park)
She hasn't seen a latrg development she couldn't shill for since she's been elected.
Sometimes I wondered if her, Don, and David should have taken their vantriloquist act on the road. I see her talking and I can barely see Don or Dave's mouths moving. It must be a great party trick.
She only bailed on Brown when there was no other choice after the harassment allegations. And then, it was begrudgingly.
I sure hope a better candidate enters this race for the benfit of all Gables residents.
m
Not a moderate...still trying to bend the truth...?
"Anderson was the first commissioner to call for the special meeting (To fire city manager Brown), and told The Miami Herald the allegations against the manager were ''reprehensible'' and could not be ignored."
Miami Herald 11/07/08
That doesn't sound "Begrundgingly" to me.
But, this column was about Gonzalo, why are you deflecting it "Not a Moderate"? Is Sanabria a friend of the Mayors?
It is good spelling doesn't count on this blog both moderates -- or else you would both fail.
The reasoning behind my initial post was that they were both useless.
And G, it is not bending the truth to say that Maria has done an about face on term limits and large developments in the City Beautiful.
She has vocally opposed term limits now that she is in office and she vocally supported them when she first ran.
She made her bones by oppposing Merrick Park before she ever got elected, and since being elected, voted to approve the Gables Station (Berkowitz' megaproject at the corner of Le juene and US1) and the Spanish Village, and every other empty condo that has gone up downtown.
m
P.S. - Since above poster went digging for her post harassment quotes in the Herald, below is her speaking out of the other side of her mouth just 3 months earlier:
From the Herald -
Commissioners Wayne Withers and Maria Anderson , who have been supportive of the manager throughout the accusations, both noted the violation was not criminal.
"It's past us. I'm moving forward," Withers said Monday. "There's more important issues to deal with in the city than this."
Anderson echoed that.
"He's admitted his mistakes," she said. "He's being punished and he's been embarrassed. It's unfortunate that it happened but, as far as I'm concerned, I've moved on."
I have watched enough PAB meetings to know that Gonzolo is a bad dude. In many ways he reminds me of de Grandy. He argues until everyone is exhausted, he just won't stop until he wears everyone to a nub. Maybe Coral Gables would get him out of county politics but I feel for the people of the Gables.
Why, if this post is about Gonzalo Sanabria, are people talking about Commissioner Anderson? I think they must be trying to deflect off of Sanabria by writing stuff about Anderson, that is pretty unfair.
I come from the Gables and follow issues closely. In 2001, due to mismanagement of the former City Manager, Coral Gables was in a big crisis with about 3 days of working capital. Commissioner Anderson was the one that called for an audit of existing city finances. Today, Coral Gables has reserves of about $10 million. I would say things haven't been going bad in Coral Gables under her tenure.
You are not going to like about 1/3 of what a public servant does, so there is always something to carp about if you want to be a naysayer. I am not a naysayer.
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