Will the 2008 Charter Reform proposals squashed by the county commission be resurrected? (Will the state legislature -- fueled by special interest money-- find a way to block Home Rule, from which the charter flows?) Natacha Seijas, the recalled county commissioner from Hialeah, blocked charter reform through her agent on the charter reform review committee, Miguel De Grandy. De Grandy represented the land speculators and bankers, like the directors of zero-rated US Century Bank, who counted on iron-clad control of zoning and permitting and environmental regulations: all of which inhibit the arbitrage of values inside and outside the Urban Development Boundary.
The lack of candor and open-ness on what drives the county commission has made it difficult to educate voters especially in Hialeah, Seijas' former stronghold, where local politics managed to avoid exposure of the big money interests at the periphery (including the Graham fortunes in Miami Lakes). But with 9 out of 10 voters sending Seijas home, there is a new element of uncertainty in Florida's most populous county.
The commissioners who remain in office were uniformly opposed to Charter Reform, too. They took their marching orders from Seijas because she had proven so successful doing the bidding of developers and bankers in exchange for the kind of outsized campaign contributions that routinely give incumbents a 10-1 money advantage over challengers. Seijas' displays of arrogance from the dais to environmentalists and citizens in public hearings? They were directed to the campaign contributors and lobbyists in the audience as if to say, "This is how it is done, putting them in their places." No one else on the dais, missed the point.
The Seijas recall was astounding on several counts. Related to Charter Reform, a narrower result would have given the unreformable majority room to bitch and moan. IE. blame the result on a few malcontents. But you can't argue with nine out of ten voters! Maybe you (Seijas' supporters) could have persuaded another one or two, but that still would leave any sitting commissioner facing a recall, at a significant loss.
No one sitting on the dais, wants to be on the losing end of the next recall. Norman Braman has said that he wants charter reform to be his next project, including term limits and a reconfigured commission to include at-large seats instead of the deadly single-member district system that allows quid pro quo's to dominate the local landscape. With housing and construction in the toilet for years to come-- in no small part because of the rampant overdevelopment that made Seijas' supporters wealthy-- and municipal budgets, a nightmare, there is a little daylight for the 2008 charter reform measures to come back to the county commission. That is, so long as the special interests who are wreaking havoc now in Tallahassee don't cut off the possibility of change. Judging from Governor Scott's refusal to move the Fair District amendment, passed by over 60 percent of state-wide voters, forward: there are more questions than answers.
But one thing is for sure: based on Tuesday's results in Hialeah, the impossible did happen. The most powerful sitting commissioner was booted out unceremoniously. I was at the celebration party in a strip mall off Miami Lakes Boulevard. Only a handful of celebrants stood under the awning outside a billiard parlor, but they all understood the historic importance of what they had achieved. Somewhere, dozens of lobbyists watched the results and experienced an unaccustomed moment of concern. After a pause, they will continue on their well-worn path. They will seek out a replacement for Seijas who will also prove amenable to being a member of the unreformable majority. That's why, I believe it would be a good idea for Braman et al. to immediately seek out another commissioner for recall.
We sent a message, once; with Alvarez and Seijas' recall. But I believe we are going to have to do it, one more time for the point to get through. I would suggest, Joe Martinez or Pepe Diaz. It is time for these two, to go. For our comments and archive on this issue, stretching back to 2008, click on "charter review" in the issues cloud/archive to the right. Charter Reform: gone but not forgotten.
