City Commission - Regular Meeting

Thank you.

recording in progress mr clerk good morning morning mr mayor how are we doing ready yes sir all right um i'd like to welcome everyone TO THE TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15TH COMMISSION MEETING. WE HAVE ALL OF YOU ARE VERY SPECIAL GUESTS, BUT I WANT TO CALL OUT TWO INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE HERE WITH US TODAY AND I WANT TO THANK THEM FOR BEING HERE. WE HAVE A COMMISSIONER FOR DISTRICT 6, NATALIE ORBIS, WHO REPRESENTS A PORTION OF THE CITY. BEAUTIFUL. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE, COMMISSIONER, AS ALWAYS. AND I WANT TO THANK MY MAYOR. who's here, the first and only female mayor here in the history of the city of Coral Gables. Madam Mayor, please rise to be recognized. Always so elegant and praising the greatest country in the world, the United States of America. Thank you, ma'am. I appreciate you as always. call to order as we say as always it's an opportunity for people to come and speak here in the city beautiful we ask you you can either call in you can either be here in person you can send us an email carrier pigeon whatever you like we just want you to engage smoke fire hand signals whatever is it that you'd like to use you're more than welcome we just want you to engage in the process here here in the commission because i think it's important to have as many people involved here with the city beautiful as possible. And we want to thank you for being here or being online or sending us an email. I'd like to invite Pastor Kim Robles from the Riviera Presbyterian Church. Pastor, thank you for being here with us. It's always an honor to have you.

Thank you. Should I say the prayer from here?

Of course. You can say the prayer from wherever you'd like.

Okay. Well, I want to make sure everyone can hear me. Good morning, everyone.

Good morning.

Let us pray. Holy One, we give you thanks for the beautiful city of Coral Gables. We give you thanks for this day, for the very special opportunity to just take a deep breath. And I invite us to all do that right now. Breathe in. God, I pray that you would guide these commissioners in the decisions that they make this day, may they be decisions that reflect your love and your joy and your care for your people and for your creation, God, that the city would be good neighbors to the city and to the wider city of Miami, and that it would reflect all that you believe in this city to I ask that those that are here visiting would also feel your presence of joy among them and that there would be peace and joy in this space. I pray all of this in your holy name. Amen.

Thank you, Pastor. Please send your best, our best, to the congregation. We're grateful to have you here in the city. Beautiful. God bless you. Thank you very much. So now it's my honor this morning that we have Carlos Gutierrez, parking administrator and enforcement supervisor, to do the Pledge of Allegiance. Before he does it, I'd like to just give you a little bit of background. It's an honor to have Sergeant Carlos Gutierrez with us today to lead us in the pledge. Just last Friday, our community came together to mark the 25th anniversary of September 11th, a day we must never forget. We remember those we lost, honored the first responders who answered the call, and reflected on the men and women of our armed forces who served our nation in the years that followed. Sergeant Gutierrez was among those who served during that consequential period in our nation's history. A United States Army veteran, he served for six years from 1999 to 2005, attaining the rank of Sergeant E-5. He served with Alpha Company, 260th Military Intelligence Battalion. From October 2002 to October 2004, he deployed to the Balkans and Europe, where he worked alongside NATO partners on safekeeping missions in support of the global war on terrorism. Following his military service, Sergeant Gutierrez began his career with the city of Coral Gables in 2005, his first job after completing his service. More than two decades later, he continued to serve our community as the city's parking administration and enforcement supervisor. Sergeant, your service reminds us that the commitment to country we reflected upon last week is carried forward by the men and women who enter the call to serve. Thank you for your service to our great nation and for your continuing that spirit of service here in the city beautiful. It is an honor to have you with us today. Please lead us in the pledge.

I pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Sir, tell us a little bit about yourself, your experience here in the city, beautiful, and how you've served this great country.

Thank you and good morning, everybody. I've been working here for almost 21 years this October. It was my first job when I Got out the military. I joined while I was still in high school. Unfortunately, you know, September 11 happened. And like most of us during that time, we were called to service and I went overseas. I did two deployments back to back. And then I came home and started working here and been here ever since.

Again, we're grateful for your service, more importantly, to this great country. Thank you for what you do for the city of Coral Gables. I know it's not an easy job. You interface with a lot of members of this community and members who are visiting this community. And we want to thank you for always being diligent, focused, and always being so inviting. Again, because when you're interacting with somebody in the parking enforcement, again, I can only imagine the experiences and the stories that you have. But thank you for always making us look good. thank you appreciate it thank you and god bless you yes sir thank you now moving on to america's semi-quintennial moment miami-dade county commissioner natalie milian orbis who is here with us today since may we have proudly presented the semi-quintennial moment at each commission meeting as we celebrate our nation's 250th anniversary and reflect on the people, principles, and events that have shaped the American story. Today, I'm especially pleased to welcome our dear friend and tremendous friend of the city beautiful, Miami-Dade County Commissioner, Natalie Orbis. Commissioner Miliana Orbis is a strong and steadfast supporter of our community, someone we can always count on to listen, collaborate, and advocate on our behalf. Coral Gables is exceptionally well represented on the County Commission, and we are grateful for her leadership and her friendship. Commissioner, it's an honor to welcome you to the Coral Gables and invite you to present today's moment on George Washington's farewell address.

Thank you, Mayor. It is an honor to be here with you, not only sharing this special moment, but also that I get to represent the city of Coral Gables on the Miami-Dade Commission. So it is my honor to be here with you. As I reflected on this speech, the farewell speech of George Washington, our first president, I reflected on what it means to be a public servant and the responsibilities that we hold as sitting in those seats. It is a tremendous responsibility and we must always keep in mind who we are serving and why we are there. It was a great reflection of what our country stands for and also what our duties are as elected officials, as public servants, why we must always keep our communities in mind at the forefront of everything that we do. So thank you for the honor of this semi-quintessential moment of Washington's farewell address. For 250 years, the United States of America has stood as an extraordinary experiment in liberty and self-government, built on the belief that our rights come with responsibilities and that the future of our country ultimately rests on the hands of its people. Across those 250 years, generations of Americans have answered the call to serve, sacrifice to defend our freedoms, and work to ensure that the promise of America would endure for those who came after them. As we continue to mark America's 250th anniversary, it is fitting to reflect not only on the Declaration of Independence and its ideals that gave birth to our nation, but also on the example set by George Washington at the end of his presidency. In 1796, after leading the nation through the Revolutionary War and serving as our first president, Washington made a decision that helped to shape the future of the United States. He chose to step away from power. His farewell address was not delivered as a speech, but published as a letter to the American people. In it, Washington offered guidance to a young nation still trying to understand what self-government would require. And one of his strongest messages was the importance of unity. Washington wrote, "...the unity of government which constitutes you one people is also now dear to you. It is justly so." for it is a main pillar in the edifice of your real independence, the support of your tranquility at home, your peace abroad, of your safety, of your prosperity, of that of the very liberty which you so highly prize. The unity of government that makes us one people is a main pillar of our independence, our peace, our safety, our prosperity, and our liberty. And that message still continues to speak to us today. Washington understood that democracy depends not only on the founding documents or elected offices, but on the character of the people who serve our citizens and who participate. He warned against division. He urged Americans to think beyond narrow interest and reminded the country that the success of the Republic would depend on a shared commitment to do the common good. For local government, that lesson is especially meaningful. The work of our democracy does not happen only in Washington, D.C. It happens right here in our city halls, our public meetings, our neighborhoods, our parks, our schools, and our communities. And every generation is asked to carry forward what it inherited and leaving something stronger for those who follow. So on the 250th anniversary of our nation, Washington's farewell address reminds us that leadership is not measured by the power that we hold, but by the trust that we place in one another. Washington walked away from power not out of restraint alone, but out of the belief that ordinary people united in purpose could carry this extraordinary experiment forward. Nearly two and a half centuries later, that belief is now ours to honor. The American experiment depends not on just one leader, but on all of us. So thank you, Mayor. God bless the beautiful city of Coral Gables. And of course, God bless the United States of America. And thank you for this great honor of having the opportunity to share in the celebration of our nation in the city of Coral Gables.

Thank you, Commissioner. First and foremost, I want to thank you on behalf of the residents and the business community. It is there's never a moment when I reach out to you or to your staff that you do not pick up your phone personally, that you do not address emails personally representing this community. And that's refreshing. That's something that I take great pride in. And it's great to see another leader here in this community. Even when the answer is no, you still give us an answer immediately. I've always liked doing this and I'm very happy when I've talked to Martha about this and we prepare for these because celebrating our country is something that we shouldn't wait 250 years to do. This is an opportunity as first generation American myself and the son of immigrants who came to this great country with nothing, Peter Pan, to truly remind my children and everyone in this community how blessed we are. We're really focused on the issue of division. And I'm happy you mentioned that. You see it on TV. You hear it on the radio. But at the end of the day, we live in the greatest country in the world. And we have to be constantly reminding ourselves that we have to give thanks to God that we live in this great country. So I want to thank you for your beautiful words. Thank you for being here with us today. It's truly an honor and a pleasure. And thank you to your staff, by the way. Your staff is amazing on all fronts. On all fronts, when anyone in my office, whether it's Carolina or it's Laura, calls and wants to have a conversation on an issue that we that we again, it's outside of our realm and it's more county based. Your staff is front and center and always willing to say, hey, let's have a meeting. Let's get on a call. Let's have a Zoom call. Let's meet in person. you have one of your staff members that comes to my office on a monthly basis for office hours. And that's something that I want our residents to take a lot more advantage of. I want to thank you for that. Thank you for your service.

Thank you. It's my pleasure to serve the city. And I too, as a daughter of, of Cuban parents, immigrants every day, I'm reminded not to take our freedoms for granted. So I appreciate you having the foresight and celebrating our nation every single day here in the city. Thank you so much. And as always, my office is open to the residents and to you, and I'm available for anything that you may need. Thank you. Have a great day. Thank you.

Through the mayor.

Yes.

Commissioner. before you go i wanted to just address you personally and say thank you for those amazing words because as a former history major i've always had an affinity you know for the past because i believe that's the guidepost of the way forward right for the future and uh i have read the farewell address uh several times i've studied it but your words were very beautiful and very timely, more so now than ever, as you noted, for our country, for the state, for the city, and indeed for this commission. So we'll take to heart the words of wisdom from President Washington and from you, Commissioner, for bringing them to us, and call upon my commissioners, my fellow commissioners, that we focus on unity. And we reject division to the extent that we're doing the work of the people, right? Dissension and constructive discussions that are robust are encouraged. But in the end, we're all, I believe, striving for the same thing, to do what's best for the residents of the city. Beautiful. So thank you for your words. Thank you for your guidance. And thank you for appearing today because I know you're extremely busy, Commissioner. Thank you.

Thank you, Commissioner.

It's my pleasure. Have a great one. Through the mayor. Yes. Sorry to delay you one more moment. And I know I went down to the commissioner. Thank you immensely for the efforts that you made to bring forward the extend the trolley life matter. But again, you've always been open and accessible and willing to take some of these more difficult topics and make sure that they happen. It's down to the budget, too. It helps our budget and it helps the county's budget. And I've noticed that you've taken budget very seriously at the county level. And I thank you.

Thank you, Vice Mayor. Absolutely. We always I strive to make decisions that are based in common sense for our residents and our budget. So thank you. It was my pleasure to take that on. And I'm happy that we got it done together. Thank you. Thank you so much for the mayor.

Yes.

Yes. I want to also thank you for your beautiful words. It's very inspiring. We haven't really had the chance to really meet one on one, but I would love the opportunity to go ahead and connect with you. My office is open 24 hours a day, so you can call me at any time and I'll go ahead and do the same. My office will contact you to maybe schedule a meeting so we can both share what's important to our constituents.

Thank you again, Commissioner. Before we proceed, let's take a photo. Can we take a photo with you?

Thank you.

Before we begin the commission meeting and get onto the items of presentations and protocols, I would like to take a moment of silence. I want to acknowledge another heartbreaking tragedy that has deeply affected our community. This is the second consecutive commission meeting at which we have paused to mourn Coral Gables' residents lost in a tragic accident. At our August meeting, we remember those who died in the helicopter crash in Kenya. Today, we grieve the loss of four members of our family, of one family, whose plane went down while returning home from the Bahamas. Mario Lamar was a well-known and respected attorney, and he and his wife, Lily, were longtime Coral Gables residents who raised their family here in the city beautiful. Their grandchildren, Sophia and Christina Sosa, also grew up in our community. Sophia was a graduate of Carrollton School, of the Sacred Heart and Wake Forest University. She later earned a master's degree in physician assistant studies from FIU and worked as a neonatal physician assistant caring for some of the most vulnerable amongst us. Christian graduated from Ransom Everglades School and Loyola Marymount University. At only 22 years old, he had his entire future ahead of him. Four lives spanning two generations of one family were lost in an unimaginable tragedy. They leave behind a devastated family, a community grieving alongside them. Losses such as these remind us how fragile life can be. They remind us not to take our time together for granted. to hold those we love a little closer and to make certain they know how deeply they are cherished. On behalf of the City Commission and the entire City of Coral Gables, we extend our deepest condolences to the Lamar and Sosa families and to everyone mourning this profound loss. I ask that we now observe a moment of silence in honor of Mario, Lily, Sofia, and Christian. Thank you very much. Moving on to presentations and protocol documents. Item A1. Chief, good morning.

Morning, Mayor. Commissioners, if I could be joined up here with our mounted unit. In 2019, Officer Ashley Chiron, who's with us today, approached me with a memorial type event, but also something that would reinstitute what the history of our Coral Gables Police Department was all about. In 1926, the first police officer killed in line of duty was Cyril Guest. Cyril Guest, the only picture that we had of Cyril Guest was on a horse. Ashley, who is very well known in the horse riding community as a trainer, approached me about a program, a pilot program of bringing back the mounted patrol for the Coral Gables Police Department. with that she used as we all met many many years ago rockaway i will tell you i seriously underestimated the popularity of an equine in the city of coral gables and uh we had birthday parties and actually a retirement party for rockaway uh who was a rescue horse Obviously in consultation with the manager, we decided that there was definitely a place to restart the mounted unit within the Coral Gables Police Department, as well as the city. So we expanded the unit. We actually started partnering with the Miami Dade County Parks, and then we started training other departments. Believe it or not, Ashley was TD-wide, as we say, to the Miami Dade Sheriff's Office so they could restart their mounted unit. So at the time, we decided that we needed to expand this. And with the implementation of the underline and the downtown unit, which this body actually supported, we started to expand the program. So today, our last year, when we came up with the expansion and we Actually interviewed many horses until we picked the two that we have. So right now we're going to show you the video of our two newest members of the police department. I know they've been around. So with that, TV.

Hi, I'm Officer Hernandez, and this is my partner, Merrick, and we are with the Corps Gables Mounted Patrol. Merrick is a four-year-old percheron, and he weighs about 1,700 pounds. He's like a big toddler. He's a little clumsy, but he's really sweet sometimes. My name is Officer Sharon, and this is my partner, Scarlett. So Scarlett is a three-year-old Belgian cross, so that means that she's a draft horse mixed with a regular-sized horse. Her best friend is Merrick, and we're fortunate that they get to be together. Probably our greatest use with the Mounted Patrol Unit is doing special events. And we do regular patrol where we do walk around the neighborhoods and we greet our residents and kind of keep an eye out at the same time. We're officer friendly. People love to see the horses and pet them and ask questions about them. We're there to bridge that gap between police and the community. there are still residents that have spoke to us about them riding horses in the city when they were children the ability to have horses back in the city as georgie merrick envisioned and us as officers to be able to ride those exact throttle paths really speaks to the historical preservation of our city you know we're here we want to share about our horses with you come take pictures yes you can pet them they're very friendly um and we'll see you out there

So the only time our horses get nervous is when I put this hat on because they're afraid that I may end up trying to get on top of it or ride it. That is not going to happen. I can promise you that. A fellow chief that's as large as I am, Larry Juriga, actually told me how to get on the horse. So you get on the back of a pickup truck, then you step up on top of the horse. But our two riders that are with us today, I'm not about to hurt their partners, that's for sure. Look, I think in the future of our department, we have to continue to provide the services and connect with the community. A lot of departments say it. I think our department does it. With the underline and the investment that the community has, we're going to see the horses down there on the underline. You're going to see them on Miracle Mile, and we have already. And we're going to continue reaching out to the community, but also working alongside the community. There is questions about possibly expanding the unit. That's a possibility. We couldn't do this unless we had a partnership with Miami-Dade County Parks Department, where we are currently in an agreement with them. So we board them there, as well as the sheriff's office. So we have a stable hand. We're paying the sheriff's office to have an extra stable hand. to get us out there and we patrol the county parks, Matheson Hammock, things like that, that we're going to do almost like a quid pro quo. So I am very proud to say that we've started off as a pilot program. It has now become a program that is kind of the envy of some of our fellow departments. And we appreciate the support from the commission allowing us to do this, but also support our community and the community that has supported these horses and these two fine riders, Liz Day Hernandez and Ashley Chiron, the first two members of our mounted unit, which probably may be joined by others in the next year or so. So with that, any questions?

I'm going to take a picture of them.

Through the mayor?

Yes.

Oh, I'm sorry. I interrupted.

I just want to say I personally love to see you in the downtown. I've taken multiple pictures of you and put it on social media. Again, it's just amazing to see you out there, the interactions with the residents and the people who are visiting our great community. So, you know, you're making a real impact, not only fighting crime and being a presence in the community, but also I think it's important that Especially young people really understand the importance of supporting the blue, you know, and being advocates on behalf of police. We live in a very different world than we lived in 30, 40 years ago. And for some reason, there's this misunderstanding or misguided leadership that thinks that, you know, taking a swipe at the blue is appropriate. It's not. We live in the civilized community that we live in because the police allows us to sleep a good night. Without order, law and order, and without the work that you do, we wouldn't be the community that we are.

So thank you for your hard work.

I know it's hot out there. Trust me. I know sometimes you're out there and it's 99 degrees, 100 degrees out there, but you're making a huge difference in the community. So thank you for that.

Commissioner? Thank you, Mayor. So I want to echo what the mayor said. I think that American Scarlet and, of course, officers, you know, what you're doing out there is so much bigger than what you could say, you know, you can read about, you know, the impact that the residents have when they see you. You did refer to that, but it's something you have to see. There's excitement. There's joy. There's a sense of heightened security. Right. When you see and there's something about being special within the greatest city to see our mounted officers and those magnificent horses traversing our streets and keeping us safe. So one, Mayor, I'd like to ask for support from my colleagues to have the staff look into this. do a study and come back to us with respect to what it would take to expand the mounted patrol. I really think that innumerable benefits will come from that. So I ask for my colleague's support on that point. And I wouldn't call it a pocket item, but I really think that we should get serious consideration to requiring Chief Hudak to wear that hat as part of his issued uniform because you look too good in it, I'm afraid.

Well, Commissioner, do you want to, before the chief responds, do you want to make a formal referendum on both those items?

Yes, they will be combined, so I so move. Is there a second?

I'll second it. Yes, and I'm just going to add for color, the first birthday party. was something that was an idea of a Coral Gables resident. And Officer Shroom obliged. And Rockaway was at the corner of Palermo and DeSoto with a cake of carrots and vegetables and stuff, everything his heart desired. So my thank you, officer, for working with our residents. And the love of our residents was clearly evident that day when we had a gathering. I think it was 2020. if memory serves me correctly, because I was still knocking doors at the time. So it was before I was on this commission. And thank you, Chief, for entertaining to continue this program after Rockaway's retirement. It's clearly something that's well-loved and gives, I think, that community policing that we're looking for and more interaction with residents, with the police, will, I think, lead to a safer community. Yeah.

Commissioner Castro.

Commissioner Lara, I love the idea. I grew up writing most of my life. And I see your vision. And my vote is yes.

Commissioner Fernandez.

So as a parent, you can never get your kids out of a park. Impossible. Yet anytime Rockaway came by Salvador Park, it was impossible to keep the kids inside the park because they wanted to come out and see Rockaway. So I think...

THERE'S NO PROGRAM IN THE CITY THERE'S NO PROGRAM IN THE CITY THERE'S NO PROGRAM IN THE CITY THAT THERE'S NO PROGRAM IN THE CITY THAT IS THERE'S NO PROGRAM IN THE CITY THAT IS MORE THERE'S NO PROGRAM IN THE CITY THAT IS MORE COMMUNITY-BASED THERE'S NO PROGRAM IN THE CITY THAT IS MORE COMMUNITY-BASED IN THERE'S NO PROGRAM IN THE CITY THAT IS MORE COMMUNITY-BASED IN THIS THERE'S NO PROGRAM IN THE CITY THAT IS MORE COMMUNITY-BASED IN THIS ONE, THERE'S NO PROGRAM IN THE CITY THAT IS MORE COMMUNITY-BASED IN THIS ONE, SO THERE'S NO PROGRAM IN THE CITY THAT IS MORE COMMUNITY-BASED IN THIS ONE, SO I'M COMMUNITY-BASED IN THIS ONE, SO I'M COMMUNITY-BASED IN THIS ONE, SO I'M 100

Thank God I wasn't doing the dive team because I don't know what you're wearing.

If I came in wearing that.

Thank you all we will and with the mayor's approval, we will have Rocco Rockaway. Rockaway is retired. We will have Merrick and Scarlett outside so we can you can meet them up firsthand. So We thank you for the support. And I want to thank Ashley personally in front of everybody for bringing this idea back. You will see on every horse that we remember Cyril Guest throughout eternity here in the department. And that's what our legend, our legacies are all about. So thank you all very much for the support always.

Once we finish presentations, A1 through A5, we'll take a five minute break and we'll step outside. Thank you, Chief.

You want to take a photo?

We'll take a photo when we step outside or you want to do one now?

I think we should just do one here and then we can later on at the break so everybody can relieve themselves with the mounted unit. Presentation. Go ahead. Item A2. So as we went back in time and brought the horses back, we want to talk about something that this commission gave us the abilities to do to get ready with equipment. If you recall, a few years ago, this commission was asked through the manager to give us the ability to respond to emergencies, natural disasters throughout the state of Florida. The Coral Gables Police Department has led the way on several missions to help our neighbors in the state to recover after hurricanes. That was a resolution that you all supported. Part of that resolution was actually looking for equipment. Quite uniquely, last year, we actually went and spoke with our local state representative about how your support of our department would allow us to go anywhere in the state of Florida. That being said, we look for additional equipment uses that would benefit our residents, but also something that we would make available to the rest of the state. Because of that ask, which is really quite simple, we went down and talked to our state senator and our state representatives, Basada. Garcia, and we had an appropriation last year that this city realized where we were able to buy the vehicle that you will see outside called the Sherp. The Sherp is an amphibious vehicle on land and also can go right into the water. The use of this vehicle will have, it fits six people in it, and we're able to go into our low lying areas to rescue our residents after any kind of a natural or manmade disaster. It was something that did not cost the taxpayers of our city anything, but it was an appropriation that we are able to control, use, but also lend a hand to. You all remember the MRAP, which we still have. It is a military surplus vehicle. It's an armored vehicle. We still have that vehicle. We can use it from time to time. But the nimble vehicle that you'll see outside is something I think that is going to help us save lives after an emergency. So we are going to roll that out to you, literally roll it over to you. and show you all what some of the technical equipment that you all supporting our abilities were able, we are able to acquire through our relationships with the state and your support of us helping the rest of our brothers and sisters throughout the state of Florida.

Through the mayor. Yes. Chief, I just want to thank you as well as Chief De La Rosa because when I received the call from Senator Garcia asking, you know, whatever appropriations could our city use, we worked together, you know, and we co-wrote a letter that I sent to the senator asking for this vehicle and another vehicle and she sponsored it in Tallahassee and we were able to get the vehicle that we have. So it shows that how we can work here at a local level. drive right down to the senator's office on Coral Way, have a very productive meeting and get the results that we did just working locally here. So thank you for your time. Thank you, Chief and Chief De La Rosa for dedicating the time to do that work together. Thank you. Thank you for the support, as always.

Thank you, Chief.

We'll put the horses next to the MRAP or to the Sherp. You can scare the horses.

Perfect. Item A3, Madam Vice Mayor.

Uh, three presentation and proclamation declaring September 17th through 23rd, 2026 is constitution week and coral gables. And we have our mayor Thompson here who has always been a stalwart defender of the constitution.

Uh, again, helping represent us.

and I will read the proclamation and then you can speak to us about all the hard work that you've done to maintain the Constitution in this city. Whereas on September 17th, 1787, in order to secure the blessings of liberty for themselves and their prosperity, our founding fathers ordained and established and signed the Constitution of the United States. a unique and priceless document which has afforded the people of our great nation with certain privileges, inalienable rights, and responsibilities of American citizenship. Whereas because of the utmost importance that all citizens understand the provisions and principles embedded in this priceless document, our Constitution, in order to be effectively support, preserve, and defend it against any and all unwarranted intrusions, that the independence which is guaranteed to American citizens, whether by birth or naturalization, should be celebrated. And whereas this 239th anniversary memorializing the signing of the Constitution, the Coral Gables Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, a society of women patriots dedicated to the preservation of this priceless heritage proudly joins us as we celebrate Constitution Week. and this invaluable legacy left to us by our founding fathers, whose wisdom and remarkable vision made possible the creation and preservation of this historic document. And whereas emphasizing citizens' responsibilities for protecting and defending the Constitution and encouraging the study of those historical events which led to the framing of the constitution in 1787 are only two of the reasons why the daughters of the american revolution petitioned congress in 1955 to set aside september 17th through 23rd annually for the observance of constitution week Now, therefore, Ivan Slago, as the mayor of Coral Gables, along with the members of our city commission, do hereby proclaim the week of September 17th through September 23rd, 2026, as Constitution Week in Coral Gables. So, Mayor, I know you've had a remarkable involvement with the Daughters of the American Revolution. Would you like to say a few words on that?

Madam Mayor, good morning once again. Thank you for being here with us.

Good morning once again, all of you. Thank you very much for having this on the agenda again this year. We've done it consistently for 50 years or so. Cora Gabel's chapter, DAR, The Daughters of the American Revolution, has been a part of Cora Gabel's for all these years from the very beginning of the formation of this city. And for most of our time, Time here was, our meetings were held at the Cora Gables Merrick House, but later on it was changed through renovations of the house and things changed. So the Daughters of the American Revolution meet every single month, but no longer at the Merrick House. Today, and I've been a member of it since 1969, so it's a long time. And I served as regent, or we call regent or president of the chapter in years gone by. Today, I have our current resident, our current president, our current regent, Penelope Johnson, who's come here to come out of the city in order to be here today and give you a few words.

Ms. Johnson, thank you for being here with us again.

Good morning. It is truly an honor to accept this proclamation on behalf of the Coral Gables chapter, daughter of the American Revolution, as we celebrate Constitution Week. It is especially meaningful as we commemorate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. It's recognition of the sacrifices made for our freedoms and a reminder to all of us that we share a responsibility to preserve the ideals upon which this country was founded. Thank you and thank you for your continued support.

Thank you very much. Can we take a photo? Moving on to item A4. Chief, welcome back.

Good morning, Mayor, ladies and gentlemen of the commission. Feel bad for my firefighter of the month. I got to follow Ed Hudak in a cowboy hat and mounted police. Tough act to follow.

And the water vehicle too.

And the water vehicle. I got to put this agenda together. This kid was dead on arrival. But anyway, I'm here. I'm proud to present our firefighter of the month. He's been with us a short time, only two years. We share a kingship in which we both started our careers at the city of Margate. A couple years difference, but we both started there. And in his two years, he's been emblematic of everything that we ask of our folks, and that is the buy-in and the ownership to our organization. In those two years, he's taken or volunteered to go on specialized trainings. He's part of our rapid intervention team, which is a competition where they test themselves in rescuing firefighters from line of duty deaths reports. and brings back the knowledge that we gained from that. And most recently, he organized our firefighters representing one of the largest group of firefighters that represented the memorial climb at the Hard Rock, where we had 22 of our firefighters climb 110 stories in honor of the 25th anniversary. So with that, I'm proud to present firefighter Daniel Martinez.

Good morning, sir. Good morning. I just want to thank Chief De La Rosa, the command staff, Chief Jones, and Chief Fernandez, especially the commission for recognizing me. It really means a lot. I especially want to thank my crew at Station 2, my captain Jader Tobin, my driver engineer Wyatt Chiccolo, and my partner in the back, firefighter David Vargas. And as well as everyone else, I've had the opportunity of helping me get to where I am. I also want to thank my girlfriend Monique for always supporting me and encouraging me throughout my career. Although I'm still young in my career, I've been fortunate to be surrounded by a lot of good firefighters that have helped me trained and taught me all the things that I know. And I love what I do and I'm proud to be a Coral Gables fireman. And I'm gonna continue learning and to do everything I can for this department and this community. Thank you.

Let's take a photo. Moving to the final item on presentations and protocols item a five Chief welcome back

Mayor, commissioners, today I'd like to be joined by Officer Guerrero, please. And not to be outdone by the fire department, he's just hit the road in January. So here we are as the officer of the month. On July 9th, and by the way, the Dalmatian just ran out of the station because the horse scared it. So we are still batting 1,000 in the police department. On July 9th, 2026, at approximately 6 o'clock in the afternoon, Officer Guerrero stopped while on routine patrol stopped. It was what we call a routine traffic stop, even though really none of them are. and ran in the area of Ponce and Miracle Mile. He observed a silver vehicle. Once he stopped the individual, he realized that the individual either did not have a license, did not have a valid license, and then usually it's a ticket for that license and move on. And again, the young career of an officer where they learn to look, what we say, look behind the license, he continued to investigate the individual. After looking into it, Officer Guerrero had to place the subject under arrest because he obviously had no driver's license. And when he continued to dig a little bit deeper, found out that the individual, through a false identification, had three active fugitive warrants out of Alachua County. And when we talk about like public order crimes, he was wanted for two way communications and facilitating a felony racketeering criminal attempt to conspire probation violations for cocaine trafficking with no bond and a felony probation, along with marijuana possession, cocaine possession with intent to sell. This was the gentleman's identification. This all happened in 2012. The person was living really a double life because even in fact, his friends, wife, and child did not know his real name. Because of his work, the individual was taken into custody and sent back up to face the charges in Alachua County and obviously devastate a family. It's because of his intuition and work looking behind the license plate, as you will, that our city is a little bit safer by having this person roaming the streets, even passing through. for his actions he was nominated and received office of the month for july 2026.

Congratulations. Well done.

Good morning, everyone. I have a beautiful speech prepared. Everything sounds a lot cooler when our chief says it. I will say that. I'm truly honored to be recognized as Officer of the Month. I want to thank the city of Coral Gables, the Coral Gables Police Department, our command staff, supervisors, and my fellow officers for their support and guidance. I'm grateful for the opportunity to serve this community and live out my dream every day. Anybody who knows me knows that I mean this when I say it. This truly is the best job. This traffic stop was far from routine, as mentioned, and highlights the uncertainties officers have to navigate every day. As but not least, I want to thank my family and friends for their continued support, and I truly appreciate all the officers who assisted me with the arrest that day. This includes Sergeant Guerra, Officer Becker, Officer Tejas, Officer Lund, and Detective Casey Rivera. This award is for all of us. Thank you again for this honor.

Congratulations. So we're going to take a quick photo and then we're going to take a 10 minute break. You ready? All right, let's begin with public comment. Thank you.

First speaker, Mr. Mayor Maria Cruz.

Mrs. Maria Cruz, 1447 Miller Road, 305-323-2154. Talking fast because the clock starts while you're giving your name and address. This is the day the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it. That's the good part of my comments. Because the next part, I was very impressed, very glad to see postings, to hear our mayor today talk about what we need. For so hard to make happen in the city of Coral Gables, Patriot Day, a day of remembrance. I guess he forgot how hard he tried to keep it from happening because he said specifically, this is not a holiday. when he didn't want it. But you know what? It happened. It's here. We remembered. Excellent. And he forgot. So now he's all for it and he's all for the police. Amazing how things happen. And the next comment is, I'm getting a little frustrated with the same person talking about stuff and misnaming them because, you know, that's misinformation in my book. Today we heard the name Peter Pan. Well, the unaccompanied children, now adults, Never called it Peter Pan. It was Operacion Pedro Pan. They called themselves Pedro Pan Children. Peter Pan is a movie. Peter Pan is a character. It's not what happened to those poor kids that were sent here because their parents were concerned about what would happen. if they stayed in Cuba and the government took them over. It's called Operación Pedro Pan, not the fake Peter Pan. And we all should remember their right name. Thank you.

Frank Herxen.

Good morning Mayor, Vice Mayor and City Commissioners. My name is Frank Hackson. I live at 1127 Soraya Avenue here in Coral Gables and I would like to speak briefly about recycling in our community. To be clear, I fully support the efforts of the Sustainability Board, but I believe there is an opportunity accelerate engagement with three key stakeholder groups. One, residents, two, landscapers, and three, construction crews. Too often, recyclable materials end up littering our green spaces and swales instead of reaching recycling bins. I believe some simple, low-cost interventions can make a real difference. So I have personally started two small projects, and I would like to share some of the details with you. First, engagement with our landscaping company. I arranged with our landscaping company to collect their own recyclable materials throughout the week, plastic bottles, aluminum cans, glass bottles, and plastic film. I supplied them with an empty Coral Gables recycling bin, which they returned to me full every Tuesday. At that point, I hand them a new empty bin and store the full bin until recycling collection day. For me, a simple system, so far encouraging results, and it is scalable. Second, engagement with the general contractor on a single family home renovation across from our house. I had the chance to look inside one of the construction waste containers, much to Much of the content won't surprise anyone here, but I see a real opportunity to redirect specific materials into recycling streams instead. I started small with the workers on site focusing on the same recyclable materials as with the gardeners, plastic bottles, aluminum cans, and plastic film. Copying the gardener playbook, I provided one empty blue bin, which I pick up full every Thursday. I return the bin empty on Friday mornings. Throughout the week, I stop by and look at the progress. I also had the chance to speak with the general contractor who, after our initial conversations, indicated to me that he may be open to separating recyclable cardboard as well. So neither project moves the needle on its own, but here's what I want you to take away. Everybody I have approached has been willing to listen and support the community's recycling efforts. This is an ongoing process and there will be setbacks along the way. But I believe the City of Coral Gables, with the tools and support it already has in place, is uniquely positioned to help residents scale important projects like these. Thank you.

Thank you. Good morning.

Hello, good morning. I wanted to address the fraud that was brought forth by my attorney at the August 25th, 2026 Coral Gables City Commission meeting. And I wanted to state that the city seems to fail to understand the significance of the crimes which my attorney brought forth at that meeting. regarding the Garden of Our Lord. And they're very, very serious crimes. When I met with the Internal Affairs Division of the Police Department, they seemed to fail to understand that state statutes were violated. And here are some of the state statutes that were violated. It's a violation of state statute 837.011. They also violated state statute 837.06, because I don't think we brought this forward at the last Commission meeting. But the 500 petitions that they submitted, the fraudsters signed those petitions. So that amounts to fraud from that as well. Also, the solicitation of perjury, because they didn't come on their own. They were organized to come. And that's a violation of Florida state statute 837.011. Also, criminal conspiracy because they were organized in the fraud. That's a violation of state statute 777.04. And then an organized scheme to defraud 817.3. And then it also falls under the civil RICO claims. So I just want to say that the city needs to take these charges extremely seriously. They're very serious violations of the law. Thank you.

Thank you.

Tom Wells.

Good morning. My name is Tom Wells. I live at 1310 Coral Way. Mayor Lago was quoted in the Herald on Wednesday. The public officials have an obligation to be forthcoming with the people they represent as to conflicts involving their public office and private business interests, and that such officials should resign if there's a failure of responsibility and transparency. Per his own statement, I believe Lago should resign for numerous failures, including the following events. Blago's company got paid at least $152,000 in rent by Location Ventures for property it never occupied. Location Ventures is owned by convicted felon, money launderer, and tax evader Rishi Kapoor, serving over 11 years in federal prison. Per a motion made by Vice Mayor Anderson on July 28, 2022, Location Ventures was given zoning code exceptions to build a 16-story condominium with a 318-car garage and, of course, a dog park at 1505 Ponce. Kapoor's company also gave $10,000 to Lagos PAC, Coral Gables first, on May 18, 2022, two months before it received zoning code exceptions. Fifield's company used the same strategy of contributing $10,000 to Lagos PAC 12 days before. Lago, Anderson, and Lara approved zoning code exceptions for an incompatible development, a very disturbing pattern. the upzoning process was a little different due to repeated fraudulent testimony made to support the development the pac is part of lago anderson lara's political machine attacking their opponents they were not transparent about the pac payment with a five field vote lago and then chief chief of staff chelsea grinnell joined a real estate brokerage firm in may 2022. miss grinnell just got her real estate license in 2021. LAGO's brokerage firm made $640,000 in commissions five months later from the purchase by Kapoor's company. Per Commissioner O'Leary's term, LAGO's accusations about Commissioner Castro ring hollow. City Attorney Opinion 2025-005 states doing business with the city means a contract to provide goods or services to the city in exchange for compensation. It is not seeking a permit or obtaining other regulatory approval. Further, cash flow confirms that the company no longer assists clients in obtaining permits in Coral Gables. LIGO's accusations are political, not factual. Section 112.313 prohibits any public official, including our mayor, from, one, accepting any payment that could influence his vote or action as mayor. Two, misusing his office to secure a benefit. Or three, having any contractual relationship with any business entity which is doing business with Coral Gables. Based on the foregoing, Mayor Lagas should resign immediately so the residents can elect a mayor who does not have these stunning failures in responsibility and transparency. Thank you.

Stella Lockhart.

Before we move forward, Madam City Attorney, for the record, did I vote on an item, one item that dealt with Mr. Kapoor?

My recollection is that you recuse.

And I recuse myself. Why? When I went to see you, I stated very clearly on the record that he is my tenant, correct? Correct, sir. And I recuse myself on all four votes. Very clear. This is an example. I'm an individual that cannot get over the fact and as an attorney should know better. He's a stalker on social media. He's an individual that can do much better than what he's doing right now. And I ask you to get a grip emotionally. And please, please concentrate your efforts on making this city a better city of this community, a better community work in tandem. Do not spread misinformation because it doesn't help you or help the city. I never voted on an item with Mr. Kapoor. He was a tenant before I knew any of the issues that had occurred in regards to his investments. And I have been very clear in regards to that. So I'm asking you, please, this is your first warning and your last warning. You stated on the record that I'm breaking the law. I did not. I've never been investigated in my 14 years of being here in public office. And I, again, did not do anything wrong by having him as a tenant. I was not aware of his business transactions and what he was dealing with. Have a wonderful day, sir.

Through the mayor.

We're not going to litigate this now. Mr. Clerk, moving forward.

Through the mayor, I please ask to be recognized.

It was, number one, the gentleman was attacking me on the record. I don't want to litigate this on the record. Mr. Clerk.

You need to respect the civility code.

I am, sir. I am respecting the civility code. I know that you want an Instagram.

You just violated the civility code to a resident calling him a stalker.

He is a stalker.

And you went ahead. And you're also violating his freedom of speech.

He had three minutes to speak before us and it's perfectly fine.

Do not warn him that he will be out of here.

I am taking this in order. Again, he has made false claims in an effort to, again, have another Instagram post that you will post later, along with all the ridiculousness that happens on social media, which I will not partake in. Again, at the end of the day, we're moving forward, but I will not allow this individual who is a professional knows better. He's an attorney. He should not be making those statements. I know he's frustrated and I know he makes ridiculous statements out there and he should not be making those statements. He should know better. I did not vote on any issues of Mr. Kapoor, and it's been very clearly stated and documented. We're moving forward. Mr.

Clerk, Estelle Lockhart.

Good morning.

I'm here to speak on item F6, which is coming up a little bit later.

Estelle Lockhart, 1515 Caprice Street, resident business owner, Gables High parent, advocacy chair at Ponce Middle School PTSA, and past PTA president at Little Carver. Item F6 is about the public school guide. The public school guide, a year in coming to you. Last fall, the Chambers Education Committee started their public school ambassador program to start to pair a business partner with each of our area public schools. The question arose, can we know a little bit more about each of these schools? I was tasked with making a list of the schools' contact information and websites. While doing so, I realized this is nowhere near enough. The gem that is embodied in our Gables Public Schools cannot be overstated. It's my hope that the Gables Public School Guide shines a light on the good work, really the miracle that happens each day in our public schools. That work not only impacts our children and families, it impacts our property values, future workforce readiness, and likelihood of businesses moving and staying in our community.

Miami-Dade County Public Schools has over 300 schools.

It's the third largest public school in the country. Technically, it is their responsibility to publicize their public schools. Our guide highlights 10 of the 300. Why? Because Coral Gables has something unique to offer current and prospective community members. It is an amazing place to live, learn, work, and play. Today is the day to further the learn part of that mission. When I was deciding where to send my children to pre-K, kinder, and then last year where to send them to high school, I wish I had had the guide. The guide details each area public school. It gives a step-by-step description about how to apply, magnet schools, deadlines. I didn't want to drive outside of my community. I wanted a community school. I wanted a community school where my neighbors and my friends were in classes and were in sports with my kids. So many residents of Coral Gables move here because they want that too. Thank you to Vice Mayor Anderson for her unwavering support when I met with her last fall. And thank you to all five of the commissioners who met with me over the summer to offer insight and support for the guide. Thank you also to the Chamber, Miami-Dade County Public Schools Department of Intergovernmental Affairs, the City's School Community Relation Committee, Coral Gables Community Foundation for their support for the guide in our schools. Finally, a special thanks to Martha Pantin and the City's Public Affairs and Community Communications Department for their expertise for making the guide so beautiful. Thank you so much.

Thank you very much. Mr. Clerk? That's him, Mr. Mayor.

Mr.

Manager, if I may, I'd like to invite the Chief up just to have a few words in regards to one of the comments that was made here. Chief, could you address the issue of the item that I referred to through the Manager to the necessary authorities and to your office in regards to the Garden of Our Lord? So I want people to really understand what the commission should be saying and what should we what we should that we should be respecting the process. So your guidance would be really appreciated through the mayor.

I have an item that he's going to do exactly that.

Chief, would you be so kind?

sure um and again i think i can answer both questions um from a historical perspective that the issues were raised by someone that was appearing in front of this body there was a vote and a direction at you the chair to the manager that we do the invest we review it and do the investigation or refer it out appropriately As we have had other cases that have come up, this did not involve one of our elected officials. It did not involve a constitutional officer. So the decision after reviewing it with the internal affairs commander is that we will do the investigation of the issues that took place here that day. Once that investigation is done and we are looking at it criminally, as well as any other ethics violations and charter, if there were charter changes, again, the charter wouldn't apply to anybody that said anything. Once those and those sworn statements are taken, we will present it to the state attorney's office. If it's applicable, we will present it to the state ethics commission or well as the state county ethics commission. because it is an open internal affairs investigation we are not going to comment about that witnesses that we have interviewed already if they want to speak in public there's nothing i can do to stop them from speaking in public but once that direction was given by me to internal affairs and we've opened up a case that's the end of our conversations in public we are prohibited by statute to have any comments about an open Ongoing criminal investigation, which is what it is right now.

So, chief 1st, and foremost, thank you to the manager. I've received probably a handful of phone calls. 2 or 3 phone calls from individuals in the community just in regards to this. I had a clear conversation with the manager who had a conversation with the chief. And our city attorney where again, this is an open investigation. We have to respect the process, so we can. Have public comment, you can come and voice your opinion, but when you schedule time with a sitting commissioner, the mayor, or 1 of our staff members here is under the auspices of city manager. You're going to get the same response back. It's not that we're stonewalling is that there are required. Guidelines and guardrails to ensure that this investigation is handled appropriately. And it's not sidelined by a mistake or by a public comment or by something that may, again, not allow the process to continue in a manner that is appropriate. So I just ask people to respect the process. It may take time. If you'd like a follow up, you can send us an email. You can make it a public record, but make sure you copy the manager. the city attorney and the police chief and they will and we will all refer it at least i will myself i will refer it to the manager the city attorney and to the police chief so they can be the ones that properly respond so that we don't compromise this investigation i'm asking you just to please work with us on that front if you want to have a weekly update a monthly update Just copy the entire commission and do as I ask, please, so that we do not compromise this investigation, which is critically important. That's why I called for it, even though I know certain blogs don't want to mention the person that called for it because they want to implicate some members of the commission. And it's absolutely ridiculous. and we're we are not going to implicate anyone here when this is the commission that asked unanimously for this investigation i know it's political season and people want to score points but let's not do it at the expense of the city's reputation the challenge for me on the on your points and i i want to be very careful with everybody well

The more they ask you, the more I'm telling all of you individually or collectively, I'm not going to talk to you about it. And that's, I mean, so, I mean, I can tell you now, I mean, the manager will see the case. And once I talk, we'll present it to the state attorney's office or if there's something to be found. So they can ask you all you want. And I know, you know, Commissioner Castro, we can talk. But I am prohibited, so I am not going to tell any of you what's going on until it's concluded. Because I won't even know what's going on. Internal Affairs is separate in itself doing the investigation. Then they will present it to me and we will make a decision. But in the meantime, and I guess to your constituents, is they can ask you all you want. The answer for me is going to be, I can't talk to you about it. And I won't because then the investigation is just, but everything else that's been mentioned in public comment today, we know the statutes and we are going to apply all of the applicable violations. And how long this takes, it's a little different. And we have experience in doing this in the city from the police department side.

Thank you for providing the necessary guidance and clarity. Thank you.

Through the Mayor, my item goes a little further than what you were explaining. I understand it's an open investigation, so maybe stay around still for that item.

Okay, unless we want to.

You're going to address it now.

I mean, through the mayor.

What I would like to do, which is customary, as the commission knows, you're supposed to hear the end of public comment, finish consent, and then we're going to move on to the item. But if you would like to hear the item now and you have anything else that you'd like to add that is of any other that you can add, please feel free.

Through the managers. I appreciate you suggesting that, but I'm not ready for the item because I have documents I'm putting up that I'm not prepared for right now because I didn't think it was coming up. Okay.

All right. Again, the reason why I came up was very clear. You had comments that were made in public comment. I do not want anyone to leave here to say it was not addressed on the public record. Thank you very much, Chief. We look forward to hearing you once again, which I imagine you will be repeating exactly what you just said.

I just need to know, since I wore the hat in the beginning to me, I don't have to wear it for this.

No, no, no, no, no. That was part of that was part of commission. A lot of, you know, apparently my boss said yes. So it all depends. Okay, moving on to consent agenda.

Before the vote adopting the consent agenda is taken, is there anyone who wishes additional discussion or review of any item on the consent agenda?

Yes, I have one item, item D5, that I'd like to remove. And here separately.

Following agenda item D5, may I have a motion on the consent agenda without item D5? I'll move it. Second.

All in favor?

Aye. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Item D5, Mr. Manager. As we discussed in our agenda meeting, if you have your procurement director, please join us. Thank you very much. I want to, I want to make it very clear. I'm not picking on anybody here. Everybody's done an amazing job. Procurement did an amazing job. And I want to thank commissioner a lot of service on this process. I know he was kind of thrust into the moment. I got, I had a little bit of a conflict and that's why we put you as the. as the backup pitcher, but then you ended up becoming, I mean, obviously the number one pitcher. So thank you for that so much. My pleasure. You did a stellar job. My issue here is something that I want to really focus on, and I want to kind of bring it to the attention of the commission, because this is common sense. This is a common sense issue. The entity that came in number two, came in number two based on price, not based on qualifications. They were the most qualified as per the votes. the entity number two obviously was not voted number one because their price was higher i have an issue with that and by the way the manager will tell you we're working on something for about six months and i'm going to bring it up after so that you guys are all aware of what we're doing and i hope i hope that you will join me in this effort and i've been working with you on it also for six months um And that is, if we're going to select somebody in RFP or RFQ, again, I have no relationship with any of these individuals. I don't know them personally. If you're going to select somebody, I want to have the most qualified entity. I want to figure out a way that if they are, for example, more expensive than the number two, then they fall out of favor because of their price, because their price counts for more and gives them a higher score, that we give them the opportunity to match or become a lower price than the one that came. I don't want to compromise price, excuse me, quality over price, which I understand is something that I'm going to touch upon now. This is why I brought it up. That's why I brought it up. And I'm not saying you did your job. I've been working with a manager for six months and our procurement director and our finance director and our team in preparation for this referendum, which is forthcoming in November, which I'm 100% behind. And I think it's a great referendum and everyone should support. that we're gonna potentially be faced with a $6 million tax hit this year, reduction, and next year will be $12 million. That doesn't go into the facts that we'll talk about later in the budget of other additional things that have gone up, 25% for our healthcare costs, a litany of other things that have gone up also in price. I wanna be as prepared as possible for that, and I've asked the manager to review the top 20 procurement contracts that we have everything here in the city some of these contracts are two-year contracts three-year contracts five-year contracts but they have out clauses for convenience that convenience may be that we cannot afford or we'll have to cut services i'm not willing to cut services And I know that none of you are willing to cut services.

So I don't even want to implicate anyone because they're not.

I know they're not. So this is an example where I want to have a conversation about having the most qualified individual entity win the RFQ and also give them the opportunity to also lower their price so we can get more value. The difference is around $200,000, a significant number. Madam Director to the Manager, what do you think about my idea? Okay, we can have that conversation. We're having it in the public here.

I have mixed feelings. The process is the process. I'm going to be honest with you. It was open. It was fair and transparent. And we actually lay out the rules of engagement before we issue the project. So our charge is to follow that process. And we did. So through the RFP process, which is qualitative, so we evaluate them on multiple things. So to say they were the most qualified is a little bit challenging for me because they were evaluated on multiple things. So I'm not going to say that they were most qualified because if they were, for me, they would have been chosen to be ranked number one.

Can I add some color to that? Maybe you can, maybe you'll give me a little bit. Further guidance. Okay. If they were the lowest price, what place would they have come in?

I can't say that.

They would have come in first place.

I can't say that because, again, there were evaluation committee of five members who were all professional, come from different aspects, and saw things differently. I don't want to put Commissioner Lara on spot, but he was there to be on the committee. So he can attest to the fact that everyone has different opinions and different assessments of the qualifications of the proposers. So I'm not gonna ever hedge my bet to say who would have come out first. I am just gonna honestly tell you that based on the qualifications, all of the criteria that was considered and the pricing, That's one whole package. I can't separate the two to say because they were the highest price they did or didn't. Because, again, someone else would have maybe seen some other factor or criteria that would have maybe changed how they voted. So I'm never going to be able to speak to the committee on how they assess their points in the criteria. But at the end of the day, the second ranked proposer was the highest price proposer. And as part of the RFP process is that we do negotiate with the highest ranked or the proposal that we recommend to this actual body. So the whole point is that we intend to negotiate with the lowest price, which was, again, $238,000 lower than the second proposal. So at this point, our recommendation was to move forward with the highest ranked proposal and then enter into negotiations with them to see ultimately where the price would end up being.

In response, my point is simple. I'm not saying to move forward with a more expensive one. What I'm saying is to move forward with the most qualified. And I understand that, Commissioner Lara. Thank you for volunteering. My concern is having the most qualified firm and obviously at the best value. You can see that we cannot obviously spend and spend and spend. There are contracts that I brought to your attention and the manager and I have reviewed that are significantly, significantly overpriced that right now are, you know, we're having an issue with. And we're going to have to face those contracts. So I just wanted to bring to the attention of the commission. I personally believe that, you know, you want to have the most qualified firm. And maybe this is something that we start working on from this moment on where we say, I want the most qualified firm. And then if they are not the cheapest, give them the opportunity to become the cheapest. Because I think that we want to try to save as much money in this climate that we're in right now. Every cent, every dollar is going to count towards services. And we're being hit by all angles. whether it's a $2 million cola every single year for the next nine years to a $6 million this year for taxes. Next year will be 12, 25% increase in our healthcare costs. You know, the giving tree just doesn't keep giving money. You know, we have two union negotiations that we're working on right now. So the cost of doing business is going up and we're not growing. We're not growing at the rate that we were growing before. So Commissioner Vara, you want to say something? Yes, they would.

So first of all, I wanted to thank you for running an amazingly tight, efficient, comprehensive meeting that we had. I had no idea, by the way, what I was getting myself into, because I think I had to read like 700 pages, something in that vicinity. And I was simply awestruck by the caliber and the quality of the people who served on that board, on that committee, because these were preeminent. experts in their field they certainly left me in the dust right um but you all did a very good job and it was very efficient and it was uh there was quite an accomplished group of candidates that we had to evaluate but as the mayor said and i'm thinking about this as well We are in an incredibly difficult economic period right now and facing something that could rather drastically change the way we conduct business and what services we provide to the city going forward as soon as November. So because it was such a close number one and number two in the end, and I don't want to reveal too much in terms of the numerical final tally, It even had to go through a tiebreaker, if I remember correctly. We're subject to a negotiation the city would have to do anyway with the top ranked recommended based on the numerical tally.

Right.

So isn't it fair to say that no matter how that negotiation would play out, if you played out the way that we've identified the way we were going to go, What do we do if you have an opportunity to negotiate a more favorable economic outcome if you also engage with number two? So that in the end, no question, we have the top two qualified. And you're right, qualification can ebb and flow depending on any one of the people that we're voting and assessing the numbers, but there can be no doubt that number one and number two are preeminently qualified. So if the last factor to consider and perhaps second only to qualifications, right, is the cost of the services for a multi-year auditing commitment, shouldn't we open that up So that, I mean, I'm just kind of asking almost what's a rhetorical question. Open that up to some further negotiations so that the city will benefit from the best economic outcome while not sacrificing the qualification of the candidates. Just throwing it out there. I think we should, by the way, that's my view.

Through the mayor. Yes, ma'am. Essentially what I was going to suggest is that we provide staff more leeway that all those, you know, higher qualified company or individual be given that opportunity to either match, you know, the lower price. It really just depends. And whether the process is, you know, answer the following question at the end of this contract. Are you willing to negotiate a lower price than what you have quoted? You know, if you're deemed one of the highest qualified at the top, I mean, perhaps we should be able to give staff that leeway to do that reach out and say, are you willing to come down an additional? Because we've done the tallying, you know, and You know, there's a delta of this amount of money. Are you willing to come down that amount? So if that's the only determinative factor is price that's separating, you know, the two bidders, perhaps that's the appropriate route. Through the mayor. Yes.

I would just add one, and I agree, Vice Mayor, and I would add one more point. If we were to provide, which I'm completely in support of staff with greater degree of flexibility at this stage after all the analysis and the votes were taken to negotiate between, let's say, ranked number one and ranked number two, I wouldn't be looking for something matching. would look that the ultimate if the deciding factor is going to be the economics that they have to be the lowest not not end up again coming down and just matching someone i i like sort of uh at this point the competitive leverage that we should be able to harness in a race to the bottom i would say in terms of the price while always ensuring that we have at the very top the qualifications

Looking at your rating chart, price also factors into that rating at the end. Is there a way maybe to work on that valuation that we're giving the pricing and exclude that from the decision before negotiation? Because maybe if you eliminate the price when you're making a decision on who the final people at the table are, you're not factoring that in. Then you can say, well, we have two that are really high. And actually, if you look at this, number two is actually higher than number one if you exclude the price. So there may even be... a third that would fall ahead of number one, the current number one, if you exclude the price. So something to consider, maybe make a decision prior to factoring in the valuation, and then factor in valuation at that point and try to negotiate with your top companies in order to have the best option at the table for the commission. At the end of the day, it's the commission's decision on who to go with. You can make a recommendation, the commission can decide to go with number two or number three, based on other factors. So maybe eliminate the price portion when you're making a decision and then negotiate with the top getters and see what the final price is. I don't know if that's even allowed in the process, something for you to consider, I guess.

It's something we can consider. I'm not going to put myself on the spot and obligate myself to that because that's usually not our process and it's not a standard process that it's not included. There are some agencies that do that, but it's on particular projects that they do that. So that's something that we can consider since that is your concern today. And normally we do not rarely, rarely do we have a tie and rarely are they this close in the scoring as far as that's concerned. So if your concern is that, then we can, with this particular project, do dual negotiations. So we can go into negotiations simultaneously, parallel, and negotiate with both firms. And whichever firm gives us the best pricing will be the firm that we would move forward with if that is your concern for this project today.

Mr. Manager, do you want to say something?

Yes, Mayor. Thank you. Thank you, Mayor. This is an interesting topic because it also plays itself in our construction contracts. It's very difficult to work in government because a C is as good as an A. And if somebody is a little bid and they have everything together, then a small amount can determine going with a firm that's not as qualified or anywhere as qualified. So this is an interesting topic because we deal with it in construction on the CIP side all the time. And it's something that would certainly help with flexibility because low bid doesn't necessarily mean lowest price at the end of the project, as you know. And so it's a difficult dynamic working with government in the sense that you know that you're not, you're evaluating a C player versus an A player, even though the price differential really in the private sector, you always go with the A player. And so a little flexibility, I think, from our perspective in CIP also would be beneficial.

Mr. Manager, two points. Number one, can you flush that out a little bit with your team and see if you can bring something to the commission maybe in the next month, just giving us a roadmap to potentially offering even more successful procurement, giving you that flexibility to be able to hire the best of the best. By the way, I want to be very, very clear on the record because I don't want to get a phone call from any of the individuals who are engaged in this procurement. All of you are very qualified, very reputable firms. I just looked at the numbers like Commissioner Fernandez says. I looked at the numbers and the numbers. When you exclude the price, you have a significant change. So what I would like to see is a negotiation by the manager and his team of number one and number two to get the best qualified entity at the best price. Like I brought up, I will be bringing to commission probably in the next meeting or the following meeting contracts. We will be putting forth a memo to the manager and I in my office, putting for the memo to commission to consider to look at contracts that we have that again, where we can save significant dollars. by going back to bid, especially in this climate. Maybe we go back to bid and we don't get better contracts, but we got to try at least to see what we can squeeze and find some money so that again, we have a lot of needs in the community and we don't want to, we don't want to cut on services, not an option. So this is an example where we want to squeeze to get the best price. And I'm happy you brought up the fact that a lot of hand, a lot of times our hands are tied in the private sector gives us a lot more, you know, can navigate the waters a little bit easier because we can have those candid conversations with the entity that we're about to select. So I'd like to see if my colleagues will indulge me, but we can negotiate with the first and the second. Your team can negotiate with the first and the second, getting the best qualified firm at the best price.

Through the mayor? Yes, sir. I just want to make it clear that I was not talking about these four firms, these four excellent firms. I was talking in general about construction projects and CAP projects.

That happens to me. And I know exactly what you're saying because it happens all the time. You get a price. And if you're in the private sector, you can say, oh, that person doesn't have the adequate insurance, for example, or doesn't have the adequate experience. It's happened to me where I haven't gotten a job because I don't have enough experience in that one sector of construction. It'll take a few years to get that experience. But in the public sector, they meet the minimum threshold and qualifications, you know, five years of business, 10 years of business, depending on what they're going after. I mean, again, bridge construction is very different. You're not going to hire a residential contractor to build a bridge. So I just want to make sure that people understand what I'm talking about. So at the end of the day, I would like to see if my colleagues will indulge me in that and to see if we can put our best foot forward.

Commissioner, I'd like to make a motion here. I'D LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION AT LEAST ON A VERY SPECIFIC POINT TO ALLOW THE CITY MANAGER THROUGH HIS OFFICE AND PROCUREMENT TO NEGOTIATE SPECIFICALLY WITH CBIZ AND CITRIN COOPER. THESE ARE THE TOP TWO AS THEY WERE RANKED GOING INTO TODAY'S MEETING TO ALLOW THEM TO DO THE NEGOTIATION. uh to enter into a contract bringing it back for the approval ultimately by the commission um based on the pricing alone a second on motion can i yes of course

So can I make a friendly amendment? We would move forward with your recommendation for us to do parallel or dual negotiations with both. But does it have to come back before the commission? Because our recommendation is always be that we're recommending who we're moving forward with and the authority to move into negotiations course with the charge here would be moving into a final contract with the lowest you know price or best price um a proposer but do we have to bring it back to the commission my director has some time constraints that she would like to move forward as quickly as possible with um getting the external auditor on board so That would be my only suggestion or recommendation. Through the mayor?

The only thing I see with the lowest, there could be a very minute difference between high and low. And I think maybe we could look at this a little bit differently. And it's a very difficult dynamic in government because of that.

I would prefer that the motion be that it comes back to the commission quickly so that we can, as the commission, vote based upon what the recommendation is from the city manager's office so that even if there was a nominal lower price, we still make the consideration overall for which is the one to enter into a contract with. Because if not, I appreciate your request for a federal amendment, then we would lose the ability to make the final decision if we just left it to who came in $1 below. So I would leave my motion as made.

Okay, so we have a motion and a second. Mr. Clerk?

Commissioner Castro?

Yes.

Commissioner Fernandez? Yes. Commissioner Lara? Yes. Vice Mayor Anderson?

Yes. Mayor Lager? Yes. Thank you very much. Mr. Mr. Manager, if we can, I'd like to see if you can sit down with my colleagues in preparation for the discussion on a half dozen, a dozen contracts that we're reviewing for potential reconsideration, maybe prior to the next commission meeting or the next few weeks.

Mayor, we would like to meet with you first, because you're the one that asked for that, and we've taken the top 20 contracts so we can look at, and then come back with those contracts that we feel that there can be a substantial savings on.

Okay, perfect. Thank you very much. Thank you. Okay, moving on, we have a time certain item, item F6. I apologize for being a little tardy. Mr. Clerk?

Mr. Public School Guide.

Good day. I'm Dr. Winnie Chang, your chair of the School and Community Relations Committee. I have here our vice chair.

Hi, Cecilia Sleznik, 721 Navarre, Vice Chair of the School and Community Relations Committee.

So can I introduce the item? Yeah, please. OK, I appreciate that. So I met with the SCRC individuals, as mentioned earlier, about the importance of public schools, about providing residents a guide in order that they understand what offerings are available from our various public schools. and you know one of the things that i learned during the process is how pons middle school which is often overlooked and underrated uh is a gateway to get into coal gables high and it's an it's a fact that many many people that are in our um community are not aware of and they miss out on the opportunity to be able to attend Coral Gables High and want to attend Coral Gables High but for the fact that they knew that Ponce Middle had great offerings, great education, as mentioned earlier a draft came to us i handed it off to martha pantine who did a magnificent job of honing it to be something that parents could understand and thank you for all your hard work from the src on gathering the information it was necessary to put this guy together

Thank you. So I was just going to say a few words to open before I pass the mic to the Vice Chair, Ceci Slesnick. But I just wanted to thank all of you up here for your continued support of the SCRC and the work that we do. Every meeting, we have citizens and city residents who come either via Zoom or in person to share with us their concerns. Every meeting, we have district stakeholders, multiple actually, who all kind of come together. And it has been a collaboration of multiple entities to make this possible. come to fruition. And so we thank you for your continued support.

Yes. And we just wanted to say thank you for giving us the time today to present this really important publication that we know is going to have a really good digital footprint. And we're also hoping we'll have a little bit of a limited run as well so that at places like the Farmers Market or the Literary Fest in May, families can pick these up maybe even in your offices as well that would be great so as miss lockhart stated earlier which thank you so much estelle for really spearheading this um this is an opportunity for the city to showcase how incredible the gift of our public schools are in the district. I know that Commissioner Lara and I are both Gables High grads. I currently have my daughter is a sophomore at Gables High. She was a part of the summer intern program. So these are really wonderful young people that we're preparing in so many ways, and they are our public school students that are doing that. My husband is also a product of the public school system and is currently a teacher in the system. So we want to highlight how wonderful these opportunities are. the chamber has been working really closely um to get this going and then the scrc for a number of months now has been going through it diligently with um martha pantine's office and the help of nicole in her office as well and also together with gabby valladares and chelsea grinnell who come to all of our meetings and are there So a lot of really thoughtful hands have been on this guide that's going to give families current residents and future residents and then those who do business advice. in our community, the opportunity to see what the different schools are, what the programs are, what the grades are, what are the ratios, what kind of programs are they offering? So it's not just going to the school websites and doing the work yourself. It's an all-inclusive place for families to learn more and for you all as well to just kind of see the status of really how incredibly high achieving our schools are within the city. One of the reasons that we wanted to present today specifically is because October 1st is when the magnet season opens. And what that means is that families all through the community in and outside of Coral Gables are going to be looking to see what schools are presenting what types of programs. Do I want my children to apply for these magnet schools? And as you all know, the only non-magnet full community school that we have in the city is Coral Gables Preparatory Academy, which is a K through eight founded by George Merrick, technically one year older than the city of Coral Gables, the school is. So we have all of these gems. We want to show them off. We want to get excited to showcase the wonderful work that that our principals, our teachers, the PTAs are doing in these schools, and we hope to do it with the help of this guide.

Well, thank you very much for your time and dedication. I know staff is going to make this guide available electronically. It's how I've had a lot of people reach out to me when asking me various questions on, you know, where they should live and what's available, parks are available, schools available. It's great that this can be a resource for them when they're somewhere else and deciding what they want to do when they move to Coral Gables. Thank you, and thank you, Ms. Pantene, for your exemplary work, as always, putting this together. There are a couple schools down south, and I spoke to Ms. Pantene about that as well, that I think can be added to this guide, that are traditional public schools, and I'd ask that you continue to work with staff and add those to the guide as well.

Certainly. We definitely want to make this the most cohesive guide for families. And so we certainly will continue our conversations with her really talented office. And we will continue to have conversations with the district. As Dr. Chang mentioned, we have the privilege of having the school district at our meetings every month. The meetings, as you all know, are open to the public, so we do invite and encourage members of the community, PTSA members, parents, to come and sit in. They're really informative. This last month, we were pleasantly surprised with the new school board superintendent. who literally surprised us. So we weren't expecting it. And he stayed for over an hour and a half listening to parents and the committee members alike. So the public schools are a gift in this community. We can't really stress that enough. And it was part of the benchmark that George Merrick had in mind when he was founding and planning the city. That's why Coral Gables Preparatory Academy is a year older than the city. He knew how important education was to making sure that this community would thrive and be here for generations. So thank you all so much for your support. And our meeting is actually this Friday. So if anyone wants to come, we'll be right in this building at 830 in the morning.

Thank you very much. And I'm sure that, you know, our communications department will make the availability of this known through, you know, the resources that we have. Thank you.

Thank you. Great work as always. Thank you for leading the way. Moving on now to item F7, which is an item that I've sponsored. I'd like for our government affairs director to please join us, Chelsea Grinnell. We're going to be discussing our legislative priorities update. And I also want to talk a little bit about Some of the wins, some of the major wins that we've had this year at the state level, which, again, have been serious for us, especially as we're facing a potential financial crunch. We're going to be able to really address needs that have been at the forefront of many people's minds for a long time. You know, case in point, the Gondola building, which has been a hotly discussed item here for for some time. And I wrote a letter, which all of you saw to the state, and we were able to relocate the gondola building, which was through leadership of the manager and Chelsea. We were able to get the gondola building relocated, which to me is again is going to actually not only. bring that building back to its historic presence and beauty, but it's also going to get actual life out of the building now. It's not going to be located in the middle of the golf course. I'm not a golfer, but I hear it's a little bit treacherous out there if anybody wanted to reach the building because you're being hit by potentially golf balls all the time. So the floor is yours, Madam Director. Thank you.

Thank you, Mayor. Good morning, Mayor, Vice Mayor, Commissioners. I'm happy to be here today to present our legislative, our 2026 legislative session update. I'll be presenting an overview of the city's advocacy efforts and including our appropriation outcomes, along with several other items that had impacted cities statewide. I would like to let you all know that this is an unusually challenging year, both from a policy and budget perspective. Despite that environment, I do believe that the city of Coral Gables had a strong year in Tallahassee. So throughout session, the city maintained a consistent present in our state capital and continue advocating for priorities adopted by this commission. Due to our efforts, our collective efforts made by the commissioners who traveled to Tallahassee along with our legislative team, we secured 1.575 million across three projects while only two of our requests were vetoed. Overall given the level of statewide reductions, this was very positive for our city. Our legislative agenda was intentionally broad. It included several priorities, ranging from protecting home rule to environmental and infrastructure investment to transportation safety. There were live local issues, public safety, and many others, including sovereign immunity. Throughout the session, the goal was not to pursue funding, but also protect the city's ability to govern effectively at the local level. And I'd like to draw attention to recognize the members of our state legislative delegation who represent Coral Gables, Senator Ileana Garcia, Senator Alexis Galatayud, and State Rep Demi Bussara. Their offices have been consistently accessible to us throughout the legislative process. We're very fortunate that we have a very good relationship with all three of them. I do know that the vice mayor meets regularly along with myself and the mayor with all of the state legislators. Maintaining these relationships are extremely important. They're important because much of our success depends on our collaboration, our ongoing collaboration with this delegation. Also note, it's very important that we have State Rep. Busada's office located here in our very own city at our city annex. We worked on that for several years and we're very proud that we have a direct line of contact here with her and her office. I'd also like to draw out or draw to your attention our legislative journey. The legislative journey is not just about going to Tallahassee. It's much more than that. It's building a package that are representative of our community from policy to how much of our infrastructure project requests we're making. And that starts way before session. That's in fall when our priorities are adopted, where we meet with the directors and department heads and with you all, the commissioners, to decide on what those priorities are. We move forward and when session convenes, last year was in January, we start engaging through advocacy with our state legislators. And this year's session was a little longer than usual. The governor signature wasn't until June 26th, June, sorry, early June of 2026. But this is where the real magic happens. It happens when leadership takes the time to meet with legislators. This year, our first trip included Vice Mayor Rhonda Anderson and Commissioner Richard Lara, who traveled along myself. And we also had the opportunity to join the Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce. Normally, we haven't done that as often as we should have, but it was very refreshing to have a unified voice with our business community, along with the things that are also important to the chamber are also important to the city itself. And so we did not only meet with our representing delegation, but we met with... Lieutenant Governor. We met with several other representatives outside our district. And in addition, we also met with a speaker. It was a great experience and really helpful to building collaboration and building our relationships. Our second trip as well included the mayor along with the vice mayor and myself. And we also met with the attorney general. And now here is a summary of how the state budget fared. So this year, there are $1.7 billion in vetoes. That is statewide. There were $810 million in local programs and projects that were vetoed. That's pretty significant in the grand scheme of things. South Florida was significantly impacted. Miami-Dade County, as you can see, 55.3 million. Broward, 20.7 million. Palm Beach, 19.4 million. And Monroe was four. That's a total of nearly 100 million, so nearly, with 99.4 to be more exact. So as I mentioned, the overall outcome is $1.575 million were secured. Three of our five requests were funded. And we can get into what those were. So the breakdown included the environmental remediation of $900,000 gravity sanitary sewer, which rehabilitates aging sewer pipes for $450,000, and the Ponce Waterway dredging for $225,000. I'd really like to draw attention to the $900,000. This was a huge win for the city. And I'll tell you why. It was a win because for years we really tried to, we sought out funding for this and we didn't get it. And it was the first time in years that we were able to get it. And this $900,000 is not just a one-time appropriation. It has a significant impact in our city and the way it moves forward. So what this is going to do is allow for the debris management side to be remediated on 72nd Avenue. And it is my understanding that over the course of years, we'll be placing burners on there. And over the course of several years, the city can potentially save millions of dollars by diverting waste. uh so it's not a one-time appropriation as i said it's an investment that could deliver reoccurring long-term savings while also advancing the city's sustainability goals um that was was huge for us if i could add something to that and just to kind of give give for comments a little bit more

Be a little more emphatic on that. We've been talking about that since 2017 when she was at my office. And we were talking about the opportunity of how do we control our future? The garbage fees are going up every single year. They're being passed on from the county to cities. This year, more than ever, it's a problem with Covanta and with the ever impending doom of the landfill being full probably in the next four to five years. How can we control our own destiny to a certain extent? And the EPA approved burners, something that we've been talking about since 2017. We were never able to get it started like we are now because we never had the funds in the budget. There were so many other needs that we never had the funds in the budget to allocate. I think it was about $2 million. How much, Mr. Manager? $2.2 million that was needed for the remediation of this site to be able to install the burners there and commence the process and the project of offering this service to the residents, which is going to pay huge dividends, millions and millions and millions of dollars, and continue to go up in value as the cost of getting rid of garbage only gets more expensive. There is no in the horizon answer for Covanta and there is no answer in the future right now for the landfill. They're talking about potentially taking garbage out of the county, either to another county up north or to the state. So that's why this appropriation of $900,000 and the work that's gonna be done here is so critically important. And it's a big win for the city, a huge win for the city because it allows us to control our own destiny. And by the way, I don't wanna speak for the manager, this is going to allow us to invite other cities and say hey why don't you use our facility and we can continue to add more burners as needed by the way it does not produce it's already epa approved um I sent you all a memo and I know the vice mayor was working on also the same things for the last few years. This is going to allow us to expand to other cities and invite other cities to join us and private companies to join us, which again will be a financial benefit for us as a city and give us more financial independence. So I want to congratulate you on that. I know you worked hard on that and there's a lot of opportunities here that are going to pay millions of dollars of dividends in the future. Mr. Mayor.

This is a huge, huge opportunity for the city. This is 1.7 acres. That is IU3, the highest industrial zoning in the county. It's right off of 72nd Avenue. And what it does is allows us to start the air burner issue prior to what we're working out with Dade County and the transfer site. We were thinking about using an air burner in the back of the 72nd Avenue site. With this now, we can take this 1.7 acres, remediate it, and put a burner there instead of impacting 72nd Avenue. It also helps us as far as hurricane protection from another site that we can use. In this case, instead of mulching, it would be disposing our green debris through the air burner process. When we went through with Hurricane Irma, we had 384,000 cubic yards of green matter. We are a Tree USA city, and we have 42,000 trees just in the right of way. So this is huge. for us, and it's huge, Mayor, because I don't know what the county is going to do with their waste. It's with our waste, right? And this allows us, although we have to go with garbage to the county, this allows us to take care of green matter separately. And we're working right now, moving quickly to try to remediate the site as soon as possible.

Thank you. Vice Mayor? So I'm going to add a little context, too, of the information that I was sharing with our state representatives as to why this was such a critical piece, not only for a city for the reasons you already stated, but for the state as well, because we need to do things a lot smarter. Because if you're taking material that is useful material, and you're turning it into Mount Trashmore, utilizing land that could otherwise be used for housing. If you're taking this material and throwing it away as opposed to rebuilding soils and rebuilding water cleaning capacity, using it for aggregate and and so forth you're harming the environment instead of helping the environment so um I noticed you know more recently I cannot buy soil like I used to five years ago and our efforts are consistent in this field of trying to Produce a product not create waste not have to burn Fuel to haul this all the way up the state into another not trash more that could be housing and productive land and even leave it as natural land, you know, like we want to leave next to West Lab, have some beautiful space as opposed to another Mount Trashmar. And, you know, the composting facility, 24% of our waste is food waste. So these types of initiatives that we're taking in our city are forward thinking in the way that we should be dealing with waste in the future.

Thank you for your efforts.

Mayor, this not only takes care of that, but thank you, Vice Mayor, because those are very excellent comments. From a volumetric perspective, we have 389,000 cubic yards. It reduces it by an incredible factor. In addition to that, the biochar can be used for low-grade concrete, low-grade asphalt. We're working with sidewalks, parking lots. It can be used for soil remediation. We are currently looking at a potential grant to work with the University of Miami for water remediation, to also use it for water remediation. We are going from 384 cubic yards that would be in a landfill to a product that can be used successfully and avoid that 384,000 cubic yards going to a landfill. This is a tremendous project. It's a fantastic project for the city and one that, as you mentioned, that we can work with other cities on.

Again, we're finally able to take control and it's going to save us a significant amount of money. So a great job. Yes, ma'am.

Thank you. And so the two that were not funded were traffic calming for the area around Carver Elementary and downtown drainage for 225 for a total of 625. Now, I also want to make clear that just because something doesn't pass this session, we can always look for the same kind of funding if it is the will of the commission next session. So we can evaluate that. The same is true for policies as well. So just because something is vetoed, it can still come back up.

Um,

The following slide talks about the state appropriation years from the year 2024 to 2026. In 2024, the city received no state appropriations. During that legislative cycle, members of our team met numerous times with our state legislators, many of whom expressed concern with the direction of the city at that time. Ultimately, the city received zero state funding allocations that year. Following that outcome, the city returned to Tallahassee in 2025, presenting well-supported projects that clearly demonstrated a public benefit. Those efforts produced a significant turnaround. This was our recovery year, resulting in an increase to $1.435 million in appropriations. And this year, with the help of our commission, with the mayor and vice mayor and Commissioner Lara, who have gone to Tallahassee through their efforts and our lobbying team and legislative team, we continued with a refreshed strategy. We focused on rebuilding relationships, strengthening credibility, bringing civility, and that progress allowed us to secure the highest allocation in those last three years for the $1.575 million. The upward trajectory demonstrates the progress we have made and the value of teamwork and working together. And we really, truly hope to have a much greater year and greater success next year.

Through the mirror? Yes. So I want to just, um, make a point there, uh, Chelsea, um, what a great job you did. Um, you know, that was my first trip, you know, on behalf of the city, uh, to Tallahassee when we went earlier last year and earlier this year. And I have to echo, uh, some of the points that you made earlier in your presentation to have a one-on-one relationships and, um, frequent collaboration and conversations with the representatives, right, Bussara, Cataluyud, right, Garcia, is immeasurable, you know, the value to the city. But actually going up to Tallahassee, going up there prepared with your legislative packet, with your tight agenda, with the well-researched positions that we took to each of the representatives when making the case was incredible. incalculably necessary and valuable, given the incredibly difficult economic landscape that we find ourselves in going up there. It would be tough enough if what we were doing was going up there in a tough economic landscape. But I have to say, in all candor, we went up there being scrutinized, being scrutinized against the previous delegation that went up. This was candid. This was direct. This was visceral when we met with the individual representatives. who expressed that either we in Coral Gables change how we legislate, how we prioritize budgeting, how we make the decisions that affect the grants that we're seeking from Tallahassee to be fiscally responsible, to be value driven and be representative of what true priorities are against increasing difficulties and trying to make budgets. So I feel proud of the team that went up there on the two occasions that we did. And the proof is in the pudding. Right. So having come back with, as you said, a turnaround year and now the largest of the three last years in state appropriations, again, against an incredibly steep climb, is something we all should be very proud of. And I want to recognize you for your efforts because they were stellar.

Thank you, Commissioner. Through the mayor?

Yes. Yes. So one of the things I do want to recognize as well is a little correction maybe to your presentation when we are showing the three years. On the second year, I don't think it's a surprise to anyone that I have great, great relationships with the people in Tallahassee.

Sure.

And on the second year that you were showing on your presentation, it was me in specific that was going – up to Tallahassee. from this whole commission advocating for that. So I think that's something we should also put on the record.

I'm sorry, Commissioner, which part of the PowerPoint did you want me to correct?

The 2025.

Which?

No, it was, nothing's wrong with the PowerPoint. Your vocal, what you were saying.

Yeah, the collaborative effort of this commission. That's correct.

Okay, what you said was that in 2026, it was three commissioners. You missed to say that in 2025, the only commissioner was me.

I apologize. I would like to add some clarity to that. What I said was the delegation that went to Tallahassee that was voted upon by this commission was Commissioner Lara, the mayor and vice mayor. I do believe it does have to come before the commission. I was not discrediting the efforts that you have made.

That was in 2025 before that decision, before that legislation was invoked, okay? Okay. I was the only one representing this commission. So all of that right there was me.

Through the mayor.

Yes, ma'am.

Long before you made your first trip up to Tallahassee. Before session began, I met with all of our state representatives and advocated for these issues. What I didn't want to do is demonstrate to the state legislators that I condoned the actions that you had taken. Because when I sat with them, It was explicit that they didn't approve the actions that you took and others took with regard to salaries, with regard to election issues, with regard to remuneration on vehicle charges, et cetera. It was an effort that I made to not punish the residents for the actions that were taken that the state representatives did not approve. So I didn't need to take a plane ticket. I only went up there twice this past time. I still meet with state representatives and speak with state representatives before session so that we can formulate our legislative agenda for the following year and hit the priorities and direct the priorities with our staff in a manner that we're more likely to get results in, including the wording of the presentations and not punishing the residents for the actions of the few.

Mr. Mayor? Yes, sir. So I do have to say, Commissioner Lara brought it up, that the presentation that was taken up does make a big difference. And I'll tell you, the first year that we went up, we were told to throw it away by a legislator, the first one we met with. They said, none of these items that you have here as your top priorities are going to fly this year. They told us to scratch things out or just not hand them out when we met with members of the legislature. And it's true, 2024 was a tough year. The governor mentioned it last week when we were with him that he vetoed $4.1 billion because that was his priority that year. And they moved a lot of projects from your traditional funding to grants, which they did the following year. But I have to commend you. I think the presentations as we've been taking them to Tallahassee have been much better, more focused on the priorities. Each legislative session in Tallahassee has a different focus. Each speaker has a different focus. And every year, what they're looking to fund, the projects, the type of projects, the areas that they want to be in do change. So it's important to be connected with that. And I think you and our legislative team have done a good job of being mindful and building those relationships on the back end to make sure we're not going up there with a presentation that is not really based on the priorities that leadership has for that year because they're just not going to help you.

Thank you, Commissioner. So really briefly, I'd like to outline some of the bills of notice that were approved and vetoed this year. So HB 803, it's a permitting bill. It deals with building permits and inspections. And among other provisions, it expands the role of private providers for plan review and inspections, limits certain local permitting requirements and fees, and extends extends expiration among other things all of these items are items that on the back end once things are passed we meet with a legal team and staff to make sure that the city is in compliance with all of these items and that happens every year This is another item that I thought was of interest, not only to members of this commission, but to residents. It was SB 290. It was approved and represents another direct state preemption of municipal home rule. The legislation prevents municipalities from prohibiting or restricting gasoline-powered landscape equipment, including leaf blowers, or from imposing regulations solely based on the equipment's power source. SB 382 was vetoed. It has to do with micromobility and e-bike safety. I bring this up because it was an item that was of particular interest to this commission. The legislation would have created more uniform statewide operating standards, but despite our lobbying efforts, the governor ultimately vetoed the bill. And this is the star of the show, which is property tax reform, amendment number three on the ballot. This effort requires 60% voter approval, so it will be coming to voters November 3rd. If approved, it'd take effect January 1st, and it could potentially have a significant impact on municipal tax revenues. And I'd like to say that... that the legislative accomplishments extend beyond the budget. I understand that it's not one, two, or three members of the commission that go, that's irrelevant. It's teamwork. It's collaboration. It's everyone that puts in, you know, puts a helping hand in from whether they sit on a committee at the Florida League of Cities to sit on this commission to meet with residents. Everyone plays a role in this. And to take credit from someone to give it to someone else, I think, is a disservice to our team. And moving on to that, one of our great partners is the Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce. We, as I mentioned before, went up on a delegation with them to talk about business issues that were important to the city and areas that we are aligned in as well. So it's not just a city, it's the community that comes together to advocate what's the benefit of the city of Coral Gables. And I'd like to look ahead to what the process is going to look like next. First, we're going to be working with the departments to track what the disbursements are for grants. Second, we're going to be working with staff and the commission to develop our next legislative package. This year's session begins March 2nd, so it's a little later than January. And the goal is to be even better, to make ourselves better and put ourselves in an even stronger position. And together we can accomplish that. And I wanted to really thank the mayor, the vice mayor, the commissioners for their continued support, for really moving the city forward, for having the best interest of the city. I wanna thank our state delegation, our legislative partners, our lobbying team, our leadership and staff and everyone, including those whom I have not mentioned with their help. I'd also like to say that that we have a federal pending earmark of $700,000 that was sponsored by Rep. Maria Evita Salazar, and that will be for fiscal year 2027. That's through the House Interior and Environmental Appropriations Bill for wastewater and infrastructure improvements. We will have more definite information on that, but we're very likely to obtain that $700,000 earmark. Thank you so much, and I'm available if you have any questions.

Well done. Very comprehensive. And I'm happy that we're moving in the right direction, not only in regards to appropriations, but also in regards to our advocacy. So thank you very much. Anything else? Okay. I'd like to take, before we have our next time starting item, I'd like to take E1 and E7. I don't think there's been any changes.

SO E1 IS AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COMMISSION AMENDING ORDINANCE NUMBER 2022-26 WHICH GRANTS APPROVAL OF A PLANNED AREA DEVELOPMENT FOR THE MULTIFAMILY PROJECT REFERRED TO AS 301-341 MEDERA ON THE PROPERTY LEGALLY DESCRIBED AS LAST 4-24 BLOCK 1 OF REVISED PLATOOR CORAL GABLES SECTION K. CORAL GABLES FLORIDA TO MODIFY CONDITION RELATING TO UNDERGROUND UTILITIES BY REPLACING THE UNDERGROUND UNDERGROUNDING REQUIREMENT WITH AN OBLIGATION TO CONTRIBUTE $300,000 TO THE CITY, PROVIDING FOR REPEATED PROVISIONS, SEVERABILITY CLAWS, AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. AND E7, THE RELATED RESOLUTION IS A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COMMISSION AMENDING RESOLUTION NUMBER 2022-126, WHICH GRANTED CONDITIONAL USE OF RULE FOR THE MULTI-FAMILY PROJECT REFERRED TO AS 301-341 MEDERA, UNPROPERTY LEGALLY DESCRIBED AS LATES 4-24, BLOCK 1 OF REVISED PLAID CORAL GAPLES SECTION K, CORAL GAPLES, FLORIDA, TO MODIFY CONDITION REGARDING UNDERGROUNDING OF UT

Mr. Manager?

Mr. Manager? Mr. Mayor, thank you, Mayor. The E1 is, there's no changes to E1 from second reading, for second reading.

Anything you'd like to add for the record? Bobby Behar, Gunster Law Firm, Office at 3500, 600 Berkow Avenue, 3500. There's been no changes. I'm ready to take the vote if you guys are.

Thank you.

May I have a motion?

I'll move it.

I'll second.

Mr. Clerk, any public comment?

Yes, Mr. Mayor. Maria Cruz?

Mrs. Maria Cruz, 1447 Miller Road, 305-323-2154. My only comment is the amount of money, the $300,000, and how is that going to be used, whether it's going to be used to improve that neighborhood. improve somebody else that's my only comment because I know that the city fathers or mothers usually know best and sometimes like we went through in our area the money is put in the money is available and then we forget and we never use it for the community that it was meant to be. Thank you. Mr. Clerk.

That's it Mr. Mayor.

Do we have a motion and a second?

Commissioner Fernandez? Yes. Commissioner Lara? Yes. Vice Mayor Anderson? Yes. Commissioner Castro?

I'm going to go ahead and vote yes, but I also want to put one thing on the record that is very correlated to another item that I am bringing up, and it is that on June 26, Robert Bayhart went ahead and contributed $1,000 to the Mayor's PAC. not guilty of anything. He's completely able to do that. But I'm just noting out comparables and correlations with that. Not accusing of anything at all.

I think you may be mistaking the individuals. I'm Bobby Behar. Robert Behar is somebody else.

Then I completely apologize.

Madam City Attorney,

If you would be so kind, can you please provide us a little clarity? I know the intention obviously is for a beautiful Instagram post later, but we need to put it on the record and we'll continue to put it on the record. What is the law in regards to contributing contributions to campaigns or political action committees?

So campaign contributions do not create a financial voting conflict.

Thank you very much. And what you've done here right now is conflate 2 completely different people. Well, then they want has nothing to do with this project in the in the context of what we're dealing with today through the mayor again another black eye on the city as we continue to do this, but this will end in November. It will come to an end. Mr commissioner. Yes.

So I just wanted to echo again sentiments that I. Expressed following the invocation this morning. Calling upon my colleagues here on the dais to focus more of their efforts on unity and to leave behind continued repeated efforts at division. No good comes from it.

Mr. Manager, Mayor Lago, Mr. Manager wanted to make a comment.

Thank you, Mayor. This is strictly a technical issue. This is part of the feeder system at FPNL. I just speak to FPNL. Only about 20% of the feeders at FPNL will be underground. The entire distribution system, which is what goes to the homes, will be underground. but only 20% of the feeders. This just wasn't a workable solution. The developer specified an amount, it went to a higher amount, and they agreed. And this is strictly due to technical reasons.

Thank you, Mr. Manager. Mr. Clerk?

Mayor Lago? Yes. Thank you.

Okay, moving on to the next item. Sir, if I may, Mr. Behar, I just wanted to apologize for what happened before. No individual who comes here should be confused for one another person and should be treated the way you were just treated. So I apologize on behalf of the city.

Mr. Mayor.

Yes.

We also need to vote on E7.

Yes, E7.

I'll move it.

I'll second.

Mr. Clerk, do you have any public comment? No, Mr. Mayor. Okay, perfect.

Commissioner Lara.

Yes.

Vice Mayor Anderson. Yes. Commissioner Castro. Yes. Commissioner Fernandez. Yes.

Mayor Lago. Yes. Thank you very much. Moving on to item E2.

E2 is an ordinance of the City Commission providing for tax amendments to the City of Coral Gables official zoning coded by amending Article 14, Process Section 14-217, Development Agreements to amend the maximum duration of development agreements and certain requirements to ensure consistency with state statutes and providing for repeated provisions of the Availability Clause, codification, and providing for an effective date.

Are there any changes?

There have been no changes.

No changes, Mayor. May I have a motion?

Move it.

May I have a second? Second. Mr. Clerk, do you have any public comment?

No, Mr. Mayor. All right. Vice Mayor Anderson? Yes. Commissioner Castro? Yes. Commissioner Fernandez? Yes. Commissioner Lara? Yes.

Mayor Lago? Yes. Item E3. Let's see if we can sneak this one in. We've got a minute. Okay.

E3 is an ordinance of the City Commission amending Chapter 2, Administration, Article 3, Boards, Commissions, Committees, to create Division 13 Coral Gables Youth Leadership Council, and amending Chapter 42, Community Recreation, to remove Article 3, Parks and Recreation Youth Advisory Board, and to transition the members from the Parks and Recreation Youth Advisory Board to the Coral Gables Youth Leadership Council, providing for repeated provision, severability clause, modification, and providing for an effective date. Assistant City Attorney Yesenia Alfonso can present the item.

Madam City Attorney, welcome back. Thank you for being here.

Hi, good afternoon, or good morning still. Yesenia Alfonso, Assistant City Attorney.

So this is an ordinance on first reading.

And as the city attorney said, this would be dissolving the current city parks and recreation Youth Advisory Board, we will then be creating a new Coral Gables Youth Leadership Council, which will be more broader, right, they would cover a lot more citywide matters related to the youth of the city, and work alongside all the city departments, as well as transitioning the current members of the park board to now the new Coral Gables Youth Leadership Council.

Thank you. First and foremost, thank you for working with that with my staff and myself as a sponsor of the item again through the page program and through the mentorship that we do in my office. We've had multiple individuals who have come before this commission and I've come up with some exceptional ideas. This is one of them. The idea was to engage the youth of the community in an advisory role where there's actually more active role and participation. So what you see here before you is just trying to get more insight, more guidance. And we've actually been very impressed with some of the ideas that have come from this organization. You've seen multiple of them be presented here before the commission. So again, I don't want to say it's a feel good because there's some great things that come out of it. But again, I don't think this is very controversial.

I'll move it uh mayor excellent ideas I agree that the page program showed us that there's a lot more that the youth can contribute to our city thank you Mr.

Clerk do you have any public comment no Mr. Mayor I need a second second thank you sir Commissioner Castro yes Commissioner Fernandez yes Commissioner Lara wonderful idea yes Vice Mayor Anderson? Yes.

Mayor Lago? Yes. Thank you for the support. Thank you to your staff. Madam City Attorney, thank you. Thank you. Item E4.

E4 is an ordinance of the City Commission amending the Code of Ordinance of the City of Coral Gables by amending Chapter 6, Section 6-3, Retail Beverage Store and Retail Liquor Store Licenses issued to bona fide restaurants to allow restaurants of 120 seats or over to serve alcoholic beverages or intoxicating liquors from bars, providing for repeated provision, severability clause codification, and providing for an effective date.

How are you? Hello, Madam Director.

Good afternoon. Belkis Perez, Economic Development Director. This is just a quick reminder that this ordinance addresses the minimum seating requirements for restaurants to qualify for the 4COP Special Food Service License. So that allows a qualifying restaurant to serve beer, wine, and spirits. So this ordinance just updates the seating requirements that the city has from 150 to 120 to be consistent with the threshold that is needed in order to qualify from the state license.

Perfect. It's coming down from the state through obviously some through some preemption that was forthcoming or is that actually just law that was passed?

Mayor, we've already done this a couple of times. We went from 250 when the state law changed. State law changed now to 120. So we're just following the state on this. Perfect. May I have a motion?

Move it. I have a second. Second. Mr. Clerk, any public comment?

No, Mr. Mayor.

All right.

Commissioner Fernandez? Yes. Commissioner Lara? Yes. Vice Mayor Anderson?

Yes.

Commissioner Castro? Yes.

Mayor Lago? Yes. Madam Director, thank you very much. Item H5, is this time starting for 12 o'clock?

Good afternoon.

Good afternoon.

good afternoon level three mayor vice mayor city commissioners catherine cathers arts and culture coordinator with the city and today we are going to give an update on gables go you may recall this from a while ago we've been hard at work it is still a work in progress we still have a little bit a little bit more to go but it is well on its way and we are so thrilled and excited this morning this afternoon to give you a preview So we have our team with IMX3 here. They are going to run the presentation, and then we can answer any questions that you may have.

Good morning, sir. Good afternoon, sir.

Good afternoon. Thank you. For those who may not be familiar with the project, Coral Gables Gold is an extended reality cultural experience that is digitally recreating 30 cultural sites throughout Coral Gables and bringing them together into one interactive experience. The goal is not simply to create digital copies of these places. We want people to discover their history, their art, their architecture, and the stories behind them, and ultimately becoming interested in experiences those places in person at the foundation of the project are real places we captured 30 cultural sites throughout core gables using lidar scanning and high resolution imaging we are digitally recreating those environments for people to explore on top of those digital environments we're adding cultural storytelling and interactive experiences designed around the history and character of each location. And because the experience is web-based, people can access it from almost anywhere and explore these places together in real time. But rather than to continue explaining it through slides, I think the easiest way to understand Gables Go is to see it. So we have prepared a short two-minute video to show you what the experience actually looks like.

so Thank you. so so

What you just saw is important because Core Gables Go is not intended to be a collection of 30 separate virtual tours. We're connecting these locations into one cultural journey. A visitor enters through the web, opens an interactive map of Core Gables, chooses a cultural site, and begins exploring. From there, they discover stories, interact with the environment, participate in cultural activities, and learn as they play. But the final step on this diagram is probably the most important one, visit in person. Everything we are creating digitally is ultimately intended to build curiosity about real places throughout Coral Gables. One way we are trying to make that cultural content engaging is through gamification. But gamification in Gables Go is not there simply to make the project feel like a video game. We are using interaction as a storytelling tool. Instead of only reading a historical paragraph, the visitor might meet a character, follow a clue, examine a historic photograph, discover an architectural detail, create a rubbing of a historic plague, or solve an activity connected to the story of that site. So the visitor is participating in the story rather than simply being presented with information. Our objective is to make cultural learning more engaging, particularly for younger audiences, while still creating something that adults and anybody can enjoy and learn from as well. And accessibility has been one of the most important technical goals of Gables Go from the beginning. The entire experience runs on the web. There is no application to download and nothing to install. A visitor can enter from a desktop, a laptop, a mobile phone, a tablet, or a compatible VR headset. And Gables Go is also a real-time multi-user experience. So families, students, friends, or visitors in different locations can explore Core Gables together in real time. We wanted the technology to remove barriers rather than create them. The idea is very simple. Open the web browser and go. And this brings us back to what I believe is the larger mission of the project. Successful Gables Go is not simply measured by how much time someone spends inside the digital experience. We want someone to discover Merrick House, Venetian Pool, the Biltmore, a piece of public art, or perhaps a cultural site they never heard of before, and become curious enough to go and see it in person. The digital experience can introduce the place, tell its story, and create that connection. But the goal is to inspire people to experience Coral Gables for themselves. The digital experience becomes the invitation. Coral Gables remains the destination. And that is ultimately what we're building Gables Go to accomplish. Thank you. Thank you, Mayor.

Congratulations. Again, I'm not that tech savvy, but I find it intriguing, and I think it's something that's going to bring people into Coral Gables, especially through this program, to be able to learn more about our history and who we are and what makes us special. So I want to congratulate you on that work and staff for doing an amazing job.

Thank you very much. And I also want to add that we've been doing a lot of playtests with different demographics, including 10, 12, 15 years old, and even 20 years old. And we're getting tremendous reviews. So we're very happy for that. Well done.

Very nice. Thank you for the update.

I just wanted to add that it's been a tremendous effort with our colleagues throughout the city, also with our IT department. And now we'll be moving on with our marketing to really get it out there. And the project is also going to be presented at a national public art conference, a very prominent one at the end of the month. So a lot of exciting things going on.

Great stuff. Well deserved.

Mayor, I think this is going to be a tremendous tool for our city. You should probably have our original schools in there, too.

Yes, that's part of the plan. We talked about that, actually reaching out to the schools as a tool for education, and the experience has the ability to change and have things updated and also add more sites. So we have our 30 sites, but we're already thinking of additional sites.

Thank you.

Thank you.

No action required. We'll move on to item E five.

E5 is an ordinance of the City Commission providing for text amendments to the City of Coral Gables official zoning code by amending article 11 signs section 11-109 temporary non-commercial signs to amend the number and placement of temporary non-commercial signs eliminating front yard setback requirements and authorizing additional bonus signs under certain circumstances providing for repeater provisions, severability clause, codification and providing an effective date. The Deputy City Attorney can present the item.

Good afternoon Mayor, Vice Mayor, Commissioners. This item is sponsored by the Vice Mayor and it's a small text amendment to our sign code to allow some additional signage during certain times of year and in certain situations. This would allow for one additional bonus time during certain times of year. to be placed within the setback, which used to be five feet for these temporary non-commercial signs. As you know, those are the sort of small light temporary signs that we see throughout the year. So this would add one additional sign during certain times of year and eliminate that five foot setback. It would also explicitly allow for those signs to be attached to any fences or walls on private property should that have been a hindrance to seeing those signs in the past. Happy to answer any specific questions.

Madam Vice Mayor, is your item?

And I appreciate the hard work that you've done on this. I mean, this is something I've been, you know, talking to staff about for some time because we have, you know, individuals that have walls and bushes and stuff that make the temporary signs display five feet back and possible. And then you also have the situation where signs are removed and the person is mobility impaired and is having to place that sign back where they originally wanted it. So I think now is the time to do this. And if there's no other comments from my colleagues, I'd like to move this.

Anything else? Yes, the mayor. I think this is a great idea. I think one of the things that we always hear complaints about is somebody puts a sign with where they're allowed to put it and landscapers come out and mow the lawn, not all of a sudden it's moved. And now we're putting a burden on on a resident. I think it's it's something that like you said, long time coming. So happy to second.

Thank you.

Anything else good for the order? Okay. Mr. Clerk, any public comment?

Maria Cruz.

Good afternoon. This is Maria Cruz, 1447 Miller Road. I like the idea. I find it a little confusing to because after reading it, I realized that it also non-commercial signs includes political signs. And I think that since the political season has already begun and the people running for office already got the rules, it's very confusing to change the rules in the middle of the game. That's my comment. I think it would have been better if we had waited till this session, this season had ended instead of confusing now when it's already almost done. Bye.

That's it, Mr. Mayor.

All right, we have a motion and a second.

Commissioner? Commissioner Lara?

Yes.

Vice Mayor Anderson? Yes. Commissioner Castro? Yes. Commissioner Fernandez? Yes.

Actually, quick question. Based on that comment, would we be able to give directives for staff not to enforce the current policy? Since this is being revised? It would have to be a second secondary motion. I'm just curious, because it's right, if we are in the process of changing it, we shouldn't be enforcing the old regulation, if I think there's an appetite here to change it.

I would I would take that as a friendly amendment.

We can incorporate that into the ordinance. Well, I guess we could do a separate resolution with it with that direction since the ordinance won't be approved until second reading week. We understand the motion with that amendment and we can incorporate that.

Yes. Yes. Moving on to E six.

E6 is an ordinance of the City Commission creating Chapter 2 administration, Article 13, campaign finance reform to prohibit campaign contributions from vendors, certain lobbyists, and real estate developers, providing for repeater provisions, severability clause, codification, and providing for an effective date.

good afternoon again i'm stephanie throckmorton wcd attorney this item is sponsored by commissioner castro and mirrors exactly prohibitions on the books in the city of miami beach that prohibit campaign contributions from vendors certain lobbyists and real estate developers as defined in This proposed ordinance which has to do with those with pending applications or certain pending applications We've raised before with all of you We do have some concerns about Florida statute 1 of 6.08, which has some pre-emptive language regarding campaign finance reform Thank you, thank you the mayor yes, this isn't Yes

So this is one of the items that I have sponsored. I have brought it several times and I have deferred it. And I have some questions for the city attorney and then I have some graphics that I'm going to go ahead and put on the screen. Actually, like as an example of why we should push something like this forward or why the city attorney's office should help me grab something to stop this from happening. One of the first questions I have for the city attorney is, why can Miami Beach maintain restrictions involving developers, vendors, and lobbyists, and we can't?

So, Commissioner, as I've mentioned to you, I will not give an opinion on Miami Beach's ordinances. I do not know to what extent that ordinance or those regulations are being enforced by Miami Beach. What I do know is that there is a state statute that provides for an express preemption here. And in fact, it provides any existing or future limitation or restriction enacted or adopted by a municipality, which is in conflict with this subsection, is void.

Okay, so can Coral Gables adopt the same or similar framework?

My general recommendation when there is an express preemption is that we not adopt a regulation that has been preempted by the state.

So if my ordinance is preempted, tell me what portion of it is not.

So my understanding is that, so the proposed ordinance is generally a restriction on the ability of certain individuals to make campaign contributions. And that would be, that is preempted, that field is preempted by the state. They have set the limits on what the campaign contributions are. And they've said, the state has said that a municipality cannot enact a regulation that conflicts with that.

So what is the strongest restriction that Florida law allows us to adopt?

So right now you cannot adopt any restrictions in conflict with the state rules. We cannot. So we have discussed that there is perhaps the ability to require a disclosure, but a limitation or restriction like this is preempted.

Is there any possibility, because we can't just sit here and say we're not going to do anything about this when it's clear in our face of what is happening. Can you, your office, go ahead and draft something and bring it back to me that is legally sufficient and that covers my major concerns?

So, commissioner, I think I'm happy to meet with you to better understand what, you know, when you say what to just what is happening. I think I need to better understand what the issue is so that we can help you address it. We have had conversations about alternatives to this that I think would, you know, are defensible. And happy to discuss that with you and bring something back if we can come up with something that meets your approval.

I'm going to go ahead and set one example so you understand what I'm talking about. And this might go a little bit off, but since this is very brand new, let me go ahead and present the Garden of Our Lord and the exact examples of contributions within a 48-hour period before the vote.

Okay.

Billy, you have a graphic. You have two graphics of mine. I emailed them to you. I didn't.

Give me a graphic about agenda item F14 and a second one about agenda item D6.

OK, so then you're going to have to give me one minute to go ahead and present that. I mean, the mayor goes ahead and runs the agenda. But if you give me three minutes, I can go ahead and send the graphics to him. Is that okay with you?

Obviously, since the graphics are going to be about me, just a few points for clarity. I think they're important. Again, Election season, you've given your best shot. You've tried twice in this commission meeting to try to have some civility here on the commission floor. You've made two comments. There's no way to do it. I've done my best, but it's the onslaught of constant attacks and attacks and attacks. You're not running against me. You're running against Nestor Menendez, which I hope everyone in this community votes for. Number one.

Number two.

What we're not discussing here is the simple fact of if you were to outlaw, you were to outlaw donations by a certain group of individuals, it's preempted. The city attorney has given multiple examples and has tried to explain why this law is preempted by the state of Florida. It still doesn't cover political action committees. You cannot preempt no matter what. So my point is that this is pure political theater, and it only embarrasses the city of Coral Gables, and we can do much better than that. We should get onto the issues at hand. We have a long agenda, and we have our first budget hearing. And I know that there's desperation in political season, but bring items that can actually push the city forward and actually result in actions that are positive for the city. Don't fill up an agenda with items that, like the city attorney just said, if we were to pass this legislation, we would put the city in jeopardy. This is already preempted by the state of Florida. Our hands have been tied on this issue. And even if you were to pass this, you're still not addressing PAC's political action committees. So, Madam Vice Mayor.

Through the Mayor, let me see if I can shed some light on this for you. There are certain areas that we cannot legislate. We don't enact traffic laws. We don't enact criminal laws. It is not within our power to do such things. In paragraph 11 of Florida Statute 106.8, which I provided to you, 11 explicitly states any or future limitation or restriction enacted or adopted by a county a municipality or any other local government entity which is in conflict with this subsection is void so rather than doing something that is void and will be of no moment and not enforceable if there is a desire by the florida legislature to change this law that is the venue those are the folks that have the power to do so not us

Are you ready, sir? Do you have the documents? Commissioner, I received one image.

That's one is more than sufficient.

Okay. Cable TV could please put up my screen.

Okay. So let's go ahead and follow the timeline. This is one of the inspirations of why I presented this. And this is very recent. This is a vote that came before us. with a lot of controversy. Okay, so let's go ahead and start with contributions. And this is basically within a 48 hour period of the vote. Steven, $10,000, 625, crystal developer. Ricardo Corporal, $1,000, 625, former garden ownership connection. Tim Haim, $500. He's a five-field outreach consultant, which I have a great question, and I want to go ahead and put on the record that Coral Gables First did refund this one recently, but I would love to know what the connection with the people he hired that came to give the False testimony has with the actual mayor that this gentleman and his community outreach corporation donated to his PAC. The other one is Alberto Gordoves, 1,000. He's a crystal architect. Iris Escada, 2,000, which is also connection with the project. Another law firm land use firm from century relationship and modest architects 1000 century related architectural work with broader community connection. And my question is, I'm not blaming these people for doing anything wrong. But there's a very big correlation here in a 48 hour period, almost before a vote. It has to do with the project and with these donations to the mayor. I think there has to be something more done for what is happening. I didn't even mention all the other ones besides the Garden of Our Lord that contribute to the mayor right before you vote. I'm not saying this is an illegal contribution in any sense. I'm asking whether the system creates an appearance that determines public confidence. Something illegal can still have a stronger safeguards. I'm still asking the city attorney, are we just gonna sit here, watch this happen all the time, or are we gonna do something about it? Because of this, we're not gonna do anything about it. Every time we have a development project, I'm gonna go ahead and bring all the contributions And I'm going to follow the money, and I'm going to follow your vote, and I'm going to put it on the record.

Commissioner? Commissioner Castro, are you stating right now for the record that the contributions that you identified caused a particular vote to be taken?

I'm saying there's a correlation.

Okay, so you're not saying that it caused the vote to be taken?

I said that very clearly. I was not in any back rooms saying, hearing the conversations of anything. I'm not accusing anyone. I am telling you strictly with the proof right there that there is a correlation and after a certain amount of period, there was a vote taken that was positive. Those are the facts. You could build your own conclusions.

Right, but I'm asking you, is it your position that contributions made caused, influenced, or were done in exchange for a particular vote outcome? Just yes or no?

Well, I cannot tell you that. I could tell you that there's an appearance of conflict. I could tell you that.

Okay, so we can agree that you're not establishing in this conversation that a contribution caused, influenced, or directed a vote. I mean, can we just say yes to that?

I went ahead and stated that, and if you go ahead and read the disclaimer in the bottom, it also says it.

Okay, so is it fair to say that what you're putting up there is pure speculation and conjecture, since you're not establishing anything as an influence or an establishment or an exchange for a vote?

Commissioner Lara, I'm not an attorney, but what I do know is that everything that's there is a public record, and I can go ahead and post it and put it together for the people that don't know what is happening. Right? That's it. I'm not accusing anyone of doing anything. But these are the facts, people. This is what's happening. So let's do something about it. Period.

Through the mayor.

Yes. Oh, just a moment, Vice Mayor, if I may. So you've heard Commissioner Castro, the city attorney, and you've heard the mayor state that if we were to vote in favor of your item, we would be inviting conflict with the state statute, that it would be viewed as being violative of the state statute. Do you agree that that's what the city attorney has stated?

What I agree with is that the city of Miami Beach is not grandfathered and is still enacting this.

If I had asked that question, but if you answer the one that I've actually asked you, do you agree that the city attorney's legal opinion is that providing support for your item would, in fact, violate that statute?

I believe that sometimes we take risk, and I believe this is a risk worth taking, especially given the fact that there's clear indications that something is...

perceiving not ethical well have you taken the time you've done it before to write to the state attorney general and say i believe that this commission is about to take action that i think violates state statute i mean you did that before already once before you got the dates wrong you misrepresented in that letter faxed to the state attorney general And you were inviting, I guess, on a surface, his views. I believe, my opinion, you were trying to draw unwanted attention to the city and to cause litigation, possibly. That effort failed. But let's go to the point. You took it upon yourself to reach out to the state attorney general because you felt that this commission was going to take action that was going to be against state statute. so are you thinking about doing that now on your on your item going to the state attorney general to see if that's going to be in fact something that violates state statute could i could i do the mayor if i may just one second please commissioner a lot i will do respect there's nothing more that i want to do into it that's to engage in this there's nothing more

We cannot talk about the investigation that Commissioner Castro is under. They have found probable cause. This is the first elected official in the city of Coral Gables in over 25 years that has been under investigation by the state and has been found to have probable cause. Please, this is a matter under investigation that needs to be respected, that is currently under review by a state agency. I do not want to bring up any matters of her case. She wants to do this here and embarrass herself in the city and do all these theatrics after she has been already clearly, clearly warned by the city attorney and by multiple attorneys on this commission that we are preempted by state statute. We all understand what we're dealing with. Well, I just think that this is a discussion, like you said, you tried at the beginning to have a civil conversation to ask all the members of the commission to please let's be productive today. And it's been one gaslighting after another. So I don't mean to cut you off commissioners. I respect you immensely, but it gets to the point where this is exactly what she wants. She wants us to bicker back and forth. and have as much gaslighting as possible. We have a long agenda, and then we have a budget review, and I want to respect the process, the employees, the residents, and the business community. All donations are made public. Everything that she's talking about here, or donations to a PAC, that there's no law that you can write, there's no law you can write here in the city of Coral Gables that will stop donations to PACs. And everybody here knows it. But we're moving on. I don't want to have this back and forth. Unless you want to make a motion and you want to move forward with your ordinance, let's not go back and forth. I think it's enough. We're doing enough damage to the city with all the theater.

With the mayor, I would like to make a motion. And I also want to go ahead and respond to the commissioner and to yourself. When you said that the effort to reach out to the attorney general failed, that is completely incorrect. Okay, the effort that I made to the Attorney General was to go ahead and give the voices, the right for the residents of Coral Gables to go ahead and vote. And guess what? I was very successful in that. But since you are now recommending or actually suggesting that I reach out to the Attorney General, hey, it would be my pleasure. to put all the evidence together that I have in correlation, because I think maybe something else has to be done at the state level. This is incomprehensible and disgusting.

Through the mayor.

Give me one more moment.

And before you go, Vice Mayor, if you don't mind, I just want to be able to respond when the commissioner is done.

And then when the mayor, and let me go ahead and address the mayor now. He says, I am under investigation. I am under investigation, which is the... I am under investigation by the Florida Commission of Ethics because the mayor hired an attorney called Matt Saralson to go after me right after I got elected. Now, let me go ahead and do a little explanation because I am the most honest and transparent person probably in this whole commission, not saying anybody else. I'm not ragging on anybody else, but I am very truthful, okay? The first thing I did when I got elected, I met with our city attorney and what did I do? I said, I don't want to resemble anything that has to do with the mayor. So you know what? I want a formal opinion of the things that I could do and I cannot do because I want to abide 100% by the law. And what we did is that we asked for an opinion from the ethics commission, from the Miami-Dade ethics commission. The ethics commission cleared me of all wrongdoings. In fact, the Ethics Commission said that I could continue working in the city of Coral Gables with certain restrictions. Before they even gave that opinion, I decided voluntarily to let go of the Coral Gables section and not work in Coral Gables anymore. The Florida Commission of Ethics was waiting for the Miami Commission of Ethics for their final opinion. Now that they gave their final opinion, now they're investigating. And that is what's happening. There's no wrongdoing. I'm not accused of anything. This is all political. It happened January 1st, but now the mayor is bringing this up like it's a criminal charge or I'm guilty of something. So please, please, like, relax a little bit and respect.

So I'm going to, if I may, because again, I wanted to let this go, but this continues. I want to, let me be clear. I did not create this allegation, and I did not make this finding, and I did not hire the attorney that you just stated. On January 28th, the Florida Commission on Ethics publicly announced that it had found probable cause to believe Commissioner Castro had a conflicting contractual relationship involving her private permanent expediting business. According to the commission, that relationship created what is described as a continuing or frequently reoccurring conflict between her private interests and the performance of her public duties because of her company continued to pull permits in Coral Gables after she was elected. Those are not my words. They are the words of the Florida Commission on Ethics contained in an official publicly available state document. I also find it noteworthy that this finding was issued in January, yet Commissioner Castro, who was often the first to publicize allegations involving others and to proclaim vindication when a matter concerns her, even brought this finding to the attention of our residents. Transparency cannot be something we demand only of others. It must apply equally to every elected official, including ourselves. To be equally clear, a probable cause finding is not a final determination that a violation occurred. Commissioner Castro is entitled to defend herself, present evidence, and receive due process. I respect that right, just as I would for anyone appearing before an investigative body. I have never in my 14 years been investigated, but Commissioner Castro has. But due process does not mean we disregard the public record. Commissioner Castro may dispute the allegations or the evidence. but she cannot credibly accuse me of spreading false information when I have accurately repeated the Ethics Commission's own published findings. I will not attempt to litigate this matter from the diets. I'm trying to help you, Commissioner, and I will not engage in personal attacks. The appropriate state authorities will determine the outcome. My responsibility is to be truthful with our residents, and the truth is straightforward. The Florida Commission on Ethics found probable cause. The matter remains unresolved, and the people of Coral Gables have every right to know. I'm asking again. For a second time, let's move forward.

Let's move forward.

This is under investigation, and they found probable cause. This is a first for the city in decades, and it will be addressed in the State Ethics Commission. Through the mayor. Trying to save you from yourself. Through the mayor. You want a headline. Let's not do a headline.

Through the mayor, briefly.

Yes.

Briefly, Vice Mayor, just one moment, okay? I just want to state, I'm not going to go tit for tat. or point by point Commissioner Castro. I did, however, maybe rhetorically ask that you seek an opinion from the State Attorney General with respect to the ordinance that you are putting forth here regarding campaign finance reform. Because to put it very simply, you've heard it from the city attorney. I'm giving you my position as an attorney as well. And if you really want to go up the chain to the State Attorney General, to be told what the statute states plainly on its face, your proposed ordinance violates state statute. It will be wrong for us to support it as it will be preempted. You said earlier, sometimes you gotta take a chance. Sometimes, you know, you gotta roll the dice or words to that effect. not not while you will not get support with me as an elected official who's looking out for the best interest of the cities the city's residents right I'm not going to take a chance on them you might you might want to but it's a very simple issue I think you should bring your motion see if we got a second through the mayor before excuse me I I've asked Madam Vice Mayor Madam Vice Mayor

Go ahead. Go for you. Okay. I was giving you the floor.

Okay. I'm sorry. No, no, you've been waiting. Because the floor has been a little difficult to get.

I know, and I apologize. My bad. I'm sorry about that.

So the word void is clearly and plainly written in paragraph 11b. You had a question. How can another city have this ordinance? and not be in violation. It's void. It's unenforceable. If they tried to enforce it, it's void. It has no gas in the engine. It cannot move forward. I don't want to waste time of this commission putting forth something that's void. If you want to bring something to the Florida legislature, bring it to the Florida legislature. Those are the folks that have the power to deal with this. Now, since you brought up and accused the rest of this commission of lack of transparency, may i remind you that an appearance of conflict of interest or lack of transparency also exists when you have the attorney that's representing you in an action before you on a matter namely the garden of our lord that was not disclosed before your vote And your accusations, and I questioned you back when the Garden of the Lord matter was before us. Are you accusing the rest of the commission who voted in favor of that project, which was shorter than the project a block away that's already built? Are you accusing the rest of us to being on the take for that?

Yes.

Oh, yeah. So your accusations with false information and gaslighting the public is deplorable fortunately voters of our city has spoken loud and clear and have put items in the charter now that will protect us going forward from efforts to undermine the roots and foundation of our city so that our elections are now in November, our reserves are now protected, and I could go on and on. The mayor has been trying to move this forward. You know that your motion is void. You know even if this is adopted, it's void. Let's not waste the time of this commission.

Mr. Mayor?

Yes. Okay.

There's no contractual agreement with me right now. And the last time we spoke about this, there's not even a hearing set for this, what is it called, an ethics... What was it that it was called? Ethics probable cause. There's not even a hearing set. I haven't spoken to Winker about this case. And I don't even know if he's still going to be representing me after, since January. We're in September.

Okay.

So there's no conflict of interest with the Garden of Our Lord. Okay. Now I'm going to go ahead and amend my motion. Because I see that there's no support here.

Let me just stop.

Mm-hmm.

Please, you can't live in this false reality, okay? So Winker was my attorney. They came up here. He presented the case. I didn't mention he was my attorney. So that's, I don't have a conflict of interest. That's not reality. That's not reality. Even though you think it's reality and you think you're going to exercise that alternate universe. Is that the way it works? He was your attorney. He represented you on multiple issues. You stonewalled the ethics commission from the state of Florida on eight times. They tried to reach you and you kept avoiding them at all costs. The only time you respond is when they hit you with a probable cause. So I'm trying to save you from yourself because at the end of the day, you know, if you want to embarrass yourself and you want to do it, it's fine, but don't embarrass the city with all this ridiculousness because you threw the entire kitchen sink at me over the last two years.

Cause you're guilty.

can we just move on okay i i just look all right so we're moving on this this whole look we're not going to get anywhere I think that there's even something else that has not been discussed, which is Citizens United, which that's another decision altogether that I think really would put us in a situation. My suggestion, have a conversation with the city attorney, see if there is something that could be enforceable and could be moved forward. I have historically voted against anything that would put the city in a situation where we could be liable for a lawsuit. And I would not be able to support this today. But I think we have plenty more to discuss this meeting. I think we should move on.

I need to amend my motion. And even though I don't have a second, I would like to put it on the table.

You already made a motion. You didn't get a second.

No, I have not finished making a motion.

That's not the way it works.

I haven't even spoken.

Commissioner, you can't run the meeting. I run the meeting. So you've had every opportunity to put your motion on the floor.

I didn't put my motion on the floor. I was about to and I got interrupted. Can I finish my motion?

Commissioner.

Yes or no?

Finished.

Okay. I move to go ahead and amend my motion.

I thought you didn't make a motion.

I'm going to amend the actual resolution that was presented, the ordinance that was presented, okay? That's what I'm going to amend. To go ahead and ask my colleagues here for authorization to present this to the attorney, to the general, to the state attorney's office. Not to the state attorney, to the attorney general, I'm sorry. A suggestion as Commissioner allowed out. suggested not only to to him but to also the florida commission of ethics and the miami-dade commission of ethics before you guys decide that you're going to go ahead and censure me again if you see no issues well let's go ahead and make it legal unless you want to keep on getting donations from developers and then voting on their projects that's my motion we have a second

I'd like to, through the mayor, I'd like to just make a comment.

Yeah, I think my comment is I think I don't know that you're going to have votes to put this forward, but I think you've heard for the majority of the commission that you have a green light to go to the attorney general and have the discussion. I think Laura and the vice mayor both agree that that was okay with them. Okay.

Through the mayor. A couple of things, right? So commissioner Fernandez, it's absolutely not. I'll repeat it. Okay. I guess it went over everyone's head. It's a rather rhetorical, if not a sarcastic comment on my part. You have a commissioner who's bringing an ordinance before this commission that on its face would be void based on state statute if it would be approved. So with Commissioner Castro having already had a history of going to the state attorney general to seek an opinion with respect to the commission's intended action with respect to a resolution or an ordinance, Rhetorically, I'm thinking you should go Commissioner Castro and ask for the state attorney general to prohibit you introducing your own ordinance because on its face would violate state statute. That I hope makes it perfectly clear. It's rhetorical. But more importantly, and this will be the fourth time I'm going to invoke comments I've made at the start of this meeting. I'm imploring not only my colleagues, but you in particular, Commissioner Castro, please refrain from being so divisive. Seek more unity when you make a statement, like you just made, that Mayor Lago is guilty You are not only not a lawyer, you're certainly not a judge and a jury either. So I would ask you respectfully, withdraw that statement for the sake of the commission's professionalism, civility. And yes, I know I might be talking a bit long and you're looking at your watch, but I hope you will just bear with me for another second. Grow up. Act like a professional. The professional I know that you can be. Forget about the people you're playing to who are your social media followers, some of whom might even be city of Coral Gables residents. You should be proud, privileged, and recognize the importance of the position you hold as an elected official on this dais. And you should act accordingly. So please, withdraw. your accusation, your conclusion that the mayor is guilty. Guilty of what? There should never be words that are uttered by any of my fellow commissioners.

And through the mayor. I'm going to go ahead and amend what I said, but it is in my perception that the mayor is guilty. Okay. But I'm also going to ask you something because I believe you are a good person. I believe you have good conscience. I believe you're a great father and a great husband. At what point are you on retainer for the mayor at this point? Because all you do is defend the mayor. I mean, this is directed to the mayor. What is happening? And it's really, really surprising to me because I feel like I have a good relationship with you off the dais. But every time the mayor is around or we are on the dais, it's like this complete attack towards me. And I have to say, I have the greatest relationship with you when we are not on camera and when the mayor is not around. And I just hope It's not what I'm thinking.

Through the mayor. Commissioner Castro, I appreciate, just a second, Mayor, if I may. I appreciate your comments about me being a good father and a good husband and that I have a great relationship with you. I've only had a great relationship with you off the dais and on the dais. Because we disagree does not mean that I don't have a great relationship with you. And because I'm asking you to withdraw the statement that he's guilty, it's because I care not only about you, but about this body's image and how it portrays itself to the city. If I disagree with you, don't mistake that for being I don't like you. It has nothing to do with anything personal. I am an attorney. I have been on retainer for most of my 30 plus years as an attorney. I am making it perfectly clear I'm not on anyone's retainer or carrying anybody's bucket of water on this dais. Anytime I've taken a vote, I can give you, and I have given not only one, but probably three reasons that are legally sufficient for why I've taken the vote that I've taken. In this instant, I don't want to have to repeat myself. Your ordinance is dead on arrival. And not because they like you or dislike you, because I can't change the law. And the vice mayor said, if you would like to do so, please take it to the floor of the legislature. That's where you're going to find your best shot. But I will not support you in this ordinance. And I've tried only to be respectful, professional, and friendly throughout this period of time. That's why I've said what I've said, and I will continue to do so.

Moving on. Thank you for clarifying that neither am I on your payroll or you're on my payroll. Just another swipe at not only myself, but also the position of mayor, another black eye here in the city. All the theatrics and we are all players in the theater of Instagram and social media, which is a shame because All of those followers are all bots. They're not even residents. And it's evidently clear for anyone who knows. Even Commissioner Fernandez, who's pretty apt at social media, will tell you that none of those individuals are real or even exist. Just look at each one of the following comments. They're all bots or AI. It says it very clearly. So at the end of the day, we move on. We move on after thoroughly embarrassing the city on an item that should have been held, a conversation that could have been held with respect, but was held in a fashion to hopefully embarrass not only myself, the position of mayor, and the city of Coral Gables, all for a November election. Moving on, there is no second. Moving on to item F1, Commissioner Castro, that is also your item.

That item was deferred.

Mr. Clerk, did you tell me that item was deferred? Okay, I want to make sure. Perfect. Thank you very much. Item F2. Commissioner Castro, your item also.

Mr. Mayor, if I may read it, it's a resolution of the City Commission directing staff to explore opportunities with visitor transportation operators and other hotel and hospitality partners to develop crow gable stops or itineraries to increase visitor foot traffic and support the city's local restaurants, retailers, and small businesses.

And director how are you thank you for being here with us.

Yes. All right so good afternoon, everyone. So I just wanted to give you a little bit of information regarding the efforts that we have put in place in order to attract to bring more for traffic and restaurants and retailers more for traffic to our restaurants and retailers. So in March of 2024, the Economic Development Department connected with representatives from the big bus tours at a Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau workshop that we had, a networking event. And we talked to them about it because at some point in time, there was a bus tour company that was in Coral Gables. We asked them about the possibility of them coming back and seeing if we could be added to an existing Miami route. We subsequently met with the company's local leadership. We developed two potential route options for them. and for their consideration. And we also provided information on our downtown visitor activity, the pedestrian counts, the hotels that are in the area, the retail shops that were there, anything that would demonstrate to them the potential market that we have here in Coral Gables. We continued those discussions and we followed up with them for several months and ultimately we got the feedback that Big Bus advised us that while they recognize the strength of having a route and the strength of Coral Gables visitors and traffic patterns, they could not commit to extending the route at that time. Their primary concern was the additional operating cost, the additional travel time that it would take to add Coral Gables to the end of their route, and the uncertainty about how many passengers would actually use the stop. The experience was helpful because it did identify some of those touch points and so we have a better idea of what they're looking for from their perspective. So most recently, one of my staff members also attended another GMCVB event where we get to meet some industry partners, and we met another different tour operator there. We raised, again, that possibility. They said that they were interested, and we're now setting up meetings to discuss how to follow up with them and see if there's any possibility of them coming to Coral Gables.

That's perfectly, I mean... Your answer couldn't make me any happier. I think this is something that the business community needs. This is why I brought this forward. From my opinion, when you have a tour bus and you have tourists going to a tour bus and they drop them off for two hours on Geraldo or Miracle Mile, what these people are coming to do is either try our food, go to our restaurants and shop. So basically, they're just coming to spend money for two hours. And I think it'd be good to find a dedicated lane where we're not really going well what number one we're not damaging any of the trees because I know the bus is a little higher, but that we're not also stopping anywhere where the residential buildings are that let's try to only stay in like most commercial commercial streets so that there's no like noise complaints coming from residents. But I think this would be highly beneficial. And Please update me with what's happening with this new operator.

No problem. Mayor?

Yes, sir. So this is something that I had talked to and Mark Trowbridge and I had been working on for some time. The buses stopped right around the time that Umbrella Sky ended because they were getting really good foot traffic on the buses, people getting off under all the during Umbrella Sky. Once Umbrella Sky went away, there wasn't that much interest on that actual stop. So the operators ended it, but I'm glad to hear that there's some appetite to bring it back. Because as Commissioner Castro said, our businesses could benefit from the additional foot traffic. You're driving through Coral Gables in the morning, you see a lot of tourists walking around with their cameras and taking pictures. And these are tourists that are coming in either through an Uber or a taxi, getting off on Miracle Mile, and they're walking to the Biltmore. So it would be good if we can get more of those folks coming out and frequenting our businesses in the downtown. I think it would be very beneficial.

Through the Mayor.

Yes.

Director, it's great to hear that all the efforts that you've been making since March of 2024 and you've continued to reach out. I don't think you need direction to do what you're already doing. I think this is a great update. And thank you, Commissioner Castro, for putting it on the agenda. And just applaud the efforts that you continue to do to improve our downtown community. bring new businesses to our city, activate the streets. You know, what you did on leading the way for the succession projects that came to Giralda for artwork on Giralda, the two projects and the one that's currently the new umbrella project. Fantastic. fantastic work and I look forward to working with you again in the future with additional matters to activate a miracle mile as well as draw the plaza and other areas of our business community. So thank you for your efforts.

I'll go ahead and I'm a little bit.

I'll second. I'll second.

Mr. Clerk, you have any public comment? Yes, Mr. Mayor.

Maria Cruz.

Good afternoon, Mrs. Maria Cruz, 1447 Miller Road, 305-323-2154. I had not been walking around Miracle Mile for a while, until I had some company a few days ago. Let me tell you, there's some times of the day that Miracle Mile is dead. Very few people, extremely very few people. I think this is a good idea. We keep talking about helping our small businesses. I think this will bring traffic that normally would not come by making this easy. So I really think it's a great idea, and I think your businesses will be very grateful for that.

To the mayor. Yes. I'm going to suggest to the commissioner of slight rewording to recognize the efforts that staff has continuously been making to support their efforts instead of directing them to do it, to reword it to say that staff shall continue their efforts on trying to look for opportunities to establish one or more appropriate tour bus drop off and pick up locations in the city. Because the wording as it is right now sounds like staff has not been doing anything. And that is not an accurate statement. So I'll support it with that change. That's a friendly amendment request.

I agree to that.

All right, Mr. Clerk.

Vice mayor and yes, commissioner Castro yes commissioner Fernandez yes commissioner a lot of its mayor log thank you madam director appreciate you thank you item F 3.

F 3 is a resolution of the city commission referring certain matters to review by the inspector general.

why I'm bringing this up is because several residents and maybe my colleagues did as well receive emails and phone calls regarding why is it that we're not invoking the inspector general if this is something that we voted on or that they voted on they voted on resident oversight residents voted for oversight oversight only means if something we're willing to use it so I Basically, I don't know if there was an attached email from one of the residents asking for a thousand things to do regarding this. Basically putting this as part of a request of many residents. They want the Inspector General in vote as soon as possible. I did let them know that the office has not been established yet. But what I did tell them is that I'm going to go ahead and ask the Commission to go ahead and put this as priority. when the office is established as one of the first things investigated. I'll move it.

I didn't ask for a motion, but first and foremost, Madam City Attorney, will you give us an update, please, on where we are in the process?

So, Mayor, a couple of commission meetings ago, you had asked for an update on the Inspector General matter. And we provided you an update saying that, you know, we had some decisions, the commission had some decisions to make as to the function, the term, the qualifications, et cetera, as to what you all want to do. And you asked that we schedule a sunshine meeting. I know the clerk's office is working a schedule that you specifically wanted that to occur after the summer. So I know the clerk has been...

Will you do me a favor, Mr. Clerk? Do you have a video you want to show? We can queue up your video. Yes, Mr. Mayor. If cable TV could put up the mayor's video.

And while we wait on that, I just want to remind people, because I know that, again, it's election season. We try to try to get as much positive energy out there. Commissioner Castro was one of the staunchest advocates against an inspector general, actually voting against it when myself and the vice mayor brought it forward. The reasoning was because we couldn't afford it. We worked very diligently. Thank God when the commission turned and Commissioner Arlotta came on board, we were able to get the support to bring it before the voters and the voters via a referendum that I sponsored. overwhelmingly supported an inspector general. The record must be remembered. It just can't be used arbitrarily to your whim. So the clerk is having a little bit of an issue, which is perfectly fine with the video. The video is of me asking.

Here you go. On another note, let's move on to the issue of the referral. Give me one second. No, that's not the one.

I'm talking about the inspector general. We're not going to wait till the end. We're going to do it now.

But I continue.

Because I want to make sure. That it comes from me. So I'd like to make a motion.

So you're passing the gavel?

Yes, I am for this 1 item. I'm passing the gavel. I've been here 14 years. I'm passing the gavel and that is the motion is that I asked the city attorney and the city manager to work in tandem. To ensure that this issue is referred. The fact that we had individuals that had showed up here. And not only in Miami-Dade County, showed up here and lied to the commission that they were residents of the City of Beautiful. I want to make sure that gets referred to the necessary authorities, whether it's Cassidy Fernandez-Rundle, whether it's the Ethics Commission locally and as a state, whatever needs, whatever entities need to be addressed or multiple entities need to be referred to. Please come back with us, come back and provide us with a memo that addresses not only the outcome, but the steps that have been taken.

So, Mayor, if I understood the motion, I think it would be, and as we've done in the past, it'll be, you know, we'll work with the manager, but it'll be the manager to make sure that through the police department, it's referred to the appropriate agencies. Yes. Do we have a second?

I'll second that.

So, my point is that that was not the appropriate video. That video was obviously in regards to... Commissioner Lara? 110, that video was...

It's okay.

um that video was in question to 110 Phoenicia I was the one that referred the item as we heard earlier from from our chief the video that I was hoping would be shown which is okay it's not a big deal it's on it's already public record anyways was the issue of the inspector general and the importance of getting the inspector general online as quickly as possible and how the inspector general came about which i was my which i sponsored and i'm very proud to sponsor that along with the vice mayor to get that on the to get that up before before the voters and really see that come to fruition so um i understand completely this was brought up madam city attorney maybe two months ago that sounds about right about two months ago i brought it up asking for us to move this forward and get this going the clerk is working on a sunshine meeting between the commission We didn't want to do it in the summer because then, you know, people would say we did it in the summer, the cover of darkness. You know, you're damned if you do, you're damned if you don't. So at the end of the day, by the way, the Sunshine Meeting can be attended by everyone. So we had to wait till the end of the summer to get it done. Remember, this was just passed by referendum in April by an overwhelming support of the residents. So it's already forthcoming. It's already being worked on. Let's move forward. Let's get the sunshine meeting in the books and let's get the inspector general activated. Madam city attorney, what items fall under the purview of the inspector general? Cause I want to make sure that we can properly have all the residents and business owners aware of how the inspector general can be maximized.

So the Inspector General should have the power to investigate, audit, review and oversee municipal matters in order to identify efficiencies and investigate and prevent fraud, waste, mismanagement, and abuse of power and subpoena witnesses and require the production of documents. But as we have said, the Inspector General's appointment term functions, authority and powers are going to be further established by the commission. And an ordinance has yet you know that you all need to discuss and, and needs to be reviewed and approved and considered.

The beauty of video and the beauty of the commission and the beautiful vote, the beauty of votes is that it doesn't lie. So you can try to weaponize a, you know, an entity like the inspector general and say that you're using it and you want it to bring it. The people are calling for it. Yeah, we have a sunshine meetings forthcoming and we're looking forward to getting it activated. That's why I put it for a vote and I want to thank the residents, especially those who are here who supported it. Thank you so much. Okay. So, um, But it's already being done. We have to have a sunshine meeting.

So what I moved was that that was one of the first things after the office was established that the inspector general was going to look into.

Look into what?

What just happened.

Yeah, which I already referred it.

Not to the inspector general.

Yeah, I did. If you look at it, you can look at it again. It says very clearly, I referred it already. It's done.

Okay, the first thing, the first thing, I'm going to go ahead and repeat what I just said. The first thing that the Inspector General is going to look at, that was my motion, was this item. It's a yes or no. Either you are on board or you're not on board. Okay, that's it.

Listen. It's already been referred. I referred it to the manager and to the city attorney. It says it to all corresponding agencies. It's very clear. I just played you a video, which is one of the two videos. It was another video that I wanted to show about the Inspector General. But it's very clear as day. It's already been referred to the Inspector General. It's already been referred to Kathy Brands-Ronald. It's already been referred. Our police chief is addressing. He's investigating. Let the... course move forward let him finish his investigation and then it will be sent to all corresponding agencies both local here at coral gables county state and if we require go to the federal government go to the federal government i am all on board in holding these people accountable if some if the law was broken it's very clear it's in a video okay

Mayor, I know you don't want to vote on this, okay, but I made a motion and my motion is that this is going to get referred and first viewed by the first thing the Inspector General is going to do. I am here to represent once again the residents of Coral Gables. This is something they specifically requested, not only to me, but probably to all of you. So once again, I understand you don't want to vote for this. But there is a motion, and I hope that I can get a second. With the video you just showed right there, it did not say Inspector General, okay? So there's a motion on the table. You can go ahead and request a second. And if there's not a second, that's perfectly okay. I see where this commission stands.

Mr. Clerk, will you please replay the video, please?

Can cable TV replay the video?

The issue of the referral will give me one second.

I know.

I know. But we're not going to wait until the end. We're going to do it now. Because I want to make sure that it comes from me. So I'd like to make a motion.

So you're passing the gavel.

Yes, I am for this 1 item. I'm passing the gavel. I've been here 14 years. Okay, I'm passing the gavel and that is the motion is that I asked the city attorney and the city manager to work in tandem. To ensure that this issue is referred. The fact that we had individuals that had showed up here. not only in miami-dade county showed up here and lied to the commission that they were residents of the city beautiful i want to make sure that gets referred to the necessary authorities whether it's kathy fernandez rondo whether it's the ethics commission local united state whatever needs whatever entities need to be addressed or multiple entities need to be referred to please come back with us come back and provide us with a memo that addresses not only the outcome, but the steps that have been taken.

Okay? So, Mayor, if I understood the motion, I think it would be, and as we've done in the past, it'll be, you know, I'll work with the manager, but it'll be the manager to make sure that through the police department it's referred to the appropriate.

So we have a motion. Yes, Mayor.

Go ahead. I think referring this to an agency that still doesn't exist or a department that doesn't exist is only going to delay the process, whereas it's already in the hands of the proper authorities who can take action. I think an inspector general's office that realistically is six or eight months down the road. By then, the investigation should be concluded, and any charges that need to be pressed would have probably been pressed by the State Attorney's Office at that point. So I understand the request from the concerned residents. I do. When I saw what had taken place, I had serious concerns, but I'm glad that the Commission did take action to refer it. I'm glad the Chief has been... quick to act on this issue and make sure that it is being investigated and looked into. I've had my own concerns over what I saw as well. Some of the same things that Ms. Bolton mentioned this morning that may not have been mentioned that day, I think There's a lot to be concerned about, but I think we need to rely on the judicial process that is already in place. The inspector general's office at the end of the day is not going to have the power that the state attorney's office will and the proper authorities to investigate it. So that's the reason I am not seconding this motion. It's not because I do not think that this is important to look into. I'm glad the commission took action that same day to refer it for immediate investigation. And, you know, Mr. Clerk, if we can move forward on that sunshine meeting, I think that would alleviate a lot of the concerns the residents have as well.

Mr. Commissioner Fernandez, you kind of took the words out of my mouth. My point was going to be the inspector general doesn't have the breadth of authority that criminal investigation unit has. They don't have the power of arrest. They don't have the powers to charge. It's a different entity completely that this commission establishes. So, thank you.

Through the mayor. Yes. So just to be clear, right? Commissioner Fernandez. You don't have me on retainer, right?

No.

Okay. I'll get that clear. So I am supportive of the way you've laid out the case. I agree completely with how you put it because it's plain and it's almost self-evident, right? Even even beyond, though, the video, which is crystal clear, that this is an action that's already been taken, I caution my colleagues on the dais. One of the concerns that I have and residents have shared with me is that with the creation of the Office of the Inspector General, we must be always vigilant and extremely cautious about when to authorize something to go before the Office of the newly created Inspector General so that we are guided by what the city attorney stated were the general areas that it seeks to prevent wrongdoing and that it does not get used in some sort of politically weaponized fashion. We've already heard during this meeting, Commissioner Castro has attempted to link, although she said there's been no vote purchased because a contribution was made to a PAC despite the timing and so forth. The link is there that she believes that the people who came and it seemed to be pretty obvious they were not being truthful they were lying about where they were living at the time that they came and stated they were residents of coral gables that there's some link between that and the mayor and now we have um an attempt on this uh resolution to refer it to an office that has not yet even been fully um opened right because we're still trying to get this thing off the ground it already to me has a political And to it. I'm not supportive, obviously, of F3. And I want us to be careful about in the future what does get suggested or or promoted for inclusion in an inspector general investigation.

So we have a motion on the floor. Do we have a second? It fails for a lack of a second. Moving on to item F4.

F4 is a resolution of the city commission establishing a senior relief grant fund for fiscal year 2025 to 2026 and directing city staff to identify a source of funding.

Commissioner Prentice? So this is the senior relief grant fund that we have created every year for the last three years. It mirrored Miami-Dade County's program for several years. The county has since removed their program. And thanks to the commission last year, we increased the amount that we were giving the seniors, which at the end of the day are the ones that are the most vulnerable in our community and may not be benefiting from any other cuts that are being issued. So, this is our annual vote towards this, and I think our finance director is here to speak on the funding and how many individuals we have.

Good afternoon, Diana Gomez.

Thank you for being here with us.

Sure. Diana Gomez, Finance Director. So the actual numbers, we have to get it from the county. So we request, once the resolution passes, I request the information, the official roll from the county. But last year's numbers were about 222 seniors and about 87 veterans. So the total dollar amount If that number is roughly the same, it's gonna be about 46,350, I believe is the number. And so that will come out of fiscal year 26, the current fiscal year, because it would be the current fiscal year's expenditure. And so through the manager, we'll find the funding to process those checks once we get the official roll from the county.

And for clarification, the veterans you're talking about is for item F5.

I'm sorry. Yes.

Through the mayor.

I just wanted to say I know that this was something that was viewed very positively by our legislators as a way that we were giving back to the members of our community.

Mayor, I'm very supportive of this. I have the following ask because we have a budget meeting that starts at five. that we bring this back right after we finish you know the second budget meeting because unless our millage rate is reinstated we're going to have to do some very serious cuts the capital improvement projects in order to make ends meet. So that's that's my only ask. I am supportive of it but I ask you to bring it back. Okay. It's a timing issue. It's a timing issue. We need to be able to have our military established to know where we're going going forward. And that's my only concern.

Mayor, I think there is a timing issue because it needs to be done prior to the end of the fiscal year. And that's usually why we do it in September. So we're using current fiscal year funds, not next year's.

I'm going to make a final amendment. Make the motion contingent upon that we reinstate the current millage rates so that we can help those who help need to help the most.

And I am fully supportive of that type of thing.

We supported the reduction on a garbage fee because, again, it helped the people at the bottom of the barrel the most instead of the people that will reap the most benefit who have the most. So can we make it contingent?

So if I can, I'll be happy to defer to next meeting. We do have a budget discussion today. Yes. So I'd be happy to defer to next meeting if that's.

Yeah, or we can make it a contingent motion that if the millage rate is sustained this year.

I'm fine with that. I mean, I think that's a great idea. And we can take the vote today. I'm in favor of 110%. My biggest concern is obviously our financial flexibility to offer. And I think it's a great, great program. I get a lot of people who tell me, thank you. But I just want to make sure that we have the financial wherewithal to take care of everything else that we need. So are you willing to accept that friendly amendment?

I'll accept the amendment.

Okay, so we have a motion. Do we have any public comment, Mr. Clerk?

No, Mr. Mayor.

All right. Thank you, Madam Director.

Commissioner Castro?

Yes.

Commissioner Fernandez? Yes. Commissioner Lara? Yes. Vice Mayor Anderson? Yes.

Mayor Lago? Yes. Thank you very much. Item F8.

I'll make the motion with the friendly amendment on. Oh, I'm sorry.

That was my eyesight. I pause at five is the same thing. Yes.

So if five mayor can't just read it. Yes. Yeah. So it's a resolution of the city commission establishing a veterans with disabilities relief grant fund for fiscal year 2025 to 2026 and directing city staff to identify a source of funding. And what I'm hearing is that it should be subject to, um, maintaining the current military. Right. I'll second.

Any public comment.

No, Mr. Mayor.

Okay.

Commissioner Fernandez. Yes. Commissioner Lara. Yes. Vice Mayor Anderson. Yes. Commissioner Castro.

Yes.

Mayor Lago. Yes. Moving on to item F8. Madam Vice Mayor.

this is an update on the expansion of the no bicycle skateboard scooter on sidewalk signage on ponce de leon boulevard in front of storefronts we've had some incidents in the past we don't want any more incidents in the future and i would say also it is a deterrent for um individuals to want to go shop along these

various storefronts if you have people buzzing past you on these devices thank you morning mayor vice mayor commissioners uh there is a few slides that i wanted to show i think core gables tv will bring them up thank you uh so to the vice mayor's point this is a conversation we've been having about extending the no ride zones uh that we currently have set up both through the rental scooters bird and then also through the signage that we have posted so just as a reminder what we currently have uh that we had posted on miracle miles this current signage and the section of the code that refers to where it's permissible upon all sidewalks unless otherwise prohibited by official posting, which obviously is through the existing signage. So what we've done is we've worked with both Bird and we've posted the same signage we had on Miracle Mile now is on Ponce extending from Alhambra to Almeria. So covering the high foot traffic area and all the storefronts. So we've extended that now to include Miracle Mile through all the plaza. It also included our public parking garages. And also, like I said, on Ponce from Alhambra to Almeria. So we have that official signage now posted. We were able to post that in the last couple of weeks and worked with Bird to be able to put that within the app. So if any of the scooters enter any of those zones, the rental scooters, the throttle will not work. It'll decelerate and then it'll also receive an audible warning to return to where there is a ride zone, a permitted ride zone. I just wanted to pan out and show kind of citywide also where we have the downtown, but we also have where there are slow ride zones around the golf courses and again, wherever we have parking garages. So these are also areas that we've already had within the bird app to be able to educate users where there is a lot of pedestrian activity. And again, looking at the safety of of of the pedestrians as well. i also took this screenshot from the app showing the reminders that when folks go to rent the scooters the reminders that pop up in the app to follow the posted signage respect the no ride zones obviously no tandem writing and make sure the devices are parked correctly and always put safety first uh you can also see some of the messaging uh that is on the the um scooters themselves And last but certainly not least, the vice mayor, you asked us to look into posting a contact information if there are scooters that are parked incorrectly. So Bird has already started putting these stickers on all the scooters they have deployed throughout the city where there is a dedicated email address and phone number where if a resident or someone notices that there's a scooter parked incorrectly, that they can notify them. Usually we catch it, but sometimes there are some that are out there that they need to go out and rebalance. And this is now an additional layer for them to be able to go out and contact those individuals. I don't know if the chief wanted to talk a little bit more on the private scooter side and what they've been working on as far as educating and enforcement.

MAYOR, COMMISSIONERS, WE ACTUALLY DID THREE OPERATIONS SINCE THIS CAME INTO PLAY. WE DID A JOINT OPERATION WITH THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE MOTORCYCLE DETAIL ON OURS. AT THAT POINT, WE WROTE 86 CITATIONS. THEY WERE NOT E-BIKE RELATED. 18 WARNINGS IN EDUCATIONAL CONTEXT FOR THE E-BIKE INDIVIDUALS. WE EMPOUNDED EIGHT SCOOTERS Second, two times we actually worked it with our motor unit as well. So the total combined for the three-week period, we wrote 114 citations, 29 educational context, eight scooters. Of those to date, we've had only two civil citations that have been issued during the initiative, which is actually writing on the sidewalks itself and using our city code.

Well, I appreciate both of your efforts in bringing this forward. And I see our director of IT is there. Do you have any update for us on the illumination idea that I threw at you?

We have actually a photo of the prototype. The last time we demonstrated the prototype of the sidewalk safety sensor, it was only the electronics that we were testing at the lab. Now we have a prototype that you see there. This is a waterproof enclosure that was 3D printed by our team there at the lab. We are testing it at the 72nd Avenue facility, simulating a sidewalk and having the engineers using devices. Matt is going to get us some scooters, loaders, so we can test it. And so it is a working prototype, but we need to test it and make sure that we calibrate the sensors well. It looks better than the last time that I showed it to you. It was mostly the electronics there and the circuit boards. Now it's a working prototype with a waterproof enclosure that was 3D printed in our lab. Soon it's going to be there.

That's impressive. You know universities and stuff will patent stuff like this, make it proprietary. So I'm very, very impressed with all the efforts of your team and thank you.

I'm sorry, through the mayor? Yes. I'm sorry, Vice Mayor. I'm not sure I followed what that box does that's being tested right now.

What does it do? From the idea from the Vice Mayor, basically it's a sidewalk safety sensor that will measure if somebody is riding an unauthorized device, like a bike or a scooter or any micromobility device, and will measure the speed, of course. And we are going to have some sort of electronic display to display slowdown or unauthorized device type of thing using AI. Basically, it's a computer vision system with AI. And the last time I showed it here was when we were celebrating our laboratory team with the interns. And it looked mostly like a bunch of electronic circuit boards. It didn't look like a finalized prototype.

So the idea came to me because we have speed detection signs on Bird Road and other places that detect and display the speed of vehicles. And this is going to be different because it's going to discern the movement of people walking versus in that type of mobility mode versus in a mile per hour speed limit that exceeds what a human being can do on two legs. So you're on a scooter, you're on a skateboard, you're on a bicycle, and it flashes and reminds, you know, I haven't seen the final design, but it's going to illuminate these signs and warn people that you cannot, you're in a no-ride zone, you can't do it. Because the reality is, while we have the bird scooters, there's a lot of private scooters out there all over the city. And people zip around. And there are places that they shouldn't be zipping, like in front of storefronts where they can hurt folks or on sidewalks where pedestrians are walking. These devices belong in bike lanes or on the street. Thank you.

Mayor? Yes. There was something that came up that really caught my attention, which was in the garages. Because I was driving through a garage the other day, and there was a scooter that just came from out of nowhere. And it's a risk because they're coming down those ramps really quickly. And unless you're really paying attention, they can really blend into the cars. So I'm glad that we're doing that here.