Remarks by Steven D. Losner
633 remarks on the record, newest first · Page 11 of 26
- Play at 3:58:05
“Okay, let me interject here. I've been remiss. We have an elected official with us, Mayor Lago of Coral Gables. Welcome. I hope we haven't jumbled your... See, you only have four to deal with. I've got six. okay all right welcome to homestead our architect said that our city hall would be similar to yours but they lied it's a lot bigger okay moving right along to um tab 22. and uh okay this this grew out of a couple of things our transition to the round seal and adoption of a different color palette. So we began talking about, you know, new flags with the round seal with staff and…”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 3:59:56
“Well, I would say, okay, to that regard, and I've had this discussion with staff, the seals on all of the option are out of scale. They're too small if we're going to use the seal. There's nothing time sensitive here. We can defer this and ask staff to go back to the drawing board and come back. Well, the seals are all out of scale on these renderings, and that may be part of the issue. But we can ask staff to go back to the drawing board.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:00:49
“Just a white background? Yeah. So if you go online, all the advice says don't have a seal on a blank field. It says do something else. And, you know, there are a lot out there that are just too busy, and these were kind of a middle ground. But if you have chance, in all of your spare time when you go home tonight, you know, Google city flags and see what it says. And Miami is the example not to fall. Okay, so yes, Councilman Fletcher.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:02:43
“OK. Very good. Well, if you didn't pick up on it, I think the tenor here is to send staff back to the drawing board, perhaps get some better renderings of what's before us, as well as some other options.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:03:25
“Thank you. Someone's gotta go figure out how many we have. Okay. So staff has their direction. All right, we've dealt with 23, that's in process. And that takes us to tab 24.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:04:46
“section 30-397 permitted uses and dimensional standard tables to amend the permitted use table for small animal clinics and hospitals providing for conflicts of ability and providing for an effective date thank you a little bit of background this initiative over the last couple of years i've had more than one veterinarian some who have practices in the city and some who have practices outside the city who have been desirous of expanding or either coming into the city. And they all expressed to me that under our code, it was very difficult to find suitable property under our code to locate. So…”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:07:04
“Mayor Mrakas, No, I think that the the table, I was given in the lead up to crafting this. that these uses, except for large-scale emergency animal clinics and hospitals, are allowed in B2 and don't require a standalone building or a minimum lot size. So I think that we already have that. Is that correct, James? It's correct.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:07:56
“Also, James, you and I had talked about, I think there was a typo in the number of veterinarians, and it may be we want to consider between now and second reading removing that limitation, because you can only have so many people in a given building. on that minimum lot size at a given time. Certainly dental offices similarly situated have far more than that, for example, in all these medical clinics. So certainly yes, certainly very amenable to Councilwoman having your concerns addressed as well as perhaps the removal of the limitation on the number of veterinarian and support staff.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:08:41
“Okay. Very good. So let's have a roll call on first reading.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:08:57
“All right. That moves us to tab 26. 26. Again, just a really quick background. At one of the first presentations our park consultants made, either publicly or at least one-on-one, was a recommendation to have an independent fundraising arm to get a not-for-profit set up to begin to independently seek grants and philanthropy for park acquisition, capital improvements, all those kinds of things. And when this first got on my radar, it was more in tune with the pending transfer that's obviously not yet complete of the new 10-acre parcel, but certainly Harris Field and the balance of that upgrade…”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:10:47
“Correct. Seven appointees, one from each council member, the prior mayor, and the city manager.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:10:58
“Correct. The manager or his or her designee.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:11:25
“Okay. So, Councilwoman, is it your concern that it be a designee of the manager or that it be the manager or none of the above?”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:11:50
“I think it's nine. It's the seven appointees. It's established as nine.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:12:12
“But the seven elected officials will always have their appointees. Yes.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:12:20
“Okay, very good. All right. You think further? I think we have a motion and a second. Let's have a roll call vote on the first reading. Councilwoman Avila. This is it.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:13:56
“Again, I think the key words are non-binding straw ballot. Councilman Rowland?”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:14:09
“So implicit in that, is it your belief that we should remain in the public power business?”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:14:20
“Well, you didn't answer the question. You don't have to, but it's neither here nor there. I think it's important to know why you're voting the way you are. It's more important than how you vote. Be that as it may. I'll, for those of you who are here with the old fashioned ways of the dirty looks and the arms crossed, I'll bear those slings and arrows. We got to grow out of old Podunk homestead. and recognize that we neither have the money or the capability to generate the needs of this city in the future. I run into folks all over town all the time that have a complaint that we're not…”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:17:17
“That may very well be, and I agree with that. However, if the reverse of that is if we receive an unsolicited offer from a public provider Are we gonna call for a special election and spend a couple hundred thousand dollars to poll the public? Or are we gonna wait until November of 27 to get voter approval? Or are we just gonna go forward?”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:18:34
“And that's fine. I don't want to fall into the trap, though, that, well, let's go get voter approval when a contract is pending. We may not have that luxury of time.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:18:54
“Well, maybe it won't, but To our employees, we can't stick our head in the sand forever. If it doesn't happen this year, next year, the following year, there's going to be a fundamental change in the way we raise and spend money in this city. You know, the only two people who came and complained tonight from among the employees were people with their own self-interest. And that's why Homestead is way behind the rest of the region. Because we never thought big picture. Because you had a bunch of weak people sitting up here in the past who wouldn't say, we've got to act in the best interest of…”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:21:16
“But people don't think about that. There's a perception. Are we reliable? Are we cost effective? Are we efficient? I think the answer across the board is no.”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:21:52
“No i'm lucky at my house until tonight I I don't I always get restored pretty quickly and may not be the case in the future, but. generally citywide that I don't see that. I get emails, I'm stopped on the street, I'm stopped in the grocery store, and look, the reality is on a good day we can generate, I'm told, about 10 megawatts. Our requirements on a daily basis are up to 115 megawatts. The manager shared with me that we need a minimum of $50 million to get anywhere where we need to be. in our power plant to be self-sufficient so this is not just a what if tax reform happens this is facing…”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026
- Play at 4:23:25
“Again non-binding straw ballot, but you know, I've finally learned in my lifetime to read the tea leaves and stop Tilting at windmills when the windmill has already fallen on me but So guys for a lack of second And thank you councilman and that concludes the regular agenda and I'm trying to thumb through here and see in which order we have individual council members business yeah mr manager what do you have for us this evening no it's dead okay”
City Council · Jul 22, 2026