Well, it looks like it’s happening. The Miami Seaquarium — once the depressing, algae-stained home of Lolita the orca and a bunch of overworked dolphins — is being reborn as… wait for it… a giant waterfront dining-and-marina playground.
Because nothing says “environmental redemption” like swapping captive sea mammals for $60 ceviches and a fleet of yachts.
Developer David Martin from Coconut Grove’s Terra released the first glossy renderings of his $100 million vision, and let Ladra tell you, they look like someone fed Bayside Marketplace and a Sandals resort to Midjourney and said, “Make it fancy.”
Marine mammals? Gone.
Fine dining under a mega-canopy overlooking the harbor? Very much in.
County revenue? Projected to double.
Public skepticism? Already simmering.
The images shown at the Miami-Dade appropriations committee Thursday have outdoor restaurant tables circling the existing harbor in a “Fisherman’s Village” setting — which is funny because fishermen will probably not afford to eat there. There are also small sailboats pulled onto shore, just in case anybody wants to cosplay as a person who sails for fun.
All the old Seaquarium relics — the tanks, the pens, the sad performance pits — have magically vanished from the renderings. Not even a ghost of those “animal encounter” upcharges remains.
That wasn’t an accident.
As part of his $23 million deal to take over the county lease from the bankruptcy-ridden Dolphin Company (good riddance), Martin promised that every last dolphin, sea lion, and critter be relocated by the time he takes the keys. Good. Let’s hope they end up in sanctuary, not on a different stage.
But wait — he says we still get an aquarium. County requirements still mandate an aquarium on site, so Martin’s giving us one — just without the mammals. Fish only. And the renderings show visitors walking through a massive, two-story tropical aquarium with glass walls and an open-air breezeway that looks like a cross between a zoo exhibit and a Bal Harbour boutique.
Also getting a makeover: the Buckminster Fuller geodesic dome. Once a sea lion theater, it will now become an “event space. Translation: weddings. Lots and lots of weddings.
Imagine saying “I do” at the same place where they once made dolphins dance for anchovies. Miami really is a full-circle town.
In a poll earlier this year, more than half — 54% of the respondents — say the Miami Seaquarium, the management of which has been under fire for years, should remain a tourist attraction. Only 36% said it’s time to repurpose the property.
Read related: Poll says Miami-Dade voters divided on most issues — and thinking of leaving
Aerial renderings also show six brand-new docks popping out into Biscayne Bay like county-approved tentacles. There’s even a yacht tied up at the end of one — just in case the donors needed a visual aid.
And of course, there’s a dry-dock facility. Nothing says “public park vibe” quite like forklifting boats over your head.
Martin also promises a full baywalk wrapping the property, with free kayak launching. That’s called a “public benefit.”
Martin’s outfit is predicting $50 million a year in revenue. That’s double what the Seaquarium used to claim. And because the county’s lease cut is between 3% and 5%, Miami-Dade expects nearly $3 million in year one — a bump from the measly $1.4 million the place used to bring in.
That right there is why the appropriations committee moved this along with zero discussion Thursday. This thing went through faster than a lobbyist through metal detectors.
The full board votes next month. Martin is going to push the project as a public value.
“The Seaquarium sits on land owned by Miami-Dade County, making it a public asset meant to serve our community,” Martin said in a statement.
And that’s a beautiful sentiment. Really.
But Ladra has three questions:

Who is the “public” we’re serving — the waterfront brunch crowd, or the families who used to come here for $39.99 dolphin shows because they couldn’t afford Disney?
And how much “community” remains when the yachts show up?
Is this it? Or is this part of a larger redevelopment of the Rickenbacker Causeway

A marina, dry-dock storage, restaurants, shops, a “Fisherman’s Village,” a bigger, fancier aquarium and event space under that golden gumdrop dome — all that sound familiar? It should. It’s starting to smell like part of a bigger, long-game redevelopment plan for the entire Rickenbacker Causeway.
Remember Plan Z? The controversial, privately driven scheme to overhaul the causeway and Virginia Key, dressed up as a bike-and-pedestrian safety project but really about opening the door to more commercial development?
Well, guess what? With Martin’s takeover of the Seaquarium site, it feels like we’re already on Plan Z+. Ladra can’t help but wonder when the other shoe will drop.
Read related: Miami Mayor Francis Suarez pushes for renewal of ‘Plan Z’ on Rickenbacker
Still, no matter how you feel about the transformation, one thing is clear: The Seaquarium era is over. The Seaquarium a la carte era is here.
And if you want to stroll the new baywalk by 2030, start saving now — you’ll need parking money, and maybe a reservation.
This is Miami, after all. We can’t really redevelop a site without giving it bottle service.

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Well, it looks like Eileen Higgins just added a very shiny feather to her hat — and you know Congresswoman Frederica Wilson has plenty to choose from.
The beloved bedazzled-hat-wearing congresswoman, who represents much of the city in Washington, officially endorsed Higgins for Miami mayor Monday, calling her “a proven leader who delivers real results.”
In campaign-speak, that means: Frederica thinks the Miami-Dade commissioner can actually win the Dec. 9 runoff against former City Manager Emilio Gonzalez.
Read related:Eileen and Emilio headed to Miami mayoral runoff as voters end the circus
And, sure, this endorsement may seem pretty predictable in a full-blown partisan race, but it is also the kind of nod that matters. Not just because Frederica Wilson is a respected voice with deep roots in Liberty City and across Miami’s Black community — and Higgins won 48% of the black vote compared to Gonzalez’ 3% in the first round Nov. 4 — but also because it signals that the Democratic establishment all the way to Capitol Hill is circling the wagons around La Gringa.
“Miami’s future depends on leaders who not only care about our neighborhoods, but who can deliver real results,” Wilson said in her statement, praising Higgins for building affordable housing, investing in small businesses, and making communities safer for kids. “I have full confidence she’ll bring that same passion and proven leadership to City Hall.
Read related: Eileen Higgins heads into partisan Miami mayoral runoff with momentum
Higgins, of course, returned the love with all the right words about shared values and admiration for Wilson’s long fight for families and children. “Her endorsement means so much because our shared mission is clear — to create a city that’s safe, affordable, and full of opportunity,” Higgins said.
The list of heavy hitters behind Higgins is getting longer than a Miami traffic light: Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, Commissioners Oliver Gilbert and Danielle Cohen Higgins, Sen. Jones, Rep. Ashley Gantt, EMILY’s List, Ruth’s List, Equality Florida, both major SEIU locals, UNITE HERE, LiUNA, and even the Miami Herald and Miami Times editorial boards.
That’s not a coalition — that’s a small army.
Meanwhile, González — the former director of Miami International Airport and onetime director of U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service — has also been collecting endorsements of his own, including from Gov. Ron DeSantis, Sen. Rick Scott, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz (weird, right?), and, the latest, former Mayor Xavier Suarez, who was the mayor once and is the father of the current mayor. But let’s be honest, they don’t have the same sparkle as a Frederica Wilson endorsement.
Well, maybe Ted Cruz does.
Read related: After coming in 6th, Papi Suarez backs Emilio Gonzalez for Miami mayor
Higgins’ camp says the congresswoman’s nod reflects “ethical leadership” and a “focus on families.” Ladra would add: it also reflects momentum.
With just over a month to go before the Dec. 9 runoff, both candidates are hustling for every precinct, every headline and every endorsement. Higgins wants to turn her first-place finish into a coronation. Gonzalez wants an upset.
And somewhere in the middle, voters are wondering if either one can clean up the circus at City Hall without joining the act.

You can help bring your community more independent, watchdog government reporting of our local government and political campaigns with a contribution to Political Cortadito. Click here. Ladra thanks you for your support.

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Ladra predicts State Rep. Vicky Lopez gets appointed
Ah, Miami-Dade County… where the candidates start lining up before the seat is even officially vacant.
With Commissioner Eileen Higgins heading into the mayoral runoff and leaving her District 5 seat, the race to see who replaces her has gone from sideline chatter to full-blown arena. And we have our players.
The deadline to apply, for those who want to be appointed, came and went Wednesday and there were five wannabes for D5. Fitting. And they are exactly who we thought they would be. Commission Auditor Adeyinka Majekodunmi told Commission Chair Anthony Rodriguez in a memo Wednesday that there would be “background research and residency verification” of the candidates and that the commissioners would get a report by Monday, Nov. 17.
Read related: Let the jockeying begin to fill Eileen Higgins’ Miami-Dade commission seat
Commissioners are expected to make a decision the very next day. So, let’s give them some cliff notes they can get without the fancy audit, right? Here is some tiny basic background research on the five applicants for the District 5 commission seat:

Former Commissioner Joe Sanchez, the “veteran” law enforcement figure who lost the Republican primary for the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s office last year, has been lobbying commissioners hard even before he filed to run for the seat the day after Higgins won the first round with 36% Nov. 4. He keeps publicly saying there should be an election, but that’s only because he knows someone else has the inside track.
State Rep. Vicky Lopez, the one with the inside track, who is being pushed out by Tallahassee and seems to have most of the commissioners on board — Republicans as a favor to House Speaker Danny Perez, and Democrats because they think they can win the seat in a special election, which is not entirely impossible given the current climate (more on that later). But Lopez has excess baggage. It includes an indictment on 10 counts, including bribery and “honest services fraud,” when she was a Lee County commissioner in 1995 and served 15 months in federal prison until President Bill Clinton commuted her sentence. Later, a court vacated her conviction. More recently, she’s been accused of benefiting from the school bus camera legislation she championed last year after family members got lucrative jobs in the industry. But in Miami politics, that kind of baggage often just means “experienced.”
Former Miami-Dade Commissioner Bruno Barreiro, who had the seat before Higgins and resigned to run for Congress. He lost. He told Ladra earlier this month that he has the time now that he’s an empty-nester and he wants to bring stability to the commission. You know, the kind of stability that comes with 20 years on the board.
Former Miami Beach Commissioner and State Rep. David Richardson, who lost the Miami-Dade Tax Collector race last year and  filed to run for the seat has said he has already represented the same group of people in both the city of Miami Beach and the Florida House. His supporters make the case that, as the only Democrat in the running, he should replace Higgins because she, too, is a Democrat.
Anthony Javier Diaz, the only non retread, who likes to be called Tony Diaz because that’s how everybody knows him, he says. He was going to run for Miami Commission in the District 4 special election but withdrew (read: chickened out) before it started. Ladra will bet that he won’t run if he’s not appointed.

Nobody should be appointed. By county rules, the Commission has 30 days to either appoint someone or call a special election to fill the vacancy. They have appointed commissioners in the past — Natalie Milian Orbis and Danielle Cohen Higgins some to mind — and proponents will say that an appointment saves more than $1 million taxpayer dollars.
But it’s going to be hard to keep a straight face when they gave FIFA $46 million for, basically, World Cup parties and can always find funding for the pet projects their contributor contractors can build.
Read related: Lobbying starts to fill Eileen Higgins’ D5 Miami-Dade commission seat
Ladra was under the impression that there would be an election for the seat in August anyway, which could make spending $1.2 to $1.5 million on an election in a tight budget year hard to swallow But that’s not true. That’s only if the person is appointed. That’s what triggers the special election with the other county seats in August. This term has almost three years left on it. If someone is elected in a special election in, say, February, they would serve those three years.
There’s nothing else to consider. A special election is the only choice commissioners can make next week if they want the public to have any trust in them whatsoever.
Only five people applied for a seat in a district that covers such hot spots as Downtown Miami, Little Havana, Brickell and parts of Miami Beach because everyone knows the fix is in. (Remember, Ladra was the first to say Orbis would be appointed). The commissioners are leaning toward appointment, because it gives them more control. They already set up an online portal, asked for résumés, and had the auditor’s office prep for the process. In other words:
The setup is ready for the “we pick someone” scenario. And Ladra’s money is on Lopez.
District 5 is now a political chessboard. The players: institutional favorite Lopez, beggar Sánchez, and the whole commission watching who blinks first. Whether the process will be democratic (a special election) or managed (an appointment) is the question — and the answer could tell us a lot about how Miami-Dade really “does” democracy.
Ladra’s prediction: The appointment route wins out, the inside candidate takes the seat, and citizens roll their eyes. Unless the chambers are packed on Nov. 18 and the outrage meter gets high enough to force a special election.

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Just when you thought the dust had settled from Miami-Dade’s budget meltdown over nonprofit funding, the county commission is getting ready to cook up a permanent fix — and it’s one that could quietly take a bite out of every county contract.
Ladra’s calling it the CBO skim.
Thursday, the county’s appropriations committee will take up a new ordinance that would create a Community-Based Organization Trust Fund, a special pot of money meant to stabilize funding for nonprofits that provide human and social services — the same groups that got a last-minute $40 million reprieve during September’s hand-wringing budget circus.
It sounds noble. It’s being sold as a way to protect the safety net from political gamesmanship. But like so many things in county government, it’s not all that easy.
This conversation is about trust. And after the A3 Foundation fiasco, where The Miami Herald discovered the county was paying millions to a ghost non-profit with nothing to show in return — they’re gonna need a lot of it.
Read related: Shady charity with political ties gets $450K from Miami-Dade Commission
Under the plan, 2% of every eligible county contract — for goods, services, even construction — would be deducted and dropped into the new rainy-day fund. That means vendors doing business with Miami-Dade would get a 2% haircut on each invoice, the money quietly rerouted to help “the community.”
Who decides which nonprofits get the help? The same county commission, of course — or the mayor’s office, if the board delegates the power. But Ladra will bet that doesn’t happen.
Leading the charge are three commissioners who know the nonprofit world better than most: Kionne McGhee, Rene Garcia, and Marlene Bastien have sponsored the ordinance.
McGhee, the vice chair and former state lawmaker, runs his district like a social lab of pilot programs and small-business grants. He is also an employee of Children of Inmates, a charity that aims to keep adults in prison connected with their kids while they serve their sentences. Children of Inmates was poised to get $250,000 in 2026 from Miami-Dade County — just enough, maybe, to cover his salary and benefits. McGhee was also the loudest voice on the commission to restore non-profit funding and had his own budget town hall for the community based organizations.
Garcia, the Republican from Hialeah, has chaired more health and social service boards than some Democrats. He founded the resource referral non-profit H.O.P.E. Mission, and has his best friend serving as president.
And Bastien? She is the nonprofit world — founder of FANM, the Family Action Network Movement, and tireless champion for every social cause from affordable housing to immigration. She recently convinced the county to earlier this year to give away a county-owned property at 100 NE 84th Street to the non-profit she founded in 1991.
Read related:Miami-Dade considers giving property away to Marleine Bastien’s non-profit
So, yes, the CBO Trust Fund has plenty of heart. But it also has fingerprints all over it.
It sounds like a good idea: The measure would create a permanent, interest-bearing county fund dedicated solely to nonprofit grants. The 2% “CBO Deduction” would come out of county contracts — just like the User Access Program fee, which vendors have long called a hidden tax. It deducts 2% of all vendors through the procurement department to “defray procurement costs.”
There are exemptions to the proposed CBO deduction (read: loopholes), of course:

Small construction contracts under $500,000
Professional services and design contracts
Federally funded deals where the feds say no
Revenue-generating contracts
And anything the commission votes to waive by a two-thirds majority

The Mayor’s office would oversee the logistics and file an annual report on how much the fund collected and where it went.
Contractors are not going to love this.
Many of them already grumble about the User Access Program. Now they’ll see another 2% dip — one they’ll likely bake right back into their bid prices. So taxpayers might end up footing the bill anyway.
Read related: Miami-Dade budget restores 100% funds to non-profits = self preservation
Fiscal hawks will call it a backdoor tax. Procurement nerds will call it a nightmare. And some watchdogs (woof!) will say it’s a slush fund in the making, with commissioners picking winners and losers among nonprofits.
But for the hundreds of local groups that live and die by county grants every year, this is seen as nothing short of a lifeline — a chance to stop begging every budget season for money to keep their doors open. Expect them to show up en masse to encourage the passage of this measure.
Likewise, lobbyists and contractors will be urging commissioners to vote no. Because 2% of $9 billion dollars — the price tag put on the whole modernization of Miami International Airport — is $180 million.
It’s hard not to see this as a political insurance policy after the budget fiasco that nearly gutted Miami-Dade’s social service network. The commission doesn’t want to go through that again, with seniors and kids and domestic violence advocates showing up to protest.
So they’re setting up a rainy-day fund for nonprofits, paid for by taxpayers anyway because vendors will pass it along. The optics are interesting: three commissioners with deep ties to nonprofit circles creating a fund that could, one day, feed those same circles.
That doesn’t make it wrong — but it sure makes it worth watching.
If this passes committee, it’ll head to the full commission for approval, and you can bet Ladra will be looking to see who lines up for (maybe Keon Hardemon, Oliver Gilbert) or against it (Rob Gonzalez?). Because whether you call it a Trust Fund or a “Trust Us Fund,” this little ordinance could quietly change how social service money flows in Miami-Dade for years to come.
The appropriations committee begins at 11 a.m. Thursday Nov. 13 in commission chambers at County Hall, 111 Northwest First Street, and can be seen live on the county’s YouTube channel and online on their website.

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Did anybody really think a Carollo was gonna get bounced from a Miami election that easily?
In true Magic City fashion, Miami-Dade Judge Peter Lopez ruled Wednesday that Frank Carollo can stay on the Dec. 9 runoff ballot for the District 3 commission seat — despite that new voter-approved lifetime term limits referendum that was supposed to slam the revolving door on recycled politicians.
And just like that, the Carollo Conundrum lives on.
The ruling came just as county elections officials are finalizing ballots that include not just the District 3 runoff but also the mayoral matchup between Eileen Higgins and Emilio González. That means the vote-by-mail clock keeps ticking, and barring an appeal miracle, Frank’s name will be right there — next to the seat he once held and the one his older brother Joe Carollo is about to vacate.
Read related: Miami voters sue to keep Frank Carollo off the runoff ballot after term-limit win
The residents who brought the lawsuit — Oscar Elio Alejandro, Victor Milanes, and Alex Almirola — aren’t taking it lying down. They called the decision “deeply disappointing” and said it “disenfranchises” the more than 80% of Miami voters who approved Referendum 4 last week.
That measure wasn’t ambiguous, they said. It clearly said term limits apply retroactively and immediately. As in, right now. Not “whenever it’s politically convenient.”
“By failing to uphold the measure exactly as written,” their joint statement read, “the court has undermined the will of the voters and weakened the mandate for reform that Miami residents so clearly demanded at the ballot box.”
Translation: the people said eight years is enough — but the court said, maybe not for the Carollos.
Judge Lopez’s decision didn’t actually settle the broader issue of whether the new term limits will apply to future elections — just that it’s too late to yank Frank off this one. His lawyers had argued that removing him now would “disenfranchise” voters who already cast ballots for him and could trigger constitutional challenges.
But to the plaintiffs, that logic is backwards. They say letting a two-term commissioner stay on the ballot undermines the very reform that Miamians voted for. And don’t be surprised if they take this fight upstairs to the Third District Court of Appeal, like the judge himself predicted on Monday.
Attorney Juan Carlos “JC” Planas, a former state rep who ran for supervisor of elections in Miami-Dade last year, said he is still looking at options. He indicated that they may refile again.
“I am still reviewing the judge’s ruling to make sure it does not render hollow the votes of 79% of the city of Miami that voted to bar Frank Carollo and others from serving again in positions that they have already served for two terms,” Planas told Political Cortadito. “All options are legally on the table to preserve the will of the voters ass to lifetime term limits.”
Read related: Judge to decide this week if Frank Carollo stays on Miami D3 ballot
So, what happens now? Alejandro, who came in third in the first round Nov. 4, won’t get on the ballot and Rolando Escalona, who came in second, still gets to face Frank Carollo on Dec. 9 — even though the referendum technically says the former commissioner shouldn’t even be eligible.
It’s a classic Miami election déjà vu: same family name, same district, same chaos — and the same voters shaking their heads, wondering if anything ever changes in this town.
Meanwhile, the plaintiffs say they’ll keep pushing to “remind voters that Eight Years is Enough.” Maybe they should add a footnote: unless your last name is Carollo.
Once again, the people spoke, the lawyers spun, and the court punted.
So, the runoff goes on, and Miami voters get a choice that most of the city thought they’d already rejected. It’s a setback for reform, a win for the status quo, and another headline for the “Only in Miami” file.
Because if there’s one thing we’ve learned after decades of Suarezes, Carollos, and court rulings that come just in time for the ballot printers — it’s that in this city, power never really leaves. It just gets recycled.
Eight years might be enough for the voters. But for the Carollos? Apparently not.

You can help bring your community more independent, watchdog government reporting of our local government and political campaigns with a contribution to Political Cortadito. Click here. Ladra thanks you for your support.

The post Judge lets Frank Carollo stay on the ballot — for now — and voters cry foul appeared first on Political Cortadito.

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