Critics say it is another vanity project for his wife

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UPDATED: Well, that didn’t take long.

True to his campaign talk, newly-elected Commissioner Ariel Fernandez has moved to dismiss City Manager Peter Iglesias. He has put a discussion on the May 9 commission agenda “regarding the termination of the city manager.”

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Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago is not as popular as he thinks he is. There’s no doubt that these recent commission races were a referendum on his leadership.

Even though he won re-election with no opposition, Lago worked hard to get his cronies elected. He called people and asked them to put signs in their yard. He texted people to remind them to vote for his candidates. Friends say he was obsessed with the commission races.

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Newly-elected Coral Gables commissioners Melissa Castro and Ariel Fernandez were sworn in Friday during a short investiture ceremony where they repeated their commitment to put residents first.

Oh, yeah, Mayor Vince Lago, who was re-elected without opposition, was also sworn in again. But he didn’t seem to have as happy a day. He seemed pouty and depressed. Maybe it’s because he now has to sit between the two new commissioners, both of whom he worked hard against.

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The upset was not a surprise. The margin was.

Melissa Castro won the commission runoff race in Coral Gables Tuesday against the better funded, establishment backed Ivette Arango O’Doski by 18 points, 59% to 41%. That’s an even wider margin than the mandate given to Commissioner Elect Ariel Fernandez on April 11.

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