The Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce will host the first candidate forum Thursday evening on the University of Miami campus.
Four city commission candidates hoping to replace retiring Commissioner Frank Quesada will go first. They are: Ralph Cabrera, Jorge. L. Fors, Jackson “Rip” Holmes and Carmen Olazabal. They get a little more than an hour starting at 6 p.m.
The two mayoral candidates will present voters with a rematch from two years ago, when Raul Valdes-Fauli barely beat Jeannett Slesnick by fewer than 190 votes to squeak into the mayor’s seat. Those two will face-off about 7:15 p.m. The evening is set to end at 8 p.m.
But face-off may be the wrong term. Candidates have been told to be civil and not direct any questions or answers at each other, only speaking through the moderator with the audience. Each candidate will be given 90 seconds for an opening statement before answering questions prepared by UM political science professor Jennifer Connolly and her students over the past two weeks.
Read related: Rematch! Jeannett Slesnick will jump into Gables mayor’s race
“We will then transition into questions submitted on-line and by the audience,” Connolly said in an email to candidates, adding that 4×6 note cards will be made available to the audience. “Only I know what questions will be asked. No one, including the Chamber, knows of my choices.
“Insulting or slanderous remarks, heckling, or verbal outbursts during the program will not be tolerated – this includes booing and hissing, snapping or the like,” Connolly added. “Anyone exhibiting this type of behavior will be asked to leave by staff or UM security.”
Candidates were even sent a “Pledge of Positivity” swearing to uphold the most ambitious set of rules:
“I pledge to conduct my campaign in an honest and fair manner and to remain focused on the substantive issues important to the citizens and business leaders/owners of Coral Gables;
I pledge to run a positive political campaign and will not permit or condone any negative or defamatory attacks on my opponents’ personal character or reputation, in any advertisements or during any media appearance or campaign interview, or in any broadcast, print, digital, or internet formats;
I pledge to direct all my paid and unpaid volunteer campaign managers, consultants, ad developers, pollsters, workers and supporters to run and to participate in a positive political campaign;
I pledge to not attack or condemn my opponent’s personal character;
I pledge to not distort my opponent’s record or positions, take their voting records or positions out of context, or use or permit the use of any campaign material or advertisement that is misleading, misrepresents, distorts or otherwise falsifies the facts regarding my opponent or their record;
If third parties who support my candidacy for office, freely and independently choose to do negative campaigning, I pledge to publicly call on such individual or group whose activities violate this Positive Campaign Pledge to immediately cease and desist from such activities and to publicly repudiate their negative campaigning.
Ladra would like to see if Valdes-Fauli — who waged a nasty ethnic campaign two years ago and took Slesnick’s development votes out of context — signed that pledge.
Read related: Coral Gables mayoral race takes a nasty, ethnic turn
And is Chamber President Mark Trowbridge really the best person to keep time on the candidates? Given his past endorsements and, ahem, support of some candidates over others, it might be in the Chamber’s — and transparency’s — best interest to find someone else.
One might think that all this politeness and civility is going to make the forum boooooring. But there’s always the Rip factor.
Holmes is a colorful fella that doesn’t get much respect in election coverage because he never seems viable. But he can add entertainment value.
An active downtown property owner with an obsession about bringing a department store to Miracle Mile, he has some good ideas — like bringing those misting sprays in Disney World to downtown Coral Gables — and some crazy ones, like the theory that space aliens are somehow responsible for some of the worst terrorist attacks on America.
He could make things, um, interesting. Ladra hopes Dr. Connolly has a sense of humor.
The forum is from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Fieldhouse at UM, 1245 Dauer Drive, next to the Watsco Center. The Gables Chamber of Commerce is joined by five partner organizations in presenting the forum: The League of Women Voters of Miami-Dade, the Coral Gables Democratic Club, Gables Good Government Committee, Miami Young Republicans and the Cuban American Bar Association.
Most of the people at this forum in the past have been friends and supporters of the candidates. In other words, people who are already decided. But it still provides a platform for the candidates to present their pitch.
There will be a second Q&A for candidates at the Congregational Church on March 14 hosted by the Coco Plum Woma’s Club and the Coral Gables Forum. As before, that one will be moderated by CBS4 News anchor Elliott Rodriguez.
The election is April 9 but absentee ballots are out this week.

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Laughable traffic study should be thrown out

Anti-development activists against recent upzoning in Coral Gables lost in last month’s elections when every single one of their candidates got beat in their respective races, including former Commissioner Jeannett Slesnick who lost the mayoral bid to former Mayor Raul Valdes-Fauli by 187 votes.

Now, they may lose again on Tuesday, when commissioners are set to take the final vote on a controversial development near the historic Coral Gables Elementary School that wants variances to more than double the allowed density.

It will be the first real test for the new commission on the issue that defined the election. 

Read related story: Mike Mena (read: developers) win Gables race, as expected

The 33 Alhambra project will raze a number of two-story apartment buildings along Navarre and Minorca avenues, Galian Street and Alhambra Circle and replace them with a mixed-use complex with retail and residential rental units in 10 floors. It got approved 4-1 at first reading in December. Want to guess who was the sole dissenter? The answer is Slesnick, who isn’t there anymore. That might be why the lawyer for the developer asked to table the second hearing last January, after more than 60 people showed up to speak against it. Attorney Zeke Guilford asked for time to see if the developer could make some compromises to address community concerns, but it’s obvious they were just stalling until after the election. It’s not a coincidence it’s coming up at the second meeting since. Because the compromise they’ve come back with is hardly really a compromise.

Maybe it’s even a bait and switch. Maybe the plan was always for 146 units, which is still more than twice the 56 allowed under current zoning guidelines. By giving the inflated 184 originally in the plans, this may seem like a relief to some. But not to all. 

Residents have signed a petition saying it’s still too big. They are expected to show up. And that’s why the city is having this item at 5 p.m. time certain instead of during the day, to facilitate the working class families that live around there who are upset about the disingenuous “compromise” and who want to balk publicly at the traffic study that says the project will only bring 58 new car trips during the morning. Laughable.

Read related story: In Coral Gables election, only a sweep will change the course

Ladra suspects that this new commission — what? With a land use attorney on it and all — is poised to approve this project, even thought it will dwarf the two story historic elementary school and cast a shadow as well as a traffic nightmare on that whole neighborhood and even though they will hear from dozens of residents who will beg them to reconsider.

But let’s give them the benefit of the doubt. They did the right thing by moving this discussion to 5 p.m. Perhaps they will do the right thing and force the developer to downsize even further. Certainly twice the number of units normallly allowed should still be a win, no? Instead of trying to maximize their profits with efficiencies and one bedrooms, maybe they could increase the number of two-bedroom units in what is a desireable neighborhood for young families and bring the size down? 

At the very least Coral Gables Commissioners should demand a valid traffic study that might give them more gravitas when they approve this, as well as grounds for some impact fees to pay for more police officers, since there’s such a shortage.

Because taking this traffic study at face value will show us that developers really did win in last month’s elections. 


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Former Coral Gables Mayor Raul Valdes Fauli will have that word “former” election2017removed from his identification after he is sworn in as the new mayor again.

Valdes-Fauli beat Commissioner Jeannett Slesnick in the mayoral race Tuesday, 51 to 49, after Mayor Jim Cason said he would not run for a fourth term. As expected, it was a tight race and a slim victory — by a scant 187 votes. And it’s almost all absentee ballots.

Only 15 people more voted for him than for her on election day. The other 172 additional votes he got were via AB.

A total of 8,415 people voted in the mayoral election Tuesday (there was a drop off of about 200 an 300 in the two commission races), which is on the high end of a typical turnout.

Read related story: Coral Gables candidates will spend more than $1 million

“I always said I was going to need 4,000 votes. I just needed a little more,” Slesnick told Ladra late Tuesday night jeannettraulafter several people had left her campaign party.

She said her business partner will be happy to have her back at work full time, but that she will stay involved in Gables issues. “I never stopped being involved,” she said, and she wasn’t talking about Valdes-Fauli but she may as well have been since he disappeared for 13 years until endorsing Cason two years ago and then getting rewarded with a charter review committee seat.

“We had a great turnout today and we ran a really good campaign. They were all volunteers except for one person. Everybody else was volunteer from start to finish,” she said. “I ran a very clean campaign and I’m very proud and I don’t know anything I could have done differently.”

With all due respect and my apologies for not writing enough about the race or earlier, maybe she could have gone a little negative? Valdes-Fauli sure did. And it seemed to work for him.

The former mayor waged war in this campaign, which was more of a grudge match for Valdes-Fauli, who lost his seat in 2001 in a bitter defeat to former Mayor Don Slesnick, the commissioner’s husband. Jeannett was cast as not much more than a shill for her husband, whose administration was mired in scandal and financial chaos, which was sort of the case but certainly not Don Slesnick’s fault.

Read related story: Mucho mailers mean to mislead in Coral Gables election

“I’m sorry he had to take the brundt of the campaign madness,” the good wife said. 

But Valdes-Fauli got his licks in on her, too. Using innocuous votes against her, saying she voted for the Paseo speedyslesnickproject when, in fact, it had already been approved and she was voting for subsequent measures, some of which downsized the project. She did her job. Another cast her as “Speedy Slesnick” because she voted against a feel-good measure to lower speed limits to 25 MPH on some streets whe her point is that what the city needs is police officers to enforce the already pretty good 30 MPH limit. 

The worst attack, however, was the whisper campaign about Slesnick being anti-Hispanic or anti-Cuban, which is a ridiculous and, frankly, insulting card to pull. It becomes especially injuring when it is pulled by a Castro apologist who recently visited the island, had some eye-opening experience and now advocates for closer relations with the Cuban regime. Que descaro!

We’ll know more in coming days about the demographics of the vote, but I bet that a lot of Hispanics were targetted and came out.

Read related story: Coral Gables mayoral race takes a nasty, ethnic turn

This victory is not just a victory for Valdes-Fauli — and for Sergio Pino, one of the developers that funded his campaign (with at least $10,000). This is a victory also for Commissioners Frank Quesada and Vince Lago, who endorsed the former mayor and will now have a third vote to push their agenda through.

And if people were concerned about over development before, they can just kiss the old Gables good bye, because it’s not about to get any better for the next two years. It doesn’t really matter anymore that Commissioner Pat Keon got re-elected or if Marlin Ebbert pulls out an upset and beats Mike Mena in a runoff (more on that later).

A majority is three votes. They have preserved that with Tuesday’s vote.


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By the time the Coral Gables mayoral race is over on Tuesday evening, the two candidates will have spent at least a money fallinghalf a million dollars, maybe more. Ladra is not sure but is willing to bet that’s a record.

The six candidates in the two commission seat races raised almost exactly the same amount of campaign cash combined as of the last reports available, through March 28: $474,000. You just know that by April 11, that number will go up — making it a total of more than $1 million spent on this Gables election cycle.

Read related story: Jeannett Slesnick winning Gables mayoral money race

Obviously the two cash cows are in the mayoral race. Commissioner Jeannett Slesnick and former Mayor Raul Valdes-Fauli have each raised almost a quarter of a million themselves — $jeannettraul247,819 for Slesnick, and $246,494 for Valdes-Fauli between his campaign account and his political action committee, Coral Gables First. Practically every dime of the $73,794 contributed to the PAC is from outside Coral Gables and most of it is development and real estate money — like the $10,000 in bundles from developer Sergio Pino‘s mulitple companies — except for $20,000 from a Mercedes Benz dealership in Brooklyn that seems to come out of nowhere.

But Valdes-Fauli has been burning through his piggy bank faster than the commissioner. Slesnick still has more than $107,000 to spend next to his $60K as of March 28. That could make a big difference in the last two weeks.

Read related story: In Coral Gables election, only a clean sweep will change course

The next heavy hitters are incumbent Commissioner witherskeonPat Keon, who has raised almost $222,000 to former Commissioner Wayne “Chip” Withers‘ $39,411 as of March 28 (but Ladra doubts he will catch up). Also on that date, she had about $125,000 left to spend while he had about $14,200.

In the open seat race that Slesnick had to resign from, the four candidates have raised $211,800. Well, three candidates, since Serafin Sousa has only raised $1,000 and we don’t even know if he loaned it to himself or who gae it to him because he doesn’t know how to fill out a campaign finance report and nobody cares enough to ask him to fix it. So, its $211,800 between three candidates — and more than half of that belongs to land use attorney Mike Mena.

Mena, who was reportedly recruited by Commissioners Frank Quesada and Vince Lago, has raised $136,540 as Gables4wayof March 28. He had spent a ton of that ($119,178) and only had about $17,362 left as of Matrch 28. Meanwhile, retired police officer Randy Hoff has been far more thrifty and had $18,497 left from his $53,666 booty on the same day. Activist grandma Marlin Ebbert hasn’t even spent that much, with $12633 of her $21,595 going out, leaving her with just under $9,000 to get her to election day, unless she picks up a few contributions.

Read related story: Mucho mailers mean to mislead in Coral Gables election

Ladra knows that it’s not a guarantee that the candidate with the biggest bank gets to win on the ballot. Look at Miami Commissioner Ken Russell and Miami Beach Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez. But it helps.

If the money helped them get the message out, then Keon and Mena might be sittine pretty tonight. If anti development forces were able to rally the troops and get their turnout up, then, and only then, it won’t matter.


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In the Coral Gables election today, voters are choosing between hitting the gas or election2017putting the brakes on what many have called a recent drive to redevelop much of Coral Gables — going higher and wider and bigger.

And not just in the mayoral contest between Commissioner Jeannett Slesnick, the sole dissenting voice in every single one of the oversized projects recently approved in the City Beautiful, and former Mayor Raul Valdes-Fauli, who was booted from office in 2001 because he wanted to build a mega City Hall annex building and close Biltmore Way and has been endorsed by the pro development forces.

Read relatred story: Coral Gables mayoral race takes a nasty, ethnic turn

Certainly overdevelopment — or, at the very least, zoning and land use variances that allow higher buildings with more density and less setbacks — has become the biggest issue of this campaign cycle, overshadowing all the rest, even public safety. Every race has been painted with this brush. The Riviera Neighborhood Association, which feels betrayed by the Paseo project approval despite their repeated objections, have gone so far as to recruit candidates in two commission seats.

Because it’s not enough to replace the mayor with someone less willing to bend the city code for developers. If Slesnick wins, but Mike Mena or Commissioner Pat Keon win their respective commission races, she will still be the lone dissenter on many of those votes. If former Commissioner Wayne “Chip” Withers, who is running against Keon, and anyone else in the other group win but Valdes-Faui gets his seat back, the same thing will happen, gablestriobecause Valdes-Fauli will likelyl join Commissioners Vince Lago and Frank Quesada to create a three-vote majority that will basically allow them to redevelop anything they want.

That’s why it is important for voters to elect a clean sweep Tuesday.

Just like they did in 2001, when they elected a new mayor (coincidentally, Slesnick’s husband) and two new commissioners to stop the City Hall annex and reopen Biltmore Way, voters today must elect Jeannett Slesnick, Withers and either Merlin Ebbert or Randy Hoff to stop the railroading that they have seen from developers.

Read related story: Hoff, Mena stand out in 4-way Gables commission race

This is why the group Gables Neighbors United (which is pretty much the Riviera folks) have endorsed Slesnick, Withers and Ebbert. They’ve come up with a nifty little acronym to help people remember: SEW.

Ladra has made it clear that she supports Slesnick, for the aforementioned reasons and also because the negativity of the Valdes-Fauli campaign should not be rewarded. I’m also hoping that Withers wins, even though he has hardly campaigned, for the aformentioned reason — and maybe also because Keon is supremely arrogant and is only going to be worse if she wins this.

And we’d be happy with Ebbert but we prefer Randy Hoff for that commission seat because, in addition to the fact that Ladra still loves her first responders and that he’s earned it through years of service with the police department, he can give us a good handle on employee issues. It’s good to see an employee on the dais. Especially in Coral Gables, where city employees are part of the fabric. Still, there’s likely to be a runoff in this race. But the anti-development forces win on Tuesday if the runoff is between these two.

Either way, voters need to carefully consider each race, not just one, if theyt really want this election to make a difference at all.


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The Coral Gables election Tuesday is the most important event calendar2this week. But it’s not the only thing happening.

The Cortadito Calendar for the second week of April has a protest, a council meeting, horses and trees. And, of course, something or two about transportation. Don’t we always have something on transportation?

It would have been heavier, but every single one of the county committee meetings scheduled for this week were cancelled. All of them. Ladra will try to find out why.

And sorry about Monday getting away from us. I don’t like Mondays so if you want your shindig to be on this list for sure, don’t risk it. There are six other days to choose from.

As always, please keep sending information about your government meetings, candidate forums and political powwows to edevalle@gmail.com and they’ll keep — or start — appearing in the Cortadito Calendar. Unless it’s on a Monday. Then it’s 50-50.

TUESDAY — April 11

7 a.m. – 7 p.m. — The Coral Gables election is finally upon us. Voters will elect a new rauljeannett2mayor and could elect two new commissioners — although one of them won’t be all that new. The mayoral race is the one being watched the most, with Commissioner Jeannett Slesnick facing off against former Mayor Raul Valdes-Fauli in a contest that has turned ugly — and ethnic. Look for Ladra’s recommendations coming soon to Fresh Colada.

8:30 a.m. –The Tuesday Morning Breakfast Club is back to a weekly gig. And it looks like there’s only going to be one. Longtime moderator David Kelsey, the president of the South Beach Hotel and Restaurant Association who had planned a dueling Tuesday Morning club featuring one of the hated developers of Miami Beach, has given up. In an email he said he didn’t have the stamina to fight the activists, who in his words, took over the meetings like in a coup. So, there will only be one breakfast meeting in Miami Beach on Tuesdays. Today, the guest speaker is another Group 2 candidate, Rafael Velasquez (two other Group 2 candidates have already been guests). Former Mayor Matti Bower is moderating again at Puerto Sagua Restaurant, 700 Collins Ave.

7 p.m. — District 3 residents in Palmetto Bay can see the first presentation of traffic data about their specific neighborhoods at a public meeting Tuesday night at Village Hall, 9705 East Hibiscus Street. The results of a citywide traffic calming study have been piece-mealed into district specific power point presentations. The one for District 1, for example, was already given last week and can be seen here online. The gist of this study is to find location for traffic calming devices and identify what devices will be used. Speak now or forever hold your peace when, not if, they put a circle or speed bumps on your street.

WEDNESDAY — April 12

10 a.m. — The Doral City Council meets Wednesday morning and will spend too much time talking doralcityhallabout accounts receivables software and the credit card processing contract (going to Wells Fargo) and the building and funding of two informational/police kiosks in the city. But they also may have to refund $55,000 in development fees to Doral Preparatory Charter School and will consider the approval of a $1 million contract to replace the artificial turf fields at Doral Meadow Park. They may also award a $2.1 million contract for canal stabilization to Enco Engineering Construction and a $570,000 contract for street sweeping to SFM Services. There are some smaller contracts also and the ratification of the city’s agreement with the police union. The whole agenda is published online here. The council meets at City Hall, 8401 NW 53 Ter.

5 p.m. — There’s actually a tree advisory board in Palmetto Bay and it meets Wednesday evening. Ladra couldn’t get an agenda online but Councilwoman Karyn Cunningham invited people to participate via an email blast, so they are seeking some input. What do you think about the canopy in the village. Where could the municipality plant more trees and foliage in the public right of way? This seems like the best place to opine on that. The meeting is at Village Hall, 9705 East Hibiscus.

THURSDAY — April 13

6 p.m. — The newest member of the Citizens Independent Transportation Trust, Melissa Dynan, will trafficlightsbe sworn in at their next meeting Thursday evening. In addition to the regular progress reports from the Miami-Dade Department of Transit and Pubic Works and the regular financial and strategic committee reviews, the CITT will be discussing resolutions that urge the count to (1) acquire the easement of land along Southwest 137th Avenue, (2) apply for a federal grant for $960,000 from a pilot program for transit oriented development, (3) enter into a multi-year agreement with the Florida Department of Transportation to build a $1.8 million bus depot park and ride lot called Tamiami Station (the state would fund half), and (4) approve a contract extension with Southern Gas Companies (dba Florida City Gas) for compressed natural gas for the department of transit and public works.

FRIDAY — April 14

5:30 p.m. — This is no ordinary dog and pony show. The 2017 International Agriculture equestrianHorse and Cattle Show, the highlight of Miami-Dade Commissioner Javier Souto‘s social calendar, is having it’s 10th year. Souto, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez and a slew of other electeds, most likely including Commissioners Esteban Bovo Jr., Jose “Pepe” Diaz and Rebeca Sosa — who can count on Souto to vote their way 99% of the time — are having a reception Friday afternoon at, where else?, Tropical Park, where Souto’s beloved Ronald Reagan Equestrian Center, 7800 Bird Road, was built with taxpayer dollars and opened in 2013 (and is pictured to the right here). Ladra thinks its by invitation, but if we got one, that means it can’t be too selective. Just RSVP with Aldo Gonzalez or John Montes at 305-222-2116.

SATURDAY — April 15

10 a.m. — Shouldn’t Donald Trump release his tax returns? trump2A lot of people think so. Some of them will gather downtown Saturday at Miami’s “Show Us Your Taxes March” in front of our federal building at 51 SW First Avenue. Ladra isn’t sure a protest in front of a federal building on a Saturday when nobody will notice is going to sway President Donald Trump as much as, say, a protest in front of his golf course property in Doral. But I’m not organizing this. The march is expected to end at noon, also. So I guess two hours is about as pissed off as some activists can get on a Saturday in April.


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