City Commission Meeting

good morning. If you can start having a seat we're going to get going. Uh, CHAIRWOMAN King is not feeling well today, unfortunately, so I'll be filling in her shoes not to the full [Applause] [Laughter] Extent of her shoes, but I will do my best. Welcome to the city of miami commission meeting MARCH 12th 2026. Procedures for the public comment will be explained by the city attorney shortly. Procedures for the swearing in of parties for planning and zoning and quasi-judicial items will be explained by the city attorney. The members of the city commission appearing for this meeting are rolando escalona, ralph rafael rosado, CHAIRWOMAN Christine king, myself and the honorable MADAM Mayor. The meeting will begin and open with a prayer and pastor kenneth washington from the greater israel bethel primitive baptist church, pastor washington. Thank you sir. Shall we pray? Eternal GOD our father, before we ask you for anything lord, we want to thank you for everything. We thank you for this meeting today. We pray our father that everything MAY be done decently and in order and we will be careful to give you all the honor and the praise for it is in your son's name. We do ask it all [Laughter] For his sake. Let everybody say amen. Thank you. Okay. And commissioner, if you could lead us in the 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. Yeah. MR. City attorney, can you please state the procedures to be followed during the meeting? Yes, MR. Chair. Thank you. George wysong city attorney, city of miami detailed information about the processes order of business rules of procedure and scheduling or rescheduling of city commission meetings can be found in chapter two article two of the city code. A copy of which is available online@www.Municode.Com. Any person who is a lobbyist pursuant to chapter two article six of the city code must register with the city clerk and comply with related city requirements for lobbyists before appearing before the city commission. A person MAY not lobby a city official, board member or staff member until registering a copy of the code section about lobbyists is available in the city clerk's office or online@www.Municode.Com. Any person making a presentation, formal request or petition to the city commission concerning real property must make the disclosures required by the city code and writing a copy of the city code sections available at the office of city clerk or online@www.Municode.Com. The city of miami requires anyone requesting action by the city commission must disclose before the hearing any consideration provided or committed to anyone for agreement to support or withhold objection to the requested action pursuant to city code section 2-8. Any documents offered to the city commission that have not been provided seven days before the meeting as part of the agenda, materials will be entered into the record at the city commission's discretion in accordance with section two dash 33 f and g of the city code. The agenda material for each item on the agenda is available during business hours at the city clerk's office and online 24 hours a day@www.Gov.Com. The. The meeting of the miami city commission is a limited public forum. Any person MAY be heard by the city commission through the chair for not more than two minutes on any proposition before the city commission unless modified by the chair public comment will begin at approximately 9:15 A.M. And remain open until public comment is closed by the chairperson. Any person making offensive remarks or who becomes unruly in the commission chambers will be barred from further attending city commission meetings and MAY be subject to arrest. No clapping, applauding, heckling or verbal outbursts in support or opposition to a speaker or or his or her remarks shall be permitted. No signs or placards shall be allowed in the commission chambers. Persons exiting the commission chambers shall do so quietly. Members of the public wishing to address the body MAY do so by submitting written comments via the online comment form please visit www.Gov.Com/meeting instructions for detailed instructions on how to provide public comment using the online public comment form. The comments submitted through the comment form have been and will be distributed to the elected officials, their staff and city administration throughout the day so that the elected officials MAY consider the comments prior to taking any action. Additionally, the online comment form will remain open during the meeting to accept comments and distribute to the elected officials or staff in the city administration up until the chairperson closes. Public comment. Public comment MAY also be provided here live at city hall at 3500 pan american drive, miami, florida subject to any and all city rules as they MAY be amended if the proposition is being considered or rescheduled. The opportunity to be heard MAY be set at such later date before the city commission takes action on such proposition. When addressing the city commission, the member of the public must first state their name, their address and what item will be spoken about. Any person with a disability requiring assistance, auxiliary aids and services for this meeting MAY notify the city clerk. The city has provided different public comment methods to indicate, among other things, the public support opposition or neutrality on the items and topics to be discussed at the city commission meeting in compliance with section 286.01 144c florida statutes. The public has been given the opportunity to provide public comment during the meeting and within reasonable proximity in time before the meeting. Please note commissioners have generally been briefed by city staff and the city attorney's office on items on the agenda today. Anyone wishing a verbatim record of an item considered at this meeting MAY request at the office of communications or view it online@ww.Gov.Com for planning and zoning items. These items shall proceed according to section 7.1.4. The miami 21 zoning ordinance parties for any items including any applicant, appellant, appellee city staff and any person recognized by the decision making body as a qualified intervenor as well as the applicant's representatives and any experts testifying on behalf of the applicant. Appellant or appellee MAY be physically present at city hall to be sworn in by oath or affirmation by the city clerk. The members of the city commission shall disclose any ex parte communications to remove the presumption of prejudice pursuant to florida statute section 286.0115 and section 7.1.4.5 of the miami 21 zoning ordinance. The order of presentation shall be as set forth in miami 21 and in the city code staff will briefly present each item to be heard. The applicant will present its application or request to the city commission. If the applicant agrees with the staff recommendation, the city commission MAY proceed to the. To its deliberation and decision the. The applicant MAY also waive the right to an evidentiary hearing on the record. Please silence all cell phones and other noise making devices. This meeting can be viewed live on miami tv, the city's facebook page, twitter page, city's youtube channel and comcast channel. The broadcast will have closed captioning and finally pursuant to advisory legal opinion of the attorney general a g o 2020 zero three issued on MARCH 19th, 2020, the florida attorney general opined that consistent with prior attorney general opinions, a member of a local governing body who is presently unable to attend a meeting because of medical treatment or due to medical reasons could participate and vote in meetings where a quorum of the other members was physically present. Thank you MISTER Chair. MISTER City clerk please state the swearing in procedures to be followed during the meeting. Thank you chair the procedures for individuals providing testimony to be sworn in for planning and zoning items and any quasi judicial items on today's city commission agenda will be as follows members of city staff or any other individuals required to be sworn in who are currently present at city hall will be sworn in by me, the city clerk immediately after I finish explaining these procedures. Those individuals who are paying remotely MAY be sworn in now or at any time prior to the individual providing testimony for planning and zoning items in our quasi-judicial items. Commissioners are you comfortable with all the notice provisions set forth in the uniform rules and procedures we have established for this meeting? Chair MAY administer the oath for the planning and zoning items. Yes thank you chair. Good morning ladies and gentlemen. If you will be speaking on any of today's planning and zoning items those are the items MAY please have you stand and raise your right hand. And again that's just for the planning and zoning items. Do you solemnly swear or affirm that the testimony you're about to give at today's hearing is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? And your response is thank you chair. MR. City manager do you have any items to be deferred or withdrawn? Good morning. Good morning MADAM Mayor, CHAIRMAN And CHAIRWOMAN Virtually commissioners, city attorney and city clerk the administration would like to defer withdraw the following items re8 to be deferred to MAY 14th fr3 to be withdrawn and discussion item two to be indefinitely deferred. Thank you. Commissioners do you have any items to be deferred or withdrawn? No no. Yes I do uh pertaining to the ultra I can't see the written. That's right. I'd like to defer that. To APRIL 20th 3rd. >> to APRIL 23rd. Anyone else commissioner escalona. Commissioner rosado no. And chair, if I MAY briefly just to interrupt I do have a number of sponsor and co-sponsor requests. Um so if you can just bear with me uh mary higgins will be co-sponsoring re9 commissioner pardo will be sponsoring c a1, a2, a3, a4, a5, a6, a7, r2 and r3 commissioner carter will also be co-sponsoring r 11, r e 15 and ari 17. Commissioner escalona will be co-sponsoring re9. Commissioner rosado will be sponsoring re8 and co-sponsoring fr5. Commissioner king will be sponsoring fl1 and co-sponsoring re9. Thank you chair. I know MADAM Chair is not feeling well and there were items that we wanted to bring forward that require a 4/5. So MADAM Chair, if you're if you're there on the zoom. And chair if I MAY my apologies for the items that are being deferred and [Laughter] Withdrawn if you would like to ask for a motion and a vote. Wait wait wait wait can you guys hear me? Yes, we can hear you. Oh okay um I didn't I didn't get the items that the manager said will be deferred and withdrawn. Uh, could you do that one more time please? Absolutely. >> city manager. [Laughter] Hope you feel better. CHAIRWOMAN. Ore8 to be deferred MAY 14th re8 deferred to MAY 14th fr three to be withdrawn and discussion item two to be indefinitely deferred. And in addition r e ten was deferred to APRIL 23rd. I got that one um I would like to defer I thought administration was going to defer it but I would like to defer uh p two. Is that it? CHAIRWOMAN That would be it yes. Apologize I didn't I didn't go through you on the on the zoom first. Um and my apologies chair to what date is pz2 being deferred. Uh less than definitely deferred because we're going to work on it a bit and we can bring it back at any time. Okay. >> so can we have a motion. I'm sorry on the r e sorry. R ten what do we agree to defer. APRIL 23rd. >> is that the second meeting? That's the second meeting in APRIL. Okay so I motion to defer item. Okay along with the whole list of items. Yeah we're good. Second okay all those in favor? Aye. >> motion carries. Now for the items to be considered now were ph 4r6 and re9. These are for fifth items that we're moving forward so that the CHAIRWOMAN Can vote on these items. Is there any discussion. I think you got it to public comment first. Okay thank you appreciate that. So our public comment period is now open. Yes sir. Good morning commissioners. MADAM Mayor my name is rick maiden, PRESIDENT Of the biscayne neighborhood association and I am a resident of edgewater. I'm here to express our neighborhood strong support for several items that prioritize our safety, mobility and environment. First, we urge you to support for the margaret pace park improvements rt two as one of our primary green spaces, the proposed bay walk segment and kayak launch are vital for public access. Similarly, we support the I-395 bay walk connector rt 17 and k 12. These projects move us closer to the long term vision of a continuous safe path for pedestrians and cyclists regarding mobility, we thank commissioner rosado for sponsoring the discussion on traffic light synchronization d three in high density areas like ours, efficient traffic flow is a daily necessity. We also support marine patrol upgrades ca two essential for emergency response on our busy waterways eliminating single use plastics rt 15 a critical step in protecting the health of biscayne bay finally, we appreciate commissioner prado for initiating the discussion on managing homelessness and the miami center for mental health and recovery di5a comprehensive service oriented approach is vital for the well-being of our entire community. Thank you for your time and for moving these important initiatives forward. Thank you. MADAM. Good morning .MADAM Mayor. Good morning commissioners commissioner my name is marlene barton. I'm representing the thelma gibson health initiative 3640 grand avenue. Today is one month and one day since our beloved MRS. Gibson left us physically I'm here in support today in support of our nine um acknowledging the work of both reverend father gibson and MRS. Thelma gibson who tirelessly advocated for fairness funding to make the lives of the residents of west coconut grove better not just not just better but providing opportunities for them. So I ask the entire board to please support our nine as this community and miami-dade county should remember the tireless work and dedication both father gibson and MRS. Thelma gibson gave gave their lives for so I MAY not give their lives for but dedicating their lives. Thank you. Thank you sir. Uh good. Morning gentlemen. Perhaps you can take another speaker while I'm waiting for the oh, here I am. Okay. Good morning. Regarding the, uh, find grants, you have a total of 12 fine grants on today's agenda and find the florida inland navigation district exists to increase public access to the waterways. The total grants are over $9.5 million. But those grants could be in jeopardy. And here's why the legion park boat ramp opened in 1966. Here it is being used by motor boats in 2007 but due to a lack of maintenance it was closed and fenced off in 2009. Imagine that a city facility that was not well maintained. Later some neighbors objected to the motor boats using the ramp. I told those neighbors the fine grant required motorboat access. It's very easy to take away a personal freedom as long as it's someone else's personal freedom. But rather than continually allowing motor boats, the city canceled the find grant find was not happy and said so. So here's the before. Uh they were starting construction in 2023 and 2022 and in 2024 this is what ended up your cars can no longer park there. They expect the kayakers to carry their kayaks 610ft. There's no parking allowed at the end of the street and what little parking is available is taken by a 236 unit apartment building before after. I highly recommend you repave the legion park boat ramp parking lot and put it back in service. Please bring back a public waterfront benefit that should never have been taken away. Find and the public will be most appreciative. Thank you sir. Good morning. My name is keith moore. I'm from the historical research group profiles in black miami. Um it's been our task to um bring bring to fruition hidden history within the black community. We have been sponsors of several street naming events. I'm here for re9 street naming event for father gibson and MRS. Thelma gibson. Um they have contributed to this community father gibson from the 1950s to the 1980s as a civil rights activist and as a commissioner the second black commissioner to be in this chamber. MRS. Gibson took the helm from there where she did a lot of community work. She did work for women's rights and advocated for this community immensely. Um their history is not hidden in plain in plain sight. We know about them. But today I'm here to support the proposal to have a street named after them for future generations to see. Thank you. Thank you very. >> much MADAM. Good morning. Elisa margulies 3333 rice street and center grove. I think we should all join mayor higgins and sponsoring our 15 eliminating single use plastics and polystyrene containers would be a huge win for miami. A word of caution though many cities have tried and failed take the time to learn from their mistakes. Reach out to environmental groups in chicago, san francisco, los angeles and portland. Ask them about the unintended consequences of implementing bans without suitable alternatives. Next, look to cities and countries that succeeded in banning plastic bags and takeout containers washington dc, santa barbara, hong kong, ireland they figured it out follow their lead tap into our local resources like felipeg for their expertise. Did you know more than 100,000 sea turtles, whales and dolphins die each year from plastic ingestion and entanglement? When you include other sea life, the number increases to over a million and that doesn't even include the seabirds. The numbers are staggering with the right public messaging and the necessary incentives, businesses and residents will become invested in this challenge. Even the most jaded can be persuaded. Finally, now that you've started this conversation, please make sure it doesn't get bogged down in typical miami bureaucracy because when you find the right formula, the impact on our environment will be immediately noticeable and what a legacy that will leave. Thank you. Thank you sir. Good morning good morning uh acting chairperson and the rest of the day's uh my name is rachel martin. I'm with the homeowners and tenants association of the west grove and I chair grove rights and community equity otherwise known as grace. I'm here to offer support for our nine. It's legendary what the gibson has contributed to both coconut grove and the rest of the city of miami, but I'm also here to support the renaming or the naming of the aquatic center at barrett park after monica silva. We know a lot about her, but there's a lot more that we can learn about nica silva who's who certainly eminently qualified to have this thing renamed after her. She was an alumnus of carver high school and she was also inducted into the hall of fame at florida a&m university. You know, at florida a&m university folks didn't hear too much about coconut grove but but but they always heard something about carver and when they found out that carver and coconut grove were synonymous oh my GOD, when you go to famu and you say that's where you're from then you get recognition. But in addition to that, MISS Silva was PRESIDENT Of so many organizations in the community. She was PRESIDENT Of the national association of of of black school educators. She was PRESIDENT Of the girls club of america, the miami chapter and everything that she was a part of. She was an officer the gibson memorial fund, miami mental health, dade county sickle cell, sigma gamma rho. So MISS Silva is certainly deserving to have her name on the aquatic center at barrett park. So I thank you for your consideration of this. Thank you sir. Good morning. Marcus loredo 627th street, miami. Good morning commissioners good morning MADAM Mayor. Um city officials and I wish uh, CHAIRWOMAN King get better soon. I live in edgewater and I'm about quality of life so i'm here to speak for four items. Um the first one is the application for rent for the marginal space park. The next two are related to baywalk we've been fighting for baywalk here for three years. So the our our 17 baywalk connector design and permitting grant application and the c a 12 the design for the I-35 baywalk pedestrian and bike bikeway bridge and uh the last one is related to the miami patrol the c a number two man patrol boat engine replacement grant application. So all those four topics and I agree with others but I select only these four is really related to provide to edgewater to the city of miami a better quality of life. Thank you very much. Thank you sir. Adam kirsten. 7010 biscayne boulevard. Uh good morning commissioners. Uh, MADAM CHAIRWOMAN, hope you feel better. Good morning, MADAM Mayor. Um, I am the chair of the planning and zoning, uh, planning zoning and appeals board and I'm supposed to deliver a report. Uh, you all already have it, but I think, you know, for the benefit of the public just to know what we do and what we've done in the last year. Uh, the board serves as the city's local planning agency providing recommendations to the commission on important planning and zoning matters including miami 21 amendments, comprehensive neighborhood plan updates, rezonings and special area plans. The board also serves in a quasi judicial capacity hearing variances, exceptions, land use and zoning appeals. In 2025, the board held 20 public meetings with two canceled due to lack of quorum. We apologize for that. Uh. During the year the board reviewed approximately 83 resolutions and six discussion items addressing planning and development matters across the city. The board remains committed to transparency and public participation ensuring meetings are publicly noticed, materials are available in advance and proceedings are accessible through the city's broadcast channels. Board members completed their required miami 21 ethics and sunshine law training to ensure compliance with state law and best practices. Um everyone on the board appreciates the opportunity to serve. Um I've done so for a long time. I hope to continue to um and I know my time is up, but I just want to say that, you know, we're hoping to be able to explain what we do beforehand. We've taken the cue from some of the commissioners who like to, you know, let people know what's going on. So we're hoping that as we move forward that's a possibility that we can explain to the public a little more what's happening in advance. It's sometimes hard to explain how to click through even though we think it's obvious to click on a pdf and go through an agenda. So um, the more we can reach the public in clear ways we'd like to. >> thank you thank you sir. Good morning commissioners MADAM Mayor city staff I'm steven dutton resident of downtown 244 biscayne boulevard, apartment 3906, miami, florida. I moved here with thomas lang, my life partner in 2013 after we both retired. We enjoyed the next few years in miami mixing a wonderful life of leisure and travel. In SEPTEMBER of 2016 we returned home from a couple from a cruise for a couple of months and with our dogs lucy and max we were enjoying coffee and breakfast outside a cafe along flagler. Sadly everything changed for us that morning as we were startled by a man across the street in front of walgreens screaming obscenities at everyone who passed and shouting threats. He was enraged but his voice was also sounding delirious and by his dress we knew he was homeless. I made a decision to photograph him so the police could be alerted. He saw me take the photo and yelled take my photo mother f and he came across the street and after swinging a punch that missed me he ran to my partner who yelled leave us alone and he pushed tom to the pavement landing squarely on his head causing his death two days later at jackson memorial it would be hard for me to advocate for anything to help the man who caused tom's death. Were it not for the fact that I spent the last 20 years of my professional life as chief executive officer of samaritan house in fort worth, texas before moving to miami. Tom and I were both attorneys. He was with the bank and we both were very involved in our community. How sadly ironic that after creating a medically supportive facility there for persons who were homeless due to aids as well as for mental illness and substance abuse that I would now live in miami suffering as a victim of violence from a homeless man suffering untreated mental illness, I can only surmise my journey to finding peace will include helping this community finally understand there is no silver bullet ending homelessness but through the goodness of heart and the persistence of persons working to end this scourge, progress most definitely can happen. Your problem is simply one of deciding for the community the next step not yet taken. Despite the millions of tax dollars spent in our city for incarcerating persons that are homeless but with untreated mental illness followed by short hospital stays for medications that help. But then back to the streets. It all starts all over again. Thank you. All right. I'm sorry I apologize. Thank you. We appreciate it. Thank you very much. Thank you ma'am. Good morning to you all. I'm anna viamonte ross and I live at 34 elm avenue in coral gables. I am I served as secretary of health for the state of florida as well as the first surgeon general for the state. I'm currently administrative medical director at camillus health concern as well as a professor of medicine at florida international university college of medicine in 2020. And I say this because I'm really very passionate and very committed to the health of everyone in our community. In 2023, camillus health concern was approached by judge leifman at the miami center for mental health team to explore potential leadership and partnership in this area. The medical team we felt kamila's health would be able to help in this initiative and that we would be able to, uh, provide continuum of primary care services as well as episodic care for acute illnesses, chronic disease management and specialty and surgical referrals as needed. Uh, we're committed to evaluating all these patients and making referrals to jackson memorial hospital emergency room when appropriate. Uh, we feel that camillus health concern as well as the miami center for mental health and recovery have a natural alignment and serving individuals with complex health needs, particularly those with serious mental illness, co-occurring chronic conditions and social vulnerabilities. We believe this partnership enhances patient outcomes for everyone in the community and reduces reliance on emergency and inpatient services. Thank you. Thank you sir. Good morning, honorable commissioners and mayor. My name is william hopper. I live at 527 east 56th street. I want to express my appreciation to the CHAIRWOMAN For allowing me to present the annual report of the historic environmental preservation board during public comments throughout the year at monthly board meetings, the board has reviewed applications for special certificates of appropriateness for alterations to designated historic sites and districts, designation of historic resources and appeals regarding intended decisions to remove trees throughout the city. The board also has the authority to review certificates to dig for major ground disturbing activity in archeological sites and zones and special certificates of approval for tree removal and or construction activity in environmental preservation district or scenic transportation corridor. During 2025, the board had held 11 meetings lasting approximately 32 hours made a total of 45 resolutions including the following two preliminary designation report reviews two final designation of historic resources including john sewell's halsey hall gate columns and 3634 avenue amendment 35 special certificates of appropriateness for alterations to historic resources and districts for historic preservation waivers to allow for restoration or adaptive reuse of designated historic resources to tree to tree removal permit appeals. In addition, the board has reviewed an action on the archeological site under excavation at 77 southeast fifth street slash 44 444 brickell avenue. Other discussion items included the progress of charles avenue developments, ongoing board enhancements, updates to demolition by neglect legislation, implementation of an inventory and assessment of the city's historic resources with unsafe structures violation and proposals for new designations. Thank you. Thank you sir. Good morning. My name is orlando gutierrez. I represent the assembly for the cuban resistance. The assembly is a coalition of 52 civic cuban cuban american civic organizations inside and outside cuba that recently expanded as as we have signed an agreement with the coalition just about a week ago. Uh, right there in the and I'm here to speak on behalf of item d I for support for city planning for transition in cuba. Cuba is on the cusp of change. Preparedness is essential as we learn from history. What happens in cuba deeply affects miami. But what happens in miami also deeply affects cuba. We must prepare because we have a long history of being affected by the crises in cuba and are now preparing in spite of the of the writing being on the wall for the for these crises. Um and we believe that the city of miami must not only prepare but it can also assist the federal government in that outcome which is most beneficial for the city of miami, for the people of cuba, for the united states. There are many possible scenarios in cuba two of them hybrid change or the regime remaining in place will have a negative fallout for miami. But real change towards democracy, towards freedom can really help miami and be a boost for miami's economy. The assembly has a coherent plan for national reconstruction of cuba for national salvation. We have commissions who are working on different areas and we're more than glad to help the city in any way to prepare. Thank you very much. Thank you sir. Good morning. I'm doctor david newman. I live in coconut grove, uh, 2470 trap avenue. Uh, I just want to express my extreme support for the funding of the mental health facility. Uh, you all know how long it's been on, you know, uh, on the agendas. It's been a project of judge leifman for over 20 years. Uh, and to pull any kind of funding now, uh, would be it's really at the one inch line. Okay. It's, uh, it's gotten the support of, uh, the commission's up until now and it's a lot of things have been a lot of foot dragging, but we're really right at the door and all we need to do is to turn the key on this. I was at the commission meeting for the county and uh, strangely they're using the the reasoning that well, city of miami and miami beach are not sure about funding it itself. So they're using this the uh, unsureness of of funding it as an excuse for them not to fully go forward. It's really it's crazy because the amount of money they're asking from the county and the money that that the city is also putting up is really lint in the pockets really. It's such a minimal amount of money for for the amount of money this will save taxpayers. It'll uh greatly reduce jail time of the people who don't deserve to be in jail to begin with. So on many different levels this serves the community. Uh, it saves money. It gives people who need the help the help that they need. And uh, I hope you could, uh, continue to fund this project because it's it's good on so many levels. Thank you very much. Thank you ma'am. Good morning. I am jamal anderson ruff, the youngest niece of thelma vernell anderson gibson um and I'm coming to you from her address 3661 franklin avenue. Um and we are here to speak in support of ari nine the code designation and I just want to speak about my aunt thelma not as an activist but as a woman and beloved aunt who helped raise my father and was mother to me when mine was lost. Proverbs 31 speaks of a good wife being valued greater than rubies because she was absolutely a woman of noble character and brought uncle theodore her family and community. Good. We agree. While uncle theodore was a leader in his own right, my aunt thelma enabled him to do greater as that proverbs 31 woman and she continued and multiplied their work even after his death in 1982 she was truly a woman of great value. She was the model for us as we her nieces and nephews aka her children are educators, ministers, police officers, community organizers, health care professionals and military service people. We carry her legacy all over the world and are proud of the home she worked to create for us and hope that you will vote to move forward with the the code designation. Thank you. Thank you ma'am. Good morning. Laura okamura, 50 biscayne boulevard, miami. Um I'm here to speak against ari ten the. We ended up deferring ari ten from the agenda correct? Yes. >> so is there some other item on the agenda that you would like to speak on? Uh no. So are you voting on that today? It is deferred already. We've already voted to defer it so that will come back on APRIL 23rd. Okay. >> thank you. >> no thank you for taking the time to come. Thank you. Good morning. I am misty brown resident of miramar florida. Address on file today I stand to ask for your support for ari nine uh to to commemorate the legacy of both reverend theodore gibson and our beloved aunt thelma gibson. We thank this commission for always being in support of her and her efforts in everything that she did in this community. We know behind the sacred desk that she sacred dais that she and reverend gibson served this community well with pride and with dignity and served especially the west part of coconut grove, their beloved home um with with integrity. She would want to say today to thank this commission and although she had high regards for the men on this dais, she had a special special affinity for uh CHAIRWOMAN Christine king and her last act of civic duty was to vote for our new mayor, mayor higgins. And so we thank you on behalf of the family for this recognition for generations to come to know, to get to know and know about the great works that reverend theodore gibson and thelma ronnell anderson gibson, uh, did for on behalf for this community and all the constituents. Thank you again. Thank you. Ma'am. Good morning. It's so good to be here this day today my name is elaine black and I am the PRESIDENT Of the liberty city trust and we are here to present our annual report for 2025 and our direction for 2026. Uh our vice PRESIDENT Professor sam lattimore will do the first introduction. Good morning. My name is professor sam lattimore uh 937 northwest five five street miami. Been a resident for over 70 years. Uh, and I am a uh, with the association of liberty city trust. I just want to briefly mention that the vision of the liberty city trust is to empower those who live, learn and work and play in the liberty city overarching objectives. Uh, as it relates to transforming a distressed high poverty community into a valuable mixed income sustainable neighborhood with access to well-functioning services, high quality public schools and educational programs as well as quality early learning situations, public assets, reliable public transportation and improved access to employment opportunities. Thank you. I'd like to, uh, just say that our goals for 2026 we have nine pillars commercial development and under commercial development I'm happy to say on MARCH 25th we're going to have the grand opening ribbon cutting for jaeger plaza. The reason jaeger plaza is important is because there was a doctor by the name of uh, MR. Jaeger doctor jaeger and he served our community for many years. He came to many of our initial meetings, uh, many years ago and advocated uh and as a result of that we are building 135 unit apartment building with 10,000ft2 of open recreational space across from liberty square. Thank you. Oh thank you. Thank you. Thank you ma'am. Good morning to mayor eileen higgins, CHAIRWOMAN Christine king and the city of miami commissioners. Um I am doctor tara anderson rhodes the seventh niece of MRS. Thelma vernell anderson gibson um and reverend theodore gibson I'm doctor chandra as my aunt called me I'm from uh, actually pembroke pines, florida but my father was one of her brothers and so I grew up in the grove. I'm also on the board an active board member of the thelma gibson health initiative which as you all know or should know provides amazing health care services, behavioral health services, social work services and so much more. The city of miami residents especially those in the historic grove. My uncle and aunt whom I both loved, knew, revered and cherished led with integrity always, always doing what's right. They led with passion him more loudly than her as those of you who knew them will can attest but also with compassion for all people especially the least of these those who are underserved, underinsured or uninsured making sure that they gained what they needed to be productive citizens in our community. They inspired me to become a physician along with my mother who was a nurse, but they inspired my twin sister and I to become physicians and I am now a chief medical officer in broward county on behalf of our very large family, which many of you have met who have learned how to serve our GOD our church, our community, our family and each other, we have learned from two of the best uncle theodore whom you all know as reverend gibson and aunt thelma. We thank you for your consideration of our e nine the street naming code designation in their honor for their legacy of love and servant leadership and I want that highlighted again love and servant leadership. We thank you for this timeless way that you can honor them for what they have given to all of us. Thank you. >> thank you so much. Thank you sir. Good morning commissioners. Uh, mayor city manager steve warnock um 396 alhambra here on behalf of wynwood community enhancement association to speak in support of pkd1 the nrd two text amendments. Uh, we're very grateful for the collaboration with the city's planning department, uh, with commissioner king's office CHAIRWOMAN King for her support and sponsorship of this item. This has been a continued collaboration to make much needed neighborhood improvements and see this neighborhood grow in a way that's sensitive for the existing residents. Thank you very much. Thank you ma'am. Good morning. Maggie winchester weiler 195 sunrise drive, key biscayne. I'm the senior manager for florida conservation for ocean conservancy and we've been a proud partner of the city of miami through our shores forward program since 2020. We're excited to see the city is taking steps to limit the procurement of single use plastics on their property. As the leader of the international coastal cleanup, we found that single use plastic items are the most commonly picked up items year after year and miami is no exception. Single use plastics can be some of the most challenging items to recycle, which means that limiting their use to begin with means less waste. It means saving money on waste hauling and less litter on our streets and our beaches as a city that's benefiting massively from our beautiful biscayne bay, you have the opportunity to be more than just a good steward but a real leader in her protection. In 2021 we worked with the city of miami, the university of georgia and many residents and stakeholders to assess circularity in the city and look for opportunities for waste reduction. Starting with your own procurement process is was one of the recommendations from this study this this engagement process and we're really happy to see that this idea is gathering some steam. So we're happy to support this resolution and if you need any support in identifying plastic alternatives or looking at other ways to reduce plastic and waste around the city, you have a huge network of allies in this community um myself and ocean conservancy included. Thank you. Thank you sir. Good morning. Uh my name is chaplain stanley young of freedom prison and jail ministries serving all of miami-dade county. Uh, we want to give well wishes to our CHAIRWOMAN Christine can help you get better for all the commissioners. Mayor, thank you for serving and serving our community well as you have been doing. I'm here to talk on ca1 through seven. It's about all the grants that you have put out on in the community. Um I stopped everything I was doing just to come down and thank you for what you are doing and supporting in our community because we can't do what we're doing in the community without your support, without your encouragement, without you open your doors answering the phone, sending emails to actually engage with us to really do what we do. I love doing what I do. I do it without a paycheck. I do it without a congratulations. Been doing it for 36 years and I plan on doing it probably for the rest of my life serving my community and trying to make my community a just a little better than than we I have found it. That is my motto. That is something I live by. That is something I'm going to leave here with that I left my community better than I found it. Uh I thank you once again. Uh, 500 northwest second avenue, miami, florida. Call me. Let's collaborate. Let's, uh, see what we can do to make our community better. Thank you. GOD bless. Thank you ma'am. Good morning, mayor and commissioners jessica fernandez 3401 northwest 82nd avenue uh doral, florida 33122. I'm here on behalf of crown castle and I wanted to thank you, commissioner rosado for agreeing to postpone or withdraw the item fr three so that we can discuss the best collaboration with utility companies. Um crown castle is committed to maintaining the highest standards of restoration in the public rights of way as we work to enhance our neighborhoods telecommunications infrastructure. And so we really appreciate this opportunity to work in partnership with you, uh, commissioner rosado and with each of you commissioner escalona uh, not king prado, commissioner prado and commissioner gabriela, thank you so much and I hope you have a great day. Thank you. >> sir charles gibson 3679 franklin avenue. I am the grandson of theodore and thelma gibson. First of all I'd like to thank you all. Uh, all of the commission commissioners and the mayor for uh for erre9. Um, we know that uh, MR. Uh, MRS. Gibson and reverend gibson have left the place better than what they found it. They dedicated their lives to the improvement of this city. Their level of service is unmatched. And I'd like to thank you all for considering this measure and I'm in support of it on behalf of our family. Uh, the anderson's and the gibson's. Uh, we really appreciate your support and we hope that the commission will approve our e nine. Thank you sir. Hi. >> good morning, mayor and commissioners. My name is dave doebler. I'm a plastic fisherman residing at 8000 west drive. I'm here to support ri 15 the plastics in procurement I founded I founded volunteer cleanup org 12 years ago and our organization has helped facilitate more than 5000 cleanups, removing over 1.4 million pounds of trash from biscayne bay. Our work protects our waters, marine life and our food supply because no one wants plastic in their fish tacos. A huge portion of what we pull out of the water is single use plastics and polystyrene. In fact, four of the top five items are volunteers collect are used for food and beverage including plastic bottles, bottle caps and utensils. These products are designed to be used for a few minutes and they last on our planet for hundreds of years. The reality is simple what is sold and distributed becomes what ends up in our streets, storm drains and ultimately waterways. That's why this resolution is so important. It focuses on something the city fully controls its own contracts, concessionaires and events operating on city property. When the city sets the standards, businesses quickly adapt, costs come down and the public follows leveraging capitalism to solve problems. We've already seen this work in miami-dade county and city of miami beach, where similar leadership helped move the market towards better alternatives. Ultra music festival is a great example of an event on city property that has made major progress eliminating single use plastics, shifting to recyclable products and reclaiming that material. They've shown that reducing single use plastics makes good business sense. This is about leading by example and reducing the flow of single use plastics that we know caused the most harm. So on behalf of the thousands of volunteers who show up every year to protect our waterways, I strongly encourage you to support this resolution. Thank you. Thank you sir. Good morning. >> my name is ernest champagne and I live in 5545 northwest third avenue and I just came here to you know, go ahead and thank uh, MISS CHAIRWOMAN christine king for her continued support of local uh, I started in the program when I was younger and now my son attends the program as well. Uh, you know, especially, you know, in growing up in that area, you know, there wasn't my mom and dad didn't have a lot of money sometimes and because of that program I was able to, you know, go to like different do different activities like outside of state even like, uh, things like, uh, college, uh, you know, check out college campuses and things like that. And so that program really helped me, uh, you know, develop myself as a student and, and even as an adult today because I also worked there after I graduated. So again, i just want to thank MISS Christine king for, uh, her continued support of focal. Thank you. Thank you ma'am. Good morning commissioners. My name is teresa pinto 140 north east 84th street number 1365 in miami. I'm here with the peer group. I'm an attorney with the peer group or nonprofit law firm that advocates for thriving sustainable communities that sorry that put vulnerable populations first. I'm here to support our 15 um the city's green procurement resolution. Um I commend them in thinking about this that would help reduce plastics in our environment. Um as you probably know plastics are entering our environment at an alarming rate and I include people in that environment and it's having huge health impacts. Um micro nano and now pico plastics have been found in almost every ecosystem on the planet, um, and almost in every human bodily fluid that includes the brain, the placenta and seminal fluids. Um, and we still don't know what these impacts will be down the line. Um, plastics never break down. They just basically get smaller and smaller. Um, and so the environment and people are basically absorbing over 90% of the plastics that are being produced. So I commend the city for thinking about turning to green procurement and helping to alleviate this issue. Thank you. Thank you ma'am. Good morning. My name is rocio vergara. 3015 northwest eighth avenue, apartment 12, miami. I'm coming here to thank all the people from focal, a program that helps children the impact that it has on our families as a single mother. The aid that it has given me is very valuable. It lets me work while my child is taking care of in a loving and caring way. It's really important to me. I want to thank them and GOD bless all the people who make this possible along with their teachers to make the program a special thanks to MADAM CHAIRWOMAN christine king. Thank you MADAM. Good morning. My name is amanda diperna, 3775 avenue. I am the director of zero waste cultural change at debris free oceans, where a local nonprofit working to prevent plastic pollution and zero waste solutions across our community. I'm here today in support of ari 15 and plastics are made from fossil fuels and if the global plastics industry were a country, it would be the fifth largest producer of greenhouse gas emissions in the world. There are more than 4200 chemicals associated with plastics that have been known to be harmful to human health and the environment, and microplastics have been detected throughout the human body. Here in miami, single use plastics are the most common items found in our storm drains, canals and waterways contributing to the hundreds of thousands of pounds of debris removed by the city and local organizations every year. Procurement policies like this are an important opportunity for the city to reduce plastic at the source. If your bathtub was overflowing, the first thing you would do is turn off the tap. Setting standards for city concessions allows miami to lead by example and safeguard the health of its residents and ecosystems. We have already seen proof of that. This works here in miami ultra music festival, which takes place on city property, has voluntarily taken major steps to reduce plastic waste through its mission home sustainability program, the festival has eliminated more than 2.6 million single use plastic items from entering the waste stream and in 2025 reduced the types of single use plastics used at the event by approximately 91%. Reducing single use plastics protects biscayne bay and supports miami's long term climate and resilience goals. Thank you. Thank you sir is there anyone? Okay. Good morning. >> good morning good morning good morning mayor um council I'm wills fallin I'm with the arts and entertainment council. I have my distinguished um council members gloria rodriguez and armand dubois. The miami arts and entertainment council serves as an advisory board uh to the city commission providing guidance and recommendations that support artistic programing, cultural events and creative initiatives throughout the city of miami. Our mission is simple to cultivate opportunities to expand our arts, support creative organizations and enhance miami's cultural identity. Over the past year, the council has focused on strategic partnerships that directly impact residents, artists and cultural institutions. Throughout our collaboration with such projects like the locust project, we supported little haiti, little haiti river art days helping activate gallery studios with bringing residents and visitors together to experience the neighborhood's creative economy. We partnered with nito refuge of the census to support initiative programing that encourages exploration, experimentation and contemporary art while welcoming diverse audiences to engage with creative expression. During art basel week, the council sponsored public art activations with miami urban contemporary experience including the annual kindred spirits exhibition. You still have 30. Exhibition and um with some exploit resilience environmental changes throughout the art. Um well since I'm running out of time here on behalf of the miami arts and entertainment council, we thank the commission for its continued support of the arts and creative community that helps define the spirit of our city. Okay. >> all right. Thank you ma'am. Good morning, commissioners and mayor higgins. My name is maddie kaufman and I live at 3375 southwest 29th terrace and I'm here today also speaking in support of ari 15 to phase out the procurement and distribution of single use plastics and polystyrene throughout city contracts and events. So I work at debris free oceans where I oversee a coalition of more than 160 people representing more than 100 organizations working to prevent waste at the source who are here to support the rollout of this contract and this resolution really is a practical and achievable step forward that has already been implemented in miami-dade county and this proposal simply brings the city into alignment with that leadership. Did you know there's actually nearly 40 years of precedent for a policy like this? The city of berkeley actually eliminated polystyrene foam back in 1988 and since then entire states including new york, new jersey, maine, vermont, maryland, colorado, washington and oregon have phased out certain plastic products statewide. So we can really no longer make the argument that there are not enough alternatives available at reasonable prices. And this does hold true in florida where miami beach, key biscayne hollywood, fort lauderdale, deerfield beach, key west among others have implemented policies to reduce single use plastics and the reason communities are moving in this direction is because the science is really impossible to ignore at this point. As folks have already mentioned, you know, beyond our oceans and the environment, plastics have been throughout our entire bodies including lungs, kidneys, hearts, blood, the brain as well as placentas and milk indicating that we're passing it on to the next generation. And so this resolution addresses the problem where it starts and it really safeguards public health. And so debris free oceans and zero waste miami are in full support and are here to help roll out. I also want to highlight that ultra music festival has done an incredible job eliminating these products anyways, eliminating millions of plastics from being introduced in miami. And so I support the continuation of their lease at bayfront park as well. Thank you. Sir. >> good morning good morning. Good morning my name is herman dubois. Reside at 7900 harbor island drive in north bay village. Uh, thank you this morning for accommodating us. I serve as the vice chair for the miami arts and entertainment council. I was a mayor appointee of mayor suarez and I'm seeking an additional appointee under, uh, MISS Higgins administration. Um, wanted to just reiterate what was said by one of my colleagues that the miami arts and entertainment council is an excellent group because it represents the district commissioners and we want to make sure that art is something that's accessible to all of our residents throughout our districts. We know there's a heavy concentration of art in the wynwood area which is wonderful, but art is for everybody and we want to be able to represent the interests of the districts. But unfortunately we're unable to do so because we have several seats of districts that are vacant. With your appointee, we can operate with a full council and will be able to maximize the role we serve. But if you need some assistance, we have interested individuals from the respective districts that are willing to serve with your permission and so we ask for your continued support. We thank you for the for the encouragement to continue to work in the arts and entertainment communities. And we again, our main focus is to make art accessible for all. Thank you very much. Thank you ma'am. Greetings. >> my name is jameela english. Our office is located at 765 northwest 36th street, miami, florida 33127. I want to say good morning to the CHAIRWOMAN. I hope you feel better. I know you're watching. Welcome MADAM Mayor and the commissioners and I'd like to extend a warm welcome to you MADAM Mayor and to the new commissioners and introduce you to a wonderful program called focal. You met two of our parents already and I just want to thank you for stepping into the shoes of public service and we look forward to your leadership on once again I am jamila english. I am the executive director of the foundation of community assistance and leadership focal focus focal is located in the city of miami's moore park in district five and since 1999 focal has served youth and family in our community with a mission to empower youth young people through education, mentorship, workforce development and life skills training to help them build the foundation they need to be successful future leaders for the past 26 years, focal has successfully maintained our mission by providing services to over 120 students daily. Our services include homework assistance, tutoring, life skills, job training and career exploration and we offer after school meals daily with a 92% retention rate. Many students start in elementary school and continue throughout high school and some continue into college by maintaining a job. You have 30s okay. >> through our work hard play hard motto we provide students and family opportunities that they normally would not have and today we are here just to thank the commissioner the CHAIRWOMAN Christine king for ph four and we look forward to our continued support and we also would like to thank commissioner gabela. We border his district and he has been very supportive of our program as well. Thank you. Thank you ma'am. Good morning. >> commissioners mayor. My name is gloria rodriguez de los reyes. I am a mayoral appointee for the arts entertainment council and I'm here not only in support of our chair man's report but also to request that the mayoral appointees get reappointed today not just myself but also her mind but those of us who weren't able to make it. If we can get that appointment done today, we can basically continue to serve again. We are here to serve you and the public in support of the arts and entertainment and I myself and also an educator. So I am also working on trying to get some of that uh, education, uh, not only education in the arts but also education for financial education for the artists. Um also I see commissioner rosado is busy but uh, I would like to get justice attention. I realize that there is a new interfaith of council that is opening up my master's in philosophy of science and religion and I'd be very interested if I can speak to you afterwards or in contact and if there is anything else of that my chair might need, I think that basically it uh please reappoint us today and we'd be very grateful. Thank you sir. Good morning MADAM Mayor. MADAM CHAIRWOMAN, MISTER Chair and members of the commission thank you so much for the opportunity to be here. Uh, my name is steve leifman and I live here in edgewater and it's a pleasure to be here. I do have some briefing document that I will give to the clerk to be handed out. But first I want to express my sincere gratitude to the city of miami for your tremendous support for the miami center for mental health and recovery. The center fulfills the promise made to voters in 2004 to create an effective, cost efficient alternative for people with serious mental illnesses who repeatedly cycle through homelessness, jail and hospitalization. The reason for this center is quite straightforward when community mental health was first created in the united states, individuals with the most severe and persistent mental illnesses particularly those with psychotic disorders were still in state hospitals. Community mental health was actually designed and developed for people with moderate mental illnesses. When we close the hospitals we went to the war on crime and drugs. We cut back housing. This population got thrown into communities that frankly was just not built for them. No one should be surprised at what happened. They became homeless and they became they started to cycle in and out of our very expensive criminal justice system today there is nowhere in miami-dade county for many of these individuals to go. In fact, there's virtually nowhere in the united states for them to go. As a result, our jails in this country have become the de facto mental health facilities. We would never tell someone suffering from cancer or heart disease that their only option for treatment is jail. Yet that is effectively what we have done to people with severe mental illnesses today in our jail in miami-dade county, 70 to 80% of the individ