Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez is scheduled to speak at the Kendall Federation of Homeowners Association 
meeting in about an hour and Ladra expects it to be quite lively.
The “Meet the Mayor” event had been scheduled before news of his $121 million proposed giveaway was leaked to the press Wednesday. He wouldn’t go otherwise. He may still find a way to get out of it.
After all, this is arguably hostile territory.
Kendall is ground zero for the pro library defenders and KFHA President Michael Rosenberg is president of the Pet’s Trust organization that passed the referendum for a no-kill shelter the mayor and commission immediately ignored.
“This will be an opportunity for the residents of Kendall to ask questions of our mayor and to make suggestions or address the mayor personally about the state of the county,” Rosenberg wrote in the alert to members and friends.
He said Gimenez — who one might think would be more shy today after he backpedaled from the AA Arena deal — would make some opening comments but that there would be an open forum after “for public discussion.”
El pobre.
This group has hosted candidate forums and town hall meetings on important issues and regularly gets a standing room only crowd. Ladra expects that it will be spill-over tonight.
Ladra suspects that the libraries will come up and people will urge him to fully fund the libraries rather than spend millions on his obsession with stadiums – and without a straw ballot vote. Because we know how well that turned out last time.
Speaking of which, Ladra suspects the no-kill shelter situation will come up, especially after recent declarations that things are “so much better” while the door is closed and no more animals are taken in. How can they not be?
Ladra expects his obsession with sports stadiums to be an issue. Not just the soccer stadium and maybe the Dolphins stadium ownership (read: tax evasion) thing, but also the more recent news about Miami Heat owner Micky Arison getting a huge break while these other priorities are made into minced meat and the general employees are blamed.
Ladra expects those questions to come up because, if nobody else asks, I will.
Rosenberg assured me that there would be no soapboxes. People are encouraged to ask questions, not make speeches, he said. He also said that Gimenez would not be given advance notice of questions.
“Politicians sometimes ask if they can know the questions in advance. We don’t do that,” Rosenberg assured Ladra without even asking. “They can’t control the questions. And politicians who can’t come if we don’t have prescreened questions don’t have to come then.”
The program begins at 7 p.m. at the Kendall Village Center Civic Pavilion, 8625 SW 124 Ave., in front of the Regal Theater.
Who else is going?
Carlos Gimenez to face tough ‘Meet the Mayor’ crowd tonight added by Ladra on
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