The bond referendum for the Miami-Dade Courthouse
tax failed miserably last week, but Cielito Lindo is still in deplorable conditions and there are still health and safety hazards that need to be addressed.
Maybe it just needs to be shut down.
That’s what Commissioner Juan “El Zorro” Zapata is going to suggest at Wednesday’s public safety committee meeting that starts at 9:30 a.m.
Zap has a resolution “directing the county mayor or county mayor’s designee to close the Miami-Dade County Courthouse at 73 West Flagler Street in the event of hazardous conditions.” He also wants the county to use funds from the Building Better Communities general obligation bond to repair those hazardous conditions. And he wants a plan for the temporary relocation of court facilities while the repairs are made. If approved in committee, it goes to the full commission Dec. 2.
Miami-Dade’s budget — a magical land where you apparently open a drawer and money jumps out — reportedly has $75 million available for this quick fix.
But what about the long term? The judges and lawyers promoting the courthouse tax for a new building say the historic old courthouse is just too small for a significantly larger population and case load.
Read related story: Miami-Dade Commission: ‘Trust us with $400 mil for new courthouse’
Sources say that Commission Chair Rebeca Sosa is finally interested in the issue and has begun to look at how the county can do the right thing without having to fleece taxpayers even more. Perhaps she is looking into the old federal courthouse downtown that has been abandoned and that the U.S. government is giving away. Maybe she will resurrect Commissioner Javier Souto‘s withdrawn motion to charge more for traffic tickets.
Even Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez is said to be putting his thinking cap — or, rather, ordering Deputy Mayor Ed Marquez to put on his cap and meet with Chief Judge Bertila Soto. But las malas lenguas say he is also looking at the condition of the criminal courthouse, and rightfully so because county officials identified that courthouse years ago as the most critical of their facilities needing attention.
Might we see another courthouse tax bond referendum that combines the two sometime next year? It is entirely possible.
Meanwhile, anyone got some office space for rent?
Commissioner Juan Zapata: Close courthouse if there’s a risk added by Ladra on
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