Belated Easter egg hunt, party paid for by Pepe Diaz’s donors

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Did you miss the Easter Rabbit?

Well, you are in luck. Because there will be a belated Easter egg hunt  at the annual District 12 Spring Festival put on Saturday by Miami-Dade Commissioner Jose “Pepe” Diaz.

And a few of his friends.

There’s more during the 11 a.m. to 3  p.m. event today at North Trail Park, 780 NW 125th Avenue, including rock climbing, zip lining, bounce houses, live entertainment, slides, face painting and free food. “Children are encouraged to bring their Easter egg baskets for the egg hunt, which will take place at 12:15 p.m.,” says a press release from the commissioner’s office.

But for those of us who don’t believe in the Easter Bunny any more, here are the real people and companies who are waving their magic checkbook wands to make the fun-filled family event possible: Duty Free Americas, Sensus USA, Florida East Coast, Graham Companies, Lennar, Codina Partners, Fountainebleau Aviation, LSN Partners, Orion Jet Center, Llorente & Heckler PA, Communitel, Cemex and Corcel Corp.

Coincidentally, most if not all the sponsors are the same people who donated to Diaz’s re-election campaign.

And Corcel Corp., you will remember, recently went before the commission to fight an amendment to the small business grant program that could have cut their eligibility — basically because they’ve already made $20 million from the county, providing pipes to the water and sewer department. Diaz was absent for the vote that died 12-0.

So how much did they give for this festival? And how much does the four-hour party cost? Who gave what?

Olga Vega in the commissioner’s office could not tell Ladra when I called her after office hours late Friday how much each of the sponsors paid and what the different vendors charged. But she said she would get me those details on Monday.

Ladra left Diaz a message but was unable to reach him late Friday to ask him if he had personally solicited these donations himself.

But here’s a question at large for anyone who can answer: Is this a good way to get around those pesky limits on campaign contributions, or what?

  Jose “Pepe” Diaz