Coral Gables Vice Mayor Mike Mena is under fire for his vote last week to sell a city-owned parcel used as a surface parking lot near the Village of Merrick Park to his bosses in a no-bid secret deal that nobody knew was coming.
Some residents are asking for his resignation.
“Mena knew he was doing something wrong and tried to cover his tracks,” Coral Gables resident and former U.S. District Attorney Leon Kellner wrote in an op-ed piece published in Community Newspapers and Gables Insider.
“At the commission meeting he blurted out that his vote would not make a difference because he said he knew there were four ‘yes’ votes from the mayor and three other commissioners. That’s uncanny,” Kellner wrote, “given Florida’s strict Sunshine Laws which prohibit commissioners from speaking to each other in private about city business.
“So, how did he know the other commissioners would vote in favor of the sale?”
Eso es lo de menos. The writing was probably on the wall. These politicos count votes at the meeting. It’s bad enough that he voted to sell the public land to an entity owned by his bosses, former Commissioner Frank Quesada and John Ruiz.
And it begs for more questions.
How involved was Mena behind the scenes? This is something that was started by Quesada as soon as he left office. And, then, he hired Mena in 2019. Has Mena been pushing for this?
Read related: Coral Gables Vice Mayor Mike Mena votes to sell city land to his bosses
And how much will he benefit? Besides a fatter bonus this year, does Mena directly benefit from any ownership of the land? Mena, who did not return calls and texts to his phone, says he is just an employee of MSP Recovery Law (. But records show he applied for and got a federal PPP loan given to business owners (more on that later).
So if he’s really just an employee, he fraudulently obtained the loan. If he didn’t commit fraud, he’s partners with Quesada and Ruiz and could be benefitting even more directly from this deal.
City Attorney Miriam Ramos is also under fire for providing the legal opinion that gave Mena the green light to vote for his business partners.
“The saga of 350 Greco Avenue is an embarrassment to our City Government and demonstrates that Commissioner Mena and his enabler, City Attorney Miriam Ramos, have overstayed their welcome and it is time for them to resign,” Kellner wrote in his op-ed piece.
He’s not the only one who is asking for accountability.
“Many neighbors feel the same way when they find out what happened. Irate, as a matter of fact,” said Sue Kawalerski, president of the Coral Gables Neighbors Association, who said she has gotten a slew of emails.
“I am for finding the truth and pushing for necessary action if the facts show there was impropriety,” Kawalerski told Ladra. “However, the behavior we are witnessing from Mena and Ramos are very troubling.
“We deserve to know how these shenanigans get past so many people in City Hall and demand accountability.”
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Residents are also asking Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago to take the second vote on the property sale off the May 25 commission meeting agenda and, instead, put out a request for proposals on the parcel..
Lago says he is open to requesting an RFP. But he also seems to be sympathetic to the sale to his vice mayor’s bosses. He told Ladra that he needed whoever developed the land to keep the 34 parking spaces used now by the businesses in the area, especially the commercial strip across the street. He’s also demanded charging stations for electric vehicles, real lighting and signage.
“I’m not willing to do an outside sale. The perfect partner in my opinion is the neighboring property owner,” Lago said, knowing full well that Quesada and Ruiz own the adjacent lot.
Because both lots are too small to build anything and keep the 34 parking spaces, Lago said it makes sense for the properties to be unified and developed as one. Sounding very much like their lobbyist, Lago also says the 34 parking spaces will be “upgraded and in covered buildings.”
Or you can leave the lot alone and not sell it, allowing it to produce around $70,000 a year in parking revenue, instead of becoming another mammoth building with maximum density and basically across the street from single family homes.
Ladra wouldn’t bet on the city commission giving $3.5 million they can use for infrastructure (read: studies) or more metal flowers to put in the street.
After all, as Mena has correctly established, they only need four votes.
Mike Mena’s Coral Gables land deal looks shady; residents ask for his head added by Ladra on
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