2020 contender Xavier Suarez has dream slate for commission

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Miami-Dade Commissioner Xavier Suarez is not only running for mayor in 2020 (probably), he’s got a whole slate of commission candidates he is supporting.

“Ordinarily, it would seem a bit early to engage in those discussions,” Suarez said.

But this is no ordinary election. Term limits approved by voters in 2012 mean that five of the seven county commission seats on the 2020 ballot will be wide open. That makes for a unique opportunity to change the make up of the board — and its priorities — which has people coming out of the woodwork.

That “together with the announcement of various eminent candidates for the five open seats, compels me to make my own plans clear – beginning with what issue and which candidates are likely to advance the county in the right direction,” X said.

Read related: Carlos Gimenez taps commissioner to block return of 1/2 penny funds

Suarez, who announced his endorsements last week, naturally would want allies for his administration and indicated that these candidates will support his efforts to separate the half penny funds from operational and maintenance expenses and implement the S.M.A.R.T. plan.

“Winston Churchill defined ‘squandermania’ as diverting taxpayers’ money for useless or improper purposes,” Suarez said, hinting at a word we might see on the campaign trail. “The misuse of the half-cent for 17 years, totaling $1.8 billion, must end in 2020. I am committed to supporting five new commissioners who will see to that.”

Those candidates are:

• District 1: Miami Gardens Mayor Oliver Gilbert, a “dogged champion and architect of Miami Garden’s renaissance as the eminently livable city in the northernmost region of the county. Recently selected chairman of the Transportation Planning Organization, he has fought for prioritizing the northern corridor of the S.M.A.R.T. Plan and to recoup municipal powers over the site of Hard Rock Stadium.”
• District 3: Miami Commissioner Keon Hardeman, who “has distinguished himself as chairman of both the Miami City Commission and the SE Overtown C.R.A. His relentless pursuit of tax increment bond monies resulted in $60 million of financing, including affordable housing and commercial/cultural development, that have already transformed NW 3rd Avenue into one of the most desirable places to live, work, and play in the urban core.
• District 7: Former Miami-Dade School Board Member and one-time mayoral candidate Raquel Regalado, who “led the effort to complete and promote MAST Academy, as well as bringing the school system to its present ‘A’ rating. She is a vocal critic of ‘squandermania’ of the half-cent surcharge funds and a strong proponent of the S.M.A.R.T. Plan using rail, as presented to the voters in 2002.”
• In District 9: State Rep. and Minority Leader Kionne McGhee., considered “the emotional leader of the battle to bring rail to the South Dade transitway. He, too, is a vocal critic of ‘squandermania’ of the half-cent surcharge funds, testifying before the CITT in the 2017 board meeting that led to the resolution calling for the unwinding of unification by 2019.”
• In District 13: Former State Sen. Rene Garcia, “one of the most respected legislators ever to serve our county. He is committed to using the half-cent surcharge for its proper purposes. He has been a steadfast supporter of Medicaid expansion in Florida. Like the others in this slate, he believes that a society is judged by how it treats its most vulnerable citizens.”

Gilbert, Regalado and Garcia have all filed paperwork with the county elections department. Hardemon and McGhee have not but both will be term limited out of their respective seats and are expected to run.

Suarez will likely also back District 5 Commissioner Eileen Higgins, who won a special election last Spring to serve the rest of former Commissioner Bruno Barreiro‘s term (he ran for Congress but lost) and is expected to seek re-election next year. She is seen as a like-minded lawmaker.

Read related: Eileen Higgins would upset the apple cart, add checks and balances

If the Xman’s fabulous five are elected, along with Higgins and Commissioners Daniella Levine Cava and Jean Monestime on the dais, it will be a long time before Rebeca Sosa or Jose “Pepe” Diaz get to do anything.

While he did not confirm that he himself is running in the announcement sent to the media Wednesday, he told Ladra over the weekend that these symbiotic candidates stepping up to the plate are making it easier for him to commit.

“If I was 90% sure before, I am 95% sure now,” Suarez said. “There’s no scenario that I can think of that will keep me from doing it.”

And he did take the opportunity to jab his would-be opponents with a mass transit scorecard that compares he and his son’s leadership to theirs, especially as it relates to the so-called S.M.A.R.T. Plan. This $3.6 billion plan for five new corridors of rapid public transportation was approved by both the county commission and the Transportation Planning Organization.

“Unfortunately, due to failure in leadership, what has resulted is a continued diversion of funds totaling approximately $100 million per year, beginning when the half-cent referendum of 2002 was approved,” Suarez said, adding that he got a commitment from the Florida Department of Transportation to match the funds. 

Alex Penelas? He was mayor in 2002 when voters passed the half-cent tax. Suarez said he “failed to include any accountability measures.”

Read related: Juan Zapata is first to throw hat into 2020 mayoral free-for-all

Commissioner Esteban Bovo? His plan is “more big buses plus billion dollar highway paid for by new tolls.”

He also took a swipe at Mayor Carlos Gimenez, who is supporting Bovo and whose plan is “There is no plan, there is no money and, by the way, trains are obsolete!” Well, except for at election time when he said new trains were coming.

But he didn’t include the only person who has so far filed paperwork to run for mayor: Juan Zapata.

“I have a good relationship with JC and he has also been very critical of this administration,” Suarez said. “There’s very little I can criticize.”

Maybe someone can convince Zap to run for his old seat in District 11 to fill out the slate?

  Kionne McGhee, Mayor’s race 2020, Raquel Regalado, term limits, Xavier Suarez