Campaign season in Miami-Dade has officially shifted into another gear now that absentee or vote-by-mail ballots are about to drop. Not one, but two of Democratic strategist Christian Ulvert‘s high-profile South Florida clients launched very similar five-figure advertising buys this week, signaling that campaign season has gone from warm-up stretches to full-contact political sport. The […]
So let me get this straight. Miami-Dade County is staring down what could be one of the toughest budget seasons in recent memory. A projected deficit in the hundreds of millions. Hard choices. Potential service cuts. Taxpayer anxiety. And the grand plan for public engagement is…two town hall-like conversations? That’s it? Mayor Daniella Levine Cava […]
First batch of 167,563 vote-by-mail ballots to be sent The first real sign that an election is here is not a yard sign. It’s not a candidate selfie at a ventanita. It’s not even the first mailer accusing somebody’s opponent of being a communist, a crook or a secret developer puppet. It’s the absentee ballot […]
The Miami-Dade Public Schools superintendent search is down to the part where everyone pretends it wasn’t always going to be an insider. After spending $30,000 on a national search and collecting 21 applications from educators across the country, Miami-Dade School Board members are about to begin narrowing the field for the next superintendent. And Ladra […]
When disaster strikes Haiti, Cuba or Venezuela, South Florida doesn’t just watch the news. It gets to work. That’s exactly what’s happened since two powerful earthquakes last week — measuring 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude just seconds apart — struck northern Venezuela, devastating the coastal state of La Guaira, leaving thousands dead, tens of thousands unaccounted […]
Waterfront property. Plenty of wildlife. Previous tenants moving out. FOR SALE – 17,000 acres of prime South Florida real estate. One lightly used airport. Recently vacated detention center. Includes runway suitable for deportation flights, emergency operations or your next constitutional controversy. Among the amenities: Endless wetlands. World-famous wildlife. Surrounded by Big Cypress National Preserve. Minutes […]
For several hours Thursday, Miami City Hall looked like it was heading toward a political moment. Dozens of speakers packed commission chambers urging elected officials to rescind the city’s controversial 287(g) agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement — and shared stories about fear. Fear of being stopped. Fear of being profiled. Fear of leaving home. […]
The Miami City Commission voted unanimously Thursday to begin exploring legal action against Florida’s controversial Live Local Act, the state law that has allowed developers to bypass local zoning restrictions in exchange for providing a percentage of what passes for workforce housing. The resolution, sponsored by Commissioner Damian Pardo, directs the city attorney’s office to […]
Judicial races are supposed to be boring. That’s the deal. The candidates talk about fairness, impartiality, judicial temperament, and the rule of law. Bar associations issue ratings. Lawyers quietly pick sides. Most voters skip the race entirely or vote based on whose last name sounds familiar. But somebody apparently forgot to tell that to the […]
The City of Miami may be about to discover whether residents hate construction fences more than they hate billboards. On Thursday, commissioners will consider a one-year pilot program that would allow commercial advertising on construction site fencing throughout parts of the city’s Urban Core. The pitch is simple enough: Construction fences are ugly. They attract […]