Letter: Coral Gables doesn’t need pickup trucks

Suggesting, much less actually repealing Coral Gables’ ban on the overnight parking of pickup trucks in various conditions, from showroom new to dripping with cement remnants and oversized tool racks, would be a major departure from “The City Beautiful” creed.

How can this be of such little importance to the City Commission to demonstrate that our citizens/owners opinion and sentiments are not of extreme value? In fact, commissioners are demonstrating to us that our thoughts and concerns are of little to no value by dealing with this matter in this fashion. This issue should be decided by a referendum, a real vote, not by the Commission unilaterally as a body. There is, at this time no proof that the majority of Coral Gables Citizens would relish having pick-up trucks parked in front of, adjacent to or even on the swales of their homes on an ongoing basis. In fact in our neighborhood we already have a serious problem of unsightly pickup trucks lining the streets after hours and on weekends.

An effort should be made to canvas and hold in regard the feelings of those who have lived here for decades, those who have grown up here and remain residents, and also those who have placed their futures on the homesteads they have here. My neighbors, friends and many other fellow citizens I know are deeply dismayed by what seems to be a determination of this commission to change this zoning code (many of whom remember that the City successfully fought a comprehensive legal battle to maintain the City Beautiful neighborhood character and uniqueness more than a decade ago). Our citizens have a right to a voice in their government!!

Courtney R. Thompson, Coral Gables

Town manager needs to go

Cutler Bay Town Manager Steve Alexander should be replaced. The manager was hired to serve the council and the entire community. Unfortunately, Alexander does not encourage open communication between citizens and their government. In most cases, his arrogance prevents him from doing the will of the people. And many times, he has been unresponsive to the council’s wishes.

On the Old Cutler Road and Caribbean Boulevard projects, Alexander accepted the county’s standard 6-inch-high curbs even though residents did not want raised curbs. When presenting this item to the council, the manager persuaded them to approve it. The council approved it based on the accuracy of the manager’s information. What Alexander failed to disclose to the council was important information such as the pros and cons as well as the long-term consequences and costs.

Alexander also did not disclose until after the November 2010 elections that the county would not pay for flat gutters instead of raised curbs. Subsequently, the Old Cutler Road negotiations were reopened, but at taxpayers’ cost. The county did agree to pay for most of the enhancements, but not for the preferred unraised gutters.

Alexander did not amend the Caribbean Boulevard contract. He failed to mention that this was a direct result of his negotiations with the county and not a “safety issue” as he claimed. In other words, the 6-inch-high-curbs were a done deal!

Alexander should be replaced. Cutler Bay deserves a town manager that will be responsive to citizens’ needs and wishes. We should have a government for all the people of our great Town of Cutler Bay!

Alfonsina Sergio, Cutler Bay

Moratorium is unnecessary

After reading the May 27 Soapbox section I felt compelled to set the record straight. In a letter by Palmetto Bay resident Helen Sandow ( Why vote against building freeze?), the writer made the claim “there has to be a motive behind [my] vote” against the unnecessary and dubious land-development moratorium resolution put forth by Councilwoman Joan Lindsay.

Well, simply stated, my motive is nothing more than common sense — a position I made entirely clear to all those who attended the May 23 council meeting.

Within the Resolution itself (beginning on line 40), it reads “Whereas, the neighborhood preservation and compatibility regulations should simplify the current process of imposing conditions on these developments, and provide a fair and equitable system for all by defining specific criteria for: setbacks, buffers, construction staging, athletic fields and amenities, landscaping, traffic, parking related conditions, lighting, noise operations, historic/archaeological, unity of title enforcement and structures amongst other issues.”

My common-sense reasoning was to the point and firmly expressed: What other entities than schools and religious facilities would have the problems expressed by this resolution? At present, non-residential use may not go into effect until going before the Village Council. If changes need to be made in the Land Development Code, the work can go on without a moratorium.

I hope for the sake of all Palmetto Bay residents that this village is not forced to comply with this moratorium as it will no doubt spur additional frivolous lawsuits against us.

I am always available for questions, concerns, and clarification on this and any other matter concerning our village.

Howard J. Tendrich, Village Councilman, Palmetto Bay

Law shouldn’t be anti-church

I write in opposition of Palmetto Bay’s moratorium ordinance. The moratorium will temporarily halt the issuance of many permits for residentially zoned properties exceeding one acre and to “groupings” of properties exceeding one acre, with some exceptions.

The moratorium is believed to affect more than 100 property owners in Palmetto Bay, obviously greatly impacting local private schools and churches. To date, I do not believe any of those affected have been contacted by the village for their input, nor has the village sufficiently explained if there is a specific threat of development that prompted such a serious action as a moratorium.

Next up is a proposed “Neighborhood Preservation and Compatibility” ordinance. Although, still unpublished and as yet undrafted, the ultimate ordinance is supposed to define “specific criteria for: setbacks, buffers, construction staging, athletic fields and amenities, landscaping, traffic, parking related conditions, lighting, noise, operations, historic/archaeological, unity of title, enforcement, and structures.”

The majority of Palmetto Bay’s Council is moving forward with the moratorium in anticipation of this Neighborhood Preservation and Compatibility ordinance, although no one has any idea how far-reaching the final draft will be.

The real concern is that the village’s current land-use code addresses all of the same issues that council members say they hope to address with these new laws. The village’s code already provides guidelines for every single one of the items mentioned above. So basically, we already have safeguards in place to protect our residents from non-residential development and we are essentially adding a series of redundant regulation.

Christ Fellowship has no desire to engage in politics. However, as campus pastor at Christ Fellowship Palmetto Bay I am concerned about the disproportionate affect these regulations will have on our church. Although we have no plans to physically expand our Palmetto Bay campus, we have an obligation as the church’s current custodians to protect its future property rights. We believe the proposed ordinances will be in violation of state and federal laws designed to protect churches from legal land use discrimination, and as such, we strongly oppose them.

Pastor Sammy Flores, Christ Fellowship Church, Palmetto Bay

Ex-mayor should be civil to council

I would like to comment on Palmetto Bay Village Council meeting of May 7, as it seems that this has become normal practice from residents at public meetings in the village. I was there to talk about item 9H (Ordinance for Neighborhood Protection) on the agenda, as were many other people. I was totally awestruck by former mayor Eugene Flynn’s approach with his presentation.

Doesn’t he understand that when we talk in a civil way we can get our point across and it might even be received in a better way? As citizens of this great country we are very lucky and privileged to be able to stand up before our leaders, no matter whether they are party affiliated or not and talk about how we feel about the issues being presented, give suggestions on them or even propose new ones.

That is what is a democracy is all about: "government by the people" or "political or social equality," according to the Random House College Dictionary. Doesn’t he realize that there are people in countries not far from ours were they can’t exercise this right, where they don’t have any basic rights, where just the thought of addressing a political leader and questioning him might get him incarcerated for life, tortured and maybe even killed?

I hope that Flynn, who was the first Mayor of Palmetto Bay and a great leader at that, understands that we can all work together in a civil way. That is what diplomacy is all about, and that is how our great leaders accomplish results, by conversing, listening and trying to reach a compromise even if that means meeting halfway.

Mili Maldonado de Souss, Palmetto Bay
Coral Gables