Coral Gables Group 2 candidates include civic volunteer, environmentalist, construction executive

Candidates for Ralph Cabrera’s soon to be vacated Group 2 seat include a longtime community volunteer, an environmentalist who eschews politics but finds himself drawn to races, and a young executive with a building and design company who has a knack for drawing campaign contributors.

Marlin Ebbert

Marlin Ebbert sees herself as a familiar face in the Gables, the mom next door. A mother to three grown children and five grandchildren, Ebbert, 65, picks up her neighbors’ mail and packages when they are away. She hosts neighborhood crime watch meetings. She’s the one who alerted the city that a family of squatters had moved into a house across the street from hers.

She has spent years serving on many local arts and cultural organizations such as The Villagers, which is devoted to historical preservation — “I love history,” she said — and The Barnacle Society, which works to preserve the famed Barnacle House in Coconut Grove, one of Miami’s oldest structures.

She’s also on the boards of Coral Gables Art Cinema and Foster Care Review Inc. Before an injury sidelined her a bit during the campaign, Ebbert’s even walked the Miami half-marathon a number of times. “I feel I’m experienced, energetic, informed and involved. I want to protect our rich history,” Ebbert said.

Another pet peeve: campaign financing has gotten out of control, Ebbert believes. She has limited all donors to $100. “I feel very strongly we must, as a community and as a country, start to take money out of politics. People are buying elections. Politics has become all about raising money when it should be all about raising concerns.”

Ebbert had raised $22,845 as of March 1. Her opponents Ross Hancock and Vince Lago have raised $1,555 and $124,553, respectively, through that period, with Lago leading all 10 candidates in the three races — including mayoral hopefuls Cabrera and incumbent Jim Cason.

“I’m a 25-year resident who has spent my adult life dedicated to my family and community,” Ebbert said. “I have a good grasp of issues, good head on my shoulders, made wise decisions all my life, I know how to live within a budget and will spend the budget like it’s coming out of my own pocket — which it is.”

Ross Hancock

Hancock, 58, will tell you that he’s “introverted” and lacks the stuff that politicians are made of: the need for the spotlight. “I’m an introverted personality, not someone who gets energy from going to public events and making speeches,” he said. “Drains me. I’d rather be camping with a friend or reading a book.”

But races are run and Hancock keeps finding himself in one of them these days.

Last year he ran against State Rep. Erik Fresen for the District 114 state House seat and garnered nearly 49 percent of the vote — despite being heavily outspent by the incumbent. “I was not expected to be a threat to an incumbent who had $200,000 to spend in that race. I spent $5,000 of my own money and got 48.8 percent in a Republican district and ran as a Democrat,” Hancock said.

Unlike state legislative races, city commission races are non-partisan.

Hancock ran then, and is running now, because his environmental concerns and the inability of some residents to get, or maintain, windstorm insurance, supersede his distaste for politics.

“For too long, all the political decisions in the South Florida area have been unduly influenced by the financial involvement of lobbyists and special interests and developers,” he said. But there are other issues frightening people, more than pension reform, he insists.

“I live in fear that my homeowner’s insurance company is going to cancel me. And if that doesn’t motivate you, even if you are uncomfortable, you’ve got to be motivated if you care about your future. My neighbors are affected by this.”

Climate change also concerns Hancock, who feels that neighboring cities like Cutler Bay, South Miami, Pinecrest and Palmetto Bay have done a better job preparing their residents for global change than the Gables, his family’s home for more than 25 years. He has raised a son and daughter in the city with his wife Darlene, a psychoanalyst.

“I would be a voice to make sure all of this is consistent with the understanding that we have both economic and climate impacts over x number of years. Those things that threaten my home and city do inspire me to run for office.”

Vince Lago

Lago, 35, is the youngest candidate in this group, but he has the ear of his grandmother, Maria Julia Lago, a 97-year-old Gables resident who reminds her grandson to never forget seniors’ issues.

“She lives by herself, food is getting more expensive, has to make sure bills are paid on time,” Lago said, noting that a senior center, something the other candidates also advocate, must be built in the Gables. And soon.

Conversely, Lago, who has lived in the Gables for about 15 years, the son of Cuban immigrants who had first arrived in Louisiana, said that young professionals also need attending to so that their disposable income isn’t spent in perceived hipper destinations like Wynwood, South Miami or the Design District.

“I see a lot of young people moving into the city, young professionals looking for an outlet. They are looking for somewhere to go and have a good time.… Maybe we can sit down and enjoy the open air and music. I listen to all the lessees downtown, and what they need to do business, and I want to make sure that business can survive in an area that provides 50 percent of our $145 million budget.”

Family ties also play a part in his bid for a commission seat.

“I truly enjoyed growing up in our city and I want to make sure that my 11/2-year-old daughter has the same ability.”

Lago has faced criticism from some of the other candidates for his campaign chest. His treasurer’s report includes $500 donations (the maximum allowed) from numerous real estate investors, contractors, architects and lawyers.

“I’ve been involved in this race a year and six months,” Lago said. “When I signed up to run for public office I was fortunate to know individuals, great friends, family members in my business a long time. I’ve been involved in a lot of philanthropic organizations throughout the county. When I announced I got contributions from all over the state from friends and family.”

Candidates on the issues

Last week the candidates met with members of The Miami Herald’s editorial board and shared their views on issues they felt were important in the city of Coral Gables.

On pension reform:

The city concluded negotiations with the police and general employees’ unions last year to help shore up a $235 million unfunded liability.

Ebbert said she has attended the budget hearings, including an impasse hearing with the police and cost-of-living (COLA) hearing with the city’s retirees in the fall. “After attending all of these meetings, and having followed the process, I believe the city is headed in the right direction to address this difficult issue. As contracts come up for negotiation, we must work to find equitable solutions that are both fair to long-time employees but still address the issue of reducing the obligation.”

Hancock feels the windstorm insurance problem trumps the pension problem, but agrees a fix is required. “If the city pays as it goes, there would be no problem, as long as the city is otherwise solvent and could bear the ongoing expense. So my solution is to amortize and begin funding the obligations that we didn’t pay when we should have, stay current with our obligations as we go, and everyone will have transparency and a reasonable confidence in the city’s financial integrity.”

Lago said pension reform is the most important and difficult issue that the city faces. “I favor trying to restructure Coral Gables pensions to equal state pensions. This would be needed, but responsible, downsizing of Coral Gables’ employees golden pensions which even the wealthy in our communities only wish they had.”

On the Coral Gables trolley garage in the West Grove:

The garage is part of a land swap deal with the city of Coral Gables that allowed Astor Development to build a luxury, mixed-use apartment building on the site of the Gables’ current garage on Le Jeune Road. But West Grove residents adjacent to the proposed garage in the 3300 block of Douglas Road sued the city of Miami in February, contending that Miami violated its own rules by allowing what they say is an industrial use at the site. Residents, who protested outside a mayors’ forum Thursday night at Coral Gables Congregational Church, also argue the city violated state and federal constitutional guarantees for proper advance notice of governmental decisions affecting their homes.

“The dispute now is between the city of Miami and the residents of the West Grove,” Ebbert said. “It was Miami who accepted the proposal from Astor Development to relocate the trolley barn to this site. Astor should have moved the barn to a location within Coral Gables. I wish that the commission would have been more vigilant and asked more questions. I’m glad that the residents will most likely now have their day in court and it will be decided.”

Hancock said an apology is in order. “This should never have happened and we need to apologize and back up. In addition to the West Grove, there is a Coral Gables neighborhood and several schools that are also negatively impacted. The West Grove/East Gables area has suffered enough environmental degradation from decades of the incinerator operation.”

Lago said that all parties should have been more transparent with the neighboring community. “Unfortunately, under the city’s current contractual obligations, we are unable to change course at the current moment.”

On the proposed pedestrian bridge across U.S. 1:

After several University of Miami students have been killed or seriously injured trying to cross busy U.S. 1 to get to the University Centre strip mall, Miami-Dade County approved building a Mediterranean-styled pedestrian bridge across the highway. But University Centre owners Fredi Consolo, Louis Grossman, Theodore Roy and Gail Gidney have refused to accept the county’s offer of $1.85 million and other concessions to compensate for the loss of five parking spaces needed to anchor the bridge across the street from the Metrorail station.

“I would hope that the owners would yield to pressure and agree to the offer that has been presented. If not, I’d suggest partnering with UM and protests, boycotts, organizing the neighbors and students to try to persuade the owners,” Ebbert said.

Hancock said he “would support the strongest possible action by the city to assure that the county’s overpass is rapidly completed as planned. It goes without saying that UM students are full-fledged citizens of our city. Reducing this risk to their lives is paramount.”

Lago said that given the county’s financial position is precarious and the impasse with the owners, he suggests an alternate route.

“Instead of spending untold millions of dollars of taxpayers’ money, I would request that the county perform a detailed traffic study in reference to what would be the benefits of expanding the University of Miami’s existing trolley system to reach across U.S. 1,” Lago said.

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