South Miami residents have two choices for their next mayor: incumbent Philip Stoddard, or former mayor and termed-out state representative Julio Robaina.

The election takes place Feb. 14. Five other candidates are vying for two commission seats.

Early voting takes place from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Feb. 11 and Feb. 12 in the commission chambers at City Hall, 6130 Sunset Drive.

JULIO ROBAINA

A rocky beginning gave way to relatively smooth sailing during Robaina’s tenure on the dais.

He started off in 1996 as vice mayor, butting heads with the commission majority, along with the city manager and other city officials.

There were shouting matches between Robaina and then-city manager Dennis Whitt, and the commission often split 3-2 — with Robaina on the losing side.

Then Robaina was elected mayor in 1998 — the city’s first Hispanic elected to the city’s top post. He joined new commission members, and eventually a new city manager and police chief, and the bickering quieted.

“We united the city. Because when I got in, the city was very separated,” Robaina said.

What followed was a term as a popular mayor, before he resigned to run for the Florida House of Representatives. He served in the Legislature from 2002 until he was term-limited out in 2010.

During his tenure at South Miami, the city created the Transit Oriented Development District, or TODD. The plan calls for mixed-use development (residential, commercial, retail and office space) for development around easily-accessible transit stops. The city also began construction on the Shops at Sunset Place, though the project was started before Robaina’s time in office. The commission also established the Community Redevelopment District, a section of the city that receives special tax revenues to help revitalize the area.

Commission members for the first time traveled to Tallahassee to lobby the Legislature for money for the first time while Robaina was in office. The city won $115,000 for street improvements and storm water drainage in 1998 — the year of the city’s lobbying debut.

The commission also approved exceptions to zoning when it approved developer Rum Bum’s plans for a mall at Southwest 74th Street at 59th Court, and approved zoning plans that increased the allowed building height in some areas to four stories.

Robaina’s opponents point to those actions as proof that he sides with developers over residents who want to keep tall, dense buildings out of South Miami.

But Robaina said he simply stands for progress.

“In the current administration under Stoddard, you have a city that just basically wants to exist day-by-day. My philosophy is to be proactive and bring progress to the city, and continue to support the businesses,” he said.

Robaina rejects claims that his administration was fiscally irresponsible. He said the budget ran into financial troubles only because the Shops at Sunset Place contested their property taxes in 2001. That led to a surprise $830,000 budget shortfall.

“That is beyond anybody’s control,” he said.

PHILIP STODDARD

Stoddard was first elected by decisively defeating 12-year incumbent mayor Horace Feliu in 2010. The Florida International University biology professor was catapulted to office through his crusade against high-tension power lines along U.S. 1 — a fight he continues to wage.