The better candidate for Miami Beach Commission Group III knows how government works | Editorial

Miami Beach is facing serious, existential threats. Worries about crime, the character of the city — all-night partying or arts and culture destination? — and climate change mean these are turbulent times for residents. Choosing who will sit on the City Commission to face those challenges is more important than ever.

In Group III, voters can choose among four candidates, none of whom have held elected office — though some have run for office before. In interviews with the Miami Herald Editorial Board, all of the candidates identified public safety, especially as it relates to Ocean Drive, and sea-level rise among their top concerns. We agree those should be at the forefront.

But Miami Beach also needs a vision for the future beyond the immediate crisis. That’s why we believe Alex Fernandez to be the best choice.

Fernandez, 35, a Miami Beach Planning Board member, 15-year resident and former aide to two Miami Beach commissioners, wants public officials to “talk less and listen more.” Yes, that’s a political slogan, but it’s also an important goal in a city facing as many challenges as Miami Beach.

Fernandez says he’ll balance the needs of business while also being careful to preserve the special nature of Miami Beach — including its world-renowned collection of Art Deco buildings and the beach itself. He backs current Mayor Dan Gelber’s vision of an arts and culture district to eventually replace the entertainment strip along Ocean Drive. He has raised about $110,000 including $45,000 of his own money. He ran for a commission seat in 2009, but lost to Michael Gongora, who now is endorsing Fernandez.

While public safety is the reason he said he decided to run for office this time, Fernandez, who is Cuban American, emphasized that the city must remain welcoming and inclusive. He understand the urgent need to address climate change and said he’d abide by the will of the voters on a 2 a.m. alcohol cutoff — a non-binding straw-ballot item in November — while rightly saying it won’t be a cure-all for the city’s out-of-control party scene.

On the Miami Beach ordinance passed in June that made it a crime to stand within 20 feet of police officers doing their duty with the intent to impede, provoke or harass them — another hot-button issue — he said he thinks the ordinance was well-intended but needs work. The ordinance has been so problematic that enforcement was suspended, in part because of the rough arrests of two Black men filming the police.

On crime, he said he thinks the city should work on more-consistent law enforcement including code officers. To control development, he suggested that land-use applications should be viewed through the lens of police, fire and code, to make sure the city isn’t building beyond its capacity.

Fernandez has practical knowledge about how government works. Some of that comes from his current role on the planning board and his job (he’s on leave) as an aide for Miami-Dade Commissioner Rebeca Sosa. But he also has served as an aide to both former Mayor Matti Bower and former Commissioner Deede Weithorn.

He’s served on a number of Miami Beach committees, including the Police Citizens Relations Committee and the charter review committee, as well as the Miami-Dade Affordable Housing Advisory Board.

A Florida Elections Commission complaint was filed against Fernandez in 2013 for sending out a letter encouraging Miami Beach voters to cast ballots for certain candidates and failing to label the letter as an elections communication, as required. He was fined $250.

There are other good candidates in this race. We especially believe Michael Barrineau, a real estate broker whom we recommended for the commission in 2019, would do a good job, though he had significant court judgments against him during the recession, when his home-building business was hit hard. The other candidates include community activist Stephen Cohen and Melissa Beattie, president of the Venetian Island Homeowners’ Association.

Beattie is a political newcomer who has already made one misstep, distributing a political flyer with what looks like the transcript of a 911 call in which the dispatcher tells a woman to hide when she hears a break-in because police wouldn’t be able to get there for at least 20 minutes because of increased crime in South Beach. The flyer did not say the 911 call was fictitious.

Fernandez wants to give residents a bigger seat at the table when decisions are being made. We agree with that view, and recommend ALEX FERNANDEZ for Group III.

This story was originally published October 13, 2021 at 6:00 AM.