The party had an ice sculpture, custom espresso cups — all on Hialeah taxpayers’ dime | Opinion

Former Hialeah Mayor Esteban “Steve” Bovo’s April farewell party must have been quite the shindig — to which the public was not invited, even though taxpayers footed the steep bill of more than $45,000.

No expense was spared, it seems. There was more than $20,000 spent for Brazilian grill catering — quite the splurge! — plus $8,015 for decor that included elaborate floral centerpieces and gold charger plates for 350 party guests that included city council members and local elected officials. This one is must have made quite the impact on them: custom espresso cup and saucer sets that cost $4,667.50, the Miami Herald reported Wednesday. And then there was the crowning touch: $1,500 for a deluxe espresso and cappuccino bar staffed by two baristas.

Or perhaps this was the most impressive element: an ice sculpture for $745 with Bovo’s seal: “Hialeah first, Hialeah always.”

Sounds like quite a bash.

The irony of this logo shouldn’t be lost on Hialeah taxpayers, whose dollars Bovo and the Hialeah City Council were elected to oversee, not spend them on frivolous party details usually reserved for weddings and celebrations that people pay for out of their own pockets.

It’s unclear who green-lighted the $45,000 expense, which was never brought up before the City Council for approval. In Hialeah’s strong-mayor government system, the mayor, the finance management director and the purchasing department director must approve any expenditure, but it’s unknown if Bovo personally signed off on it, according to the Herald’s reporting.

Tellingly, the city did not provide documentation, when the Herald asked, on which department authorized the event or which budget the money to pay for it came from.

If a $45,000, four-hour, going-away lunch isn’t galling enough, think about this: The median annual household income in Hialeah is just over $53,000, the Herald reported. That means Bovo’s party cost almost as much as the entire annual income of many people in his city. It also cost more than the $44,000 that council members earn annually, as the Herald reported.

What a bad look — especially when Bovo resigned seven months before the end of his first mayoral term to join a lobbying firm that reportedly is paying him a lot more than what he made as mayor: a $150,000 annual salary and a $40,000 expense account.

Before he left city hall, Bovo got another gift from taxpayers, this one courtesy of the city council: a reimbursed retirement benefit of $44,594, the Herald reported. Hialeah used to have a decade-old rule that banned retired elected officials from receiving retirement benefits while in office. In March, the City Council voted unanimously to lift the restriction.

Bovo, who spent nearly 30 years in public service, should have known better. Whether he personally approved the bill for his party or somebody else in city government did and he didn’t ask questions, it’s all the same.

This isn’t how you put “Hialeah First.”

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This story was originally published June 4, 2025 at 6:41 PM.