VOTE411 Voter Guide

I was inspired by both my wife’s nearly ten years of public service as an assistant state attorney as well as my own time on the South Miami Planning Board. I’ve seen so much potential in the city, from our excellent staff to our promising projects, and know I can help both in moving important initiatives forward and generating new creative solutions to our most pressing problems. My combined experience as a business owner and a Planning Board member helps me to approach problem solving with pragmatism and perspective. I know how to bring people together and get things done. I believe I am known by those I work with as responsible, approachable, and hardworking, connected and grounded in ways that can effectively represent our community.

The three most important issues facing our city include focusing on environmental issues like water contamination and storm resiliency, keeping South Miami's small town character and re-energizing the downtown. My plan is is to push going septic to sewer forward. I also plan to preserve our height and density within residential areas to maintain character and work on infrastructural changes to increase foot traffic to Downtown South Miami (like a Pedestrian Bridge).

With the passing of Commissioner Bob Welsh, whom I knew as a neighbor/friend for the 30 years I've lived in South Miami, I want to continue the tradition of passion and concern for our city, its residents, businesses. I also want to continue and improve on, the great work that has already been done moving into the future. When I ran for Commissioner in 2006, I rode my bicycle around town promoting the creation of what I called "Progress 2020, A Long-Range Plan for the City to the year 2020." It's now 2021 and I still have the same passion to help guide our city into the future with thoughtful planning and a unified sense of community. I was raised in South Florida, by a single mother who passed away when I was 16. Along with this, being married with twin daughters, and working in the community on issues such as the environment, community relations, children with disabilities, and homelessness, helps me bring a unique and varied perspective to our city and an asset to our community.

South Miami, and all of South Florida, are faced with the issues of; population growth, housing (including affordable housing), infrastructure (water, sewer, traffic, green, and blue park space), and resilience to both natural and man-made challenges such as climate change and sea-level rise. Addressing these issues requires setting aggressive goals and timelines but with actionable strategies. We need a blueprint to make South Miami better suited for today and built for tomorrow. Finally, we need to look at the impact the pandemic has had on all aspects of our community, and plan ways to address the adversity our community has endured today while also planning ahead to make South Miami a more resilient and prosperous community for the future.

I am running for office because I have the enthusiasm, work ethic, and critical and independent thinking to lift our City in this Covid environment and to re-energize our downtown. I am the Chair of our Planning and Zoning board and have been deeply involved already in a leadership role in our City. I also represent our residents as a professional and proven community leader who believes that our City should be progressive, responsible, sustainable and inclusive.

Our downtown requires immediate attention. Many residents have expressed disappointment in the closing of restaurants and businesses and with the lack of entertainment options nearby for their families. I believe there is much we can do, even in the very short-term, to spur excitement and bring our neighbors back to our beautiful, walkable, tree-lined downtown. Those proposals include hosting unique, family-friendly street festivals to showcase our businesses, holding opening day ribbon cuttings for new businesses, and of course working hand-in-hand with our business chambers.

Ensuring financial stability for our City, including Downtown, in the midst of Covid, is of critical importance, so that we may expand the great services we offer to our residents.

As a mom of 2 school-age girls, our parks have been a such a safe-haven for my family this past year. Improving and growing our green spaces is of the highest priority, including funding the Underline and the Ludlam Trail.