Vice Mayor Merwitzer - working to bring back a resident-centric local government - Join him at Coral Reef Park - this Thurs 8-28 5:45 PM

Remember when our local government held actual community workshops on the budget? Too few still remember.

Vice Mayor Mark Merwitzer invites you to your park - Coral Reef Park - for the only up close and personal community conversation.

Per Vice Mayor Merwitzer: He is hosting a community conversation THIS THURSDAY and he needs YOU there.

Thursday, August 28th

5:45 PM - Sunset

Coral Reef Park Gazebo (near 77th Avenue)

Our village is bringing in more money than ever before, yet we're being told we can't afford police patrols and park hours that families depend on.

Meanwhile, the budget includes:

40% pay raises for council members

$3 million for a private pickleball facility

Guaranteed health insurance for council after we leave office

Does this make sense to you? It doesn't to me.

Come share your thoughts. Bring your neighbors.

Mark wants to work together with you, the residents, on solutions that put families first, because when residents like you show up and stay engaged, we protect the Palmetto Bay we all love.

The budget gets finalized in September. That's when we need you most.

See you Thursday at the park!

Call Mark directly at 786-309-6743

Follow up. Helllloooo, McFly? Bueller,... Bueller? Anyone hear the real reason for canceling Palmetto Bay's annual Independence Day celebration yet?

The drama continues to build - release the Shores files! Helllloooo, McFly? Bueller,... Bueller? Great movies and fun to quote - but running government is important business to be taken seriously and fair questions have been asked as to the real reason for canceling Palmetto Bay's annual Independence Day celebration. Any updates yet?

Vice Mayor Mark Merwitzer has been following up for residents - he asked the important question to staff - in this case whether the Shores at Palmetto Bay has even been issued a building permit. This question was asked at the Village Council meeting held July 21, 2025. See the video excerpt below - the full meeting is available on the village website.

The answer given was that the Shores property has not received a building permit; that the Shores has not yet paid the impact fees.

So then - construction was not imminent, not before July 4th or even now, after this event should have taken place - so how is this alleged planned construction a viable excuse to cancel a major beloved beloved community event? 

SEE PRIOR RELATED POST OF Thursday, July 10, 2025, Full disclosure requested - what was the real reason for canceling Palmetto Bay's annual Independence Day celebration?

You have questions.  We'd like real answers.

Full disclosure requested - what was the real reason for canceling Palmetto Bay's annual Independence Day celebration?

Really, why? Anticipated construction at the Shore property appeared to have been the excuse - but I received photographs that challenge this narrative.  I went out and looked for myself and yes - there's no construction.  No site prep - nothing looks imminent at that property so then how could this property force a cancellation of the community event.  For background - see PRIOR RELATED POST of Friday, June 27, 2025, Thank you Vice Mayor Mark Merwitzer - the facts - Commissioner DCH picks up where Palmetto Bay dropped our very popular Independence Day community celebration

Residents have noticed that the current conditions of the related properties and some have brought this to my attention.  The community review of the properties appear to dispute the stated reason (excuses?) to support cancelation of the Palmetto Bay Independence Day celebration.  I will let the photos tell the story (photos taken after July 5, 2025):

The photo above is taken from county property website and documents the involved vacant properties.  The top area is a 5 acre area owned by the Children's Hospital. The Shores Property is approximately 3 acres that is located directly east of the Municipal Center The property marked by the yellow boundary is owned by Palmetto Bay and is the panned home for the $3+ million for profit Diadem Pickleball Facility.

The photos:

Note photo above: Franjo Road landscaped median appears in the foreground 

Above: The Shores property shows no sign of construction - no fencing is up and the property is properly maintained (mowed) and appears free of any fencing or pre-construction preparation.

The Children's Hospital property has a vacant 5 acre component that has been part of Village events in the past.  Photos:

Finally - I am posting photos of the property owned by the Village of Palmetto Bay. Note that it is the only property with any debris.  There are piles of rock and overgrown, cars and trucks are parked on the property, but no fencing or other items staged on the property that would indicate that any construction is imminent:

Is Palmetto Bay's property maintained to code? I bet this property would be subject to Code Enforcement if it was privately owned.  I can't imagine that the condition of this property is anything but an eyesore for those who live nearby.

What is the real reason for the cancelation? I wonder if the owner of the Shores At Palmetto Bay simply doesn't want to work with Palmetto Bay officials. But what about other surrounding properties? 

The most important question is whether we have suffered the end of Palmetto Bay's Downtown Independence Day celebration, most of which was held on the municipal center property and a closed off Franjo Road.  

Opinion: Happy Independence Day - but where is collaboration from Palmetto Bay?

This should be another outstanding Independence Day and long weekend. The United States was formed a country that was initially made up of the original 13 colonies - which eventually grew over the last 249 years to our current 50 States with five major U.S. territories consisting of American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Together, the USA is what is termed a federal republic: the 50 states, a federal district and the territories.

Palmetto Bay is not an Island.  We are part of a chain of over overlapping governments.  Palmetto Bay exists with our Federal, State and County governments.  So why the history lesson? Well, because I think it is due as we appear to have a local government that is demonstrating poor taste in refusing to work with the County in celebrating our national Independence Day.

For back ground - please review my prior post of June 26, 2025, Palmetto Bay drops our community Independence Day celebration - so County Commissioner Danielle Cohen Higgins steps up. It is a relatively short read and includes information regarding a local event that we, Palmetto Bay, should be participating in - just across the street at the Palmetto Golf Course.

The question I am seeking answer to is why Palmetto Bay officials appear to refuse to partner with our County Commissioner on this Independence Day celebration?  That is just out of bounds in my opinion.  Palmetto Bay officials should show some leadership and provide some services to our residents this weekend. Here is what I suggest should be done:

1. Put the Palmetto Bay IBus in action - shuttle our residents from points within Palmetto Bay to the Palmetto Golf Course.  Palmetto Bay has done this with our own home grown event - an event that had limited parking - certainly this same shuttle service would be of great benefit to our residents!  Our residents are now the ones who are forced to try to make good on an event that will have limited parking (I was advised that there will be overflow parking at Coral Reef Senior High - not sure if there is a shuttle - but don't plan on shuttle service). The Ibus has been provided to the County for use at the Deering Seafood Festival - how is this County Independence Day event any less worthy?

2. Assist the County or create our own bike and golf cart route to the event.  I plan on attending via bike - taking the safer back streets up to the intersection of 89th at 152 Street. That is where travel will get complicated. It is my understanding that the Miami-Dade County Sheriff's office will have officers working at the US1/152 intersection to allow for crossing at this very dangerous intersection.  (By the way, if you bike - I know of no bike racks at the golf course - but there are some at the Coral Reef Library as well as the bike stations provided for the busway). Our Palmetto Bay Police Unit should be there - treat the Commissioner's event as a Palmetto Bay event - and promote safe travel (motor vehicle, pedestrian, golf cart and bicycle) for this event.

3. Palmetto Bay officials should be "all in" - promoting this event rather than relegating people to homegrown and therefore unsupervised fireworks.

Next - let's restore our tradition of Palmetto Bay's hometown Independence Day celebration for future years!

This event was much more than 20 minutes of fireworks. It was a nearly day long event where our residents gathered and enjoyed music, food and drink, face painting, child rides, contests - a true community event that was so much more than the aforementioned fireworks. Local businesses were present and we had sponsors. Why disappoint the families, the kids? It could have been done - it should have been put on without the fireworks for just this year as the loss of the Shores property has been expected for years.  This was simply poor planning for this eventuality - or worse - more scapegoating or excuse making to rid themselves of an event they just did not feel like hosting anymore. 

Perhaps our local officials became embarrassed by the Downtown Independence Day celebration as one of the purposes was to show off the positive downtown development - that once had vision - a vision for multi-use with local family friendly small shops and restaurants - an actual entertainment district.  That vision was stripped however and the downtown is little more than walk up apartments with little to know mixed use.

I could go on, but we are about to enter our annual Independence Day and I will celebrate it even if our village offices decide to drop our event and snub the County's event.  The current even sent our an email blast Thursday morning making no reference to the County event at Palmetto Golf Course - Its almost as if she either resents it or is hoping it fails. I suggest that fellow residents attend the event at the Palmetto Golf Course. 

Be safe this weekend.  Enjoy our Independence Day!

Opinion: Are we really getting to the end result of the development of the Palmetto Bay Village Center? Performative politics and the violation of Bert J Harris results in the MEGA PBVC.

The FACTS regarding the Palmetto Bay Village Center.

How did Palmetto Bay get to the point where it is offering up so much new density on the 80 acre property? Well, in the past, Palmetto Bay residents and officials worked hard to find a palatable solution (see prior posts relating to the Burger King World Headquarters Charrette and the over 42 meetings).  But while some labored in good faith, other political opportunists saw the potential of his property as a political football -- and assumed that voters were too stupid to realize that the property owner had some rights and would be able to build something.  Unfortunately, they threw rocks, promised to "stop the development" but never - ever - came up with a plan to stop it.  Instead, their lack of vision. lack of leadership and most of all - their lack of knowledge as to when to stop digging resulted in this current MEGA plan never contemplated under the 2008, 2016, or any other plan considered previously.  The Palmetto Bay Village Center (PBVC) matter came off the rails on January 24, 2022 when the mayor at the time (the present mayor) and the council adopted Village Resolution No. 2022-05.  This was the resolution from which the courts determined that the Village (current Mayor) VIOLATED the property rights of the owners of the PBVC. And please, when reading, note the specifics as to what the owners of the PBVC sought in that application - 480 units (and I have documented how it should have been many fewer) , no hotel, no additional commercial over what is presently proposed for approval (code named the MEGA enchilada)!

Current council rock throwing over working to present their own plan!

The current plan is a settlement - not a zoning hearing - a settlement of a significant Bert J Harris claim that APPROVES much more development over the rights of the residents not because any prior officials took any action, but because the current mayor dug the holes that we, the residents, find ourselves in because she never took any appropriate action to work with the owners to formulate anything palatable - more on that later - but the village is about to see the unfortunate results when officials are elected who could only throw rocks at the efforts and plans of those who stood up to the issue. The current group never never attempt anything meaningful.  Of course, we now see that the current mayor can throw rocks at the ground - and still miss!

More on Bert J Harris - See my prior related post of January 17, 2020 - A medium length primer on Bert J. Harris Act claims. What we can expect (including a timeline). Link to Bert J Harris Act provided. 

What Could Have Been

The PBVC issue predates the incorporation of Palmetto Bay.  I was in negotiation prior to December 5, 2018.  At that time, the owners of Palmetto Bay Village Center had agreed to preserve the environmentally sensitive land at the front of the property and construct a number that would have been not "the 485,"but rather, a representative for the PBVC offered a compromise number of 450 - 470. I contend that this was their starting point in these negotiations and the unit numbers would have dropped lower (Again, it is important to note that the Bert J Harris Claim arose out of the property rights violations created by the mayor and council in place for Resolution No. 2022-05).  The representative for the PBVC also mentioned in 2018 that negotiations had been ongoing for 200 -- half of the units -- to be Senior housing units. That's a HUGE offer in regard to traffic reduction.

More prior relevant reads: Tuesday, October 16, 2018, About last night (Mon. 10/15/2018) - I continue to work for you to reduce development. The council votes best tell the story.

What Now?

Now, after years of expensive litigation, rock throwing and scapegoating, the Palmetto Bay Village Council appears ready to cave and give the owners of the Palmetto Bay Village Center the APPROVAL to construct a much larger MEGA project -- with commercial never anticipated, in addition to the absolute maximum number of residential units. The Village's refusal to negotiate (because, presumably, they wanted to be seen as taking a tough stance against development) has led to massive increases in development - not prior action.

Yes, it is clear that none of those rocks thrown at the ground (or the PBVC) ever hit the mark. Just cheap political grandstanding covering up a lack of understanding of the issues that will profoundly impact our community.

Just please Palmetto Bay officials - take some positive action - and admit your foibles - and what ever you do, avoid going to court!

Development by unsupportable political denials rarely works for election officials -and area residents suffer. As noted in prior opinion posts, Things have not gone well for the Village of Palmetto Bay before the Miami-Dade trial and Appellate Division of the 11th Circuit Court - and the Third District Court of Appeal.  They promised "no development" but their litigation stumbles more aptly reflects "hold my beer" on granting massive development rights.

Read up on the Appellate Division ruling against Palmetto Bay in a strongly worded 31 page opinion that reversed the denial of the PBVC zoning decision.

Palmetto Bay officials sought a rehearing of the opinion, but fared no better in a revised, but just as lengthy 31 page opinion released July 5, 2023.

See: my prior related opinion post of December 13, 2023 - Court slaps down Palmetto Bay's zoning appeal -- more units for Old Cutler Road DENIED.  The Third District Court of Appeals ruled against the Village of Palmetto Bay.  Having lost - badly - in the efforts on appeal (review via Petitions for Cert for those who want to be sticklers for technicalities) - the Village had no bargaining power left. Read the order cited in that post - "hold my beer" id far too kind. 

This development did not materialize overnight - it took a massive amount of misdirected passive aggressive inaction from January 2019 to date to reach this point. 

Simply stated - don't blame the VUM or any amending ordinances. Blame the council for violating Bert J Harris - and that is a very tough thing to do!. They dug this deep hole and this MEGA development is the result stems from performative politics and lack of vision. The plan is a settlement of transgressions of those who let the village down when Resolution No. 2022-05 was enacted.

(Lack of) Leadership 101 - allowing the community to be ravaged by infighting rather than bringing people together

“Sooner or later everyone sits down to a banquet of consequences.” 

– Robert Louis Stevenson.

They say elections have consequences.  We are seeing it play out locally.  Bully politics at play. Palmetto Bay is definitely not a "Bully Free Zone".   See a prior related post: May 9, 2024, Palmetto Bay News - Op-Ed: Rudeness and bullying should not be the norm in Palmetto Bay By Marsha Matson, Village of Palmetto Bay Councilmember, District 3 -May 8, 2024

Yet we the taxpayers are destined to fund another lawsuit - all because the mayor and council refuse to avoid pettiness. 

What am I talking about? Well, in case you missed it:

For more insight provided in an opinion blast by the Palmetto Bay Neighbors Alliance: "They Hate You For Choosing Mark  CLICK HERE for the complete blast - here is an excerpt:

Mayor Cunningham's ally, Councilman Steve Cody, didn't like your answer. So he filed a lawsuit claiming Mark wasn't properly sworn in. Our Village Attorney has said many times that Mark's oath was completely valid. The village even paid over $6,000 of your tax money to hire another expert who said the same thing.

Our Village Attorney didn't mince words. He warned that "Steve will be lucky to stay out of jail when this is over" because of his "toxic vitriol" and "fabrications." The Village Attorney has been a lawyer since 1979. He knows what he's talking about. Meanwhile, Mr. Cody is a suspended attorney by the Florida Bar and is ineligible to practice law.

Don't be fooled. The oath story is just a smokescreen. Mayor Cunningham and Cody want to erase your vote.

They're not really fighting Mark. They're fighting you. They hate that you chose someone Mayor Cunningham didn't pick. They hate that you wanted change. They think they know better than you about who should lead our village.

Cody's legal filing, which he’s trying to get a ruling on, claims Leanne Tellam is still Vice Mayor. Tellam was Mayor Cunningham's preferred candidate and lost the election.

Lets see where this leads us and how much in will cost, both in tax dollars as well as further aggravation to our community.

A Vice Mayor who actually cares. Traffic circle safety - fighting distracted driving. Let him lead - his talents are serving our village

Vice Mayor Mark Merwitzer - a product of our village who has worked hard to for his chance to serve - and who is making the most of it, when others on the council are more concerned about accumulating perks or taking selfies.

There are important safety issues that need to be discussed by our council. Instead, Palmetto Bay residents rarely find anything useful on village social media - its more targeted to photos of the mayor and selected council members taken at past village social events. 

Vice Mayor Merwitzer is focuses on village safety.  Past history has shown is interest for the people. This is a reboot of a blog post from August 14, 2017. 

Traffic Circle Safety - Please take the time to view this creative video by Mark Merwitzer, Jackson Ribler & Justin Merwitzer. Edited and produced through the talents of "Miami Hal" Feldman.

Our Palmetto Bay youth stepped up and prepared this outstanding video.  

This is outstanding work by Mark Merwitzer, Jackson Ribler & Justin Merwitzer. 

Edited and produced through the talents of "Miami Hal" Feldman. 

Drive safe Palmetto Bay.

Here are some stills from the effort, filmed Sunday, 8/13/2017:

Is Palmetto Bay the "Village of Parks" or "Village of Perks" for village officials? $132,000 in part for "monitoring 'Opposition Activities'" (our neighbors). $400 a month car allowances. What else will we find if transparency is ever restored to Palmetto Bay?

 SURPRISE, SURPRISE, SURPRISE - Per the Vice Mayor: 

A salary and insurance is apparently not enough for their part time service, per the Vice Mayor:

Your council members want to give themselves a $24,000 car allowance while considering raising your taxes. They tried to push this through without public input. That’s unacceptable. 

This reads like a enemies list - use of one's tax dollars against them.  What a tangled web the Mayor and council have weaved against some neighbors who have been pursuing a legal process in regard to the "Tanglewood" surplus property (located under the FPL power lines):

The county urged the village to negotiate a compromise, but instead, the village spent over $132,000 of your tax dollars on a high-powered lobbyist to fight these residents. Worse, the contract was marked confidential, despite being publicly funded, and included plans to monitor “opposition activities,” meaning our own neighbors.

Taxpayer dollars should never be used to undermine residents who follow the rules. 

Read the Vice Mayor's updates and get on his e-mailing list! 

Hello,

I want to share what I've been working on as your Vice Mayor and how it affects your daily life in our village. I recently had the pleasure of joining Michael Miller from the Community Newspapers to share with you what I have been working on. Watch my interview with Michael Miller to hear firsthand about our community’s progress and plans.

Traffic Safety in Your Neighborhoods When residents reached out to me about how rush hour traffic turned some of our quiet residential roads into dangerous shortcuts, I took action. The good news is that we're slowly making changes that work. I am exploring how we can remove these shortcuts from navigation apps and am working with our administration on adding traffic-calming measures to places that need them. Throughout my term, I want to do more than the old approach of adding speed bumps to streets and calling it a day. Your street could be next. Just email or call me, and I'll come walk it with you. Fighting Distracted Driving Distracted drivers put your family at risk every day. We've all seen it with drivers swerving between lanes while talking on their phone, or the near-misses when someone's texting instead of watching the road. These dangerous choices kill thousands each year and create those frustrating backups when phone-distracted drivers miss green lights. I refuse to accept this as normal. That's why I'm headed up to Tallahassee to fight for a complete ban on handheld phone use while driving, joining 31 other states that have already taken this life-saving step. Your safety on our roads matters more than someone's phone call.

Moving Palmetto Bay Forward Since the election, I’ve been honored to serve as your Vice Mayor, focused on improving our community’s safety, infrastructure, and overall quality of life. Sadly, a fellow council member is now making false claims that I’m not the legitimate Vice Mayor, despite our fair and square election win. To counter these unsubstantiated allegations, the village had to spend $6,000 of your tax dollars on an independent legal opinion that fully confirmed my oath was properly administered. Despite that, this council member continues to push this debunked narrative. Meanwhile, the real issues you care about are waiting. I remain ready to work with everyone to move Palmetto Bay forward. That’s what you elected me to do, and that’s what I’ll keep focusing on.

Looking Out for Good Government I love parks. Like you, I want more green spaces for families and neighbors to enjoy. But how we create them matters just as much as having them. Many of you have asked about a property in northern Palmetto Bay, and you deserve the facts. Nearly three years ago, local residents followed all the proper steps to buy land next to their homes, just as their neighbors did in 2018. But as they neared the finish line, the village sent Miami-Dade County a “poison pen” letter, attempting to derail the sale. The county urged the village to negotiate a compromise, but instead, the village spent over $132,000 of your tax dollars on a high-powered lobbyist to fight these residents. Worse, the contract was marked confidential, despite being publicly funded, and included plans to monitor “opposition activities,” meaning our own neighbors. Taxpayer dollars should never be used to undermine residents who follow the rules. Do I want more parks? Absolutely. But not through backroom deals and hidden spending. You deserve transparency and honesty about where your money goes. We can find new places to build parks, but once trust is lost, it’s hard to rebuild. So I ask: What’s more important, another park, or a government you can trust?

Protecting Your Tax Dollars Your council members want to give themselves a $24,000 car allowance while considering raising your taxes. They tried to push this through without public input. That’s unacceptable. This makes no sense when our Village is running out of money for basic needs like stormwater management and infrastructure repairs. I ran for office to serve you, not to pad my own pockets. Adding new benefits to council members while asking you to pay more would break your trust, and rightly so. I will be pushing to stop this proposal so we can focus on what really matters, like solving our financial challenges and protecting the services you count on. Your Voice Matters Every decision I make starts with asking, "How does this help our residents?" If you have concerns or ideas about improving Palmetto Bay, my door is always open. You can reach me at 786-309-6743 Also, if you want to discuss any of these issues in person, just email me. I'm here to help! -Mark

Michael Miller speaks with Mark Merwitzer, Vice Mayor of Palmetto Bay - Tuesday - 2-25-2025

A must view.  The video is just under 30 minutes. 

Thank you Vice Mayor Merwitzer for attempting to bring back transparency and accountability to the Village of Palmetto Bay.

Some highlights (or lowlights depending upon your view): 

$6,000.00 has been spent due to a council member's rampage. The $6K confirms the opinion of the Village Attorney.

Tanglewood property - a majority of the Village Council has restored transparency and accountability.  It was disclosed how the county was managing surplus land - in this case - the FPL Easement Land at SW 77th Avenue and approx. 140 Street.  Over $132,000 of village tax dollars were spent on lobbying for this property (against the residents/surrounding landowners). It is the Vice Mayor's opinion that (go to the 9:00 minute mark of the video) the procurement code was bypassed.  "monitoring opposition activities" were raised as part of the takes assigned the lobbying firm. Furthermore - an unknown person or organization paid for a "push poll" - incorrectly insinuating that the land was to be sold for private developers.  The surrounding residents are NOT private developers.

The Vice Mayor is committed to bringing back the Neighborhood Protection Committee.  I briefly served on this committee until I was removed.  The entire committee was eventually shut down.  This was unfortunate. 

Transparency alert! - Check out 17:00 of the video.  A journalist notified Vice Mayor Merwitzer that Palmetto Bay was the only municipality not to share wage and benefit information for elected officials - apparently the Village Mayor and Council Members have allowed themselves to receive a "car allowance" of $400 per month. Does anyone here recall this ever being disclosed publicly; including approving such a major perk during the budget process? 

One step at a time – restoring some transparency and access to the Village. It is amazing how replacing a single council member can affect the entire village council.

Council Member Patrick Fiore found an ally in newly elected Vice Mayor Mark Merwitzer.  Three votes were there last Monday evening (Monday, Feb 3, 2025) to restore the ability to submit public comment via e-mail.

If passed on second reading, Section 2-49(e) will be amended in its entirety to read as follows:

(e) Written communication. Interested parties or their authorized representatives may submit written comments to be provided by the Village Clerk to the Councilmembers prior to the start of the Council meeting. Written comments shall be read aloud for not more than one (1)  minute and shall be made part of the public record of the meeting.

The prior Vice Mayor was part of a coalition to remove the reading of emails from the public meetings.  Thank you Vice Mayor Mark Merwitzer for your energy and collaboration with Patrick Fiore to get this item through by the razor thin 3-2 margin.

The task is not yet compete.  This is an ordinance and it requires passage at a second reading. I am hopeful that Council Member Fiore will move this item forward at the March Council Meeting and that he is once again joined by Vice Mayor Merwitzer and Council Member Marsha Matson.

Official bullying in Palmetto Bay - voters have a chance to change the culture from toxic to community

This council acts like high school bullies. It has not escaped notice that there are members of the "in crowd" granted rights above all others.  

Read some of the comments on community Facebook sites (where residents can speak without fear of retaliation) - one recent comment:

If anyone does not believe the extent of the bullying in our council (and there are three bullies), please watch the videos of past council meetings and you will see it for yourself. The worst kinds of role models for our kids.

Comments from a resident troubled by this council. Far from #PalmettoBayProud

(Editor's note - original source of video :A Better Palmetto Bay. No claim made as to the author of the letter read by the Clerk or any statements from the mayor, village council members or the village attorney)

Note that at 0.44 – mayor Cunningham stops the clerk from reading the resident’s comments and attempts to squelch the opinion being read.

Note further -  The Mayor solicited a legal opinion from the Village attorney to try to stop the reading of the comment.  0.51 The Village Attorney opined that the comments contained in that letter were protected.  Not getting the opinion she was seeking, she cuts off the village attorney from completing his statement regarding this item of first amendment right.

Of course the mayor and a majority of the council stopped any further embarrassment by voting to remove the reading of any emails at future council meetings, but that is another unfortunate situation to be discussed at another time. 

My opinion is that under this current mayor and council; its not what is said, but who says it.

Elections matter.  Your vote is important.  We incorporated Palmetto Bay to serve ALL residents, not the insider approved few.  

This is not an isolated incident - please take the time to review this PRIOR RELATED POST:  

June 4, 2024, Council Member Dr. Marsha Matson said it best - "No second for anti-bullying - wow"

But the mayor and other members of the Village Council say no - in the worst way - too chicken to second and publicly discuss the bullying and combating bullying in Palmetto Bay. And to what? Here is what they even refused to discuss: item 14-F of the agenda for the regular village council meeting of Monday, June 3, 2024.  This was a simple resolution sponsored by Dr. Matson:

A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND VILLAGE COUNCIL
OF THE VILLAGE OF PALMETTO BAY, FLORIDA;
AUTHORIZING THE VILLAGE MANAGER TO DONATE TO
THE VILLAGE’S YOUTH COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT TASK
FORCE FIFTEEN HUNDRED DOLLARS ($1,500.00) FOR
THE PURCHASE AND INSTALLATION OF ONE (1) BUDDY
BENCH FOR ITS ANTI-BULLYING PROJECT, AND TO TAKE
ADVANTAGE OF RECEIVING A SECOND “BUY ONE, GET
ONE FREE” BUDDY BENCH; TO JOIN WITH THE TASK
FORCE IN OPPOSING BULLYING AT VILLAGE PARKS AND
PROPERTY; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
(Sponsored by Councilmember Marsha Matson)

The resolution merely sought support for a $1,500 contribution from the village for the Buddy Bench - a project that is being sponsored by Dr. Matson. Council Member Matson moved it forward but it failed for lack of a second.  The council had previously been in support of Buddy Benches, but apparently not if it is sponsored by Dr. Matson. 

That means the request was DENIED.  In effect - each and every member of the village council - other than Dr. Matson - opposed this request.

How's that for institutionalized bullying? #PalmettoBayProud

The Fairchild Subdivision Order is now final - no motion for rehearing was timely filed. My opinion as to what it means for the Village. This order reflects poorly on the Village.

“… (Palmetto Bay elected officials) failed to follow the essential requirements of the law, rendered a decision wholly unsupported by competent substantial evidence and subjected Petitioner to reverse spot zoning that resulted in a confiscatory taking of its real property.”

This is not an order that makes Village residents proud. It is a very strong indictment of a poorly run hearing. Or, in my opinion, so ruled the three judge panel of the Appellate Division of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit on September 10, 2024, in the case of FAIRCHILD BAY SUBDIVISION LLC VS VILLAGE OF PALMETTO BAY, 2023-000033-AP-01

The  ruling of the Court was accepted by the village officials without contest when they decided not to contest it by filing a motion for rehearing or clarification. The mandate has been issued (pictured right). This is good for the taxpayers, but bad for the village’s reputation. Perhaps village legal council advised the mayor and council that they had no chance and to finally quit wasting taxpayer dollars on useless litigation. The Village taxpayers should thank whoever convinced this council to accept the ruling of the court, drop the foolishness and, most importantly, not waste more time and village tax dollars in this matter. This matter will come back before the Village Council for a redo - consistent with the Order.

WHAT WAS AT ISSUE?: The issue for the zoning hearing was simple – the Property is designated as “low density residential” on the Village comp plan. The property is currently zoned agricultural. This property is located at 9000 SW 174 Street – firmly ensconced on a low density residential area.  It is a small property, too small for the agricultural designation and, in fact, this property is NOT an active agricultural use – it is currently a single home, one of the last pieces of property that once made up a vibrant mango grove (this ended long before Palmetto Bay was even an idea).  This was not an application for high density apartments. To the contrary – the applicant sought to built homes at one dwelling (single family home) per 15,000 net feet of land (same as surrounding homes).

I had posted about this recent order back on September 11, 2024 – See PRIOR RELATED POST - Fully unfavorable decision rendered against the Village of Palmetto Bay by the court in FAIRCHILD BAY SUBDIVISION LLC VS VILLAGE OF PALMETTO BAY, 2023-000033-AP-01. As I stated then, This decision hurts. You can’t spin it, though I am sure they will try. I was wrong. Even the village team of spin doctors did not want to try and touch this one. Instead they hope you don’t notice.

The order is now final. So what is the damage?  Here are the findings of the court that are now accepted:

The most outrageous statement comes from Mayor Cunningham – this opinion singles her out for opposing the rezoning because there is “nothing really that requires us to change the zoning.” (top of page 5 of the opinion) Wrong! This statement was featured as part of how the court determined that she, as part of the entire council, failed to follow the essential requirements of law. (The mayor and council also failed to follow the Staff recommendation as well as the recommendations of the Village Attorney). Yes, despite that fact that she has been on the counsel since 2015, she has yet to figure out the Code or her responsibilities of actually following the Code or the law. Some may say, don’t blame her, she’s not an attorney.  But two members of the Village Council do have law degrees, and even though neither practice law, both also were also outed by the court for failing to follow the Village Code as well as the essential requirements of law. Further, these two council members failed the community by not engaging any legal common sense and by not directing the mayor to focus on the facts of the application and to properly apply the Village Code and the Law. This is part of a never ending pattern of ignoring the law – see December 13, 2023, Court slaps down Palmetto Bay's zoning appeal -- more units for Old Cutler Road

The Court was strong in the language. See page 11-12 of the Fairchild order, where the court discussed how wrong she/they is/are on their failure to follow the law. The Court reviewed Palmetto Bay’s Code of Ordinances (which the mayor had significant input on crafting) – section 30-30.7 in this case where the Process and Criteria for review are enumerated. The court noted how none – NONE – of the council members [including the mayor – questioned the applicant on any of the enumerated criteria (bottom of page 13 of the order)], but instead focused on irrelevant issues.  The court determined that the mayor and council – they all - failed to follow the essential requirements of law.

The Village really cannot recover from this opinion (along with the beat down received in the Palmetto Bay Village Center cases).  But the voters can replace two of the offending council members next month and bring fresh perspective along with people who will properly follow the Village’s Codes and Law. 

As detailed on page 17 of the order, the judges determined that they were “constrained to find that the Council unjustifiably applied their own unenumerated criteria in denying (the applicant’s} rezoning application, In so doing, the Council Also disregarded the Village’s Comprehensive Plan ….” [legalese for the court finding that the Mayor and Council made up their own rules that were inconsistent (contrary to) the law].

Accordingly, the Village failed to follow the essential requirements of law.  (page 17 of the order, bold emphasis added)

The Village Officials are accepting their failures while hoping that no one will notice. (Obviously because it is not election time).

Take notice voters! Zoning is an essential function of the Village Council. Their continued failures cost you in higher taxes and bad zoning decisions.