Miami City Commission Meeting – September 10, 2026

The Miami City Commission returned from summer break on September 10, 2026. The long session opened with proclamations, an invocation, and a moment of silence for victims of a weekend aircraft accident at the airport, followed by extensive public comment, consent and resolution approvals, board appointments, quasi-judicial planning and zoning appeals, and two discussion items. Public comment opened around 9:30 a.m. under a two-minute speaker limit. The regular commission recessed after midday, reconvened, deferred remaining discussion items, and moved into CRA meetings before the evening budget hearing. No agenda or minutes were provided; this summary is drawn from the raw transcript.

Consent Calendar

• The agenda was set with deferrals and withdrawals: CA1 deferred to October 8; RE13 deferred to September 24; RE19 deferred to the first October meeting; DI2 and DI3 indefinitely deferred; FR4 withdrawn; PZ2 withdrawn.
• Minutes of the previous four meetings were approved unanimously.
• Consent items CA2 through CA7 were approved as amended, with CA4 amended to substitute Exhibit A.
• Public hearing items were approved unanimously.
• A block of resolutions, including RE1, RE2 as amended, RE3, RE4, RE5, RE6, RE8, RE12, RE15, RE16, RE20, RE21, and RE22, was approved unanimously.

Proclamations

• Mayor Higgins and Commissioners King and Pardo proclaimed Florida Redevelopment Week, honoring the Florida Redevelopment Association, Omni CRA Executive Director Carlos Suarez, and Southeast Overtown Park West CRA Executive Director James D. McQueen. Commissioner Gabella reported that the Allapata CRA was nearly established after about two years of work.
• Commissioner Rosado presented a National Respiratory Care Week proclamation recognizing Rick Morgan, lead respiratory therapist at Holtz Children's Hospital, and Jackson respiratory therapists. Mayor Higgins shared personal experience with asthma and a family member's long COVID respiratory therapy.

Public Comments & Testimony

• City Hall/Pan Am: Many speakers supported keeping commission meetings and city government at 3500 Pan American Drive. Deborah Stander and Suzanne Howlin cited family connections to Pan Am; Debbie Dawson described four generations of family use of City Hall; Billy Corbin said District 2 contributes about 70% of city revenue and opposed moving to Melreese; Carl Anthony criticized the Freedom Park replacement plan's size, parking, and location. Museum of Miami CEO Natalia Crujeiras and trustee Tom Gibson proposed a public-private partnership to restore the Pan Am terminal and create a museum campus at Dinner Key. Hans Lagerwei proposed a self-sustaining restoration concept for the historic building; Monty Trainer suggested a museum/restaurant use.
• Trees and Chapter 17: A Sierra Club speaker said 41 trees were approved for removal at 645 Northeast 64th Street, including specimen live oaks and a state-protected mahogany, and said the HEP board had voted 5-0 to preserve tree 25. Noel Cleeland argued that Chapter 17 grants standing to environmental nonprofits and that the HEP board had been wrongly advised on that issue. Coconut Grove and Upper East Side residents, including Kyle Lockridge, Yvonne Grassey, Luis Hernandez, and Mary Block, urged the commission to preserve mature trees, especially on the PZ4 and PZ5 appeals. Elvis Cruz said 1,300 trees were removed from Melreese golf course and asked the city to enforce Chapter 17.
• Construction fencing advertising/FR2: Downtown residents and groups, including Kristen Browdy, Desiree de Souza Lesrado, James Torres of the Downtown Neighbors Alliance, and Rob Piper, opposed using construction fences for advertising. Rosario Kennedy and Jennifer Del Mastro supported the Graffiti Abatement Program and a one-year exclusive pilot for Del Mastro Outdoor, while Francois of New Tradition Media opposed exclusivity and asked that all qualified outdoor advertising companies be allowed to participate.
• Other public testimony: Metris Batts of the Overtown Business Association supported RE14, the Calle Ocho corridor revitalization fund, and noted that Overtown became a Florida Main Street in 2025. Amina McNill of the Martin Luther King Economic Development Corporation supported PH9, the Wheels to Work program, now entering its 11th class. Chaplain Stanley Young supported PH8, the anti-poverty initiative for small community organizations. Richard Campbell requested a geoag demonstration site in the Miami River Greenway. Genesis Nahera asked the commission to grant PZ3 so her family could replace their roof with shingles. Albert Gomez supported keeping City Hall, opposed FR2, urged tracking city liability settlements, and noted that the consent agenda included $97,500 in negligence settlements.

Discussion Items

• DI1 – Flora/Chapter 17: Commissioner Pardo sponsored an item presented by Aaron DeMayo, chair of the Climate Resilience Committee, proposing a review of rules that would allow property owners in T3 transect zones to conserve mature trees while retaining floor area by designing around trees. City planning staff said the item would be considered with the tree advisory committee's recommendations, expected by the end of the year.
• DI4 – Live Local Act: City Attorney George Weiswong briefed the commission on the city's options to push back on the Live Local Act. The city is waiting to see how Hillsborough County v. State of Florida advances; the state's motion to dismiss was filed April 22, and Miami would consider joining if Hillsborough prevails. Other Miami-Dade municipalities are in a similar posture.
• DI5, DI6, and DI7 were deferred to the September 24 meeting.

Key Outcomes

• RE7 was approved as amended after the Allapata CRA approved the related interlocal agreement at its September 10 meeting; amendments included Resolution No. ACRA-R-26-0004 and corrected the designee and CRA name.
• RE9 was approved, directing the city manager to establish a multidisciplinary short-term rental task force within 30 days and report back after 60 days. Assistant City Attorney Rachel Dooley noted legal limits after prior Airbnb litigation and protections for T3 transect zones.
• RE10 was approved 4-1, declaring that the City Commission should continue holding its meetings in the historic City Hall chambers in the foreseeable future. Commissioner Gabella voted no, citing the recently built Freedom Park government center and concerns about district representation.
• RE11 was approved as amended, directing use of excess reserves for fire/rescue station repairs and modernization. Commissioner Pardo noted approximately $37 million in excess reserves. An intent-to-reimburse item tied to the November bond election was to be prepared for the November 19 agenda.
• RE14 was approved as amended, creating a Calle Ocho neighborhood revitalization fund to help establish a business improvement district. The item includes a two-year seed-fund period, repayment of about $1 million per year within five years, and a substitution map dated September 2, 2026. Funding was not identified in the item; city staff said it was not in the proposed FY2026-27 budget.
• RE17 was approved as amended, directing the city manager's office to coordinate 311 notifications to commissioners and the Downtown Development Authority, with a substitution memo dated September 9, 2026.
• RE18 was approved, directing the administration to work with the Miami Foundation to release more than $3 million from a park endowment rather than the current annual distribution of about 7 percent, with funds distributed equally among districts.
• Second-reading ordinances SR1, SR2, and SR3 were approved. SR4, which addressed supermajority voting requirements, was indefinitely deferred for revision after concerns that it would weaken four-fifths voting protections.
• FR1 was indefinitely deferred after the city attorney said the Civil Service Board had not communicated the need for its whistleblower amendment.
• FR2 was approved on first reading as amended. The construction fencing advertising pilot excludes District 2 and District 5, has no exclusive vendor, limits a license to one year and one property, requires an active construction site on more than 50 percent of the property, allows any property owner to select any vendor, requires the city to receive 40 percent of revenue, and uses the city code enforcement process for violations.
• FR3, establishing the Allapata Community Redevelopment Trust Fund, and FR6, reactivating the driveway amnesty pilot program, were approved on first reading.
• FR5 was approved on first reading. It authorizes temporary Grand Theft Auto VI banners downtown from no sooner than October 15, 2026 through no later than December 31, 2026, with “Vice City” branding removed, up to five banners at approximately $208,000 each, and proceeds directed to the Reverend Edward T. Graham Heritage Trail.
• PZ1, an appeal by Oprah LLC, was granted unanimously with agreed conditions in Exhibit A. PZ2 was withdrawn. PZ3 was granted, allowing the Nahara family to install an asphalt shingle roof now, conditioned on replacing it with the appropriate barrel tile roof when the roof is next replaced.
• PZ4, the Irvington Avenue tree appeal by 3736 Irvington LLC, was granted 3-2, allowing removal of the live oak; Commissioner Pardo and Commissioner King voted no. The appellant committed to increasing the size and likely quantity of mitigation trees.
• PZ5, the Sierra Club Miami Group appeal involving MIMO Bay Apartments, was denied. The commission upheld the HEP board's unanimous July 21 decision. Staff cited 11 review cycles, more than two years of review, and three site visits; the developer's mitigation plan commits to 237 replacement trees compared with 163 required, approximately 45 percent above code, plus replacement or relocation of a failing tree in Legion Park.
• The commission approved the board and committee appointment items, including reappointments and new appointees to the Accessibility Advisory Board, Affordable Housing Advisory Committee, Bayfront Park Management Trust, Education Advisory Board, Historic and Environmental Preservation Board, LGBTQ Advisory Board, Off-Street Parking Board, Virginia Key Advisory Board, Melreese NRD1 Public Benefits Trust Fund Committee, Civil Service Board, Housing and Commercial Loan Committee, and Interfaith Advisory Council; several term and residency waivers were granted.
• The City Attorney noticed a closed attorney-client session for September 24, 2026, at approximately 10 a.m., pursuant to Florida Statutes §286.011(8), to discuss settlement and litigation strategy in two federal cases: William O. Fuller et al. v. City of Miami, Case No. 23-CV-24251-DRG, and QBE Specialty Insurance Company v. City of Miami, Case No. 1:24-CV-21854-EA. A court reporter will be present, and the transcript will be made public after the litigation concludes.
• The regular commission meeting ended with DI5, DI6, and DI7 deferred; the commission then recessed to hold the Midtown and Southeast Overtown Park West CRA meetings before the evening budget hearing.