Miami-Dade Housing Committee Meeting - February 3, 2026
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Miami-Dade Housing Committee Meeting - February 3, 2026
The Miami-Dade Housing Committee convened on Tuesday, February 3, 2026, at 12:30 PM in Commission Chambers. Chairwoman Marleine Bastien presided over the meeting, which included an invocation, pledge of allegiance, approval of the agenda, and a detailed discussion of the county's comprehensive domestic violence plan. The committee voted to forward items with favorable recommendations and deferred one contract to the February 18, 2026, Board of County Commissioners (BCC) meeting.
Consent Calendar
- The committee set the agenda without changes and moved all items together with a unanimous vote, except for item 3B which was later bifurcated.
- Item 3B (Resolution for landscaping services contract awards totaling $12,524,843.00 for a five-year term) was waived to the February 18, 2026, BCC meeting via a motion by Vice Chairwoman Vicki L. Lopez, seconded and approved.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No members of the public approached the podium during the reasonable opportunity period; the chair closed public comments.
Discussion Items
- Item 2A – Domestic Violence Oversight Board Comprehensive Plan: Chairwoman Bastien praised the advisory board for a detailed and comprehensive report. She highlighted the need for more education and outreach materials, especially in Spanish, Creole, and other languages, in advance of the upcoming World Cup. Vice Chairwoman Lopez noted the importance of data on unsheltered individuals and emphasized the need for a two-to-three-year support period for domestic violence survivors, as opposed to the typical 18-month timeline. Commissioner Raquel A. Regalado expressed concern about immigrant victims fearing to come forward due to current fear in the community. Liz Regalado, Executive Director of the Miami-Dade County Domestic Violence Oversight Board, responded that outreach campaigns are designed to reassure survivors that resources are available, and that immigration and pro bono legal services are critical because batterers often use immigration status as a weapon. Kathy Burgos, Director of the newly established Community Services Department, confirmed that victims in need of placement are served without delay and emphasized a preventive, family-focused approach through partnerships. Commissioner Regalado also raised the importance of informing victims about U visas (federal and state protections for crime victims, including human trafficking and domestic violence) as a way to encourage them to come forward. The committee expressed alarm over murder-suicide data in the report and committed to further partnership on prevention education.
Key Outcomes
- Item 2A: Approved and forwarded to the BCC with a favorable recommendation (4-0 vote).
- Item 3A: Resolution approving a $2,000,000 contract for private attorney services for the Housing and Community Development Department – forwarded to BCC with a favorable recommendation (4-0 vote).
- Item 3B: Motion approved to waive the item to the February 18, 2026, BCC meeting.
- Adjournment: The meeting adjourned after all business was concluded.
Meeting Transcript
Vice Chairwoman Lopez. Here. Chairwoman Bastian. Here. Three members present. We have a quorum. Thank you so much. I'd like to ask you to please stand. I'm going to ask our young leader for my district to lead us in prayer, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Olivier Telusma. Thank you. Bow your heads, please. Father God, we invite your presence into this place and entreat you to guide us as we are good stewards of the people and resources in which you have entrusted to our care. And I ask that the words of our mouths and the meditations of our heart be acceptable in thy sigh, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer. Amen. Amen. Pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God and indivisible liberty and justice. Thank you so much. You may be seated. Now, Madam Attorney, time to open reasonable opportunity for the public to be heard. So I'm asking, is there anyone in the public wishing to speak right now? All right. See no one approaching. No one. I'm closing the reasonable opportunity for the public to be heard. Madam Attorney, any changes in the agenda today's agenda that we need to be aware of. There are no changes, Commissioner. At this time it would be appropriate to set the agenda. Thank you so much. Do we have a second? Second. All right, all in favor. Aye. All right. Um any of my colleagues wishes to bifurcate any of the items. I do not. I'm happy to move all the items if there's no bifurcations. Second. All right. All in favor. Say aye. Aye. Yeah, but before before we adjourn, um, I'd like to thank uh the advisory board, the Mystic Violence Advisory Board for wonderful detail and comprehensive report. I wish to thank you, and I'm looking forward to partner with you more to show that important film because um I had I I I read the report uh uh in detail and then I realized that we in terms of education and outreach that we need to do more. And I'd like to partner with you uh to do so. Um I'm also um uh I also understand that we do need to have more education materials uh in different languages, like in Spanish, in Creole and other, especially with the uh World Cup approaching. I think uh I would like to work with you to see what this would look like, to have uh information that we will uh spread around bathrooms, airports, and and things like that. So I'm looking forward to do that, and thank you for a very comprehensive and detailed report. Anything else from yes, yeah, if I could just add that, um thank you.
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