Miami-Dade County Commission Meeting: May 6, 2026 - Proclamations, Budget Items, and CRA Transition
Miami-Dade County Commission Meeting: May 6, 2026 - Proclamations, Budget Items, and CRA Transition
Introductory Paragraph
The Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners met on May 6, 2026, at 16:30 UTC. The meeting began with three proclamations: declaring May 2026 as Jewish American Heritage Month, designating May 5, 2026, as Ron McGill Day in recognition of his 46-year career at Zoo Miami, and proclaiming February 11, 2026, as a day of remembrance for Thelma Vernel Anderson Gibson, a trailblazing nurse, civil rights advocate, and former Miami City Commissioner. The board then addressed first-reading budget ordinances, including a failed solid waste assessment increase, and later convened as the Naranja Lakes Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) to assume governance, leading to extensive debate on meeting location, chairmanship, and quorum. Second-reading items included a noise ordinance and a deferred comprehensive plan amendment for Kelly Tractor Company. The meeting concluded with approvals of various pull-list items and appointments.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Stephanie Brown (address: 853 NW 139 Street, Miami, FL 33168) spoke in favor of item 4i, the solid waste assessment increase. She argued that costs for services like FPL, insurance, and groceries rise routinely, and solid waste provides essential services including hurricane cleanup and COVID-era operations. She identified herself as both a solid waste employee and a taxpayer.
Discussion Items
- Proclamations: Three proclamations were presented and celebrated with remarks from commissioners, the mayor's representative, and community leaders. The Jewish American Heritage Month proclamation highlighted contributions of the Jewish community and efforts to combat anti-Semitism. The Ron McGill Day proclamation noted his global impact in wildlife education, appearances on national media, and continued work with the Zoo Miami Foundation. The Thelma Gibson remembrance celebrated her legacy in healthcare, civil rights, affordable housing, and public service.
- First-Reading Budget Ordinances (Items 4A-4N): The board debated and voted on multi-item ordinances for street lighting, solid waste, security guard, and multipurpose maintenance special taxing districts. Key results:
- 4H (street lighting districts): Initially failed 6-6, but after a vote change, passed 7-5. The chairman noted the increase applies to existing districts, not new ones.
- 4I (solid waste assessment): Failed 5-8. The administration may bring back a different option before the September 25 deadline.
- 4K (multipurpose maintenance districts): Passed 10-3.
- 4L (new street lighting districts): Passed 12-1.
- 4M (security guard districts): Passed 10-3.
- Naranja Lakes CRA Meeting: The board recessed to sit as the CRA board. Discussion centered on:
- Governance: Chairman Rodriguez expressed frustration that no one had briefed him in three months since the board took over the CRA. The executive director stated she was unsure of the transition process and had been working with OMB. Commissioners debated whether meetings should be held in Naranja (vs. downtown), who should chair, and the quorum requirement.
- Decisions: The board voted to set the quorum at five members, to hold meetings in Naranja Lakes every other month, and to adopt co-chairmanship with District 8 and District 9 commissioners alternating. The board also approved three special items as amended: (1) resolution for pothole repair, lighting, tree trimming, sidewalks, septic-to-sewer, and bike lanes, with a 30-day implementation plan (later extended to 90-120 days for assessment); (2) community policing innovation including shot spotter systems and illegal dumping response; and (3) roadside cleanup and landscaping using Greater Miami Services Corp. All three items passed.
- Second Reading Items:
- 7A (housing project public meetings) and 7C (board appointment notification): Passed unanimously.
- 7B (noise regulation - vessels): Passed 11-1 after debate. Commissioner Hardeman opposed, arguing the 25-foot standard (reduced from 100 feet) would lead to over-policing and racial targeting. The sponsor noted it applies only after 11 p.m. and targets illegal charters.
- 7D (Kelly Tractor CDMP amendment): Deferred to June 2, 2026, after Commissioner Regalado requested additional time to incorporate amendments on phasing, wetland management by EEL, and a comprehensive business plan addressing battery storage, generator capacity, and night truck operations. The mayor's administration opposed the item, citing insufficient need analysis.
- Pull-List Items: Several items were approved, including:
- 2B3 (pet registration online): Implementation expected July-August 2026.
- 8N5 (bus route changes): Approved after discussion on Route 37 and 132 cuts; commissioner noted low ridership but requested further briefing.
- 8P3 (IT emergency contract ratification): Approved; discussion on legacy IT systems and procurement reform.
- 9A1 (veterinary services contract): Amended to explore a pilot using UF veterinary students.
- 11A4 (mental health awareness campaign): Approved with $70,000 expenditure; campaign uses "Let's Talk" hotline and 988 number.
- 11A8 (fiscal intermediary report): Amended to 60-day deadline and limited to fee-charging entities.
- 11A9 (signalization report): Expanded countywide.
- Urging resolution: Passed urging the U.S. Senate to pass HR 1689 extending TPS for Haitians for three years, citing $5.9 billion annual economic contribution.
Key Outcomes
- Failed Solid Waste Assessment (4I): The ordinance to approve non-ad valorem assessment rates for solid waste collection failed 5-8. The administration may bring a revised proposal before September 25, 2026.
- Naranja Lakes CRA Governance Changes: The board established a quorum of five members, decided to hold meetings in Naranja Lakes every other month, and adopted co-chairmanship by the two district commissioners (District 8 and District 9). Three special items were approved to address potholes, community policing, and landscaping.
- Noise Ordinance (7B) Passed: The ordinance reduces the audible distance for music from boats from 100 feet to 25 feet after 11 p.m., aimed at illegal charters. Passed 11-1.
- Kelly Tractor CDMP Deferred: The comprehensive plan amendment to allow industrial development outside the UDB was deferred to June 2, 2026, to allow for additional covenants, including phasing, wetland management, and a more detailed needs analysis.
- Appointments: Several board appointments were approved, including to the CITT (waiving term limits for Meg Daly, Robert Woolworth, Peggy Bale, and Mary Street), CARES MIA Advisory Board (Zaba St. George Castro and Alex Agudin), and others.
- FIFA World Cup Legacy Funds Reprogrammed: The board approved reallocating $3 million from the legacy project to fund Safe Summers, mom-and-pop grants, and anti-gun violence initiatives per district, with matching funds from the Greater Miami Sports Commission.
Meeting Transcript
Take your seats. Let's get started. We're going to start. Commissioners. If you want to join me up here. Good morning, everyone. For our first presentation, we are going to be declaring May 2026 as Jewish American Heritage Month. This observance is dedicated to celebrating the history, culture, and countless contributions of Jewish Americans to the U.S. And with that, I will now turn it over to the sponsoring commissioner, Commissioner Steinberg, for the official presentation. Thank you, Chairman. First of all, thank you all for being here this morning. Yes, we we we've been wonderfully lucky to be able to do this every month. And actually, for those of you who don't know, today is a Jewish holiday called Lagba Omar, which is a celebratory holiday, so it's very fitting to do this. Yes, we have a lot of holidays. Members from JCS from the Holocaust Memorial, from G3, and from Jewish Federation. Please come up. Thank you. Thank you, Commissioner. Uh this is a very special day, and I'm so very grateful to see the partners who I have partnered with, uh, in particular the Jewish Federation. Um, so grateful for the work and the contributions that you have made. Uh no question, as the Commissioner said, we have a thriving Jewish community, and in my district in particular, I have um very many constituents that are Jewish, and I've always said to them, be proud um uh that you are and that we welcome you and embrace you, and so it's my honor to be here today for this very important designation. Thank you. Um, Mary Living Kaba is uh unfortunately running late and asked me to just say a few words, obviously. She uh she is the first Jewish mayor of Miami Day County has tremendous pride in her heritage and long history, you know, dating back from the pogrims in Europe and her family coming over, and just wanted me to say um say thank you for this honor. Um and as the husband of a Jewish woman and the father of a Jewish woman, uh, I'm proud of my own Jewish heritage, though. Congratulations. Um, yeah, let's see. Um, hi everybody. Uh Josh Taylor's Jewish Federation. I I I really want to express our appreciation to this commission, to our elected officials, to the chairman, to the mayor, to Commissioner Steinberg, Commissioner Lopez. Um these these proclamations really mean a lot to the community, and I know we we talk a lot, we talk your ear off about the rising tide of anti-Semitism and and and some of the fear that's been going on in the community, especially since October 7th. But it really means especially a lot, not just to talk about people who are targeting us, but to talk about the Jewish community itself and the positive contributions that that our community has and continue will continue to make to m to Miami Dade County. And so thank you very much for recognizing us. It means a lot to a lot of your constituents. We're really grateful for it. Thank you so much. All right, let's do a photo. What do you want us uh of our right there? Thank you guys, appreciate it. All right. Let's uh get through to the next one. If y'all could take your seats or quietly exit. I got my Western. We just had the rodeo, so and there was like boot wasn't there like boots something at uh at the zoo. Wasn't there like something western there too? You see, boots and jeans or something. All right. Our next presentation is a very special presentation that we have this morning, a proclamation declaring May 5th, 2026, which is officially Cinco de Mayo. All right. Hope you all are ready for Margaritas and Toggles.
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