Medley’s annexation of a 1,500-acre tract was approved by the commission, but Virginia Gardens’ annexation remains to be seen.
Landlords and business owners west of the airport are asking the County Commission to vote NO on the annexation they say they want to impose.
Businessmen are protesting that an area west of the airport, now an unincorporated part of the county, become part of the city of Virginia Gardens. Today, at least, they gained a little more time.
Kevin Marino Cabrera, Commissioner of Miami Dade, says: “In areas where there are less than 250 voters, a survey should be done of the proletarians. The owners in many cases are small businesses and a survey is made to see where they are on this issue because it is important that they have a voice as well”.
The Miami-Dade Commission has agreed to postpone a decision on the territory adjacent to Virginia Gardens until they survey businesses in the area.
“We have to look at the county budget we are in difficult economic times with inflation and we have to put all this. Information in front of us so we can make the best decision for our community and for our county,” says Cabrera.
While a 10-2 vote approved the annexation of a 1,500-acre tract adjacent to Medley to that city, something the city has been calling for for nearly two decades. But they approved it on the condition of payment of a mitigation.
Juan Carlos Bermúdez, commissioner of Miami-Dade, assures that “essentially an additional tax for four years, Medley is now going to have to pay the county a total of hundreds of thousands of dollars for areas that have, which are old areas that have what to fix”.
Commissioner Bermudez says he supports Sweetwater’s progress, but calls for the county to be consistent and fair.
“Sweetwater, who is already in the district that I represent, was not asked for those payments, because let’s be honest, it was political. The chairman of the commission was Commissioner Pepe Diaz, who now wants to be the mayor of Sweetwater.”
The county administration says it needs these funds to continue the quality of its services throughout the county.
For this mitigation, Medley will have to pay about $517,000 annually over the next four years. While Sweetwater had to pay nothing, for annexing valuable trading territory.