REVIEW BOARD TO DEBATE STRONG-MAYOR SWITCH
Miami Herald, The (FL) - Thursday, January 6, 2000
Author: AJOWA NZINGA IFATEYO, aifateyo@herald.com
The Opa-locka Charter Review Board will meet tonight to discuss whether Opa-locka should move toward a strong mayor form of government and district elections.
A strong mayor would be more responsible to the citizens, some believe, because voters would have one person to blame when something goes wrong. But many also believe, even though they cannot prove it, that the city already had a de facto chief executive when Robert B. Ingram was mayor for 12 years before being elected to the School Board.
District elections would allow each neighborhood to vote for their representatives and give Hispanics - a growing population in the city - a voice on the commission.
But will a change in the government structure help or hinder the process of redeveloping the city?
That issue will be discussed at a public hearing at 7 p.m. today in the City Commission chambers.
The city's charter board, one of the few functioning in the city, includes former Mayor John Riley, who is its chairman; former Commissioner Steven Barrett, the vice chairman; Bob Knapp, a former commissioner, police chief and vice mayor; City Commission critic Brian Dennis; and resident Subhana Munaj. The city clerk and the city attorney are nonvoting members.
A look at Opa-locka's neighbors may provide a glimpse of what a strong mayor could be like for the city. Three of Miami-Dade's largest government bodies - Hialeah, Miami-Dade County and Miami - all have strong-mayor systems.
In March, Miami voters - who decided to opt for a strong mayor in November - will decide whether to share some of the mayor's power with the City Commission.
In Broward, voters will decide on March 14 whether to elect a mayor who would be the county's chief executive with the right to veto legislative acts made by seven county commissioners. But a professional county administrator would also be chosen. Then, after 2002, nine county commissioners would be elected from single-member districts.
Miami-Dade Mayor Alex Penelas was the first to be be elected under the strong-mayor system. But it is Hialeah's strong mayor, Raul Martinez, who garners the spotlight when the subject of a strong mayor arises.
Martinez is known for getting things done in his city - but he is also a lightning rod for criticism over some of his political actions, including accusations of stifling opponents by using his majority on the City Council.
In the November elections, Martinez succeeded in persuading voters to elect a veto-proof council with an overwhelming majority of its members being his supporters. In Hialeah, five votes are needed to override a veto. Martinez has six supporters out of seven commissioners.
In 1998, Martinez gave himself a $30,000 raise, making his salary $99,702. His expenses are $54,000. That's a total of $153,702.
Early last year, the Hialeah City Council voted to pay Martinez $1.2 million in back pay, interest and legal fees arising from the 31/2 years he was suspended from office.
In Opa-locka, longtime resident Evelyn LaRock, an outspoken critic at City Commission meetings, does not like the idea of a strong mayor - for another reason.
``They want to get rid of the city manager, and he's the only one who's got any brains,'' she said.
A strong mayor would be more responsible to the citizens, some believe, because voters would have one person to blame when something goes wrong. But many also believe, even though they cannot prove it, that the city already had a de facto chief executive when Robert B. Ingram was mayor for 12 years before being elected to the School Board.
District elections would allow each neighborhood to vote for their representatives and give Hispanics - a growing population in the city - a voice on the commission.
But will a change in the government structure help or hinder the process of redeveloping the city?
That issue will be discussed at a public hearing at 7 p.m. today in the City Commission chambers.
The city's charter board, one of the few functioning in the city, includes former Mayor John Riley, who is its chairman; former Commissioner Steven Barrett, the vice chairman; Bob Knapp, a former commissioner, police chief and vice mayor; City Commission critic Brian Dennis; and resident Subhana Munaj. The city clerk and the city attorney are nonvoting members.
A look at Opa-locka's neighbors may provide a glimpse of what a strong mayor could be like for the city. Three of Miami-Dade's largest government bodies - Hialeah, Miami-Dade County and Miami - all have strong-mayor systems.
In March, Miami voters - who decided to opt for a strong mayor in November - will decide whether to share some of the mayor's power with the City Commission.
In Broward, voters will decide on March 14 whether to elect a mayor who would be the county's chief executive with the right to veto legislative acts made by seven county commissioners. But a professional county administrator would also be chosen. Then, after 2002, nine county commissioners would be elected from single-member districts.
Miami-Dade Mayor Alex Penelas was the first to be be elected under the strong-mayor system. But it is Hialeah's strong mayor, Raul Martinez, who garners the spotlight when the subject of a strong mayor arises.
Martinez is known for getting things done in his city - but he is also a lightning rod for criticism over some of his political actions, including accusations of stifling opponents by using his majority on the City Council.
In the November elections, Martinez succeeded in persuading voters to elect a veto-proof council with an overwhelming majority of its members being his supporters. In Hialeah, five votes are needed to override a veto. Martinez has six supporters out of seven commissioners.
In 1998, Martinez gave himself a $30,000 raise, making his salary $99,702. His expenses are $54,000. That's a total of $153,702.
Early last year, the Hialeah City Council voted to pay Martinez $1.2 million in back pay, interest and legal fees arising from the 31/2 years he was suspended from office.
In Opa-locka, longtime resident Evelyn LaRock, an outspoken critic at City Commission meetings, does not like the idea of a strong mayor - for another reason.
``They want to get rid of the city manager, and he's the only one who's got any brains,'' she said.
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