Halloween Party in North Bay Villagw

It all got switched around because of Hurricane Sandy and a bad weather forecast.  The City made the sensible decision to move the party from Vogel Park to that House of Horrors known as our commission chambers.  The staff decorated tirelessly and it was great.   Here are some pictures.  More at Mario's blog :  

The Commission Chambers

Jenice Rosado Led the Effort

Kevin Balbao of the Cutting Room donated his services.

City Clerk Yvonne Hamilton

This was a great party, supported by the community and it makes a difference to the kids and the old folks of North Bay Village.  

Kevin Vericker

October 29, 2012

Vote Up the Ballot

You can see the sample ballot for North BayVillage here.

You can read my take on the North Bay Village Charter Amendments here.  

And for other views, check out Mario for North Bay Village

And Robot Bhandari here.  

It turns out there are more that just North Bay Village issues on the ballot November 6.  Who knew?  What I have below is my take on the county amendments and the school board questions.  All of these affect our lives in North Bay Village pretty directly so this might be useful for you.  At the very bottom, I put my views on the judges and statewide consitutional amendments. 

School Board
Sequence	Text	My View
School Board Question	Funding Modernization and Construction of Public School Facilities Through Issuance of General Obligation Bonds Shall the School District of Miami-Dade County fund a plan for modernization and construction of public school facilities throughout the district, including educational technology upgrades, by issuing general obligation bonds in an aggregate amount not exceeding $1,200,000,000, in one or more series, bearing interest at market rates, maturing within thirty years, and secured by the full faith and credit and ad-valorem taxing power of the district	Yes. Miami-Dade schools are improving rapidly. We are the fourth largest school district in the US and our school board needs to modernize the facilities and manage the educational improvement.
County Charter Amendments
Sequence	Text	My View
1.)	Home Rule Charter Amendment Relating to Term Limits of County Commissioners Shall the Charter be amended to provide that County Commissioners shall serve no more than two consecutive four-year terms in office excluding terms of service prior to 2012?	No. I realize I stand nearly alone on this but I firmly believe that we already have term limits – they are called elections – and if a commissioner is not performing, he or she should be voted out. For North Bay Village, Sally Heyman has been a strong and useful advocate. If she runs again, I want her in the position.
2,	Technical Amendments to Home Rule Charter Shall the Charter be amended to clarify the titles of subsections, correct and update cross-references between provisions, and delete references to offices and agencies which have been abolished?	Yes. This simply cleans up the charter language. It's actually a cost saving measure as there is less work trying to figure out what archaic and obscure references must be included or ignored.
3	Charter Amendment Requiring Extraordinary Vote to Include Additional Land within the Urban Development Boundary Shall the Charter be amended to require a two-thirds vote of County Commissioners then in office to include additional land within the Urban Development Boundary established by the County's Comprehensive Development Master Plan?	Yes. This is half a loaf but better than nothing. The Urban Development Boundary in a delicate environment matters. We have to control sprawl and requiring that this be at least be made more difficult to change is a step forward.
4	Charter Amendment Pertaining to Changes in Municipal Boundaries and Creation of New Municipalities Shall the Charter be amended to: • Require the County Commission to consider the benefits of any proposed annexation of commercial areas, when approving or authorizing an annexation	No. This seems like a good idea at first glance, allow unincorporated areas to create new cities for more local services and representation, but it ignores the reality that adjoining unincorporated areas will be impacted. It does not fix the issues of annexation and could cost taxpayers more not less to serve the county as a whole. The whole idea needs to be revised and part of a larger package.
5	Charter Amendment Regarding Penalties and Enforcement of Citizens' Bill of Rights Shall the Charter be amended to eliminate the provision providing for forfeiture of office if a public official or employee willfully violates the Citizens' Bill of Rights and allow, in addition to suit in circuit court, the Commission on Ethics and Public Trust to enforce the Citizens' Bill of Rights with penalties authorized by the Code?	No. This is a great idea that will be ruined by bad company. The Commission on Ethics is a deeply political office, favoring the powers that be, and has been proved worthless in addressing municipal corruption. There is no indication that they will be any more effective at protecting our rights than they are at addressing abuse. The Commission on Ethics needs to be removed and replaced by people who actually practice the ethics they pretend to enforce.
6	Charter Amendment Related to Option for Filling Mayoral or County Commissioner Vacancy Shall the Charter be amended to: • Extend the time to conduct an election to fill a mayoral or commissioner vacancy from 45 to 90 days from the decision to call such election and provide a timeframe for qualification and any necessary runoff; • Temporarily transfer, during a mayoral vacancy or incapacity, certain mayoral powers to the Commission Chairperson, Vice Chairperson or Commissioner chosen by the Board?	Meh. 45 days is enough to run an election. That it is not convenient for the candidates or administration is not a particular concern of mine. I'll probably vote no.
7	Charter Amendment Regarding Mayoral Conflicts in County Procurement Shall the Charter be amended to provide that when the County Mayor declares a conflict of interest in a particular procurement of a County contract, the chairperson of the Board of County Commissioners shall exercise all authority provided by the Charter or the County Commission to the Mayor with regard to such procurement including the authority to recommend a bid waiver?	No. It just transfers singular power. It's a bad solution to a real problem. The problem should be addressed by the commission and administration as a whole.
8	Referendum Regarding Structures and Modification of Existing Agreements for the Tennis Center at Crandon Park In accordance with Article 7 of the Home Rule Charter, do you approve as set forth in Resolution R-660-12: • Erection of permanent structures and expansion of existing structures at Crandon Park Tennis Center for public park and tennis tournament use, which shall be funded solely by tennis center and tournament revenues and private funds; and • Modification and extension of agreements with operator of Sony Open Tennis Tournament or its successors?	Yes. Okay. It's funded by user fees and corporate sponsors to update the park.
9	Non-Binding Straw Ballot on Funding Improved Animal Services Programs Would you be in favor of the County Commission increasing the countywide general fund millage by 0.1079 mills and applying the additional ad valorem tax revenues generated thereby to fund improved animal services, including: • Decreasing the killing of adoptable dogs and cats (historically approximately 20,000 annually); • Reducing stray cat populations (currently approximately 400,000 cats); and • Funding free and low-cost spay/neuter programs, low-cost veterinary care programs, and responsible pet ownership educational programs?	Yes. It's non-Binding and maybe it will call attention to the near out of control animal problems in the county. It does not replace personal responsibility of pet owners and I hope the county does address this issue.
10	Non-Binding Straw Ballot on Contracting with Companies Doing Business with State Sponsors of Terrorism Would you support, to the extent permitted by law, prohibiting further the use of taxpayers' dollars to procure services or capital improvement projects from companies actively doing business in countries that are on the U.S. Department of State's list of state sponsors of terrorism?	Yes. This is a national Federal issue that is not being addressed. It would stop the country from doing business with companies like Mitt Romney's Bain Capital who invest heavily in companies doing business in China, Iran and Cuba, while pretending not to.

State Ballots Amendments - No to All

These include amendments to enforce theology on women, fund churches in proselytizing,  give homestead exemptions to investors rather than residents, and are generally an abuse of the ideas and goals of the electoral process.   These are designed to deceive not improve our lives.  

Supreme Court Justices Florida - Yes to Retain

A number of radical organizations have attempted to turn this into a referendum to intimidate justices who do not agree with their views by removing them from office.  The Florida Supreme Court has done a good job ensuring that the basic laws of this state are fairly applied and while I disagree with many of their principles as regards individual rights, removing them would be a mistake.    

Andrea Wolfson - No.  Send Her Packing

Oh, she appears reasonable.  But she deliberately sought and accepted the endorsement of the "Christian Family Coalition of Miami" who stand against the County Human Rights Ordinance, frame a Woman's Right to Choose as the State's Right to Enforce Prohibitions and actively seek public funding of churches (not services provided, the actual church.)   

That Andrea Wolfson lacks the integrity to stand for non-partisan justice and sought their endorsement makes her unfit for the judiciary.   

Other Races - 

President - I'm voting for Obama.  I just can't get to the magical place where cutting revenue improves revenue, where the first priority is to eliminate $700bn in Medicare savings and claiming that somehow reduces Medicare costs and I can't vote for someone who made millions investing in China, Russia and Iran, then hides the money off shore.   Seems like we need a president who is  invested in America, not Iran and Russia.  

Senator -  Bill Nelson.  We need realists.  

Congress - this one may be a surprise.  I think Debbie Wasserman-Schultz is a poor rep for us.  She spends too much time seeking the limelight and not enough on her constituents.  Unfortunately her opponent seems to be a whack job so I may not vote on this one.  

Okay, so there's my opinion for the election.  Early voting starts tomorrow.  

Kevin Vericker  
October 26, 2012  

 

North Bay Village Charter Amendments

UPDATE 10/24:  I've uploaded a sample ballot for North Bay Village at Scribd.Com.  Click here to retrieve

Mario Garcia did such a good job at his new blog with the Charter Amendments that I'm embarrassed by my own sloth in not putting anything up.  

First check out Mario's take at his blog Mario for North Bay Village

Then check out another blog, written by screen name Robot Bhandari (coolest screen name in the bay) on the elections in general and North Bay Village in particular.  

Here's Robot Bhandari  Scroll down for NBV.   

Go ahead.  I'll wait.   These are worth reading.  

Okay, so my take is not surprisingly different.  We have  twenty one (21) amendments to vote and it's not clear why many of them are there.  We are required to do a periodic  review of the our charter and each time, people try to sneak in their pet peeves.  But it's important to remember that the Charter is our statement of what we consider to be our guiding principles of governance, not the place to put something that annoyed you last week.  That why we have a commission and elections.  

So having said that, here's what I think.  To make it simpler, I added sequence numbers which the Department of Elections and the City should totally do.   These are in the order they appear on the ballot: 

Technical Note:  I can't figure out how to resize the text but if you need to see the table larger, hold down the CTRL - Key and tap the plus (+) key to increase font size.  You can do this several times until you get the size you like.  Apple has a similar function with the "Apple" key and the plus (+) key. 

Sequence	Text	My Take
1- No	Changing official name of the city to North Bay Village The City Charter currently provides that the official name of the city is the "City of North Bay Village." Shall the Charter be amended to delete the references to the "City of" and officially name the city "North Bay Village" and to further change all references in the Charter and the Code from "City" to "Village?"	This is an aspirational amendment. The idea of a “village” is of a bucolic, self contained gathering. We are not a village. We are a city, the most densely populated one in Florida and the 13th most dense city in the United States. Our issues and environment are urban and require a realistic sensibility. It's a trivial change but I don't like it.
2 – Yes	Corporate Limits of the CityThe City Charter currently provides that the jurisdiction shall now and “from time to time hereafter” fall within the city's specified boundaries. Shall the Charter be amended to replace “time to time hereafter” to “in the future.?”	This is a simple clarification of language to remove confusion but keep ambiguity in the charter.
3 – Yes	Appointment and removal of City Clerk The City Charter currently provides for the position of a City Clerk and further provides that the City Clerk shall be appointed and removed by the City Commission. Shall the Charter be corrected for consistency to specify that under the City Commission's powers that appointment, retention or removal of the City Clerk falls within the purview of the City Commission?	This is already the case and it fixes an oversight in previous charter amendments.
4 - Yes	Limitations on acquisition of real property and capital improvement projects The City Charter currently limits the acquisition of real property or expenditures for capital improvement projects to 20 percent of the "annual fiscal budget" or "annual budget" of the City without a referendum. Shall the Charter be amended to specify that the 20 percent spending limitation for acquisition of real property or capital improvement projects be based upon the City's current annual "total operating budget?"	This matters. Now the city can include other capital budgets and outside revenues in deciding the 20%. A guideline of 20% of the operating budget is much more realistic.
5 – No	Reduction of Mayor and City Commissioners compensation The City Charter currently authorizes an annual adjustment to the Mayor and City Commissioners compensation based upon the Consumer Price Index. Shall the Charter be amended to delete the annual Consumer Price Index adjustment and freeze the Mayor's compensation at $7,800.00 and the Commissioners compensation at $6,300.00 starting with the officials elected in the November 2012 election?	The idea is noble, that service should be voluntary and an honor. It's hard to disagree with that. But we ask a lot of our commissioners and the current system in the past has encouraged people who are looking to capitalize on influence rather than dedication. I would much prefer a system that would review the salaries every two years and put them before the voters. But it will probably pass.
6 – Yes (and No)	Two year prohibition on paid employment of City Commissioners post term The City Charter currently prohibits sitting City Commissioners from serving in a paid City position during their term of office. Shall the Charter be amended to prohibit a Mayor or Commissioner from serving in a paid City position for 2 years after the date of expiration of their term?	This should be called the “Joe Geller” amendment. In that case, former mayor Joe Geller was hired as city attorney immediately following his tenure as mayor. I do not believe that service to the city should be an employment disqualifier. The commission should decide if the candidate is the best for the job as they did with Joe Geller. Some didn't like that but it was addressed politically, as it should be. But the danger of outsize influence during service toward post-service employment is high and current best practice in the federal government is to have this policy. I will probably vote yes.
7 – Yes	Outside employment by the City Manager Shall the Charter be amended to include a requirement that outside employment by the City Manager shall be approved by the City Commission prior to commencement?	Yes. We could call this the “Charity Good” amendment. She was the city manager, full time, who was also full time in another city. It didn't work. This allows the commission to decide if the employment is reasonable and not in conflict with the main job, which means that some employment could be allowed and even useful.
8 – Yes	Expanding existing anti nepotism policy The City Charter currently prohibits employment of relatives of elected or appointed city officials (department heads and up) related up to the second degree of consanguinity (related by blood). Shall the Charter be amended to expand the existing anti nepotism policy to include a prohibition of the employment of relatives of elected or appointed city officials (department heads and up) up to the second degree of affinity (related by marriage)?	Yes. This is a simple language cleanup to clarify neopotism.
9 – Yes	Filling of Vacancies on the Commission pertaining to Interim Vice Mayor The City Charter currently provides that an interim Mayor and Vice Mayor shall serve until the newly elected or appointed Mayor or Vice Mayor is sworn into office. Shall the Charter be amended to clarify that the word "interim" also applies to the position of the Vice Mayor as well as the Mayor?	Yes. This means that the Vice Mayor only serves until a commission is reconstituted when there are vacancies. The newly formed commission then votes on the position. It's appropriate.
10 – Yes	Clarification of procedures for filling of Commission vacancy and extraordinary vacancy The City Charter currently provides that the filling of a vacancy for City Commission shall be pursuant to the procedures "set forth above." Shall the Charter be amended to provide that the procedures for filling of a vacancy are those specified in the Charter, and that for the filling of an extraordinary vacancy, the Commission shall call a special election in the same manner as set forth for filling a Commission vacancy?	Yes. A simple clarification of the election procedures to make them easier to understand.
11 – No	Procedure for adoption of emergency ordinances The City Charter currently provides for an emergency ordinance to be adopted by at least three affirmative votes. Shall the Charter be amended to provide that an emergency ordinance shall be adopted by at least four affirmative votes consistent with state law?	Emergcency Ordinances were widely abused two commissions ago. This procedure exists for when there is a clear danger that delayed action will harm the city and should only be used that way. By requiring 4 rather than a majority of commissioners, this means that if at least 4 commissioners cannot be present, which is entirely imaginable in the case of a natural or security disaster, the commission is handcuffed. It's too risky.
12 – Yes	Procedures for adoption of ordinances and resolutions The City Charter currently provides for the submission of all written information for proposed ordinances or resolutions within 48 hours of a City Commission meeting. Shall the Charter be amended to require the submission of all written information on proposed ordinances or resolutions 3 business days prior to the City Commission meeting?	Yes. This is an imperfect solution. I would have preferred additional language allowing the commission to make an exception by majority vote. But legislation is complex and the commission and citizens need time to study the legislation prior to adoption.
13 – No	Increase Residency Requirements for Mayor and Commissioners from six months to one year The City Charter currently requires a six month City residency for a candidate for the office of Mayor and Commissioner-at-large and a six month residency on their particular island for a candidate for the Harbor Island, North Bay Island and Treasure Island Commissioner seats. Shall the Charter be amended to increase the residency requirement from six months to one year for candidates for the office of the Mayor and all Commission seats?	In fact, HELL NO. This is the antithesis of democracy. Six months has adequately served for many years. If shorter residency is a problem, let the voters decide if that's an issue. This amendment takes clear aim at the “new people”, the condo buyers, the “others” who have moved into the city. It's offensive and it should be sent packing.
14 – Yes	Nomination for office of Commissioners and Mayor by petition The City Charter currently provides that a candidate for office of Commissioner or Mayor may qualify for candidacy by petition. Shall the Charter be amended to specify that the petition shall be in a form provided by the City Clerk?	Yes. In stark contrast to the nonsense above, this actually smooths the election process and makes it clearer and easier for candidates to file with a certified and understood petition.
15 – No	Increase of filing fee for candidates for office of Commissioner and Mayor The City Charter currently provides for a filing fee of $100.00 for a candidate for the office of Commissioner or Mayor. Shall the Charter be amended to increase the filing fee to $250.00 for the office of the Mayor and all Commissioners?	No. This should be called the “WTF – Are you kidding me?” amendment. The cost to process a candidate filing is probably more than $100 and less than $250. Raising the cost to file is a snide, trivial barrier to entry, not what the city should be encouraging.
16 – No	City employees soliciting votes or engaging in political activity while off duty The City Charter currently prohibits City employees from soliciting votes or engaging in political activity while on duty. Shall the Charter be amended to prohibit a City employee while off duty from soliciting votes or engaging in political activity while wearing a City uniform or identification or using his or her official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with an election or a nomination of office or coercing or influencing another person's vote?	No. Many of our city employees live in NBV. They are constitutionally protected in their free speech rights, while we are protected from coercion by them. With this change, a neighbor employed by the city could be fired or disciplined (the penalties are unclear) for simply supporting a candidate. This is badly written, constitutionally ambiguous and opens the city for further lawsuits.
17 – Yes	Notice of final budget meeting The City Charter currently provides that if the budget includes a tax increase, the City shall endeavor to send a notice of the date of the final budget meeting to each property owner and to those who submit a request for the notice. Shall the Charter be amended to delete this requirement as state law requires the County to provide the same information to each property owner in the TRIM (Truth in Millage) notice? Aviso de la última reunión de presupuesto	Yes. The County already provides this service and there is no need for NBV to duplicate that effort. The current system is wasted money and time.
18 – Yes	Bonds of officers and employees The City Charter currently requires the posting of a surety bond for officers or employees of the City, but does not specify which positions are subject to this requirement. Shall the Charter be amended to specify that any officers or employees who have check signing authority or access to City accounts shall post a bond?	Yes. This clears up an oversight in the original Charter and reduces the city's exposure to liability while not changing any current policty.
19 – Yes	Oath of office/employment The City Charter currently requires every officer and employee to take an oath of office. Shall the Charter be amended to include in the oath of office that the officer or employee is a legal resident of the State of Florida and will obey the laws of the United States, the State of Florida and observe the provisions of the Charter and Ordinances of the City?	Yes. We should include the Charter in the oath of office.
20 – No	Review of zoning regulations, zoning district maps, and comprehensive master plan Shall the Charter be amended to include a requirement that the Planning and Zoning Board continuously review the City's zoning regulations, comprehensive master plan and zoning district maps and offer recommendations to the City Commission at maximum intervals of five years commencing in 2013?	No. The review is needed and should be ongoing. But the Planning & Zoning Board should not be the exclusive owner of the process. The commission should appoint a board every five years comprising members with a wide variety of expertise. P&Z would be a natural recruiting spot for this but it does not follow that P&Z should be exclusive.
21 - No	Charter Violations Shall the Charter be amended to include a provision that City officials and employees shall follow the provisions of the Charter?	This is feel good nonsense. It does not create or set penalties for Charter violations, it does not empower the commission to do so and violating our charter carries no state or county legal penalties. This needs to be fixed, urgently, and  this amendment is a cynical pretense to appear to fix the problem while maintaining the status quo.