Surrounded by family, friends and residents, Mayor Manny Cid presented Vice Mayor Tony Lama with the Key to the Town at the July 25 Council meeting.
After passionately serving the Town as a council member for nearly five years, Lama officially resigned on July 25 to accept his dream job of working as Principal Business Development Manager at Amazon Web Services in Seattle, Washington.
First elected in 2012 and re-elected last November, Lama has been instrumental in moving Miami Lakes forward, specifically in the area of transportation, initiating the Town’s Transportation Summit held in July 2015. The Summit brought together relevant stakeholders and transportation experts to ensure all agencies’ actions are strategically coordinated to achieve optimal solutions.
Most recently, he worked to secure more than $26 million from the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority (MDX) to plan, design, and construct a partial interchange on N.W. 67 Avenue to connect to the Gratigny Parkway. MDX has committed to begin the design/build phase of the project next Fall.
Always at the forefront of using technology to find innovative ways to serve residents, Lama was also responsible for implementing the Town’s mobile app, “Lakes Life,” and the “I Heart Miami Lakes” social media branding campaign.
Lama’s farewell message to Miami Lakes’ residents: “This was not an easy decision, but my four kids and their futures were key to my decision. This was about the long-term interest of my family and my professional career. I am forever grateful to you for having placed so much trust in me. I hope I have served you well. We may not have always agreed, but we disagreed passionately and with much respect.”