• Miami Lakes Town Councilmembers Tim Daubert and Frank Mingo ran unopposed in the November 5 general election, while Councilmember Ceasar Mestre had to hit the campaign trial to defeat political novice Xiomara Pazos.
According to the Miami-Dade elections department, Mestre, an attorney, mustered 65 percent (4,688) to retain Seat 6, while Pazos collected 35 percent (2,589) in the election which saw only 7,277 residents vote either at the polls or by absentee ballot.
Mestre was the first Miami Lakes elected official to muster the endorsement of the entire Town Council.
• Miami Lakes residents approved two charter amendments and one straw ballot initiative during the November 5 general election.
Eighty-four percent (6,393 votes) of residents approved future annexation proposals must be first approved by them in a referendum.
Seventy percent (4,777) of voters approved an amendment that allows councilmembers to appoint residents to the town’s committees; and 84 percent (5,975) of voters approved a straw ballot measure to allow Miami Lakes to continue with efforts to get its own zip code.
• Miami Lakes Mayor Wayne Slaton and town councilmembers, along with Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez, Miami-Dade Commissioner Esteban Bovo Jr., and local residents celebrated the long awaited opening of Northwest 87th Avenue to give motorists an easier access to the west side of town and Royal Oaks Park.
On February 3, Miami-Dade police cars and firefighter trucks ushered in the new roadway by becoming the first vehicles to ride from Miami Lakes Drive to 162nd Street, a street that has been cut off because of the undeveloped land on the east and west side of N.W. 87th Avenue.
The Lowell Dunn family owns the land.
The new roadway also includes two bike lanes.
• Commissioner Bovo, State Senator Rene Garcia and the Miami Lakes Town Council recently took part in the street dedication ceremony to rename N.W. 87th Avenue to Royal Lakes Boulevard.
• Miami-Dade School Board chairwoman Perla T. Hantman overwhelmingly defeated Hialeah Miami Lakes High School teacher Duysevi “Sevi” Miyar to retain the seat that she has held since 1996.
During the August primary election, Hantman collected 81 percent of the votes to resume representing District 4 that represents the cities of Miami Lakes and Hialeah and unincorporated areas.
Hantman, a longtime Miami Lakes resident, was overwhelmed herself over the results and vowed to continue doing what she has done for the past 18 years.
After she was sworn in by former U.S. Senator Bob Graham, the School Board elected Hantman to serve as chairwoman for an unprecedented eighth time in her public service career, five consecutive times chosen to lead the board.
• Suspended Miami Lakes Mayor Michael Pizzi was acquitted of all seven counts of public corruption and bribery charges stemming from an FBI sting that nabbed convicted lobbyist-turned informant Richard Candia, then-Sweetwater Mayor Manuel Marono and lobbyist Jorge Forte.
As part of the federal operation, two FBI undercover men, who posed as sleazy businessmen, allegedly offered Pizzi money in exchange for supporting fraudulent federal grant money to Miami Lakes and the town of Medley, where he was the city’s attorney.
Pizzi was accused of accepting about $7,000 in bribes and extortion for his own personal use but it took a jury 14 hours to reach a not guilty verdict.
Florida Governor Rick Scott refused to revoke Pizzi’s suspension, saying Miami Lakes elected a new mayor, Wayne Slaton, during a special election to finish Pizzi’s remaining term.
Pizzi filed a lawsuit with the Florida Supreme Court to force Scott to lift his suspension. The case is still pending.
• After years of planning, the Town of Miami Lakes unveiled its new Veterans Memorial located near the front of the Town Hall building, where the monument pays homage to residents who served in the U.S. Armed Forces.
The memorial includes a V shape-like structure that is emblazoned with the image of the American flag, and commemorative bricks placed on the pathway leading to the memorial.
The artwork was created by artist Stephanie Jaffe Werner to honor all five of the United States Military Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. As part of the Miami Dade Art in Public Places Program, a Professional Advisory Committee made up of local arts professionals was formed, and with the support of the Town’s Veterans Committee, selected Werner’s creation.
• Band teacher Dennis A. Campos won American High’s Teacher Rookie of the Year Honors and his colleague, Tiffany Davis, earned the distinction as Teacher of the Year for the Patriots.
Like Campos, band teacher Sara Cowley won Teacher Rookie of the Year Honors at Hialeah Miami Lakes Senior High, while visual arts teacher Mario Vazquez won Teacher of the Year Honors.
The winners qualify to compete for regional competition for Miami-Dade Public Schools.
• Commissioner Bovo was unanimously elected vice chairman of the County Commission after Commissioner Jean Monestine was chosen as chairman of the 13-member board.
Monestine and Bovo replace outgoing chairwoman Rebecca Sosa, who will remain on the board as a commissioner, and former vice chairwoman Bell.
Bovo, 52, was first elected to the County Commission in a special election in 2011 and won reelection in 2012.
His district includes the cities of Hialeah and Miami Lakes and unincorporated neighborhoods such as Palm Springs North and Lakes on the Green.
Bovo currently serves as chairman of the county’s Finance Committee, vice-chair of the Public Safety and Animal Services committees, and he’s a member of Miami-Dade’s Transportation and Aviation Committee.
• After losing in the state semifinal last year, American High’s baseball team won the Class 7A state championship by beating Tarpon Springs East Lake, 5-2, to claim the school’s first-ever state title in baseball.
Pitcher Andy Figueroa and outfielder Eric Gonzalez led the Patriots to the championship victory.
Mater Academy also won the state title, beating Winter Haven, 1-0, behind a dominating pitching performance by Kevin Fuentes, who tossed a complete-game with a one-hitter to claim the Class 6A championship.
• Christophe Humbart becomes Barbara Goleman’s new basketball head coach, taking over a team that hasn’t had a winning season since 1999.
Last year, Humbart turned around a Doctors Charter School team, which finished 0-19 in his first year and made the playoffs the following season.