Two returning council members and one new elected official were sworn in Nov. 28 at Miami Lakes town hall.
Carlos O. Alvarez, Josh Dieguez and Ray Garcia, whose friends, families and supporters filled the council chambers for the ceremony, took their oaths and made brief speeches.
They thanked their supporters and loved ones, and all said they looked forward to working on behalf of voters during their terms.
“I want to reach out to all the residents that did not vote for me as well,” Garcia, 49, a health insurance licensed agent, said.
“… My goal for the next four years is to be by your side and do whatever it takes to improve your quality of life here in the town.”
Dieguez, 33, an attorney who won a second term on Election Day, thanked friends who were in the audience.
He reviewed some of the challenges the council has faced: A pandemic, a tight budget and a contentious bridge dispute.
But he was optimistic about the next four years and opportunities for growth “in the right direction. What the residents have told us is they want us to continue focusing on bread-and-butter issues that affect their day-to-day quality of life,” Dieguez said.
Alvarez, 45, said his predecessors on the dais were his mentors and noted elected officials from other municipalities who attended the ceremony.
“When you see this brotherhood and this sisterhood of other leaders from other communities all coming together, right, for one common cause, which is to serve people and to help others and to improve our towns and to improve our cities,” he said.
The new council chose Alvarez as vice mayor.