Councilman Tony Fernandez kicked off his campaign for mayor surrounded by friends and family at the Miami Lakes Hotel on Main on Oct. 19.
Fernandez is serving his first term on the town council and said he wants to continue the work he started, but as the next mayor.
Unlike his first time on the campaign trail, Fernandez said he won’t be having conversations with voters through Ring doorbells and closed windows due to COVID-19 restrictions.
“I’m looking forward to go meet with Miami Lakers inside their houses,” Fernandez said in a ballroom decorated with balloons and stocked with a bar and buffet.
He said residents have offered to host voter events in their homes.
“Really, I think that’s what it is all about,” Fernandez said. “Having small get togethers [and spending] more time speaking to people.”
During a speech, Fernandez recounted the push for stormwater bonds for flooding mitigation during his first year on the council and the senior property tax relief program that he has said benefitted 391 households.
Fernandez also talked about a recent hot button issue: The proposed $19.5 million municipal bond offering to renovate Miami Lakes Optimist Park that voters defeated in 2022.
“Although the vote didn’t go the way I was expecting or hoped for…the residents voted on a very specific ballot question,” Fernandez said.
He said the result didn’t show that residents didn’t want to improve the park, rather that they didn’t want to incur debt and he heard from those who wanted a better green space.
“It wasn’t just the 10 or 15 people who speak against almost everything,” he said. “We have 102 [parks] in our town. We have 101 very good parks, and we have Miami Lakes Optimist Park that is still stuck in 1967 when it was built. Prior councils have not invested into it.”
Of his support for that bond issue, Fernandez said, “I’m always going to do the right thing regardless of the lynch mob that may be waiting for me, the angry messages on Facebook.”
Fernandez described the network supporters he has from when he volunteered with the town’s Youth Activities Task Force and Neighborhood Improvement Committee and the Giving Gators charity.
Also, town council candidates Mario O. Pinera, Jr. and Hector Abad, who like Mayor Manny Cid and Councilman Ray Garcia attended the party.
Cid is term-limited and running for mayor of Miami-Dade County. He endorsed Fernandez that night.
Fernandez thanked his wife Pilar Fernandez Rives, principal at Mater Gardens Academy in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, for her support through the years and for encouraging him as he pursues his personal and professional goals.
He also thanked those who attended the campaign launch.
“I am beyond excited to earn all your support and to speak to the 19,875 registered voters in this town and share my platform with them,” Fernandez said.