Roberto Alonso, an original Miami Lakes councilmember and first vice mayor who championed the development of Royal Oaks Park and the Community Center, and discovered the much-needed land owned by FDOT to build a permanent fire station to help save lives on the west side of town has died.
He was 64.
Alonso died last week after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. Before his death, Alonso was sales and marketing director for 90 Miles, a cigar and distribution company.
“Mr. Alonso was an incredible family man and truly exemplified what a perfect father, husband and gentleman should be,” said Miami Lakes Mayor Ceasar Mestre. “He served as both ‘the rock’ to his family and to this community, always striving to go above and beyond.”
Mestre ordered the Town of Miami Lakes flag at the Government Center to be lowered to half-mast for three days in Alonso’s memory.
Born in Cuba, Alonso was a Pedro Pan kid, who boarded a plane to Miami without his parents and was sent to live with his aunt when he was 12 years old.
Alonso was among 14,000 children who were sent to Miami, Florida, and 35 other states, as part of Operation Pedro Pan from 1960 to 1962. Pedro Pan was coordinated by the U.S. government, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami and the Cuban exile community in the U.S. Their parents made the greatest sacrifice to send them to live without them to eschew abduction, indoctrination and execution because they opposed the revolutionary government.
Alonso’s aunt, who arrived in Miami a month earlier, put in a claim for him and picked him up as soon as he landed in Miami. Some kids were sent to a camp and refuge in Kendall, Alonso said.
“It was a new life for me,” he told The Miami Laker in 2011 “At the beginning, it was hard, and my parents came to Miami six months later. That is why I appreciate everything in life.”
Alonso grew up in Hialeah and graduated from Miami Edison Senior High School and Miami-Dade College. He lived in the Carol City area before relocating to Palm Springs North. In 1988, he moved to the upscale community of Royal Oaks, which became part of the town of Miami Lakes following incorporation in 2000.
Alonso was a successful commercial real estate agent for years and was part of the initiative to install three guard gate districts in Royal Oaks through Miami-Dade’s Special Taxing District that has resulted in virtually a “no-crime” rate.
A past president of the Royal Oaks Homeowners Association, Alonso and his neighbors created a program that kept their area immaculate and increased their property values through strict deed restrictions for years.
Following Miami Lakes’ incorporation, Alonso won a seat on the Town Council during the city’s inaugural election by defeating Anabel Estevez, and he won reelection in 2004 when he narrowly beat Diane Dominguez.
He ran for mayor in 2008 but lost to Michael Pizzi, his colleague on the Town Council since 2001. During his tenure as a councilmember, Alonso made Royal Oaks Park, initially a tot-lot, his pet project, and through his efforts, the site was converted to a full-fledged park and recreation facility with a state-of-the art Community Center, where councilmembers held their regular meetings before moving into the new government center on Main Street.
He played a significant role in the town’s decision to not annex a large section of land west of 1-75 in 2003 because it was devoid of infrastructure at the time, and would have cost a lot of money to clean up the contaminated area with a landfill. Hialeah eventually annexed the property.
After the city outlined a financial plan to place infrastructure there, including roads and water and sewer, and build commercial and industrial buildings and recreation facilities, Alonso pointed out the expenses would have cost Miami Lakes about 86 percent of its budget had the town annexed the property.
While Miami-Dade sought land to build a permanent fire station to achieve a better response time for emergencies on the west side of Miami Lakes, Alonso discovered some vacant land that belonged to FDOT near Miami Lakes Drive and N.W. 77 Court. In working with Miami Lakes and county officials, the state agency turned over the land with the condition that Miami-Dade could only erect a fire station there.
Miami-Dade is scheduled to start construction later this year or in early 2014. Alonso also served on the now defunct Miami-Dade Blasting Task Force.
Being a Realtor, sales was Alonso’s true calling. He sold mangos to earn his own money by asking his Hialeah neighbor for all the fruits dangling from his huge tree. In a twist, Alonso said he sold all of the mangos to the same man.
“The same guy bought all the mangos,” he quipped with laughter. Alonso went on to other sales jobs before he landed the ultimate sales job as a commercial real estate agent. But he said he hasn’t forgotten where he came from thanks to the Pedro Pan operation.
“As soon as I came to Miami, I became a man,” he said. “It makes me appreciate life more and the value of my family. I know what it is to come from nothing.”
Alonso is survived by his wife, Idania and three children, Jessica Mendoza, Christine Alonso and Roberto Alonso Jr. A viewing and memorial service was held on September 27 at Our Lady of the Lakes Catholic Church.