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We’ve been able to get nearly every park in my district up and running. This was a major accomplishment considering that the General Obligation Bond for the revitalization of the parks was passed more than ten years ago. I want to thank the City Manager, the Capital Improvement Office and Parks and Recreation for coming together and getting this plan executed. We can again have football and senior programs, and now we’re not overloading the community center because we have more room to spread people out.
Another accomplishment was the $8,000,000 infrastructure project that’s been going on in Seat 2, which allowed us to bring in contractors to redo the roads, make the sidewalks ADA compliant with sidewalk ramps, and update where the firewall meets the street. We also have FPL doing some pilot work, putting some of the power lines underground.
Local Initiatives
We continue to take care of our seniors. Starting August 1st, the Senior Beautification Grant program will be in full effect. That program will allow us to help seniors on fixed income spruce up their homes on a budget of about $2,500 to $5,000 per home, once they qualify and meet all the requirements. We wanted to keep all of that business local so we’re working with local contractors.
We have a 97-year-old resident who takes care of her blind, 90-year-old brother. With the help of some other community organizations, we’ll be doing a day of service at her house. That’s the service project I’m doing for my birthday.
We’re experiencing a lot of growth in Miami Gardens, but we also need to be sure we can handle it. We learned a lot from hosting Formula One. We saw that, during certain events, we need to come up with a full traffic plan to assist our residents in moving about. As more events come to the stadium, we want to avoid impacting the quality of life for our residents.
Alongside the Urban League, we continue to work on senior housing attached to the senior center campus. When that breaks ground, it will create opportunities for those seniors who are interested in downsizing but don’t want to leave their community.
We’re also continuing and revamping homeowner initiatives to help local heroes — our teachers, our police officers, our firefighters — purchase homes in Miami Gardens.
Miami Gardens is the Place to Be
Miami Gardens is a melting pot. It is the place to be because you can do so much inside City limits. You can get educated, go grocery shopping, have a taste of different cultures and be entertained at the stadium. You can get anywhere in 10 minutes from Miami Gardens, with the Florida Turnpike, State Road 826, I-95 and the Golden Glades Interchange all right here. There aren’t many other cities that are centrally located and have such great access.
It’s the culture, it’s our vibe, it’s our energy. This is the place where your first Black doctor and your first Black lawyer got their start. And even though they migrated, over time, they bought homes here. Now we’re seeing our generation moving back from different areas. It’s the mixture of everything wonderful that’s bringing everybody back home.
