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Miami-Dade County, like many communities across the country, faces a financial crossroads. With limited resources and growing needs, now more than ever, we must be intentional about how we serve the public. That is why, as Clerk of the Court and Comptroller, I have made it a priority to reimagine how we deliver services not only to the courts, but to the people of this County.
A once-in-a-generation opportunity has emerged as we prepare to open the Osvaldo N. Soto Miami Dade Justice Center. With this new facility nearing completion, my team and I took a hard look at how we operate, and more importantly, how we could operate better.
Historically, services like New Suits, Appeals, Motion Calendaring, File Information, and Recording have been spread across downtown. Sometimes they were located within different sections of the same building, but often they were disconnected in practice. The Recording function in particular, which plays a critical role in so many legal and financial transactions, was housed entirely apart. This forced residents, attorneys, and business owners to shuttle between buildings or navigate complex workflows just to complete routine filings. In some cases, basic information was siloed between locations, creating unnecessary frustration and cost. Rather than simply moving those inefficiencies into a newer building, we saw an opportunity to fundamentally improve the way we serve and do so with fiscal discipline.
We are now consolidating multiple services into a single, unified customer lobby, where the public can handle New Suits, Appeals, Motion Calendaring, and File Information all in one place. We are also addressing another longstanding concern by providing more private spaces for our Probate and Mental Health service windows, ensuring patrons receive the dignity and confidentiality they deserve. Even more importantly, we have made the fiscally responsible decision to bring the Recorder’s Office and the Comptroller’s Audit team into the Justice Center as well.
This decision will save taxpayers millions. By avoiding an estimated $3.1 million buildout in a separate building and eliminating the need to lease office space for 40 Audit employees, at a cost of nearly $1 million annually, we are not only doing what is smarter, we are doing what is right. In a time when every dollar must be accounted for, this is a tangible example of fiscal responsibility in action. This was not a decision born of convenience, but of discipline. As Jim Collins reminds us in Good to Great, “You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end… with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality.”
The brutal fact is this: the County is in a financial crisis. But our office is committed to being part of the solution. That is why I challenged our team to look beyond legacy operations and embrace an approach that is more integrated, more efficient, and more people focused.
The Osvaldo N. Soto Miami-Dade Justice Center, together with our relentless pursuit of transparency and efficiency, represents more than a new address. It represents the future of justice in Miami-Dade County, one where residents can access information and services with ease, comfort, and confidence.
I am proud of the work our office has done to prepare for this transition. And I remain committed to delivering more with less, not because it is easy, but because that is what responsible leadership requires. We do not need bureaucracy to do good work. We need purpose, discipline, and the courage to change. That is the kind of government our residents deserve. And that is the standard we will continue to meet.
