|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
This is the summer of labor discontent. Writers in Hollywood have been pounding a picket line since May, and the actors recently have joined them. And closer to home, things are getting ugly in the City Beautiful.
There are 140 members of the Coral Gables Professional Firefighters Association, the union representing the men and women who populate the city’s three firehouses. They and the city are at an impasse over the new bargaining agreement.
Before we look for solutions, it might be helpful to see where we’ve come from.
The city and the firefighters first began discussions of their new contract in 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. All city services, including the Fire Department, were put under a tremendous strain in the battle. First responders were called out in greater numbers than normal to respond to residents in respiratory distress, sometimes having to circle for hours waiting for a slot to open up in one of the neighboring hospitals.
Although the pandemic eventually cleared, a new cause for concern has arisen — growth in Coral Gables is exploding vertically. There are 30 new high-rise buildings already in the pipeline for the city.
According to the 2019 National Fire Protection Association standards, 43 firefighters should be available daily for high-rise fires but the city currently has only 32.
The annexation of Little Gables, High Pines and Ponce Davis could add nearly 900 acres of service area, equivalent to a 10 percent increase in residents. And with more acreage, homes, and population, comes the need for enhanced fire protection.
Within the past five years, there has been an increase of over 14 percent in call volume.
The city often has to call Miami-Dade Fire Rescue for support. During the past 10 years, calls have increased by 25 percent.
The city can’t keep hoping that others will come to its rescue. Coral Gables needs more firefighters. But just adding men and women who carry hoses and prybars won’t be enough. There are shortages of dispatchers and police, as well as critical city maintenance employees who support public safety.
The city is facing a problem retaining personnel due to low pay and poor morale.
So, how does all of this relate back to the city and the firefighters not being able to come to an agreement on a contract?
Like most things in private business or public service, it comes down to money. Although inflation has begun to ease in recent months, the city needs to play catchup in many of its departments and not just with the CGFD.
This is where politicians, folks who always have their eye on the next election, need to step up and be statesmen and stateswomen. There is only one source of revenues that the city controls — its local property tax millage rate.
As reluctant as politicos are to push the tax throttle higher, it may be time. Pedro Garcia, the Miami-Dade Property Appraiser recently released his 2023 estimate of taxable property values. For the upcoming year, taxable value is $22.5 billion, an increase of 12 percent over last year.
The Coral Gables millage rate is currently 5.5590 — meaning that the city collects $5.56 for every $1,000 of taxable value of a property. That number has not changed since Fiscal Year 2016. Last year, the city collected over $90 million in property taxes.
If the City were to raise the millage rate by about a half mil, to an even 6 mils, that would add an additional $7 million in revenues, all without touching the city’s surplus.
It’s going to take more money — a lot more money — to keep protecting Coral Gables. The question is whether the Coral Gables City Commission can do what needs to be done.
ABOUT US:
For more Miami community news, look no further than Miami Community Newspapers. This Miami online group of newspapers covers a variety of topics about the local community and beyond. Miami’s Community Newspapers offers daily news, online resources, podcasts and other multimedia content to keep readers informed. With topics ranging from local news to community events, Miami’s Community Newspapers is the ideal source for staying up to date with the latest news and happenings in the area.
This family-owned media company publishes more than a dozen neighborhood publications, magazines, special sections on their websites, newsletters, as well as distributing them in print throughout Miami Dade County from Aventura, Sunny Isles Beach, Miami Beach, Coral Gables, Brickell, Coconut Grove, Pinecrest, South Miami, Kendall, Palmetto Bay, Cutler Bay and Homestead. Each online publication and print editions provide comprehensive coverage of local news, events, business updates, lifestyle features, and local initiatives within its respective community.
Additionally, the newspaper has exclusive Miami community podcasts, providing listeners with an in-depth look into Miami’s culture. Whether you’re looking for local Miami news, or podcasts, Miami’s Community Newspapers has you covered. For more information, be sure to check out: https://communitynewspapers.com.
If you have any questions, feel free to email Michael@communitynewspapers.com or Grant@communitynewspapers.com.
