|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Javier Baños is running for election to the Group III seat of the Coral Gables City Commission in the Apr. 13 municipal election.
Baños is a CPA with Law Services PA/Tax Services Corp.
“If I am privileged to receive the vote of my fellow residents and neighbors in April, my 15 years of public service will allow me to be uniquely ready on Day 1 to effectuate much needed change in City Hall. I will vote ‘no’ on the upcoming zoning changes and modifications to Miracle Mile, as I believe the upzoning, as currently drafted, is an ill-conceived giveaway of development rights that will forever destroy the charm and beauty of our downtown.
“The commission, along with staff, is bulldozing away our future because of myopic misconceptions of the needs of South Florida over the next 30 years, without understanding or perhaps ignoring, that the very nature of our small scale downtown is its most attractive characteristic. I plan to work with the business improvement district, residents, and my future fellow commissioners to arrive at a consensus that is not forced on the community without open and fair debate.
“The first 100 days in office will be heavenly invested in organizing appointments to the various boards of the City of Coral Gables and in the stewardship of the budget process. It will be my pledge to appoint experienced and committed public servants to the various city boards that often make a much more significant impact on the development of policy in our city than even the commission.
“On the budget, I pledge to use my skills as a Certified Public Accountant and attorney to review all funds, shine a light on potential areas of waste, and avoid the recurring items of budgetary indecision that plague our city.
“Lastly, my almost 10 years of volunteer service administering public pension funds, including the one at the City of Coral Gables as a trustee, have taught me the lasting nature of this liability on city budgets. The Coral Gables public pension has become an all consuming budget hole of almost $30 million a year to cover our unfunded pension liability of over $200 million. Although we can exempt police and fire due to the unique nature of their jobs, reform is needed to stop the bleeding today and close the plan to future entrants.”
Campaign webpages are www.facebook.com/JavierBanosforCoralGables/ and www.javierforcoralgables.com.
