On Your Marks
Who's In and Who's Out in the Group 3 Race to the Miami Beach Commission

By Lee Molloy

With only 10 weeks to go until the Nov. 3 elections, and less than three weeks left for a potential candidate to file their intention to run, the race for the Group 3 commission seat vacated by caretaker Commissioner Victor Diaz is starting to heat up.

After Barbara Bibas Montero officially withdrew her candidacy in January, and promoter David Sugarman followed suit last week, there are officially six candidates in the race for the open seat, although two have dropped off the radar in recent months.

Lee Weiss has been out of the local loop since April, and businessman Luis Salom, who was defeated by Commissioner Jonah Wolfson when he ran for the Group 4 seat in 2007, has waived his last seven campaign finance reports. Although Salom told The Lead in Junethat “if my name isn’t off the list, then I’m not dropping out,” he hasn’t responded to any further requests for information on the state of his campaign.

Sugarman withdrew from the race due to health problems — he had heart surgery about a month ago and subsequently decided that a run for office would be too stressful.

“I realized I couldn’t be bogged down with it,” Sugarman told The Lead, adding that he wants to continue to serve the community, and will seek appointment to an appropriate city board “to gain some experience for the next run,” he said.

The decision now leaves two former city commissioners, one current board member and a local political newcomer in serious contention.

Alex Fernandez

At 23, Alex Fernandez is the youngest candidate in the race. Fernandez is an alumnus of Gulliver Preparatory School, however, while most of the other kids at school were gaming and going to the movies, Fernandez was performing community service and working in the broadcast industry.

While still in high school, Fernandez founded the Holiday Charity for Camillus House, which, to date, has raised more than $1 million for the poor and homeless in the community. He also worked for the Miami-Dade County Commission as a media aide.

He has worked as a reporter and commentator for several local radio and television stations, and has interviewed the presidents of Colombia and Nicaragua, as well as former First Lady Laura Bush.

In government, Fernandez worked as press secretary for the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners; he also worked on the successful campaign of Miami Beach Mayor Matti Bower, and has since worked for her as an aide.

Fernandez has also been successful in business, managing to lead an international marketing firm that has been responsible for more than $150 million in real estate sales since its inception in 2006.

Although his own  coffers are well-stocked, the candidate says that campaigns should be about electing good people to government, and not about the funds raised. His most recent campaign finance report shows that he loaned his own campaign a little more than $100,000.

Like most candidates, Fernandez is concerned with the city budget.

“To maintain a healthy and balanced budget, Miami Beach must strive to continue being a welcoming home, and a vacation oasis,” he told The Lead. “The key to our success, and a healthy budget, must remain in finding the balance among residents, businesses, and tourists alike.”

Michael Gongora

As the first openly-gay Miami Beach Commissioner, Michael Gongora, who was narrowly defeated in his bid for re-election in 2007 by Commissioner Ed Tobin, is already well-known to many residents of Miami Beach.

Gongora grew up in Miami and attended Florida Christian School. He then attended the University of Miami to complete both his undergraduate and law degrees. Gongora says that he fell in love with Miami Beach after moving to the city right after Hurricane Andrew in 1992.

In addition to his stint as a commissioner, Gongora has served on several boards and committees. He is currently the Chair of the Miami Beach Latin Chamber of Commerce Advisory Board of Directors, and is Chairman of the Environmental Coalition of Miami Beach (ECOMB).

He has served as a Special Master for the City of Miami Beach, presiding over code enforcement matters, and as a member of the Miami Beach Zoning Board of Adjustment and Design Review Board. In recognition of his service, on two occasions, Gongora has received a Key to the City of Miami Beach: the first in 2003 and another in 2007.

Gongora is also a former President of the Miami Beach Bar Association, and in this capacity oversaw the re-opening of the North Beach Pro Bono Law Clinic, where Gongora often donates his time and services helping those that cannot afford legal counseling.

He currently has just under $65,000 in his campaign account, of which he loaned himself $50,000.
Alongside budget concerns, Gongora sees the city’s infrastructure as a priority.

“Residents’ property taxes continue to increase each year while the quality of our roads and walkways have been ignored,” Gongora told The Lead.  “We must again focus attention on city spending and allocate adequate and sufficient resources to maintaining and improving our city and its infrastructure.”

Gabrielle Redfern

Local community activist and condo manager Gabrielle Redfern is a University of Florida graduate.
“Go Gators,” she jovially told The Lead.

Redfern has two children, Elise and Annalynn, both of whom attend Miami Beach public schools. In fact, Redfern’s motherhood caused a little controversy during her first commission run in 2005 when she was criticized for breast-feeding her youngest daughter, Elise, during former Mayor David Dermer’s State of the City Address, inspiring 16 moms to hold a “nurse-in” at a subsequent commission meeting and making national news.

Currently sitting on the Miami Beach Design Review Board, Redfern is also an active member of the bicycling community, a member of the Mayor’s Blue Ribbon Task Force on Bikeways in Miami Beach, is the current Vice-Chair of the Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee, and of the Metropolitan Planning Organization, and is a Co-Founder of the Bicycle Advocates for a Safe, Integrated City.

Her other neighborhood interests include serving on the Board of Directors of the Orchard Park Neighborhood Association, and as Co-Founder of the Miami Beach Council of Neighborhood Associations.
At the time of her last campaign finance report, Redfern had less than $1,000 in her campaign war chest.
Redfern’s chief concerns are the environment and the state of transportation in the City.

“I plan to focus my colleagues on the commission to work with me to solve the transportation and parking problems that plague our city,” Redfern said. “We need to rethink our land development regulations to promote a healthy mix of historic preservation and new urbanism that promotes green buildings and walkable communities.”

Marty Shapiro

Former Miami-Dade Judge Marty Sharpiro has been a resident of Miami Beach for more than four decades. He attended Miami Beach Senior High and graduated with a law degree from the University of Florida. Shapiro has one son and six grandchildren.

Shapiro has spent 30 years in public service. He served as a Bay Harbor Islands Councilman from 1979 to 1989, as Miami Beach Commissioner from 1989 to 1999 and beginning in 2001, he served as a County Court Judge, until he stepped down from the bench earlier this year.

As a Miami Beach Commissioner, Shapiro had a reputation for being the dissenting voice on the dais and, according to media reports, would often take sides against developers. He was also the author of what became known as the “Shapiro Ordinance,” which put into place requirements for appraisals, public hearings and a competitive bidding process before a commission could sell off publicly-owned land.

Termed out of his commission seat in 1999, Shapiro ran for and lost a Mayoral race against former Mayor Neisen Kasdan.

In private life, Shapiro was a practicing attorney before becoming a judge, and he currently works as a mediator for civil and family disputes with the Florida Mediation Group.

Shapiro has loaned himself $25,000, and has raised another $1,000 in contributions for his campaign.
The city’s finances, however, are his number one concern.

“I am concerned about the financial condition of our city government,” he told The Lead. “When elected, I will insist upon a disciplined review of all city expenditures and work to find ways to make improvements.”

comments@theleadmiamibeach.com