HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC 1982-09-10 MinutesCITY OF MIAMI
COMMISSION
MINUTES
OF MEETING HELD ON September lOtb, 1982
(SPECIAL)
PREPARED BY THE OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK
CITY HALL
71
RALPH G. ONGIE
CITY CLERK
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.IND
CIiYIfO�hT�1SSIofiF-MIAMI, KgRIDA
(SPECIAL) .QUA C (SEPTEMBER LOTH 1982)
FIRST PUBLIC HEARING ON FY'82-183 BUDGET
INSTRUCT CITY MANAGER TO STUDY ALTERNATIVE FUNDING
FOR'HIRING OF ADDITIONAL POLICE OFFICERS
MOTION OF INTENT -RATIO OF THREE POLICE OFFICERS
PER 1000 BALANCE OF BASIC SERVICES CIVILIANIZATION
OF POLICE DEPARTMENT. FUTURE GOALS.
CITY MANAGER RECOMMEND ALTERNATIVE FUNDING SOURCES.
FIRST READING ORDINANCE: DEFINE AND DESIGNATE
TERRITORIAL LIMITS OF THE CITY AND FIX
TENTATIVE MILLAGE.
PAGE # 1
tDINANCE OF
SOLUTIaN No.
PACE N0.
M-82-853
1-20
DISCUSSION
11-82-854
19-23
M-82-855
24-25
11-82-856
25-37
FIRST READING
37-39
FIRST READING
39-40
FIRST READING
40-41
FIRST READING 42-43
Mlbfi tS OF SPECIAL MEETING of THE
PITY COMMISSION OF MIAMI, FLORIDA
- Oft the 10th day of September, 1982, the City Commission of Miami,
F1otida, met at its regular meeting place in said City in Special Session
to conseder business of public import, namely, to hold its second Public
Hearing on FY '82-'83 budger.
The meeting was called to order at 7:15 P.M., by Mayor Maurice Ferre
with the following members of the Commission found to be present:
Commissioner J. L. Plummer, Jr.
Commissioner Demetrio Perez, Jr.
Commissioner Miller J. Dawkins
Vice Mayor Joe Carollo
Mayor Maurice A. Ferre
ALSO PRESENT WERE:
Howard V. Gary, City Manager
Jose Garcia -Pedrosa, City Attorney
Ralph G. Ongie, City Clerk
Matty Hirai, Assistant City Clerk
An invocation was delivered by Mayor .care, who then led those
present in a pledge of allegiance to the flag.
1. FIRST PUBLIC HEARING ON FY 182-183 BUDGET
Mayor Ferre: Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, this is a special City
of Miami Commission meeting for the purpose of the legally advertised first
public hearing to discuss the fiscal year 1983 tentative budget For the
City of Miami. There will be a discussion of the proposed millage rate
and a tentative budget for the City of Miami following the prerequisite
of the law. I would like to ask at the commencement of this discussion
of the Manager what the percentage increase in millage over the roll back
rate as proposed is.
Mr. Manohar Surana: It is 4.06%.
Mayor Ferre: Secondly, the specific purpose for which ad valorem tax
revenues are being increased?
Mr. Surana: $2.4 million for implementation of police....
Mayor Ferre: Be more precise. $2,450,000.
Mr. Surana: $2,450,000 for implementation of the Police Department
Civilianization Program through the hiring of 113 civilian employees,
$156,420 of partial increase in internal service charges. A total of
$2,606,420.
Mayor Ferre: The City Commission will listen to the response of the
citizens and comments regarding the proposed millage increase. We will
explain the reason for the increase over the roll back rate. Subsequent
to that the City Commission will either accept the proposed budget or
accept or amend the tentative budget. We will recompute the proposed
millage rate if there is a change. We will publicly announce the percentage
by which the recomputed proposed millage rate exceeds the roll back rate.
01 SEP 10 1982
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Mr. Surana! September 23th 7:00 P.M.
Mayor Ferret The 23th day of September.
Mr. Surana: Yes.
Mayor Ferre: Which is....
Mr. Surana: Thursday,
Mayor Ferre: ....thirteen days from now. It is a Thursday and it will be
at 7:00 P.M. Of course, the public will have the opportunity to address
the Commission at that time.
Mr. Plummer: Do I have a problem with that? Is that not the night of
Zoning?
Mr. Gary: Yes it is.
Mr. Plummer: Is that not the night that we are taking the total comprehensive
master plan?
Mr. Gary: Yes, sir. I think the reason for that is that State Law is
very specific with regard to our conducting the budget hearing. One of the
requirements is that we cannot hold our budget hearings —well, first of
all, the first significant requirement is that we must hold it at 7:00 P.M.
or after, so that people have an opportunity to participate. The second
requirement is that we cannot have our budget hearings on the same day
that the County or the School Board has its budget hearing. So we will
just have to make the September 23rd meeting short and....
Mayor Ferre: Lots of luck! All right, I have the potential speakers
this evening and I will read them out. From the Miami Crime Commission,
we have Bill Colson, Eloy Gonzalez, Jerome Gleekel, Howard Rasmussen
Willie Gort, Dr. William Stokes, Michael Goldberg, Jim McDonald, Archbishop
McCarthy. We also have Mr. Ernie Fannatto..Ernie, glad to see you again
and have you back in the City; Don Diresz,with regard to the use of the
Parks' budget, Helen Star and Mr. Joe Woodnick, on the Miami Police
Department Budget. If there are any other citizens who wish to address
the Commission, I would respectfully ask that you go to the Clerk's desk
and submit your name to him. I will recognize you at the appropriate
time. We also have the very distinguished State Attorney, Janet Reno,
here. I don't know if she wishes to address the Commission this evening.
If she does, I will recognize her first and then Mr. Colson, you will
be second. You don't want to be first. You want to be first but you
don't want to be first. I got it. I understand. All right.
Before we do all of this, I would like to make a statement and I
hope you will forgive me. I will try to make it as brief as I can. But
it may not be entirely possible. Then I am going to ask Members of the
Commission if they wish to add any statements. The purpose of this, ladies
Le
and gentlemen, even though I know this is a public hearing to hear from
you, the reason I am doing this (and I hope you will forgive me) is because
perhaps we might be able to cut through an awful lot of talking if we
address the very basic issues that I know the majority of you are here
to address. Let me start by saying that the City of Miami has had a
tradition, especially in the last few years, when both Commissioners Joe
Carollo and J.L. Plummer led the way in increasing the City of Miami's
number of police officers. We did not wait for the May Riots to occur.
We did not wait for Mariel to begin. In the budget year of 1980, Commissioner
Carollo made a motion, and it was seconded by Commissioner Plummer, and
it was very emphatic. The City of Miami Commission unanimously voted
for the increase of 200 police officers and 100 police officers in the
subsequent year.
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Mayor Fetre (CON'T)! Let me tell you where we are on that quest: Since
fiscal year 19801 the City of Miami has increased the police Department
by almost 47%. The percentage of the total budget has gone up 29% of the
total to 35% of the total. 35% of its total proposed budget will go to
the Police Department of the City of Miami. We have increased since
fiscal year 1980 $60 million in our proposed annual budget. That is
from $100 million to $160 million. It is an increase of $60 million a
year since fiscal year '80.
Of that $60 million increase, $33 million has gone to the Police
Department, which is more than half. I repeat, it is more than one half
of the total increase monies expensed by the City of Miami. During that
same time, the Parks and Recreation Department of the City of Miami has
increased by 7%. It has hardly increased.
Let me tell you the highlights of what is involved in this whole
process'. We have requested of the Manager —and Mr. Manager, I want to
commend you and Mano and his staff for preparing one of the most thorough
and carefully thought out analytical pieces that I have seen in a long,
long time, which I just received a few minutes ago and I have been able
to just skim through. I want to tell you that it is ... the thing that jumps
out in these figures is that you took 27 cities, all similar to Miami in
size. The average of these 27 cities in population is 352,000. The
City of Miami, as you know, in the census was 347,000, when you add the
50,000 refugees we think we have, we don't quite know, we have used the
figure of 400,300.
The City of Miami, in these figures, with a crime rate of 15,248
per population per 100,000, with a total proposed sworn personnel of
1,000 police officers which we currently have, with a total personnel
of officers and civilians of 1,328, which is 751% of our total department
is sworn personnel, which is not too disimilar to other major cities.
That gives us a ratio, using the census figure of 2.9, using the corrected
figures of 2.6.
The total budget, and this is last year's budget of $137 million,
the Police Department had $47 million of that, which is 34%. There is
no other city in America, none, including Metropolitan Dade County, that
takes 34% of its budget and spends it on the Police Department. Let me
read you the list, just so that you understand what we are talking about.
It is easy to ask, but you must have some facts as to what we are dealing
with. Akron, Ohio 28% of its budget is for the police. Atlanta, Georgia,
21%; Baton Rouge, 15%; Buffalo, New fork, 25%; Charlotte, North Carolina,
20%; Cincinatti, Ohio, 18%; Denver, Colorado, 23%; Fort Worth, 22%;
Kansas City, 27%; Long Beach, 25%; Louisville, Kentucky 13%; Miami, Florida,
34%.
The closest, and I am not going to bother reading you any more, the
closest that we have are Minneapolis, Minnesota, which spends 30%, and
Tampa, Florida, which spends 30% of their total budget on the Police Department.
I repeat, the City of Miami spends 34%. But it does not end there. That
is not where it stops. If you take into account the civilian personnel
of the City of Miami that is doing police work, because they are just as
much involved in fighting crime as the cops are out on the street, we
are by far the highest of all 27 cities of our size in these United States.
The specific figure is 3.8 police officers and civilian personnel per
1,000 citizens. The closest it comes to us is Rochester, New York, at 3.3;
Kansas City, which matches us at 3.8; Cincinatti, which is a 3.0; and
Atlanta, Georgia, which does pass us at 4.0. So, I stand corrected on
that last figure.
Let me explain very briefly what we are in the midst of trying to
accomplish here. I am very grateful for all of this statistical information
that the Police Department and the Miami Crime Group and Metropolitan
Dade County, and the Dade -Miami Criminal Justice Council has given us,
Metropolitan Dade County, at the same time that we went up, and in these
figures it is 40% because it does not take attrition into account, so
this is a more conservative figure, but these are apples to apples.
The City of Miami went up from 714,000 fiscal year 180 to 1,000 in
the proposed budget, which is an increase of 286 sworn. The actual figure
is 319; and 195 non -sworn for a total of 481. That means, ladies and
gentlemen, that in sworn personnel we have gone up 40%, but in total
personnel we have gone up 51%. Metropolitan Dade County, at the same
time, proposes to go up 44%, but in total personnel they are only going
up 39%.
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Mayor Vette (CON'T). t want to stress also in the figures that wete del vtted
to to the from the Dade=Miami Criminal Justice Council, the executive summaty
of the ad hoc sales tax committee to refer in page 3-12 to the figures on
Dade County and the City of Miami. Whereas it says the increase in City
expenditures for crime prevention for fiscal year '82-'83 over 181-182
compared to the increase in new revenue for that purpose from the expected
1/2 cent sales tax, the figure for Dade County is 5.6 and the figure for
the City of Miami is 8.7.
"
I am going to ask two people to testify before we get on to the
public hearing. One is the Police Chief and the other one is Porter
Homer. I am going to ask the Police Chief if he feels that with 1,000
men and with the personnel that he has, that the Police Department can
adequately protect the City of Miami. I am going to ask Porter Homer,
who as you know is a former Metro County Manager and knows this community
well and who now works with Booz Allen, which is one of the better
management companies in the country and who has been here for many
months studying specifically the City of Miami Police Department, what
his proposal actually means and what it is that we will gather from it.
Then I want to address the question as I understand it, Mr. Colson,
_
which is the key question here, which your group is recommending to us.
That is that we increase by 81 police officers. I think that is a
specific recommendation as I read about it in the newspaper and I
talked to Mr. Alvah Chapman, who by the way sends his apologies for
not being here but he has an ill daughter that he had to fly off to be
with and he called me specifically to send his apologies to this Board.
Now, 80 sworn officers in your calculation is going to cost us
$25,000 per officer. That does not take into account the cost of the
equipment that officer must use. If you put in an officer, you must give
him a gun and he has to have an automobile and the automobile consumes
gasoline and there is retirement, pension, hospitalization. When you
are through with all of that, you are talking about $38,000 per police
officer. That is what it costs us, according to the City Manager and
Mr.... we will get into the discussion...J.L.
Mr. Plummer: It's more! It's more!
Mayor Ferre: O.K., for the time being, so that we don't sidetrack into a
discussion as to what it is, it might be more, but let's just take $38,000
for now. If you take $38,000 and multiply it by 80 sworn officers, it
would cost us $3.2 million. That is what it would cost us.
Porter Homer is going to testify in a little while that the community
is better served by taking 100 police officers that now serve within the
department, who are now inside the police building, air-conditioned,
police building, and get them out on the street. Now let me tell you why
that is a very critical situation at the present time. The critical
situation is this. The average age of the police officers' out there on
the beat service of time, 62% of the police officers that are out
there protecting you tonight and tomorrow have only served for two years.
That's it. There is nothing more dangerous than having police officers
that do not have the type of experience that we need. The reason that
they are -so young is because, archbishop, we have added 319 police
officers since fiscal year '80, so we have a very young group of police
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officers out there on the street. If we release 74 immediately in 100
over the next fiscal year, we will not only broaden the experience, but
have the proper type of supervision of people that are experienced police
officers. I think the community is best served.
True, we have to add more people, but they cost less. We have to
add 113 civilians to do the same thing that 100 police officers are doing
now, according to the Booz Allen Hamilton study. If we do that, I think
what we will do is we will get much better level of protection in the
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City of Miami. Now, if you insist, and if the other people in this
Commission want to add 100 police officers, 80 police officers, and if
we do that, we will not civilianize. I will go along with that. That
will cost $3.2 million. I will vote for that if that is something that
you insist on.
Let me tell you what I would like to offer as a compromise tonight.
The difference between the 80 sworn officers that you want at the real
cost, $3.2 million, and the Booz Allen proposal, and these are professional
people...I know we are all well -intended citizens that mean well and are
=�
trying to do our job to help the community... but Booze Allen Hamilton
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Mayot Ferre (CON'T)! ,,,are professionals in this; who have come in here
slid analyzed this. They recommend that we add 113 civilians, 1f we do that;
that would cost $2.4 million. The difference is $800,000.
1 am going to come up with the recommendation ... and obviously since
Sunshine precludes me from any Member of the Commission, I have not talked
to any Member of the Commission and I have not shared this with anybody at
this time, but I am going to recommend a way that we can raise $1,800,000.
1 would like to recommend to the Members of the Commission, if they accept
that proposal, that we use that money in the following way: that we spend
$1 million of that in adding police officers in addition to the 100 police
officers released for street work from the office. A million dollars
additional for police officers which would give us from 35 to 40 police
officers on top of that. I think that Commissioner Carollo has come up
with an excellent idea that is long overdue for us to do and that is, which
is also one of your goals, and that is to let officers take their automobiles
to their neighborhoods.
Unfortunately, not enough of our police officers live in the City
of Miami. I think that it is unfair for us to provide an automobile for
an officer to go to his home in Davie or Ft. Lauderdale, or Homestead.
So it must be limited to police officers who I think have been on the force
for at least ... I think, Joe, you said three years?
Mr. Carollo: Three years.
Mayor Ferre: And who live in the City of Miami. Now, I don't know how
much that will cost us, but just the cars alone will be about $200,000,
maybe $250,000. I think, Mano, you told me today that would be approximately
$4,000 per unit. We will get into that in a little while.
The last thing that I would like to recommend that we do. I get this,
Ms. Reno, from the ad hoc sales tax from your sales tax committee on page
2-3. You are not recommending it for us, but you are recommending it for
Metropolitan Dade County, but I think it is also valid for the City, is
uniform patrol vehicle assignment pilot program to be operated within
the City of Miami, which is what I have just touched on.
The second is the automated fingerprint identification system. Do
we have that?
Mr. Plummer: Metro wanted.
Mayor Ferre: It is not the system that where your fingerprint....
Mr. Plummer: Yes, we already have it in operation, but Metro is requesting
it through this.
Mayor Ferre: I stand corrected. With the rest of the $1.8 million,
which we will have about $200,000 or $300,000 left. I would recommend,
Mr. Manager, we take that money and we use it in our Recreation Department.
I would request that you study the possibilities of tapping the Florida
Power & Light franchise funds, which now I think we have worked out and
I think there are sufficient funds there, to add $250,000 to that so that
we will have a half a million dollars in our Recreation Department.
Archbishop, I want to address this in particular to you. I know
you and I talked yesterday, and I know how strongly you feel about the
safety of our citizens and so forth. But you and I both know that the
City of Miami cannot limit its services to just one part. The fact is
that we are spending half of our budget right now in life saving expenditures,
The fact is that there is no other city in America that spends 35% of its
total budget just on the Police Department. We are the highest in the
nation! The fact is that I think we have responsibilities to have social
programs. We need to feed senior citizens. We need to maintain some of
the programs of Monsignor Bryan Walsh so capably handles for the church,
and that others handle for the Methodist Church, the United Way, the many
social programs that are so important to all of us.
We are up against the wall on that. We are having to cut a lot of
programs. —the poor people. I know that we all need to be protected from
criminals. The poor people need to have some of their needs met, especially
under these trying circumstances with high unemployment and the Feds cutting
the money left and right,
SEP 101982
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Mayor Verre (COW T): We have to have a balanced City, It is impossible
for us to continue increasing the Police Department by $33 Million since
fiscal year '80 and only give us 7% increase. Now mind you, what has
happened in the Police Department is that the budget of the Police
Department in a three year period has doubled! Doubled! And yet we
are only giving the Recreation Department a 7% increase in three years.
Do you know what happens then? We don't have the proper kind of soft-
ball and swimming programs. We don't have summer youth employment, as
we should have. What happens is a lot of those crime statistics are
coming from some of those kids who instead of playing soft -ball, the
way they should be playing, or swimming, or involving themselves in some
of our recreational activities, they are out there looting and robbing
and doing things that they should not be doing.
Do, you really think it is proper for the City of Miami to spend
$56 million in the Police Department and only $3.8 in recreation? Do
you think it is proper for the City of Miami, a city the size of
400,000 people to be spending $56 million in our Police Department,
when for example, the City of Tampa is spending $49 million; when
Toledo, Ohio spends $26 million; when Kansas City is spending $52 million;
when Atlanta, Georgia is spending $37 million?
I think that all this has to be kept in balance. I would recommend
that we approach this in a very sensible, balanced, way because the people
of Miami are all needing of service, and the Police Department is not the
beginning and the end of everything.
I left the toughest for last. Let me tell you how we can do this.
It is not going to be easy. We do not have any money. Revenue wise
the recommended millage is the maximum tax effort under the present State
law for the City of Miami, that is our property tax vote is at the maximum
rate allowed under the new 1r, sales tax law. We have absolutely no slack
there. The Manager will express to you later on that this City is the
percentage of the total that we are spending in administration is well
below the national average. So we are not spending our money in administration.
The fact is that our other programs have been severely curtailed and are
hurting. So this City is down 1,000 employees in the last three years,
750 of which were C.E.T.A. employees, but 246 are regular employees that we
have cut from this budget. We have cut this down to the bone.
This Manager here and his staff have done an absolutely unbelievable
job. In the past, and his predecessor and his predecessor before him,
in cutting down the functioning of the City of Miami by innovative ways,
but Howard Gary and some of the members of the departments have run our
stadiums and cut the grass in our parks, and have really done some innovative
things in management to cut the cost of rendering our services.
There is only one place we can get any money that I can think of without
cutting any programs. We can cut programs. We can close our parks. We can
do that. We can cut other programs. But there is only one way we can get
money without cutting programs, and that is the garbage fee. Let me tell
you about the garbage fee. The garbage fee today, the Manager is proposing
$100 garbage fee. It is costing the people of Miami City $276 per house
to pick up garbage. That is what it costs, because we do back yard garbage
pick up.
Metropolitan Dade County is charging $198, and I don't think they
are charging what it costs them. It costs them more to pick up that garbage.
But they are charging $198. We are proposing to charge $100. We were
charging $75. We went up $25. That gives us $1,800,000. We went up $25,
not because that goes into our budget, but because Metro, and I apologize
to some of you lawyers whose toes I am going to step on, those of you who
represent Blackwell Walker, not Blackwell Walker. What is the name of the
firm that did the garbage plan out there? Blackwell. Blackwell and Carson,
no? Carson and whatever it is, O.K. I apologize, and I don't mean to just
pick on the lawyers but the people in that company and all those who are
involved in this whole process. That problem has caused an increase in
the fee that is being charged to the citizens of this community, including
the citizens of Miami. They have now sent us a bill. They upped it
$1,750,000. So that $25 increase per year per house goes all the Metro,
all but $30,000 or $40,000 of it.
What I am proposing is that we go to $125 garbage fee, which would
still be $75 less than Metro. With that additional $1,800,000 to recap
it, that we spend $1,000,000 for additional officers; $250,000 to buy
Automobiles and implement Commissioner Carollo's plan; and the remaining
,amount to go to the Recreation Department for increased youth programs
especially in the summer.
06 SEP 10 1982
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MAydf Fette! Now, i only need to do two note things and I am finished.
One is to ask the Police Chief to step forward for a moment. And the
other is to ask Porter Homer to step forward. Is the Police Chief here?
is Mr. Porter Homer here? He's not here. Chief, my question to you, sir,
is this. Do you feel that you and your department can protect lives and
property of the people of the City of Miami with the proposed Booze Allen
increase of 113 civilians to release additional 100 police officers on the
street, and if that is accomplished and if we add 30 or 35 more sworn officers,
do you feel that you and your department could protect the lives and limbs
of the property of the people of Miami?
Chief Kenneth Harms: Yes, sir. The answer to both of those questions is
yes; but I need to explain it to you. You did a very good job of outlining
to the folks here this evening some of the problems that we are facing as
a major metropolitan area. Without being too redundant, we have increased
rather, dramatically the number of sworn officers and civilians, particularly
in the last couple of years based on the understanding and commitment of the
Commission to the V roblems within this community. What that has caused in
effect is a very rapid growth and the problems of assimilation that you
mentioned. While the ideal is 3 per 1,000 (I don't think anyone here would
disagree with that). I don't think it is practical at this point in time
to try to reach that in the short run. We have to have additional time to
assimilate those young folks we have within the department, while at the
same time taking some of the more experienced officers, relieving them
from administrative duties and moving them into the street. So the answer
to both of those questions in the short run, this budget year, is yes.
Mayor Ferre: All right, thank you, Chief. Mr. Porter Homer, sir, how long
have you been now involved in studying different departments in the City
of Miami?
Mr. Porter Homer: A total of two years.
Mayor Ferre: You have been commissioned,specifically your company, to do
a study in the Police Department?
Mr. Homer: Yes, sir.
Mayor Ferre: When did that study start?
Mr. Homer: March.
Mayor Ferre: March of this year?
Mr. Homer: Yes, sir.
Mayor Ferre: How many people have been deployed in that study? Or how
many man-hours? Or however you want to describe it.
Mr. Homer: It is varied from as few as two 'to'as many as five people.
Mayor Ferre: You have come to a conclusion, and you made a report to the
Commission and to the Manager?
Mr. Homer: Yes, sir.
Mayor Ferre: Would you tell us about what that conclusion was and how
you think the people of Miami are best served? How we can garner
maximum efficiency, or bangs for the dollar, if you will?
Mr. Homer: Yes, sir. The assignment that this Commission and the City
Manager gave us was to look at the question of most effective utilization
of your police personnel and to look at the question of how that personnel
could be best used to service the people of the City and fighting your
crime problems here. In analyzing that personnel and the practices in
utilizing that personnel, as Chief Harms has indicated, we found that
due to your very rapid expansion, that you do have in effect a very young
and inexperienced Police Department. This is a necessary result of your
dramatic response to the crime problems you have had here.
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Mt, Homer (CON'T): In out view in our recommendation to you from Booz
Allen Hamilton was that your first priority now had to be to overcome
that lack of experience and that the best way to do that was to go into
the program of civilianization, which would release the experienced
officers, who of necessity during this expansion have been used administratively
And internally. In doing this we can overcome in the most rapid possible
fashion, that lack of experience. You can provide better supervision to
your young officers going into the field. You can provide, we believe,
better protection to your citizens. We think that to do otherwise is
unfair to young police officers. It imperils their safety. We think it
is unfair to your citizens. Therefore, we recommended this as a first
priority for your consideration.
Mayor Ferre: Porter, let me ask you this one last question
Mr. Homer: Yes, sir.
Mayor Ferre: The Citizens' Group has done such a wonderful job for our
community. They are here to ask us to increase our police force by 81.
That would cost us less than what you are proposing. I'm sorry. It will
cost us a little bit more, but if we were to deploy $3.2 million, do you
think the people of Miami are better served by civilianization of the
department and releasing 100 officers? Or do you think that we are better
off by hiring 81 new police officers?
Mr. Homer: We would very definitely recommend to you, as I have said, that
the first priority be the civilianization. If you go the other route, you
are going to only worsen the level of inexperience in your law enforcement
personnel. In addition to that, you will have to end up using further
substantial numbers of sworn officers for in house administrative and
support duties. Therefore, it becomes, at least in the short term, a
self defeating exercise.
Mayor Ferre: Thank you.
Mr. Homer: Yes, sir.
— Mayor Ferre: Members of the Commission, J.L., Demetrio. If,.not, ;we are
going to get into the public hearing.
Mr. Perez: Yes, could I ask a question, Mr. Mayor? I think that you
explained very clearly the whole thing. But I would like to ask a question
to our City Manager. After I read the recommendation from the Miami
Citizens Against Crime and the Ad Hoc Sales Tax Committee, I am very
interested in asking our Manager how much will we have to raise the
taxes to increase our police force to 1,200 members?
Mr. Gary: Let me compute that for you and I will get it right back to you,
Mayor Ferre: While you are computing... the problem, Commissioner Perez,
is that legally we cannot do it.
Mr. Perez: Why not?
Mayor Ferre: Because we are maximum tax allowed under the law right now.
We cannot increase it. The State law prohibits us from going beyond
what we have now. That is it.
Mr. Perez: That is the legal concept?
Mayor Ferre: He is going to give you the theoretical figure, but the
practical answer is that legally we are at the top of our tax rate, We
cannot increase our taxes any more.
Mr. Plummer: Ten mills is the highest you can go under State law,
INAUDIBLE BACKGROUND COMMENTS NOT ENTERED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD,
08SEP 10 t982
Mr. Perez: But anyhow) Mt, Mayor, 1 would like to propose tonight) to
try to approve a resolution in principle to try to arrive to the amount'
of 3 policemen by 10000 persons in this community in the near future) in
accordance with the legal regulations. I think that has to be a questioti
of principle. I think that this community is demanding this kind of
position at this time.
Mayor Ferre: The motion would be to reaffirm, because that resolution was
introduced by Commissioner Carollo three years ago. So it would be Just
to continue the reaffirmation that that is our goal.
Mr. Carollo: Ironically, Mr. Mayor, close to two and a half years ago
the proposal that I made to the Commission was that by this coming new
budget we would increase our police force size to at least 1,200 police
officers and that 3.0 figure that you all are requesting today. However,
being practical and realistic, we might have to slow that down. That is
because some 65% approximately of our police force has two years or less
with the department right now. That is a level that is extremely dangerous.
At the same time, I would like to take a few minutes to make some
statements that might be shocking to a lot of the people here. Statements
that are certainly going to be different. But I think that not being
a maverick is not one of the things that I have not been accused of in
the past.
The efforts that you all have been striving for and have been
accomplishing, if I may say in the past months, is long overdue. I
think that what you are doing is something that this community needed.
It is greatly appreciated by not only the people of Miami, but all of
Dade County. I think you finally got into a cream of this community
together to combat crime the best way that you think you should.
However, the biggest danger that this community faces today and the
number one problem is narcotics, everything tied into narcotics, including
all the people that tied into narcotics, not just the people that are
selling the drugs. While in one hand, thanks to the efforts of a lot
of the people that are here tonight, we have been able to accomplish
something that has been long overdue in this community, and a great
relief. The task force that has come down and that has definitely
made an impact in curtailing the drug trade and the drug activities in
this community. That alone is not going to be the solution in the
short or in the long terms. We will certainly hope that the task force
will stay with us for a long time if not permanently. But being realistic,
sooner or later, the Federal Government will start cutting back, if not
because of funds that are short, it will be because the import of
narcotics will be shipped into other states, and they will be moving
the task force to other areas. Then these people will be coming back
here.
But what up to this date I have not seen any group of citizens,
any group in law enforcement, any group of elected officials tackle
yet are the people directly involved in dealing with drugs: the bankers
that are laundering the millions of dollars for these people and are
profiting tremendously for themselves... the so called business people
that are involved in it, knowing it...the hundreds of scores of other
people that are tied into this illicit trade.
Back in the days of Al Capone, criminals were satisfied with being
criminals. Today, they not only want to be criminals, but they want to
be the pillars of the community also and appear in the social pages of
our community newspapers. It makes me sick to see elected officials,
people in law enforcement, some of our top community leaders, some knowing
it, some not knowing it, catering to the people that are destroying our
community and our country with the drug trade here in Miami. If the same
efforts that you all are bringing together here tonight can be massed
together to show to this community who are the banks that are laundering
money, who are the so-called business people that are involved in this
trade, who are even yes, some of the people with different forms of
media that are being financed by drug money? If we were to attack and
take this head on, I will assure you that will accomplish more to stop
the illicit trade in narcotics in our community than just about anything
else that we have done as of today.
The hundreds of thousands of dollars, the millions of dollars that
have been spent in law enforcement in the City of Miami, in this community
alone is not going to stop this. It is going to take a much greater effort
09 SEP 101982
sl
All
Mt. Carollo (CON'T)t and that effort can only tome from the citizens of
Miami; the citizens of Dade County. If we are going to be afraid or are
not going to want to get involved because of some of the dangers that we
might face in taking these people head on, many times knowing who they are
but not wanting to speak out because next campaign they are going to spend
hundreds of thousands of dollars into somebody else's campaign so they
can get us out of here...or maybe they are going to affect your business
one way or another, then ladies and gentlemen, most of the other efforts
that we are doing here tonight are really going to be in vain and I would
say very hypocritical. I think the leadership that I see here tonight
can go a long way in organizing this community to show who these people
are to bring up front a list of the names of the banks that are involved
in this trade, the names of the people that are involved in the field of
narcotics here, and to say enough is enough! We are not going to put up
with this in our community anymore. But as long as we are accepting these
people,and let them be so-called pillars of our community, we are going
to have an extremely shaky community with a shaky foundation.
Mayor Ferre: Any other questions, statements? If not, we will get to the
public hearing.
Mr. Perez: I have a motion, Mr. Mayor.
-Mayor Ferre: Oh yes, there is a motion on the floor and I will recognize
it at this time. I think it exemplifies the procedure which is the reaffirmation
that it is the intention of the City of Miami to reach as quickly as possible,
and to make I think the word was honest effort to reach the figure of 3
sworn police officers ner thousand population. Is there a second to that
motion?
Mr. Carollo: Second to that motion.
Mayor Ferre: Further discussion? Call the roll, please. This is a motion
of intent, reaffirmation of a previous motion that has been standing I think,
what, three years now? Two years.
The following motion was introduced by Commissioner Perez, who
moved its adoption.
1U SEP I o 1982
s�
Mayor Ferre: We are now in the public hearing Arid Mt, bill Colson) the
Chair recognizes you. Just so that we can get our timing schedule here)
Mr. Colson) we have about twenty speakers that are on the list tonight.
Usually, let's see three minutes would be... does anybody need to speak
more than three minutes? How many minutes do you heed?
Mr. Bill Colson: It would be under fifteen.
Mayor Ferre: Anybody else?
Unidentified Speaker: Five minutes.
Mayor Ferre: Anybody else? I will allocate time as follows then. I'
thank those of you who show more restraint in length than I have tonight.
Mr. Colson, you have fifteen minutes and I will allocate five minutes to
the three gentlemen who requested it, and everybody else will have three
minutes. Thank you.
Mr. Colson: Mr. Mayor, Mr. Vice Mayor, Members of the Commission, I would
like to ask, Mr. Mayor, if I could ask a question too of you and not have
that in my time allotment? Because I am saying that I am cutting down.
It is because that I had hoped that what you were going to say is your
plan in trying to solve this issue. I had hoped that I could walk up here
and say yes. I regret that the confusion keeps me from doing that. So
may I ask you a couple of things?
Mayor Ferre: Yes, sir.
Mr. Colson: It is just a....
Mayor Ferre: Remember that is only one person's voice now.
Mr. Colson: I understand that. Then I was going to then ask if the
others are for that and we might save an awful lot of time. I had
understood before that we were talking about a number of police sworn
officers as opposed to what you have stated tonight as an amount of
money. You said a million dollars. It would come from various sources.
I understood all of that. But I had understood...I am confused on two
figures. One figure is that I thought that you had stated earlier in
the day that you would be for 50 new sworn police officers.
Mayor Ferre: I had mentioned that in a discussion. But when I sat down
to do the numbers it did not turn out to be 50. It turned out to be less,
Mr. Colson.
Mr. Colson: What is the figure?
Mayor Ferre: The figure that I was using, if we go to a $25 fee, additional
fee, is $1.8 million. The distribution of that money is as follows:
$1 million for additional police officers. That plus the civilianization,
that is by hiring 113 new civilian employees that will cost us 2.4, the
total cost of the program is $3.4 million, of which one million will go
towards, what is it? Thirty—five new officers?
Mr. Colson: That is what I wanted to get the figure.
Mayor Ferre: And 113 new civilian employees.
Mr, Colson: All right, sir, the other figure is just a matter of
quantity numbers that I am confused on. I understand that the civilianization,
and that is a terrible word for me, it is hard to pronounce, but we
applaud that program. We have been for it from the beginning. I would
like to ask Chief Harms, or someone....
Mayor Ferre; Chief.
Mr. Colson: ..,.is that I have never understood that to be 100 swprA
officers on the street, but on the contrary, it would only be 75 sworn
officers on the street,
11
sl
SEP 101982
Mayor Fevre: 74,
Mr. Colson: 74. go the figure that was used tonight may have been used
accidentally. Of 100 officers coming from being released from that program.
Mayor Ferre: Mano, or Mr. Manager, those are the figures that we were
discussing tonight. Would you clarify that?
Mr. Gary: Yes, Mr. Mayor, the figures in terms of civilianization for the
first round, that is at the beginning of the fiscal year is 113. Later
on in the year we are going to add more. So the 113 would generate 75.
We plan to add about 45 or 50 more during the course of the year, which
would release another 25.
Mayor Ferre: In other words, our target is to go up to at least 100
Mr. Gary: Yes, next fiscal year.
Mayor Ferre: Police officers. Now, the immediate target, and I think
I said that during my long discourse here, is that the immediate would
be 74, and that it would be up to 100 within a reasonable near future.
That is why I have added 35 new officers, so the 74 that are going to be
released plus 35 are well over 100 that will be out protecting people.
Mr. Colson: All right, sir, then I am prepared to start my remarks, if
I may. I had hoped that the figure was 50 new police officers. I had
hoped that I could save my 15 minutes by walking up and saying, if the
City Commission would agree to 50 new police officers in the next fiscal
year, and they also would be phased in and so they don't also have to be
done at one time. But if they were phased in and that million dollars
were used to accomplish... or whatever it took... of the million plus to
phase in 50 new police officers, I would say that on behalf of the limited
people that I represent, technically, but on behalf of an awtul lot of
organizations that I don't represent legally, that I would say that is
fine and I would sit down with a compliment to you.
On the basis of 35 only being 40% or officers
which we need two years of 80 officers to get to 1,200, which is your 3.0
goal that you all are for, then I respectfully have to give my remarks
on how I would go about it a different way.
Mayor Ferre: Mr. Colson, while you make your remarks, let me have one
request. I am willing to go with you. I will go with you not to 50,
to 80. I will go to 80. The full 81, the full amount; but we will not
civilianize. Now, you tell me if you think that is a wise choice.
Mr. Colson: I think you can do both.
Mayor Ferre: Fine.
Mr. Colson: I'm for both,
Mayor Ferre: You tell me how. Where are we going to cut the budget and
I will be happy to listen.
Mr. Colson: I would suggest to you that there is another way to look at
it, and that is what my remarks will be. But I don't mean to duck your
question. For instance, my first, before I get to my general remarks,
I specifically would offer a suggestion to your plan. That is I am not
asking you to go to 80; but Commissioner, the plan as to police cars
SEP 101982
12
spite organiiations I'd like to pass out, Bill will you give them out 6rgatni-
tations here and you can just glance at it, but those are the organiiations
that have participated: They have not all voted at one time, but I can say
from the media being there, from some of you being there, that you can look
at that list of people, of sponsoring organizations, and many of their members
are here tonight, but they are for 3.0, they are for having a...(I got handed
a note here and I don't know what to do with the rest). The Admiral says
Mayor, that with the one million that you can hire 50 phased across the year.
In a phase in position of one million will handle 50.
Mayor Ferre: The Admiral and I have different math. He is dividing by a 25,UUO
figure, and 1 am dividing by 38,000.
Mr, Colson': No, sir, I don't think there is a difference in the
(INAUDIBLE BACKGROUND COMMENT NOT PLACED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD)
Mr. Colson: Yes, but it starts at 38,000. It is the phase in.
the phrase that I was trying to get to.
Mayor Ferre: You know, in labor negotiations, we get into that kind of an
argument, but you know that at 35 officers will cost us $1,000,000 will cost
us a $1,000,000, will cost us $1,000,000. Any way you....
(INAUDIBLE BACKGROUND COMMENT)
Mayor Ferre: It won't cost us this year, but how about 1983-84-85-86 and
foever. You know it is going to cost us that.
Mr. Colson: Well, my answer to that is, is that you are going to get in this
community and the City of 'Miami, you are going to get 12. something millions
of dollars from the State sales tax that was passed primarily for property
tax relief and crime.
Mayor Ferre: Actually, it is $9,000,000, and I want to tell you that we are
increasing the budget of the City of Miami Police Department by 8.5 million
dollars.
right sir, let me reply to both of those issues. I
have the budget hl_%re. I will let Somebody else walk up here so it won't cut
into my time. +:e-w'12 read to you out of cnis budget that it is 12.2 and
you have another 2 million that is in increased property tax, but 1 wi1.1 ta" +
10 million, Let's stay with 10 million or 9 million. That 10 or 9 millions
of new dollars are going to come to this community through the year 2000 and
beyond. It is going to add up to millions and millions and a billion dollars.
It is going to be used where the moral intent of the State Legislature with
the people behind them was to do something about crime control, and that is
the issue that you can handle in the next year. I like to be specific on
your plan before I get to my general remarks, if I can get that, and stay
with your plan. Your suggesting $250,000 per car. The Vice -Mayor has said
that is a nice little program. We agree that is an excellent program. We
have asked it in the County. However, I would want you to know that there
is going to be a pilot program, we hope instituted by Dade County, where they
are going to take a specific district that seems to cross -sect all neighborhoods
and all that and try it for one year and see if it will affirm what we think,
_- that it will be a money saving device for a lot of reasons of maintenance and
everything else. I would ask you respectfully, Mr. Mayor and others, and Mr.
Vice -Mayor, that you consider postponing and waiting until the results of
that pilot project for one year and phasing that in the second year and get
the other police officers on the streets with guns as soon as possible. Now,
I would rather have that than I would more civilians. I don't think that the
most dangerous thing in the world is to put new police officers on the streets.
I think there are a lot more dangerous people that run around there and I
would do that. Let me get to my remarks, but I would offer that suggestion
_ that that $250,000, which would then make it a $1,250,000 be spent, or a great
part of it, to at least.. I am for '81, but if that can't be done. then
to at least go to 74, if that is the fugure, or at least to 50, but you cer-
tainly have got the funds under your own plan of raising the $25 fee to make
those funds available, rather than the first year with the automobiles. Do
that the second year. This first page of notes, which I am not going to do,
13 SEP 10 1982
I want to assure you, and I know you believe its has nothing on it but tdropli=
bents of the efforts that the three of you that are on this Commission and
you have two new ones, have done in the past to face the surge of crime in
this community. You have done exactly what you told this audience. You have
increased the police. You have fought for measures of the civilianization.
You have done that. You have gone out and worked for a sales tax. You
couldn't do all you wanted to do on affirmative action. You have worked at
that and you have done it in wake of the most serious problems that any commun-
ity could ever have. That is at the top, and I want to say that again, even
though you said it. The last thing in the world that we are here to do is to
do anything except to compliment you all. You have worked hard at it, as
every elected official has done. Everybody is trying to work at something
to stop crime in this community, because we all know that we need it, but I
must point out that the timing of it, the same things that you are now talk-
ing about 4f this civilianization program was done and prepared for before
the passage of the new money of the sales tax - $10,000,000, we will use that
figure, whether it is $12,000,000 or not. But, that was done before. I have
the memo of January 26th, so that when we are talking about new programs for
new police officers for the problems that we have, that was already there.
You also did a great job that I want to compliment you on on raising the
salaries that are needed for moral and protection of lives of the Police De-
partment. You had to do it. You did a great job with it. That is now
being included in the monies you talked about, $6,000,000 that will be used
for crime control, but again, that was done a year ago. Those are the same
dollars, I understand it, but the community understands that you are getting
$10,000,000 new of sales tax revenue, and they think, I believe, from the
polls I have read, they believe that we ought to put some new police officers
on the streets to reach 3.20 in two years and that to do that, the figure that
I came up with was certain not a Bill Colson figure. I got that figure from
your Chief. Now, your Chief walks up here today at your request and says
that he will do his best to adequately protect the City without any new police
officers then what he is going to get.
Mayor Ferre: Well, he said more than that. I know what he said. He said he
could protect...
Mr. Colson: He said he could protect. Well, all right. I also have heard
the Chief in many speeches around the community.when the two of us were on
programs. Whether we did it at the Arch -Bishops program where every preacher
that they could get there in the community was there, every Rabbi, efery
Priest was there, or at as many civic clubs and the two of us had been there,
and he has been the one that has been going around to this community and
saying "We have got to get these new 74 or 81 new officers, and I think he
was telling the truth then and I think he is telling the truth now. There
isn't any man in the world that can stand there and say "Do you think you
can get by here under the financial circumstances that we have", but we
have got new funds that are here, and I respectfully suggest that they should
be used. I think that you can look at two other places. The Federal govern-
ment, when it got into this problem about a year ago, was cutting the budget
here of Customs, of the Coast Guard, because the President of the United
States said "We have got to cut the budget to balance the budget" And he
cuts South Florida with all of its prime programs exactly like he cut the
rest of the nation, and the reason was that they didn't have any money, and
the Federal level did that. But, there was some leadership that was exercised
in Washington by some of you that helped on it and there was leadership with
the Vice -President of the United States has come down here, and they have put
in a program where we now have Charles Linkovich that has been here, Admiral
Mur^hy his Chiefs of Staff, a new District Attorney. We have had new judges
put in here, we have had over 100 agents of the Drug Enforcement Agency, of
the Customs, of the Alcohol, of the F.B.I., and even, Mr.'Viee-Mayor, even
we have the I.R.S. has new agents that are here just to look at the very banks
that you and I are both concerned about. But, the Federal government got
enough going in which they, instead of cutting our budgets down here, gutting
Customs, and gutting Drug Enforcement, new leadership and going back to
budgets and tearing things up, they now have it where we have the planes up
in the air that are doing radar; they are sharing information. We now have
blimps that are up in the air sharing information with the Coast Guard and
the Navy. They amended the Act so that they can get into
the act and catch these narcotic trafficers, whether they be in the air. We
have Cobra gun ships that are now in the air. We have the army giving us the
new best helicopters that they can do, and there was complete turnaround
because people said "No, you can't come in here and cut us, we have got to
go forward and have hew people.'' The Q.B.I. has been increased5 and many othe
At the state level, if you look at the state level, the state didn't have any
money and it is the same thing. And they were going around and the Governor
said "we just can't do it." And all of the people of North Florida said "That
is South Florida's problem, and we are not going to have any new taxes." But,
through a strong legislative delegation, through some imaginative thinking,
through a lot of leadership of -our legislature and through the Governor, they
went for a one -cent sales tax and they are sending $10,000,000 to this City to
do something about it, tax relief and crime control. Now, they didn't have th
money either, but they had to raise taxes and they had to bite the bullet and
they did. As far as the County is concerned, you can go there, and they have
the same budget problems you have. They have cut employees from 20,000 to
18,000. They have the same inflation, but they have been working on it for
two years, but in addition to police officers that they have, they have, they
have to build jails and prisons and they have got many other problems and the
whole subject of Janet Reno's office, of prosecutors, of more judges, of court
house space, and all of that. They have worked on it, and it has been accom-
plished, and it is done and Dade County somehow is finding out that they are
going to be at 3.0 and they have adopted it and they adopted the number of
officers that they ought to have. They didn't do the police car program.
They said "We are going to hold that off" and I hope that they are going to
do a pilot project in one year and study that to prove what we think is going
to happen in that. I want you to get one last thing, one list, and that is
a list of the cities - a list of the cities in Dade County that have gone for
the 3.0 and are using their sales tax new money and it starts with Metro -Dade
and it goes down here, and there are fifteen different ones - Coral Gables,
Miami Beach, Bal Harbour, Bay Harbour Islands, Golden Beach, Hialeah Gardens,
Homestead, Medley, Miami Shores Village, Miami Springs, North Bay Village,
Opa Locka, South Miami, Surfside „ Virginia Gardens and West Miami, and they
are doing it in one or two years, and so, that is there. In fact, there are
a couple more cities that have done it since this list was written, but they
bit the bullet! The School Board didn't have any money, but, for Youth
Crime Watch and crime and for other things, they have gone to do it. But,
right now, we are at the point where today you are working on this; we appre-
ciate it, but you have got the toughest problems of anyone. You have got
underprivileged areas. You have got the problem of immigration. You have
got the geographic location of drugs and narcotics that are coming in here.
We get more narcotics here, 80% up from anyone in the ecuntry and the bench
is nearly built. It is built with the Federal govenrment, it is built with
the State, with the County, with fifteen cities, but we have a great big case
to close and that is the City of Miami. You have done a great job and crime
is even down.
Mayor Ferre: Your fifteen minutes is up, so wind up your statement.
Mr. Colson: Thank you. Crime has even come down, but to suggest that this
is not a violent, dangerous, community - if I walk out of there for one block,
or three blocks or one mile, and say that we don't need more police officers
that are sworn police officers with guns, to me is just to say that we are
not looking at it in the face.
Mayor Ferre: Mr. Colson, of course we need more police officers. We all
agree on that. You heard the motion that was passed before and we are all
trying to do that, but you see, what you say, with all due respects to the
City is just not so. There isn't a great big hole called the City of Miamil
_ The City of Miami has added over 300 officers in the last two years. It is
an increase of 40%. Our budget is the highest, the very highest, on a per-
centage basis of total budget of any American city our size, and that includes
Metropolitan Dade County, whose police budget is 26% of the total. Now, I
realize that, you know, we get wound up with statistics and number and what
have you. The fact remains, however, the fact remains, that the City of Miami
has done an unbelievable job of adding police officers. We also have to do
something about protecting people from fire. We also have to pick up garbage.
We also have to do a lot of other things. We need to have a balanced city
service. Now, I ask you a question which I would appreciate your answering
before you sit down and that is, if you were sitting right up here, and you
had to vote tonight, and your vote was "increase 81 police officers", or
"increase 35 police officers and take 74 officers out of the police head-
quarters and put them out on the beat", which would you do, either/or?
See, you are saying you can do both. I am telling you that you can't.
1d 15
SEP 10 1982
Mtt Colson: 1 Mould say I would do less of both, but, I gave you the answer in
$ 80,000 on delaying the police car program. That is 25% more than you metitioned
in your 35. I would also; absolutely reduce some other services, but when you
say; and I commend you for what you all have done, you leave out ... and no, don't
compare us with Kansas City, because they are not the murder capitol of the
world, and I don't want to stand up here and talk bad about Miami. I am trying
to change our City. I want to compliment you. You don't have a big hole.
You have a little tiny gate that is closed, and you are merely there to keep it
closed.
Mayor Ferre: Mr. Colson, would you believe me if I told you that we are really ,
not the murder capitol of the world
Mr. Colson: I didn't say of the world, 1 said of the country.
Mayor Ferre: No, you said we are the murder capital' of the world.
Mr, Colson: I didn't mean it. I meant of the country.
Mayor Ferre: We are not the murder capitol of the world and I tell you, I
think that you feel a lot safter walking around in Miami than you do around
a lot of other cities Around this world and as a matter of fact, I think, and
I don't want to pick an argument with the press about this, but the fact is,
that there are other crimes, like rape and assault and all that is called
Part One crimes and the fact is that the City of Miami is not only not the
worst crime city in America, it is not even the worst crime city in Florida,
that Fort Lauderdale, Tampa and Orlando all have Part One crime Cates higher
than the City of Miami. You know, and I am just getting tired of all of us,
starting with the Miami Press continually beating upon this that we are the
crime capitol of the world and that we are the crime capitol. of the United
Stated and that we are the murder capitol of the world. We are not the murder
capitol of the world. We are not the crime capitol of the United States and
we are not the crime capitol of Florida.
Mr. Colson: I didn't make it up. The New York Times printed it.
Mayor Ferre: Well, they make mistakes too. Okay, next speaker. Are we goinj
to go down the list here? Eloy Gonzalez is the next speaker.
4.
Mr. Eloy Gonzalez: My name is Eloy Gonzalez, I am the secretary of the Latin
Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Mayor, Commissioners, City Manager. Only a few wor+
in behalf of the Latin Chamber of Commerce I am representing, to express what
I am taI' As you know, the Latin Chamber is a founder of Miami
Citizens again _ , and after continuous and dedicated support of the
committee and others, the crime has declined in the City, but it is essential
and we want to emphasize very clearly that this Commission approve the specif
necessary number of policeman, three per one thousand citizens, otherwise it
is impossible to succeed in our fight against crime. Our request is not
unusual. Already most of the municipalities of the Metropolitan area and the
County have agreed and approve it that appointing three policemen per each
thousand citizens is absolutely necessary to obtain results in this matter.
And of course, they should be policemen or sworn officers with training and
experience, not civilians acting as policemen. The majority of the business-
men of this City, small and large, are crying for action in this matter of
law and order in our community. We don't know how much longer they will wait
patiently to eradicate the present situation. We would rather take action no,
before it is too late. Gentlemen, I don't want to take more of your time. I
you do not approve this request, the fight against crime will not be won for
thin City. Thank you, very much.
Mayor Ferre: All right, I think we can avoid about ten or fifteen speakers
if we could maybe address some of the issues and get to it, unless you all
want to you know ... Howard Rasmussen and Jerome Gleekel are the next speakers,
and so on.
Mr. Carollo: I would like to address one issue that was brought up - Mr. Col-
son, that the take-home program for marked police cars. We are talking about
approximately a quarter of a million dollars put aside for that program. If
we were to buy vehicles that would be down to the bone in equipment - just a
marked police unit that could be visible in the streets when it is taken home
by the police officer, we could probably acquire somewhere in the neighborhood
1d 16 SEP 10 190WCV
9
Id
T4JAIM
.t
of 50 polite cars to use. In fact, Bill, what that is going to be is it is
going to be a sort of a pilot program in itself, because if we were to give
tbhicles to all the police officers that live inside the City of Miami, that
would be between 25% to 30% of the police force - some 300 police officers.
On the other hand, if we were to use that quarter of a million dollars to
hire police officers, that would only hire six police officers and it would
take at least six months, if not more - most likely closer to nine months be-
fore they would be out in the streets. So, the six months in the Academy,
Bill, approximately, we are talking approximately $40,000 per police officer.
(INAUDIBLE BACKGROUND COMMENTS NOT PLACED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD)
Mr. Carollo: The problem that we have, Bill, is that while a few years back
most of the departments around the State had very few vacancies for police
officers, toe situation you have nowadays is that just about everywhere you
look, every major police department is looking for new personnel, so in essence
what you have is a situation where veteran police officers can just about pick
any department they would like to go to, and as long as they have a good track
record, they are going to be hired by that department and what has been hap-
pening to us in the past is that we have lost a lot of our seasoned veteran
police officers and what I am looking to accomplish is that at the same time
that we put more units that are visible out in the streets to curtail crime,
is that we give an extra incentive so that our veterans that have been with
us for three years or over have a little something extra so that they will want
to stay with the City of Miami.
(INAUDIBLE BACKGROUND COMMENTS NOT PLACED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD) -
Mayor Ferre: Anybody else want to see if we can cut through or do you want
to just keep on hearing everybody?
Mr. Carollo: Well, one other thing, Mr. Mayor, that we might possibly be able
to accomplish and maybe some of our staff can help us in figuring out how much
additional funds we might be able to acquire... whether we would like to admit
it here or not, it is a fact that a lot of this new growth that we have in
Miami, the concrete growth is a cocaine and marijuana boom. In fact, in the
City of Miami, until recently, when steps were taken to stop it, some of these
people who were trying to launder money from narcotics into real estate, were
doing this - unfortunately, we had a law that people could come before the
City Commission, come before the City, to construct whatever they wanted -
to ask for whatever variance they wanted, and they could have a trust, and
nobody had a right to ask who were the people in that trust until a few months
ago, in fact, about three months ago, I made a motion that was approved by
this Commission that from then on, anyone that would come before any board
in this City for any kind of variance, what have you, that had a trust, had to
divulge the names of all the people in that trust. Well, it just happened'
that during that same week, one of the largest projects in the history of Miami,
in the form of apartments was coming up, and needless to say, they haven't come
back yet before us to divulge the names of the owners. But, the idea that I
would like to bring forth is that a lot of the developers, a lot of the people
that are coming before this Commission asking for variances to construct _ a
lot of the people that don't need variances that are going to construct, the
profits that they can still make, even in today's high inflation and high
interest times are going to be extremely high, so what I would like to throw
out as an idea is tb consider the fact of raising a lot of the fees that we
have now for variances in the City of Miami and the extra money from those
fees to Qo into law enforcement.
Mayor'Ferre: Okay, I think that is a very valid recommendation. Now, Mr.
Manager, the recommendation of the Vice -Mayor is that we raise fees for
variances. Now, Mr. City -Attorney, you had'better listen, because you are
going to get into legal aspects of this, and that is, can we raise money by
every time we grant a variance, there being a special fee or assessment?
Mr. Carollo: I am not saying that we will grant a variance, Mr. Mayor. I am
saying that just the same way that somebody takes their chance when they want
to come before this Commission for a variance, that they pay across the board,
Mayor Ferre; In other words, to come up before the Zoning Board and to come up
before the Commission, that we would charge a higher fee.
1'7
SEP 10 1982
Mr. Carollo: In other words, what we are saying is, we are going to raise
their fees and it is going to be up to us to decide where that extra money is
going to go into, and what I am saying is, that money should go into law en-
forcement.
Mayor Ferre: Joe, I think you have a great idea, and I am fully supportive
of it in principle if it is legal, and I am sure it is legal, but that is
not something that is going to solve the problem tonight. Now, if you want
to do it, I'don't mind going along with it on a conditional basis, that if
we can find additional sources this way, then we would add another twenty or
thirty police officers. I wouldn't have any problem with that, but that has
to be on a conditional basis. We can't solve that tonight.
Mr. Carollo: I understand that, Mr. Mayor, that we can't solve that tonight,
and I understand that it is only an idea that I have thrown out to study and
explore, but I think that ... I don't know how many police officers we can
acquire through that, but I certainly think that we are probably looking at
at least maybe twenty-five or so.
Mr. Perez: Let me point out, Mr. Mayor, I have the answer to my question from
the Manager. He said for two hundred more police, we would have to increase
the budget 8.4 million, but I understand what you mentioned about the tax
millage, but, what the Vice -Mayor mentioned, I think that is a possible
solution. I think that we can increase the number of policemen, and we can
use different ways, for example, on a special tax district, on a special
assessment, on user's fees, on license fees, on sales tax, on impact fees,
or any other creative ways that can be reached by the Administration. I think
that we can use...
Mayor Ferre: I think that I would be supportive...
Mr. Perez: This way also, I would like that we take a strong position today.
That is the message that we are receiving from the community and from insti-
tutions working very hard against crime. I think that maybe we are -late for
this budget, but what do you think if we have the opportunity to take this
one to a straw ballot to ask the people of Miami their position for the next
budget for ''83-'84.
Mayor Ferre: All right, Commissioner, my opinion on that is, we get elected
to make decisions, and as far as I am concerned, as Holmes Braddock said, and
I love that statement in the paper the other day, he said I got elected to do
a job and if the people like it, that is fine, and if they don't that is okay
too, but I am going to do what I think is right and that is what our republi-
can form of government is all about! In other words, we got elected to make
the decisions, so I think we have got to make the decisions and that we are
elected to do. I don't think we need to put that ... but you see, but, I am
totally in support of what you are saying there. I think that is exactly what
we ought to do - that we ought to now begin a process, Mr. Manager, of study-
ing impact fees; we are talking additional fees for applications for zoning
variances...
Mr. Perez: Special tax districts.
Mayor Ferre: Special tax districts....
Mr. Perez: Impact fees.
Mayor Ferre: Impact fees, all of the things,.,
Mr. Perez: License fees.
Mayor Ferre: An increase in license.,,but that is not something that we are
going to solve tonight. Now, I am perfectly willing to go along with Commis-
sioner Perez and Commissioner Carollo and make a commitment, but I think that
we should let the Manager go through'the process, come back, we have some
id 18 SEP 10 1982
public hearings on it. You know, because the builders are not here. You
know, when you start talking about impact fees and additional variance fees,
and you have got to give them the right to express their opinions. You just
can't arbitrarily do that without giving them the right to say something,
and I think in principle, 1 am willing to go along with the consideration
that we look and search honestly - I think that is the word - honestly, and
in good faith to try to find other non ad valorem tax sources of money, other
than, in addition to the garbage fees, and that those monies would be added
to what we come up with to increase police officers. It is the will of this
Commission, on record, that we go to 3 as quickly as possible, and if we can,
we will9 three per thousand. I am afraid we may be taking up a lot of time
and not solving anything, so we could either come up to a solution on this,
or continue this public hearing?
Mr.Perez: in order to be concrete on this, why don't we instruct the Manager
to do research and make a study and a formal recommendation for the next Com-
mission meeting of this month.
2. I1ISTRUCT CITY 2AIIAGER TO STUDY ALTE71TATIVE FUI? 111r,
FOR I'.IP.IlIG OF ADDITIOIAL POLICZ OFFICERS -
Mayor Ferre: Fine. Make your motion. All right, is there a second to that
motion?
Mr. Perez: That is my motion.
Mr. Carollo: Second that motion.
Mayor Ferre: Is there further discussion'on the motion? Call the roll.
The following motion was introduced by Commissioner Perez, who moved its
adoption.
MOTION NO. 82-854
A MOTION INSTRUCTING THE CITY MANAGER TO STUDY AND
RECOMMEND ALTERNATIVE SOURCES OF FUNDING OTHER THAN
AD VALOREM TAXES TO FUND THE HIRING OF ADDITIONAL
POLICE OFFICERS.
Upon being seconded by Commissioner Carollo, the motion was passed
and adopted by the following vote:
AYES: Commissioner Miller J. Dawkins
Commissioner Demetrio Perez, Jr.
Commissioner J. L. Plummer, Jr.
Vice Mayor Joe Carollo
Mayor Maurice A. Ferre
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
Mayor Ferre: All right, is there anything that we can come to a conclusion
on now, and perhaps send all these people home?
Mr. Dawkins: Let me say something, Mr. Mayor. I don't think there is anyone
in Miami more desirous of a safe city than me, but I have got problems with
more police, because no one has told me how more police is going to make Miami
safer. You get more police, you get more arrests, more inmates to be housed.
Jails are overcrowded now. What are we going to do with the additional arrested
people? So, I am for everything that has been said here, but as you have already
said, Mr. Mayor, when we increase the police, there are also other supportive
services, and if we don't take into consideration of meeting these other addition-
al services, and just provide police, then as he said, we are rot doing what
we were elected to do. The other thing I would like to say is, the City of
Miami also pays Dade County taxes, so when Dade County builds jails, they are
building jails with City of Miami resident's money. Drugs are rampant in Dade
County, not in the City of Miami, so let's not go away from here saying that
Miami is the drug We have as many drug related murders in all of Dade
19 SEP 101900
Couffty as we do in the City of Miami. The other thing that I must say, and
say in all honesty any new hirees for the City of Miami must live in the
City of Miami, or must move within the City of Miami. We are taking City of
Miami tax dollars, paying police officers, who move to the County and they
do not contribute back to the tax base from which they are being paid, so
my concern is that these people whom we hire must live in the City of Miami,
must remain in the City of Miami, and if they move, they must be fired. That
is my only concern.
Mr. Plummer: (INAUDIBLE, OFF MICROPHONE)
Mayor Ferre: All right, let me see if I can cut through all of this and
maybe...I'd like to make a motion that the City of Miami Commission pass a
motion of intent, so that we can clarify what our position is, that is, that
Number one we support and reaffirm the previously expressed intention of the
City Commission to arrive as quickly as possible at a ratio of three police
officers per one thousand population in the City of Miami and that we are
grateful for the representation here of the Miami Citizens Against Crime,
and we support their goals. We subscribe fully to their goals. Number
two, that we however, also understand and subscribe to the Manager's posi-
tion that we must render a balanced service to the people of the City of Miami,
and that there are other needs, social and otherwise that we must also meet.
And number three, in view of the fact that we have added a substantial number
of police officers in the last three years, and in view of the fact that the
police in the street, 62% of the officers out in the street only have two
years of experience, and in view of the fact that Booz Allen's carefully
done study this year recommends that we civilianize the Police Department as
quickly as possible, and in view of the fact that the City of Miami Commission,
and every member here, including myself worked just as hard as every one of
you to pass that sales tax by the legislature and went to Tallahassee and
called, and in view of the fact that the law does not say, does not say any-
where within it that we must do other than 2.9 million dollars for life-sav-
ing in the formula that we have, and that we are greatly exceeding that, that
we therefore, in the interest of trying to come to some kind of a balance,
that we proceed with civilianization of the Department and an expense of 2:4
million dollars to release 74 police officers on the street, and hopefully,
up to 100 within a very short period of time, that we add no less than 35
police officers, but that it will be 50 police officers by the end of the
fiscal year and that we do this by increasing, regretfully, the garbage col-
lection fee of up to $125 per year, which is about $75 less than Metro and
lastly, that the Manager immediately be instructed to come up with innovative
additional sources such as impact fees, increased zoning variance fees, and
other sources that are non -ad valorem, to pay for these increases, so that we
can reach our goal of three as quickly as possible, and report back to the
Commission during this next year on that, and I so move.
Mr. Carollo: There is a motion. Is there a second?
Mr. Perez: I second.
Mr. Carollo: Open for discussion now. Mr. Mayor, I agree with everything
in your motion. The only part that I would ask that the maker of the motion
would make into a separate motion is the part about the increase in fee for
the garbage collection. I think that you are aware that that is an area that
I have had a great difference with, in as far -as increasing the'garbage fee.
Mayor Ferre: I will remove the $25 garbage fee from the motion and make it in
a separate motion. It is clearly understood, however, that unless somebody
can come up with some other alternate sources, that...
(INAUDIBLE BACKGROUND COMMENTS NOT PLACED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD)
Mayor Ferre: Well, this is a motion of intent. This isn't the final resolu-
tion. I am just trying to get a lot of people out of here. All right, I
accept that...
Mr. Perez: Marina revenues?
Mayor Ferre; I accept the removing the funding portion from the ma$n thruot
of the motion,
14 20
SEP 101982
Mr, Carol- lo., is thete i6hy futther discussion on the tiotiml
Mr. Plummer: Yes, then 1 have to ask the question, where is the fa iey going
to come from?
Mayor Ferre: What he is saying is make that in a separate tootion.
Mr. Carollo: I am saying make it in a separate motion,
Mayor Ferret In the long run, it is the same thing, J. L,, because obvious-
ly, if we don't have the money, we cant do it.
Mr. Plummer: Okay, Question. On the proposal voted upon last evening for
the curbside collection, that contains another $30 fee, right?
Mr. Gary -.,"Yes, sir.
Mr. Plummer: So thetti in effectb,.
Mr. Gary: For 83-84.
Mr. Plummer: Yes, but in effect, what you are doing is raising it to $155,
Mayor Ferre: No, not this year.
Mr. Gary: No, sir.
Mr. Plummer: No, next year6;
Mayor Ferrer That is '83 - '84.
Mr. Gary: Exactly.
Mayor Ferre: And that is something that we would have to vote upon at that
time. We are not voting on that now, in addition to which, that is something
that is a straw ballot and that is something that we are not dealing with at
the present time. I will tell you, from a practical point of view, I think
you are right, that if we do this, I frankly don't think that we are going to
do that next year, Mr. Manager.
Mr. Plummer: You can remove the straw ballot.
Mayor Ferre: Then we may as well just get rid of the straw ballotl
a'
Mr. Gary: Dade County...
Mr. Dawkins: Question. I am strongly against, but I will vote for increase
in garbage tax without providing better garbage service. That would be my first
concern. The second concern I would have is, in the event that we increase
the garbage fee by $25, and we put on the additional officers. Is there any-
thing that precludes us from, when this bundle comes in with the additional
tax, from taking some of that money to pick up slack in the garbage pickup,
or garbage service?
Mr. Gary: Well, first of all, with regard to the sales tax revenues, we
have the best estimate that we think we are going to receive this year.
Obviously, if we receive more than what was anticipated, the City Commission
is the only body that has authority to assign other monies to be utilized,..
Mr. Dawkins: So, my question is "no".
Mx. Gary: The answer to your question is "yes".
Mr, Dawkins: The answer is "no".
Mr, Gary; The answer to your question is "yes", If additional funds come
in, you have the authority to...
Mr. Dawkins: Oh well, okay. Maybe I am not getting through to myself. What
I am saying is, that there are 2 "N" dollars coming in from the sales tax. We
have already added a $25 garbage assessment, or whatever you are going to call
21 SEP 10 1982
it, Now we find that there is a shortfall because of inflation, negotiations
with the union and etcetera, and is there any way that you can take one-half 11XI`,
although you only have got 2 "X", not in excess = I am not talking about any-
thing in excess. You have got 2 "X" dollars. Is there any way to take one-
half "X" to provide the garbage service that we already taxed people to provide,
to get police with?
Mr, Gary: I kind of flunked algebra, but 1 will try. The answer to your
question is "yes",
Mr. Dawkins: Thank you. Call the question.
Mr, Plummer! No, no, no, no, Whoal Mr, Gary, hold truth does it cost -for
50 additional policemen,
Mr. Gary: ,50 additional police officers cost appt6kimtely 1.8 zillion
dollars,
Mr, Plummer: Does that include everything that, it is going to cost.the City
to put the 50 on?
Mr. Gary: Yes, sir.
Mr. Plummer: I have a list here that speaks to $2,122,171.
Mr. Gary: That is fixed cost. That is a pension.
Mr, Plummer: It is all part of the cost. That is what I Am asking you, sir.
What is the realistic cost of 50 officers?
Mr. Gary: One officer would cost you $42,000, approximately.
Mr. Plummer: So, 50...
(INAUDIBLE COMMENT NOT PLACED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD)
Mr. Plummer: Okay, $42,000 - 44.3 times 50 - $2,122,150. 1 am using your
figures, so I hope they are right.
Mr. Carollo: Hope he didn't flunk geometry also.
Mr. Plummer: What do you say that the 25 additional dollars will raise?
" Mr. Gary: Let me respond back to this figure. If you will recall (I know
you recall because you are on the Pension Board) the pension figure that
we have here is not charged the first year because we are always paying
the year after, that is why it is last year. I am sorry, what was the
second question?
Mr. Plummer: The second question, the 25 dollar additional fee, what will
that raise?
Mr. Gary: Approximately 1.8 million dollars.
Mr. Plummer: Then, how do I come up with the fact, Mr. Patterson tells me
we have 90,000 units (I am assuming taxable units) which tells me that
will raise two and a quarter million dollars. Mr. Patterson, 90,000 is
the figure you have been using. Do you still agree to 90,000? Now, I
think we need to sharpen some pencils somewhere?
(INAUDIBLE BACKGROUND COMMENTS NOT PLACED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD)
Mr. Gary: Let's talk about what the number come out to as opposed to what
is our collection rate. What Mr. Patterson gave you is what we should re-
ceive, but based on the fact that we had 80% collection rate, the cash that
you actually receive will be much less than the computation comes out to be.
Now, with regards to the cost of 50 officers, that cost is 1.8 million dol-
lars.
Mr. Plummer: The point I am trying to make is, you know, maybe where we are
derelict, is derelict in not collecting the fees. 20% of $2,225,000 is a
lot of money,. Now, you know, all I am trying to get to is that if you are
�d
22 SEP 10 1982
Id,
going to raise the garbage fee, I want to know whete the test of the money is
going to go, because then I have got to know how many more, and can I reach
toward the 181 figure rather than the 50 figure. Now, you know, that is why
I am trying to come to some logical conclusion here, and I am using your
figure of each policeman representing $42,443.
Mayor Ferre: Or improve some of the recreation programs.
Mr. Plummer: Maurice, I have no problems with recreation at all, but i am
Just trying to figure where our dollars are coming from and going to, based
on these figures.
Mayor Ferre: Mr. Manager (INAUDIBLE)
Mr, Gary: Well, first of all...
Mr. Plummer: I think what we need to do is send this stuff to the Manager
for no quick answers, but let's get some definite answers.
Mayor Ferre: We have a second public hearing.
Mr. Plummer: That is what I am saying, to come back at your second hearing
with more definite answers, and possibly, also, have the *tanager....
Mayor Ferre: Okay, so I think what...
Mr'. Plummer:....come up with some other sources of revenue. Now, we might
not agree, but, at least he can try anddevelopsome other sources of reve-
nue.
Mr. Gary: Escort fees.
Mr. Plummer: Escort on funerals? As long as it is your funeral, I don't
care! I'll pay that one personally! (LAUGHTER)
Mayor Ferre: Even the fee you will pay.
Mr. Plummer: I am sure that the people of this community have always at all
times expressed themselves, at least to me, and I am sure to other members
of this Commission. They don't mind paying a fee when they are assured that
it addresses the problem of police and fire. Nobody wants to pay more taxes,
but if they can be given the assurance that they are going to get something
for it, and the money is not going to be taken and diverted to some other
entity, I think there is a possibility that most people in this community
would say "yes", we want it. So, that is why I think we have to come down
to a basis. And I don't think, Mr. Mayor, that we are at a point tonight,
or at least right now, that we are ready for a vote.
Mayor Ferre: J. L., all I am doing is making a motion of intent. It obvious-
ly is not binding, as you well know, and all it does is let's all these peo-
ple go home and we can cut these speakers down in half, and then on the 23rd
we will have another public hearing and by that time I hope we will have some
answers. I am just trying to cut through, that is all. Otherwise, let's go
back to listening and get out of here at 2:00 or 3:00 o'clock in the morning.
Mr. Plummer, at the request of Commissioner Carollo, I have taken out of the
motion any reference to a $25 per year garbage fee for any other source of
income, and I am going to make that as a separate motion.
Mr. Plummer: Tonight, or at the second meeting?
Mayor Ferre: I am going to make it tonight, because I think we have got to
address that issue and give the Manager some direction. Now, that doesn't
mean that at the second meeting we may all change our minds and do something
else! I am just trying to get a direction so that we can give the Manager
a sense of where we are going, and Mr. Colson, and his group. And then per-
haps we might be able to cut through a lot of talking. Otherwise, I think
we are going to be here...I am ready to stay, but I mean, let's get on with
it, one way or the other. And, if it is all right with the rest of you, I
would like to just call the question. As a sense, the motion is to test
the sense of the Commission, that is all. It is a motion of intention.
23
S EP 10 1982.
I
n
Mr. Carollo: Hearing no objections, Mr. Clerk, can we have roll call.
The following motion was*'introduced by Mayor Ferre, who moved its
adoption.
MOTION NO. 82-855
A MOTION OF INTENT REAFFIRMING THE CITY COMMISSION'S INTENT TO MAKE
AN HONEST EFFORT TO REACH THE RATIO OF THREE (3) SWORN POLICE OFFICERS
PER THdUSAND CITIZENS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE; AND FURTHER:
1) EXPRESSING GRATITUDE TO THE MIAMI CITIZENS AGAINST CRIME, FULLY
SUPPORTING A.ti'D SUBSCRIBING TO THEIR GOALS;
2) STIPULATING THAT THE CITY COkDIISSION SUBSCRIBES TO THE CITY MANAGER'S
POSITION THAT WE MUST MAINTAIN A BALANCE IN THE RENDERING OF BASIC SER-
VICES TO THE CITIZENS OF MIAMI IN VIEW OF THE FACT THAT WE HAVE ADDED
A SUBSTANTIAL NUMBER OF POLICE OFFICERS DURING THE LAST TWO YEARS, AND
IN VIEW OF THE FACT THAT 62% OF THE OFFICERS OUT ON THE STREETS HAVE
ONLY TWO YEARS OF EXPERIENCE OR LESS; AND
k'HEREAS, THE CONSULTANT FIRM OF BOOZ, ALLEN AND HAMILTON HAS RECOMMENDED
TO THE CITY THE "CIVILIANIZATION" OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT; AND
WHEREAS, THE CITY OF MIAMI COMMISSION WORKED HARD FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION
OF THE RECENTLY PASSED ONE CENT (1C) SALES TAX; AND
WHEREAS, THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE LAW STIPULATE THAT THE CITY MUST SPEND,
AT LEAST, $2,900,000 IN LIFE-SAVING SERVICES (WHICH THIS CITY IS NOW
GREATLY EXCEEDING); SO
THEREFORE, IN ORDER TO COME UP WITH A BALANCED RENDERING OF SERVICES TO
THE CITIZENS, THE CITY COMMISSION FURTHER STIPULATES AS FOLLOWS:
A) THAT THE CITY MUST IMMEDIATELY PROCEED WITH THE "CIVILIANIZATION" OF
THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AT A COST OF $2,400,000;
B) THAT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT PROCEED TO RELEASE 74 POLICE OFFICERS ON
THE STREETS (WHICH WILL HOPEFULLY TURN INTO 100 POLICE OFFICERS
SHORTLY); AND
C) EXPRESSING THE INTENT TO HIRE AN ADDITIONAL 35 POLICE OFFICERS, POS-
SIBLY REACHING THE GOAL OF 50 BY THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR.
Mr. Plummer: I am going to vote "yes", because I am in favor of no less than
50 additional police officers, but I think that if we refine the figures and
we come down and cut them a little closer, I think we possibly can do better
and still do the things that we want to do. I think there are other sources
of income and I think that we need to explore them all and I will vote with
the motion, because it is a motion of intent. I am going to have a problem
on that second motion
Mayor Ferre: All right, now, Mr. Vice -Mayor, the second motion is as follows:
The second motion is what we just stripped off of the first, and that is that
to fund the increases as outlined in the previous motion, including the Re-
creation Department for youth programs in/ur parks, and for the purposes, �0,
SEr 10
1902 -
if legal, of giving police officers automobiles to take to theist tesidencaa
provided that they live within the boundaries of the City of Miami and have
worked for the City for at least three years, if it is legal, and if not, that
that money be used for police officers so that we can hit that figure of 50
quicker. That the monies to pay that come from a $25 per year garbage col-
lection fee and all the other litany of things that we read off that you
recommended here, which is additional fees, zoning fees, etcetera.
Mr. Carollo: Maurice, don't mix them, please.
Mayor Ferre: You don't want to mix those two. All right, then I have to
make a third motion. The second motion now is just for the $25...wait a
minute, let's do it so we can get "yes". Let's do yours, which I think
we are going to pass, all the fees and the studies and all that. Lets do
that one first, and I so move.
Mr. Carollo: There is a motion, is there a second?
Mr. Perez: I will introduce that motion?
Mayor Ferre: Well, he has already...you make the motion and I will second it.
Mr. Carollo: No, it was introduced already and we passed it already and the
fees and everything, yes.
Mr. Perez: Yes? We already passed it, to instruct the Manager in order: to
bring research for the next Commission meeting with a formal recommendation.
Mayor Ferre: Do it over again, and I second your motion. Now call the roll.
Mr. Carollo: There is a motion and a second.
Mr. Perez: I woixld like to instruct the Manager to bring to the next Commis-
sion meeting a formal recommendation about the way to get those funds that we use special tax districts, special assessments or license fees, sales
tax, impact fees, or any other ways.
Mr. Carollo: We don't want any algebra or geometry, Howard, just some good
old fashioned arithmetic. It has been moved, is there a second?
Mayor Ferre: I will second it.
Mr. Carollo: Roll call, please.
4. CITY 2A21AGEr ^.ECOHMIPI hLTFR1!ATIVE FU1'I'IITG £OU'_'.CEE.
The following motion was introduced by Commissioner Perez, who moved its
adoption.
MOTION NO. 82-856
A MOTION OF INTENT OF THE CITY MANAGER TO BRING TO THE
_ NEXT COMMISSION MEETING A FORMAL RECOMMENDATION IN CON-
NECTION WITH ALTERNATE SOURCES OF FUNDING WHICH HAVE BEEN
IDENTIFIED, e.g. WHETHER BY WAY OF SPECIAL TAXING DISTRICTS;
SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS; INCREASED LICENSE FEES; SURTAX; OR ANY
OTHER TYPE OF ASSESSMENT.
Upon being seconded by Mayor
adopted by the following vote:
Ferre, the motion was passed and
AXES; Commissioner Miller J. Dawkins
Commissioner Demetrio Perez, Jr.
Commissioner J. L. Plummer, Jr,
Vice Mayor Joe Carollo
Mayor Maurice A. Ferre
NOES; None
ABSENT; None
25
Mayor Vote'. Now the third tnotion is the ssihe thing, $25 gatbage fee.
Mt Ut Alo! There is a motion; is there a second?
Mt. Plummer! Excuse me sir, the motion is clear. That is an additional
$25. We have already proposed to go $25, so it would be a total of $50
increased for this year.
Mayor Ferre: Let me be more explicit - that the garbage collection fee fot
the citizens of Miami be increased to $125 per year and that $25 of that be
specifically used for the purposes as previously outlined.
Mr. Perez: Just for discussion, Mr. Mayor, I think that garbage service is
needed. I would like to try to find those funds from the marina service,
from the bars, from the night clubs, from cigars, from liquor, from golf
facilities, from tennis courts, but I don't think anyhow that we can increase
the garbage service at this time. I think that is a needed service and I
prefer to find another way to get that money. I think that we have other
service in this community that would be better to...
Mr. Carollo: Can we get a second just for the purposes of discussion? Is
there a second to that motion?
Mr. Perez: Sure, I will second it. I only explained what the...
Mr. Carollo: Second for the purposes of discussion. Mr. Mayor, the one
time that I have got into those complaints in my office, ever, was the time
that we raised the garbage fee $75. My phones didn't stop ringing. I hate
to come on Monday morning the day after we raise them to $125. I can see
what is going to happen to my phones. I might be using two tape recorder ma-
chines to answer them, not one!
Mayor Ferre: I am trying to get a sense of this Commission and if it fails,
it fails and then we have to go back to peg 1 and we will get all the people
that want to speak tonight, allright? But, I would just like to get on with
it and I call the question just for the purposes of establishing whether or
not there is any consensus of any sort. If there isn't, then we go back.
Mr. Dawkins: Even if we go back, we will not vote any different if we sit
here and hear everybody all night. That is not going to make anybody vote
any different, so we may as well go on. I mean, in my opinion, we may as
well go on and vote. We voted that we will provide the policemen with the
taxation on everything but garbage, and now we are going to vote on that,
but we told the people that we will attempt to provide 50 officers through
taxes on variances, on everything, plus the bundle of money that we are
going to get from the sales tax.
Mayor Ferre: Let me just express so that we all understand each other.
Demetrio, it is very nice to say that we are going to increase our marina
fees, but I don't think we are going to get any money out of marina fees
that will amount to a hill of beans. It is not going to solve the problem.
That is not going to be enough money. We don't have the right to impose
cigarette taxes, do we?
Mr. Gary: No, sir.
Mayor Ferre: We don't have the right to impose liquor taxes.
Mr. Perez: But, we have several non -essential services in the City of Miami
that we can explore and we can approve a motion or extension that the Manager
bring a formal recommendation for the next Commission meeting.
Mayor Ferre: I am for that. That is motherhooi':: I agree with you, and I
:.,•i'1 go along with you and we will increase all the fees that we can within
reasc.a, but the point is, that right now we only have one source of monies
that are available to us that I know that we can get. Either we reduce
expenses somewhere - you tell me what services we are going to cut, or
somebody has to pay for it! All I am saying is, let us get on with this
thing; let's bite the bullet and move along. Now, you know, vote "yes" or
no Let's get a sense of this, and I call the question!
id 26
SEP 101982
ON ROLL CALL:
Mr. Plummer: You know, I salute my colleague Commissioner Perez, but I have
to tell him that when he has his first baptism of salt water, called "raising
the marina rates", he will remember next year at budget time not to bring it
up again. I don't think that this matter has been refined the way that it
needs to be. I am not in favor of raising the garbage fees at this time.
I don't preclude that I might change or modify, but at this particular time,
I vote "no".
Mr. Perez: I ratify my position. I want to obtain
essential service and that is why I vote "no".
Mayor Ferre:
Archbishop McCartney.
Archbishop McCartney: I appreciate it and I think I should spend more time
at this time in praying for a solution to this thing, but first of all, I do
want to express thanks for all that our government officials are doing and we
do understand that they are very seriously approaching it. On the other hand,
I think maybe I speak with a special expertise tonignt. Two weeks ago, my
own home was robbed in Morningside. Our alarm system went off. It took a
half-hour for the Miami Police to get there. Others got there much before.
They saw the burgler up in the house. Miami Police took one-half hour to
get there. The same weekend, the same day, two more homes were robbed in
Morningside. This afternoon, three homes were robbed in Morningside, so I
suppose I speak as a victim as well as in any other capacity. I also think
that perhaps I do represent the thinking of a lot of little people in our
community that really are concerned and consider security a primary concern.
I am talking about the people in the inner-city, as well as people elsewhere.
They need security and this community needs security, if it is going to
prosper, because if we are going to attract more business, if we are going
to attract more tourists, if we are going to attract more people to live in
our great City, we do have to indicate that we are very serious about provid-
ing security for this City, so I suppose that I am saying that I appreciate
your efforts. I am a little disappointed that you tell me that we have been
working on this for three years and still we haven't been able to resolve it,
that is, the three officers per thousand people. I hope that in a very short
time, we will be able to resolve it. It seems to me that I hear it being
said here that it is important that the City Manager and others get back to
the book and look where those funds come from. I listened to the debate and
wondered why there wasn't more of an explanation of what happened to the
some $10,000,000 that was largely endorsed and largely raised because people
are concerned about security in their community. I wonder, frankly, why
we are looking for sources like increasing the garbage collection until we
explain what happened to that $10,000,000. Thank you.
Mayor Ferre: Archbishop, I am awfully sorry that I am so inarticulate that
I wasn't able to explain that that $10,000,000 in this proposed budget is
going to services in the City of Miami and that we are increasing $8,500,000
in the Police Department alone. We also increasing $3,000,000 in the Fire
Department. That is an increase of almost close to $12,000,000 over last
year out of a total increase of $20,000,000 that we are increasing. We have
cut our departments, Archbishop, other than the Police and Fire, 12% a year,
27 SEP I o 1982
that is the average, We have cut but departments. Nowt the neat tine we
cut, we must close down a department. We must stop feeding senior citiens,
Pot example, we could,.=t've got a very simple solution, and I am willing to
vote for it. I want to put it on the record. We will stop all social set-
vices in the City of Miami. It is not our responsibility. We do not have a
fiscal responsibility to render social services that was turned over to Metro-
politan Dade County ten years ago, and I will do it very simply. I will make
you a motion that the City of Miami stop all of its social services and use
those monies for the purposes of increasing our Police Department and I will
make that into a motion and return our social services over to Metro.
Mr, Carollo: Mr. Mayor, will you withdraw your motion so I can see how Ernie
can get us a million dollars?
Mayor Ferre: All right, Ernie, we will take you out of turn, but just for
three minutes.
Mr, Ernie Fannatto: Honorable Mayor and members of the Commission, Ernie
Fannatto is my name and I am president of the Taxpapers League of Miami and
Dade County. You can get a million dollars or more. You know, you want to
tear down the library there. These are hard times and I am 100% behind Mr.
Colson and the group here. I want to fight crime, because it is hurting our
economy. It it� hurting the businesses. And when you hurt these, you hurt
job -wise. And when you hurt job -wise, you are increasing crime, so I think
it is about time that we stood up and be counted, and sell that library in-
stead of tearing it down. You can get over a million dollars for that li-
brary. Maybe $1,200,000 or $1,300,000. Now, these are hard times. Why do
you want to tear down the libary when you have an asset there to fight and
combat crime. Here is your chance to do it, and if you put it on the ballot
and let the people decide, they will vote that way, don't think they won't!
They don't want it torn down. They want their assets and in reference to
the garbage tax, I want it very clear, when that sales tax was enacted, the
law specifically said that the bulk of this money is supposed to be used for
crime and property tax relief, so when you add a garbage tax on, what are
you doing, you are taking away that little decrease in taxes that you give
the people. That is increasing the property tax there, so you are violating
the law anyway when you do +-hat, because you are not giving the people any
decrease in taxes, but you can get the money there. Is is a shame to tear
down the building and lose assets of $1,200,000 or $1,300,000. Here you
got a chance to help fight and combat crime. I want to talk a little bit
about how we can help the economy of this county. You know, we"are going to
have close to a billion dollars in public buildings downtown, and you know,
you are talking about a stadium. I am for the Orange Bowl Stadium to be
improved as it is, because it is going to help the economy of the business-
man. When you help businesses, as I said before, you help the public. You
help to increase the capacity of the businesses and you are giving people
more jobs, and again I am going to say, even though it is repetitious, when
you have more jobs, you have less crime, but, I for the world, can't see
why you want to keep that library, and I am going to talk about how you can
help to increase your tax base downtown, which is a billion dollars of build-
ings. What you need instead of building a sports arena on the river, you
need a ten or fifteen million dollar parking garage downtown, because if the
tourists come in there, and they are going to pay $4.00 and $5.00 an hour
the way they are paying now, they are not coming back. And, if you want to
protect the interest of taxpayers, there is your chance to do it. And, if
you don't, when there is a decrease in business, that is a yardstick to ask
for a decrease in taxes and this billion dollars of property tax there will
prevent you from doing that if you don't something down there, so that is the
priority.
Mayor Ferre; Thank you, Mr. Fannatto.
Mr. Fannatto:
you are going
you don't cut
that is what
Mayor Ferre:
And let me just conclude - don't tamper with this tax that
to put on, because if you do, you might get a lawsuit. And if
taxes and you take that money, you are violating the law, and
you are doing when you use garbage tax.
Thank you, Mr, Fannatto. The next speaker is Janet Reno,
98
SEP 101900
9SARTD7iW ..e pmnwx•..an."C'^m........
Ms, Janet Reno: Thank your Mr. Mayor and commissioners► Let tie just stress
with respect to the issue of civilianization vs. this 3.01 if you get 74
police officers out on the street, you are going to have more experienced
police officers who can supervise new police officers, so you ought to be
able to do both. Secondly, you have made reference to the materials we have
presented and we would like to. work with Mr. Gary in the next couple of weeks
to clarify these figures because it appears that rather than an increase,
there has been a decrease in crime prevention funds, and Mr. Mayor, you had
pointed out the need for balanced services. As you pointed out and as Mr.
Dawkins has pointed out, it will do no good to have additional police officers
if there are not programs and facilities that we can refer these people to.
The City of Miami has taken the lead in juvenile diversion programs in the
area -wide crime prevention program and I would suggest that within the next
two weeks we see exactly what is there and that those important efforts be
continued. You have done a magnificient job - those who are incumbents over
the last three years under the most trying circumstances, and I congratulate
you.
Mayor Ferre: Mr. Colson, are there any other speakers in your group, because
I have read some of the names and nobody stands up. Is Jerome Gleicko here,
and does he wish to speak? Does Howard Rasmussen wish to speak? Okay, and
the next one after that is Willie Gort?
Mr. Howard Rasmussen: Mr. Mayor and members of the Commission, in your pre-
liminary remarks, Mr. Mayor, you indicated that it was a group of civilians
against the professionals and I appreciate being with this group of civilians,
but I would like to remind you that I have a master's degree in Police Adminis-
tration.
Mayor Ferre: Stand corrected in your case and I don't know if I can stand
corrected in the rest of them, but, with you I will accept that you are a
professional.
Mr. Rasmussen: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I don't want to get into a verbal
shooting match with you like you and I usually do when we talk about these
issues, but I think there are some questions that have to be raised about
some of the data that you presented earlier. First of all, you talked about
the City of Miami's police budget being 35% of the budget and exceeding major
cities of comparable size. I'd like to see the study that the City Manager
did, because first of all, 35% of what?
Mayor Ferre: Total budget.
Mr. Rasmussen: But, what? You know, what is the dollar figure of 35%.
Secondly, the second problem is that I am sure your budget people will tell
you that every city does a budget differently. And the kinds of expenditures
that are grouped together by object or classification of expenditure varies
significantly city to city. In some cities, for example, the purchase of
vehicles is not included in that operating budget. In other cities, vehicle
maintenance is not included in that budget. So, I think we have to be very
careful bandering around 35% unless we know 35% of what, and we know that
we are talking about similar kinds of budgets and similar kinds of cities.
Secondly, you talked about the need for civilians and we support that, Mayor,
but you can't talk about police personnel per thousand. You can only talk
about police officers per thousand, because they are the people on the
street. They are the people performing the services and they are the people
preventing crime and they are the people making arrests. Yes, we agree that
three officers per thousand is important, and that should be the objective,
but, you also have to consider the crime rate in Miami, the calls for ser-
vices in Miami and resource utilization and assignment. It is my understand-
ing, Mr. Mayor, and you may correct me if I am wrong, that one of the reasons
we have so many police officers in the station doing civilian work as opposed
to being on the street, is because of a civilian hiring freeze, which this
Commission has mandated over the last several years. Therefore, it has been
necessary for the Chief to put Officers in the station doing civilian tasks,
because the civilians that were requested were not authorized.
Mayor Ferre: I'm sorry, I was just...you are about four years behind times.
We had that four years ago, but there is no civilian freeze new, and by the
way...
29
SEP 10 1982
Mr. Gary: Mr. Mayor, we have not had a hiring freeze in the Police Department
since, I guess, 4 or 5 years ago. We had a hiring freeze approximately a
year and a half ago, but the Police and the Fire Departments were excluded.
Mr. Rasmussen: How many civilian positions in the Miami Police Department ate
currently vacant? And how many civilian positions have been authorized that
are not filled?
Mr. Gary: I can tell you right now that I hope that 113 are vacant and those
113 we are not trying to decide on right now, but the City Commissioners auth=
orized us to proceed with those 113 and I am happy to inform you that of that
113, within a month period of time, we have hired 35 of them. So, it is not
due to the fact that it is frozen, it is due to the fact that they are new
positions. It takes time to hire people.
Mr. Rasmussen: The next point that you made, Mr. Mayor, was to bring Mr.
Homer up and talk about this particular study. And I think you syould be
commended and this Commission should be commended for having initiated this
study and for having implemented its results - at least your recommendation,
but, I would like to remind you that there is a sentence in this study that
is very important. The sentence says "In order to move the civilianization
effort forward as rapidly as possible, this study was divided into two phases.
The first phase, which is described herein accepted as constraints, the pre-
sent organization of the Police Department, and the current authorization
of one thousand sworn officers". So, the study is conditioned upon the fact -
here is the organization - here is one thousand officers - here is what you
can do to civilianize it. There is no manpower needs analysis in this study.
This is a good study. It is to be supported. We are in favor of the civil-
ization effort, but it doesn't support zero police officers. Am I correct in
that interpretation, Mr. Mayor?
Mayor Ferre: Mr. Porter Homer?
Mr. Porter Homer: Under the total assignment made to us by this Commission,
we are to get into those questions of future growth for the Police Department,
as well as organization and training and career advancement.
Mr. Rasmussen: Okay. I think the final questions have to be asked in this
manner. You asked Chief Harms some questions. I think the question should
be - "In order to police the City of Miami in a professional manner, what
does this City need? How many calls for service are being stacked in the
dispatch room on a Friday and Saturday night, because police officers are
not available? How many serious investigations are not even being initia-
ted, let alone conducting the followups because of lack of investigative
resources?" Those are the critical questions that need to be asked. We
realize you have a shortage of funds. I don't think we have the answers
to the $10,000,000, Mr. Mayor, but I think this community fought for that
penny sales tax under the assumption and the belief that it would go for
current control, and I think 50 additional officers phased in during the
year so you don't need all that money on October 1, but you can have planned
phase in progress, number one. Number two, remember, all those rookies you
are talking about, 62% brought two years of experience; by the time you bring
on this 50, we will have three years of experience, plus you have got a lot
of experienced officers in the station, as Janet Reno brought out, that will
now be on the streets, so I think your ratio of rookies will drop consider-
ably after that year. Thank you.
Mayor Ferre: All right, thank you Mr. Rasmussen, and by the way, I had not
noticed it in the past that we had been on opposite sides, but I will have
to think about it and see if I can recollect. Dr. Stokes?
Dr. Stokes: Thank you Mr. Mayor and members of the Commission. Let me just
make three or four points in behalf of the M.C.A.C. First, a primary res-
ponsibility of government is to protect the lives and the property of the
citizens. Number two, and I think we agree with that - number two, we still
have a crisis. I don't care if we do have the Federal government down here,
and if we have gotten additional State personnel and resources. We still have
a crisis, even though we had some modest improvement in statistics. Number
30 SEP 101982
thtdd, when you have a crisis like this, business cannot be conducted as
usual. Mayor, if you will recall, two years ago when we the meeting at
OMNI, you took the leadership and stood up and said "Our Commission is going
.to hire 186 officers". And you took the leadership in that effort and I com—
mend you for it. Tonight, what I heard you say was you are reaffirming the
fact that you are going to endorse the 3.0 and move on a timely basis. Number
two, I heard you say, if I am not mistaken, that at the conclusion of this
next year, that you will bring aboard 50 officers. Now, keep in mind when we
talk about phasing them in that we can phase them in with a lot less money.
Let's keep in mind when we make the commitment of 3.0, ultimately we do have
to pay that full rate - we do ultimately have to pay it, so when we make the
commitment of 3.0, what we are saying is, in the future we are willing to
pay the $42,000 and whatever inflation is over the long haul, so we have made
that commitment, so I hear you make that - you have taken the leadership. I
think Ms. Reno said a few moments ago that it takes a total of program. It
is not just sworn officers, it takes the P.S.A.s and take the technical per-
sonnel, it takes the equipment, and also it takes some preventative programs,
and I think that needs to be addressed. I commend you for the progress that
we have made and I hoping that in the next two weeks that we will make the
kind of progress, because unless we work together as a community, not just the
elected officials and not just the appointed officials, and not just the
M.C.A.C. and all the people in this room, but everybody in this community is
going to have to move together and we have a war on our hands right now and
we are just going to have to bite the bullet, not do business as usual, and
we are going to have reduce this surge in crime, or we are not going to be
able to fill those buildings downtown, and we are not going to be able to
let our wives and our families walk back and forth like they should, so thank
you, and I appreciate the commitment that you made so far tonight, and we will
look forward to walking with you the next two weeks.
Mayor Ferre: Thank you, Dr. Stokes. The next speaker will be Don Durez.
Mr. Don Durez: Mr. Mayor, Mr. Commissioners, fellow citizens of Miami. The
Miami Herald reported that $5,000,000 of the proposed City budget is allotted
for maintenance and improvements to the City parks, however I have been in-
formed by the Parks Department that this money will only be used for parking
lot reconditioning and will not provide for maintenance for the the VITA course
at Kennedy Park on Bayshore Drive down the road. My family uses Ted Bleir
VITA course at least'zhree times per week. There are many regulars who use the
VITA course on a daily basis. Furthermore, Rent -A -Cop has advised me that
700 people use the park on a typical Sunday afternoon. The Ted Bleir VITA
course is a disgrace and needs immediate improvement as not one iota of main-
tenance has been done to the VITA course since installation about six years
ago. Specifically, eight exercise stations have no posted signs.* Some signs
are faded. Rings are missing from station Number 10. The tow anchor is loose
on Number 11. Wooden cross bars rotting and weathered at station number 17.
One post is twisted and weathered on station number 18. At loose bar on station
number 19. Station number 20 needs regrading. Although some destruction of
the exercise stations may be due to vandalism, most of the destruction is due
to lack of maintenance and weathering by the elements. Other remedies are
needed for six deep baby sized holes on the east side of the park. Restrooms
appear chronically unclean and in need of repair. The dipsey dumpster on the
east side of the park is rusted out and tipped over. The disc golf course that
is a frisbee course structures are bent and broken, more from rusting and age
than from vandalism. Some light poles have exposed wires at the ground level
and need cover. Finally, the park appears trashy at times, especially due
to plastic straws dispensed by a park vendor whose license fee does not cost
effectively cover the cost of cleanups. I would like to thank the Parks Depart-
ment for the recent improvement, for example, the phone installation is a great
idea, as I am not getting any younger. The tree planting was nice too. The
volleyball resurfacing about two weeks ago looks good. Recent local zoning
variances in the area will create a greater population density, therefore the
money allotted for the preparing of plans to renovate the parking lot at Ken-
nedy Park may be called for. It does have valleys and ridges in it. However,
I ask of you, Mr. Mayor and the Commissioners to assure that the existing
VITA course exercise facilities and the other discrepancies that I mentioned
be properly reconditioned and maintained. I thank you for addressing that issue
earlier today, Mayor. One more thing - it is kind of interesting, the gentlemen
talking about increasing the garbage fees and I haaven't had a garbage pickup
since the Thursday before Labor Day. Thank you.
31
S€P 1.01982
id
May6t Eette., Mr. Manager, would you have somebody from the Parks Departtneht
si"t down with Mr. burez and go over that specific list that he read into the
iecord? And would you see that his garbage is picked up, please. (LAUGHTER)
Mayor Ferre: All right,Miss Helen Starr is the next speaker if she is here?
Miss Starr? All right, Mr. Joe Woodnick. Is Mr. Woodnick here? Mr. Woodnick,
as I recall...were you one of the gentlemen who wanted five minutes?
Mr. Joe Woodnick: Yes, I don't believe I will take that long, Mr. Mayor.
My purpose for being here was to ask for some specific items to remain in
the Police Department budget and to increase one of those items. If I may,
1 will leave my packet with you and the Commissioners. I would like for
you to look it over, and I will come back at the next meeting. I would like
to make one comment. I have not heard from Police Department, this Commission,
Miami Citizens Against Crime, or Howard Rasmussen from the Greater Crime
Commission, and that is, stolen property in Dade County. We are taking about
money. We are talking about businesses. We are talking about tax bases and
jobs. Stolen property has a direct effect. It is very interesting that in
1978, in Dade County with Miami having one -fifth or more of this dollars
stolen was $67,000,000! In '81, we are tip to $195,500,000. This year, the
first six months, Dade County is up $149,000,000, and this approximate. In
178, 13% of the State total to now, by the end of this year, we will be over
50% of the stolen property of the State right here in Dade County. Now, that
is a capital of something. The items that I will speak to you about next
week then, will relate to effectiveness and how to address this problem.
Mayor Ferre: All right, thank you Mr. Woodnick. The next speaker is Atlee
Wampler. Mr. Wampler, it is good to see you and I wanted to say that I am
glad you stayed in this community.
Mr. Atlee Wampler: Thank you. Thank you very much. I am a part of this
community and my office is here in downtown Miami. What I want to talk about
is not specific items for tax increases, such as garbage taxes and other things.
What I want to talk about is perceptions of the people and expectations. When
the one cent sales tax was heavily lobbied by all the groups that are on the
list that make up Miami Citizens Against Crime and the Citizens Crime Commission
and all these other groups, it was everybody's understanding and expectation
and all the people in the community that supported those organizations and the
lobbying effort and what was publicized to the people in the news media that
of that one percent sales tax, increased the new money, so the new monies that
came in; regardless of what ever else was in the budget, that half of that would
go to new crime programs and half of it would go to property tax relief. Now,
as you pointed out, it is true, that is not what the law says. If you asked
the Legislators that worked on that and were lobbied about it, most of them
will tell you that is what they thought they were passing, and that is what
we all thought we were supporting. So, even though that isn't what the law
exactly says, that is what the people believe and that is what they expect.
Now, part of that was this 3.0 effort. I just want to talk for a little bit
about what 3.0 officers per 1000 means. Incidentlly, of course, as we all know,
Miami isn't like those other 27 cities. The tremendous crime problem that we
had before the Vice -President's task force came is still here. The loads of
cocaine and marijuana and mezacline tablets, so part of them may be diverted
to other parts of the country, but as we all know, the organizations are still
here and operating and the effects of robberies and murders and violent crimes
that go with the narcotics importation problem, where Miami and South Florida
serves as a funnel to the nation, are still here and with us today. The 3.0
index talks about one factor which is response time - the time that it takes
for the police to come to some citizen's call for emergency help, because he
is being robbed or there is a burglary in process, or a murder is occurred
next door. We have heard talk about one-half hour response time. I have
heard much larger instances of forty minutes and what happens is that the
individuals are mad at the police when the police arrive and there becomes an
estrangement factor between the police and the citizen. The police have just
come from some other serious felony and they are upset that the citizen is upset
with them when they are working as hard as they can and the citizen is upset
because he is not getting the services that he thinks he is paying for. The
next part of the factor is the time to complete an investigation. It doesn't
help if you can respond almost immediately if you don't have the time to
thoroughly complete and follow through with an investigation and that is
What we have heard about is the stack on time. Another factor is the respect
32
SEP 10 1982
ld
that the polite get in the community for being able to complete an investiga=
thin to its entirely and to respond on time. They developed a touch greater
respect for themselves in the community and have a greater feeling of ac=
cothplishment. It is just the very fact that there are additional police that
are out on the street adds a deterrent to crime in general These are the
things that we are talking about in getting to the 3.0 factor. It is not some
frivolous expenditure of money for some ultimate pie -in -the -sky goal. It is
a very realistic effort, and I get back again once to the question of what the
people expect here is half of that one cent tax going to new crime programs,
Thank you.
Mayor Ferre: Mr. Wampler, I don't want to get into a debate here with you,
but there is one important thing that I really think I have to clarify. Barry
Kutun, the Speaker Pro Tem and Jack Gordon, at the Delegation meeting, went
over that issue. Before Barry Kutun and Jack Gordon, there was absolutely no
question clearly what the Legislature, what the law was when it was voted on.
Now, there were four or five members of the Delegation out of thirty-two who
claimed that they thought that that is what they were voting on, but the
king's English is very clear and the people of Miami and the newspapers re-
ported it very clear. I read it very clearly, and I think Barry Kutun and Jack
Gordon were very clear in their statements of what the law was, and anyway,
the English language and the wording of the law speaks for itself.
Mr. A. W. Davis: Good afternoon, you will have to forgive my appearance, but
I left home in a hurry to come down to the meeting because I didn't have any
advance notice today. I have been listening to the meeting, and it reminds
me of something that Adam Smith said in the late nineteenth century, and I am
not saying this about the Commission, but I am saying this -that mad men
in an authority, when hearing voices in the air, often are distilling their
own frenzies as it is related to some academic scribbler of times past - and
I have listened to many people that have spoken today and it seems as if the
budget (and I haven't seen the prospectus) is erected on about four legs, one
being the property tax, one being the sales tax - a penny, another being the
fee, and the other being the special districting tax that obviously maybe
at some point in time you all will address. Two of those legs are faulty
legs, The one penny sales tax - four years ago I look at the one penny sales
tax as an avenue that you all would have to travel in order to garner some
kind of revenue. What happens in effect is that a consumer bank came to my
mind, which is one of t'he things that I am going to elect, and all it does
it teaches people how to shop and if you were to buy a car and it has about
a $1000 markup, above its invoice and you were told about that $1000, and you
asked for that $1000 off, what it represents is a $50 loss to the City, if
they were basically depending on that extra penny sales tax. And I think that
what the condition needs to be given to think about is that you have no guar-
antees when you begin to depend on sales tax, and you have no guarantees when
you begin to depend on the extra fees as well, because the people in this
community are becoming more consumer concious and they are beginning to watch
their dollars and I think that as we begin to teach them how to shop, we will
be able to take certain monies away from the Treasury that are being squandered
and I think that is exactly is happening with this budget. I am listening to
a large group of people that are going to benefit from the increase in police,
wherein I am not looking to a very large group of people that are not going to
benefit from the increase of the police, because I have to begin to think of
the pensions that are going to be paid to these policemen. I have to begin
to think of how government is being used to redistribute the wealth that is
being accumulated in tax revenues and I think that some of that money needs
to go not only to just the policemen to the civilians as well. I don't nec-
essarily see 50% or 35% of a budget all going to policemen. Why can't some
of that budget, a larger part of it, go also to some civilians, be-
cause these people too need jobs and they too need to live, and I don't think
that everybody that has come up here talking about the need for the increase of
policemen have a legitimate argument, because certain people have had their
houses broken into - I have too, and I didn't even call the policemen. I
don't think that would warrant me to gc out and to expend an exorbitant amount
of money, , just to simply squash one very little crime. I think that the
budget, (and I was listening to Mr. Carollo) and I think many of the things he
said are very commendable and also, I listened to some things that some other
Commissioners said and so far as the garbage tax, I am not going to pay it -
point blank, I am not going to pay it! The first day that I hear this Commis-
sion has passed a bill that increases my garbage tax, I want to put the garbage
33
Id
SEP 101982
drr
iii the stteet on the street. I am going to pour it theteo because 1 don't
think, as the gentlemen said earlier, that it is the correct way to go about
this, if the Legislature intended for you to use this extra penny to reduce
our taxes, and then in the back door you come and increase the garbage fee,
I think that is very unfair manipulation and I think that maybe some other
avenue needs to be explored, okay? Thank you.
Mr. David Perkins: Commissioners, I am here because of such criticisms that
the public has been receiving from the Commission Board, from our re-
developer - planners and from our organizations that are supposed to be help-
ing the public. Also, our viewpoints concerning the Police Department. We
need police out here, it is true, but in the Miami Police Department, we have
got some that have got no business on the Police Force at all. They don't know
how to show their love and respect for the public. They are always threatening
the public,. They are always hurting the public, incarcerating people uncon-
stitutionally. They act as if the public has no rights. The Police Department,
or quite a few of them have violated the policies of the police policies. I
have got here with me a letter, when I went before the other Commission Board
about some of them in the Miami Police Department, of threats. I got a threat
that was just passed down here lately to me by a policeman in the Miami Police
Department, and I am not giving it up. If that policeman is going to be in
the Police Force, I am winding up with lawsuits filed against the Miami Police
Department. Like I said, we need police out here. It is dangerous out here
now, where people can not walk the streets safe because of these drug pushers
out here, these dope pushers out here, these thieves and robbers out here.
We need police, it is true, but we don't need a policeman on the force if he
comes out here threatening peoples lives, incarcerating people unconstitution-
ally, as if the public has no rights. Under the promises of the Civil Right
Act, the Constitution Right Act, the Human Right Act and our Political Rights
Act, the police are violating them, just because they got on this little blue
uniform and a badge and a gun on their side, they let it run to their head
that they can just do the public anyway that they want to. They act as if the
public has no rights. The public has rights. You Commissioners know, by the
policies a policeman is not supposed to threaten anyone out here. They are
supposed to show their respect and treat the public according to this policy.
All right, like I am saying, if that cannot help keep the police on the right
track, there is only one thing to do, like I intend to do, and like I am going
to do if you can allow these type of policemen on the force to come out here
and threaten your life - threaten to have you incarcerated, threaten to have
you put in mental hospitals because you don't cooperate with this criticism
that they are doing to you. And like I said, I got a letter here now, which
I am pushing about, which I am going to be going to Washington, D. C., which
is going to the U. S. House of Representatives in Washington, D. C. I am to
go there for the 17th and the 18th of this month, which I will be speaking
with the House of Representatives and our government because of such discrimi-
nation procedures are going on. Also here, went before the other Commissioners
about such discrimination procedures. One other point. Why, when these budgets
come in, the citizens do not receive any grants in these plans of development.
Like, also I would appreciate it if you can take it under consideration instead
of letting these top crook organizations come before you, pretending like
reorganizing and redevelopment in helping the public with these grants, and
they are putting it in their pockets to help themselves. and some of their
best friends. This is coming to a conclusion now why the public is not getting
the propoer assistance. I am begging now, please help the public. If you want
your position as being on this Commissioner Board, and you do not help the
public, I guarantee you I will help get these petitions going to help get you
all out of the organization.
Mayor Ferre: Thank you Mr. Perkins. Mr. Mariano Cruz.
Mr. Marinano Cruz: Good evening, Mayor and Commissioners. I don't if five
minutes that you allow me will be enough, because in the discussion, that may
not be enough time. First, my credentials. I don't have a master's degree in
criminal law. I am no lawyer. I have no vested interest in serving the crimina:
justice system at all. I am a member of the 99.9% of the people out there that
make this possible. I am not a member of the .1% of the organized vocal vested
interests that come to these hearings. Whenever they smell more taxpayer's
money, they come here because we, the taxpayers out there, with our federal,
city tax, county, state, the school board, South Florida Flood District
all that makes possible the pie, that big pie and then they want all the pies,
see. The crumbs will be left for the old people there, the people in the
parks, all of that. One thing, let me make clear about - the Parks Department.
34
Za SEP 10 1982
We deed more money for the patksg because evetytime l complain to Al Howatdi
to Carl Ketn, to Mt. Gonzalez about the parks in Allapattah, the problems there,
nothing has been donei l complain about the restroom. We go there and we
cant use it. Now you know what they did? They got iron bars, big massive
padlocks and locked it. There is no way to get in there. People go there on
Sunday afternoon, after work. There is no way to get in there and you have
got to go to the bushes behind there. Now, you know what I have done? I paid
$100 to the City of Hialeah. I have a non-resident pass. I have the money to
go to Hialeah and pay. You can do that in the City of Miami. Make a non-resi-
dent user fee for the people, not for the tourists, but people that come here
and use our parks from all over Dade County. If I go to Crandon Park, I pay
a dollar to park there. If I go fish at Haulover, I pay there. It used to
be a dollar, now it is twenty-five cents, but every place you go, you pay.
Now, the City of Miami, you do not pay now. The City complains about the
County. The County charges rent. The City charges fees for the garbage fee
and all that. Now, the City of Miami administration charges a token fee of S1.00 a
year for'the rental of the Old Municipal Building as a jail. annex. Instead,
the County is charging more for the garbage fee, more for everything, not only
the County. Commissioner Plummer said that when he went to the School Board
asking for the old building at Highland Park Elementary, they never give it to
the City, and the City gave money to the School Board not too long ago, about
that after school program. With our money we are subsidizing the School
Board. They don't give anything to us. Now, they are talking about the
crime. Are they going to eliminate crime? Crime has been with us since the
beginning - biblical times Cain killed Abel and all that. There is no wav to eliminate
crime. You control it, you hide it, you do whatever. Even now, Time magazine,
this week has an issue - a nation of inmates. You don't get crime by throwing
big bucks, big lawyers, big fees, all that. You eliminate crime or control it
by social economic programs. You are treating the disease. Nobody is treating
the symptoms. You cure the disease by eliminating the causes. MiQoical Science.
did not find a cure for polio by putting people in iron lungs or fitting them
with braces. They found the virus that caused polio and Jonas Salk got the
vaccine and they have eliminated polio same thing as smallpox, or any other
disease. They don't cure the disease by treating the symptoms, and that is
what they are doing there. In Allapattah, they put another jail there. There
is the jail annex, Dade County jail, the Youth Hall, the Halfway, the Women's
Center, everything is there. More jails, more money. Why? Because crime is
big business, big money. I know that I am in the minority here saying that,
but that is the truth. Crime is big business. You know why? There is a lot
of money involved in crime, you know that. Look around the City of Miami.
How much money they have to give to that and they can give us $2,000,000,
$5,000,000 for the park, and we can keep those parks open and like you say
that the child or those children are at that park and don't run the street
or are thinking about robbing and old man or mugging and old man to get the
money. They will be doing something there. Now, we need in our neighborhood
we need to be treated with equality and parity like the other neighborhoods
of the City and to the other different people that come here We need trans-
portation for the people. We need service in the parks. We need, at a time
that we are telling people not to come to the center - the old people. We
turn them away and we are paying the County $18,000. One thing I say is,
that remember the taxpayer out there, residents of the City of Miami that
you are elcted by them to represent you. Thank you.
Mayor Ferre: Mr. Cruz, just out of curiosity...you are a citizen of Miami?
Mr.Cruz: Yes.
Mayor Ferre: You live in Miami, and you are a taxpayer.
Mr, Cruz: I live in Miami and I am a taxpayer, a rarity here tonight.
Mayor Ferre: And your home is here. You don't live in Hialeah or Coral
Gables?
Mr, Cruz: I have been here in Miami for twenty years, No, no, Z pay to
Hialeah to come there. I work in North Miami Biscayne Park and all those places,
I don't live there. I live in Miami,
Mayor Ferre: All right, the next speaker is Mr. Cast llp.
ld 35 SEP 10 1982
Mt, Aldio Cantillo! Good evenings Mr. Mayor, 1 would like to ask you that
most of the people here have forgotten that City of Miami met the 1976 quota
for the Police Department. It took you that long, mote or less, to get the
City of Miami to meet the Bicentennial when the Bicentennial Park was being
built. I also feel that if you are going to tax the garbage, I feel you should
improve the garbage pickups and all that. If you are going to help the polices
why do you help the garbage too, because you are killing two purposes. I don't
mind paying for garbage for staffing the police, but I would like to know that
you are going to pick up my garbage on time.
Mayor Ferret I think that is valid. Can't argue with that!
Mr. Cantillo: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I also would like to say if you are
going to tax us with the City to help the Orange Bowl, where is that money
going to come. Can you say that?
0.
Mr. Carollo: (INAUDIBLE)
Mr. Cantillo: For fixing the Orange Bowl?
Mayor Ferre: We don't have any money now. We are looking for money.
Mr, Cantillo: I will tell you where you can get some money. Why don't you
tax Porno? Get some revenue! Since you are going to draw them, might as well
gain some money out of it. There is some revenue there.
Mayor Ferre: Archbishop, hew about that. That's not a bad idea!
Mr. Cantillo: Thank you sir. Since you are trying to close them, you might
as well get tax out of it, instead of the marina, because they are going to
hang somebody with the marina.
Mayor Ferre: I'll tell you, we will raise more money on that than anything
else!
Mr. Cantillo: They are not of the marina. That's not a bad idea.
Mayor Ferre: Okay.
Mr. Plummer: So far, we are fighting crime with garbage cans and the Arch-
bishop just had a heart attack.
Mayor Ferre: Thank you very much, Mr. Cantillo: The last speaker I have is
Mr. Orlando Amador. Mr. Amador, you are the last speaker that 'I have on my
list.
Mr. Orlando Amadar: Okay, a very short presentation. I am the chairman of
the Festival Advisory Committee of the City of Miami. We have a task of more
or less recommending to the Manager and then the Manager to the Commission,
how to -spend the money allocated this year for different festivals - festivals
which are artistic, some of them are popular in character, some are highly
cultural and we found that in following the guidelines of the City, that is
to say, in funding first, those organizations that have a very small budget,
when we came to the real big one, the real big people gathering and money
producing festivals like Calle Ocho and Carnival and the Florida A&M University,
we found that we were really short. That actually what we got, was not enough
to really give this particular event the amount of money they actually needed
to have the success they deserve and is so really so favorable to all patrons
of the City and the Advisory Committee passed a resolution that they told me
to bring to you to see if we couldn't see very slightly the amount of money
given to us, especially for this kind of festival. We had $180,000 to give
away, but we have a contingency fee of 20% that has to be set apart. Actually,
we have only $148,000. Now last year, we had $86,000 plus whatever the Commission
felt should be given and I think the whole thing came to over $400,000, so this
year we believe that if we can increase the allocation to $250,000, leaving
aside the 20%, would give us about $200,000 to play with, or to give to this
particular and so meritorious festivals, the ones that are really people gat-
hering and money gathering and also created great publicity for the City of
Miami - if exactly what my committee has told me to bring to you tonight, to
simply have this small increase (It is about $50,000 all in all) so actually
we can have at least the same success and the same amount of cooperation from
id 36 SEP 10 1982
City like we had last` it. We ate not asking for any zrea§e, wa ju§ t WAnb
to keep things as they usually are. Thank you very touch.
Mayor Ferre: Thank you, Mr. Amador. All Might, Mr. Colson for..,
(INAUDIBLE BACKGROUND COMMENTS NOT PLACED INTO THE PUBLIC RECftb)
Mayor Ferre: Does anybody else want to speak tonight? We have iyow, I think,
concluded our public hearing.
Mr. Plummer: Mr. Mayor, I would only like to ask - Mr. Manager, you have heard
all of these comments. Do you'have any final comments for the evening? f see
your mustache twitching, but that doesn't...
Mr. Dawkins: And we appreciate your taking time from your busy schedule to
come down here.
Mayor Ferre: Monsignor Walsh, I want to thank you for being here in support
of the Archbishop and all that. All right, we have got to vote now. We need
to vote on"first reading. The City Commission now needs to amend the tenta-
tive budget or recompute the millage rate or publicly announce, or adapt the
tentative millage rate. Are we ready now on first reading to adapt the tenta-
tive millage rate. Would you tell us again what the millage rate is, on
the record?
Mr. Manohar Surana: Okay, operating per budget, we are proposing a millage
rate of 9.0612, a debt service of 1,6682, a total of 10.7294 mill.
5. FIRST READING ORDIIID.NCE: DEFII4E AND DEFIGNATE
TERRITORIAL LI"ITC OF T:_l; CITY AND FIY. TEITATIVE '•'ILLPGE.
Mayor Ferre: Is there a motion?
Mr. Plummer: So moved.
Mayor Ferre: Is there a second?
Mr. Dawkins: Second.
Mayor Ferre: Further discussion? Call the roll.
AN ORDINANCE ENTITLED -
AN ORDINANCE DEFINING AND DESIGNATING THE TERRITORIAL
LIMITS OF THE CITY OF MIAMI FOR THE PURPOSE OF TAXATION;
FIXING THE TENTATIVE MILLAGE AND LEVYING TAXES IN THE
CITY OF MIAMI, FLORIDA, FOR THE FISCAL YEAR BEGINNING
OCTOBER 1, 1982, AND ENDING SEPTEMBER 30, 1983; CON-
TAINING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE.
Was introduced by Commissioner Plummer and seconded by Commissioner Dawkins
and passed on its first reading by title by the following vote:
AYES: Commissioner Miller J. Dawkins
Commissioner Demetrio Perez, Jr.
Commissioner J. L. Plummer, Jr.
Vice -Mayor Joe Carollo
Mayor Maurice A. Ferre.
NOES: None
J' ABSENT: None
The City Attorney read the ordinance into the public record and
announced that copies were available to the members of the City Commission
and to the members of the public.
Mayor Ferre: Now we have got to adapt a tentative budget. This is a resolution.
Mr. Surana: Number three.
Mayor Ferre: What? 3
SEP 10 1904
Mayor Ferre: All rights thank you for that information and you have already
read into the record that that is for the implementation of the Police Depart"
ment civilianization program, for the hiring of 150 civilian employees„
$204500000 and $1560420, total of $2,606,420. Now, we have to now vote on
the budget.
Mr. Surana: plus millage, then budget.
Mayor Ferre: Well, we just voted on the millage.
Mr. Ralph Ongie: Mr. Mayor, that was an ordinance and we should have -read
that ordinance.
NOTE FOR THE RECORD: AT THIS POINT, THE CITY ATTORNEY READ FIRST RWING
ORDINANCE INTO THE RECORD.
Mayor Ferre: Now what is the next thing we need to do?
Mr. Gary: Mr. Mayor, we have a new policy this year whereby we have to separate
out the Downtown Development Authority from our budget as we did in previous
years however, they have to go through the same process that we have gone
through. I must add to you that with all of the benefits that the State gave us
this year in the new State law - sales tax, they took away your right to go
to 10 mill, but they also added in the Downtown Development Authority within
the 10 mill cap. Obviously, that didn't have any effect on us this year, how-
ever, once you get to the point of going up to 9.99 some mills, you are going
to find out that some of your money is lost as a result of the Downtown Develop-
ment Authority being included. Based on that, I would like for...
Mr. Plummer: Well, I think at that time we are going to have to make some
serious decisions about the D.D.A.
Mr. Gary: I have no comment on that.
Mayor Ferre: What?
Mr. Plummer: What he is saying is, they are taking away our right to increase
to the 10 mills by giving us the sales tax. They have also taken away the
millage, not this year, but the following year of the D.D.A.
Mayor Ferre: Who has?
Mr. Plummer: The State when they gave you the Sales Tax.
Mayor Ferre: Is that right, Roy, legally? What do you mean, they have taken
the right to the D.D.A. millage?
Mr. Roy Kenzie: When the State changed their method of going through the
one-half mill, the D.D.A. taken as a special district, was included within
the ten mill cap even though the D.D.A. does not include the whole city, but
only a very small portion of it.
Mayor Ferre: How can they do that? Did they do that legally?
Mr. Plummer: He who giveth, taketh away!
Mayor Ferre: Well, I will tell you what. We had better get our Dade Delegation
working on that. Mr. Manager, I am sorry, that is the first time 1 ever heard
of that, We had better get these people working, getting that clarified. I am
sure that was not the intention.
Mr, Gary; Mr. Mayor - yes it was,
38
id SEP 101904
Mr, 5urana: Yes, it was.
Mayon Fevre: No, no, no, We are going to get that clatified. Clark, let's
talk about that. Lets get our lobbyist and all that vorking on that fdr
the next session.
Mr. Plummer: Well, hell, you have knowing about it since Mayl
Mayor Ferre: This is the first time I have heard of that.
Mr. Plummer: Mr. Kenzie, weren't you aware of it when they passed it?
Mayor Ferre: Well, he may have been, but that doesn't mean I was aware
of it: You know, he didn't talk to me either: Well, this is all good
fun. I
Plummerr: Haw, haw, haw.
Mr. Gary: Mr. Mayor, point of clarification§ Mr. Clerk, what did we vote
on?
Mayor Ferre: We voted on the millage.
Mr. Ongie: We voted first reading on the millage.
Mr. Gary: Okay, now we have got to vote on the budget ordinance.
6. !_AK; TEIITATIVE APPTIOP71IA_IONS FOR ry rI?DIMG SEPTrIyL% 30, 1913.
ON ROLL CALL:
Mr. Plummer: With the full understanding that these as outlined in the Q�
ordinance can be changed at the nex �eeting. The answer is "yes". S EP 1 0 196016
"
4
Mayor Ferre: ghat else do you have to do legally?
Mr. Surana: Now we have to do D.D.A.
Mayor Ferre: Do you have the motion? Do you have the D.D.A. ghat is it
a millage you have got to do first?
Mr. Surana: Mayor, let's go with Number "a" - percentage increase in mill -
age or rollback rate is zero percent. Roman Numeral II on agenda, Mayor.
Mayor Ferre: All right, this is discussion of the proposed millage rate
and tentative budget for the Downtown Development Authority. The per-
centage increase in millage of the rollback rate is zero. All right, any
questions on zero? Do you all know what that means? The City Commission
listens tb responses to this. Does anybody want to talk about the D.D.A.
from the public? All right, hearing...
(INAUDIBLE BACKGROUND COMMENTS NOT PLACED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD)
Mayor Ferre: That is it. You don't want to talk, do you, Cruz?
(INAUDIBLE BACKGROUND COMMENTS NOT PLACED INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD)
Mayor Ferre: We are going to give you a free television set. (LAUGHTER)
No sales, tax, nothing. Okay.
Mr. Carollo: I have a suggestion to that, Mr. Mayor, that I was asked to
pass on to you. That was that we should compromise with the nudist beach
and just require that everyone would wear bottoms.
Mayor Ferre: Well, you know, I was going to recommend to you that you
might want to combine the nudist beach and that shooting range that you
want out there on Virginia Key.
Mr. Carollo: You definitely will have some shooting accidents there.
Mayor Ferre: All right now...
Mr. Surana: The number four, adopt the tentative millage rate.
7. DEFI117 AIM DE£IG'IATE TEPT.ITORIAL LII'.ITS OF
D0I?1ITOITN D VELOPIE*1T AUTEORITY.
�i
Mayor Ferre: Does somebody want to move the tentative millage rate?
Mr. Carollo: Move.
Id SEP 10 1982
AN ORDINANCE ENTITLED
AN ORDINANCE DEFINING AND DESIGNATING
THE TERRITORIAL LIMITS OF THE DOWNTOWN
DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT OF THE CITY OF
MIAMI LOCATED WITHIN THE TERRITORIAL
LIMITS OF THE CITY OF MIAMI FOR THE
PURPOSE OF TAXATION, FIXING THE MILLAGE
AND LEVYING TAXES IN THE DOWNTOWN
DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT LOCATED WITHIN
THE TERRITORIAL LIMITS OF THE CITY OF
=
MIAMI, FLORIDA, FOR THE FISCAL YEAR
=
BEGINNING OCTOBER 1, 1982, AND ENDING
SEPTEM13ER 30, 1983; FIXING THE MILLAGE
AT FIFTY ONE -HUNDREDTHS (,50) MILLS ON
THE DOLLAR OF THE NONEXEMPT ASSESSED
VALUE OF ALL REAL AND PERSONAL PROPERTY
IN SAID DISTRICT AND PROVIDING THAT
THE SAID MILLAGE AND THE TAXES LEVIED
HEREIN SHALL BE IN ADDITION TO THE FIXING
OF THE MILLAGE AND THE LEVYING OF TAXES
WITHIN THE TERRITORIAL LIMITS OF THE CITY
OF MIAMI, WHICH IS CONTAINED IN THE
GENERAL APPROPRIATION ORDINANCE FOR THE
AFORESAID FISCAL YEAR AS REQUIRED BY
SECTION 30 OF THE CITY CHARTER; PROVIDING
THAT THE FIXING OF THE MILLAGE AND LEVYING
OF TAXES HEREIN SHALL BE IN ADDITION
TO SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR IMPROVEMENTS
IMPOSED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY
OF MIAMI WITHIN THE TERRITORIAL LIMITS
OF THE CITY OF MIAMI: PROVIDED THAT THIS
ORDINANCE SHALL NOT BE DEEMED AS REPEALING
OR AMENDING ANY OTHER ORDINANCE FIXING
MILLAGE OR LEVYING TAXES FOR THE FISCAL
YEAR BEGINNING OCMBER-1, 1962 AND ENDING
SEPTEMBER 30, 1983 BUT SHALL BE DEEMED
SUPPLEMENTAL AND IN ADDITION HERETO; AND
PROVIDING THAT IF ANY SECTION, CLAUSE OR
SUBSECTION SHALL BE DECLARED UNCONSTITU-
TIONAL, IT SHALL NOT AFFECT THE REMAINING
PROVISIONS OF THIS ORDINANCE.
Was introduced by Commissioner Carollo and
seconded by Commissioner Perez
and passed on its first reading by title by the
following vote -
AYES; Commissioner Miller J.
Dawkins
Commissioner Demetrio Perez. Jr.
The City Attorney read the ordinance into the public record and
announced that copies were available to the members of the City Commission
- and to the pudic.
gl
41
SEP 101982
4
t
FIRST READIIIG Or'DIi,:ANCE:
APPROPRIATIONS FY Etl!;I',V3 SEPTE;H ER 3^_., 19^3.
DOWNT0111 D�-]VELCPr'ENT AUTIiO;ITY.
Mr. Surana: Adopt the budget now.
Mayor Ferre: Alright, somebody want to move the budget?
Mr. Dawkins: Move it.
Mayor Ferre: Is there a second? Let's go home, come on. Seconded by
Commissioner Perez, further discussion, read the ordinance. Let the record
reflect that all members of the Commission and the public have copies of this
ordinance before them and available, further discussion?
_ Mr. Dawkins: Discussion. Mr. Kenzie, I am very disturbed with the ethnic
makeup of the individuals employed with this money and I would like to put
it on record now that I want you to do your damndest to get some people
in there of color and of other Spanish speaking origin please.
Mayor Ferre: Further discussion, call the roll.
AN ORDINANCE ENTITLED -
AN ORDINANCE MAKING APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE DOWNTOWN
DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF MIAMI FOR THE
FISCAL YEAR ENDING SEPTEMBER 30, 1983; AUTHORIZING
THE DIRECTOR OF THE DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
TO INVITE OR ADVERTISE FOR BIDS FOR THE PURCHASE OF
ANY MATERIAL, EQUIPMENT OR SERVICE EMBRACED IN THE
SAID APPROPRIATIONS FOR WHICH FORMAL BIDDING MAY BE
REQUIRED PROVIDING THAT THIS ORDINANCE SHALL BE
SUPPLEMENTAL AND IN ADDITION TO THE ORDINANCE
MAKING APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE tISCAL YEAR. ENDING
SEPTEMBER 30, 1983 FOR THE OPERATION OF THE CITY
OF MIAMI, FLORIDA: PROVIDING THAT IF ANY SECTION,
CLAUSE OR SUBSECTION SHALL BE DECLARED UNCONSTITUTIONAL,
IT SHALL NOT AFFECT THE REMAINING PROVISIONS OF THIS
ORDINANCE.
Was introduced by Commissioner Dawkins and seconded by Commissioner Perez
and passed on its first reading by title by the following vote -
AYES: Commissioner Miller J. Dawkins
Commissioner Demetrio Perez, Jr.
Commissioner J. L. Plummer, Jr.
Vice -Mayor Joe Carollo
Mayor Maurice A. Ferre
NOES: None.
ABSENT: None.
The City Attorney read the ordinance into the public record and.
announced that copies were available to the members of the City Commission
and to the public.
FURTHER DISCUSSION:
Mayor Ferre: Mr. Kenzie, I would recommend that you listen to the
admonitions and this is not the first time that this statement has been
made and I would recommend to you, sir, and you don't have to do it tonight,
it's late and we all want to go home, but I think Miller Dawkins will give
you ten minutes of his time and you go sit down with him and talk specifically,
and why don't you tell him a little bit about what you are planning to do
to improve the Situation.
9l 42 SEP 101982
Mt. kah2ie: Ok, one of our difficulty is Mr. Mayor, and we will have to
6'Vdkdome this, is that we have been each year over the last three years
reducing our budget each year from ten to twelve, so we have been reducing
staff each year as well. So, instead of hiring we have been reducing their.
Mayor Ferre: Well, you explain all of that. Ok, fine. Ok, well, you..+
but Mr. Kenzie, you know, you don't want...
Mr. Kenzie: But I understand what you are saying and I will do that.
Mr. Dawkins: You are dead right Mr. Kenzie, that's while I will reduce the
whole thing, you and everybody else. Just reduce it all.
Mayor Ferre: Ok, Mr. Kenzie...
Mr. Kenzie: I will follow your instructions and do that.
Mayor Ferre: Yes, sir. Alri# t, you follow the Commissioners instructions.
9. FLDE' AU R t'L_IL"D SKA:' E r,=-
DISCUS°Io": 0.','!,Y.
Mayor Ferre: Federal Revenue Sharing, this is the 8:00 O'clock agenda.
What do you want to tell us about it, Mr. Manager?
Mr. Gary: Well, first of all Mr. Mayor, pursuant to the law we have to
discuss how we plan to utilize the federal revenue sharing. I must add
that this money... this discussion does not include the allocation of the
social service dollars. It only attempts to inform you as the City Commission
that we have 9.227897 million dollars. Of that amount everything will be
used for the general fund with the exception of 1,005,138 for social service
programs.
Mayor Ferre: Plummer, this was the thing you were talking about yesterday.
Mr. Gary: We don't need any action.
Mayor Ferre: You don't need any action?
Mr. Gary: No, sir.
Mr. Plummer: So, be it.
Mayor Ferre: You are just informing us. Now, wait a minute. Before you leave
Chief, Chief. Is the Police Chief still here?
Mr. Plummer: Let me tell you while we are waiting for the Police Chief to
come down. Mr. Gary, I would like under the instruction of the original
instructions that you gi-re some serious thought for additional revenues to
better promotions in the Marine Stadiums. This year, I think is the first
year it's breaking even. When I say promotions, I think that you can
consider additional revenues in the Marine Stadium, in the Orange Bowl. I
have said for an awful long time that the key and the success of the Orange
Bowl is not sports. It's the utilization of seventy-five thousand seating.
Remember the Rolling Stones I keep reminding everyone did not go into the
Orange Bowl for whatever reason. They took that concert to the City of
Jacksonville and paid them for one nights rental ninety-six thousand dollars.
I think the day is rapidly coming where we have got to explore the twenty-six
times a year for a fifty million dollar facility is not doing what we should,
The Marine Stadium, the utilization of seven thousand seats The Baseball
Stadium, I think we could use, but I think those other two facilities. I
a
hope you will explore that additional revenues can be derived if some effort
43 SEP 101904
gI
is diverted towards that for the coming year.
Mayor Ferre: Alright, Chief.., Chief, I know this is a budget hearing and
all that and I'm not trying to start a fight or castigate you or the Manager
or anybody else, but there was an article in the Miami News and I'm concerned
about it because it's a repetition of the same thing that seems to... I'm
not saying that it's true,, -I'm just telling you what the Miami News says.
Chief Harms: I read the article Mayor.
Mayor Ferre: It says that Captain William Starks and Lieutenant Murphy were
"A result of their acknowledged lack of support to the department's
commitment efficiently managed resources" Harm said in the prepared statement.
Now, Mr. Manager, remember we went through that whole thing with those Latin
police officers and the question as to whether they were disciplined for
speaking out and all that. Now, I know there is a fine line between... in a
para-military organization between discipline and freedom up speech and all
that, but you know, for the love of Mike, I... you know, I really think
that policemen also have rights. I mean,... and I really think that they
have got a right to speak out on issues as long as they follow the Civil
Service procedures and the Codes and all the... you know, I'm not trying
to get into an arguement with you about this Chief, but I think we need
eventually to get into this discussion as to, does a police officer have
a right to say anything in the Police Department that reflects the Police
Department?
Chief Harms: Mr. Mayor, that was not the issue at all and I will be happy...
I will be pleased to discuss it with you now or at another time in private,
either way. The issue is very clear. We attempted to develop a fiscally
responsible position with regard to the expenditure of overtime. The two
commanding officers of that unit were not supportive of that approach. The
Commanding Officer, the Major, the Deputy Chief and the Assistant Chief all
concurred of the need for their reassignment to, again, effectively manage
the resources of the department.
Mayor Ferre:
Chief Harms:
Mayor Ferre:
Chief Harms:
Mayor Ferre:
other words,
Chief Harms:
Mayor Ferre:
Mr. Gary: I
Mayor Ferre:
I assume.
ADJOURNMENT
Just because they spoke out?
No, sir.
Oh, for other reasons.
For other reasons.
Ok, I stand corrected. That's why I wanted to make sure: In
they were not moved around because they spoke out?
Absolutely not.
Are you going to say something, Mr. Manager?
support the decision of the Chief.
Ok, thank you, I have no further questions. We stand Adjourned
_ There being no further business to come before the City Commission,
on motion duly made and seconded, the meeting was adjourned at 10:25 O'clock
a
P. M.
R.ALPH G. ONGIE
City Clerk
MATTY HIRAI
Assistant City Clerk
gl
MAURICE A. FERRE
Mayor
P 1 0 1982
Cli�Y 0� Il'�"AIViI
IU.
h
RETRIEVAL.
COMMISSION
ACTION CODE NO.
ITEM N04 DOCUMUIT IDENTIFICATION
3
4
I III 11,I1(' lfV:�RIti�� U'� vy'ti,;
Iti5"I'RUC'ICI,ry TO OF ADDITIONAL FUNDING
POLLCF. oFFTCERS`rl:
1'c)R 11TRIN
MOTION OF INTENT—RATTO OF THREE POLICE OFFICERS
PER 1000 BALANCE OF BASTC SERVICES CIVI.I,IANIZATTON
OF POLICE•' DEPARTMFNT, Ftl'IUltlI COALS
CITY `IANACF.R RECMIENI) ALTERNATIVE FUNDING SOURCES.
�1-82-854
?1-82-855
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82-854
82-855
82-856