Miami City Hall is on fire — the cleansing kind, rooting out corruption

January 22, 2024 admin Florida, Government, Local News, Miami, Politics

First to burn: City Attorney Tricky Vicky Mendez

Ladra is still reeling from the last Miami City Commission meeting. So much torture and pleasure at the same time. So much happened in a span of eight and a half hours. Forgive the tardiness, but we’re still shellshocked over here.

And there’s already another promising meeting this week (more on that later).

Let’s review:

City Attorney Victoria Mendez was fired, finally. Sorta. After five months, when she’s good and ready and fully vested to get the maximum retirement, she’s fired.
Voters could get a chance in August to establish an inspector general — which will almost surely pass overwhelmingly in light of the recent corruption scandals to rock the city.
Forensic auditors will pore over the accounts of the Bayfront Park Trust that Commissioner Joe Carollo has been abusing for years, as well as other boards, like the Downtown Development Authority.

It all sounds too good to be true.

But this Thursday, according to the meeting agenda, the commission is set to discuss a possible selection committee for the replacement of Mendez, who has been the city attorney since 2013. They should probably reopen the discussion on the timeline. It’s more than just a little uncomfortable to have Mendez hang around for five more months while she knows she is persona non grata. Imagine how much damage she can do between now and May. If she wants to.

It’s a math problem applied to public employees called the “Rule of 70.” This establishes a formula to determine when and how to collect retirement benefits. Employee’s years of service plus employee’s age at retirement must add up to equal 70. Mendez, who started with the city in 2004, will turn 50 in April. Fifty plus 20 equal 70.

Pension amount is determined also by an average of approximately 3% for each year of service to arrive at the percentage of the average of the highest five years salaries. That’s 60% of about $265,000, or $159,000 a year. Of course she wants to wait until after April.

Instead of firing her, the Miami Commission voted late Jan. 11 to renew City Attorney Tricky Vicky’s contract — but only through May, while they find a replacement.

Commissioner Manolo Reyes joined newly-elected commissioners Miguel Gabela and Damian Pardo in what amounts to a defacto termination, but those were his terms. In fact, City Hall sources told Ladra Reyes had basically told Mendez that she should resign, effective April, or he would do it for her. Which he did.

Gabela wanted to fire Tricky Vicky outright. But without Reyes, he didn’t have the votes. The five months “will give us time to have a transition,” Reyes said at the meeting. “I agree there is bad blood and we have to start fresh and new. We can have a very orderly transition. That’s what I’m looking for.”

But it only makes sense if he is letting her get the most retirement she can. Because otherwise she would have been escorted to her office, given 20 minutes to gather her personal belongings and then escorted out the door after she surrenders her keys, cellphone, laptop and whatever else owned by the city (read: owned by the people). Instead, she has five months to get as much gravy and sew as much chaos as she can. How is this smart?

Commission Chair Christine King and Commissioner Joe Carollo voted against the short term renewal.

“I wasn’t voting to fire our city attorney, but this seems to accomplish this in five months,” King said.

Carollo was far more apologetic, thanking Mendez for all the service she provided him throughout the years. “Madame City Attorney, I am sorry for this happening to you. You don’t deserve this,” he said. “But God works in mysterious ways.”

Yes, yes she does. It’s called karma.