Politics

Doral off the hook for county trash incinerator site, but could still be responsible for costs

Published

5 months ago

July 23, 2025

Miami‑Dade Commissioners have taken Doral off the map for a replacement waste‑to‑energy plant, but the city might not be off the hook for helping to pay for a new one elsewhere.

In a 10-2 vote last week, Commissioners approved a resolution prohibiting construction of a new incinerator within the municipalities Doral, Medley and Sweetwater; the former Opa‑locka West Airport site; or within half a mile of a residential area.

They also ordered staff to process at least 40% of the county’s trash through recycling or composting, rather than combustion.

Juan Carlos “J.C.” Bermudez, the Commissioner who drew up the exclusion plan who previously served as Doral’s founding Mayor, called it a “victory for the residents of Miami-Dade.”

“Whatever new facility we build will not be near residents,” he said.

Anthony Rodriguez, who chairs the 13-member Commission, and Eileen Higgins, the panel’s senior member who is now running for Miami Mayor, voted against the measure.

Rodriguez cited the carve-out for Doral as a key factor, “based on all the factors that have come forward.”

The change doesn’t spare Doral from whatever bill the county faces for building a replacement for the Covanta trash plant that burned to the ground in the city in February 2023.

Commissioners directed Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s administration last Wednesday to negotiate how much the city will reimburse for shifting the project to a pricier site and to appraise the shuttered Doral complex for partial sale or lease.

Roy Coley, Miami-Dade’s Chief Utilities and Regulatory Services Officer, said the county won’t have an idea for how much the new incinerator project will cost until it has a “full design and an exact bid.”

Rodriguez said Doral must pay “their fair share.”

Details on the pending project are fluid and could include multiple facilities, including one large incinerator and a smaller, non-furnace facility to which the ban on city-specific and residentially close sites would not apply.

“It can be fragmented,” said Oliver Gilbert, the Commission’s past Chair and a former Mayor of Miami Gardens. “We’re moving away from the idea that it has to be one campus at this point. So, we’re making it smaller so we’re actually giving ourselves more options and more flexibility.”

Miami-Dade’s trash woes were the subject of legislation that three South Florida Republicans — Sen. Bryan Ávila of Hialeah, Rep. David Borrero of Sweetwater and Meg Weinberger of Palm Beach Gardens — nearly carried across the finish line with help from Fort Myers Republican Sen. Jonathan Martin.

The state legislation, which died one vote shy of passage after the two chambers couldn’t agree on its final language, sought a half-mile buffer between any future incinerator and the nearest home, school or business — a standard similar to the one Miami-Dade just adopted.

Lobbyists Rhett O’Doski and Sean Stafford of McGuireWoods Consulting, working on behalf of Covanta, helped to orchestrate the bill’s defeat in a strategy Florida Politics’ INFLUENCE magazine dubbed the 2025 Session’s “Lobbying Play of the Year.”

High-profile opponents of rebuilding in Doral included Eric Trump, who lobbied against erecting a new facility near his father’s golf course where a Trump Organization company received a city OK in January to build 1,500 condo units.

Environmental concerns continue to drive public pressure. After the old Covanta facility burned for three weeks, county health officials warned residents to stay indoors while ash coated neighborhoods.

Commissioners have given staff 90 days to return with a shortlist of candidate sites. In the meantime, Miami‑Dade continues to ship 2 million tons of garbage out of the county at a cost that in the 2023-24 fiscal year rose to $62 million.

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Politics

Florida lawmakers condemn tragic shooting at Jewish event in Australia

Published

3 hours ago

December 14, 2025

May Greene

The horrific shooting in Australia that claimed at least 16 lives during a Hanukkah celebration has prompted an expression of sympathy from Florida lawmakers.

The Florida Jewish Legislative Caucus issued a statement of condemnation of the violence during the Jewish observance on Sydney’s Bondi Beach. The Caucus published its statement Sunday afternoon.

“The Florida Legislative Jewish Caucus unequivocally condemns the horrific and senseless killing that occurred during Hanukkah in Australia. An act of violence against Jews celebrating their faith is an attack not only on a single community, but on the fundamental values of freedom, religious liberty, and human dignity,” the Florida Legislative Caucus said in a news release.

“We stand in unwavering solidarity with our Jewish brothers and sisters in Australia, with the victims’ families, and with Jewish communities around the world who are once again forced to confront hatred simply for being who they are. The State of Florida’s Jewish legislators join in mourning, remembrance, and resolve.”

The Florida LegislativeJewish Caucus has a dozen members from the House of Representatives and two State Senators.

Hundreds of people had gathered Sunday at the beach for an event to celebrate the first day of Hanukkah, when gunmen opened fire. At least 38 others were injured in the attack.

New South Wales Health Minister Ryan Park said the death toll had risen from 12 to 16 overnight, including a 12-year-old child. Three other children are being treated in hospital, he said.

“This is absolutely horrendous for the community broadly, but particularly the Jewish community. … What we saw last night was the worst of humanity, but at the same time, the very best of humanity,” Park said.

The massacre at one of Australia’s most popular beaches followed a wave of antisemitic attacks that have roiled the country over the past year, although the authorities didn’t suggest those and Sunday’s shooting were connected. It is the deadliest shooting in almost three decades in a country with strict gun control laws.

One gunman was fatally shot by police and the second was arrested and in critical condition, authorities said. Police said one gunman was known to security services, but there was no specific threat.

At least 29 people were confirmed wounded, including two police officers, said Mal Lanyon, police commissioner for New South Wales state, where Sydney is located.

“This attack was designed to target Sydney’s Jewish community,” New South Wales Premier Chris Minns said.

The violence erupted at the end of a summer day when thousands had flocked to Bondi Beach, including hundreds gathered for the Chanukah by the Sea event celebrating the start of the eight-day Hanukkah festival.

___

Material from The Associated Press was used in this report with permission.

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Politics

Florida behavioral services offer plenty of help and tips for dealing with holiday stress

Published

3 hours ago

December 14, 2025

May Greene

Behavioral health officials have a list of precautions for Floridians to deal with anxieities heading into Christmas and New Year’s Day.

While the holidays can bring a lot of comfort and joy, the can also be a stressful time and Florida’s health management entities are providing some helpful tips to deal with yuletide anxiety.

There are seven behavioral health managing entities in the state and all of them are aware that stress heading into Christmas and New Year’s Day can seem overwhelming at times. They’re advising balance may be one of the key elements in dealing with the holidays.

“The holidays are a time of joy, but they can also be a time of stress, sadness and triggering situations,” said Natalie Kelly, CEO of the Florida Association of Managing Entities. “Florida’s behavioral health Managing Entities remind Floridians that behavioral health services are available, even to those who are uninsured or underinsured.”

The state’s behavioral health professionals are also providing a list of tips to help come to grips with any holiday tension including:

— Get plenty of exercise. Exercising boosts your mood and combats depression.

— Limit alcohol intake. Alcohol is a depressant that can cause feelings of anxiety, sadness and depression.

— Set healthy boundaries and don’t overextend yourself. Setting realistic expectations can help reduce stress.

— Seek the help of a counselor for mental health needs. If you feel overwhelmed or the need to get help to address your feelings, contact a counselor.

— Call 2-1-1 if needed to connect with resources in your community.

— Call 9-8-8 if you or a loved one is having suicidal thoughts.

A mental-health treatment network has been established in the state for providers who deliver services to residents needing help. Those services extend to parents and children, veterans and the homeless.

Providers serve patients for not only mental health needs, but substance use, housing, transportation and employment help. Those managing entities are often overseen by community organizations and administrators and are accountable to state and federal funds.

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Politics

Ron DeSantis appoints new members to 2 Florida county commissions

Published

6 hours ago

December 14, 2025

May Greene

Patricia ‘Trish’ Petrosky is being added to the Lee County Commission while Charles ‘Wade’ Ellenburg joins the Holmes County Commission.

Two Florida county commissions are getting new members.

Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed two new county commissioners this month. One is taking a seat on the Lee County Board of Commissioners. The other will assume a seat on the Holmes County Commission.

DeSantis appointed Patricia “Trish” Petrosky to the Lee County Commission, home to Fort Myers. Petrosky is replacing Mike Greenwell.

Greenwell served on the District 5 seat of the County Commission since July 2022. That’s when DeSantis appointed Greenwell to that panel. Greenwell would rise to Chairman of the Lee County Commission in 2024 and he was reelected to that post that year. But he passed away Oct. 9 after a battle with cancer and there were memorial services in Lee County. DeSantis also ordered American and Florida flags to fly at half staff on Oct. 21.

Greenwell was with the Boston Red Sox Major League Baseball organization for about a dozen years. That franchise has Spring Training operations in Fort Myers and Greenwell returned to Lee Countyt to raise a family and entered local business.

Petrosky is the Executive Assistant at Evangelical Christian School in Fort Myers. She also was a former realtor with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and was a member of the Naples Area Board of Realtors Association.

Meanwhile in Holmes County, DeSantis has appointed Charles “Wade” Ellenburg to that County Commission.

Ellenburg fills the District 2 seat on the Holmes County board after Brandon Newsom was suspended from the panel this year following felony charges. Newsom was involved allegations of violating bail bond laws in the Northwest Florida county that boarders the Georgia state line, according to a report in the Holmes County News.

Ellenburg is a farmer in Holmes County and is a member of the Florida Farm Bureau Holmes County Board of Directors. He also serves on the Fruit and Vegetables State Advisory Board for that bureau. Ellenburg was also elected to the Holmes County Value Adjustment Board this year.

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