It took him a little longer than he’d have preferred, but persistence paid off for Richard Lara on Tuesday as he won a runoff for the Coral Gables Commission.

With all 16 precincts reporting on Election Day, all early votes tallied and mail-in ballots partially counted, Lara had 55.4% of the vote to defeat fellow lawyer Tom Wells for a four-year term in the five-member panel’s Group 3 seat.

He’ll replace ex-Commissioner Kirk Menendez, who lost a bid for Mayor earlier this month.

Lara’s win is also a win for the city’s three-term Mayor, Vince Lago, who has frequently butted heads with two of the Commission’s other members.

For the past two years, Menendez held a swing vote on the dais and often sided with Commissioners Melissa Castro and Ariel Fernandez against the Lago and Vice Mayor Rhonda Anderson on several pivotal decisions.

That swing vote now falls to Lara, whom Lago endorsed and supported with campaign funding.

Florida Politics contacted Lara and Wells for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Lara and Wells were forced into a runoff following the city’s General Election on April 8, when neither candidate received a large enough share of the vote — more than 50% — to win outright.

Lara took the biggest chunk of the vote then (47.3%), while Wells received 39.2%. The remaining ballots cast went to third-place candidate Claudia Miro, a veteran government and political professional who endorsed Lara as “the right person” for the job a week later.

She cited Lara’s criticism of big pay raises Castro, Fernandez and Menendez approved for themselves against Lago and Anderson’s objections and the trio’s vote against having an independent Inspector General as key to securing her endorsement.

Lara, the Executive Vice President and General Counsel for the Spanish Broadcasting System, also ran with support from Miami’s Community News.

Wells, meanwhile, carried an endorsement from Gables Neighbors United, which backed Castro and Fernandez in 2023, and the Miami Herald, which cited Wells’ deeper community involvements and past work as a CPA as factoring into the nod.

This year’s election came amid mounting concerns about construction projects in Coral Gables and tensions at City Hall, where a divided Commission has clashed over myriad issues since 2023.

Accordingly, both Lara and Wells listed a lack of civility in government and overdevelopment as top concerns.

Both were active in the Coral Gables community before seeking elected office, albeit to varying degrees. Lara, 56, served on several Florida Bar committees and says he “contributed” to the Coral Gables Anti-Crime Committee.

He told Coral Gables Magazine that, as a City Commissioner, he hoped to bring “transparency, integrity, accountability, and professionalism” while working to bring more consensus to City Hall. He also promised to cut taxes “while ensuring world-class city services” and to ensure “taxpayer dollars are invested into the community or given back to residents — NOT used by politicians to give themselves pay raises.”

Meanwhile Wells, 62, is the current Vice Chair of the Coral Gables Charter Review Committee. He said the conflicts at City Hall inspired him to run.

He promised, if elected, to streamline government meetings and expand residential amenities, including the construction of permanent pickleball courts at the Biltmore Tennis Center. He also opposed a proposed 2% tax reduction that “would have cut the (city) budget by $2.65 million and been a windfall to property owners who do not reside in Coral Gables but only … a very small benefit to residents.”

Lara carried a far larger war chest into Election Day. Through April 17, he reported amassing close to $272,000. Lago donated to him, as did Lago’s brother Carlos and former Mayor Raúl Valdés-Fauli, whom Lago served under as Vice Mayor. So did former Commissioners Frank Quesada and Wayne Withers and Coral Gables-based developer Armando Codina, among others.

Wells took no outside dollars. He reported raising $1,000, all from his law firm, and close to $18,500 worth of in-kind spending — also overwhelmingly by him — on campaign costs.

Lara is a registered Republican. Wells is a Democrat. Coral Gables’ elections are technically nonpartisan.

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America’s mental health system is stretched to its limits. Rising rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation make it clear that we are in the midst of a crisis — one that is devastating communities and straining an already overburdened healthcare system.

As a physician, I have seen the heartbreaking consequences of our state’s mental health crisis. Patients wait months for an appointment, are forced to seek emergency care when their conditions spiral, further overloading ER departments, or — far too often — simply go without the help they need.

Floridians in particular face an uphill battle when trying to access mental health care. According to Mental Health America, Florida ranks 11th in prevalence of mental illness but 40th in access to care, leaving 58% of those struggling with a mental health condition untreated. Nearly a quarter of adults experiencing anxiety or depression report needing therapy but are unable to access it.

The demand for mental health services has never been higher, yet the number of available providers remains far too low. Florida needs more hands on deck, and the solution is right in front of us.

Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioners (PMHNPs) are highly trained specialists in mental and behavioral health, with advanced degrees and clinical expertise. They are more than ready to provide safe, high-quality care to Floridians struggling with mental illness. Yet, due to restrictions in Florida’s Nurse Practice Act, they are barred from practicing independently.

Even more odd is that Florida already allows ‘primary care’ nurse practitioners to practice independently — including the ability to provide mental health treatment. In other words, psychiatric nurses who are specifically trained in mental health are blocked from delivering the very care they are most qualified to provide.

This does not make sense. We have skilled professionals ready to step up, but arbitrary restrictions are keeping them on the sidelines.

Some providers see expanded practice authority for PMHNPs as a replacement for doctors. I see it as a lifeline for patients. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s analysis of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services data, the state needs more than 500 new providers to meet existing needs. In other words, the health system severely lacks the clinical personnel to serve its sole purpose — caring for people.

Granting full practice authority to psychiatric nurses isn’t just good for patients. It’s also fiscally responsible. Studies show that when APRNs are allowed to practice to the full extent of their training, health care costs decrease, and access improves. Florida could save millions of dollars annually by reducing unnecessary ER visits and treatment delays.

The Florida Legislature has already made mental health a priority, approving a historic $2.5 billion investment in expanding services. But money alone won’t fix this crisis if we don’t have enough providers to deliver care. The fastest, most effective way to increase access is to let Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioners do what they have been trained to do.

That’s why I’m encouraged to see lawmakers acting through HB 883 and SB 758, legislation that grants full practice authority to psychiatric nurse practitioners.

This legislation represents a critical step toward closing Florida’s mental health access gap, and I commend Sen. Corey Simon and Rep. Jason Shoaf for their leadership in sponsoring this much-needed policy. Now that the Florida House has passed HB 883 with supermajority support, I urge our state’s leaders to send this language to the Governor’s desk as we near the end of Session.

Twenty-seven states have already embraced this common-sense reform and our service members and veterans across the country have been treated by autonomous PMHNPs through the military and VA health systems for years. It’s time for Florida to do the same. Patients can’t afford to wait. Let’s unlock the full potential of our mental health workforce and ensure that everyone who needs care can get it.

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Dr. Alicia Sanchez is a licensed physician in Florida.

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Despite critics from several counties speaking out, the House Budget Committee advanced its tax package to dissolve tourist development councils (TDC) and lower property taxes while allowing counties to tap into hotel tax money for general uses.

In the Sunshine State, where millions visit the theme parks and beaches, counties levy a hotel tax known as the tourist development tax (TDT). Currently, at least 40% of TDT revenues must be spent on tourism ads — something the House tax bill calls to eliminate.

“I stand before you opposing any impact on the tourist development tax. This is not a tax cut, but a job killer,” said Paul Beirnes, the Vice President of the Amelia Island Convention & Visitors Bureau. “Tourism on Amelia Island itself accounts for 36% of the jobs in Nassau County. Without marketing that we do so well, Florida will lose visitors. Florida will certainly lose jobs, and Florida will lose tax revenue as a result.”

Beirnes said the county also spends $1 million annually in TDT on beach renourishments to draw tourists.

Under the House tax package (HB 7033), starting in 2026, a credit against county ad valorem taxes would get applied to property tax bills equal to the previous year’s TDT revenue, minus any revenue required for debt service for projects funded by the TDT or remaining contracts.

“Our counties are not asking for indiscriminate flexibility as it relates to how we can spend TDTs. Nor are we wanting to shut down all the TDCs,” said Jeff Scala, deputy director of the Florida Association of Counties.

“We’re not sure what, how the impact of the mechanism to account for the property tax offsets will work. I think there’s a lot of questions about how to allocate those credits and make sure that it is a fair process.”

Republican Rep. Wyman Duggan, who introduced the bill in the budget committee, told critics that the proposal “is the beginning of a process. … The cake is not baked, so there’s a long way to go.”

“Ultimately, this approach with the tourist development taxes is something that we can do right now. We can do it potentially on an interim basis,” Duggan said. “Doesn’t have to be permanent necessarily. Could be the start of a way to do some interim relief.”

The proposed TDT changes come as the state is considering putting a permanent property tax cut on the ballot.

In Central Florida, home of Disney World, officials also are concerned about the potential changes to TDT funding.

“We are closely monitoring legislative proposals related to the TDT and how they might impact already approved projects, including the KIA Center and Camping World Stadium. These are projects that went through an extensive public process and were ultimately approved by both the City Council and the County Commission,” said city of Orlando spokeswoman Ashley Papagni.

“These projects are vital to maintaining Orlando’s position as a premier destination for entertainment and tourism, and they deliver substantial economic benefits to local businesses. We remain hopeful that the final legislation will preserve the tools local governments rely on to support these important investments.”

Rep. Anna Eskamani, an Orlando Democrat, has been a proponent for Orange County having more flexibility to pay for public transportation or affordable housing with the TDT revenue. However, she said the House proposal wouldn’t mean extra money for Orlando’s needs since TDT revenues would go toward bond payments or property tax reduction. 

“It is not the TDT reform I am looking for — I want local flexibility and control,” Eskamani said. “Hopefully, through legislative negotiations, we’ll be able to strike a balance.”

House Budget Committee Chair Lawrence McClure told lawmakers the Senate and House are moving forward in budget talks.

“Just stay tuned,” he said at the start of the meeting. “We feel like we’re going to get to a place here pretty quickly, we will be in conference.”

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