Split decision in Dade vote on new cities

Destiny vetoes idea, Pinecrest says yes

By Sabrina Walters and Ana Acle Chasko, Herald Staff Writers. The Miami Herald, September 20, 1995, printed 1B and 2B, BRO edition.

Voters gave Dade’s incorporation craze a split verdict Tuesday, with one community choosing to form a new city and another opting to stay with Metro-Dade.

In the North Dade region dubbed Destiny, voters shied away from cityhood, fearing higher taxes. In the South Dade hamlet of Pinecrest, voters chose overwhelmingly to collect their own taxes and police their own streets.

Tuesday’s vote seemed to suggest that incorporation is a good thing as long as you can afford it.

Voters in Pinecrest, one of Dade’s most affluent areas, said they thought they could do a better job than Metro of providing public services and managing growth. They approved incorporation by a 2-1 ratio, with nearly half of the area’s registered voters participating.

“To me this is a mandate to dismantle first-tier government,” said Gary Matzner, a pro-cityhood leader.

It was a closer but still definitive vote in Destiny, where leaders had hoped to establish a majority black city free of Metro’s control.

Shirley Gibson, a Destiny leader, called Tuesday a “sad day.”

“We worked hard to bring our people together and bring government closer,” she said.

Voters leaving the polls said they feared a break with Metro-Dade would push up their taxes and degrade public services.

Destiny is less wealthy than Dade as a whole, and several Metro reports said the area receives more in government services than it pays for.

About 56 percent of those voting opposed incorporation while nearly 44 percent favored it. About 31 percent of registered voters turned out; about 43,000 people live in the area.

In Pinecrest, where incorporation was approved by 66% of the voters, the drive for cityhood fed on a desire for safer streets and slower growth. With only 15,000 people, the movement’s leaders were able to reach out to many residents in the area. Incorporation leaders said a new city will make a real difference in their lives.

Pinecrest must still pass several obstacles before it can open its own City Hall. Metro commissioners could now appoint a citizens’ panel to draw up a new city charter, and that charter must be approved by Pinecrest voters. At any point along the way, Metro commissioners could kill the Pinecrest plan.

Pinecrest leaders predict they will be able to offer quality services at roughly the same cost as Metro. Some residents said they would be willing to pay more for better services.

Metro planning director Guillermo Olmedillo said he thought it would be difficult for Pinecrest to hold the line on taxes.