Biscayne Park candidates face political divides and search for a village manager

With resignations, removals, arguments and lawsuits, Biscayne Park’s log cabin village hall has been filled with political drama in 2020.

Sandwiched between Miami Shores and North Miami, the ebb and flow in this residential village will culminate on November 3 when residents select three new commissioners from six candidates — including two incumbents — during the general election. The key issue candidates care about? Filling the village manager role after spending months without one.

The political drama in this residential village dates back years, but the most recent village manager saga began in January when then-Mayor Tracy Truppman didn’t show up to a commission meeting where two new commissioners — and known Truppman critics — were scheduled to be sworn in. When Truppman didn’t show up, the village manager at the time, Krishan Manners, postponed the meeting.

The two new commissioners, MacDonald Kennedy and Virginia O’Halpin, were sworn in two days later. They were filling vacant seats left by Betsy Wise and Jenny Johnson-Sardella, who both resigned in late 2019.

A few weeks later, at a meeting that was scheduled to select a new mayor, Truppman resigned as both the mayor and as a member of the commission. In Biscayne Park the mayor is appointed from sitting commissioners rather than elected. At the same meeting O’Halpin was appointed as the new mayor, and quickly got to work suggesting the commission remove Manners, the village manager, for postponing the January swear-in as well as his involvement in a lawsuit that was filed against commissioner Dan Samaria.

The commission voted 3-1 with commissioner William Tudor dissenting to remove Manners. Tudor is up for reelection in November.

Public works director David Hernandez was appointed as the interim city manager at the same meeting. In July, Hernandez resigned from his position as interim manager, citing health concerns and “constant political bullying, harassment, etc., from a few of the current commissioners,” according to a copy of Hernandez’s letter of resignation.

The village clerk has been functioning as the manager since.

Many candidates said they were running because they’re tired of the political drama and divide on the commission that’s led to turnover on the village staff. Arturo Gonzalez said he wants voters to know that he’s not involved with any one political group, those who supported Truppman or her opposition. Another candidate, Judi Hamelburg, said her goal if elected is to restore harmony to the commission. Candidate Alfred Jonas made his position on the matter clear, he wanted to see Tudor — the last of the ‘old commission’ — voted out of office.

All candidates agree that finding a new village manager needs to be a top priority.

Kennedy, one of the two commissioners who pushed for the last manager’s removal, was also cited in interim manager Hernandez’s exit interview as one of the commissioners responsible for “bullying and harassment.” Kennedy said his goal if reelected is to move the village forward with a concrete vision. The first step, he said, would be finding a strong village manager.

“The biggest priority to reach our potential is to hire someone really sharp to run this place,” Kennedy said. “We need a CEO of this village.”

William Abreu, a new candidate to the scene, suggested a different idea: outsourcing the village manager role to a larger surrounding city.

Joe Geller, a state representative and attorney who specializes in election and municipal law, said the proposition of outsourcing the village manager role to a company is very possible — and potentially beneficial — for a small place like Biscayne Park. But, outsourcing to another municipality he said would be very difficult.

“I’m skeptical of how that would work,” Geller said. “If you’re taking up most of your time working in the smaller city, then why even be employed by that other one?”

However, contracting a city manager he said could work. Southwest Ranches in Broward County has had success contracting its manager role, Geller said. He added that it’s common for municipalities to outsource some services. Biscayne Park already contracts the village attorney and outsources waste management services, a decision some residents dislike.

The candidates

Six candidates — including two incumbents — are running for three seats. Biscayne Park has no political districts, so the three candidates with the most votes will be elected.

William Abreu, 37, said he’s been involved with public service his whole life. He got involved working in parks and recreation in North Beach, where he’s from originally, as well and mentoring and tutoring. Abreu owns Black House Miami Beach, a martial arts gym, and lives in Biscayne Park with his 4-year-old daughter. He said after some push from his neighbors, he decided to run. “I didn’t think I fit the demographic of the kind of guy who runs,” Abreu said. “But then I thought, why not?” Abreu said he’s seen the commission make very little progress over the years, and hopes he will bring some new insight that will push things forward.

Arturo Jose Gonzalez, 55, said people asked him to run for the commission. He hopes that if elected he can help restore harmony among the commission. “My intention is to go in there and every single vote I cast will be for the best of the majority of residents,” Gonzalez said. Gonzalez is the Florida director of operations for VPNE Parking solutions, a Boston-based parking service company. He added that the commission is so often concentrating on bigger issues, like lawsuits, that it often misses smaller issues. He would like to see the commission make strides in fixing roads, medians and code enforcement.

Judi Hamelburg, 64, is a physical therapist who teaches people with disabilities how to drive. Hamelburg has been involved with village operations since 2000, is a frequent speaker at meetings and serves on a number of boards including the code review committee and the Biscayne Park Civic club. “I realized that these people care about us and we need to be tuned in,” Hamelburg said. Hamelburg said she would like to see the village government fully staffed. She would also like to see commission meetings run smoother and be more inviting to residents. “We’re just one small village. We don’t have a whole lot of room for expansion,” Hamelburg said. “But there is room for improvement.”

Alfred Jonas, 70, previously served on the village commission from 2013 to 2016. Before that he served on the planning and zoning board and the code review committee. Jonas said the commission has been dysfunctional since 2016. “It has no vision, no ambition. It doesn’t seem to want to do anything,” he said. He’s hoping to help the commission move forward with hiring competent village managers and having a clear vision for what Biscayne Park could be. He said he wants the commission to focus on issues like medians, drainage and adding better lighting. “We need vision and we need a village manager,” Jonas said. “Then the village can function.”

MacDonald “Mac” Kennedy, 59, was elected to a vacant seat on the commission in January following a resignation in late 2019. Kennedy, who graduated from Penn State University, is the director of sales and marketing for a wholesale beauty supplier. His main goal if reelected is to hire a credible village manager, Kennedy said. “I want to help this village reach its potential.” Other things he said he wants to bring to the commission if reelected are a comprehensive communication plan, a tighter budget and more road safety.

William Tudor, 50, has been on the commission since 2016. Tudor said he hopes to be reelected because there are a lot of issues that still need to be addressed, and he wants to help the village continue to make progress. Some of the things he said he would like to do are improving roadways and creating a multi-year financial forecast to better budget for future projects. “Right now the budget is pretty much a year-to-year thing,” Tudor said. “If we look at future projections we can finally lower the millage rate.” Tudor said he wants to see the village hire a strong manager so the community can move forward. “Biscayne Park has always seemed to have a revolving door for village managers,” Tudor said. Tudor works for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.