After a straw poll on last week’s primary ballot resulted in nearly two-thirds of voters rejecting the absorption of nearby Little Gables, Coral Gables is putting an end to the annexation process for the unincorporated Miami-Dade area.
The resolution to officially stop the annexation process, put forth by Coral Gables City Commissioner Ariel Fernandez, passed 4-1 at Tuesday’s City Commission meeting. The only vote against the resolution came from Mayor Vince Lago, who has been outspokenly in favor of the annexation in the past.
The annexation of Little Gables, which lies within Southwest Eighth Street to the north, Southwest 16th Terrace to the south, Cortez Street to the west and Southwest 40th Avenue to the east, has been a topic of conversation for over 40 years. In October, Coral Gables obtained signatures in favor of annexation from 21% of Little Gables residents, surpassing the 20% threshold required to legally begin the annexation process. However, the resounding disapproval from the recent city referendum has put the nail in the coffin for the latest attempt.
“The will of the voters of Coral Gables who would be footing the bill for the annexation of Little Gables was pretty clear,” Fernandez said at the meeting.
Commissioners generally agreed Tuesday that now is not the right time for an annexation, but they left the door open for future possibilities.
“Where there’s a wedding, both sides have to say ‘I do,’” Commissioner Kirk Menendez said. “Coral Gables residents said ‘Not yet.’”
Absorbing the neighboring area would have come with a substantial financial loss, with projections showing the annexation would cost the city a net $1.66 million in the first year alone after start-up expenditures and anticipated revenue.
There were also concerns from the Miami-Dade and Coral Gables firefighters’ unions about additional stress on the already limited bandwidth of first responders, since the absorption would place Little Gables under Coral Gables’ jurisdiction instead of under county agencies. Lago had previously said Coral Gables would dedicate additional personnel to the Little Gables area.
Residents of Little Gables also expressed concern about the increased cost of living that could come with being absorbed into Coral Gables.
Lynne Blustein, who spoke at Tuesday’s meeting, has been a resident of Little Gables for 35 years and said she has never wanted her property to become part of Coral Gables.
“We bought our homes in unincorporated Dade County because we can afford to live there,” she told the Herald. “We love it that way, and we cannot afford to live in Coral Gables and do not want to.”
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