Hialeah-Brownsville annexation proposal draws loud opposition
HIALEAH - A City of Hialeah study that examined annexing a portion of Miami-Dade County's historically Black Brownsville community faced loud opposition Tuesday night.
The Corradino Group, hired last June to produce a preliminary report on the annexation, presented findings to Hialeah City Council. A standing-room-only crowd listened and chimed in.
The proposed annexation involves a mostly industrial area on the western edge of Brownsville. It provides economic strength to a community where, according to Census data, more than a third of the population lives in poverty.
The City of Hialeah's study sees potential for its municipality. However, the city could lose $4 million dollars within a year of taking over, a representative for the Corradino Group told council members.
It is a proposal that heard an hour's worth of debate during Tuesday's meeting.
"I can tell you right off the bat this is a city that can't afford losses," Hialeah Mayor Esteban Bovo, Jr. said during the meeting.
"It is our job to continue to find alternative ways to make the city better, and generate additional revenue," Hialeah Councilman Jesus Tundidor said during the meeting.
"I'm frustrated," Rueben Young of Miami told the council. "I'm angry that this process, you talk about protocol, the process was not done correctly. You should have told people what you were planning."
"Brownsville has been home for many years to black Miami," Daniella Pierre, President of the NAACP Miami-Dade Branch said. "Black Miami continues to wait for economic development."
"(Hialeah city council is) taking advantage of some people that have already been taken disadvantage of," Edward Robinson, who opposed annexation said to the council.
One outburst from one man aside, speakers and council members listened to one another's concerns. The city said it is far from any decision or vote and will solicit input from all stakeholders if the proposal moves forward.
"Right now all we have are mere words which won't stand up anywhere," Pierre said.
A skeptical crowd that included people from Brownsville left praying about what will happen next.
