By the Coral Gables Gazette editorial board

Coral Gables is right to expand its public transportation options. A new east-west trolley route, slated to debut this October, reflects a smart investment in connectivity—from the Douglas Road Metrorail Station to Red Road, serving the Shops at Merrick Park, the University of Miami, and beyond. Coupled with a broader mobility master plan, the initiative reflects ambition, vision, and responsiveness to regional growth.

But civic progress also demands civic process. And here, Coral Gables is falling short—particularly in how it engages its own appointed advisory boards.

At the July 16 meeting of the Parking Advisory Board, board members expressed mounting frustration. They had only just learned that the city’s planned upgrades to trolley stops—necessary for federal compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act—would eliminate 40 on-street parking spaces along Ponce de Leon Boulevard. The trolley improvements themselves are laudable, and ADA compliance is non-negotiable. Yet the board’s concern wasn’t about whether accessibility was worth the trade-off. It was about how decisions were made—and how those charged with advising the city were left out of the loop.

The Parking Advisory Board had previously recommended a comprehensive parking master plan, which the City Commission approved in February. That study, board members hoped, would give Coral Gables a clearer picture of parking supply and demand. But during the July meeting, staff informed the board that the parking plan had been deferred—at the direction of City Manager Peter Iglesias—in favor of a new mobility plan. The irony was not lost on board members: while advocating for a long-term plan to manage parking spot losses, they were learning of 40 new losses too late to do anything about them.

“We’re an advisory board,” said board member Stuart McGregor, joining the meeting by Zoom. “And that’s how they take [our recommendations]—‘We’ve taken it under advisement… thank you very much.’”

This is more than a turf battle. It’s a warning sign that expert resident input is not being systematically incorporated into city planning. The trolley upgrade is only the latest example. Board member Lisa De Tournay was blunt: “Our entire grievance with the city since I’ve been here for the last two years is that they are taking parking spots. Now, they are taking 40 more.” She also noted that the board’s long-advocated parking master plan was now being deprioritized—despite having been formally approved months earlier.

To avoid similar breakdowns going forward, the city should adopt three immediate practices:

First, advisory boards should be briefed earlier in the planning process—especially when decisions intersect with their core mandate. Had the Parking Advisory Board been informed of the 40-space loss at the time of the commission’s vote or the funding approval, the conversation might have been collaborative rather than confrontational.

Second, the city must honor the studies it has already approved. The parking and mobility plans are not in conflict. Both are necessary. Sequencing and funding can be managed in parallel—and doing so would reaffirm that expert input is not only welcomed but acted upon.

Third, advisory boards must be treated as meaningful voices in the policymaking process. When residents speak through their appointed advisors, those voices should carry weight. The best-run cities are those in which public service and public input coexist.

Coral Gables should be commended for investing in sustainable transit, including the Freebee rideshare program, which has already seen a year-over-year ridership gain. Smart mobility can reduce congestion, improve quality of life, and future-proof city infrastructure. But success will depend not just on vehicles and routes—it will depend on trust.

Civic trust is built when residents see their contributions reflected in outcomes. When board members are ignored, or informed after the fact, the result is disenfranchisement. This is especially true in a city like Coral Gables, where advisory boards are often composed of professionals with deep expertise in planning, engineering, and finance. Failing to engage them fully is a waste of public talent.

This is a call to broaden progress. A city that aspires to modern, multimodal transportation must also modernize how it governs—starting with deeper, earlier, and more transparent engagement with the very people it entrusts to help guide it.

Progress must not come at the cost of participation. As the Coral Gables trolley expands, City Hall must bring its advisors—and the public they represent—on board.