As the Coral Gables Commission runoff approaches, Commissioners Melissa Castro and Ariel Fernandez—neither of whom are on the ballot this year—are closely watching the outcome of the Group III race between attorney Tom Wells and first-time candidate Richard Lara to see who will join them on the dais.
While both commissioners have declined to endorse a candidate, they expressed concern that outside spending and special interest contributions have significantly shaped the 2025 election cycle. They contrasted this dynamic with their own campaigns in 2023, when both won despite being significantly outspent.
“This year, it’s been different,” Fernandez said. “We’ve seen more than $1.5 million spent in this race to undo what residents accomplished in 2023.”
The April 22 runoff follows a general election in which Lara—endorsed by incumbent Mayor Vince Lago—secured 47.2 percent of the vote. Wells finished with 39.2 percent, forcing the contest into a runoff. Early voting will take place Saturday and Sunday, April 20 and 21 at the Coral Gables Branch Library.
Divisive election cycle
Both commissioners characterized the tone of the campaign as unusually negative.
“I’ve been involved in politics for 25 years,” Fernandez said, “and I’ve never seen this level of negative and disgusting attacks—directed at me and others who aren’t even on the ballot.”
Castro echoed that sentiment, pointing to what she described as a “smear campaign of almost a million dollars,” largely funded through the mayor’s political action committee, Coral Gables First.
“All that money came from developers and special interests,” she said. “They spent two years repeating the same messaging. It’s like brainwashing.”
Castro argued that campaign messaging has focused on issues like opposition to an inspector general, commissioner pay raises, and election timing—rather than day-to-day concerns such as public safety, traffic, or overdevelopment.
“Those are the issues that got us elected in 2023,” she said.
Cautious stances on runoff
While neither commissioner offered a formal endorsement in the runoff, both made clear their views on the contrasting approaches of the two candidates.
Fernandez said he had spoken with both Wells and Lara but did not know either candidate well. “Both have good intentions,” he said. “Residents will vote based on the candidates themselves, not on endorsements.”
Castro said she viewed Lara as less independent, citing his alignment with Mayor Lago’s policies.
“If he wins, I expect him to do the right thing as a commissioner—that’s all I can ask,” she said. Still, she added, “It may take a year before he realizes that some of the mayor’s initiatives aren’t in the best interest of residents.”
As for Wells, Castro described him as more independent but stopped short of endorsing him, stating it would not be appropriate.
Looking ahead: Reconciliation or more division?
With tensions on the dais already high, the election outcome is unlikely to unify the commission. Still, both Fernandez and Castro expressed hopes for a more constructive future.
“What I expect, from Tom or Richard, is that we all use our conscience and focus on what’s best for the city,” Fernandez said. “It’s time to put politics aside and get back to the work we were elected to do.”
Even regarding Mayor Lago—his chief political rival—Fernandez signaled a willingness to find common ground.
“If we could get the old Vince Lago back—the one I supported for years, worked with for a decade, helped and advised—that would be welcomed by everybody.”
Castro, drawing from her background in psychology, described the state of the commission as marked by ego clashes and unmet needs for recognition and control.
“Moving forward, fostering self-awareness, empathy, and a focus on common goals may help,” she said. “But those things are hard to build when the Sunshine Law makes informal communication so difficult.”
The runoff election for Commission Group III will be held Tuesday, April 22.
This Post Has 5 Comments
We got rid of Kirk and that is Fernandez & Castro main concern, now they want Wells to complete the same situation at City Hall. They are responsible & the cause for the shameful situation we now have at City Hall. I live in Coral Gables since 1980 & in Miami since 1960. NEVER in all those years we have had the situation we have since KFC took Power of City Hall and it became a constant 3 VS 2 Vote and a few of the proposals were for the benefit of the Coral Gables Tax Payers (mostly for the owners of Residential Property). The outrageous 101% increase in salary ++ other benefits from the first Commission meeting without discussion or concerns to the City Budget or consideration. This is service to the City and it’s residents, Not a high paying job. NOT moving the elections to November which costs the City $200,000 each time. I worked the elections at my precinct, the American Legion on Alhambra & Salzedo for more than 17 years, I know of the extremely Low number of Voters, the elections must be move to November for higher participation and savings to the City & the residents. To be in City Government, the candidate must be a Residential Property Owner, Not a Renter, the Financial decisions they make affect the property owners pocket and their Landlords. We need the name calling to stop, the personal attacks, civility, respect, and a willingness to put aside personal differences and work together for the benefit of the City Beautiful & the residents. I love the city I call home and it hurts me to see what KFC has done since taking over City Hall, this needs to stop, let’s finish the job & elect Richard Lara.
Magda Granda,
The shameful situation we have had at City Hall for the past two years has been entirely caused by Vince Lago. When the two candidates he publicly supported in the 2023 elections lost their races, he directed his revengeful aggressive behavior toward Melissa Castro and Ariel Fernandez. That is what has caused the toxic situation on the city commission. I have watched every commission meeting for the past several years because I want to stay informed on the issues discussed and voted on. What you have written is only parroting the narrative that Vince Lago has put out…over and over.
Over 90% of the votes by the commission in the past two years have been unanimous. You’d know that if you watch the meetings. You’d also know that the proposed lowering of the millage rate would NOT have been a benefit to the residential property owners, but rather it would have given massive tax reductions, in the thousands of dollars, to the huge developers that want to see Lago retain his position on the commission for their benefit. The average residential property owners would have had only $20 to $30 in tax benefits. That was a show Lago put on to make residents believe he wanted to do something “because our residents deserve it”. What he was really doing was trying to give the developers (like those of The Plaza) a big gift…and that big gift would have cut services to the residents of the city. You can’t reduce property taxes without cutting back on our services! Is that what you want???
What you call an “outrageous” salary increase was done exactly according to the City Charter, which is the rule of law for our city. The commission salaries hadn’t been increased in 40 years! They went from approximately $36,000 to $65,000, which is hardly outrageous. Again, you are parroting the Lago narrative…which is now the Lara narrative. But if you want to talk about salaries, what about the promotions and exorbitant salary (over $100,000) provided by Lago to his “chief of staff”…when it seems like she was providing “services” above and beyond those required by her job description. That doesn’t bother you?
Moving the elections to November would be a huge mistake. Our city ballot items would be the last on a long ballot. Just because there would be more voters, doesn’t make it better. We need informed voters who are concerned about our city and come out to vote in April, as has been done for 100 years. By the way, Richard Lara hadn’t voted in a Coral Gables election in 25 years. Do you think it would have made a difference to him whether the elections for our city were held in November or April??? If you’ve been a poll worker you must know that the people who come out to vote in our municipal elections are informed, concerned voters exercising their right to vote. But you are urging people to vote for someone that hasn’t cared enough about Coral Gables to vote since 1999. How can you reconcile those two opposing facts in your mind? Another Lago/Lara regurgitation of what you’ve been hearing someone repeat, but you haven’t done your own research to learn the truth.
To be a commissioner doesn’t require (and should not require) one to be a residential property owner. Financial decisions made by the commission affect all of us. As you state, “they affect the property owners pocket and their landlords”…and the renters are affected when the landlords pass on their cost increases to the renters. The same hold true for landlords who own property which they are renting to business owners in the city…the business owners may not own the land, but the financial decisions will certainly affect them as renters. Our City Charter doesn’t require commissioners to be property owners. Why would you want to be an exclusionist? None of us lives in a bubble.
If you believe that the issues you’ve mentioned are the REAL problems in the city, you haven’t been paying attention! Those have been thrown into the public eye by the mayor and vice mayor to DEFLECT from the real problems our city is facing! The REAL ISSUES: The massive amount of overdevelopment, incompatible with the existing properties, the encroachment on residential areas, the neglect of our historic structures like our City Hall, the incessant zoning variances and bonuses granted to developers because no one wants to build within our existing zoning codes any more…those are real problems which impact the quality of life for everyone in our city. Have you taken a look at the monstrosity being built by Armando Codina across from the post office on Valencia??? Shameful!
You want name-calling to stop, but you are disrespectfully referring to Commissioners Menendez, Fernandez and Castro as KFC. So it’s OK for you to do it, but you want others to stop?
What SHOULD BE PROHIBITED are the PACs (Political Action Committees) which provide obscene unlimited donations to candidates, allowing them to spread misinformation to gullible residents. Those massive donations aren’t coming from the residents of our city. Who do you think provided Lago with a million and a half dollars to use in his reelection campaign??? Special interests are behind these PACs, to the detriment of the city and its residents. You think this has anything to do with commissioners’ salaries? Don’t let yourself continue to be fooled.
What really needs to stop is the disrespect shown by Vince Lago to the residents and the commission members whom he has alienated by his actions. What also would be beneficial would be if residents did their research, participated in commission meetings, informed themselves about what is really going on, and didn’t just repeat what they’ve heard without checking the source.
Finish the job??? NO!!! Let’s turn this ship around and start heading in the right direction. Vote for someone who TRULY cares about Coral Gables. A candidate who has self-funded his entire campaign, and he will be beholden to no one. A resident who has been active in our community for years and years, who pays attention to the issues in our city, attends commission meetings and speaks out, serves on the City Charter Review Committee, knows what the important matters are, and who is informed and concerned enough to go out and vote in our Coral Gables elections. Vote for TOM WELLS.
Magda,
The shameful situation we have at City Hall began when the candidates Vince Lago backed in 2023 both lost their races. Like a spoiled child he took out his frustration from day one on Melissa Castro and Ariel Fernandez with a revengeful, disrespectful attitude and tone during commission meetings (when he wasn’t ignoring them completely.) It has been embarrassing for the past two years, but you are blaming the wrong persons. Put the blame where it belongs, on the mayor.
Your other points are all upside down, because you are just parroting what someone has told you, instead of doing your own research. Watch the commission meetings and see for yourself. They are televised on the city channel 77, and recorded.
Over 90% of the votes on the commission over the past two years have been unanimous.
The proposed millage rate decrease would NOT have benefited the residential property owners like the mayor tried to make us believe. Residential properties would have had about $30 in total tax relief! The mayor’s backers, the huge developments like The Plaza, would have had thousands of dollars in tax benefits! How is that beneficial to the residents??? It isn’t. But Lago presented it as “doing something nice for the residents”
and you believed it.
Moving elections to November would be a huge mistake. Coral Gables ballot issues would be at the end of a long ballot. We’d have more voters, but not more informed voters, which we have when our own elections are held in April, as they’ve been held for the past 100 years. Quality of voters should be desired over the quantity of voters who aren’t well informed on our city’s issues.
The City Charter, which is our rule of law in Coral Gables, does NOT require commissioners to be property owners, and it shouldn’t. Renters are also affected by financial decisions made by the commission, not just property owners. When costs go up for property owners and landlords, they pass that increase on to the renters and business owners. Why would you want to prohibit residents of Coral Gables from serving on the commission just because they aren’t property owners?
YOUR exclusionary attitude is not beneficial to anyone.
The tired topic of salary increases (the procedure followed was exactly what the City Charter requires) has been used for the past two years to deflect from the real problems facing our city. Commissioner salaries hadn’t been increased in 40 years. That “outrageous” increase translates from $36,000 to $65,000, which is far from outrageous. Again, if you do your research instead of relying and repeating what someone else said, you’d have the facts. And if that amount is so outrageous, why aren’t you outraged by the mayor’s chief of staff receiving several promotions and a salary of over $100,000??? We know why that’s been kept quiet.
You are offended by name calling, but you are referring to Commissioners Menendez, Fernandez and Castro as KFC. That’s a derogatory way to refer to them, which is name calling, but it’s OK for you to use it???
The personal attacks and lack of civility have been perpetrated by the mayor.
The three commissioners you are vilifying have tried to put aside personal differences, be respectful even under difficult circumstances, and work together for the good of the city. They’ve had roadblocks put up every step of the way by Lago and Anderson.
We have real problems which aren’t being mentioned by the mayor. The neglect of our historic buildings like City Hall. Engineering reports were ignored and the structural integrity has been compromised. The incompatible overdevelopment in our city is a real problem. That’s also being ignored by the mayor. Take a look at the mammoth structure across the street from the post office on Valencia. Do you want more of that in Coral Gables??? Thank Anderson for that.
How can you support Richard Lara when LARA HASN’T VOTED IN OUR ELECTIONS IN 25 YEARS???!!!
He hasn’t ever been involved in our city, has lied about living here since the age of 14 (conveniently leaves out the 18 years he lived in Westchester) and hasn’t been concerned enough about our city to cast a vote since 1999! He was put up to run by Lago, who needs a puppet and a “yes man” for himself and Anderson.
“Finish the job?” No!
Not only is Tom Wells the BEST choice, he is the ONLY choice. He’s independent, he has completely self-funded his campaign, and when he’s elected he won’t owe favors to anyone. With a background in finance as a CPA, he has the knowledge and experience to set the city on the right course. He’s honest, knows right from wrong, and has been active in the city for years and years. He’s currently serving on the Charter Review Committee, and attends commission meetings to speak up on our local issues. We need Tom Wells. There is still time to vote early today, the library is open until 7pm, and Election Day is Tuesday, April 22…a vote for Tom Wells is a vote for the real Coral Gables we love.
Your facts are not accurate. You should do your research and maybe you should have watched the commission meetings and seen Vince Lago in action. It’s very distressing and embarrassing to watch him be disrespectful or have one of his public meltdowns. You say you are offended by the name-calling, but you are referring to Commissioners Menendez, Fernandez and Castro as KFC, which is a derogatory way to refer to them. You yourself are name-calling.
All the rest of the issues you are bringing up are just the same tired toxic topics which the mayor and Lara are repeating over and over to deflect from the real problems facing our city. The incompatible development, the neglect of our historic buildings, the encroachment into our residential neighborhoods are real problems which they don’t want to address.
But the one VERY DISTURBING fact that you are not considering when urging residents to vote for LARA is that he HASN’T VOTED in Coral Gables elections IN 25 YEARS! The last time he cast a vote was in 1999. If you worked the polls at your precinct, and feel that the voter turnout was too low, one of the non-voters was Richard Lara. That’s shameful!!! How can you vote for someone who doesn’t care enough about our city to cast a vote in our elections? There is no way I could do that.
I strongly urge all Coral Gables voters to go out and VOTE FOR TOM WELLS. Tomorrow is the last chance to cast your vote. Polls will be open from 7 to 7. Do your civic duty and exercise your right to vote! It’s a privilege that Lara has ignored for 25 years.
Your facts are not accurate. You should do your research and maybe you should have watched the commission meetings and seen Vince Lago in action. It’s very distressing and embarrassing to watch him be disrespectful or have one of his public meltdowns. You say you are offended by the name-calling, but you are referring to Commissioners Menendez, Fernandez and Castro as KFC, which is a derogatory way to refer to them. You yourself are name-calling.
All the rest of the issues you are bringing up are just the same tired toxic topics which the mayor and Lara are repeating over and over to deflect from the real problems facing our city. The incompatible development, the neglect of our historic buildings, the encroachment into our residential neighborhoods are real problems which they don’t want to address.
But the one VERY DISTURBING fact that you are not considering when urging residents to vote for LARA is that he HASN’T VOTED in Coral Gables elections IN 25 YEARS! The last time he cast a vote was in 1999. If you worked the polls at your precinct, and feel that the voter turnout was too low, one of the non-voters was Richard Lara. That’s shameful!!! How can you vote for someone who doesn’t care enough about our city to cast a vote in our elections? There is no way I could do that.
I strongly urge all Coral Gables voters to go out and VOTE FOR TOM WELLS. Tomorrow is the last chance to cast your vote. Polls will be open from 7 to 7. Do your civic duty and exercise your right to vote! It’s a privilege that Lara has ignored for 25 years.