Monday, November 2, 2026 · Independent Miami Beach journalism
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Commissioners approved the Art Basel license 6-1 after Norman Braman urged a renegotiation and Commissioner David Suarez pressed CEO Noah Horowitz on the rent cut.
Miami Beach commissioners approved a month-to-month market-rate sublease for Miami City Ballet at The Anamar, scrapping the original $1 deal after a debate over executive pay, an OIG report, and a discontinued youth outreach program.
Miami Beach's Inspector General says late-stage project cancellations and scope changes on three G.O. Bond projects — Fire Station #1, a 34th Street bike path, and the North Beach Log Cabin — have cost taxpayers nearly $9 million.
On the last day it could have placed a question on the November 3 ballot, the Commission rejected both general obligation bond options and voted 5-2 to fund roughly $450 million of water, sewer and stormwater work through utility rates alone — a program about half the size of the one staff brought in. How much bills will actually rise won't be known until September.
A resolution headed to Miami Beach commissioners would overhaul the city's employee salary portal, cap long-term personnel cost growth, and launch a new compensation study — all under the banner of fiscal accountability.
Miami Beach commissioners will consider an amended concession agreement with Boucher Brothers Pier Park that raises the required investment to $35 million, extends the potential deal term to 18 years, and closes out years of litigation over the prime South Beach property.
The Public Safety and Neighborhood Quality of Life Committee unanimously endorsed a sweeping overhaul of Miami Beach's advisory board system — sunsetting some panels, sparing others the administration wanted gone, and leaving one committee's fate up in the air. Then a committee member turned the question on the body itself.
In his final state budget, Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed about $1.3 million for two Miami Beach projects — flood-resilience work on West Avenue and security barriers along the Beachwalk. He also struck roughly $1.16 million in Mount Sinai elder-care slots and member-sponsored projects in Surfside, Bay Harbor Islands and North Bay Village.
Miami Beach commissioners will consider letting the Rhythm Foundation use a vacant city-owned storefront at 7605 Collins Avenue for six months at $1, after a redevelopment project forces the nonprofit out of its current office.
Miami Beach's first detailed FY2027 numbers landed at Wednesday's Finance committee. The administration proposes holding the tax rate flat, but a structural shortfall of $7.9M to $17.7M remains, the five-year capital plan tops $1.3 billion, and only about half of next year's $256M in capital requests can be funded — all before a November ballot measure that threatens future revenue.
Three Miami Beach committees meet this week. The first detailed FY2027 budget-and-millage numbers land Wednesday, the city floats a homegrown alternative to the state's Live Local Act on Monday, and a cluster of ethics and transparency measures advances — all at the committee stage, none a final vote.
City Manager Eric Carpenter's second-quarter fiscal analysis shows Miami Beach on solid financial footing through March 2026, even as officials caution the city faces a projected $17.7 million General Fund deficit in FY 2027.