Tri – County Regionalism (in Miami)
By: Rene Velez July 14, 2009
Often we hear of a local governments wanting to accomplish a particular goal. Typically, by a set of political mandates and or promises. The goals come in many forms; build better schools, create commercial business zones, attract big business, improve mass transportation, attract tourism, provide affordable housing, raise revenues for a hospital etc. etc. These are the things every city is trying to do these days. Each city has its own set of priorities and budgetary constraints. In areas where you have one metropolitan region next to another, often it is a wise decision to form partnerships with neighboring metropolitan areas to collaborate, create synergies and pool talents that help the region as a whole. Such is the case in our own Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties. (the Tri – County Region) However, not all that is done is always for the good of the whole. In fact at times the lack of cooperation is a stalemate that is in effect counter productive to the region as a whole.
Cooperation
For all the positives that could be said for cooperation among regions the reality is that rivalry often prevails. Let’s face it, competition among cities and among the politicians themselves is serious. Here in Miami, we want to be the best of tourism and of international business. We have the biggest airport and a shipping port to match. We have Florida International University and University of Miami. We have South Beach, Miami Beach and a culture that is diverse if not concentrated in Central, South American and Caribbean flavor. Broward and Palm Beach County have their own merits, and they too want to be best. Beautiful beaches, beautiful people, Florida Atlantic University, NOVA University and Ft. Lauderdale and let’s not forget the glamour of Palm Beach.. All three communities are vying for business, tourists, transplants(as in demographic shifts) and state and federal money. But in an age when mobility and networks prevail, no city can afford to live as an island. How then do we assure ourselves that cities work together to achieve what’s best for the state? Not only is Tri-County cooperation necessary, but state political pressure must also be applied to get beyond any apathy that may exist at any regional level. In other words you need to have some kind of state oversight on an overall grand scale.
Who Rules
Tri-County regionalism leads to a very contentious political arena. You have local leaders vying for position and control and then you have state officials who power play over local leadership. Why? Our democratic system, in its original form relied heavily on the good nature and ethical values of elected officials who preside over their constituents. This worked well in small cities and towns where people knew each other and had to literally face their constituents on a daily basis. Today, many people do not even know who their elected officials are. And politicians as a whole are more interested in pursuing their careers than they are on equitable decision making. (Of course there are exceptions and the media is important if not the very competition of forcing politicians down the right path). Nonetheless, state officials often are geared to making concessions to those areas and for those projects not only based on merit but also on what their backing can mean in terms of votes for a party or the elected official himself. Politically, this is getting the most bang from “your” buck! So, the Golden Rule is: He who has the gold, rules! As far as money you can bet the state ha more money than any one city.
Tri- County Regionalism is Like Globalism
Inferring from all of the above and about the state of tri-county regionalism in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach County I can’t help but think of how much our neck of the woods is similar to what is going on in global politics and on the global economic front. Here too we have vying powers and interests. Yet we have no real formal all encompassing mechanism to reach equitable solutions that help the planet. Instead we have initiatives, alliances and political interests that promulgate further initiatives as well as inroads to possible solutions. Cummulatively, we have in essence an ad-hoc , improvisational mechanism to respond to worldly needs and hope that we can stay on track to a better tomorrow. With each passing year, and many passing political regimes, we learn. We look back at mistakes, failed policy and lost opportunity and shoot for a better tomorrow.
As it relates to history, the human endeavor to learn and to perfect our existence is very inefficient. Looking towards the future, if we as a planet are to survive we need to work together. We are after all, one and a common people.
By: Rene Velez July 14, 2009
Often we hear of a local governments wanting to accomplish a particular goal. Typically, by a set of political mandates and or promises. The goals come in many forms; build better schools, create commercial business zones, attract big business, improve mass transportation, attract tourism, provide affordable housing, raise revenues for a hospital etc. etc. These are the things every city is trying to do these days. Each city has its own set of priorities and budgetary constraints. In areas where you have one metropolitan region next to another, often it is a wise decision to form partnerships with neighboring metropolitan areas to collaborate, create synergies and pool talents that help the region as a whole. Such is the case in our own Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties. (the Tri – County Region) However, not all that is done is always for the good of the whole. In fact at times the lack of cooperation is a stalemate that is in effect counter productive to the region as a whole.
Cooperation
For all the positives that could be said for cooperation among regions the reality is that rivalry often prevails. Let’s face it, competition among cities and among the politicians themselves is serious. Here in Miami, we want to be the best of tourism and of international business. We have the biggest airport and a shipping port to match. We have Florida International University and University of Miami. We have South Beach, Miami Beach and a culture that is diverse if not concentrated in Central, South American and Caribbean flavor. Broward and Palm Beach County have their own merits, and they too want to be best. Beautiful beaches, beautiful people, Florida Atlantic University, NOVA University and Ft. Lauderdale and let’s not forget the glamour of Palm Beach.. All three communities are vying for business, tourists, transplants(as in demographic shifts) and state and federal money. But in an age when mobility and networks prevail, no city can afford to live as an island. How then do we assure ourselves that cities work together to achieve what’s best for the state? Not only is Tri-County cooperation necessary, but state political pressure must also be applied to get beyond any apathy that may exist at any regional level. In other words you need to have some kind of state oversight on an overall grand scale.
Who Rules
Tri-County regionalism leads to a very contentious political arena. You have local leaders vying for position and control and then you have state officials who power play over local leadership. Why? Our democratic system, in its original form relied heavily on the good nature and ethical values of elected officials who preside over their constituents. This worked well in small cities and towns where people knew each other and had to literally face their constituents on a daily basis. Today, many people do not even know who their elected officials are. And politicians as a whole are more interested in pursuing their careers than they are on equitable decision making. (Of course there are exceptions and the media is important if not the very competition of forcing politicians down the right path). Nonetheless, state officials often are geared to making concessions to those areas and for those projects not only based on merit but also on what their backing can mean in terms of votes for a party or the elected official himself. Politically, this is getting the most bang from “your” buck! So, the Golden Rule is: He who has the gold, rules! As far as money you can bet the state ha more money than any one city.
Tri- County Regionalism is Like Globalism
Inferring from all of the above and about the state of tri-county regionalism in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach County I can’t help but think of how much our neck of the woods is similar to what is going on in global politics and on the global economic front. Here too we have vying powers and interests. Yet we have no real formal all encompassing mechanism to reach equitable solutions that help the planet. Instead we have initiatives, alliances and political interests that promulgate further initiatives as well as inroads to possible solutions. Cummulatively, we have in essence an ad-hoc , improvisational mechanism to respond to worldly needs and hope that we can stay on track to a better tomorrow. With each passing year, and many passing political regimes, we learn. We look back at mistakes, failed policy and lost opportunity and shoot for a better tomorrow.
As it relates to history, the human endeavor to learn and to perfect our existence is very inefficient. Looking towards the future, if we as a planet are to survive we need to work together. We are after all, one and a common people.
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