Park protections. Extending mayor’s term. A look at Coral Gables’ four referendums

Coral Gables admin October 18, 2026 0 Comments

Park protections. Extending mayor’s term. A look at Coral Gables’ four referendums

Coral Gables voters, for the first time ever, will cast their ballots in November for city races.

The change comes after Gables voters earlier this year approved moving city elections from April in odd-numbered years to November of even years to coincide with state and federal races.

Gables voters this year will weigh in on whether to reelect Mayor Vince Lago and Commissioner Melissa Castro. Lago is running for his fourth and final term as mayor. Castro is running for her second term as commissioner for the Group IV seat. Two candidates are competing for the seat of outgoing Commissioner Ariel Fernandez, and there are a variety of city-specific referendums on the ballot, too.

Here’s a look at the referendums:

Coral Gables November election: What referendums are on the ballot?

Voters will weigh in on four city-specific referendums.

Referendum 1: “Shall Section 24 of the City Charter be amended to increase the threshold for public work projects requiring formal solicitation from $25,000 to $300,000, with that amount adjusted as specified in Section 255.20, Florida Statutes?”

Impact: Currently, the city charter requires contracts for public works projects or improvements valued over $25,000 to be awarded “to the lowest and most responsive bidder,” pending approval from the City Commission. A vote yes indicates support to increase that threshold to $300,000.

These are typically infrastructure-related projects, such as sidewalk improvement and traffic-calming measures. A document from the city’s Charter Review Committee notes that “few public works projects are estimated to cost under $25,000 in today’s economic climate.”

A vote no means you do not support increasing the threshold and want to keep it at $25,000.

Referendum 2: “Shall Section 3 of the City Charter be amended to require continuous residency in the City of Coral Gables for a minimum of one year immediately preceding the end of the qualifying period for candidates running for City Commissioner or City Mayor?”

Impact: This referendum, if approved, is expected to clarify the city’s existing one-year residency requirement. If approved, candidates would need to live in the Gables for one year prior to the end of the qualifying period.

Currently, a candidate must “have resided in the City of Coral Gables for at least one year prior to the election for which he or she seeks office,” according to the city’s charter.

The initial idea for the referendum came from the City Attorney’s Office, which suggested amending the city charter to “reflect the City’s longstanding interpretation of the residency requirement,” due to recent legal disputes in neighboring municipalities related to interpretations of residency requirements, according to a document by the city’s Charter Review Committee.

Referendum 3: “The City Charter currently provides for a two-year term for the City’s Mayor. Shall the City Charter be amended to increase the term of office for the Mayor to four years, consistent with the term of office for City Commissioners, beginning with the 2028 Coral Gables General Election with no change to the associated term limit?”

Impact: A vote yes supports extending the term of Gables mayor from two years to four years. The vice mayor and commissioners already serve four-year terms, though their terms are staggered.

If approved, mayoral races would be held every four years, alongside the Group II and Group III commission seats, according to the city. The referendum would not extend the current term of Mayor Lago. It will also not extend the term of whoever is elected mayor in November. That’s because the change, if approved by voters, would not take effect until the November 2028 election.

A vote no supports maintaining the current mayoral election timeline. Currently, mayoral races are held every two years. That means the mayor is always up for reelection, along with two commissioners, every two years. This gives voters the ability to reelect or change the majority of the City Commission every two years.

Lago, who asked for the referendum to be on the ballot, said he believes a four-year term would let the mayor focus more on “serving the community” instead of on reelection campaigns. Lago, if reelected in November, will be term-limited and unable to run again for mayor in 2028, when the potential term change could happen.

Many cities in South Florida have four-year mayoral terms, including Miami, Doral, Hialeah and South Miami. Some, like the Gables, have two-year mayoral terms including Miami Beach, Wilton Manors and Miami Springs.

This is not the first time Gables voters have weighed in on mayoral terms. Voters in 2005 gave the green light for four-year mayoral terms beginning in 2007 but then voted in 2009 to go back to two-year mayoral terms, according to the charter review committee.

Keep in mind the Gables does not operate under a “strong mayor” type of government like Miami-Dade County. Instead, the Gables mayor has the same voting powers as the rest of the commission, which acts like a board of directors for the city and directs the city manager, who is like the city’s CEO, to take certain actions through majority votes. In the Gables, the city manager is the one in charge of day-to-day operations.

Referendum 4: “Shall the City Charter be amended to require that the sale, exchange, conveyance, or lease of ten (10) years or longer of any city-owned property used as a park, recreational facility, golf course, or open park space as of November 3, 2026, or later acquired for such use, be approved by sixty percent (60%) of the city’s voters in a citywide special election?”

Impact: A vote yes supports requiring city leaders to seek at least 60% voter approval in an election before the city can sell, exchange, convey or lease city-owned parks, recreational facilities, golf courses or “open park space.”

A vote no supports the current status quo. Currently, the City Commission can sell, lease, exchange or convey any city-owned property, including parks, through a majority vote.

Lago, who asked to place the referendum on the ballot, describes it as a measure that would provide additional protection for places such as the Granada Golf Course, Salvador Park, Centennial Park and the Coral Gables War Memorial Youth Center, which is in the middle of a legal dispute between the city and a private association.

How can you vote?

Early voting starts Monday, Oct. 19. If you want to vote on Election Day, which is Tuesday, Nov. 3, polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. For people who like to vote-by-mail, that’s also the deadline to return your ballot. Remember, the Elections Department must receive your vote-by-mail ballot by 7 p.m. on Election Day in order for it to count.

For a, visit the Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections website. To find your voting location for Election Day, review your voter registration card or your voter information online on the Elections website.