Hialeah moves ahead with $8 million museum at JFK library; other needs unresolved

Hialeah is moving ahead with an $8 million plan to turn its John F. Kennedy Library into a combined history museum and library, approving the investment even as the city continues to grapple with unresolved needs, including a permanent fire station in its newest area, contracts with first responders, aging infrastructure and a troubled network of public pools.

The City Council approved Mayor Bryan Calvo’s proposed $514.4 million budget on first reading Tuesday night, with Councilwoman Gelien Perez casting the lone vote against it after council members received the budget book on the same day they were asked to approve the spending plan.

The proposed budget is up nearly $7 million from the current budget and includes a $55.4 million first-year capital improvement plan.

One of the largest individual projects is the $8 million allocation to create a permanent Hialeah history museum and renovate the JFK Library.

Chief Financial Officer Pedro De Faria said the money would come from impact fees and would be used for the design, development and installation of permanent museum and exhibit space dedicated to preserving Hialeah’s history, culture and heritage.

“Just to be clear, the library will not be replaced,” De Faria said during the presentation. “The library is going to be on the top floor of this museum.”

There is no blueprint or detailed design for the $8 million project yet. The Miami Herald has learned that council members had not been presented with a concrete plan showing how the museum and library would be designed, how the space would be divided or what the finished project would look like when they voted Tuesday.

Still, six of the seven council members voted in favor of the proposed budget, including the $8 million allocation.

Perez questioned the process, saying council members needed more time to review the city’s spending plan.

“I’m not happy that I have received my budget book today by 9 a.m. I think we need to work on the budget timeline. It is very important,” Perez said during Tuesday’s first budget meeting. “I take very seriously every penny that we spend in the city, and I don’t feel comfortable right now. Getting the book today is a little disrespectful and a little disappointing. We need transparency on that.”

An attraction

Calvo described the project as a multipurpose event space. He said the library would continue to offer books and study spaces, while the museum portion would be designed to accommodate school field trips and visitors interested in Hialeah’s history.

“This is going to be an attraction,” Calvo said. “Something that schools can do field trips to, something that members of the public can go and learn about the history of Hialeah.”

Calvo said the $8 million figure could ultimately prove to be more than the project needs. The city budgeted the full amount, he said, so the project would not begin without enough money to finish it.

He also said the city has about $1 million in grant funding for library renovations and is seeking additional legislative appropriations that could offset the city’s cost. However, in the proposed budget there is no information regarding any grant for the museum.

Questions about the library

The proposal also prompted questions from council members about how the renovated building would function and whether there would still be enough space for residents who rely on the library.

Perez said she wanted to make sure the renovated facility continues to serve children and families who depend on the library for basic services.

Perez recalled using the library to do school projects while growing up because her family did not have the means to have a computer at home.

“I just want to make sure we still offer for the kids to go and do their homework,” Perez said.

Councilwoman Monica Perez said she liked the idea of creating a museum in part of the library and supported elements of the proposed renovation, including a cafeteria. But she raised a logistical issue involving the JFK Library’s use as an early voting site, questioning whether the construction and new configuration would require the city to find another location during the two-week early voting period.

Parks spending

The museum project is not necessarily competing dollar-for-dollar with every city needs.

The $8 million is coming from impact fees, which have restrictions on how they can be used. But the budget nonetheless provides a snapshot of Hialeah’s priorities.

The museum project would use about 71% of the $11.2 million in park impact fees, which the city uses for eligible capital improvements to parks and recreational facilities.

Also, the allocation alone represents nearly 43% of the city’s proposed $18.7 million in parks expenditures. That comes as the city faces significant needs across its parks’ system, including its pools, with four facilities remaining closed since 2020.

Hialeah is proposing an investment in a new cultural attraction while its public pool system remains closed and under review. All of Hialeah’s pools closed after Calvo shut down the city’s remaining operating pools following problems at Bucky Dent Water Park.

The Florida Department of Health closed Bucky Dent after an inspection found 34 violations across 27 categories, just days after the city celebrated the facility’s reopening following more than a year of construction.

Calvo subsequently ordered the city’s remaining pools closed and called for an independent review of the aquatic facilities.

The new budget includes $1 million for pool repurposing projects, $600,000 at Bright Park and $400,000 at Walker Park. But there is no new funding for Reid Pool, which has been closed for over six years.

As the city moves forward with the museum, the aquatic system is under review, first responders are still negotiating contracts, water and sewer problems persist and residents in the northwest Hialeah continue to wait for a permanent fire station.

Station, fire responder contract

The budget also comes as Hialeah’s firefighters remain without a new contract.

The city has proposed a two-year contract that would give firefighters a total 12% increase. The firefighters’ union has sought a three-year agreement with compounded raises totaling over 23%. Bargaining remains stalled.

The union says Hialeah firefighters remain underpaid compared with firefighters in neighboring departments and has pointed to significant attrition among recruits.

Then there is Hialeah Heights, known as the Annex, where residents west of Interstate 75 continue to wait for a permanent fire station more than two decades after the area became part of Hialeah. The area also lacks a traditional park. It has only a passive park, with no recreational amenities, because the park site is contaminated.

The city budget allocates approximately $62.1 million to the Fire Department, but a permanent fire station in the Annex remains one of the city’s unresolved infrastructure needs. Residents there have relied on a temporary trailer as a fire station for more than five years.

The proposed budget contains no funding or plans for a permanent fire station in the developing area where over 16,000 people live. Instead, it includes $175,000 for interior renovations at all nine fire stations, including the Annex’s temporary fire-station trailer. Months ago, the city suspended plans for a $43.6 million government center in the area and moved forward with a renovation and expansion of City Hall.

Calvo has described the library and museum project as an investment in Hialeah’s future and its identity as a major city. But as the budget moves toward final approval, with a public workshop scheduled for Sept. 14 and a final vote set for Sept. 22, the spending plan also raises a broader question: What does Hialeah consider its most urgent needs, and which of those needs will be funded first?