Does Anyone Have Mobile Service with T-Mobile?

Or you did?  Or you know something about them?

Do you like them?  How's the reception, stability, and network?

I used them many years ago, and they were weaker than the leaders then.  But the network map I saw recently seemed to suggest they're strong now.  They claim to be mostly 5G (is that out?) with some 4G.

They're also considerably cheaper than my current carrier, and for unlimited everything, including data.

Any experience with them?

Here We Go Again.

It was back in about 2014 that we considered outsourcing the remaining part of the sanitation function of the PW department (recycling had been outsourced to MSV years before), and we did it.  Some of our neighbors thought outsourcing was a great idea, and some thought it was a tragically terrible idea.  A couple or so of the latter put together a petition drive, and they presented to the Commission a petition allegedly signed by 327 Village residents.  This presentation was made literally at the last minute, on the night that the Commission vote for or against outsourcing was to take place.

The petition was grossly faulty.  For some stupid reason, I allowed Milt Hunter to dissuade me from publishing a blog post about it, and that draft subsequently mysteriously disappeared.

The reasons the petition was faulty included that the petition statement was wrong and inaccurate, leading signatories to ask the Commission not to do something it had no intention of doing.  And prospective signatories were either told an incomplete story as to why anyone would want to outsource the rest of the sanitation function of the PW department, or they were told things that weren't true.  In addition, some "signatories" never signed the petition.  Their names and signatures were forged.  Even looking at this petition when it was presented was unmanageable.  When I studied it, and made some calls to signatories, a few days later, it was impossible to give it any weight at all, even in retrospect.

Now, there's another petition being circulated.  This one simply requests that the Commission reinstate Krishan Manners.  There are 50 reported signatories, and they represent the outreach efforts of three (four, if you count the husband and wife team) of our neighbors.  But here are the problems.

Krishan's on paid administrative leave, with clearly specified cause, and he has an opportunity to challenge this removal from active duty.  The Commissioners who voted to place him on leave think he did something terribly wrong.  They have provided a two week period for Krishan to make his case, and persuade them that he did nothing wrong.  If he does that, then the administrative leave will end, and Krishan will return to being the Village's manager.  If he fails to do it, or if he agrees with the accusations, then two weeks after the end of his two week opportunity, his employment will be terminated.  But the terse and mysterious petition statement-- that Krishan should be reinstated as Village manager-- provides no indication that signatories know why Krishan's status has changed.  Intended recipients of this petition-- presumably the Commission-- can only guess that signatories asked, or what they might possibly have been told.

Then, there are the signatories.  Not all of them actually "signed" their names.  We would only be assuming if we thought that all of them were fully aware and in agreement that their names were even there.  At least some of the signatories informally canvassed (not by me) have no idea why Krishan's employment status has changed in any way at all.  They just think, or have just been told, that Krishan is a "nice guy."  I agree.  Krishan is a nice guy.  And this "nice guy" was said to have...?  And a "nice guy" couldn't possibly...?

It's sad, and frustrating, to see some of our neighbors behave this way, and it does not lead to confidence in them.   Having "been there" in 2014, I'm very suspicious of the petition sponsors.  I see the meaningless and misleading petition statement.  And I see the pairs of names written with the same hand.  Having heard of at least one signatory's explanation for why she signed, I see the absent understanding of the issues, with her presumably not having been told any more.  I'm disappointed in signatories, too, for accepting such a grossly incomplete explanation for such a dramatic move on the part of the Commission: removing the Village manager from active duty!  You'd think there must be quite a story to tell, and quite an explanation, even if it's incorrect.  If you're going to sign a petition like that, wouldn't you want to know what the Commission thinks the manager did, and why they think so, and how we know he didn't really do that at all?  None of that is part of this petition.  And any signatories queried are not providing any depth of investigation, insight, or even interest.  If this is just a popularity survey, then I agree that Krishan has charmed many more people than he's offended.  If it's anything other than that, then the petition is a mystery, and the signatories are completely in the dark.

Where Are You, John Hornbuckle?

The good old days (I moved here in 2005) keep getting better and better.  Commission meetings were tight.  They lasted two hours, unless they were so complicated that they lasted 2 1/2 hours.  Progress was-- I really can't think of a better way to put this-- crisp.  I myself couldn't figure out how they did it.  Many or most votes were unanimous.  I wondered if there was some "shady" communication going on, to explain how everyone got on the same page with very little discussion.  And no manager to help them all come to see things the same way. 

And then, we crashed.  Steve Bernard assumed he was going to be anointed, but when he wasn't, and Roxy Ross became mayor instead, Steve went on an endless undermining rampage against Roxy.  One casualty of his and Bryan Cooper's incessant sniping and destabilizing was that meetings became battlegrounds, and they took a really long time.  Steve would monopolize, he and Bryan would form a tag team against Roxy, and we established a limit of four hours for Commission meetings.  Even at that, we sometimes had to add time.  And we never recovered.  Noah Jacobs and his crew bumbled around, fending off correction from Roxy and Bob Anderson, and the advice of our then manager, Ana Garcia, and meetings continued to take four hours.  After that, we had an adaptive majority, but the meetings didn't get any shorter.  Then, Tracy Truppman promised to streamline meetings.  Her version of streamlining them was that they still took four hours, and we had increasing numbers of extra meetings, because we could no longer get business done even in four hours once a month.  And now, we're done with Betsy Wise, Jenny Johnson-Sardella, and Tracy Truppman, and even the last of the Mohicans, Will Tudor, didn't show up tonight.  It was Ginny O'Halpin, Dan Samaria, and Mac Kennedy.  And a really short agenda.  One week after the last meeting.  Just a bit of clean-up.

Those who commented publicly asked the Commission not to accept the Charter Review Committee's suggestions, and to do away with the magistrate method of Code Compliance.  We want our Code Compliance Board back, and we'd like the same people who resigned to come right back.  Both of those were easy, because Dan Samaria had already spoken against both of them, and Ginny and Mac had also panned them during their campaigns.  We also had to register formal acceptance of John Herin (Fox Rotschild) as our interim attorney, and David Hernandez as our interim manager.  This stuff is like "Consent Agenda" material.  Yeah, yeah, yeah, 3-0.  Ditto regarding ratifying the plan for an April 14 special election to fill Tracy Truppman's seat.  Bang.  Cha-ching.  Whatever.  Matters like this shouldn't awaken anyone.

There are two questions about this meeting, setting aside Ginny O'Haplin's continuing efforts to get control of the gavel.  (Tonight, it was mostly John Herin who provided guidance.  As Chuck Ross said, Ginny will get it.)  One question is how it possibly took 2 1/2 hours.  If there was really more than an hour's worth of material there, then there certainly wasn't more than 1 1/2 hour's worth.  The second question is what happened to Mac Kennedy.  Mac was suddenly equivocal, inclusive of what he always said he would exclude, and in no hurry.  He was in a big hurry last week, but tonight, he slowed down the action.  For example, despite his previous unequivocal rejection of the so-called Charter Review Committee's product, tonight, he praised them for "doing what the Village asked them to do."  It was Dan Samaria who said a version of what I was thinking: they didn't do what the Village asked of them.  They did what Tracy Truppman and one of her lieutenants, Judith Gersten, told them to do.  And if Mac had only been being diplomatic, it would have been classy, or strategic, of him.  But Mac seemed genuinely prepared to consider the canned nonsense the Committee transmitted.  Village residents also asked the Commission to switch from Board members approved by consensus to Board members nominated by each Commissioner, as it used to be.  Roxy Ross said she was on the Commission when the current change was made, but she doesn't remember why we did it, and she thinks it was a mistake.  Mac wasn't so sure.  He wanted to take more time (months) to think about it.

So, we'll see how our Commission evolves.  Last week, they knew what they wanted, and they pursued it ruthlessly.  This week, not so much.  Among other things, Mac doesn't do second banana, and Dan seemed to be feeling he was being trampled by someone other than Tracy and her dwindling posse.  There was one bit of good news, though.  Will Tudor didn't come.  Maybe that's it for him.  He was a lot happier when he could elbow others out of the way.

"Ain't Misbehavin'." So Good I'll Probably See it Again.

"Ain't Misbehavin'" is two things.  It's a 1929 song written by early stride/jazz pianist Thomas "Fats" Waller, and it's a 1978 stage production based on Waller, and featuring his song and the time it represented.  The stage production features the song, and it's composed of many other songs by various other people.  The production presents what appears to be one night in which Waller, one of his male friends, and three of their female friends, enter a Manhattan, possibly Harlem, nightclub.  The production is a nonstop presentation of songs.  It's somewhat like Lieber and Stoller's "Smokey Joe's Cafe" or Bette Midler's "Divine Miss M."  It's a celebration of music and times and a theme.

"Ain't Misbehavin,'" the stage show, is about jazz.  It's about African-Americans.  It's about style.  It's about strutting and posing and caricaturish interacting.  You know many of the songs-- "Ain't Misbehavin,'" "Honeysuckle Rose," "The Joint is Jumpin,'" "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter," and "I Can't Give You Anything But Love"-- and you know the caricatures.  The styling is late 1920s/early 1930s.  The men and the ladies, all black, all have "good" straight hair.  Hats abound, including bowlers for the gents.  The ladies' dresses were all attention-grabbers, as they very much should have been for this hot night out at the club.  The men wore their big, brashly striped suits.  Not zoot suits, but dramatic.

Some songs that you might not know, but you'd have a better life if you did, include "Jitterbug Waltz."  I don't know if "Viper's Drag" is an incredible song, or if it only seemed incredible, because of the way Vlad Dorson sang it.  That song, and Vlad Dorson, are part of why I'll probably see "Ain't Misbehavin'" again.  You might or might not know "Your Feet's Too Big," but if you do know it, it will profit you to see and hear Don Seward perform it.  Don Seward played Fats Waller in the show, and he was magnificent.  He looks Fats, he struts Fats, and he is Fats.  Every song (there are 30 of them) in "Ain't Misbehavin'" is good.  Several or more are great.  The one that will knock you off your seat, or just paralyze you, is "Black and Blue."  If I had no other reason to want to see "Ain't Misbehavin'" again, this song would be reason enough.  "Blue" here is taken to mean the emotion, not the color.  This song should be the anthem of African America.  There is simply no better way to  say what it must feel like to be African American than this song.  It's a gorgeous, captivating, moving, heart-rending song.  I attended this show on opening night (Thursday, February 6), and after opening productions of M Ensemble shows, there is food and mingling.  Before long, the performers, sometimes barely recognizable as their characters (once they've gotten cleaned up, and changed clothes) come into the reception room.  They're hungrier than is everyone else.  You can meet them, and thank them, and talk to them.  I was talking to Vlad Dorson, who played Fats' male friend, and I mentioned "Black and Blue."  I said it must have been hard to perform.  Vlad agreed, and he cited the complicated harmonies.  I know he was right about that, but I said I imagined it must have been hard to sing that, and not cry.  He nodded.  It was hard to listen to it, and not cry.  And I don't even have to live it.

The show opens with an elevated stage, a pit behind the stage for a very small ensemble of about six instrumentalists and a conductor, and two cocktail tables and four chairs on the stage.  The conductor of the musical ensemble, by the way, was a black woman.  You don't most commonly see female conductors, and this is the first black female conductor I have ever seen.  She was very good.

The first character to appear is the waiter, who is an ongoing, although silent, part of the production.  He brings drinks, takes away glasses, says some unheard waiterly things to the other performers, and dances.  And he's great.  The actor/dancer is not even listed in the program, but he should be.  The rest of the show is the five other characters (Fats and the other four) performing one song after another, with whatever buildup is appropriate to stage the song.  All the actors flirt with each other, so there are shifting pairings, connections, jealousies, and, above all, strutting.  I have to admit that for my whole life, I have been inclined to dismiss, disqualify, or demean the strutting, and posturing, of African Americans.  I always told myself it was, or should be, an unnecessary way of finding a place, and an identity, for African Americans in the rest of America.  Or that it softened more uncontained hostility, like the dancing in "West Side Story."  I see it better now.  I wonder if it's "cultural" in the sense of being a factor even in Africans who were never brought here, and who never much later chose to come.  It's very clearly a matter of pride and true identity, though.  I still regret that African Americans think it helps them to have straight hair, and I regret it even more if they're right.  I was coming up-- went to college-- in the '60s, when "black [was] beautiful," and the proudest African Americans had afros-- the bigger, the better-- and that's stuck with me.  It was "Madame C J Walker," a black woman born in 1867 to two (recent) former slaves, who in the early 1900s was said to have become the first black millionairess on the strength of having invented the first hair-straightening compound (for African hair).  And so many blacks have coveted "good hair" ever since.

Anyway, the singing starts with "Ain't Misbehavin,'" and it's nonstop song from there until the end.  Cute songs, funny songs, gorgeous songs, moving songs, clever songs, and strutting, and dancing (the waiter and Vlad were the best dancers, although Don Seward wasn't bad, either).  The ladies were not called upon to do as much dancing.  No, it was the peacocks and their plumages.  The only break was a 15 minute intermission.  That's all they needed?

What a wonderful show!  The venue is the Sandrell Rivers Theater at 6103 NW 7th Avenue.  You take I-95 south to 62nd Street, go right at the bottom of the ramp, take your first left just before 7th Avenue, and find the free indoor parking lot on your right in less than a block.

Because I attended the big do on opening night, of course I had to pay top dollar.  Well, 36 of them.  We're talking here about an opening night performance, with after-reception, and meeting the performers (actors and instrumentalists), for $36.  Normally, an experience like that would cost maybe $125.  $75, if it's a special situation, and you can get a deal.  At the M Ensemble and Fantasy Theater Factory and Sandrell Rivers Theater, this is the deal.  If that's too rich for your blood, or you didn't know about opening night, or opening night was last night, so it's too late now, then you can pay $31 general admission, unless you're an older person like myself (you know, a "senior"), in which case, it's $26.  Or, if you can put together a "group," however many people that is, it's $18 per person.

The point is, this is insanity.  I have rarely seen a show I didn't very much like at Sandrell Rivers Theater, and I've loved many or most of them.  And it's not uncommon that they're free, with "donations appreciated."  The parking is free, the people could not be friendlier and more welcoming, and I hope I've made clear that this is, for who on earth knows what reasons, dirt cheap.  Part of it is that our county somehow cares about culture, and they have built, and continue to support, without apparent question, cultural venues, like South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center and Sandrell Rivers Theater, and they provide grants to almost everyone else.  It's unbelievable, but it's true.  And it's there.  And Sandrell Rivers Theater is in our backyard.  Sort of literally.

Please see this show.  It plays Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights at 8:00, and Sunday afternoon at 3:00.  The last show will be on Sunday, February 23.  Everyone else will move on to their next gig, and Vlad Dorson will go back home to NYC.  By the way, a meaningless, but faintly fun, bit of trivia here.  One of the women actors/singers is Asher Makeba.  Her mother is Betty Wright, who lives just over the border from us on 108th St.  If you don't know who Betty Wright is, she was a major R&B star "back in the day," and I know her best as the main mentor of Joss Stone.  I don't know how long Betty Wright has lived where she now lives, and if Asher Makeba grew up just a block or so from our southern tip.  I didn't see Asher after the show, so I didn't get a chance to ask her about herself.  She's a wonderful singer and performer, though.

Regime Change. And Unceremonious, Too.

We learned very soon that Tracy Truppman, who can't function if she's not in complete charge, resigned her Commission seat.  So we had a Commission of four.  More or less immediately, with their clearly having chomped at the bit first, our two new Commissioners proposed a resolution placing Village manager Krishan Manners on paid leave, pending his opportunity in the next two weeks to challenge it.  If he doesn't challenge the leave, he'll be dismissed "for cause" two weeks later.  Krishan was more or less graceful about the execution taking place.  I have a feeling he won't challenge his dismissal, since he no longer has Tracy Truppman to protect him.  It was new mayor Ginny O'Halpin who first offered a resolution to suspend Krishan, but Mac Kennedy, who expanded into any space available, and some that weren't, added to Krishan's alleged faults.  Ginny had already spoken to David Hernandez, who already agreed to be the acting manager.  He formally accepted, although he said it was "sad," which it was, because he liked Krishan.  Many of us, and all Village employees, like Krishan.  It wasn't about whether or not he was likeable.

Then, Gray Robinson, who had resigned with 30 days notice, of which 20-something days remained, were told they were excused before the 30 days.  Again, Ginny said she had already reached out to John Herin, who had been invited to attend tonight's meeting, to see about his at least filling in.  Which he did, on the spot.  Julia Mandell was very gracious about relinquishing her seat.

Our new Commission then began its business.  There were presentations, which were followed by normal business items.  At about 9:15, Will Tudor had had enough, and he got up and left.  Bob Anderson said that Will had "taken his toys, and gone home."  That was about right.  By that time, Will had already situated himself on the short end of about 3-4 three to one votes.  One of them was the vote for Ginny O'Halpin to be the new mayor.  Someone near me asked me why (on earth) Will would have voted against that, since the other three voted for it.  I didn't have an answer.  It was a dumb and empty vote.  Will had commented that he thought things in the Village should be more "professional."  Presumably, he was advising the Village to do as he said, not as he did.

The Commission then did as much as it could.  It extended its standard allowable four hours to about 4 1/2 hours.  A number of things were (actually) accomplished.  Several observers noted the now unusual phenomenon of business getting settled.  And most or all of what the new Commission agreed to do reflected what BP residents actually wanted.

I hope Will Tudor will do the right thing.  He never belonged on a BP Commission, he never functioned in a way that met, or was intended to meet, the needs and wishes of BP residents, and he needs to join Tracy Truppman in calling an end to this charade.  We seem to have to have another special election anyway, and it will restore adaptive functioning to the Commission, and to the Village, if Will isn't there any more.  On the other hand, the most Will can do now is be part of a meaningless minority.  If that's what pleases him, then it's only a waste of less than $2000 more until November.

I will say this about tonight's meeting.  It was both sad and happy.  It was hard to see Krishan Manners be told his party is over, and a little less hard to see the same message given indirectly to Will Tudor.  Each of them is likeable, and Krishan is very likeable.  They're both good people.  They just both got overwhelmed by Tracy Truppman.  And they both paid for it tonight.  But the Village and its Commission can function now, and in the interest of the Park.  That's what it's all about.

The Problem With the Miami-Dade County Ethics Commission.

As you know, the county Ethics Commission (cEC) has been investigating the BP Commission.  This investigation has been going on for months, and the report has just been released.  The "case [is] closed."

There were four allegations the cEC investigated, and they were 1) whether Tracy Truppman or Krishan Manners in any sense illegally canceled a BP Commission meeting on 3/5/19, 2) whether Krishan or Village Clerk Roseann Prado "improperly impaired the release of public records by charging excessive and unauthorized fees to certain requesters," 3) whether Tracy fired former Village manager Sharon Ragoonan without authorization from the Commission, and 4) whether Tracy "exceeded her authority" in signing a debris removal contract without Commission approval.

As a historical dynamic, various members of the BP community have called upon or consulted various members of the cEC on several occasions over the years.  Curiously, the cEC seems always to conclude that whatever is the question, or the matter of concern, it is not within the purview of the cEC.  It had become a kind of question, or even an inside joke, as to what the cEC actually does.  But this time, they "took the case."  They sent representatives and investigators, and they seemed genuinely to pursue the matters of complaint and concern.  They attended many Village meetings, and they took notes.

The cEC evaluates matters it considers to be within its purview, it researches relevant state law, it interviews anyone it considers to be a relevant witness, and, if it actually takes a case, it forms conclusions.  That is roughly-- sort of theoretically-- what happened here.

For allegation #1, the cEC spoke to all of the BP Commissioners and to Krishan Manners.  It was quickly clear, and already known, that it was Krishan who made calls to BP Commissioners canceling the meeting.  It was also known that Tracy Truppman said she could not attend.  What was unclear was why Krishan told BP Commissioners that the specific reason the meeting would not occur was that there was no quorum.  Less urgently, but still curiously, there was the question of why Tracy Truppman said she couldn't attend.  Regarding the latter, it turned out Tracy was available (she was in town, and she did not have some overriding commitment), but there was some vague theory to suggest she wasn't ready for some matter or another.  Also, our long time Village attorney had recently resigned, and one proposal was that we didn't have an attorney for that meeting, so the Village/Commission wasn't ready.  Then, there was an assertion that the Village's administrative staff had not yet completely prepared for a particular issue for that meeting, so the Village administration was not ready.  Clearly, there are varying suggestions as to why any of a range of parties might not have found 3/5/19 to be the most opportune date for a Commission meeting, but none of them would be considered reason enough to postpone it.  Even all of them together wouldn't have been reason enough.

But the critical matter was not why anyone might have wanted to cancel the meeting, but rather, what was clearly wrongly told to Commissioners.  Tracy said she didn't want to come to the meeting, for whatever reasons, and the other four were told there was not an available quorum, and this was not true.  Krishan Manners told them this untrue thing, and the question was why he would have done that.  One speculation was that Krishan told four Commissioners there was no quorum, because Tracy, for who knows really what reasons, didn't want to have a meeting, and she told him to invent this story.  The cEC addressed this speculation by asking Tracy if she told Krishan to cancel the meeting by lying to Commissioners.  Tracy said she didn't.  That was the end of the cEC's concern about Tracy.  Krishan acknowledged that he told the other four there was a wish to reschedule the meeting, but he said he didn't remember exactly what he told them, or why he told it to them.  That was the end of the cEC's concern about Krishan.  "Shucks, I don't rightly remember" turned out to be a completely adequate defense.

As to allegation #2, the cEC reviewed the accepted requirement that municipalities make available to constituents public records in a fair way, and without unreasonable burden.  The cEC noted relevant specifics: that Roxy Ross had been charged about $150, which included a $100 "IT fee," Chuck Ross had been charged about $200, including a $150 "IT fee," and some unnamed friend of Tracy Truppman's had been charged about $37, without any "IT fee."  So, there was a very clear discrepancy.  But the cEC considered these only "examples," and "not an exhaustive investigation," and the conclusion was that "the evidence is insufficient to show that the Village is engaging in any disparate treatment of citizens regarding the fees for public records."  Not only is it mind-bogglingly unclear how the cEC came to this conclusion, but the cEC appears to have overlooked the $15K estimate communicated to Art Gonzalez for public records.  "Investigating" with this kind of incomplete information is like the phrase "not playing with a full deck."  It is my understanding that one of the lead cEC investigators was seriously ill during parts of the investigation, and he kept losing documentation, which then had to be provided to him again.  That's a hell of a document to lose.

The third allegation was resolved without complication.  Sharon Ragoonan was interviewed, she said it was she who abruptly resigned, and that she was not fired at all.  Investigators did not look further into why a new, highly motivated, and very dedicated municipal manager would suddenly resign, on the spot, and they either didn't know about or didn't interview the other Village resident in the room witnessing Tracy Truppman's firing of Sharon.  The cEC wanted a conclusion, as tidy as possible, and they had one.

As for allegation #4, the cEC noted that "During the October 3, 2017, meeting, the Commission met and unanimously ratified the signing of the contract."  The cEC does not bother itself to note that this ratification was retroactive, in that the contract had already been signed by Tracy Truppman without Commission discussion, and the cEC further explains that "The [cEC] does not enforce the Villages (sic) Charter."  Therefore, "no evidence was discovered that mayor Truppman exploited her official position with regard to the debris removal contract signing."  Well, it sort of depends on what you consider evidence.

So, to the extent that some of us wondered what, exactly, the cEC does, and what is its value, we're still wondering.

BP CELEBRATORY COMMISSION MEETING

Greetings, neighbors, After a failed attempt at our first commission meeting of 2020 in January, we'll finally get this village back to work this Tuesday, 7p, at the log cabin. I'm hoping for a big turnout for this first meeting of the fully seated commission that now includes Ginny O'Halpin and me alongside previously elected commissioners Tracy Truppman, Will Tudor and Dan Samaria. (Ginny and I were sworn in on Jan16 outside a public meeting after the attorney figured out how commissioners are sworn in. Took the attorney a minute, but she figured it out.) This first meeting is a biggie, so please plan to attend, even if you can't stay for the entire meeting. Let's pack the log cabin and start a fresh year of resident engagement with our local government. Our Charter (ie Constitution) requires the Commission to elect a new mayor at this first meeting of a new commission, and that always happens at the start of the meeting. Other hot topics include: - replacement of the attorney (The current firm resigned our account just prior to having its case against another sitting commissioner dismissed by the judge. We can't function without legal representation, so that's a top priority.) - ratifying a Code Magistrate (the "judge" who hears your Code violations) - proposed changes to our Charter for the November election - a discussion about the village manager's weekly report (that's hotly debated, it seems) - first steps in dealing with the village manager's employment agreement that expires in September - And, of course, every resident gets three minutes at the public podium to say anything they like to the commission, from comments on agenda items to personal gripes and grievances to ideas/suggestions for village improvements. Those are YOUR three minutes, and I encourage everyone to always take advantage of them You are active participants in our local government, and commissioners are there to respond to YOU! Note that if you share your opinions here, I won't be able to reply. Discuss things freely among yourselves, but I won't engage until the public meeting. Here's a link to the full agenda and back-up documents so you can read up before you come. Or, just come for the Charter-mandated "changing of the guard," which we all deserve to be dignified and gracious after a positive campaign season that ended with just a small hiccup in January. Mac. https://www.biscayneparkfl.gov/index.asp?SEC=A482E78D-C7CA-4E86-BD0D-AA20BD7CDAEB&DE=30CA35FA-9C98-4BDA-A593-3E203785288B&Type=B_EV