General Meeting Recap: July 2025

Occupy North Beach? We Took Our July General Meeting North—and North Beach Showed Up

For months, our North Beach members have urged us to host more events at that end of town—and on July 7, we listened. Our July General Meeting was held at LaPoubelle, a speakeasy-style bar and cabaret tucked away on Normandy Isle at 172 Maimonides Street. Judging by the standing-room-only crowd and the energy in the room, our members were absolutely right.

LaPoubelle, with its vintage charm and European-salon ambiance, turned out to be a great venue. A huge thank you to David Sexton and the LaPoubelle team, who not only made sure our audiovisual needs were met but also helped hunt down the missing projector power cord.

The evening felt right: a pulsating crowd, new faces, and a refreshing change of scenery.

A quick word about Normandy Isle. Yes, there's parking and it is transit-accessible, including via the free Miami Beach Trolley. The area boasts a picturesque fountain, walkable streets, and charming street names borrowed from cities and landmarks in France.

And then we “find” Maimonides Street. GPS is required because the street sign reads “Mai Monides,” which may or may not be a misspelling. It is a blend of an alley and a hidden driveway. It is named after Moses Maimonides, a medieval Jewish philosopher and rationalist. His most famous work, The Guide for the Perplexed, feels eerily appropriate for Democrats of today and anyone trying to navigate a political landscape where rational thinking appears to be optional and most governmental actions are simply perplexing.

President Amanda kicked off the meeting with official business—approval of June minutes, welcomes for new members, and updates on key club initiatives like vote-by-mail renewals, voter registration, and youth engagement. She then introduced the first of a lineup of terrific guest speakers. If you are media obsessed and checking news on every device at every hour, our roster of speakers had either been themselves in the news recently or were perfectly suited to tackle the topics that appear in every national and local headline.

Group 1 Commission Candidate Daniel Ciraldo and the Development Policy Debate

We started the evening hearing from Daniel Ciraldo, one of the candidates running to fill the Miami Beach Commission Group 1 seat. He led the Miami Design Preservation League for eight years, advocating to preserving the lifestyle and architectural character that make our city unique. He worked to push back against overdevelopment locally and even took the fight to Tallahassee when lawmakers launched an unprecedented assault on our city's decision-making rights.

Daniel laid out a vision focused on smart, sustainable growth—ending spot zoning, halting arbitrary height increases, and pushing for more public transit options to ease traffic. He discussed neighborhood-level plans to combat climate-driven flooding and outlined housing protections to maintain affordability, including cracking down on short-term rentals. He also called out the city’s troubling pattern of granting developers special exceptions at the expense of residents and the need for better transparency and accountability in city planning. See, https://danielformiamibeach.org.

TransSOCIAL: Uplifting Trans Communities

Next, we heard from Ashley Mayfaire (she/they), Co-Founder of TransSOCIAL, a nonprofit providing critical resources, training, and advocacy for Florida’s TLGBQ+ community. Ashley, alongside her husband and co-founder Morgan (he/him/el), has made TransSOCIAL a lifeline for trans and gender-diverse Floridians.

Ashley shared the urgent challenges facing trans people—from legal hurdles to healthcare discrimination—amid escalating attacks by right-wing politicians and religious groups weaponizing the courts. She made clear that the rollback of trans rights doesn’t just hurt individuals—it harms communities and places long-term financial burdens on taxpayers. Her call to action: stay informed, stay engaged, and support organizations doing the work. Learn more about the organization at https://transsocial.org.

Democrats, Democratic Values and the Florida Legislation

Our next speaker, Florida State Senator Shevrin Jones, had to make his way to the podium among enthusiastic handshakes and greetings, very unlike the uphill battle he wages daily as one of a handful of Democrats who’s managed to break through to Tallahassee in recent history. We expected to hear all the details of his recent encounters with what one can only describe as the forces of evil and, boy, did he deliver.

A Miami Gardens native and FAMU graduate, Senator Jones was elected in 2020 to represent District 34 which encompasses parts of Hialeah, Miami, Miami Beach, Miami Gardens, North Miami, North Miami Beach, Opa-locka and all of Bal Harbour, Bay Harbor Islands and North Bay Village. He represented the 101st District of the Florida House of Representatives from 2012.

Senator Jones is the first openly gay Black person elected to the Florida Senate.

He began with a note of optimism, pointing to Senate Democrats’ small but significant wins—such as blocking all anti-LGBTQ+ bills this past session and softening provisions in the Live Local Act that would have seriously affected the Miami Beach historic buildings and district. But he warned that these victories are fragile and must be defended.

“Tallahassee is a cesspool,” he said, “because what they see in DC, they’re trying to mimic here.” He outlined how the Republican majority continues to sideline Democratic priorities—vetoing 31% of Democratic caucus proposals and unfairly distributing state funds. He also shared his insights on the importance of Democratic representation and the need to win more seats in upcoming elections.

“So, when we talk about representation matters, I know you have heard me saying before, that if you’re not at the table then you’re on the menu. Having a seat at the table does matter.”

Jones dismissed claims that Democrats lack a message: “People understand when you talk about what it means to put food back on the table. They know what it feels like when their kid is hungry or when they lose Medicaid.” His message was clear: “We have to elect fighters… We can stop what’s happening in Tallahassee—but only if we become the disruptors.”

As expected, the first question that came up at the Q&A was about the Alligator Alcatraz detention center and about Florida lawmakers being denied entry despite their statutory right to make unannounced visits to state facilities, particularly those detaining people.

In statements, Senator Jones has described this as a "blatant abuse of power" and a calculated effort to conceal human rights violations. He reported messages from families of detainees of reports from the facility that describe inhumane conditions: contaminated water, lack of legal access, no air conditioning and inoperable toilets and showers.

The kicker? It’s fully funded by Florida taxpayers—$450 million in public funds with no federal support or oversight. Jones stressed that secrecy and abuse thrive in silence—and that public scrutiny and legislative action are urgently needed. Stay updated, get involved or get in touch with Senator Jones HERE.

Commissioner Tanya Bhatt: Transparency on the Deauville and More

The night closed with Miami Beach Commissioner Tanya Bhatt, who is not campaigning for the upcoming election, but is an outspoken allied who always shows up ready to shed clarity on the Whats and Whys going on at City Hall. Miami Beach has been in the headlines lately with the controversial Commission vote in favor of closing the Bikini Hostel and moving more than 100 unhoused people out of the city so developers can build a 300+ foot high-rise in its place. Another contemptuous issue has been the Deauville Hotel property in North Beach, on which the discussion centered.

Whether we agree or disagree with the resulting actions, Commissioner Bhatt openly discussed the challenges of developing the site due to problematic landowners and past legal designations. She broke down the fight against early plans for three tall towers that, owing to negotiations, was shifted down to a two-tower design that respects architectural legacy while delivering infrastructure improvements and long-term economic benefit to the area, with a total investment in the community of $370 million over 30 years.

The conversation ended with a discussion about the importance of voter engagement and the need for accountability and public input, and she stressed how vital it is to prevent a Republican takeover of the City Commission in November. You can contact Commissioner Bhatt at https://www.miamibeachfl.gov/staff/commissioner-tanya-k-bhatt/.

North Beach, we heard you—and we’ll be back.

We thank everyone who attended or joined the zoom and urge all our members and everyone in the community to show up and get and stay involved. Things are getting steamier, and it is not just the summer temperatures. Don’t forget to check our Upcoming Events.