#we're talking hundreds to thousands of applications for every position

[selfchiller]

While I'm on the subject of the zoo industry it's pretty interesting to me that when I interned at the one unionized institution I've encountered, most of the (husbandry) staff that I met disliked it and considered it a great inconvenience.

[thedoralian]

A Conversation With Doral Council Candidate Oscar Puig

As part of our election 2020 coverage, we are conducting interviews with all candidates for local office that have chosen to accept our interview request. All candidates have been contacted. Oscar Puig is a 20 year resident of Doral, a vital part of its founding, and an active leader and participant in many of the city’s civic organizations. He is running for Doral Council Seat #3. Oscar endorses J.C. Bermudez for Mayor and Claudia Mariaca for Council Seat #1. He has been endorsed by J.C. Bermudez. In this article, The Doralian is proud to present it’s first interview. Let us know what you think! If you have any questions please DM. Please like, comment, and share! *This is not an endorsement*

Interview Transcript

Doralian: So, I want to start off by talking about your platform. Here at The Doralian, our goal is to inform the public. Unfortunately, many voters struggle to understand the stances brought by candidates for local office. Could you highlight maybe 2-4 pillars of your campaign that you want voters to know?

“1) Number 1, I would call continuation. We have built a wonderful city. Since I was involved in the creation of the city, I was one of the co-founders and we saw how the city deteriorated and zoning changes were made (before the city's incorporation and during Luigi Boria's mayorship) that weren’t supposed to be made and that's one of the things that I want to prevent. So, the continuation of these last four and the previous ones during JC's first years in office I think is important to maintain and have somebody that has the time invested like I do in the city for many years. That's one.

2) I think that with this pandemic, we will see a difficult time ahead of us because of budget shortfalls, as a lot of people are without a job. That's going to affect a lot of projects because of property taxes. People losing their homes. So I hope to be a voice to find solutions to help our residents, our business, so that if affected, we continue to ask the federal government, the state, and the county, for funds to help the citizens and the small businesses.

3) I am also big on two other things. One of them is small business. Aside and before the pandemic I was supported by 15 good, small sized business that have been here for a long time and I see that there's got to be a movement to help and facilitate the process of the city, which already started, I know that JC announced in their state of the union, several things that are going to help the small businesses and streamline the processes of the city, and I want to support that and make sure that small business can also do marketing events with the city. Marketing strategies with the city that can help them grow and ultimately push the theme that will help people understand that they can eat here, that they can play here, that they could have a good nightlife here, they can eat here. It's changed a lot, so you don't have to drive anywhere else. So, if we can, as a city, start a movement to keep people to spend within the city, they will help small businesses a lot.

4) The last one is the special needs and the elderly programs. I support them 100% and anything we can do to make them better. In the city of Doral, we have a lot of participants in Special Olympics. We have a great special needs program and I want to support them and the elderly of course, our most vulnerable, especially during these times when they're alone. So, look for ways that we can, even if it's digitally, help them not be alone and satisfy whatever needs they have.“

Doralian: The reason I’ve invited you here today is to try to highlight some of the distinctions between you and other candidates. My next question is, whether it involves your qualifications or policy stances, what makes you different from the other candidates?

“I don't think I like to talk about my differences with others. I'd like to say that my experience within the city, I've been involved since the year 2000, in many, many ways with schools, with the parks, with the city committees, selection committees, park director selection committees, and years back the city attorney selection committees. Important committees that I've participated in to service our community with my family and their families in mind. Just making sure that, like I said before, that we have a good transparent and effective government that represents the best interests of the residents at large, whether they vote or not. It's important to represent everybody and that the city is in good shape. My qualifications are my experience and dedication that I've given for the last 20 years to our city.”

Doralian: What is your individual take on the city’s public transportation system? What direction must the city turn to improve its public transportation infrastructure?

“As a city, for 20 years, we’ve done a lot to improve, but at the same time, we went from 20,000 to almost 70,000 residents, plus the 100,000 when we include all the people that come in and out of the city to work. It’s a positive, because we have a good base of employment and a good base of residents but at the same time it creates that whole complicated issue of traffic. I therefore believe that traffic is not just a Doral issue, I believe that Doral and every city in Miami Dade County and the County has to sit down and start looking for solutions of mass transit. Expand the rail. The growth we have had as an entire county has not been followed by investment needed in mass transportation. So, if we think of Doral only, we are not going to solve it, because when Palmetto and Turnpike are, you know, a bottleneck, there's hundreds of thousands of vehicles stuck there for hours, it's going to ripple down into the city because people cannot get on the highway, so then eventually creating traffic within the city. That's where we see most of the traffic, when people are going to get on the highway. And when you look at Doral during the weekend, we have very little traffic, if any, which is a great thing for us. So it's all created by this large base of businesses and residents that we have that are active during the week. So, I think this is a regional problem and we have to look at it that way, but continue to invest as a city: opening streets like we've done many, many times, we're now going to open 25th street to the turnpike, an exit and an entrance, so that's going to help traffic on 41st and 12th, even as high as 74th street. The major problem is regional, we have to make sure that we start investing in that and I want to be a loud voice to bring that to the table.”

Doralian: So, you mentioned rail for a second there and one mayoral candidate has proposed lobbying the county to bring rail to Doral. Do you support the expansion of Miami-Dade's Metrorail to Doral?

“I support it anywhere it goes. We will have to look at where and how, of course, those are things that are important, but in general, yes, that's what I'm talking about when I speak of mass transportation. But more than that I think Kendall area, a train from Kendall to the East and to the North is important, these are areas that are very effective because of the lack of mass transportation. Because we have rail here in Doral and some of our residents do take it. We have now a bus system that goes straight from the new area by 12th street all the way to downtown and those are great solutions. We need to continue this.”

Doralian: My next question is an attempt to understand what kind of development you would encourage while in office. I'd like to ask, in your vision of a future Doral, what does the city look like to you? Does it look more urban? Is there more mixed-use development like CityPlace or Downtown Doral in which residential districts are heavily mixed with entertainment districts? Or does it look more suburban, more classical Doral-like? Something like Doral Isles or Islands at Doral.

“That's what I'm talking about when I talk of a master plan. There's going to be areas that are going to be preserved as the more suburban, which is the West side of Doral, even though there was an application that was approved on 107th and 74th that brought some buildings. But still, now it's back on track, like the mayor says, so that shouldn't happen anymore. We have a good master plan now that prevents things like that from happening. I support that masterplan, we have to tweak it but yes, on the east side I support what's going on with Downtown Doral and CityPlace because one of the things that's going to prevent the traffic is the presence of an area where you can live, work, play, and learn. It's important because you don't have to get out and get in the car to do grocery shopping like it happens in Downtown Doral or take your kids to school or any of that. You know, you don't have to get out of that area at all. As a resident, you have it all there. That's a solution to traffic. People like it. I think a lot about the people that live in those areas and they enjoy it a lot. It's an easier life when you don't have to drive somewhere to eat or take the kids to school. I would embrace those.

Doralian: What specific policy proposals do you suggest for the city to help local struggling businesses?

I think again we have to find a balance, I think we are at a balance right now where you can go out and make sure that we continue to protect ourselves but at the same time closing businesses I don't think is the right solution. I think we have to, again, have a balance, make sure that businesses and people are following the CDC guidelines and whether they're in or outside the city. So, to me it’s important to have the economy moving because it could be a disaster later on to have the economy affected. But at the same time, we need to be proactive in getting involved and being part of the solution.

Doralian: Are there any candidates for the other local elections that you would like to endorse?

Yes, Claudia Mariaca and J.C. Bermudez

Doralian: Any closing comments? Is there anything you want residents of our city to know?

Yes, there is something that to me is very important. It's participation not only when you go out and vote but also participate as a resident in many ways and hopefully things will go back to normal soon and you can participate as a resident. Doing something that adds value to the city, to the residents, being part of the committees, getting involved with the parks, non-profits, the Chamber of Commerce, we are now going to have a Doral Contemporary Art Museum. See what's going on, the schools, the PTA, that's how I started, with the Chamber. To start getting involved and bringing solutions to the city I think is very important. I'm more than open to helping and guiding everyone that is interested in coming on board and knowing what I did and how I did it so they can do it better.