Frank Caplan, Allision McCormick and Brett Moss are sworn into office as members of the Key Biscayne Village Council by Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Dava Tunis, Thurs., Nov. 12, 2020. Caplan is a former mayor; McCormick and Moss were re-elected from a field of 10 candidates in the most expensive, and by some accounts accounts contentious election in village history. The ceremony was held in the Village gym with social distancing in place because of the ongoing pandemic. (KBI/Tony Winton)
Mayor Mike Davey and Council Members Allison McCormick, Frank Caplan, and Brett Moss were sworn into office Thursday in a socially-distanced setting in the Community Center gymnasium. Officeholders struck a theme of unity after what several of them described as one of the most contentious elections in local history.
Mayor Davey, who was re-elected without opposition, called on the Council to unite to tackle important resiliency projects including utility undergrounding, saying the public had rejected misinformation about a $100 million resiliency bond that was approved by voters.
Council Member McCormick said the island is diverse, but it is not divided.
The Council will hold its first working meeting November 17. Among the top priorities will be finding a successor for outgoing Village Manager Andrea Agha, who is expected to depart soon. Also to be discussed at at a Monday closed-door session is the status of collective bargaining agreements covering the village’s unionized employees.
The ceremony also featured a farewell to Council Member Katie Petros, who did not run for re-election. Council Member Ed London praised her for being devoted to researching and learning the details of various issues that would come before council.
Two of the seven defeated candidates — Oscar Sardinas and Michael Kelly — also attended the event.
Tony Winton is the editor-in-chief of the Key Biscayne Independent and president of Miami Fourth Estate, Inc. He worked previously at The Associated Press for three decades winning multiple Edward R. Murrow awards. He was president of the News Media Guild, a journalism union, for 10 years. Born in Chicago, he is a graduate of Columbia University. His interests are photography and technology, sailing, cooking, and science fiction.