LGBTQ Advisory Board Minutes - 1-14-20
LGBTQ Advisory Committee
Committee Chair, Robin Schwartz
Meeting Minutes
Tuesday, January 14, 2020
Members in attendance – Aaron Bos-Lun, Cindy Brown,
Craig Garmendia- on phone, Elizabeth Schwartz, Edward
Pascoe, Gayle Durham, George Neary, Herb Sosa, Mark
Wylie- on phone, Paul Thomas, Riki Wilchins, Robin
Schwartz, Sunny Weber
Called to order at 1:00 p.m.
Ongoing Business:
A. Approval of the November 12, 2019 minutes- motion: Herb, second: Riki
B. MBPD Updates – None
C. GMCVB / Marketing updates – Dan Rios provided some updates via email.
New Business:
A. Welcome new members: Edward Pascoe and Sunny Weber- new members introduced
themselves.
B. Elect Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary- Chair: Herb nominated Robin, Gayle seconded
the nomination, all in favor of Robin remaining the chair. Vice-Chair: Herb nominated
Paul, Cindy seconded, all in favor of Paul being the Vice -Chair. Secretary was tabled
until next meeting.
C. Discuss LTC to add line item to budget for LGBTQ funding- Robin prefaced the
conversation and mentioned she had a discussion with Commissioner Góngora a while
back and then she had another conversation with some other people and they came to
a conclusion to recommend the City via LTC to set aside $150,000 for sponsorships for
LGBTQ organizations’ events. Lengthy discussion was held on different ideas of how
to approach this. Different ideas were discussed, but no agreement was met for
anything specific, the Committee would like to continue the discussion at next month’s
meeting.
D. Robin asked to discuss supporting the resolution (C7Y) that was placed on the January
15th Commission Agenda that is sponsored by Mayor Gelber and Co-Sponsored by
Commissioner Góngora. The Committee discussed the resolution: A Resolution Of The
Mayor And City Commission Of The City Of Miami Beach, Florida, Urging The Florida
Legislature To Enact Senate Bill 206, Or Its Related Bill, House Bill 161, Both Entitled
The “Florida Competitive Workforce Act,” Or Similar Legislation That Would Prohibit
Discrimination In Florida On The Basis Of Sexual Orientation And Gender Identity In
Housing, Employment, And Public Accommodations; And Directing The City Clerk To
Send This Resolution To The Chair And Members Of The Miami-Dade Legislative
Committee Members
Aaron Bos-Lun
Alexander Palenzuela
Cindy Brown
Craig Garmendia
Edward Pascoe
Elizabeth Schwartz
Gayle Durham
George Neary
Herb Sosa
Jamie Guirola
Mark Wylie
Paul Thomas
Riki Wilchins
Sunny Weber
Delegation, The Governor, The Senate President, The House Speaker, Senator
Rouson, And Representative Toledo. Vote was held to support this resolution, LTC will
be written. Motion made by Herb, seconded by Cindy. Motion passed unanimously.
E. Sunny Weber- brought up that she is on the board of MDPL and that the Seagull Hotel
is purchased for renovation and there is a possible tear down by Lionheart Capital and
Jeffrey Dagowitz. Herb and George are best people to help with this.
F. Craig spoke about the Florida Department of Health having health data outcomes for
the LGBTQ community. They wanted to know if the Commtitee would like to lump
everyone that is not straight into one category or if they would like to separate all the
different types of people out. Discussion was held.
Subcommittees Reports and Next Actions:
Subcommittees will be discussed at the next meeting. New Members will choose what
subcommittee they would like to participate in at the next meeting.
1) HRC Rating (Cindy, Liz, Aaron, Herb)
2) LGBTQ Visibility/Marketing/ Tourism (Gayle, George, Mark, Paul)
3) Health and Wellness (Ricki, Jamie, Craig, Paul)
4) Senior Housing (Cindy, Robin, George, Roger, Alex)
5) LGBTQ Municipal Funding (Gayle, Paul, Aaron, Robin)
Meeting adjourned at 2:02 p.m.