CITY OF MIAMI, ETC., ET AL., APPELLANTS,
v.
CARLOS RODRIGUEZ-QUESADA, ETC., ET AL., APPELLEES

Fla. 3d DCA | 1980-08-26
No. 80-555
Before BARKDULL, SCHWARTZ and NESBITT, JJ.
388 So. 2d 258 Florida District Court of Appeal, Third District (1980) Positive Treatment
Cited by 4 cases

AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.

Synopsis

The City of Miami appealed a temporary injunction that blocked the abolition of an elected community development board. The court reversed the injunction, holding that a city has the inherent power to modify or abolish an advisory board it created, and that federal community development law does not restrict the manner of obtaining community input.


Holding

The city has the power to abolish the board it created, as the power to create an office includes the power to modify or abolish it even when occupied by duly elected incumbents. The federal Act requires community input but does not restrict the manner and means of obtaining it, and the temporary injunction was improperly imposed.


Headnotes

[1] Federal legislation requiring citizen participation in community development programs does not restrict the implementing authority's discretion in determining the specifi…

[2] The power to create a public office generally includes the power to modify or abolish it, even if the office is occupied by an elected incumbent.

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Key Quotes

“We find nothing in the Federal Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, nor the regulations which implement it [24 C.F.R. § 570.1, et seq. (1979)], which restricts the implementing authority in determining the manner and means of community input.”

Establishes that federal law does not mandate a specific structure for community participation, only that it be obtained.

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Facts & Procedural History

The City of Miami established the Little Havana Community Development Board by resolution on April 30, 1979, as an elected advisory body to satisfy fe…

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

The City of Miami seeks reversal of a temporary injunction enjoining the abolition of the Little Havana Community De velopment Board (Board). We find the injunction to have been improperly imposed and reverse.

The Congress has enacted legislation which provides funds for community development. Under this legislation, grants for state and local community development programs are prohibited unless assurances are given by the locality that there will be citizen participation in the development of its program. 42 U.S.C.A. § 5304(a)(6); 24 C.F.R. § 570.303 (1979). The City of Miami applied for a block grant under this program.

To facilitate community participation, the City of Miami Commission established the Board by resolution adopted on April 30, 1979. The resolution provided for the election of the fifteen-member advisory group from within the Little Havana area. They were duly elected on July 30, 1979 to serve a one-year term. After finding that the Board did not provide an opportunity for residents to voice their opinions and had alienated resident participation within the area, the City Commission, by resolution adopted January 24, 1980, abolished the elective Board and replaced it with an appointive board. The present action was commenced by two-thirds of the members of the elected Board in their individual capacities.1

We find nothing in the Federal Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, nor the regulations which implement it [24 C.F.R. § 570.1, et seq. (1979)], which restricts the implementing authority in determining the manner and means of community input. It is clear that the Act requires community input; however, this input is advisory in nature. The fact that the Board was established by resolution demonstrates its temporary nature. Certain Lots Upon Which Taxes Are Delinquent v. Town of Monticello, 159 Fla. 134, 31 So. 2d 905 (1947).

It is the general rule that the power to create an office generally includes the power to modify or abolish it even though the office is occupied by a duly elected incumbent. City of Jacksonville v. Smoot, 83 Fla. 575, 92 So. 617 (1922); 9 Fla.Jur.2d Civil Servants § 20; 63 Am. Jur.2d Public Officers and Employees § 33. Where an incumbent does not have a contractual or property interest in an office, it may be abolished at any time. 63 Am. Jur.2d Public Officers and Employees § 34.

In this instance, the City of Miami Commission was authorized to create the Board and was privileged to abolish it. For the foregoing reasons, the temporary injunction is reversed with directions to dismiss the complaint.

Reversed.

. While we decide this case upon the merits, we might have disposed of it on the question of standing. The Little Havana Community Development Board was an advisory board created by the City of Miami Commission. By its nature, it was subservient and not autonomous. Autonomous bodies of government have the power to either bring suit or be sued. North Miami Beach Water Board v. Gollin, 171 So. 2d 584 (Fla. 3d DCA 1965). This Board did not. The fact that the choice of those who would voice the community’s opinions was determined by election did not bestow upon the members of the Board a property right in the office. Absent a contractual or property right in their respective positions, the Board members had no standing to bring suit for injunction in their individual capacity. Being a subservient body, they could not sue in their collective capacity either.


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Cited By

  • Miami-Dade Water & Sewer Auth. v. Metro. Dade Cnty., 503 So. 2d 1314 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987)
    …, 20 N.J.Super. 280, 89 A. 2d 727 (Super.Ct.N.J.1952); Stemmler v. Borough of Madison, 82 N.J.L. 596, 83 A. 85 (Ct.Err. & App.N.J.1912); Compare City of Jacksonville v. Smoot, 83 Fla. 575, 92 So. 617 (1922); City of Miami v. Rodriguez-Quesada, etc., 388 So. 2d 258 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980). Therefore, the final judgment be and the same is hereby affirmed. Affirmed. . The Home Rule Amendment and Charter, Section 4.08 Boards. (B) The Board of County Commissioners may by ordinance provide for the expansion of the Ci…
  • Metro. Dade Cnty. v. Floyd, 559 So. 2d 614 (Fla. 3d DCA 1990)
    …v. Lower Penns Neck Tp., Salem County, 20 N.J.Super. 280, 89 A. 2d 727 (1952); Stemmler v. Borough of Madison, 82 N.J.L. 596, 83 A. 85 (1912). Compare City of Jacksonville v. Smoot, 83 Fla, 575, 92 So. 617 (1922); City of Miami v. Rodriguez-Quesada, 388 So. 2d 258 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980). On several grounds, it is thus incorrect to construe the language of the Tripartite Agreement so broadly as to grant WASA powers which clearly contravened the authority of the entity which created it. 3.Even if the provision cou…

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