Miami-Dade County Land Conveyance
Floor Speech
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Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. I thank my dear friend, Ranking Member Lucas, for the time as well as Mr. Holden, and they've summarized the legislation well. I introduced this bill, H.R. 3175, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to sell approximately 2 acres to Miami-Dade County soMr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. I thank my dear friend, Ranking Member Lucas, for the time as well as Mr. Holden, and they've summarized the legislation well. I introduced this bill, H.R. 3175, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to sell approximately 2 acres to Miami-Dade County so that a fire station can be built. It is an issue of great importance to the community. The southern portion of the district that I'm honored to represent, covering the village of Palmetto Bay and the city of Pinecrest, continues to grow rapidly. Due to the population growth, public services have been stretched, and fire response times, as Mr. Lucas pointed out, have fallen below the district average.
This morning I met with distinguished leaders from the village of Palmetto Bay. They reiterated to me the urgent need for this fire station in our south Miami-Dade County community. So this problem really deals with the issue that new construction for public services in Miami-Dade is confronting a lack of available land. The USDA station currently occupies, as Mr. Holden pointed out, approximately 200 acres in southeast Florida with plenty of land to spare.
So, Mr. Speaker, the citizens of my community were not asking for a handout, as Mr. Lucas was pointing out. The county is going to pay fair market value for the land, along with all associated fees, and they have committed to completely funding the construction of the fire station. The CBO has scored the bill at no cost to the taxpayer. So again, I would like to thank Chairman Peterson and Ranking Member Lucas for their prompt action on the bill. I also wish to thank my dear colleagues from south Florida who have cosponsored the bill, Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen, who will shortly address the House, Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz, Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart, and Kendrick Meek. I urge passage of the legislation. that a fire station can be built. It is an issue of great importance to the community. The southern portion of the district that I'm honored to represent, covering the village of Palmetto Bay and the city of Pinecrest, continues to grow rapidly. Due to the population growth, public services have been stretched, and fire response times, as Mr. Lucas pointed out, have fallen below the district average.
This morning I met with distinguished leaders from the village of Palmetto Bay. They reiterated to me the urgent need for this fire station in our south Miami-Dade County community. So this problem really deals with the issue that new construction for public services in Miami-Dade is confronting a lack of available land. The USDA station currently occupies, as Mr. Holden pointed out, approximately 200 acres in southeast Florida with plenty of land to spare.
So, Mr. Speaker, the citizens of my community were not asking for a handout, as Mr. Lucas was pointing out. The county is going to pay fair market value for the land, along with all associated fees, and they have committed to completely funding the construction of the fire station. The CBO has scored the bill at no cost to the taxpayer. So again, I would like to thank Chairman Peterson and Ranking Member Lucas for their prompt action on the bill. I also wish to thank my dear colleagues from south Florida who have cosponsored the bill, Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen, who will shortly address the House, Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz, Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart, and Kendrick Meek. I urge passage of the legislation.
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