Jesse Scheckner
Persistence paid off for Miami Springs Orlando “Landy” Lamas.
The 49-year-old architect just won the Miami Springs City Council’s Group 3 seat unopposed.
Jorge Santin, a 59-year-old fellow Republican, was also victorious, coasting into a second two-year term in the Council’s Group 1 seat.
Their wins became official after no one filed to run against them by the city’s qualifying deadline on Friday.
For Lamas, the victory was long-sought. He placed second behind Santin in the city’s election two years ago. Before that, Lamas mounted short campaigns for the Florida House and Miami-Dade County Commission, neither of which succeeded.
He’ll replace Council member Walter Fajet after the city’s April 1 election.
“As a longtime resident of Miami Springs, small business owner, and well-respected architect, I know what we have to do to keep our beautiful community strong and our economy vibrant,” Lamas said in a statement.
“On the City Council, I will be fully committed to putting the needs of citizens first and championing responsible growth for our children and future generations.”
Lamas is a 24-year resident of Miami Springs, according to his campaign. He is the principal of a full-service construction firm and has worked on numerous local development projects, including Dolphin Mall and Bayside Marketplace.
He founded several other construction, hospitality and real estate investment companies, Florida Division of Corporations records show. Most are no longer in operation.
Santin, a real estate appraiser, previously led the Miami Springs Recreational Commission and sat on the city’s Business and Economic Task Force. Last June, he was installed as President of the Hialeah-Miami Springs Rotary Club.
Miami Springs voters will choose three other City Council members this year.
Bob Best and Fajet are competing to replace Mayor Maria Puente Mitchell.
For the Group 2 seat, Joseph Dion and Irma Matos are running to succeed Jacky Bravo.
And in the Group 4 race, voters will choose between Thomas Hutchings and Fabian Perez-Crespo, who are running for the seat Victor Vázquez is vacating after a single term.
The deadline to register to vote in this year’s Miami Springs election is March 3. Early voting runs March 28-29 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the City Council Chambers.
Election Day voting (April 1) will take place at the Miami Springs Golf & Country Club at 650 Curtiss Parkway from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
In November, Miami Springs voters rejected a ballot measure that would have increased the terms of elected city officials from two to four years. Miami Springs officials are limited to serving eight consecutive years.
