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LARRY, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS,

COMMUNITY LEADERS AND FELLOW RESIDENTS...

GOOD MORNING!

THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE AS WE CONTINUE

TO WORK TOGETHER TO MAKE MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

THE PLACE TO LIVE, WORK AND PLAY.

AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, I’VE BEEN WITH ONE

COMMUNITY ONE GOAL SINCE THE BEGINNING --

SINCE 2012 AS A CO-CHAIR. AND I KNEW I WANTED

TO BE PART OF THIS CRUCIAL COMMUNITY-WIDE

INITIATIVE BECAUSE I KNOW THAT MIAMI-DADE IS A

WORLD-CLASS COMMUNITY.

AND WE JUST GET BETTER AND BETTER EACH DAY.

LIKE ALL MIAMIANS, I KNOW MIAMI-DADE IS POISED

TO BE ONE OF THE GREAT GLOBAL COMMUNITIES

OF THE WORLD. WE ARE WHAT THE REST OF THE

UNITED STATES -- AND MAJOR METROPOLITAN

AREAS OUTSIDE OUR COUNTRY -- WILL LOOK AND

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FEEL LIKE IN THE NEXT DECADE. WE ARE ON THE

CUTTING EDGE, AND WE ARE CONTINUING TO PUSH

THE ENVELOPE.

AND I’M MORE COMMITTED THAN EVER TO WORKING

WITH YOU TO MAKE A BETTER MIAMI-DADE FOR OUR

CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN.

THAT’S MY DUTY AS MAYOR, AND OUR DUTY AS A

GENERATION.

SO, THIS MORNING, I’M EXCITED TO TALK WITH YOU

ABOUT SOME OF OUR RECENT ACCOMPLISHMENTS,

AND WHAT YOUR COUNTY GOVERNMENT IS DOING

-- IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ALL OF YOU HERE TODAY

-- TO MAKE MIAMI-DADE AN EVEN BETTER PLACE TO

LIVE, WORK AND PLAY.

THAT’S WHAT ONE COMMUNITY ONE GOAL IS ALL

ABOUT, RIGHT? WORKING TOGETHER TO BUILD AN

EVEN BETTER MIAMI-DADE … A MIAMI-DADE WITH

HIGH-PAYING JOBS AND INVESTMENTS THAT

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BENEFIT ALL MIAMIANS.

THAT’S AN IMPORTANT POINT: WE MUST MAKE

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY THE PLACE TO LIVE, WORK

AND PLAY FOR EVERY SINGLE MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

RESIDENT. AND NOW WE HAVE 2.7 MILLION OF

THEM, MAKING US THE MOST-POPULOUS COUNTY

IN THE THIRD MOST-POPULOUS STATE IN THE

UNION.

AND THAT’S WHY, LAST WEEK, WHEN I LAID OUT MY

PROPOSED BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2016-17, WE

INCLUDED FUNDING FOR PROGRAMS AND

INITIATIVES THAT WE HOPE WILL CONTINUE TO

ATTRACT NEW INVESTMENTS IN OUR COUNTY.

FOR EXAMPLE, THE PROPOSED BUDGET PROVIDES

MORE THAN $200 MILLION TO SUPPORT EXISTING

AND NEW APPLICATIONS FOR AFFORDABLE

HOUSING PROJECTS.

AS YOU MAY HAVE HEARD, THE BOARD OF COUNTY

COMMISSIONERS VOTED TO MOVE FORWARD WITH

THE REDEVELOPMENT OF MIAMI’S OLDEST PUBLIC

HOUSING COMMUNITY: LIBERTY SQUARE IN THE

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LIBERTY CITY NEIGHBORHOOD OF THE CITY OF

MIAMI, AND LINCOLN GARDENS IN BROWNSVILLE

AND ALSO WITHIN MIAMI CITY LIMITS. MY

PROPOSED BUDGET INCLUDES ALLOCATION OF $46

MILLION IN COUNTY FUNDING FOR THIS LONG-

OVERDUE REDEVELOPMENT.

THE EMPLOY MIAMI-DADE INITIATIVE – WHICH WAS

LAUNCHED AS PART OF ONE COMMUNITY ONE GOAL

-- HAS ALSO BEEN INCLUDED IN THE LIBERTY

SQUARE/LINCOLN GARDENS REDEVELOPMENT SO

THAT GRADUATES OF THE PROGRAM CAN BE HIRED

ON THE JOB SITE.

EMPLOY MIAMI-DADE HAS ALREADY LED TO 471

RESIDENTS WHO LIVE IN NEIGHBORHOODS WITH

HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT RATES BEING TRAINED, AND

MANY HAVE BEEN PLACED IN JOBS. AND WHAT

BETTER WAY TO BUILD THE NEW LIBERTY SQUARE

AND LINCOLN GARDENS THAN WITH RESIDENTS

WHO LIVE IN THE AREA?

THE PROPOSED BUDGET FULLY FUNDS THE

CONTINUATION OF EMPLOY MIAMI-DADE, ALONG

WITH $1 MILLION TO CONTINUE OUR SUMMER

YOUTH EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM SO THAT OUR

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COMMUNITY’S YOUNG RESIDENTS CAN GET

VALUABLE, ON-THE-JOB EXPERIENCE.

WE’RE ALSO PROPOSING THE ADDITION OF 18

POSITIONS IN SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT,

WHICH WE ANTICIPATE WILL ALLOW THE NUMBER

OF CERTIFIED SMALL AND DISADVANTAGED

BUSINESSES IN MIAMI-DADE TO GROW BY ALMOST

100.

AND WE CONTINUE TO MAKE SIGNIFICANT

INVESTMENTS IN OUR PARKS, LIBRARIES,

CULTURAL AND EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS

BECAUSE THESE ARE A CRITICAL PART OF MAKING

MIAMI-DADE A WORLD-CLASS COMMUNITY FOR ALL

MIAMIANS.

IN ADDITION TO THOSE PRIORITIES, WE’VE

ACCOMPLISHED A HECK OF A LOT THROUGH ONE

COMMUNITY ONE GOAL. AS I MENTIONED AT LAST

WEEK’S BEACON COUNCIL BOARD OF DIRECTORS

MEETING, WE CAN BE PROUD THAT WE’VE ALREADY

SURPASSED OUR FIVE-YEAR GOAL OF CREATING

27,000 JOBS IN TARGET INDUSTRIES. IN FACT,

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WE'VE INCREASED JOBS IN TARGET INDUSTRIES BY

NEARLY 45,000, OR MORE THAN 66 PERCENT, IN

FOUR YEARS! THAT DESERVES A ROUND OF

APPLAUSE.

THAT’S WHAT GOOD COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

CAN ACCOMPLISH.

AND WE’RE WORKING ON EVEN MORE.

WE CAN BE PROUD THAT WE – COLLECTIVELY --

HAVE CREATED MORE THAN 150,000 PRIVATE-

SECTOR JOBS IN OUR COMMUNITY OVER THE LAST

FIVE YEARS.

AND I WANT TO BE CRYSTAL CLEAR ABOUT

SOMETHING BECAUSE YOU OFTEN HEAR

POLITICIANS SAY THAT THEY HAVE CREATED JOBS.

GOOD FOR YOU THAT I’M NOT A TYPICAL

POLITICIAN …

GOVERNMENT DOESN’T CREATE JOBS.

WHAT GOVERNMENT DOES IS SET THE CONDITIONS

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TO CULTIVATE PRIVATE-SECTOR JOB CREATION.

GOVERNMENTS ALSO PARTNER WITH

ORGANIZATIONS LIKE THE BEACON COUNCIL AND

OUR FRIENDS AT THE GREATER MIAMI CONVENTION

AND VISITORS BUREAU … BILL TALBERT AND HIS

TEAM ARE FANTASTIC …

THE GREATER MIAMI CHAMBER OF COMMERCE …

THE KNIGHT FOUNDATION … AND MANY OTHERS …

AND MIAMI-DADE COUNTY HAS BEEN THE NUMBER-

ONE JOB-CREATING COUNTY IN THE STATE OF

FLORIDA. AND FLORIDA HAS BEEN EITHER NUMBER

ONE OR TWO IN JOB CREATION IN THE ENTIRE

NATION OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS.

OUR UNEMPLOYMENT RATE HAS ALSO GONE DOWN

FROM AROUND 12 PERCENT FIVE YEARS AGO, TO

ABOUT 5.5 PERCENT TODAY.

SO, WE’VE DONE A VERY GOOD JOB – ALL OF US,

COLLECTIVELY -- OF CREATING JOBS IN MIAMI-DADE

COUNTY.

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AND WHEN OTHERS QUESTION OR POLITICIZE THE

WORK WE DO TOGETHER, IT HURTS OUR

COMMUNITY BECAUSE IT SENDS THE WRONG

MESSAGE TO THE PRIVATE SECTOR AND THE

ENTIRE COMMUNITY.

WE WON’T LET THAT HAPPEN.

I COULD GO ON AND ON ABOUT ALL OF THE GREAT

WORK THAT WE’VE DONE TOGETHER. BUT I’M SURE

YOU DON’T WANT ME TO STAND UP HERE FOR

HOURS, SO I’M GOING TO FOCUS ON WHAT WE’VE

DONE AND WHAT WE’RE DOING IN TERMS OF

ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INNOVATION. I’LL BE

TOUCHING ON WHAT WE’RE DOING TO ENHANCE

MIAMI-DADE’S PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND

BUSINESS CLIMATE AND POLICY DURING MY PANEL

DISCUSSION LATER WITH LARRY, MATT AND

NELSON.

I KNOW THAT OUR TECH AND INNOVATION

ECOSYSTEM IS THE SPECIAL FOCUS OF TODAY’S

EVENT. AND I CAN SEE WHY. WE’VE ACCOMPLISHED

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QUITE A BIT IN A VERY SHORT TIME IN TERMS OF

DIVERSIFYING OUR ECONOMY BY GROWING OUR

TECH AND INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM:

WE’VE HAD 34 PERCENT TECH JOB GROWTH IN

MIAMI-DADE SINCE 2012.

IT’S NOT SURPRISING THAT THE WHITE HOUSE

RECENTLY DESIGNATED MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

AS ONE OF ONLY TWO “TECH HIRE”

COMMUNITIES IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA.

BECAUSE WE ARE DEFINITELY LEADING THE

CHARGE TO MAKE MIAMI-DADE THE TECH HUB

WE ALL KNOW IT CAN BE. WE HAD THE

FORESIGHT TO PROVIDE $1 MILLION IN SEED

MONEY TO HELP LAUNCH THE INAUGURAL

EMERGE AMERICAS CONFERENCE HERE IN

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY.

MANNY MEDINA AND HIS TEAM HAVE BEEN

DOING AMAZING WORK. IN ITS FIRST YEAR,

EMERGE HAD ABOUT 6,000 ATTENDEES, 10,000

THE NEXT YEAR, AND ABOUT 14,000

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ATTENDEES THIS LAST YEAR. SO, YOU COULD

SAY THAT OUR TECH HUB IS GROWING BY THE

YEAR AND WE’RE CONTINUING TO SOLIDIFY

OUR POSITION AS TECH BEACH.

AND WE’RE ALREADY NUMBER TWO IN THE

NATION IN TERMS OF STARTUPS. NOT

EVERYONE KNOWS THIS, BUT MIAMI-DADE

COUNTY WAS ONE OF THE FIRST

GOVERNMENTS TO INVEST IN STARTUPS.

AROUND THE SAME TIME WE INVESTED IN

EMERGE, WE PROVIDED $1 MILLION IN SEED

MONEY TO HELP VENTURE HIVE GET OFF THE

GROUND. AND I’M GLAD WE MADE THAT

INVESTMENT. BECAUSE, SINCE ITS FOUNDING

IN 2012, SUSAN AMAT AND HER TEAM AT

VENTURE HIVE HAVE HELPED MORE THAN 30

TECH COMPANIES FROM ALL OVER THE GLOBE

FLOURISH IN OUR WORLD-CLASS COMMUNITY.

TWO YEARS AGO, MICROSOFT OPENED THE

FIRST MICROSOFT INNOVATION CENTER IN THE

UNITED STATES AT VENTURE HIVE.

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THE “MIC” BRINGS TOGETHER INNOVATORS,

ALONG WITH STUDENTS AND OTHERS, TO

ACCELERATE TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES --

CREATING THE TECH JOBS OF TOMORROW.

I THINK THE PROOF THAT MIAMI-DADE IS

QUICKLY BECOMING A HUB FOR INNOVATION IS

ALSO IN THE TECH COMPANIES THAT WANT TO

BE IN OUR COMMUNITY. TECHNOCOM USA, A

SPANISH I.T. SERVICES COMPANY, AND

WESTERNACHER & PARTNER CONSULTING, A

GERMAN-BASED BUSINESS AND I.T. SOLUTIONS

COMPANY, ARE SETTING UP SHOP RIGHT HERE.

AND TOPP SOLUTIONS, WHICH DEVELOPS,

REMANUFACTURES, DISTRIBUTES AND REPAIRS

CONSUMER ELECTRONICS, IS MOVING ITS

FACILITY FROM DORAL TO THE WEST KENDALL

AREA.

THOSE THREE COMPANIES WILL BRING MORE

THAN $4 MILLION IN NEW CAPITAL INVESTMENT

AND 300 NEW JOBS TO MIAMI-DADE COUNTY IN

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THE NEXT THREE YEARS!

AND BUSINESSES WANT TO BE IN MIAMI-DADE

BECAUSE DOING BUSINESS HERE IS NOW

EASIER AND FRIENDLY THAN EVER. I’LL BE

TALKING ABOUT THAT IN MORE DETAIL LATER

THIS MORNING.

AS I'VE SAID TO ALL OF YOU BEFORE, AND WILL SAY

AGAIN IN FUTURE SPEECHES AND

CONVERSATIONS – WE MUST TAKE A HOLISTIC

APPROACH TO CONTINUING TO MAKE MIAMI-DADE

A WORLD-CLASS COMMUNITY.

THE COUNTY GOVERNMENT I LEAD HAS NEARLY

27,000 EMPLOYEES AND A $7.1 BILLION PROPOSED

BUDGET FOR NEXT FISCAL YEAR.

AND WHILE WE WILL CONTINUE TO INVEST IN

MODERNIZING OUR INFRASTRUCTURE, IN

ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INNOVATION, AND IN

WAYS TO STREAMLINE AND IMPROVE SERVICES

FOR OUR RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES, WE WILL

NOT BE PROPOSING A TAX RATE INCREASE TO

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SUPPORT GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS.

THAT'S BECAUSE I KNOW THAT IN ORDER TO

FOSTER ECONOMIC GROWTH, WE MUST CONTINUE

TO PROVIDE A STABLE TAXING ENVIRONMENT …

ONE THAT MAKES OUR JOB CREATORS

COMFORTABLE AND REINFORCES OUR MESSAGE TO

THE WORLD … THAT MIAMI-DADE IS THE PLACE TO

LIVE, WORK AND PLAY!

BUT GOVERNMENT CAN’T DO IT ALONE. AND THAT’S

WHERE ALL OF YOU COME IN.

IF WE WANT TO MAKE A BETTER MIAMI-DADE FOR

ALL MIAMIANS – PRESENT AND FUTURE – WE MUST

CONTINUE TO WORK TOGETHER.

MY FRIENDS, WE HAVE MADE PROGRESS IN EVERY

AREA OF OUR ONE COMMUNITY ONE GOAL

STRATEGIC PLAN, AND THAT’S BECAUSE OF YOUR

HARD WORK AND COMMITMENT. THANK YOU ALL.

LARRY, I ESPECIALLY WANT TO THANK YOU AND

YOUR TEAM AT THE BEACON COUNCIL FOR BEING

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MIAMI-DADE’S OFFICIAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

PARTNERS. YOU HAVE BROUGHT NEW JOB-

GENERATING INVESTMENTS TO OUR COMMUNITY,

AND YOU HELP EXISTING BUSINESS GROW.

WE APPRECIATE ALL THAT YOU DO.

NOW, LET’S TAKE IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL,

EVERYBODY!

LET’S WORK EVEN HARDER THAN EVER TO MAKE

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY THE PLACE WHERE

EVERYONE – ACROSS THE GLOBE -- WANTS TO LIVE,

WORK AND PLAY!

THANK YOU ALL FOR COMING TODAY AND FOR

YOUR PARTICIPATION.

MAY GOD BLESS YOU, AND MAY GOD CONTINUE TO

BLESS MIAMI-DADE COUNTY!