Historic preservation board approves annual report, advances centennial marker program
April 17, 2026 | City of Opa-locka, Miami-Dade County, Florida
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The Historic Environmental Preservation Board for the City of Opa-locka voted unanimously to approve its annual report and discussed ongoing efforts to place historic markers around the city.
At a meeting recorded in the transcript as April 16, 2022, the board approved the annual report the city attorney read as covering Jan. 1–Dec. 31, 2025; the motion passed on a 3-0 roll-call vote, with board members Marissa Hernandez, Merrick Williams and William Smith recorded as voting yes. The chair and staff said the approved report will be forwarded to the city commission for its consideration and then submitted to Miami-Dade County as required.
The board heard a staff presentation on a marker program intended to recognize historic properties in Opa-locka. A staff member said the program has already placed “10 or 12” markers, including at historic city hall and several downtown buildings, and invited owners of qualifying historic properties to contact the Planning and Community Development Department to request a marker. The staff member also noted that one locally owned residence has been added to the board’s inventory of historic homes.
“We have been putting markers on our historic properties,” the staff member said, noting the board aims to place more markers in time for the city’s centennial and that May is National Historic Preservation Month. The staff member also said Alex Van Mekel is working on historic-property tours tied to the centennial celebrations.
The city attorney read the formal language of the report resolution and noted routine provisions including severability and an effective date. After the reading, a motion to approve the resolution was made and seconded; the board conducted a roll-call vote and approved the report. Later in the meeting the chair approved the minutes of the session, which the board also recorded as passing 3-0.
The meeting adjourned with no further business. The board’s approval sends the annual report on to the city commission as the next procedural step.
At a meeting recorded in the transcript as April 16, 2022, the board approved the annual report the city attorney read as covering Jan. 1–Dec. 31, 2025; the motion passed on a 3-0 roll-call vote, with board members Marissa Hernandez, Merrick Williams and William Smith recorded as voting yes. The chair and staff said the approved report will be forwarded to the city commission for its consideration and then submitted to Miami-Dade County as required.
The board heard a staff presentation on a marker program intended to recognize historic properties in Opa-locka. A staff member said the program has already placed “10 or 12” markers, including at historic city hall and several downtown buildings, and invited owners of qualifying historic properties to contact the Planning and Community Development Department to request a marker. The staff member also noted that one locally owned residence has been added to the board’s inventory of historic homes.
“We have been putting markers on our historic properties,” the staff member said, noting the board aims to place more markers in time for the city’s centennial and that May is National Historic Preservation Month. The staff member also said Alex Van Mekel is working on historic-property tours tied to the centennial celebrations.
The city attorney read the formal language of the report resolution and noted routine provisions including severability and an effective date. After the reading, a motion to approve the resolution was made and seconded; the board conducted a roll-call vote and approved the report. Later in the meeting the chair approved the minutes of the session, which the board also recorded as passing 3-0.
The meeting adjourned with no further business. The board’s approval sends the annual report on to the city commission as the next procedural step.
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