By Francisco Alvarado, FloridaBulldog.org
A developer pumped $53,000 into Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago’s campaign and political action committee shortly before and after key city commission votes that secured a no-bid deal to manage a public park project.
The Allen Morris Company, which is building a luxury condominium tower across from Fred B. Hartnett Ponce Circle Park, won approval last year to manage the park’s renovation and adjoining roadway improvements without competitive bidding. Under the agreement, the developer selects the general contractor, architects and engineers, subject to written city approval.
The political donations include a $25,000 contribution from Allen Morris affiliate Park Ponce Residences to Lago’s Coral Gables First PAC in June. A month later, the city commission unanimously approved an amendment to the Ponce Circle Park agreement that increased Coral Gables’ contribution from $5.3 million to $8.2 million even though originally any cost overruns were to be covered by Allen Morris. The estimated budget increased from $8.9 million to $11.2 million.
The donations fit a broader pattern of developers and their associates contributing to Lago’s campaign or political committee while seeking city approvals. Such contributions prompted Commissioner Melissa Castro, a vocal Lago critic, to unsuccessfully propose restrictions on donations from developers with matters pending before the city.
Her legislation was aimed at eliminating any perceptions of conflicts of interest or quid pro quos between developers and elected officials, Castro told Florida Bulldog. Like Lago, Castro is seeking re-election on Nov. 3. She has raised $15,875, doesn’t have a PAC or any developer contributions. Her opponent, Nestor Menendez, is endorsed by Lago and has raised $124,170, including a $1,000 maximum donation to his campaign on Sept. 4 from Ponce Park Residences.
“A project comes before us, then there is a yes vote and then there are donations before and after,” Castro said. “It should be voted on its merits and not because of donations by the developer or people related to the project.”
Allen Morris President Spencer Morris responded via a company spokesperson, who said: “It’s been the company’s practice to support political candidates in the communities in which we invest.” The company’s chairman and CEO is his father, W. Allen Morris.
Lago did not respond to a voicemail and a text message to his personal cellphone, as well as an email to his official city email address.
THE NO-BID DEAL
On May 20, 2025, the city commission approved a competitive bidding waiver for the Ponce Circle Park project because soliciting bids was “contrary to the public interest.” Since Allen Morris is building a condominium abutting the park, the developer is able to coordinate the construction and help finance the public improvements, according to the resolution.
Rather than soliciting its own construction bids, Coral Gables reimburses work priced through the developer’s contractors. At the time, the estimated budget was $8.9 million with the city costs capped at $5.3 million. Per the agreement, Allen Morris was responsible for the remaining $3.6 million and all cost overruns.
According to city records, Allen Morris initially proposed managing the park project and covering some of the costs when the city commission approved Ponce Park Residences site plan a year earlier on May 21, 2024.
A video of that commission meeting shows Lago gushing over Allen Morris’ commitment to absorbing any cost overruns, noting it was the deciding factor in securing his vote.
“That to me was pivotal in getting my vote because it ensured to me your commitment,” Lago said. “Investing in a city asset like a park, finally getting it done and ensuring that it gets done in the private sector for much cheaper.”
By the following summer, the Ponce Circle Park project’s estimated cost rose by more than $2 million to $11.2 million. But instead of sticking to its original deal, the commission on July 7, 2026 voted unanimously to change it in a way that saved Allen Morris millions at the expense of city taxpayers.
Under the amended agreement, the city agreed to hike its funding from 60 to 73 percent of the cost of the project and capped the price tag at $8.2 million. The developer’s contribution is capped at $3 million, but Allen Morris assured city officials that it would be responsible for further cost overruns.
During the city commission meeting, Lago did not address the increase in the budget and the city’s contribution. But he heaped praise on Allen Morris for designing what will be “probably one of the most beautiful parks you’re going to see in Florida.”
“It has been a breath of fresh air to deal with a developer who has impeccable taste,” Lago said. “It’s also going to be reflected in Ponce Circle Park.”
POLITICAL DONATIONS TO LAGO AND HIS PAC
Allen Morris began showering Lago with political donations three years ago when the company submitted its site plan for Ponce Park Residences. Company affiliate RC Acquisitions donated $5,000 to Coral Gables First on March 17, 2023, a month after Lago was automatically reelected to his second two-year term because he had no opponent.
In June 2024, 12 Allen Morris affiliates each donated the maximum $1,000 to Lago’s candidate campaign for the 2025 election. Ponce Park Residences donated another $1,000 in 2025, campaign finance reports show.
Ponce Park Residences amped up its financial support of the mayor with a $10,000 contribution to Coral Gables First on April 15, 2025, a week after Lago was reelected by 55 percent of Coral Gables voters. During the same election, voters approved moving city elections to even years beginning this Nov. 3.
The $10,000 contribution was delivered one month before the city commission approved the Ponce Circle Park agreement with Allen Morris. A year later, and a month before the city commission approved the amendment with the increased costs, Ponce Park Residences gave $25,000 to Coral Gables First on June 25, city records show.
Allen Morris is among several developers and entities that have followed a similar pattern of giving to Lago’s PAC while they have pending business before the city commission, said Commissioner Melissa Castro.
For instance, Manny Kadre, chairman of the University of Miami’s Board of Trustees, and his auto-dealership companies donated a combined $25,000 to Coral Gables First on June 23. The university’s development agreement subsequently advanced through a first-reading vote Aug. 25 and final approval Sept. 29.
The deal allows the university to increase its student enrollment cap from roughly 13,000 to 17,500 students; build an on-campus hospital with up to 100 beds; demolish Mahoney-Pearson Residential College so it can be replaced by a 1,458-bed residential complex and a 700-seat dining hall by mid-2029; and donate 5.5 acres for a new city park.
Then there is Steven Fifield, principal of Fifield Companies, who gave $10,000 to Lago’s PAC on June 25. The city commission approved Fifield’s nine-story mixed-use project at 110 Phoenetia Ave. on first reading on July 7 and second reading on Aug. 25.
“It’s a whole bunch of developers, not just Allen Morris,” Castro said. “But how do you prove they contributed because of a ‘yes’ vote? You can’t. But there is a continued pattern.”
Lago, meanwhile, has attacked Castro over a Florida Commission on Ethics case involving her permit-expediting business. In January, the commission found probable cause to believe the company’s continued work pulling permits in Coral Gables after her election created a recurring conflict between her private interests and public duties. Lago also questioned whether Castro used a taxpayer-funded Tallahassee trip to subsidize her attendance at the ethics hearing.
Castro denied misusing city funds and the ethics case is pending. Meanwhile, her proposal to restrict political contributions from vendors, lobbyists and developers with pending business before the city fizzled. On Sept. 15, her ordinance died after failing to get a second motion from one of her colleagues.
“I’ve presented different types of ordinances related to the same subject,” Castro said. “None of them have passed.”
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