Two commission seats up for grabs

Come March 10, voters in Pembroke Pines will decide two commission races as the county’s second most populous city grapples with skyrocketing housing costs, traffic gridlock and a cramped police headquarters in need of replacing.

Incumbent Tom Good, a former public works director in Cooper City, has drawn two challengers for the District 1 seat: James Henry, a retired Pembroke Pines police sergeant making his first run for office, and Dennis Hinds, an insurance agent who has run for office at least three times.

Incumbent Mike Hernandez, a public relations specialist who served as senior adviser to former Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Giménez, has one contender for the District 4 seat: Elizabeth “Liz” Burns, an event planner making her fourth run for a seat on the commission.

The winners will serve a four-year term and earn an annual base salary of $33,161 along with a yearly expense allowance of $13,062 and a car allowance of $7,920.

Pembroke Pines, a growing bedroom community located directly north of Miramar in southwest Broward County, is home to more than 170,000 residents. That number is expected to grow in the coming years.

District 1

Tom Good

Good, first elected to the commission in 2018, is now running for a third term.

A former assistant city manager in Deerfield Beach, Good is now serving as district manager for the Central Broward Water Control District.

Good says the city is partly to blame for voters rejecting a $230 million bond issue that would have paid for a new police station, park upgrades, new sidewalks and other projects. A staggering 65% of voters said no to the bond in March 2025.

Residents should have been able to pick and choose which bond items they wanted instead of being forced to choose all or none, Good argues.

“I think it was just too much,” he said. “The city is doing the right thing. We’re engaging the public. We’re asking them what they want. And people do want a new police station.”

That may come back to the public as a general obligation bond at some point, he said.

“We are still moving forward with refining the design and getting a more detailed current cost — which is difficult because time adds to the cost,” he said.

If elected, Good said the city has a long list of challenges he would continue to tackle.

“I would like to be able to continue on with our strategic plan regarding our traffic, our utilities, parks and recreation and roadway improvements,” he said. “And affordability of housing, which is the most important one for all of us.”

Good shared a few reasons why voters should choose him.

“I am the only candidate in this race that has a true connection to this community,” he said. “I’ve lived here over 30 years. I’ve raised a family here. I’ve watched the changes from past to present and know where we’re going in the future.”

Good pointed to his work as an administrator in both Cooper City and Deerfield Beach along with his experience as an elected official.

“I have synergy in playing both roles,” he said. “I have the ability to engage with administrators countywide and the political element countywide. That enables me to find solutions a lot faster. I know who to go to. My role has allowed me to use knowledge from both aspects in order to find solutions. I’m solutions oriented, and I find solutions for people.”

James Henry

Henry spent 28 years with the Pembroke Pines Police Department, working his way up to the rank of sergeant. He retired from the department in 2023 and said he now works as director of security for Memorial Hospital West in Pembroke Pines.

A former resident of Coral Springs, Henry moved to Pembroke Pines four years ago.

If elected, Henry says he would bring a calm presence to the dais.

“I want to take the politics out of politics,” he said. “I don’t like some of the antics that go on. It’s like a show. That’s where I can come in. I am very calm. I don’t raise my voice. I was on (the police department’s) crisis negotiation unit for over 18 years. It’s all about communication and how you talk to people.”

Voters said no to borrowing money for a new police department, but the need is still there, Henry said.

“The police department has outgrown the building,” he said. “There’s a lot of desk sharing. You’ll have an entire traffic unit in one room.”

Henry said he believes the voters might have approved the bond issue if the city had not packed it with so many items.

“I think they stacked the bond and put too much in there,” Henry said. “It was originally for the police department. Then they added parks and other things.”

During 14 years of supervising the police department’s Community Affairs Unit, Henry said he got to know a lot of people around town.

“I think I can make a difference,” he said. “My track record with the police department shows I care for the community. I just want to make sure things get better and make things safe.”

If elected, Henry said one of his goals would be to create a mentorship program for schoolchildren throughout the city.

“I want the kids to pick a career and partner with businesses in the city and put everyone together to make something happen,” he said. “We have a great school system. I just think we can make it better.”

Dennis Hinds

Hinds declined the South Florida Sun Sentinel’s request for an interview, citing his busy schedule.

“Trying to speak with the voters takes up most of my days,” Hinds said by text. “Hope you understand.”

District 4

Mike Hernandez

Hernandez was appointed to the commission in May 2024 to fill a vacancy. Six months later, he was elected to a two-year term. He is now seeking reelection to what would be a four-year term.

“I’m running because two years is really not enough to really continue the work that we need to tackle,” he said.

Hernandez said he’d like to see the city do more competitive bidding to get the biggest bang for the buck.

As an expert in communications, Hernandez said the city can do a better job getting the word out to residents.

“I think we need to be more outward facing and aggressive,” he said.

One reason voters rejected a $230 million bond issue is because money is tight for most everyone, Hernandez said.

“Cost of living has risen dramatically,” he said. “I also think there was a very effective group of residents who went on Nextdoor and claimed it was not something we needed and it was government waste. And it was effective. But the need for the work doesn’t go away.”

Hernandez said he now believes the bond referendum should have been split into a menu of options.

“We probably should have split it,” he said. “Hindsight is 20-20.”

The Broward School District plans to close Panther Run Elementary and Palm Cove Elementary due to declining enrollment and budget challenges.

“The buildings, we are told, would not stay vacant,” Hernandez said. “We want a say in what is there. We set the tone very clearly that we need to be involved in the process. Whatever plans (they have), we have to be involved.”

As schools consolidate or close, Superintendent Howard Hepburn needs to do a better job communicating with Pembroke Pines and other cities, Hernandez said.

Like other cities, Pembroke Pines is closely watching the state’s push for property tax reform.

“We’re very concerned,” Hernandez said. “I know the city manager and his staff are running several scenarios.”

An estimated 63% of what the city collects in property tax money goes to police and fire, Hernandez said.

“Any significant hit the city would absorb, you can’t make up in fees,” he added. “Each police officer and firefighter received 6% increases over the past three years. I don’t think we can be so generous in future years. Math is math.”

Elizabeth ‘Liz’ Burns

If elected, Burns says she would be the first Jamaican-American woman to serve on the commission.

“In 66 years they have not had a person of color on the commission,” she said of the city, which incorporated in 1960.

Burns has lived in Pembroke Pines for 25 years.

“I’ve always encouraged people to run for office,” she said. “Someone finally said, ‘Why don’t you run for office?’ And so I prayed about it and I got my answer. So I started running. I like speaking to people and hearing their stories. It energizes me.”

Burns has run once for mayor and is now making her third run for a commission seat. So far, she has lost all her races.

“Some people lose and they never want to run again,” she said. “I’m not like that. I ran for mayor not because I knew I was going to win. It didn’t matter. I just wanted to meet more people in my city. I already feel like a winner because I have met so many people.”

If she were to win this time around, Burns said her focus would be on increasing affordable housing.

“Many young people cannot afford homes on the west side,” she said. “Affordable housing would help them be able to buy near where their families are.”

If elected, Burns said she plans to be a watchdog for the taxpayer.

Burns said she objected to Pembroke Pines spending $300,000 on a special election last year to allow voters to decide whether they wanted the city to borrow $230 million to pay for a new police headquarters and park upgrades.

Burns said she voted against the bond.

“I was totally against it,” she said. “I was against it then. I’m against it now. We fought hard for it not to pass. And people listened. The bond is not paid by the city. It’s paid by us, the taxpayers. Think of those people in Century Village on fixed incomes. How can they afford more money out of their pocket?”

Burns also objected to the timing of the bond referendum, saying the commission wasted $300,000 in taxpayer dollars holding a special election.

“Many of the things they wanted to do were not necessary at this time,” she said. “They wasted $300,000 to hold a special election. And they could have waited a year to put it on this year’s ballot.”

Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com. Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan