García-Roves, appointed to the position in April by former Mayor Esteban Bovo and now campaigning to retain her mandate, denies having been notified of any violation and assures that she “behaves like any resident,” letting the city’s Code Compliance Department do its job without interference.
Before everyone’s eyes
Last October 14, the regular meeting of the City Council took an unexpected turn when a Hialeah resident named Juana Guerra asked to speak directly to the interim mayor García-Roves to whom she blurted out the following words: “You have no culture or experience. They told me that you did not finish high school. You have never worked and accepted a position for which you are not qualified… You have made additions to your house without requesting permits. You have to pay what you owe the city first, before campaign.”
The accusation took a more alarming tone when Councilman Carl Zogby publicly supported the complaint, calling for a formal investigation: “No one is above the law. If the mayor has built without a permit, the Codes Department has the obligation to investigate it. It is a shame that whoever should set the example is under suspicion. We are not going to sweep this matter under the rug,” the councilman said.
With these indications, DIARIO LAS AMERICASasked the city clerk for all public information related to the issue.
Works without permission and possible tax underdeclaration
Public records indicate that, on October 7, 2025, a citizen identified as Ernesto Martín sent a formal email to the City of Hialeah Code Department denouncing alleged illegal renovations on the mayor’s property.
According to the complainant, the home, listed in the county assessor’s records as having 935 square feet, three bedrooms and one bathroom, was expanded to double its actual size through rear additions, fencing, decorative columns and complete re-roofing without proper municipal authorization.
The complaint, sent with photographs and satellite comparisons, also pointed to a possible tax underreporting, since, if the property has more constructed area than declared, it would pay less taxes than would correspond to its real value.
In the words of the complainant, “the home cannot accommodate six people with a single bathroom in 935 square feet; the visible structure is much larger.”
Active file
The documents show that nine days after the complaint, on October 16, the City of Hialeah opened file BWOP-004591-2025, under the category “Building Without a Permit”, confirming that a field inspection was carried out at the reported address.
The report, prepared by inspector Onasis O. Sánchez, determines a violation of the Florida Building Code, section 105.1, which establishes the obligation to obtain permission before building or modifying any structure.
The file describes the works observed as “Addition, Awning, Re-roof, Fence/Columns”—a structural addition, an awning or pergola, a re-roof, and the installation of fences or columns—and sets a fine of $250, in addition to the obligation to legalize the work or remove it before January 26, 2026.
The evidence includes photographs taken on the day of the inspection, showing stone-clad columns, white metal gates, a new roof and an awning over the parking area.
In official records, the case appears with the status “In Violation”, that is, in violation. To date, there is no record of payment of the fine or processing of “after the fact” permits, which would allow works already executed to be legalized.
Mayor under scrutiny
García-Roves was appointed interim mayor of Hialeah in April 2025, after the resignation of Esteban Bovo who left the position as mayor to go to Washington to work as a lobbyist.
Since taking office, García-Roves has tried to project an image of institutional continuity and transparency. But the complaint and the opening of the file coincide with the final stretch of his electoral campaign, which adds a political tone to an initially administrative matter.
“All this arises because we are in campaign time,” said the mayor during an exclusive interview granted to DIARIO LAS AMERICAS. “I don’t think I’m above the law. I’ve let the Code Department do its job, as it does with any resident.”
The official assured that, at the date of the interview, she had not received the official notification of violation and that, if confirmed, she would take responsibility. “When I arrive, I will act like any citizen. I have not interfered with the process nor have I asked for special treatment,” he said.
A “temporary” awning and a family heirloom
Asked about the visible modifications in her home, García-Roves maintains that the property has not changed in its essential structure since 1985, when her father, Bernardo García-Roves, bought it.
“As long as I can remember, the house has always been the same,” he said. “My father was the one in charge of everything. When he passed away in 2019, I assumed ownership, removed my mother from the title and continued living there with my husband and my children,” she explained.
However, records and Google Maps images show that the transformations to the facade and front of the home—such as the remodeling of the wall and the parking awning—appear after 2020, when her father had already died, the property was under her ownership, and by that date, she was a member of the Hialeah Council.
Given the evidence, the mayor explained that the awning or roof to cover the boat is “temporary, made of canvas, not permanent” and that it was installed by her husband after removing an old aluminum roof. Regarding the front fence, he acknowledged that there were some changes, but said he did not remember who contracted the work.
“The builder is the one who must ask for the permit,” he stated.
When asked if that permission had been requested, he responded. “That’s what I’m going to know now, because the contractors are the ones who know.” And she added: “I haven’t hired anyone; maybe my husband did.”
The ethical dilemma: the mayor vs. its own inspection department
In Hialeah’s municipal government system, the mayor is the administrative head of the city, which means that all departments are subordinate to him, including the Code Compliance Department, the same agency that is investigating García-Roves’ home.
The mayor, however, denies the existence of a conflict of interest.
“The mayor does not carry out the investigations; the inspectors go out to do their job. I have no reason to interfere. They passed by my house, took photos and that’s it. I am no better than any resident,” he said.
During the interview, the mayor emphasized that she has avoided asking for privileged information or speeding up procedures: “If I asked for the fine to be delivered quickly, they would say that I was abusing power. I prefer things to flow like they would for any neighbor,” she insisted.
Public records and an old precedent
The documents obtained by this newspaper confirm that at least two files have existed at the address of the mayor’s property in the recent history of the city.
The first, 2013-00192, was a Municipal Code case for parking a commercial vehicle (Freightliner tractor) in a residential area. The owner of the house then was Bernardo García-Roves, father of the current mayor. The case concluded in 2015, after the vehicle was recalled, with a fine of $175 and final status “in compliance.”
The second file, BWOP-004591-2025, is the one that the mayor’s property faces today. The official report details the violation and sets the correction deadline until January 26, 2026.
That is, according to municipal records, the property is officially in violation, although the mayor assured that – at the time of this interview – she had not yet received notification in hand. A fact that could add another controversy to the issue of the City’s operation: the public records could have been shared first with the media, before informing the owner of the affected home.
Comparison with neighbors
While the mayor insists that her case must follow “administrative times”, other neighbors such as Germán Tejada, residents of the annexed area, in the Bonterra urbanization (9382 W 33 Way), narrate a much more immediate treatment by the same Department.
Germán related that less than a year ago he installed a 14-by-12-foot aluminum pergola in his yard, approved by his neighborhood association (HOA), and that despite complying with the materials required by code, the City fined him for not having the proper permit from the city council.
Now Tejada faces a big dilemma: to legalize his pergola, in addition to paying the fine, he must hire an architect to draw up the plans, process the permit and possibly a certified electrician, which — added together — raises the cost to around $5,000, said the affected neighbor. “We are not millionaires, if it is done well they should legalize it.”
According to Tejada, “more than one hundred homeowners” in his community received similar sanctions, many of whom had prior approval from the association for work carried out on their properties. “They fined us all, although the pergolas cannot even be seen from the street and are inside each person’s patio, within a private development,” he said.
Another affected neighbor, who preferred not to reveal her name, indicated that the voracity of the Code Department was not only against the hundred residents of Bonterra, “the same thing happened with the neighbors in Aquabella and Aragón. There they would have fined more than 300 owners,” she said.
The testimony of these residents fuels the perception that the City rigorously applies the code to neighbors, while the mayor is still waiting to be notified about a violation documented with photographs and dating back several years.
Leadership, example and public perception
The controversy not only raises a technical issue about permits or measures, but also an ethical debate about leadership and example.
The mayor has based her campaign speech on the message that “she is just another resident” and that “she is here to help the community, … my doors are open for any question that arises”, however, her case puts the coherence between message and practice under scrutiny.
“Anyone has the right to report if someone does not follow the law,” García-Roves admitted during the conversation. “I will also act if something is proven wrong. I will fix it and pay whatever I have to pay.”
Political background, campaign and attrition
Three weeks before the elections, the complaint acquired an inevitable political overtone. The mayor assured that the complainant is linked to the team of a rival candidate, and that the accusation seeks to undermine his image in the midst of the mayoral campaign.
“These attacks show that my campaign is going better than I think,” he said. “But I have nothing to hide; if there is something to correct, it will be corrected,” he insisted.
For his part, Ernesto Martín, the citizen who filed the formal complaint with the Code Compliance Department, explained to DIARIO LAS AMERICAS that his action “was not political, but an act of coherence.” “I live in Hialeah and I see how many residents are fined for fences, driveways or pergolas, while the person who runs the city seems not to comply with the same rules,” said Martin, who acknowledged working on the campaign of candidate Bryan Calvo. However, Martín assured that his complaint seeks to “defend equality before the law” and expose what he considers a “double standard.” He maintained that the municipal investigation “only advanced thanks to public and media pressure” and complained that, after reporting the alleged violations, he never received a response from the assigned inspector. “Here the government does not work for the people, it works to protect each other,” he argued. “If an ordinary resident has to pay their fine, the mayor must also do so. No one is above the law,” he said, agreeing with what was expressed by the mayor.
A thunderous silence
During the interview with García-Roves, there was a moment that defined the tone of the meeting.
When, in order for her to deny the accusations, the mayor was asked a simple question, if she could say how many rooms there are currently in her house, the answer to the question was a long silence.
