ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Summary Statement:

As the first Hispanic woman elected to the Miami Beach City Commission and long-time community activist, Matti Herrera Bower exemplifies the power of dedication and compassion towards elderly, disabled and low-income citizens, women and children, and all residents of Miami Beach.

Committees:

* Before being elected Commissioner:
1982 - Recreational Centers & Parks Facilities Board
1983 – 1990 – Community Development Advisory Committee
1986 – Ad Hoc Committee on Quality Education in Miami Beach
1988 – Safe Neighborhood Improvement District 1 – Member of Advisory Board
1992 – Ad Hoc Bureau of Children’s Affairs
1992-1994 – Chair, Miami Beach Development Corporation
1993-1997 – Member, Miami Beach Housing Authority

* After being elected Commissioner:
1999 - Community Affairs, Chairperson
1999 – Miami Beach Redevelopment Agency, Board Member

  * Miami Beach City Commission Committees:
1999 - 2007 Member, Finance and Citywide Projects Committee
1999 - 2007 Member, Land Use and Development Committee
1999 - 2007 Member, Neighborhood/Community Affairs Committee

* Outside Committees representing the City of Miami Beach
Member, Miami-Dade Metropolitan Planning Organization
Member, Miami-Dade Tourist Development Council
Member, Miami-Dade County League of Cities Board of Directors
Member, Citizens’ Oversight Committee to the Inter-local Agreement for Public School  Facility Planning in Miami Dade County
Member, Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts Trust Board

Subcommittees:
Member, Nominating and Governance Committee
Member, Urban Development Committee

Biographical Sketch:

First Elected to the Miami Beach City Commission in November 1999, Mayor Matti Herrera Bower has established a reputation for being dedicated and passionate about the issues that face Miami Beach. Her enthusiasm to help others is recognized by all who meet her. Matti is well known for being a leader in the community and doing the right thing for her residents.

Prior to her election, Mayor Bower began her career as a community activist over thirty years ago as the President of the Feinberg Fisher Elementary School Parent Teachers Association (PTA). Mayor also served as President of the PTA at Nautilus Junior High School and Miami Beach Senior High School. Additionally she worked on countywide issues as member of the Miami-Dade County Public Schools Board’s Attendance Boundary Committee, Committee on Bilingual Education, Miami Beach Feeder Pattern and the Citizen’s Advisory Board. A major cornerstone of her ongoing efforts to ensure quality education for all students, making Miami Beach a great place to live, play and work.

Mayor Bower has worked tirelessly on issues that directly affect people. She led the Miami Beach Fight against the Movement to rescind the Miami-Dade County Human Rights Ordinance, which protects the rights of everyone, regardless of an individual’s sexual orientation. She co-founded the Miami Beach Hispanic Community Center. Mayor Bower is a past Commissioner for the Miami Beach Housing Authority and a former member of the Community Development Advisory Committee.

 Mayor Bower has long supported the arts. She was a member of the Art Housing Group and the Friends of the Bass Museum Board of Directors. Always committed to historic preservation, Mayor Bower has chaired the Art Deco Weekend Festival for several years and is a past member of the Miami Design Preservation League (MDPL) Board of Directors. In addition, she worked tirelessly with MDPL Founder to help register the Art Deco District in the National Register for Historic Places.

 Mayor Bower chaired the Miami Beach Development Corporation, a community-based economic development corporation that has led the revitalization and affordable housing programs in the Art Deco District, South Pointe, Lincoln Road, Washington Avenue, Collins Avenue and Ocean Drive. She also sat on the Lincoln Road Task Force and the Board for the Lincoln Road Partnerships.

  Currently, Mayor Bower is a member of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, Miami-Dade Metropolitan Planning Organization, Miami-Dade Tourist Developement Council, Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts Trust Board, Greater Miami Convention and Visitor's Bureau Executive Committee, FIU Wolfsonian Advisory Board, International Women's Forum, International Hispanic Network as well as other several sub-committees, the Government Realtions and Community Affairs Committee, Nominating and Governance Committee and MPO Review Committee. Mayor Bower is also a member of the Women in Municipal Government Committee of the National League of Cities and the Dade Cultural Alliance.

Mayor Bower is the recipient of numerous awards including the Miami Beach Development Corporation Founding Chairman’s Award, City of Miami Beach Community Heroes Award, Miami-Dade Parks and Recreation Department’s in the Company of Women Pioneer Award, MDPL Chairman’s Award, Boys and Girls Clubs Award, the National Housing Award, the South Florida Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Women of Leadership Award, the Women Worth Knowing Award from the Miami Beach Commission on the Status of Women, City of Miami Beach Proclamation from Mayor and Commission for outstanding commitment to the wellbeing of the Children of Miami Beach Community and the Children’s Trust First Annual “Champions for Children” Award for her outstanding achievement in Public Policy. 

Mayor Bower has also received Certificates of Appreciation for her work with the Miami Beach Housing Authority, Miami Beach Hispanic Community Center, Miami Design Preservation League, Miami’s Magnets’ District Advisory Committee, Miami Beach Latin Chamber of Commerce, North Area Region 1 Citizen’s Advisory Committee, South Florida Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Council for Excellence in Government.

Born in Havana, Cuba, Mayor Bower is a retired dental assistant who has resided with her husband Richard Bower, in Miami Beach for more than 40 years. Mayor Bower has four daughters: Manon Hernandez, Lisa Roman, Laura Rubenstein and Lisa Jo Bower.  She also has six grandchildren: Katie, Natalie, Tommy, James, Ann and Lee who reside in North Carolina, West Palm Beach and Miami Beach.