Lobbyist/consultant David Custin cashes in on Miami Beach

Lobbyist/consultant David Custin cashes in on Miami Beach
  • Sumo

UPDATED: David Custin wasn’t always so successful in Miami Beach.

Before he played a crucial role custinin electing Mayor Philip Levine and Commissioners Joy Malakoff and Michael Grieco in 2013, Custin was really just a glorified mailboy-turned-campaign-consultant who dabbled sometimes as a lobbyist.

He only had one client, the red light camera American Traffic Solutions, Miami Beach in 2009, according to the city’s archives of lobbyist registrations. He only had two in both 2010 and 2011. He had not one single client in 2012 and only one in 2013.

But boy did he blow up in 2014 after the election, when he suddenly had access to a majority of votes — he already had Commissioner Jonah Wolfson — and became the defacto gatekeeper to that city’s vault. That’s when he really began to cash in on those relationships with the electeds with seven — count ’em, seven — registrations as a lobbyist. He has eight this year.

Compared to the state, where Consultant Custin runs the campaigns of several state reps — including future House Speaker Jose Oliva — but only three clients, it seems that Miami Beach is Lobbyist Custin’s backroom bread and butter, with $340,000 plus in fees so far just this year. More than $400,000 since most of his slate was elected in 2013.

Custin, who did not return a phone call to comment, is making at least $28,500 a month right now just from four Beach clients, to lobby their zoning and business matters before city officials — the very same city officials he helped get elected and who fear he will run someone else against them if they don’t toe the line.

Like Jorge Luis Lopez and Ralph Garcia-Toledo and other counterparts at the county, Custin’s clients are basically paying for access and expected good favor with the mayor and commission, ladies and gentlemen.

Read related story: Rebecca Towers and a campaign manager’s $10,000 a month

Of that, and as we’ve established previously, $10,000 a month is comingRebecca from TC Miami Beach Marina, a company formed in  November last year, a year after the election, to lobby for the “redevelopment of property and city approvals for Miami Beach Marina and Rebecca Towers.”  Or he was. Because after Political Cortadito’s first story came out on the planned Rebecca Towers redevelopment and Custin’s ties to it, the item was removed from his list of clients on the city’s online lobbyist log. Apparently, he withdrew as the lobbyist of record with TC Miami Beach Marina on Sept. 30. He sent an email about his intent to withdraw on Sept. 4, which was the same week as qualification.

In the withdrawal form, Custin said his full compensation was $30,000 — but $10,000 a month through August would amount to $60,000. So, in which one was he being truthful?

And how much you wanna bet the item appears again after the election? 

Another $8,000 a month comes from Ocean Terrace Holdings, which is the company owned by the developer that wants to raze two historic era hotels on North Beach’s Ocean Terrace and 74th Street and build a high rise with luxury condos.betsyross2 They need a zoning change to do it. It’s already been approved by the commission. Now the overwhelmingly unpopular measure is on the ballot. Custin has been getting those $8,000 monthly since February — so that’s $56,000 so far.

He also gets $8,000 a month from the Betsy Ross Hotel for two land use/zoning items, a setback request and a bridge over the right of way, an easement over air rights, which he registered for in June. The commission has already waived the competitive bidding for the air rights. He has collected about $24,000 from Betsy Ross so far.

And he’s paid a $2,500 monthly retainer from Southern Waste Services, which won the commercial waste collection and disposal contract. He’s been getting that since January of last year for a total of about $60,000 from Southern Waste for his services.

He also got a few one-time flat fees in the past couple of years for this and that:

  • $60,000 to represent Motorola in a request for proposals for communications products and services to the city, probably for the police department and 911 center, for which he registered in August.
  • $60,000 to lobby for redevelopment and licensing of the Shore Club, which has a zoning text amendment requested, registered last October.
  • $30,000 from the owner of 4000 Alton Road for property and board approvals for luxury condos next to Talmudic University, registered last November.
  • $30,000 from G4S Secure Solutions, whose security services contract expires with the city this year, to represent them on a bid for renewal, registered in February.

He also gets $1,000 an hour from National Marketing Group Services, the city’s health insurance agency of record, to represent them. Hope that cost isn’t passed down to employees in higher premiums.

Read related story: Jonah Wolfson shuts down shady PAC — $1.5 million later

And that doesn’t count all the consulting fees he’s charging the candidates, including $80,000 he got for his own PAC from the shady Relentless for Progress PAC financed by vendors and developers who were shaken down by the mayor and Commissioner Wolfson.philipdavid

Indeed, Custin is having a very good year. Maybe he wants to move to one of the multimillion-dollar homes on Sunset Islands near the mayor.

This is not unattainable if he gets three more commissioners elected. Custin will lose Wolfson, who is termed out in November, and is trying to get a replacement and two others elected to two other open seats. If the mayor and his slate wins Custin would get a stranglehold on Miami Beach. He could command whatever price he wants because he has four votes.

After all, he’s already been relatively successful. He got the balcony ordinance approved for the Shore Club. He got the tennis contract at Flamingo Park and North Shore for one of his clients. And the commercial waste pick up and disposal for another. Other matters are getting through committee. Why do you think Levine took Commissioner Deede Weithorn off the finance committee and appointed his boy Wolfson as chair?

Wanna bet he gets the security contract? Commissioner Wolfson, as chair of the finance committee, has already instructed staff to rewrite the request for proposal to incorporate changes Custin has recommended. Levine bidReally? Now lobbyists are recommending how the RFP is written for their client?

Custin has done this before. As a consultant to Miami Lakes Mayor Michael Pizzi (before he was arrested in 2013 on bribery charges), Custin once called him during a meeting to about the state lobbying contract that the council was discussing.

Ladra doesn’t understand why Levine hasn’t dumped Custin and cut his losses, before Dave hurts him any more politically. He’s had ample opportunity after Custin got him into that mess with Wolfson’s shady PAC (no doubt Custin’s idea). That’s something that could haunt Levine’s higher political aspirations and warranted Custin’s immediate firing. Then the Rebecca Towers thing became public and Levine had another opportunity to distance himself from his political guru. His attorney, former State Rep. JC Planas, has already divorced his one-time partner.

Makes one wonder… what’s Custin got on the mayor?

We already know he’s the threatening type. He threatened Ladra in 2013 when we went sniffing around Levine’s bought-and-paid-for mayoral campaign and wondered what kind of influence Custin would have in the future (prophetic, huh?).

This year, he threatened candidate Kristen Rosen Gonzalez — who had Custin as her campaign manager two years ago before she caught on to him and withdrew her candidacy — can attest to that with this text message she got when she told him she would file to run against one of Levine’s handpicked pocket rubber stampers.

custintext

 

And Ladra that we will hear threats again. After all, Custin’s very livelihood depends on Levine and the slate winning.

14 Responses to "Lobbyist/consultant David Custin cashes in on Miami Beach"

  1. Let’s be clear, Jo Manning, Mike Burke, Frank delvechhio were willing pawns in AC Weinstein’s harassment of people and businesses on Miami Beach for years and for them now to complain that David Custin, Jonah Wolfson, who were effectively created by AC Weinstein, their “patron” is the worst kind of hypocrisy. Custin is doing what Randy Hilliard – who is handling David Weider’s campaign – did for decades on Miami Beach thru Nancy Liebman, Matti Bower and, yes, Mark Weithorn.The fact is corruption exists on Miami Beach today because of the same people who complain about it – i.e. they didn’t get their piece of the action! Remember Jo Manning and Frank delvecchio supporting the schemes of Don Worth and his worthless wife on Ocean Drive? The street closings and lack of insurance for Claire Tomlin’s “markets”? Remember even before Claire Tomlin’s frauds and code violations, Herb Sosa and his shenanigans on Espanola Way? And as the preservative of PRESERVATIONISTS he was the PAID EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR he voted to permit the commercial building on the garden of the Church on Lincoln Road? Why? Because Philip Levine then appointed him when the MDPL dumped him from the HPB! how much money does Sosa get for his “unity group” to back candidates LIKE PHILIP LEVINE? The sad truth is that ALL THE CANDIDATES ON THE BALLOT ON MIAMI BEACH ARE DIRTY or connected to DIRT! Sad, but true since 1997’s disasters election of David Dermer, Simon Cruz, and Jose Smith.

  2. “He also gets $8,000 a month from the Betsy Ross Hotel for two land use/zoning items, a setback request and a bridge over the right of way, an easement over air rights, which he registered for in June. The commission has already waived the competitive bidding for the air rights. He has collected about $24,000 from Betsy Ross so far.”

    Keep an eye on this. A lawsuit from the Betsy Ross has kept CVS from going ahead with building a store at Collins & 15th Street. This CVS application was approved by both the Historic Preservation Board and the Zoning Board of Adjustment over a year ago and the neighborhood also came out in favor of it two years ago.

  3. Dear Ladra don’t take this scumbag threat lightly,
    check with Tallahassee P.D. (Leon County) get his mug photo (9/23/96) for his Domestic Violence tract record when working for then Rep and later Senator Alex Villalobos his mentor and very close friend.

    Notice in his posted web resume that he fails to disclose his close relationship with the Jose & Alex Villalobos clan, West Miami, Fausto Gomez and thus also his nexus to the powerful Akerman-Senterfeit attorneys-lobbyist et al.

  4. Custin the Churl threatens to despoii Fair Kristen and Ladra.
    Yet he remains a favorite of the Court.
    Only this Knave has knowledge of the deep dark art
    Of burying its Slumbering Pac.
    And his coffers do indeed overflow from gratitude
    For enthroning the Noble Lord to the seat of this Precious Realm.
    Now incorporating both Middle and North and South.
    But therein trouble lies,.All may not be quite so well ,
    And forsooth,this tale may not yet end too well.

  5. Is the NEW rumor true?
    Has Levine really appointed Leonor’s mother to the Miami Beach Housing Authority?
    As well as her husband and son (while an undergraduate student) to several other committed? Leonor lives down south… She is not even a MB resident but keeps her North Beach address for other reasons!
    THe disappearance of Lobbyists records from the Citi site is tampering with government records… 94 to 38 pages cannot be a glitch in the system…
    I hope the Feds are watching as nothing would be more satisfying that seeing all these crooks handcuffed on Election Day!!!

    • URGENT! Can someone please provide me with the address or telephone of Mabel Wolfe. I have searched the name and I do not find anyone on Miami Beach by the name of Mabel Wolf. I would greatly appreciate identifying who this person is which is publishing libelous information that is simply not true. I need to have this person’s information to send a cease and desist letter and request that they send a clarification communication regarding their false statements. Anyone with this information please contact me at chambelon@aol.com. This is a violation of Florida Statutes Chapter 836 DEFAMATION; LIBEL; THREATENING LETTERS AND SIMILAR OFFENSES. This person needs to be reported to the State Attorney’s office and I will do so as soon as I find out who it is. If this person is another person acting under a fictitious name I would like for someone to please provide me with any information that will lead to the person or persons responsible for this.

      Antonio Hernandez, Sr.

      • Mr. Hernandez, please call me at 786-853-8724. I am interested in hearing what on Earth you are talking about.

        Love, Ladra

      • Welcome to the internet, buddy. You must not be well acquainted with it. ANYBODY can post practically ANYTHING on the net – fictitious name or not – and a cease & desist letter is virtually impotent. Besides, there’s the First Amendment. What you may consider defamation or libel may be another person’s truth. There’s little to nothing you can do but accept it and get on with life, sir.

  6. Thank you for this good piece of investigative journalism.

    I think a very hard look needs to be taken at all the entities for whom this individual is lobbying. A very long and hard look.

    And what an awful thing to read that text message sent to Ms Rosen Gonzalez!

  7. Egad,Ladra.
    What a spellbinding tale you have to tell.
    This Custin is the crooked knave our blue-eyed KingMayor retains to hold sway on the Beachdom.
    And you recount that the White knight of SOFI and the Dowager of the Dais consort and conspire with this selfsame scoundrel to further his and their own ambitions at the Court .
    And the stripling challengers Perez,Aleman,and Arriola joust fiercely,under his banner, to be part of the Kingmayor’s retinue.
    I am eager to read the next chapter.

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