Mayor Francis Suarez. Photo: J. Albert Diaz/ALM

The private Centner Academy in Miami was controversial before hiring an attorney-lobbyist at Greenspoon Marder, the same law firm where Mayor Francis Suarez is of counsel.

That has raised questions about a possible conflict. A problem could arise if the City Commission voted against the school on a pending appeal. Suarez holds veto power over commission actions.

Residents of nearby Buena Vista oppose the preschool and maintain it shouldn't be allowed to open because of added traffic.

Centner Academy, dubbed "The Brain School," is the brainchild of serial tech entrepreneur David Centner and his wife Leila Centner. He created and sold at least three companies, including vehicle toll processing company Highway Toll Administration LLC.

The Centners attracted attention for their new preschool at a grand opening Aug. 21, touting the progressive educational approach that promises to instill emotional intelligence and mindfulness in students and teach Mandarin Chinese. Tuition is $24,000 a year.

Classes were scheduled to start Tuesday at a new three-story building painted blue and white with first-floor arches at 4136 N. Miami Ave., but the Centners postponed the opening until the end of the month.

The school has no certificate of occupancy, and the city put a hold on a master building permit and issued a stop-work order, said attorney David Winker, who represents area opponents.

The Centners and their attorney, Greenspoon Marder partner William Riley Jr. in Miami, maintain the school's permit is active.

The city didn't respond by deadline to an inquiry about the status of the school's permits.

Winker filed a motion Tuesday with the city to disqualify Riley and Greenspoon Marder from representing Centner Academy before city agencies based on Suarez's position at the firm.

"Having the mayor's law firm representing the Centner Academy in front of the commission when the mayor is the chairman of such commission, and over which the mayor ultimately has veto power, undermines that confidence because the Centner Academy is afforded an unfair advantage, thus disrupting the fair administration of justice in this action and obliterating any semblance of a level playing field," Winker wrote in his motion.

Riley called the notion of an attorney conflict of interest a "sensationalistic" accusation aimed at smearing his reputation and harming the Centners.

Riley said Winker "is attempting to dramatize the establishment of a preschool that has a single objective — helping children — to advance his client's objective."

The city Planning, Zoning and Appeals Board on June 5 voted to grant a zoning exception allowing the preschool.

Buena Vista neighborhood association members appealed the exception, tentatively putting the request on the City Commission's Sept. 12 agenda. Winker asked to delay the hearing until October.

Winker, who has taken on the mantle of a legal activist, argued the exception departs from essential requirements of the Miami 21 zoning code. The code was created in part to limit zoning exceptions.

"The neighboring community had every right to expect that this building would not become a preschool with the attendant traffic problems because it was not zoned for that purpose," Winker said.

Winker sees the school as a negative form of gentrification. The academy "is probably the most odious form of gentrification: developer buying property to start a business because the property is cheap so that they can bring people from other parts of town without hiring or providing services or otherwise connecting with the neighborhood while imposing all the downsides of traffic, parking and noise issues," he said.

Attorney Conflict 

If the City Commission sides with residents opposing Centner Academy, this could put Suarez in a position to consider a veto against a firm client.

"This does sound like the mayor could be placed in a political pickle," said Barry University professor Sean Foreman, who teaches political science. "Would the mayor have to recuse himself from this vote and, if so, what would happen next?"

The answer depends on the city charter, Foreman said. After a quick review, he said the charter doesn't appear to address the situation directly.

Suarez directed a request for comment to his media representative, who didn't return a call for comment.

Riley registered with the city as a Centner Academy lobbyist on land use and other matters, disclosing he is employed at the same law firm where Suarez is an attorney.

Riley said he has represented other clients on land use issues in the city and has been transparent about his and Suarez's ties to Greenspoon Marder. Independent professionals have reviewed this as well, Riley added.

Foreman differentiated between an actual conflict and an appearance of conflict. Whether there is a conflict depends on the "actual relationship between Suarez and Riley," Foreman said.

"If they merely work for the same firm, don't share common cases and are not close personal friends, then there may be no actual conflict. But if they work on common casework or in close proximity or have a strong personal relationship, then the mayor should consider recusing himself from voting on this matter. This is likely going to be a judgment call from the attorneys and judges," he said.

In his motion to disqualify, Winker said Suarez and Riley know each other both personally and professionally, working at GrayRobinson before both moved to Greenspoon Marder last year.

The state Ethics Commission has looked at similar cases and found conflicts. The commission advised Steve Geller to resign from Greenspoon Marder after he was elected to the Broward County Commission, saying a recusal wouldn't cure a conflict if a member of the firm appeared before the county commission.

SLAPP Suit

Academy opponents said they received a text message from another school attorney based in New Haven, Connecticut, pushing residents to drop their appeal.

"Centner Academy and its owners are considering taking a number of immediate legal actions, including filing a lawsuit against you seeking injunctive relief and monetary damages, to resolve your appeal of the board decision," said a text message from John Doroghazi, a partner at Wiggin and Dana.

The appeal is preventing Centner Academy from obtaining its certificate of occupancy, Doroghazi added in the text. He told residents that he advised the academy owners to speak with residents before suing them.

"It might be beneficial for us to speak so that you understand what that litigation would entail and to see if you would reconsider your decision to press your appeal," Doroghazi wrote.

The text is an attempt to bully and intimidate residents to give up their constitutional rights, Winker said. He claims it violates a state law against on Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation, or SLAPP.

Doroghazi declined comment.

The Centners bought the school site, a building south of it and an adjacent 7,200-square-foot lot through an affiliate in 2018 for $15.1 million, according to deed records.

The preschool is set to open with 120 students up to age 6 and will add a grade level every year up to the 12th grade.

Asked for comment, the Centners touted the academy's innovative education approach and noted they provide scholarships to some students.

"This school will be the first ever happiness school in the United States where the focus will be on children's well-being, emotional intelligence and academics," they wrote in an email.

Real estate publication The Real Deal first reported on the academy's attorney working at the same law firm as Suarez.

Related stories: 

Tech Entrepreneur David Centner Pursues Assemblage in Miami's Edgewater