Hialeah streets director outlines $65 million, multi-year road, drainage and sidewalk push and new maintenance plans

Streets Director Jose Sanchez summarized a multi-year program of road, drainage and sidewalk work and said the department is now shifting to operations and maintenance to protect those investments.

Sanchez told the Hialeah City Council that the city spent about $11.5 million on capital improvements in fiscal 2024 and about $28.5 million in fiscal 2025, and that projects planned or designed now would push total investment across fiscal 2024–26 to roughly $65,000,000. "We invested, over 28 and a half million dollars," he said. "All combined, we're looking to improve in the near future almost 5 linear miles of roadway, over 14,000 linear feet of French drain, 99 LED street lights, and, over 7 miles on new sidewalks."

Why it matters: Sanchez said the work targets recurring flooding, safety issues and ADA access. He and Assistant Director Yamil (Yamil) Alcazar emphasized that the investments only pay off if the city maintains them: "None of these improvements mean anything if we don't maintain them moving forward," Alcazar said, noting the department recently adopted an asset-management system and completed a citywide mapping of stormwater assets.

Key details

- Capital projects and outcomes: Sanchez described four major 2024 projects (about $11.5 million) that improved more than 3 miles of roadway, added roughly 10,000 linear feet of French drain, installed 79 LED street lights and built a little over 5 miles of new sidewalk. In fiscal 2025 the department invested about $28.5 million to deliver nearly 7 miles of new roadway, more than 18,000 linear feet of French drain, 162 LED street lights and nearly 11 miles of new sidewalks. He said three design-ready projects total about $14,000,000 and another $11,000,000 is proposed for fiscal 2026.

- Cumulative scope: "Between 2024, '25, and what we're gonna do in '26... we've invested $65,000,000 in rotary projects with, almost 15 linear miles being improved or 42,000 linear feet of French drain, 340 LED street lights, and almost, 24 linear miles of new sidewalks," Sanchez told the council.

- Local fixes vs. capital work: Sanchez distinguished small-scale "spot drains" (French drains) used to solve concentrated block-level flooding (8 locations in FY24, about 12 in FY25) from larger capital projects that reset intersections and rework major corridors. He pointed to the intersection reconstruction at 13th Street and 6th Avenue as an example that resolved conflicting left-turn movements and improved safety.

- Tree canopy and landscaping: Alcazar said tree-planting increased from 127 citywide trees in fiscal 2024 to about 321 in fiscal 2025; locations were too numerous to list but were citywide.

- Maintenance and operations: The department launched a modern asset-management system in 2024 and completed a citywide mapping of stormwater assets. It also replaced older equipment and is doubling the vacuum-truck fleet from two to four, with two more trucks planned next year.

- Neighborhood impacts and enforcement: Council members raised resident concerns about newly widened sidewalks and curbing reducing informal driveway parking, pushing more vehicles onto streets. Chief George Fuent (Police) told the council officers will continue warnings and citations where residents block sidewalks or public rights-of-way. Sanchez said driveway design accommodates property-specific needs during the design phase but noted minimum standards (a 22-foot driveway approach) sometimes limit how many cars a property can legally hold.

What the council asked for next

Council members pressed staff on two operational items: trash and illegal dumping in the annex area (county-owned land the city assists in cleaning) and whether the budget includes funds to dispose tires and large illegal loads; and for clarity on enforcement for vehicles parking on new swales/curb lines after reconstruction. Sanchez and the mayor's office agreed to bring those budget and operational details back to council discussions during budget season.

Ending

Sanchez and Alcazar told the council the department would continue work already underway and that many of the projects now entering construction were completed in design because of council and administrative support. The department asked the council for continued backing to preserve the investments through maintenance and enforcement.