Imperial Point Candidates Forum

On Thursday, January 22, candidates for Fort Lauderdale City District I Commissioner and Fort Lauderdale City Mayor participated in a two hour forum at the Imperial Point Medical Center Auditorium A.  The event was sponsored by the Imperial Point Home Owner's Association.  There was a pretty good crowd on hand ...I'd guess around 50 or so residents from Imperial Point. 

Alan Silva, a former acting city manager for Fort Lauderdale, put together some tough questions for the candidates and kept things moving with an aggressive format: 3 minutes for opening statements, followed by five rapid fire questions with each candidate allotted 90 seconds to answer, then ending with 2 minute closing statements.

I have posted the video clips for the candidate's answers to Fort Lauderdale's looming fiscal crisis, their closing statements, and the commissioner candidates answers to the top three concerns in IP.

http://imperialpoint.multiply.com/journal/item/8/IP_Candidates_Forum_Videos_Fort_Lauderdale_Mayor
http://imperialpoint.multiply.com/journal/item/7/IP_Candidates_Forum_Videos_District_One_Commissioner

I have also posted my notes of the candidates answers here, but you must become a member of the site in order to see them (sorry ... they are so disorganized and inaccurate I deemed them unfit for public consumption).

http://imperialpoint.multiply.com/journal/item/5
http://imperialpoint.multiply.com/journal/item/4


Candidates for Distinct I Commissioner are:

Inger Garcia
Bruce Roberts
Christine Teel (I)

Candidates for Fort Lauderdale Mayor are:

Steve Rossi
Earl Rynerson
Jack Seiler
Dean Trantalis

The questions posed to the candidates are as follows:

Question One:  Fiscal Reality and Responsibility  (for all candidates)
What is your position on (a) an increase in the property tax
rate, and (b) an increase in the tax levy?  With a potential $5 million
revenue shortfall this year and $25 million next year for General Fund
operations, what specific programs and departments would you cut and by how
much?   If you are proposing "new initiatives", what programs will be cut
further to finance them?

Commissioner Candidates were then asked:
Question Two.  The second question deals with balancing district and city interests and your vision for the city.  As commissioner, you represent District One constituents, but are also responsible for needs and interests city-wide.  What is your vision of the city: in the short-term, what will we look like on our city's 100th birthday on March 27, 2011, and where will you take us over the next 3 years --- to position us for the long-term?

Question Three.  What do you perceive to be the top 3 concerns of our neighborhood?  What concretely will you do to resolve those concerns?  Among the items identified by our members are:

1. improving local park infrastructure and providing children's programs,
2. reducing Executive Airport noise pollution by requiring the I-95 turn or banning flights between 11 PM and 7 AM,
3. enforcing leash ordinances and clean-up after pets to ensure public health, and
4. more restrictive zoning and enhanced code enforcement.

Question Four.  The traffic patterns in Northeast Fort Lauderdale were created to deal with the realities of 1960's.  Over the past several years, District I residents have been subjected to greatly increased traffic congestion due to population increases.  How will you work to address this quality-of-life issue without changing the "hometown community- feeling" that Northeast Fort Lauderdale is known for?

Question Five.  Many have characterized the City Commission, over the past 10 years, to be, at times, dysfunctional, confrontational, and lacking in universally-held goals and values.  If elected, what would you do to ensure a more collegial commission, a greater team effort, and a common agenda to which each commissioner is committed?

Mayoral Candidates were asked:
Question Two.  As Mayor, you need to set a tone, strive for consensus among commissioners, and discharge a unique role representing the interests of the entire city.  How do you see your role and what prior experience qualifies you for that role as Mayor?  How "part-time" do you perceive the Mayor's role to be?  What personal, professional, or business activities will compete with the time and effort you can dedicate as Mayor?

Question Three.  The Mayor chairs the commission, represents the city externally, and is first among equals in setting policy and direction.  How do you characterize your leadership style and how will you exercise leadership in forging a collegial relationship, valuing diversity, and fostering team efforts within the commission, with the City Manager, and with County government.  You may wish to address how you will lead in the following areas of concern mentioned in our members' emails:

1. in handling negotiations with unions and containing personnel costs,
2. in reducing the overlap and attendant duplication of costs (in buildings and personnel) between County and City government, and
3. in overhauling an unsustainable fire and police pension system.

Question Four.  The mayor delivers the annual State of the City Address and sets the annual agenda for the city.  What are the three major elements of your agenda, as you face a deep recession, the impacts of which are likely to last for your entire 3-year tenure?  How do you intend to get "buy in" from your commission colleagues and the community?  What should be in place in three years for us to measure the success of your tenure?

Question Five.  The next three years will be extremely painful for the Fort Lauderdale economy, as it relies extensively on the tourism, marine, and service industries.  How will you reposition the economic underpinning of the city both to support those industries and to expand to other economic sectors to make us more resilient and less dependent on cyclical economic forces?