Cape Informer

Oasis Elementary School provided space for over 60 residents to come out and hear from all of the District two and three candidates. Jim Sweigert introduced the candidates and laid down the ground rules. He welcomed Mayor Feichthaler as a special guest and then promptly put him on the spot to describe the boundaries of the different districts. Mayor F accommodated the request.

Councilmember Chris Berardi was also in attendance. The only media coverage there was provided by the Breeze and Cape Informer.

Each candidate was given a two minute introduction. Six questions were asked and each of the candidates received one minute to answer. Each candidate was also given a two minute closing remark.

When asked about the three largest expenditures made that the candidate disagreed with, most of the candidates stated that the SW5 UEP expansion topped the list. Peter Brandt included the previous two UEP expansion areas on his list. Richard Kast recommended eliminating the supplemental budgets and potentially downsizing the number of employees. Lynn Rosko proclaimed that she would send the entire budget back to the City Manager, asking for an 8% cut. Karie Rathbun was met with applause when she stated that the City Manager and City Attorney should not have received raises.

The candidates were asked about their take on the second Chiquita lock. For the most part, the candidates were short on answers here. Walter Fluegel called the removal of the original lock a pipe dream. He said that the DEP would not approve removal. Pete Brandt stated that it was a safety issue. He expressed hope that pressure on the State would result in funding, but he also warned that assessments were a possibility.

Universally, all candidates agreed that proactive code enforcement was an important issue. Bill Deille suggested that the unkempt lawns will negatively affect other’s property values. It was also a consensus that new businesses evaluating the area would be potentially turned away by the poor upkeep of vacant properties.

An immigration reform question elicited a reaction from the crowd and the candidates as well. All candidates support border security, and enforcing current laws. Lynn Rosko, David Drake and Pete Brandt all expressed disappointment in the City Council’s vote that repealed 76-06. Bill Deille called the idea of sanctuary cities “Left wing politics”. He also recommended that our City Police officers receive the ICE training that is available.

In the end, we’re still left with mostly sound bite answers from candidates. Very little can be learned about any one candidate in this format, due to the sheer number of candidates and the wide variety of issues facing us. I recommend that everyone attend at least one of these events. The candidates all expressed willingness to stay and speak individually with people after the debate. Take advantage of this to help you determine the candidates that will best fill  these 5 seats.

Come out today to support a great cause.

“Juniper Village at Cape Coral at 4920 Viceroy Court will be the site of a yard sale from 8 a.m. to noon Saturday. All proceeds will benefit Chansen Savanakus, a first-grader at Oasis Elementary School. Chansen is battling leukemia and his family can use assistance with his medical bills. Clear Water Treatment Inc. will be on hand with information and for refreshing water to drink. There will also be a bake sale and lemonade stand. For information, call 542-3121 and ask for the Community Relations Department.” (as posted at Cape Coral Daily Breeze)

The much touted Internet Survey, part 1, is out and available now. Please participate, so we can get our money’s worth this time around.

Take The Survey Here.

My general impression of the 11 item survey is that it is designed very simply. I am concerned that the information which it will gather will be overly simplified, and not especially useful to perspective employers. It may be able to give some real basic insight for a perspective employer coming to the area. However, I would believe that the new employer would likely do their own fact checking prior to coming here.

Update: After taking the survey myself, I was presented with a screen that looks like an overview/total of the responses. If it is an overview, I was the first respondent to the survey. See my capture of it here: Print Capture

Update 2: You can take the survey multiple times and it keeps the answers. Proof

Update 3: You can view the results by just hitting submit. This means that people can review what other people submitted before they choose to answer the survey. This will skew the results also.

I watched tonight as our Economics Development Office provided a litany of excuses for a poorly executed survey. Mike Jackson, the Economic Development Director spoke tonight about the decision that was made to outsource a survey to India. He felt that a language barrier kept results at bay. He talked about the fact that they spoke too fast, or with a dialect that people would be uncomfortable with.

CM Bertolini asked if they were capable of providing this survey in house. He answered her question affirmatively. He stated that he felt that an in house City representative would not be able to illicit answers as well as a third party. I disagree completely with this conclusion. People are disinterested in phone surveys as a rule. They will be more likely to disregard a survey coming from a source that they cannot fully and easily understand.

My verdict? A prime example of a waste of taxpayer dollars from a redundant department. Lets mark the Economic Development Office for a healthy budget trimming.

Tonight, with approximately 75 people in attendance, 10 Republican candidates vied for votes and expressed their answers to questions from the audience. Mayor Feichthaler and Council Persons Bertolini and LePera attended the meeting, as did Former Mayor Kempe.

The ground rules allowed a 2 minute introduction, 30 seconds to answer questions and 3-4 candidates got the opportunity to answer each of the questions. There was also a 1 minute closing response for each candidate.

During introductions the most oft repeated phrases were about improving trust, reducing spending and enhancing the economic development. While a few of the candidates brought out specifics, most of the introductions were marked with broad general statements and hopeful memes for a brighter future, but without real substance as to how we’ll get there.

Tom Hair stated that he wanted to follow the Governor’s lead of a 4% across the board reduction in all departments. David Drake lamented the increasing crime rates, and stated that he would “get the Public Safety Building built”. Lynn Rosko listed many of the perks that the City Manager receives and recommended removing some of them questioned why our City Manager was still with our city(Thanks for the clarification, Lynn). She also stated that if our city were a business, that the CEO would have been fired. Eric Grill stated that the City has been more reactive than proactive lately and he plans to hold accountability from the top down if he is elected.

Chris Berardi laid out a specific three part plan of economic development improvement, cutting government spending and beautifying the city. He further pressed each issue with details. He recommended cross training employees, looking at the fleet for cost reductions and using code enforcement and private/public partnerships to improve beautification and reduce government costs.

The questions were next. The first group of candidates were asked when property tax relief would become effective. They all stated that the relief would be effective if we cut city government spending. City spending is less than 25% of the total tax bill. Another question asked if the county should install the new library in North West Cape. All of the candidates who were questioned, responded that it was fine if the county paid for it.

When asked for ways to improve the city and citizen’s way of life, Eric Grill recommended a fee on permits to improve beautification. Pete Brandt stated that increasing disposable income was the best way to improve our way of life.

When asked to place their top three issues, Lynn Rosko listed trust, reducing spending and reducing UEP costs. Chris Berardi reiterated his introductory issues of Economic development, Spending controls and beautification. Bill Deile agreed with Lynn Rosko that trust and spending reductions were his top two but stated that increasing pride in the city was his third issue. Tom Hair recommended a reduction in taxes, a smart growth plan and economic development as his three main issues.

None of the candidates asked stated that they would reduce the number of council members from 7 to 5. All of the candidates asked stated that they supported spending caps. None of the candidates supported large cuts in fire, police or emergency services. Tom Hair stated that the proposed increase of 10% for these services in the current budget may be too high. None of the candidates supported changing ordinances to allow work vehicles to be parked in driveways.

No candidate asked had a solid answer for a specific item where overspending is occurring. They also lacked answers for ways to get our fair share of funding for projects from County and State governments.

The format did not allow all candidates to answer all questions. Many of the questions raised were excellent and do show that there is quite a bit of work to go for our candidates, if they want to work for the best interest of our residents. I do recommend that everyone try and attend one of the upcoming candidate events.

According to City Staff and news sources, the boil water order has been lifted.

All customers on City water are under a boil water notice after a contractor hit a main distribution line near the RO Plant. Department of Environmental Protection has been notified.

Just a quick FYI for everyone. I did receive this via the Code Red Warning system. If you haven’t signed up, it’s available from the City Website.

Gary Aubuchon and Burt Saunders both attended the council meeting this evening. Mr. Aubuchon spoke before Council first, stating that he is “Working hard for Cape Coral.” He alluded to next week’s property tax special session, stating that it would be responsible, responsive legislation.

Mr. Saunders quipped that he hoped anyone with comments would contact Mr. Aubuchon, which elicited a rueful laugh. He also said that it was “quite fun” to read about Cape Coral. He did express disappointment over the veto on State Road 78. He said he would work to bring that back into the budget in the future.

South West Florida Expressway Authority (http://swfea.net) provided a presentation for a toll based expansion of I-75. They state that we will spend nearly two decades with “F” grade traffic in Lee and Collier Counties, if we rely on the current FDOT expansion plans. They did state that they have a poll on their site and recommend all residents take the poll and review the information available.

The Mayor pulled two items for Discussion from the consent agenda, 3B and 3D, stating that both parcels were higher priced than they should be. He made a motion to deny both. Motion carried 7 to 1, with CM LePera voting against.

The Mayor’s suggested spending limits came up for vote in ordinance 75-07.  The ordinance would limit the general fund budget based on the combined rate of inflation and population growth. The ordinance was denied 5-3, Tom Hair, Chris Berardi and Mayor F voted yes.

The City Council received a feasibility study on the CRA from the City Manager on Thursday with three possible options for Council to consider. The CRA is an ongoing hot topic for Cape Coral. The process has been long, and progress has been slow. Only a few weeks back Council approved the final zoning for the downtown area. Now that this major milestone is met, what does the future hold for our downtown?

I wanted to get a feel for Council’s direction on the CRA. To that end, I sent an email interview to each of the council members. The Mayor and Councilmen Berardi, Hair and Stevens all replied. I would like to thank them for taking the time.

I first asked Do you support removing the CRA volunteer board? To this all respondents answered No. Chris Berardi felt that “will only cause a slower and even less efficient process than what is currently in place.” He also added “Rather than remove the CRA board, we should remove many of the roadblocks to development, specifically excess regulation and excess government (staff level) involvement.”

In response to the question do you feel that council should directly control the spending in the CRA area? The Mayor answered “I am interested in the CRA not just talking improvements, but seeing actual results. I am in favor of whatever path will cause the first major project to rise from the ground.”

Chris Berardi reiterated his desire to remain efficient and stated “Council should remain the final authority, however we should leave the day-to-day details to the business experts of the CRA.”

As previously posted here, Tom Hair said in his letter “I support the CRA as it is currently configured. As this city continues to grow in size and complexity it will become increasingly necessary for Council to delegate some of its authority to remain focused on issues of general concern such as spending, taxes, and overall infrastructure.”

Richard Stevens only offered “My answers to the first two questions are No & No. All other questions may be answered by inference from these two responses.” Certainly right to the point.

The future is far from decided. There will likely be lively discussion on this issue at tonights council meeting. I will provide more updates on this topic throughout the week, including the other questions from the email interview.

Hi Lloyd,

I hope this is not too long, but I would appreciate it if you could run the whole thing.

First, I did not ask for this report to be generated and as there was no motion passed by council asking the city manager to do so, I am somewhat surprised it was generated at all.

Second, I support the CRA as it is currently configured. As this city continues to grow in size and complexity it will become increasingly necessary for Council to delegate some of its authority to remain focused on issues of general concern such as spending, taxes, and overall infrastructure. City staff is already overburdened with the needs of the city as a whole and it would be difficult to focus the attention needed in the redevelopment area without an active daily presence.

Third, if the impetus for this study was a perception that the CRA has become a paper tiger, a view I do not share, then maybe the solution is to increase the authority of the CRA board to give the tiger some teeth. We should all remember what the purpose of a CRA is and why they are formed. When the State Legislature adopted the Florida Statues giving municipalities the ability to establish CRA’s it was the intent to create a somewhat autonomous, non-political entity that could focus its attention and dedicate itself to correcting the ills of a blighted area. If the CRA is to be left to the staff at City Hall, it may not fulfill the intent of the legislation or serve the business and property owners in the affected area. CRA’s were given significant powers and funding alternatives such as tax increment financing that make them more of a public/private partnership than a wholly governmental concern. In the final analysis though, the City Council still reviews and approves the budget for the CRA, so I frankly don’t know why the City Council would want to micromanage the CRA.

Finally, there have been missteps, but an evening of blamestorming only leaves a lot of ruffled feelings and we all wind up in exactly the same place except mad at each other. Each one of us can, in hindsight, see better directions. It should not have taken from 2002 until a few weeks ago to get the codes written and passed into law. Other cities have done it in months. We should have had a storm water plan in place, we still don’t. That discussion was also started in 2002. And we also need a traffic plan that takes into account the 11,000 planned dwellings now in the land use plan.

Thomas W. Hair
Councilmember, District One
City of Cape Coral, Florida