GUEST COMMENTARY
Editor’s note: All five candidates vying for two seats on the Vero Beach City Council were invited to submit guest commentary and to respond to a list of questions submitted by InsideVero.com. Incumbents, Mayor Richard Winger, Councilwoman Amelia Graves and challenger Brian Heady, have accepted our invitation to submit guest commentary and to respond to questions. Guest commentary from the candidates will be posted as it is received. The candidate Q&A will be posted early next week. (Challengers Harry Howle and Laura Moss were also invited to participate, but declined to respond to multiple invitations.)
BRIAN HEADY
You know who I am. My name is Brian Heady and I write under a pen name of Kris O’Brian. I am 68 and I served on Vero Beach City Council in 2009. My phone number is 772 696-4242, and my email is brianheady@msn.com.
I have lived in Vero Beach since the early 1990’s and before that I lived in the county. I work with veterans in Indian River County and I oversee a transportation network which provides transportation for veterans’ medical needs. I’m also one of the drivers. I get paid for about half of the hours I work.
The two biggest issues now facing the city are the higher taxes, and the sale of the electric utility. Regardless of their excuses current council members have presided over a government unable to live within the city’s income and as a result they have raised our taxes. Overall the city council has reduced the number of city employees and at the same time they have increased our cost. The question for them is “what is up with that?, fewer employees cost more? Why?”
And regardless of their excuses they have failed to sell the electric utility or give us FPL rates, which is what we were promised. We were promised OUC would bring us 20% lower electric rates. They did not deliver. Since they could not, and or have not delivered as they promised they are in default and need to go someplace else.
How would I fix the problems? I would tell the city manager to deliver a budget that is within the income of the city without any increase in taxes or turn in his resignation.
And I would tell OUC that we will only pay FPL rates from now on and if they don’t like that they can sell and or give up any rights they have to Vero Beach electric utility. I would then give the keys of the utility to FPL. I would tell them to start operating the utility immediately and tell them they are to charge our customers the FPL rates which are the lowest in the state. All of the income would be FPL’s and all of the expenses would be FPL’s. I would sell the Indian River Shores portion of our electric utility to FPL for the eighteen million dollars it is worth and I would do it now.
And to those who say it can’t be done all I can say is put me in office and I’ll do it. And give me some help on the council by voting for someone who will do as I just wrote.
I will make the above motions at the very first meeting in which I am elected. Hopefully I’ll get a second and the council can vote.
Indian River Guardian 
Brian does make sense. Look at his record when he was on the city council, he kept his word on his campaign promises and worded diligently 24/7 for all city residents. Graves and Winger also made campaign promises to sell the electric company, they instead never meant to keep their promises and mis-led the voters. It is time the residents of Vero woke up, you need the lower rates of FP&L as we in Indian River Shores do;it is time to stop the bleeding and elect candidates that will keep their word and restore the services and lower electric rates to what they once were. Make your vote count in this most important election!
People who do NOT live in the city of Vero have too much to say in OUR local election. In short mind your own business and clean up your own town. It is time for the taxpayers of Indian River Shores to wake up to the fact that this sale will not take place in our lifetime, neither can the contracts be eliminated. Again mind your own business.
Dear John, as long as I continue to do business with the City of Vero Beach it is my business! My town is very clean, it was not us that got you into this mess, it was the past council members that are leaving you and innocent present council members to throw themselves in front of the train. Wake up, I am not the only one paying your ridiculous electric bills!
Stuck in victim mode. It’s no way to live. Careful. If you dwell too long in the land of discontent, you may wake up some morning, and to your horror, see another Charlie Wilson in the mirror.
This is quite possibly the craziest electric resolution I’ve ever heard. “Tell OUC to charge FPL rates or we’ll hand the keys over to FPL”? Seriously? We’ve spent over $2 million in lawsuits regarding the electric, how much more litigation do you think this would bring? Brian Heady seems like a good guy. I think he truly cares for the City and has well intentions. I’m just not sure he’s living on the same planet as everyone else.
Dear Larry TURN OUT THE LIGHTS , THE PARTY’S OVER
Doesn’t help John, with the lights out it is still over $500.00. Thanks for the advice perhaps switching to LED’s or FP&L could solve the problems!
Dear Larry, With the thinking of your Mayor and council in Indian River Shores, it would be better to stock up on kerosene lamps. This is the only way IRS is going to get lower rates.A few million dollars here, a few million dollars there in legal fees and all you will be able to afford are kerosene lamps.