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.)

RICHARD WINGER

Your vote is important to me!

We are blessed to live in this special part of the world called Vero Beach—a small beachside neighborhood community and a vibrant communal life with elements of “Old Florida.” While our community has many resources, it faces many challenges.

With challenges To Keep Vero-Vero ™, we are at a crossroads. I want us to make sure we take the right path in this crucial election by advocating the following positions:

 

• Save the Lagoon: We are the Treasure Coast leader in improving the water quality of the Indian River Lagoon, due to our efforts to implement a Step System program to reduce septic tank pollution from entering the Lagoon. We are also exploring a Storm Water Utility to filter and end run-off of muck, oil, clippings and nutrients that are harmful to the lagoon. Additionally, we implemented a fertilizer ban ordinance.
• Keep Vero-Vero: To maintain our special small city with its parks, festivals, parades, theater, recreational opportunities, excellent police and fire protection, outstanding life guards, and without clutter or high rise buildings, while maintaining our infrastructure and strengthening our City finances.
• Support our Police: We need to add two patrol officers, replace worn cars and equipment, and respect the fine job of our police force.
• Reduce power rate: We continue to pursue what is a crucial and difficult task of selling our electric utility to achieve lower electrical rates. We are impeded by our Florida Municipal Power Agency contracts; and while we and Florida Power and Light have not found a path to overcome this, we should not give up trying. While we pursue these efforts, it is imperative to continue to reduce rates all we can, by lower wholesale rates from the Orlando Utility Commission, closing our “Big Blue” electrical plant, and cutting costs.*

The current City Council inherited a bad hand, stretched from a deteriorating infrastructure and parks, to worn out equipment, in my opinion because the issues had been kicked down the road.

This City Council has changed an unfunded pension gap to a defined contribution plan and have implemented a “use-it or lose- it” vacation and sick pay policy. We have brought in best management practices and are overhauling our computer information and billing systems.

But with that said, perhaps the best thing this City Council has done is to encourage working together with the many civic groups who contribute time and money for the best in parks, festivals, community activities, volunteerism, sports activities and neighborhood rejuvenation. Vero Beach gets better and better because of you, and I would like to continue to be part of our communal effort to keep and improve Vero Beach as the special place it is. In the last two years electric rates are down 6.7 percent.