- April 24, 2024
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With the elections happening in less than a month, Citizens for Ormond Beach held a candidates forum at the Ormond Elementary Auditorium on Wednesday, Oct. 10, where phrases like "low-impact development" and "responsible growth" dominated the discourse among the twelve candidates for City Commission and the mayoral seat.
Candidates answered two key questions each during the forum: 1) Do you think the city is growing in a responsible way? and 2) What are your priorities for the future and what actions should be taken to accomplish them?
“This is the first time in my 28 years of living here that we’ve had such an interest in the local election, and we’ve had so many candidates," CFOB President Rita Press said, adding that the interest is "terrific" for democracy.
Here is a rundown of what the candidates in each of the local races said.
The candidates running for Zone 1 are incumbent City Commissioner Dwight Selby and former art teacher, Kathy Maloney Johnson, who is endorsed by political action committee, CANDO 2.
Maloney Johnson said that she never considered running until the site for the upcoming Granada Pointe was clear-cut and that she didn't believe the city was growing responsibly. She said plans for growth should include what people want and need, rather than "destroying forests." If elected, she promised to fight for careful preservation of the beach, green spaces, wetlands and wildlife, as well as address traffic and infrastructure needs.
“Creating a beautiful, tree-lined, walkable innovative town will encourage kids to stay and others to visit," Maloney Johnson said.
Selby had a different take on how to keep Ormond's professional young people, saying the key was to continue to bring in high-paying jobs. As a CEO of a commercial real estate company, he said he brings in a business perspective to the City Commission.
Selby said that the city has been growing at a 1% growth rate, a percentage echoed by all the incumbent candidates and Zone 3 candidate Susan Persis, and he said the city is therefore growing responsibly. He stated that his other priorities include enhancing the quality of life, improving the environment — namely, working on converting the remaining septic tanks in the city and those in Ormond-by-the-Sea to city sewer — and having low taxes. Selby was the only City Commissioner to vote against the city's adopted millage rate this year, advocating instead to go to rollback.
The candidates running for Zone 2 are incumbent Troy Kent, private attorney David Glasser and banker Joe Dugan, who is endorsed by CANDO 2.
Dugan said he was running to "get rid of the dirty politics in Ormond" and held up a mailer recently sent out divulging his four arrests for possession of marijuana and driving with a suspended license over 12 years ago. Dugan defended himself in a Facebook video, where he said the mailer was sent on Kent's behalf and retaliated by revealing Kent filed for divorce in 2013 and that his 25-year-old stepson was recently arrested for aggravated assault with a firearm against a teenager.
“I didn’t want to discuss our pasts, because we all have problems," Dugan said. He also said all of the candidates "have a history of things that we don’t want coming out into the public.”
Kent said that he didn't pay for or distribute the mailer and that he has never sent out a negative mailer on one of his opponents during his 15 years as a commissioner. He admitted he filed for divorce but said that he and his wife remained together and that "should be celebrated, not looked down upon." He said his stepson has since turned his life around.
“I am a fighter," Kent said. "I will fight for my marriage. I will fight for my family and I will fight for you, the residents.”
Kent said he believes Ormond is growing responsibly, explaining that he voted no to high-rises on the beachside in 2006 and voted in favor of green spaces such as the Andy Romano Beachfront Park and the Environmental Discovery Center. Should he be re-elected for an eight term, he said he will tackle A1A. Kent, who served on the county's Beachside Redevelopment Committee, has advocated for more crosswalks and redevelopment on the beachside.
Dugan said developments like Granada Pointe, Plantation Oaks and Margaritaville (the latter two of which are not under the city's jurisdiction) are affecting Ormond Beach's infrastructure. If elected, he said he will devise a plan to evaluate traffic, environmental impacts, water issues and flood risks.
He also stated his support for a six-month moratorium on development.
Glasser said growth in the city is inevitable but that it's happening very quickly. His priorities include the environment and converting septic to sewer in the city and Ormond-by-the-Sea.
The candidates running for Zone 3 are past Pine Trail Elementary Principal Susan Persis and Volusia County Deputy Court Clerk Sandy Kauffman, who is endorsed by CANDO 2.
Kauffman said the city hasn't been growing responsibly, citing that the county's impact fees haven't been raised for 15 years. Her priorities are to preserve the city's beauty, save wetlands, fund first responders and decrease the discharge into the Halifax River. She also said she wants to stop the rezoning of residential parcels except for "urgent needs" and claimed beachside residents need a hospital.
Persis said the city has been growing responsibly, though she would like to see an "even higher quality" of building standards. She also suggested incentivizing developers to use low impact development guidelines when possible. Her priorities are to provide a safe city for children and residents alike and to take care of the city's first responders.
The candidates running for Zone 4 are incumbent Rob Littleton, David Romeo and Barry du Moulin. Although du Moulin is formally endorsed by CANDO 2, he has recently distanced himself from the pac.
Littleton said the city is growing in a smart and responsible way, and he became the fourth candidate to cite the 1% growth rate.
“Don’t allow the rhetoric to blind you to the facts," Littleton said.
He stated his priorities were keeping property taxes low, maintaining a responsible city budget and preserving "a great quality of life."
Romeo said development has grown in a modest way in the city but that it needs to be more "earth-friendly." He presented the city's 2013 low impact development design manual and suggested it be adopted as mandatory. Romeo added that if elected, he will work to unite the commission, the citizens and developers.
“There’s division right now, and where there’s division, there’s distrust, and that’s where we’re at," Romeo said.
Du Moulin said traffic needs to be addressed to help EVAC and other first responders reach homes faster as well as add personnel. He also opposed spending money on the city's airport and advocated taking those funds to work on the city's septic to sewer issue. He said an emergency operations center should also be a priority.
The candidates running for Ormond Beach Mayor are incumbent Mayor Bill Partington and former HOA president of The Trails, Rob Bridger, who is endorsed by CANDO 2.
Partington said the city has been growing responsibly, comparing it to Daytona Beach. Last year, Partington said Daytona had more commercial growth than Ormond Beach has had in the last fifteen years (Ormond has had 15 projects). His priorities include maintaining
the city's low tax rate and looking to Ormond Crossings and the North U.S. 1 corridor for more business opportunities, like that of Security First's new headquarters.
Bridger said parking hasn't been addressed in the city. He used The Pumphouse, a recently approved barbecue restaurant project in downtown, as an example. Bridger said that it was not an example of responsible growth and neither were the five-story buildings on New Britain Avenue, the purchase of the Ormond Beach Riverside Church property and the clear-cutting of trees.
“It’s an assault on the environment," Bridger said of the latter.
If elected, he said he will work to restore trust and communication with the citizens. He also wants a planning board without active realtors and developers to minimize conflicts of interests.
This story was updated at 9:18 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 12 to correctly show the forum was held at Ormond Beach Elementary's auditorium, not Osceola's.
