- April 25, 2024
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Volusia County Council's District 4 race, with its four candidates, is one that voters will have to watch for in the Aug. 23 primaries.
All District 4 candidates debated views on local issues during Citizens for Ormond Beach's Candidate Forum, held at the Ormond Beach Senior Center on Wednesday, July 13. The forum also included candidates running for Ormond Beach City Commission Zone 1. If no candidate earns greater than 50% of the vote during the primary election, the two candidates with the most votes will head to a runoff in the Nov. 8 election.
So, who is running for District 4?
Ormond Beach Wall-Y-World Gallery owner Ken Smith filed for candidacy Nov. 24, 2021. He serves as the chairman of the Ormond Beach Citizens Police Advisory Board. He previously ran to represent Zone 2 on the Ormond Beach City Commission in 2020.
"My platform is to make Volusia, green, lean and clean," Smith said. "And I will elaborate on those as we go through, but stop building on the wetlands immediately. That's a priority of ours. Stop asking for more taxes every time you get an opportunity and start cleaning the intracoastal waterways.
Incumbent Zone 4 Ormond Beach City Commission Rob Littleton filed for candidacy on Nov. 30, 2021. He was first elected to the City Commission in 2016, and reelected in 2018 and 2020. He operates Go Ormond, a tutoring agency, and is a certified tax preparer.
"My vision is to make Volusia County the absolute best place to live, work and raise a family," Littleton said. "And how do you do that? We do that by addressing the issues that everyone is talking about, which is growth, and how to do it responsibly, smart budgeting and low taxes."
Incumbent Zone 2 Ormond Beach City Commissioner Troy Kent filed for candidacy on Feb. 1. He has represented Zone 2 for the past 19 years, having first been elected in 2003. He currently works as an assistant principal at Sugar Mill Elementary in Port Orange.
"There are three things I want to focus on," Kent said. "Number one is the financial house, getting that in order in Volusia County. Number two is the infrastructure issue, and number three is recreation."
The fourth and final candidate in the District 4 race is Daytona Beach resident Michael McLean, who filed to run on Feb. 11. He is a former Seminole County Commissioner. McLean owned an insurance firm for over 20 years and currently owns a governmental and business consulting firm called McLean Strategies LLC.
"My way at looking at elected office is bottom-line business thinking," McLean said. "It's what I'm used to, that's what I understand. I look for, 'Let's do a little better with a little less,' and I think that can be done."
The candidates were asked questions on the beach, preserving the Loop, taxes and other issues. Here is what they had to say.
Question: The Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach metro area was recently rated as the worst in the nation for pedestrian safety by Smart Growth America. If elected, what actions would you take to make our roadways and highways safer for pedestrians, cyclists, and other people in the cars?
Littleton
The city of Ormond Beach has been working with FDOT to improve pedestrian safety on A1A and in the downtown, Littleton said, adding that the focus in the current fiscal year is to maintain the city's current road system.
"The way prices are going up right now, building new roads — which could cause more danger — isn't going to be a priority of mine," Littleton said. "It's going to be tough enough for governments to handle what we already have, so my main focus will be to maintain, preserve what we currently have, and try to improve the infrastructure on those roads going forward."
McLean
Building new roads and enhancing existing infrastructure is going to cost money, said McLean, and in order to address the issue, the county needs to have reoccurring money. He spoke about revisiting a half-cent sales tax, perhaps taken out of what the county already pays to the state, as a dedicated funding source for this purpose.
"Perhaps we can look to use a portion of what we're already paying to be able to come up with solutions for problems that occurred within the last few years, as opposed to what did happen 20 or 30 years ago," he said.
Smith
Smith illustrated the danger of local roads by mentioning the white cane challenge that was previously hosted by the Conklin Center for the Blind. Sighted people were asked to put on a blindfold and cross International Speedway Boulevard. That's a death sentence, Smith said. He invited people to attempt the challenge themselves.
"I guarantee — you start putting these people's lives at risk and things will start to change," Smith said. "The other priority is that sidewalks can't just be pretty. They have to be 100% functional."
Kent
Kent said he would take a two-pronged approach: First, get involved with the Florida with the Florida Department of Transportation and speak with local Florida Rep. Tom Leek about the issues. Then, make sure the enforcement piece is in place.
"We have to support our police," Kent said. "We have to give them the tools that they need, and they already have the talent, so that they can enforce ... the speeding and help make our roadways safer."
Question: What is your position on beach driving, and should the ability to drive on the beach be cheaper, or free, or eliminated for residents of Volusia County? If so, are there other revenue sources that the county could explore?
McLean
As a relatively new resident to the county — McLean has lived here for about three and a half years — he said he finds this issue interesting because it requires balancing the challenges of property ownership and also the enjoyment of citizens.
"I would like to think that there may be a compromise somewhere in this," he said. "That we can have situations where the majority of the year, you're able to drive on the beach."
He added that one suggestion is to charge for beach driving during special events.
Smith
Smith called paying residents to drive on the beach "basically a scam," as locals pay more in taxes to support the salaries of toll booth operators and still deal with closed beach approaches.
"If you look at Main Street in Daytona Beach, it has killed the tourism to not have the driving there," he said. "... It's time to reopen that part of the beach. It's time to say that was a failed experiment, and give it back to the people."
As we live in a tourist economy, Smith said the county should focus on getting the tourists to pay for using the beach.
Kent
Kent vowed to "fight tooth and nail," if elected, to ensure residents do not pay to drive on the beach. Visitors are welcome to come, but they should pay to drive on the beach.
"In 1987 when this experiment took place, and reality set in — the cities lost the ability to control the beach and the county took it over — our lives did not get better," Kent said. "They got worse on the beach."
He also said that he would like to make the beach, at least about 100 yards in every beachside community, dog-friendly.
Littleton
Littleton said he has always been pro-beach driving, and added that, since the beach is a major asset of the county, it should have an advisory board to help determine both short-term and long-term strategic goals.
"The first thing I'm going to fight for is to establish a beach advisory board that's going to be filled with vendors, business people, avid surfers and other stakeholders who can determine the long-term goals of the beach," he said.
Anyone promising that they will make beach driving free for residents should identify a funding source to make up for the lost revenue generated by the toll booths.
Question: FAITH, a local nonprofit religious coalition, has been pushing for more affordable housing in Volusia County for the past three years, particularly the establishment of a housing trust fund. Would you support this initiative? Why or why not?
Smith
He supports the idea to create a housing trust fund, which could be funded using linkage fees, ensuring a portion of funds per square foot of new development goes to build affordable housing. But he said his first question to FAITH was, "How long does the housing have to stay affordable?"
FAITH said 25 years, he shared.
"They said that other communities have it for 15, but at the state of our developers in the county, we thought 25 would be a better idea," Smith said. "And I wholeheartedly agree."
Kent
As a VCS employee for 44 years, he said that he knows what it's like to go to work every day, teach kids and live paycheck to paycheck from time to time. Looking at apartments that are popping up in the county — with rents upwards of $1,800 a month, plus requirements on deposits — he said he is open to initiatives to encourage affordable housing.
Kent also mentioned the rent-controlled Olive Grove Apartments in Ormond Beach, which has a long waiting list and is a project he approved.
"My ears are open to see what we can do to help affordable housing, especially for our employees — our firefighters, our police officers, our teachers, our public work employees," Kent said. "People that certainly could use that assistance and they're working hard in our communities.
Littleton
One of the big issues in Volusia County, Littleton said, is that the median wage is $45,000 a year; at the state level, it's about $55,000, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
"So there's a lot of hardworking families living paycheck to paycheck," Littleton said. "There's a lot of seniors on fixed incomes struggling right now, especially now."
During his time on the City Commission, he said he's been in favor of workforce housing, and is in favor of FAITH's housing trust fund initiative.
McLean
McLean said he was previously involved in a state board in Tallahassee called the Florida Housing Finance Corporation, an entity that decides where all the federal, state and local affordable housing dollars go. And those funds usually go to South Florida.
"That is part of the problem that we've had in Central Florida, dealing with the affordable housing crisis," McLean said. As Troy [Kent] said, when you're talking about $6,000 into an apartment and you're working a retail job, inevitably, it doesn't work."
The FAITH initiative, and other affordable housing initiatives, he said, makes "perfect sense."
Question: During the County Council meeting on Tuesday, July 5, county staff stated that, while adopting the rollback rate is feasible this upcoming year, doing so will not be sustainable in future years due to issues like maintenance responsibilities for SunRail and increase in Votran subsidy. How would you approach this issue?
Kent
He said we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.
"When you have a $1.2 billion budget and you have over $300 million in your savings account, there should be no other discussion than, 'You're going to rollback,'" Kent said.
He mentioned the $100,000 budgeted for Christmas decorations at the Ocean Center as a waste of taxpayer dollars, as the center is under-utilized, and that COVID-19 relief dollars may present further opportunities to cut back.
Littleton
With a $1 billion budget, everything that goes before him, if he is elected, will go through his SMART budgeting acronym qualities: They have to be sensible, measurable, accountable, reachable and timely, Littleton said.
"There is plenty of opportunities in a $1 billion budget to cut somewhere," Littleton said. "I'm even talking about recurring expenses for diversifying your revenue and offsetting that through property taxes. Everything that comes before me, if it doesn't pass the SMART test, I'm going to vote against it."
McLean
He described himself as a "low tax guy," and that of the nine of the 10 years he was in elected office in Seminole County, they had one of the lowest millage rates in Central Florida.
"So coming from that prism, it's interesting the tax structure here in Volusia County," McLean said. "I think sometimes the county gets an unfair rep regarding the amount of taxes being brought in."
Five out of the last six years, he said, the millage rate has been lowered in Volusia, but the rate goes up once municipal, school, and other tax entities are factored in. He does believe, however, that the county can do more with less taxes in the future.
Smith
He has pledged to not raise taxes and said, like McLean, that the county needs to do "more with less." Despite receiving $240 million in COVID-relief dollars at the county level, with a significant portion not slated for any one purpose, Smith mentioned facilities such as fire stations that are in deep disrepair, as well as the fact the county is operating with the minimum amount — two — of firemen per truck.
He toured a fire station last week that he said is not structurally sound during hurricanes. The county is looking to remodel the building.
"So we have big problems," Smith said. "You want to put of hundreds of thousands of dollars to remodel the fire station that's not worth housing in, that doesn't make any sense. That building should have been torn down and a new fire station built."
Question: "Defend the Loop" signs have been everywhere over the past year or so. In your opinion, is the Loop in danger, and if so, what are some ways the county can further protect the scenic byway?
Littleton
We can look at the county's land development code, which sometimes encourages high density building in some areas, said Littleton.
"Sometimes deals are made with developers that happen in the staff level — nothing dirty occurs — but it's outside of the transparency that gives people an uneasy feeling," he said.
Littleton added that the county could also help cities, like the city of Ormond Beach, with stormwater and water quality issues to obtain grant funding.
McLean
This is a situation we should look at from two perspectives, McLean said. First, the County Council is a seven-person board, meaning one could have "the best ideas in the world," but if three of the others don't agree with you, nothing will move forward. Second, there are relationships that can be build outside the council, such as working with the cities.
"We also need to have these discussions so we can build some sort of united plan, a consensus," McLean said. "Say, a bill that we understand that we're all moving the ship in the right direction, because sometimes what can happen in the city will move in one direction, and the county is moving into another and it's counterproductive."
Smith
We have to stop development on the Loop, Smith said. This includes protecting wetlands and reinstating the more stringent St. Johns Water Management District wetland rules from 2009.
"I don't believe we should [approve] every land use permit change that comes our way," Smith said. "I'm not afraid of developers threatening me of a lawsuit if I don't allow their land use change. Those laws are in place so that the people who make up the board have a vote, have a say."
He said he would fight "tooth and nail" to protect the wildlife corridor and green spaces.
Kent
Kent said he wants to make sure his grandson is able to experience the Loop as he's seen it growing up, and as his grandfather before him saw it. He said he has won nine previous elections because he's "never forgotten who my boss is."
"I paid attention two years ago when ECHO and Volusia Forever came before the voters of Volusia County," Kent said. "Do you remember the results? Because I do — it was overwhelming. Volusia County residents want to keep ECHO and Volusia Forever and they want to make sure their money is where their mouth is."
He also credited the county for buying a parcel of land fronting the Loop, and that is something he would like to see continued with Volusia Forever and ECHO funds.
Question: What steps would you take to balance development with water quality as well as water quantity in our county?
Smith
One of the steps he mentioned was opposing any toilet to tap initiatives, a pilot program the city of Daytona Beach became part of in 2018. He called the program an excuse to allow development because Volusia doesn't have enough water in its aquifer, and suggested enacting a moratorium on development.
"When that aquifer dries up, it's not just a matter of we're not going to have freshwater — if that aquifer dries up it's going to start bringing saltwater in from the ocean," he said. "... Imagine what Silver Glen and Blue Springs will look like filled with saltwater? It's not going to be pretty."
Kent
He said he is proud of the city of Ormond Beach's reuse water program for irrigation purposes. He explained that he's been an advocate for expanding the program for years because if the reuse isn't used for watering lawns, it ends up in the Halifax River.
"My mother tells me when she was a child, you could see from the top of the Halifax to the bottom, and there was growing on it and it was just absolutely incredible," Kent said. "It's not like that anymore."
He said he would be in favor of using ECHO or Volusia Forever funds to buy lands around the springs so that there's no development in those areas.
Littleton
Littleton also mentioned Ormond Beach's reuse system, and added that the city plans to buy land to increase reuse water storage to ensure no effluent is pumped into the Halifax River.
"Furthermore, as a county official, the west side of the county would come into play, so I would be supportive of working with the municipalities over there as well as Ormond Beach to make sure that the springs, as well as the Halifax on the east side, are taken care of, and the water quality there is what we would want our children to try, and play in and swim," he said.
McLean
This topic is always challenging, he said, and he said he agrees with his opponents that reuse programs like the one in Ormond make sense and should be expanded on a countywide basis. The county also needs to do a better job in educating residents on how to use water properly.
"As far as development is concerned, when we're having the discussion of how the impact of that development is going to be to our community, we talk about things like water pressure inhibitors ... to reduce the amount of water that's coming out of them," McLean said. "And hopefully, that will decrease the impact of that water and also will help us to look in the future with St. Johns River Water Management and say, 'We're good now because we made some of the decisions up front that's going to allow us to have adequate and proper and high-quality water for the foreseeable future.'"
