Candidates square off at forum

Candidates square off at forum

By PETER GUINTA
http://staugustine.com/stories/080508/politics_080508_002.shtml

The St. Johns County Candidate Forum at the County Auditorium offered an amusing moment Monday in what otherwise was a rote listing of each one's personal qualifications and oft-repeated concerns about planning, public safety and fiscal responsibility.

At one point, a questioner asked all seven County Commission hopefuls to raise their hands if they'd support imposing user fees to pay for fire services instead of using property taxes.

No one moved a muscle.

No one wanted to be linked in any way with July's fire fee debacle.

The 90-minute forum was sponsored by the League of Women Voters of St. Johns County and the St. Augustine Record.

A couple of candidates launched lukewarm attacks on opponents. None resulted in sharp exchanges.

District 1 challenger Albert Abbatiello tried to get his opponent, Vice Chairwoman Cyndi Stevenson, to respond in kind by accusing her of being supported by "developers, attorneys and other special interests,"

Stevenson brushed it aside, saying none of what Abbatiello said was based in fact.

Introducing herself she said, "It will take experience and fiscal responsibility to get through these hard times."

Even District 3 incumbent Ben Rich and his opponent, challenger Mark Miner, didn't verbally spar, as they have at other forums.

Rich introduced himself saying he was "plain talking" and does what he says he'll do. But he didn't know what the county would do to raise operating revenues because, "I'm only 20 percent of the board."

He said it's always tempting to give simple answers to complex questions.

For his part, Miner jabbed Rich only gently, saying that he would treat people with civility and respect, implying that Rich did not. This accusation has caused anger between them at other forums.

Not this time.

Miner also mentioned the 800 megahertz radio system that county emergency management wants for response coordination between public safety agencies and other counties, saying it would be a high priority for him.

"My opponent was talking about it four years ago. We still don't have it," Miner said. "It's time for my generation to be part of the solution."

The forum covered issues not frequently touched upon in these events, such as improving the evacuation times of St. Johns County's coastal areas when a large hurricane approaches, the candidates' opinions on holding constitutional officers to budget standards, the effect that Amendment 5 would have on county finances, dealing with the homeless.

One or two candidates broke though the background noise and made specific comments on an issue.

District 5 candidate Randy Brunson repeated what he's said at several forums: "It's all arithmetic."

He seemed to be saying that every problem pretty much breaks down to how to pay for its solution.

"Right now, 84 percent of our taxes are paid by homeowners," Brunson said. "We need industry here for good-paying jobs. We need vision and incentives."

His opponent, Ken Bryan, said county revenue sources are limited.

"It's either property tax, sales tax or fines and fees," said Bryan. "We have to decide where the money's coming from."

He added later that voters should check out a candidate's campaign contributions and where the money came from.

"Find out who they work for," he said.

Gary McMahon, seeking the District 5 seat, addressed health care right away and said he wanted to protect funding for the St. Johns County Health Clinic.

"One third of the homeless have severe mental disorders, and there are no facilities for housing them," he said.

Rich said, "The problem (of homelessness) is more complex than looking at it as a local issue."

Stevenson hit at the evacuation issue, saying that "unprecedented growth in coastal areas" worsened the problem of traffic congestion during storms.

"The state made insurance available in coastal areas," she said. "We need shelters west of I-95, we need to harden our homes, and we need the outer beltway.

"We shouldn't go to Jacksonville because they are lower than we are."