FLORIDA TIMES-UNION: CAMPAIGN 2008: Saving history, working for future -- The candidates agree that preserving St. Augustine's past is No. 1.

CAMPAIGN 2008: Saving history, working for future -- The candidates agree that preserving St. Augustine's past is No. 1.


By Bridget Murphy, The Times-Union


For one St. Augustine City Commission seat, this year's nonpartisan election pits a retired fire chief against a historic preservation planner.


For the other open seat, an African-American incumbent and retired educator is up against a community activist who hails from out of town but has become a passionate advocate for the minority neighborhood her opponent grew up in.

The candidates' backgrounds also hint at the issues they say matter most: protecting the city's historic past while supporting small businesses and people trying to make it in tight times.

The race for Seat 1 between incumbent Errol D. Jones and Judith Seraphin, the activist he's pegged as a carpetbagger, may turn into a referendum on the government's status quo.

Seraphin, 66, served as a neighborhood committeewoman in Philadelphia before moving to the area four years ago. The business owner crusaded against city officials for illegally dumping landfill material. She's also criticized commission members for treating residents with hostility and missing opportunities to grow the economy.

Jones, 65, who also worked as an economic development consultant, said he's better qualified because of his experience working in government and dealing with policy issues. The St. Augustine native said he's seen the city's past and present, while his newcomer opponent harps on certain issues and is "very critical of everything we've done."

"She's tried to tell us how they do it in Philadelphia," Jones said.

The face-off for commission Seat 5 will be between Jimmy Owens and Nancy Sikes-Kline.

Owens, 59, said his years of working to protect the city's residents and structures from fires, his experience dealing with government officials and his work balancing budgets and seeking grants prepared him to be a commissioner.

"I'd just like to give back to the community," he said.

Sikes-Kline, 51, has served on the city's code enforcement board and parking and traffic committee, along with several other government boards. She said St. Augustine has to stay competitive as a tourist attraction, including by making it easier for people to park.

The candidate said she would bring a "different kind of leadership" to the commission, one based on past successes working with all kinds of people and not just administrative experience.

Mayor Joseph Boles vacated Seat 5 to run again for mayor, which he won in August. Before this year the mayor also had to win a commission seat.

bridget.murphy@jacksonville.

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