The following in an announcement of intention to seek public office paid for by the candidate.
Starke City Commissioner Shannon Smith has announced he will be seeking the County Commissioner District 1 seat in this fall’s election which will require him to resign prior to the expiration of his City Commission term. Therefore, I’m taking advantage of this opportunity to inform the voters of the City of Starke that I will be seeking the office of City Commissioner for District 3 in the upcoming August 20 special election.
I truly believe that the City of Starke is facing the biggest crossroads it has faced in over 75 years and the voters and the City Commission must get these decisions right. For the first time in modern history, the city finds itself without an elected Clerk or elected Police Chief, both of which are called for in the City Charter. It’s likely the commission will undertake a serious review of the City Charter in the next few months and then present their findings and recommendations to the voters who must decide the future direction of the city.
I have long supported the idea that both the Chief and Clerk positions should be appointed by the Commission and meet well established professional education and experiential qualifications. With the law enforcement services now being contracted to the Sheriff’s Office and Police Chief Johnson’s well-deserved retirement, the commission has time to make sure the recommendations to the voters for a change in the Charter are well reasoned and ensure the citizens will have confidence in the personnel responsible for the city’s budget of over 40 million dollars.
The badly needed new wastewater treatment plant will result in higher sewer bills and the same can be expected for water. Even a property tax hike (highly unfavorable) will not produce the revenue reasonably anticipated to be required to sustain the normal activities of the city, including the 3 separate retirement systems. What was one of the finest fire departments in any small city in the state of Florida has been cut roughly in half, which, in my opinion, poses serious dangers to the firefighters and the public.
Just as the city commission should be commended for taking appropriate action regarding our law enforcement services, they must address the critical matter of ensuring the residents and businesses of the city have 24-hour services provided by adequately trained firefighters. Similar to the contract with the Sheriff’s Office, the citizens of Starke and all of Bradford County deserve an agreement with Bradford County Emergency Services that guarantees there is adequate coverage by the two departments working seamlessly and ensure these men and women are safe, have the proper equipment, are highly trained and treated with dignity and respect.
I am very pleased to see the cooperation and hopefully collaboration between the city and county commissioners on several subjects, none being more important than economic development. Both entities must grow the number of businesses and residents to sustain the required services citizens have come to expect and for the most part deserve. That will be my priority if elected by the citizens of District 3 — to smartly grow our city and county to provide sustainable, well-paying jobs for our children and their children and establish affordable workforce housing. No subject should be off the table when it comes to finding meaningful ways to produce revenue and reduce expenses to make our wonderful city sustainable.
Carol and I have chosen to live in the City of Starke our entire 50-year marriage and I look forward to engaging in thoughtful discussions with all citizens and fellow commissioners as to ways to improve the quality of life for all residents and visitors. The last day to register to be eligible to vote in the August 20 primary is July 22.
With regards,
Bob Milner
Candidates may submit an announcement and photograph to run one time for $50. The deadline to submit announcements is Monday, June 17, at 5 p.m. Email announcements to [email protected] and make arrangements to pay prior to publication.
