The country is in the grip of the strangest elections I can remember (and I'm old) and many people have deep concerns about the national outcome including me. Still, let's talk about North Bay Village where strange comes to live.
We have four things to vote on:
- Commissioner from North Bay Island Island
- Commissioner from Treasure Island
- Mayor
- Whether or not to bury the power lines.
You know I have opinions but I'm going to save the powerlines and the mayoral race for another post.
Commissioner from North Bay Island:
Richard Chervony deserves to be re-elected. He's worked diligently and hard to improve North Bay Village. He kept our taxes low. He is seemingly everywhere with constituent help and was the constant voice of information during the recent hurricane scare.
His key accomplishments include:
Chervony's done a great job in his tenure and he has my unqualified endorsement.
His opponent, José Alvarez, is a nice guy who I hope will contribute over the next few years. His major accomplishment, creating village rules around AirBnB and other short term rentals, was good but most of the work was done by his wife and I have not heard any compelling reasons why he would be a better choice than a successful sitting commissioner. I was disappointed that he did not attend the budget meetings - the budget dictates what the village can actually do for the next year and being present would have mattered. Great guy and with experience, he may be ready next time.
Full Disclosure Note Here: Chervony and I have had massive, epic public battles. NBV Thunderdome battles and we very well might again. I fully expect some mysterious PAC will soon send you information on that. I stand by every nasty thing I said and I'm certain Chervony will say the same about me. (I dunno, I didn't ask). But who would you rather have? Someone who fights like hell and then does the right thing or some smiley backstabber? My choice is obvious.
Commissioner for Treasure Island:
Andreana Jackson has stood out in her rookie year. On a steep learning curve, she has taken a firm stand on environmental issues affecting North Bay Village and is fighting hard to clean the place up. Jackson has also worked hard to learn the commission processes, build bridges to the community and genuinely question what she does not understand. She's very aware of knowing what she doesn't know and seeks advice from her best sources.
Her accomplishments in the last year include:
Andreana is more than potential and is a proven contributor to the Village.
Her opponent, Dr. Joshua Furman, is a long time resident and an exceptional person. He is a doctor with a practice locally and a bright man. Like Alvarez though, his grasp of the complexity of village issues is hampered by his not showing up. He needs to know the issues, the nitty gritty stuff, before he should replace someone like Jackson who dives in 100%. I hope to see more of him on the boards but he does not have the experience or the knowledge we need now.
So that's my view. Yours?
By way, if Jose Alvarez or Joshua Furman would like to write about why they feel they are better qualified, I'll open the blog up to them publish unedited any replies they would like.
Kevin Vericker
October 14, 2016
His key accomplishments include:
- The Health Clinic at Treasure Island Elementary School and a new program to provide dental care.
- Consistently introducing and shepherding through environmental legislation including the styrofoam ban.
- Involved himself in the details of the budget to direct the first budget in years that maintains city services, rewards village employees, keeps the reserve healthy and lowered the taxes. This is not the usual approach and I know how hard he worked to make this happen
Chervony's done a great job in his tenure and he has my unqualified endorsement.
His opponent, José Alvarez, is a nice guy who I hope will contribute over the next few years. His major accomplishment, creating village rules around AirBnB and other short term rentals, was good but most of the work was done by his wife and I have not heard any compelling reasons why he would be a better choice than a successful sitting commissioner. I was disappointed that he did not attend the budget meetings - the budget dictates what the village can actually do for the next year and being present would have mattered. Great guy and with experience, he may be ready next time.
Full Disclosure Note Here: Chervony and I have had massive, epic public battles. NBV Thunderdome battles and we very well might again. I fully expect some mysterious PAC will soon send you information on that. I stand by every nasty thing I said and I'm certain Chervony will say the same about me. (I dunno, I didn't ask). But who would you rather have? Someone who fights like hell and then does the right thing or some smiley backstabber? My choice is obvious.
Commissioner for Treasure Island:
Her accomplishments in the last year include:
- Sponsoring legislation to clean our streets.
- Leading cleanup efforts in the Village
- Promoting Science Technology Engineering and Math at Treasure Island Elementary
- Taking part in an uncomfortable and politically risky move to restore civility to the Commission.
Andreana is more than potential and is a proven contributor to the Village.
Her opponent, Dr. Joshua Furman, is a long time resident and an exceptional person. He is a doctor with a practice locally and a bright man. Like Alvarez though, his grasp of the complexity of village issues is hampered by his not showing up. He needs to know the issues, the nitty gritty stuff, before he should replace someone like Jackson who dives in 100%. I hope to see more of him on the boards but he does not have the experience or the knowledge we need now.
So that's my view. Yours?
By way, if Jose Alvarez or Joshua Furman would like to write about why they feel they are better qualified, I'll open the blog up to them publish unedited any replies they would like.
Kevin Vericker
October 14, 2016
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