City Commission Candidates Tackle Issues

At a windy outdoor gathering last week, candidates for the Port St. Joe city commission participated in a public discussion on the issues.

Participating in the forum sponsored by the Gulf County Republican Party, the Gulf County Chamber of Commerce and The Star were Lorinda Gingell, Keith "Duke" Jones and John Reeves. All are running for the Group 3 seat on the city commission.

As a chill wind whipped through the tent in Frank Pate Park, between 40 and 50 people gathered to hear County Court Judge Fred N. Witten read questions from the audience that had been vetted by himself, Tom Semmes of the Gulf County Republican Party, and Linda Griffin, Gulf County Supervisor of Elections.

In their allotted introductory speeches, Gingell spoke on a platform of what she termed protect, prepare and prosper: protect the legacy of the area, prepare for the coming change so the legacy does not get buried, and, with the proper preparation, allow the city to prosper.

Jones made three promises: that everyone would be treated equally, he would study all the issues carefully, and he would help the city practice good financial strategies.

Reeves noted his past experience as a former city commissioner and said, to him, the most important issue was jobs and unity with the county.

While several of the audience's questions were directed specifically at Reeves, the questions centered around help for the Port St. Joe business community, general economic development, the city of Port St. Joe's relationship with the county, recycling, and how to improve U.S. 98 through Port St. Joe.

Gingell said she would focus on revising all city ordinances, make it easier for new businesses to establish themselves in the city, work with existing organizations and The St. Joe Company for economic development, and continue the Port St. Joe Downtown Redevelopment Agency (PSJDRA)'s initiatives to make U.S. 98 safer and more inviting.

Jones said that helping local businesses first, especially with tax breaks offered to keep the cost of doing business down was the best way to help the Port St. Joe business community; that the linchpin for economic development in the city was the revitalization of the old bulkhead at the old paper mill site; that education about recycling was needed but any recycling program should be voluntary; and that the first step to improving U.S. 98 was to have The St. Joe Company clean up the old mill site and apply the same rules to everyone.

Reeves said the best way to help the city's business community was to lower taxes, use WindMark tax dollars wisely and recruit businesses; that the most important issue facing the city was lack of economic growth; that recycling would have to be examined to see if it was economically feasible; and improvement to U.S. 98 would best be served by supporting the PSJRA and directing traffic to Reid Avenue.

All three agreed that trust must be re-established between the city and the county for cooperation between the two governments to succeed.

Rex Buzzett, the lone candidate for the Group 4 seat, did not participate in the forum.