Candidates give last word on the election

HOLMES BEACH – With the Nov. 3 election nearly upon us, mail-in voting already begun and early in-person voting beginning Oct. 19, voters have a limited amount of time to finish making their selections for local and federal offices before casting their ballots.

In Holmes Beach, there are four candidates vying for two commission seats – Jayne Christenson, former commissioner Rick Hurst, Commissioner Pat Morton and Commissioner Kim Rash. Voters can select two candidates when casting their ballots. Whoever the top two vote-getters are will get the two-year commission terms.

With the final weeks of the campaign looming, The Sun has given each candidate the opportunity to address the public one final time to give their message to voters in their own words.

Jayne Christenson

When I moved to Holmes Beach with my family in 1989, I knew this was the community where we belonged. In 2007, my husband and I became permanent residents of Holmes Beach and still live in the same home my parents bought in 1989. It has been a wonderful community to raise our family in.

If I am elected as your city commissioner, I will work to be more proactive at positive engagement with residents and businesses. Citizens expect transparency, accountability and better communication from city government and I am willing to deliver.

Suggestion: I would love to see our police officers get to know our community residents and businesses by being more engaged with those who live in Holmes Beach. Roll down the Ford Expedition window and say hello when you are driving by.

I am concerned when I hear of residents leaving Holmes Beach due in part from the growth of short-term vacation rental homes continuing to pop up in our neighborhoods, primarily in the R-2 zone near the beach. The weekly turnover of renters every seven days has brought increased traffic, noise, and affected the peaceful enjoyment and quality of life for residents. Aligning our priorities of balance between residential properties and vacation rentals in our neighborhoods is critical to maintaining our Island character.

Anna Maria Island can benefit from better collaboration and partnership between the three Island cities. I will work together with all city representatives as one voice when interacting with state and county officials. This is especially important when trying to communicate the negative impact that the Tourist Development Council (TDC) advertising is having on Anna Maria Island and Holmes Beach. On average, 10,000 people annually are moving to Manatee County. Holmes Beach cannot support the parking requirements for all the people who want to go to the beach. I will look for opportunities to include county officials in these discussions especially since they are the recipient of the 5% tourism tax.

With my career experience in corporate business, I will provide budget oversight to

achieve smart financial decisions. Holmes Beach is not a traditional city with traditional expenses. If elected, I will be watchful of the spending and when asked to approve a project or an expense outside of the normal operating budget, I will question, “Is this good for residents and our Island character?”.

In closing, I am asking for your vote for Holmes Beach City Commissioner. I would be honored to represent the residents and businesses of Holmes Beach. Please visit my website and/or follow my Facebook page.

Rick Hurst

I earned an engineering degree from the University of Michigan. I accepted a doctorate fellowship at Northwestern University, however, I changed my path and decided to pursue a career in software development. I developed a software product that, to this day, is the leading product in its industry. I later was part of a start-up automation company in the automotive industry which grew quickly. The company’s success and subsequent sale provided me the opportunity to serve as the president of a multi-national corporation. I believe I am well-qualified for the job of commissioner.

My family and I moved to Holmes Beach because it appeared to be a wonderful and a welcoming beach community. We attended many events at city field. We loved it. We were living in paradise with a great community.

Soon after our arrival, these events dwindled away as did the welcoming beach community. We learned there was a small group of residents who were affecting this. This group felt the increase in visitors had ruined their private paradise. They were well-organized and started the process of getting candidates elected. I give them credit for the things they achieved early on. They stopped the excessive building and created the initial regulations for vacation rentals. However, their continued resentment and unrealistic zero-tolerance for visitors has resulted in an endless cycle of more laws, more fines, more code enforcement and higher budgets.

I’ve had many conversations with people, including residents seeking to make simple improvements to their property, regarding their interactions with our city and our policies. Too often I hear the phrase, “Holmes Beach is the worst.” I take tremendous pride in our community; however, I understand their frustration.

We can change this by taking a hard look at how we do things and why we do them. I believe we can achieve harmony between residents and visitors by developing smarter solutions that are more positive in nature, benefit a broad range of residents/stakeholders, work better and will be more cost-effective. These solutions will not come from a group of commissioners who emanate from the same inner circle, who want to perpetuate this endless cycle of more laws, fines and code enforcement. The development of new ideas and great solutions to complex problems will require input and brainstorming of ideas from more residents and stakeholders. This will only happen if we elect city officials who can think outside the box, who believe we need fresh ideas to solve our complex issues. I am that commissioner.

I have a five-point plan for a stronger Holmes Beach that can be summed up by “Seek input, ask hard questions and build a sense of community.” This plan is outlined in my ad in this edition of The Sun.

Please vote for Rick Hurst on Nov 3^rd and start the process of challenging the status quo.

Pat Morton

I would like to once again ask for your continued support as your city commissioner. In my years as a commissioner, I have been able to listen to the concerns of our citizens, the business owners and our Island guests. It became very apparent that we were at risk of losing the quaint charm of our Island city.

Residential homes were being replaced by big party houses. The peaceful quality of life replaced by noise, trash and congestion. Our own tourism industry changed as the snowbirds that we embraced were being replaced by a completely different clientele.

As a commissioner, I took action. Legislation was passed to bring balance back to these neighborhoods. I am very pleased to say that people are once again moving back to our community. I supported improving the city park which will continue to play a role in bringing young families back. As a member of this community, I would like to thank all who contributed generously to this park as it is something we can all be proud of.

We have many great things planned for the coming years in our city. We will continue to sponsor stakeholder meetings and town halls for the benefit of our businesses and residents. Resiliency and clean water are very important to me and I will fully support the mayor in addressing these concerns.

I promise to continue to be the voice of the residents and of our business owners. Please continue to reach out and share any and all of your concerns. I work for you and, as a veteran, it is my honor to continue to serve you.

Kim Rash

I would like to thank all of the people who voted for me in my first election in 2018. I would also like to thank those of you who did not vote for me but gave me the opportunity to gain your vote during the last two years.

I have been the voice for many residents and businesses when needing assistance from city hall. Throughout my time on the commission, I believe I have made a difference with my common-sense approach. Some of my accomplishments over the last two years include:

I worked to strengthen the noise ordinance to give residents back the peaceful enjoyment of their homes. Now, we are working with Code Compliance and the Holmes Beach Police to ensure our ordinances are being enforced. I continue to advocate for the police officers to be more visible in our neighborhoods and get to know our residents.
I fought wasteful spending of taxpayer money by helping to steer the city from single-source contracting bids to pricing multiple bids for projects to ensure competitive prices.
I opposed the 300% stormwater tax increase. Through my efforts of teamwork and negotiation, the commission compromised on a stormwater increase at half the proposed rate.
I advocated and successfully worked with the commission to not increase the millage rate on our property taxes.
I tried to work with the other commissioners to get every residential household one free parking permit only to get defeated in a 3/2 vote.
I advocated to keep benches at the rear of the beach for all to have a spot to watch sunsets.

Many residents refer to me as a “boots-on-the-ground” commissioner. I may not have the traditional hobbies like golfing or fishing, but I get great satisfaction from helping people. I am a voice for the residents. I listen and advocate passionately. I am a team player and dedicated to effectively collaborating and negotiating for practical, efficient solutions for our residents. I bring common sense and a successful business background to the commission. If re-elected, I strongly believe I can do even more because there is so much more to do. I have a proven track record that demonstrates I lead with the best interest of our residents and our city in mind. I can’t do this without your vote! Help me represent you by voting Kim Rash on Tuesday, November 3rd! Thank you for your support.

Holmes Beach voters go to the polls Nov. 3 at St. Bernard Catholic Church, 248 South Harbor Drive. Early voting takes place at several different locations across Manatee County Oct. 19 thru Nov. 1. Mail-in ballots have already been mailed and can be returned by mail with 70 cents postage by Oct. 24, dropped off at any early voting location or at the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections Office. For more information, visit the supervisor of elections website.