A special MEETING OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

April 29, 2023

The Lake County Board of County Commissioners met in a special Astor Republican Town Hall Meeting on Saturday, April 29, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. at the Astor Community Center, Astor, Florida. Commissioners present at the meeting were: Kirby Smith, Chairman; and Sean Parks. Commissioners not present were: Douglas B. Shields, Vice Chairman; Leslie Campione; and Josh Blake. Others present were: Ralph Smith, a North Lake County Hospital District (NLCHD) Board member; Barbara Price, a NLCHD Board member; Senator Alan Hays, Lake County Supervisor of Elections; the Honorable Anthony Sabatini, a candidate for United States Congress; Ms. CJ Blancett, a candidate for Florida Senate District 13; Mr. Tom Vail, a candidate for Lake County Supervisor of Elections; and Josh Pearson, Deputy Clerk.

INVOCATION AND PLEDGE

Ms. Sue Parent, with the Lake County Republican Party, welcomed everyone to the meeting.

Mr. Ralph Smith gave the Invocation and Commissioner Parks led the Pledge of Allegiance.

INTRODUCTIONS

Ms. Parent played video greetings from Lake County Sheriff Peyton Grinnell and Mr. David Jordan, Lake County Tax Collector. She then indicated that many individuals had recently expressed concerns about the homeless situation in the area, and she said that she had attended a Mid Florida Homeless Coalition meeting on the previous day, noting that she had brought some reference cards for outreach programs.

Mr. Anthony Sabatini indicated that he was the Chairman of the Lake County Republican Party. He introduced himself to the audience and encouraged them to join the Lake County Republican Party. He also gave a candidacy speech, noting that he was running for United States (U.S.) Congress.

Commr. Parks commented that the County did not want to forget about the Astor community, and that he took the honor of serving as a Lake County Commissioner seriously. He clarified that he was not currently a candidate, and he explained that what was central to him was his faith, family, country and community. He thought that there were some core issues and that there was the challenge of addressing growth in the right way. He mentioned that there were some growth pressures in the south and central parts of the county, and he thought that they needed to, from a conservative lens, consider how they addressed growth. He stated that Lake County was one of the fastest growing counties in the state, and that they continued to support their Sheriff with public safety. He added that the County also supported their City police departments through the funding that they needed. He opined that infrastructure and roads were what government should address, and that they had catching up to do, especially in the south part of the county, noting that the challenge was how to fund this. He relayed that Lake County had the lowest property tax rate in the Central Florida area, and that the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) continued to respect this by looking to make improvements and make their government more efficient. He opined that people who lived in the county did so for the quality of life, and he thought that a discussion would be how to protect this. He said that he was a strong property rights advocate, but that that they had to respect everyone’s property rights, rather than just the rights of a few special interests. He opined that they needed to consider making decisions for the next generation.

Ms. Parent commented that Commissioner Parks represented Commission District 2, and that Commissioner Smith represented Commission District 3.

Commr. Smith stated that he was the Chairman of the BCC, and that the Board members represented all of Lake County. He said that he was a fiscal conservative and that he believed in strong government transparency. He indicated that he held office hours every Tuesday and Thursday at his County office, and that he was willing to take calls and meet with residents. He commented that he was running for the BCC again in 2024, and that he would appreciate everyone’s support. He remarked that the County was going to install bathrooms at the Butler Street Boat Ramp, and that it was anticipated to be open in August 2023. He said that for the park, they had continued in March 2023 with playground equipment, shade structures, and ballfield fencing. He mentioned that Astor would have the only drive-through library in Lake County, and that it would be almost a 6,000 square foot building with a study room, community offices, a children’s reading rotunda, an open air terrace, a computer lab with six personal computers (PCs), and a large open space for seating and tables; furthermore, the groundbreaking would occur in June 2023 with an anticipated completion date in December 2023. He said that the Lake County Public Works Department had received a $500,000 resiliency grant for flood evaluation issues in Astor, and that they also had a safe street grant for $800,000. He added that they were in the preliminary stage for sidewalks, and that it would be for Alco Road and River Road, noting that it would cost between $500,000 and $1 million to complete this. He related that some drainage systems had been fixed in Astor, noting that the County had done 33 projects to date to fix culverts and pipes, along with ditch cleanup. He indicated that residents with issues could contact him or any of the Commissioners. He also mentioned that Commissioner Campione could not attend the current meeting, but that she wanted him to relay that residents could contact her as well.

Ms. Parent indicated that Ms. Barbara Price was the NLCHD Chairman and was the seat two trustee.

Ms. Barbara Price discussed her State Committeewoman position. She indicated that she would like to see a North Lake County Republican Club in Astor, and that she could help residents with this. She explained that the NLCHD was a taxing district and that the millage would be set in September 2023.

Ms. Parent relayed that Mr. Ralph Smith was their State Committeeman who was also a NLCHD seat three trustee.

Mr. Ralph Smith made comments related to a charity that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was previously involved with, along with a raffle to raise funding. He then mentioned that he had been elected twice by popular vote in the Republican primary, and that he had been the Chairman of the Faith Engagement Committee. He provided his phone number and said that residents could contact him any time.

Senator Alan Hays thanked everyone for the privilege of serving them for the past six years as the custodian of their elections system. He asked them to elect him again in 2024, and he indicated that when he took office, he sought to find new ways to improve the elections process to ensure election integrity and improve accessibility for voters. He outlined these items and made comments regarding his office, their service and financial stewardship. He opined that he and his team had done an outstanding job administering the elections in Lake County, and he asked everyone for their permission to continue to serve them with excellence.

Ms. Parent relayed that Ms. CJ Blancett was running for Florida Senate District 13.

Ms. Blancett introduced herself to the audience and said that she was a regular individual who had concerns about the direction that the country was on. She opined that Lake County was the greatest place to live, and relayed that she had picked the republican side. She asked that everyone give her the opportunity to win their vote and represent them.

Ms. Parent stated that Mr. Tom Vail was a republican candidate for Supervisor of Elections.

Mr. Vail introduced himself and indicated that he was currently serving as First Vice Chairman of the Lake County Republican Party. He expressed concerns with the 2016 election, President Barack Obama and other issues. He opined that there had been a stolen election in 2020, and he commented that what mattered to him was freedom. He opined that there were election law issues in the State of Florida, and he expressed concerns for ballot trafficking.

open questions

Several residents asked questions related to election integrity and security, which were addressed by Senator Hays and Mr. Vail.

A resident asked about the relocation of the Supervisor of Elections Office.

Senator Hays said that they were trying to move somewhere else, opining that they had outgrown their current facility.

Commr. Smith stated that there was an opportunity to move to a different location; however, that location seemed to be excessively expensive. He added that they were considering other options to house the equipment for the Supervisor of Elections in new warehouse space.

The resident asked about the criteria used to say that the Supervisor of Elections could not perform his duties where he currently was.

Commr. Smith relayed that the County had to depend on the Constitutional Officer who had been elected to that seat to provide this information.

Senator Hays detailed issues with his office’s current location.

Additional residents asked questions related to election integrity and security, which were addressed by Senator Hays and Mr. Vail.

Mr. Sabatini inquired about a Liberty Tree movement that the County was trying to revive.

Commr. Smith believed that this had been started by Commissioner Parks two years prior. He explained that the Liberty Tree was a tree of gathering that started the culmination of the Revolutionary War warriors, noting that they had met under this tree to go against the Stamp Act, which was an unwanted tax. He said that the County was looking at a few places for this Liberty Tree, and that one location was the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) location in Astor, along with the VFW facility in the City of Mount Dora. He mentioned that he wanted to honor their military and that this was what the Liberty Tree was about. He hoped that either the Astor or City of Mount Dora VFW would welcome this tree because it was a great symbol of American freedom in their country. He recalled that the British had cut the original Liberty Tree down when they left Boston, Massachusetts, but the City of Boston had placed a plaque there. He said that as soon as the County had a location, they would provide this information on their website, noting that the date would be May 24, 2023 at 9:00 a.m. He invited everyone to attend, noting that it would be a great celebration of freedom and their country. He opined that they needed to start teaching their children history again about their country and what it was like to be free. He also explained that the original tree was an elm tree in Boston, Massachusetts, and that the owner of Cherry Lake Tree Farm donated a tree each year.

Commr. Parks thought that the tree would likely be a cypress tree because they lived around 2,000 years.

A resident expressed concerns about crime in the area and for some 911 calls taking over 45 minutes for a response. She asked what was going to be done to increase funding for the Lake County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) so that they could utilize their substation.

Commr. Smith agreed that this was not acceptable, and he indicated that the County had meetings with the Sheriff and that they were starting to go through their budget process. He said that the County usually gave the Sheriff what he requested for his personnel and equipment, and that he would relay this information to the Sheriff.

A resident relayed her understanding that sidewalks were part of the road project, and she asked if there was a way that residents could follow up on this and see how it was progressing on Alco Road and River Road.

Commr. Parks replied that he could provide her with a business card and that the County could provide her this information.

Commr. Smith added that he would also give her contact information for Mr. Jeff Earhart, Engineering Manager for the Lake County Public Works Department, so that she could receive emails on the progress of this item.

A resident asked Ms. Blancett about who she was running against and the issues she wished to address.

Ms. Blancett commented that she was running for the seat previously occupied by Senator Dennis Baxley, who was term limited, and that she aligned with him significantly. She provided information about her opponents, and she indicated that she wanted to meet people and represent their issues.

A resident asked a question about an audit conducted by the Supervisor of Elections and about poll watchers, which Senator Hays addressed.

A resident relayed that Astor would like a community officer, and he expressed concerns for response times. He also indicated concerns for permitting and building, opining that there were laws they had to go by which did not allow them to build anymore, opining that one would have to pay for a variance. He also indicated concerns for being able to build storm drains and having water flow somewhere where it was not encroaching on private property.

Commr. Smith said that the Lake County Office of Planning and Zoning and the Office of Building Services were having challenges; however, they had been working diligently to face those difficulties. He commented that starting May 1, 2023, the permitting department would be moving to a more customer service oriented location where the Lake County Tax Collector used to be. He added that the County was also looking into hiring a person to review the processes, noting that they had a high rate of turnover in the Office of Planning and Zoning. He relayed that the County was implementing a training program for staff, and he hoped that the processes, procedures and code would be reviewed, that the training would be started, and that customer service would become much better within these departments. He also explained that it had been a nine month process.

A resident asked a question regarding election integrity, which was addressed by Ms. Blancett, Mr. Vail and Senator Hays.

closing comments

Commr. Parks thanked Mr. Sabatini and the Republican Executive Committee (REC) members for the event, and he opined that the BCC would possibly honor the request to dedicate a deputy to Astor. He then mentioned that on the following Saturday at 9:00 a.m. in the City of Tavares, there would be a Back the Blue walk, noting that they wanted to have 1,000 people there to support law enforcement around the county. He added that the BCC had also unanimously approved declaring July as Pride in America month, noting that this was the only county in the country that had done this. He specified that they celebrated America, and had lectures and other items planned.

Senator Hays thanked the REC and the audience. He said that he had the privilege of serving as the Supervisor of Elections for six years, and that he was asking for four more years. He stated that he knew the level of expertise, integrity, honesty, and transparency. He mentioned that many items relating to his office were open to the public, and that he welcomed accountability. He mentioned that residents could also sign up for tours of his office.

Commr. Smith thanked the REC for allowing him to be there, and he thanked the audience. He commented that he was born in Lake County and that he loved serving residents. He mentioned that there was a new online series on the County website, Facebook page, YouTube page, and LakeFrontTV called “Board Shorts” with Kirby Smith, explaining that it contained short clips about things around Lake County that one might not know; additionally, he encouraged everyone to watch and share it, commenting that he wanted to provide information about Lake County to the people. He said that he was there for the residents, and he asked them to hire him again in 2024; furthermore, he relayed information about his availability to residents.

Senator Hays relayed additional information about the security of his office’s election system.

Mr. Smith stated that he was a zero tax person on the NLCHD, and that this tax was zero in 2021. He opined that hospitals deserved support, but that this should not be required under the law. He discussed the NLCHD millage, and he opined that the indigent were taken care of by federal law because there were non-profits; however, he opined that the hospitals were double dipping, and he said that he did not support corporate welfare. He mentioned that the NLCHD had about four meetings per year and that their next meeting was in June 2023, and he opined that everyone needed to attend.

Ms. Blancett thanked everyone, and she said that she had lived her life dedicated to helping others. She stated that she had been a defense investigator, and that it was her job to make sure that people’s lives were protected and that the Constitution was applied to everything, noting that this was what she intended to do.

Mr. Vail remarked that it was up to the people to do something to take care of their government, state and country. He stated that Republican Party-sponsored clubs were part of this, and that there were other republican-affiliated organizations that sponsored local chapters; furthermore, he encouraged everyone to be part of something.

Ms. Price thanked everyone for attending, and she mentioned the natural beauty of Lake County. She indicated that she could answer residents’ questions, and she reiterated interest in starting a club in north Lake County.

Mr. Sabatini encouraged everyone to join their email list and to visit his website. He also encouraged everyone to join the Lake County Republican Party, noting that their meeting was always the fourth Tuesday of the month at 7:00 p.m. in south City of Leesburg at the Plantation Manor.

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business to be brought to the attention of the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 12:20 p.m.

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KIRBY SMITH, chairman

ATTEST:

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GARY J COONEY, CLERK