Observer’s City Commission Candidate Forum Is Coming Up

By Mike Phillips, Editor

The seven candidates for two seats on the Fernandina Beach City Commission have been invited to a forum on Oct. 14. You are invited, as well, to the City Council chamber at City Hall.

This election year, we are asking the candidates to engage the most difficult issues that the city faces in its near future: completion of the riverfront stabilization project, dealing with deteriorating recreational facilities, upgrading a downtown that hasn’t been significantly upgraded since 1978, and a city hall building that is, literally, crumbling. Tough stuff like that, including how to pay for it.

And then we’re asking them to grade city services, explain how they’d get the city marina up to a break-even operation, how they would get along with the city manager and why they think they are more qualified than their opponents. We’ve phrased the questions to make wiggle room difficult. And we’ve given the candidates time to think about their answers.

The forum will be one hour, 6 pm to 7 pm, in city council chambers, and it will be streamed for real-time viewing and recorded for catch-up viewing.

As we say back in Kentucky, where I last lived, y’all come!