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WILL VAN SANTCommissioner Diane Rowden believes in hands-on government; challenger Phillip Johnson favors a less "intrusive" system.
The Democratic primary race in County Commission District 3, which pits incumbent Commissioner Diane Rowden against real estate agent and political novice Phillip Johnson, begs the question of whether county government is more the public's friend or foe.
Rowden thinks government can and should improve the community and the lives of residents. She is often viewed as the people's politician for her willingness to defend citizens' interests. Her sometimes combative stance toward developers and support for ordinances designed to shape growth in Hernando surpasses that of any sitting commissioner.
Johnson, one of several local candidates who attend Landmark Baptist Church in Brooksville, argues that private businesses could better handle many county services. He is wary of using the law as an instrument to regulate growth, is against increases in impact fees paid by developers and is critical of what he sees as the county's "intrusion" into private affairs.
The victor of the the Aug. 31 primary will face one of three Republicans - Mark Cattell, Art Dillman or Charles Gaskin - in the Nov. 2 general election. Nonpartisan candidate Steven Ashmore will also appear on the November ballot.
Johnson points to ordinances regulating the size and location of yard sale signs and outdoor storage sheds in residential areas as typical of a county government that has overstepped its bounds and violated residents' property rights. He cites county initiatives such as THE Bus, the public transportation system funded largely by state and federal grants, as a waste of taxpayer money. He believes the service, as well as certain functions of the Parks and Recreation and Public Works departments, should be privatized.
The real estate agent offers few specifics on how such a shift could be achieved and admits to a limited knowledge of how government works, but said the County Commission would benefit from his years of experience as a businessman. "I just want to be there for the people," Johnson said in explaining his candidacy.
Most of the $4,600 Johnson has spent on the campaign has been his own, according to recent Supervisor of Elections Office filings, with $3,063 going toward a qualifying fee he had to pay to stay on the ballot. Johnson did get a $500 contribution from developer Charles Sasser.
In April 2002, the County Commission passed an anti-nudity ordinance that had the passionate support of Landmark Baptist parishioners. Johnson was in the audience at the time of the vote and said, "If people want to dress down, dress nude, let them go to Pasco County."
Rowden was the lone commissioner to vote against the law. And although Johnson denies it, she feels her opponent's candidacy is payback for the stand she took.
Among the accomplishments Rowden points to while on the board is the passage early in her term of an ordinance that requires so-called "big box" retailers to build stores more pleasing to the eye. Under the law, long, flat roofs are prohibited, and distinctive architectural features are required. Parking lots must have pedestrian walkways and landscaped islands.
She also supported an ordinance that requires development projects to have more vegetation and encourages the use of drought-resistant species that need little water. In 2003, she spearheaded a law that requires commercial projects larger than 65,000 square feet to go through public hearings.
Rowden said she is also proud of helping put an end to the Economic Development Commission, a public/private partnership she viewed as a good-old boys' club, and replacing it with a county economic development department. She also touts the role she played in getting a skate park built in Spring Hill.
Rowden is sometimes faulted for being outspoken and for what some call grandstanding. She said those criticisms come primarily from political opponents and that the constituency that counts - the public - is solidly behind her. And, she said, they appreciate her sometimes blunt speech.
"Maybe I'm not politically correct as a politician," Rowden said, "but I'm very honest."
To those who say some county ordinances infringe on property rights, Rowden responds that they were created because other members of the community stepped forward and said there was a problem. Enacting such rules is sometimes called progress, she said.
If re-elected, Rowden promises to cast a stern and critical eye on developers and their plans and be a commissioner citizens can come to with their complaints, much as she has in her first term.
"I'm a public servant," Rowden said. "I feel like I have given more than 100 percent to the job."
According to Supervisor of Elections Office filings, Rowden has raised nearly $8,000 for her campaign. Most of it has come in the form of small, individual donations from residents of as little as $1. Before her election to the County Commission in 2000, Rowden served on the Hernando County School Board.
In 1993, Gov. Lawton Chiles removed her from the School Board for violating state open meetings laws. Five board members were indicted in the scandal.
Rowden, who ran for School Board as a reformer and led the campaign to switch from an elected to an appointed superintendent, has always maintained that the charges against her were politically motivated. Although she did make mistakes, she said, her intentions were good. "People who murder people get forgiven long before I have for talking on the telephone," she said.
Will Van Sant can be reached at 352 754-6127 or vansant@sptimes.com