2006 Know Your Candidates

Party distinction isn't so obvious in this race

County Commission: District 3

By JANET ZINK, Times Staff Writer
Published October 25, 2006

The District 3 County Commission race pits Kevin White, a Democrat and member of the Tampa City Council since 2003, against Ken Anthony, a Republican with a 20-year history of community service.

Anthony, an insurance agent, now serves on the board of the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority and the board of the Tampa Organization of Black Affairs. He also is a board member of the Black Heritage Festival.

Anthony also has been a board member of the Florida Aquarium, the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce and Hillsborough Community College. He also has been a Junior Achievement mentor.

Although Anthony is a Republican, he's not afraid of impact fees for developers, traditionally the domain of Democrats. He supports keeping the county's school impact fee at $2,000 and monitoring a plan to boost it to $4,000, though some commissioners have suggested rolling it back in light of lower-than-expected school enrollment figures.

"Has anyone been by a school lately where you haven't seen a village of portables?" he asked. Clearly, he said, the school system has unmet construction needs.

Still, he said, impact fees aren't the only way to address growth. Anthony said he supports smart growth, directing development to areas where the infrastructure exists to support it.

Anthony supports beefing up the county's down payment assistance program to help people buy homes.

White said public safety and transportation would be his top priorities.

"Light rail is going to be a major, major component in moving our county to the next level," he said.

He is less convinced than Anthony that increases to the school impact fee are necessary.

"I'm trying to find out where some of the previous money has gone," White said, noting that he has been told that the school system has plenty of money to build schools but for some reason hasn't built them.

White said one of his greatest achievement on the City Council was being part of the effort that created special taxing districts that focus property tax revenue on redevelopment. In east Tampa, such a taxing district is paying for a police headquarters, upgrades to Lake Avenue and an environmental law enforcement team.

He voted against an increase in fees to pay for drainage improvements, saying not enough projects were planned for his district. He also was among four City Council members who voted for a rollback in the Tampa's property tax rate, something that hadn't been done in 20 years.

 the candidates

Democrat

Kevin White, 41, is director of corporate security for Rooms to Go. He previously was a Tampa police officer and finance director and salesman at bay area car dealerships. He grew up in Tampa and earned bachelor's degrees in criminal justice from Tampa College and business administration from National-Louis University. He recently received a master's degree in organizational management from the University of Phoenix. His wife is a nurse. They have two children. Assets: Home, cars, savings accounts, investments, retirement accounts. Liabilities: Mortgage, car loans, credit card debt. Source of income: Salaries. Web site: kevinwhite2006.com.

Republican

Ken Anthony, 55, is a State Farm insurance agent. He was born in Tampa and graduated from Middleton High School. He earned a degree in social science from Chapman College in California and was a medic in the Air Force from 1971 to 1978. He and his wife, Yolanda, have been married for 23 years. They have three children and three grandchildren. Assets: Home, rental property, office building. Liabilities: Mortgages. Source of income: Salaries. Web site: ken4countycommissiond3.com.

 THE JOB

County commissioner, District 3

Commissioners approve a the budget, run the Environmental Protection Commission, approve local ordinances and decide zoning issues. District 3 roughly includes central and east Tampa, the University of South Florida area and a portion of central Hillsborough County that includes Clair Mel, Progress Village and Palm River (see map, Page 17). The commissioner serves a four-year term and earns $91,996 annually.

[Last modified November 3, 2006, 14:42:48]