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Politics

Candidates vary widely on the issues

Lara Bradburn and Cecil Davis both passionately care for the city. That's where their similarity ends.

By Jonathan Abel
Published October 27, 2006

BROOKSVILLE - It's hard to find two people in Brooksville who disagree on the issues more than Lara Bradburn and Cecil D. Davis IV, candidates for the Brooksville City Council.

Bradburn, 42, a former Hernando Today reporter, and Davis, 26, an industrial business owner, both agree that the city needs to lower its property tax rate, but they're at odds on almost everything else.

Ask Bradburn what the city needs to plot its future and she'll talk about improving the efficiency of the city's operations, fixing the existing physical infrastructure and improving the relationship between the city and the county.

Ask Davis the same question and he'll start talking about his plans to reshape the city with a $500-million power plant in south Brooksville, annexing more land into the city, and taking a tougher stance with the county.

Bradburn has suggested implementing Robert's Rules of Order at City Council meetings; Davis joked about a 5-on-5 boxing match between the City Council and County Commission.

On Nov. 7, voters in Brooksville get to decide which candidate better represents them.

Three current council members are leaving this year because of term limits, but this is the only contested race. Candidates Richard E. Lewis and Joe Bernardini were both uncontested and will join the council in December.

Bradburn is a detail-oriented woman who has strong opinions on how to fix the city.

For 16 years, she worked for Hernando Today covering local government. She also has served on a number of Brooksville committees, including the one that came up with the city's downtown revitalization plan in 1998.

She's not impressed with the current council.

"The expansion of the city limits is their sole priority," she said. "What they lack is a plan to do that properly."

A self-described fiscal conservative, Bradburn has experience working on legislation and frequently mentions her working relationship with state Rep. Dave Russell, who is leaving his House seat and running for the County Commission.

Brooksville has been so focused on growing that it has forgotten about its infrastructure, Bradburn says. She insists that the water pipes underneath downtown Brooksville don't provide adequate water pressure for the Fire Department. "If the courthouse or City Hall catch fire," according to Bradburn, "they will burn down. We can't put it out."

Brooksville fire Chief Tim Mossgrove denied that, saying the water pressure was sufficient in that part of the city.

How does she feel about Mayor Joseph E. Johnston III's proposal to put a 100-acre industrial park in south Brooksville?

Bradburn says the city already has a revitalization plan and everyone should focus on that before striking out anew.

Cecil Davis, on the other hand, wants a rapid and dramatic change in the face of the city. The mayor's plan doesn't go far enough, he says.

Davis, a Star Trek groupie, Civil War re-enactor, evangelical minister, member of the Army Reserve and business owner, wants the city to build a cogeneration power plant that would provide steam and heat for local industry, while producing electricity as a byproduct.

The electricity could be sold to power companies for large profits, according to his plan.

"We've got to look outside of the box and stop looking to taxpayers to foot the bill," Davis said.

The power plant would allow the city to lower its millage rate on property owners dramatically, though it's unclear if the project is feasible. Bradburn doubted that the $500-million loan needed to build the plant would be a good choice for the city's taxpayers.

In his Brooksville office, wearing a T-shirt with the Confederate flag on it and the words "I'd rather be historically accurate ... than politically correct," Davis told a reporter that the inspiration to run for office came from watching the movie Head of State, a comedy about the first black candidate to be elected president of the United States.

Davis is fond of saying that only a poor man knows how to govern poor people. "For common solutions to common problems," he said, "you've got to look to a common man."

One of the few places where the two candidates agree is in their support for the Brooksville Fire Department. Both say they are adamantly opposed to any plans to consolidate it with the other fire companies in the county.

On the status of keeping the Police Department, Bradburn said an efficiency study would have to be conducted on the department and its $1.8-million budget.

"Citizens love the response time," she said. "But how efficient are we in fighting crime?"

Davis said he would not consider contracting with the Hernando Sheriff's Office for police protection, but he wants the Sheriff's Office to do more patrols within the city limits because city taxpayers are also county residents.

That brings up a final, significant difference between Bradburn and Davis: their approach toward city-county relations.

Bradburn promises improved cooperation and touts her ties with Dave Russell, should he be elected to the County Commission.

Davis, on the other hand, said the City Council should be insulted by the way it has been treated by the County Commission.

"We could be a lot nastier about it if we wanted to be," Davis said. "I don't care about their feelings. I don't care about their emotions. I don't pull any punches."

Jonathan Abel can be reached at jabel@sptimes.com or (352) 754-6114.

[Last modified October 27, 2006, 06:49:38]