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Politics

Candidates share vision, but not how to achieve it

Retaining and improving Safety Harbor's village atmosphere tops the list of all four.

By EILEEN SCHULTE, Times Staff Writer
Published January 19, 2008

SAFETY HARBOR - Safety Harbor City Hall has been on a leadership roller coaster.

From 2004 and 2007, six elected officials and two city managers resigned for various reasons.

But even though two former city commissioners left because of the time commitment the part-time job demands, four candidates say they have the stamina and want the job.

Commissioner Nadine Spring Nickeson and Mark Taylor are running for Seat 3. Nina Bandoni and Robin Fornino are seeking Seat 4. The election is Jan. 29, the same day as Florida's presidential preference primary.

All say they want the same thing for their small city of about 17,000 on Old Tampa Bay: To nurture the neighborly village feel that enticed them to settle down and start families in Safety Harbor in the first place.

But they differ - sometimes only slightly - on how to do that and realize the future of Safety Harbor as defined in visioning sessions last year.

At a candidate forum this week and in recent interviews with the Times, the hopefuls said they want to preserve the city's beautiful oak tree canopy, save its green space, enhance the recycling program and attract more businesses to the downtown core.

***

Fornino accused the current commission of ignoring citizens' wishes on several critical issues.

They include a current proposal to consider selling a small piece of the Safety Harbor Regional Museum property and approving a now-defunct plan to build offices just north of Mullet Creek.

"I do not believe the City Commission represents the voters or the citizens at large," she told the Times.

Taylor, who said he wants to be the citizens' voice on the commission, agreed.

The residents "aren't being listened to," he said.

For example, Taylor said he has spoken to most homeowners on Marshall Street, and he said they told him they do not want their street paved, a project the commission approved last year.

The city could have saved thousands of dollars if officials had simply acquiesced to residents, he said.

Nickeson told the Times that the decisions she has made over the past decade on the commission are "not simple, often."

Several years ago, Nickeson voted for the controversial Harbour Pointe development and is happy with the result. She believes that even though many residents strongly opposed the project, it has been a boon for the city.

"I like it," she said, adding that it is a quality project. "Even on Sunday morning customers park all the way to the 300 block. Everyone is open for breakfast now. We had a Starbucks before Dunedin."

When it comes to big changes to the city, Bandoni said she would work with the Safety Harbor Chamber of Commerce and the Downtown Business Council "to encourage an appropriate mix of businesses downtown, work on design guidelines so that we can ensure that any buildings that are built or remodeled are in keeping with the character and the vision of our community."

Fornino attended a city visioning session and said she remembers that residents had very specific requests including planting more trees and "ensuring that buildings don't overwhelm pre-existing buildings."

She said she wants to make sure the city gives great weight to their recommendations.

Taylor said he just wants the numerous empty buildings in the downtown core filled because if they sit vacant, the perception is the downtown community is not vibrant and active.

"We need to bring some businesses here to get people here to spend dollars here," he said.

***

At the close of Tuesday night's candidates' forum, Taylor had some harsh words for his opponent.

"Two things I can guarantee you, stone-cold locks, I will not do when I'm elected commissioner," he said. "I will not spend taxpayer money on out-of-state trips that would be of no benefit to the city. Secondly, I will not exploit the elderly at the expense of the library nor at the expense of the museum."

The next day, Taylor told the Times he was referring to Nickeson's former neighbor, the late Marie Mecca, who died in August 2005.

In March 2006, Mecca's relatives questioned her decision to exclude them from her will and give 40 percent of her estate to Nickeson and her husband. The city's share went from half of the estate to 20 percent.

The estate later was settled without a legal challenge from the relatives or the city. The Nickesons received more than $84,000.

Taylor's public charge is a serious one. Exploiting the elderly is a crime.

"Clearly, he was suggesting I had acted improperly," Nickeson told the Times. "I would never engage in those types of behaviors. The facts do not support the statement he made, and I found it telling and disappointing that he chose to attack me in his closing statement rather than focus on the issues facing the city."

She added that in her nine years on the commission, she has attended only three out-of-state meetings and that the city budgets for such travel.

Eileen Schulte can be reached at schulte@sptimes.com or (727) 445-4153.

Fast facts:

Safety Harbor City Commission

The job: City commissioners supervise the city manager, make land-use decisions and approve the annual city budget. They are paid $400 a month plus $250 for expenses. Commissioners serve three-year terms; the commissioner elected to Seat 3 will serve a one-year term.

The candidates:

Seat 3

Nadine Spring Nickeson, 57

Occupation: Safety Harbor city commissioner.

Family: Married to Dr. Robert W. Nickeson Jr.; two adult sons.

Education: Bachelor's degree from University of Houston and master's degree from University of Texas School of Public Health.

Community involvement: City commissioner from 1997 to 2006, and 2007-2008. Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority, Pinellas Planning Council, Pinellas County Redevelopment Task Force steering committee, Kiwanis Club (secretary), Safety Harbor Garden Club, Habitat for Humanity, YWCA of Tampa Bay (board of trustees), Pinellas Assembly, Florida Municipal Government Advanced Institute for Elected Municipal Officials, Safety Harbor Elementary School Advisory Council, and GFWC Clearwater Junior Woman's Club.

Hobby: Volunteering.

Quote: "I'm passionate about my community. I would not be here if not for two resignations (of commissioners). ...We have had too much change in Safety Harbor on the administrative level. I'm just there to guide it."

Mark Taylor, 41

Occupation: Pharmacist

Family: Divorced; father of two boys, age 8 and 6.

Education: Bachelor's degree in pharmacy from University of Kentucky

Community involvement: Safety Harbor Little League (coach), Countryside Jr. Cougars (board of directors), USTA Florida.

Hobby: Coaching kids.

Quote: "I provide a better long-term vision, fresher ideas and a little bit of a perspective that may not have been had by the commission in years past."

Seat 4

Nina Bandoni, 48

Occupation: President of Turnstone Properties, a home-based company that develops residential and commercial real estate projects around Tampa Bay and in Traverse City, Mich. It also consults with nonprofit organizations and helps them with their real estate needs.

Family: Husband of 16 years Rock Bandoni and a young daughter.

Education: Bachelor's degree in business management from Eckerd College.

Community involvement: Safety Harbor Family Center, Big Brothers, Big Sisters, Hillsborough County Housing Steering Committee, Junior League of St. Petersburg, and volunteered as a mortgage mentor-budget buddy for the Community Service Foundation

Hobbies: Competitive figure skating, reading, art, cooking and gardening

Quote: "I felt I would be a very good fit to take the city to the next level from visioning to fruition."

Robin Fornino, 49

Occupation: Financial advisor for UBS Financial Services in Clearwater.

Family: Husband Robert Cangemi and a 9-year-old son.

Education: Bachelor's and master's degree from City University of New York, College of Staten Island.

Hobbies: Walking her dogs, gardening, hiking.

Community involvement: Leadership Pinellas, Top of the Bay Zonta women's club, Women in Philanthropy and the Pinellas Woman's Philanthropic Circle (secretary)

Quote: "You have to remember why people moved here in the first place and not disturb it."

[Last modified January 18, 2008, 22:30:15]