Issues

I believe Lake Worth should be a financially well-run city with a "Can do" attitude. Lake Worth has many advantages. It has a beautiful public beach. It has many scenic views along the water. It has a strong historic identity. We need to protect our positives and prevent these assets from being lost to poor financial management.

Lake Worth has a beautiful pool at the beach. This pool is currently not operating. The City could bring the pool into operation for roughly $500,000. Instead of doing this the City wants to spend almost $300,000 to get a recommendation of what to do. I recommend fixing the pool instead of spending the money on consultants.

The City needs to establish a clear schedule on street repairs. Often projects linger.

The City needs to promote itself as a Green Brand. Businesses and our local government should promote green practices. For instance, take-out food containers should be made of compostable materials that break down in the environment. This means cleaner storm drains and less damaging plastic in the ocean and Lake Worth Lagoon. A clean image without litter will attract more tourists to visit.

We need to encourage new businesses and keep the businesses we have. Lake Worth should be an easy place to do business. If someone wants to turn on electricity and water, they should not have to wait for a business license to do so.

The Golf Course is a great asset, but it could be managed to also work as a bird sanctuary and habitat for migratory birds. This has been done in other places. The first step is to add native vegetation and trees that provide habitat. The Golf Course could also have established wetlands that capture runoff to reduce pollution in the Lake Worth Lagoon.

The Beach Casino should encourage concessionaires to use environmentally friendly packaging. Environmentally damaging materials like polystyrene should be discouraged.

The Community Redevelopment Agency captures too much of the property tax revenue from downtown businesses yet is not permitted to contribute to payment of basic services like the library, sheriff and fire rescue. We need to consider redrawing the CRA district boundaries to increase funding for vital city services. Where the CRA does exist, it needs to focus on promoting green businesses, combating blight and creating needed affordable housing. New businesses that are funded by the CRA should operate in an environmentally friendly manner. New buildings should be installed with roof top solar and solar energy should be encouraged throughout the city. Permitting of solar products should be inexpensive, easy and fast.

Please vote for Drew A. Martin for Commissioner of Lake Worth Beach.

Political advertisement paid for and approved by Drew A. Martin for Mayor of Lake Worth.