MEET ERIC | Eric Mock For Apopka

"A Voice of Reason"

As the campaign has moved forward, I get asked questions of how I’d implement the my campaign platform issues.

In protecting the city reserve funds… these are funds that took years to enact within the city council. Commissioner Banks was lead the charge to get this created and past. The intent was to have a serious rainy day fund. The question, what is serious ? Is it a one time purchase that isn’t in the budget ? Or is it something that causes large business interruption ? Oh, say like covid, where most business comes to a halt ? Or a very distractive hurricane ? My belief it was for the most serious issues. If and when those questions would come to a vote, I’d weigh each item carefully and vote no unless this was a serious, large business interruption situation.

Providing quarterly developer updates….. As I’ve stated before, I believe there are many that would like to hear what progress has been made on items that the council has voted and approved. I’d request to the City Manager the time on the agenda to allow for a 5-7 minute update of a development. Each quarter, there would be another development that can provide update progress. If for some reason the developer was not able to provide information, I’d be happy to share with the council the update.

Ensure critical infrastructure is up-to-date for future growth and support the collaboration between City, County and State to improve transportation…. I’ve included both of these due to the fact that many times they are closely tied together. As development progresses, critical infrastructure is more than roads. Not only are roads critical, but also public works. Utilities, personnel and equipment are necessary to provide critical services to all residents within our city. When developments are approved, the city council will know when to ensure necessary funds are in place to supplement county and state funds. I’m not sure all residents know that when a developer creates a development, they pay what are called impact fees. Those are large dollar amounts and many believe they cover all costs or should cover all costs of roads and necessary utilities infrastructure. The impact fees do not cover all costs. Many times impact fees are designated by state statue to be used only for certain items in certain locations. Example, impact fees are paying for the widening of Kelly Park around the 429 interchange. The impact fees to not cover the cost to completely widen all of Kelly Park. As commissioner, I will ensure that when developments come upper a vote to proceed, I will know and share who, how much and how far impact fees will cover and what balance is left for either the city or the county to cover and when they will or can budget to cover the remainder of the improvement. I also want to know who will be leading the project as point person for the city. I’m aware there are several departments that are involved, but I’d like to know who the point person is to oversee the progress of each project.

Move Apopka forward in a positive direction…. I’ve spoken often about the tone and discourse of the city council over the last couple of years. Questions are good. Having information is good. Having discourse that is not respectful or dignified, is not productive nor healthy. Words matter! More then just residents are watching. I will bring a voice or reason back to the council with respect and dignity to all city staff and residents of our city.

Increase transparency in government operations, Advocate for ethical practices and accountability…. I’ve included both of these together. The city council meetings are held twice a month and are on video for playback to anyone who is not able to attend. The city has two papers, one online and one online and in print. Both provide a rundown of the council meetings. As I’ve read both, they basically provide written replay of the video. There are ways to communicate, but many times it seems that residents do not engage into the opportunities currently available. I’d like to see UCF students perform a study on how Apopka could improve communication to its residents. Trust is critical for continued engagement. Effective communication provides clarity. As Apopka grows, having a trusted place to get critical information, provides more then just social media postings and video blogging. In my business life, I spent most of my time working to solve or resolve issues slowing or progress. My focus was not on who to blame. It focused on our process. Was it broken? was there a gap? Failing to improve our process only caused additional failures, associate dissatisfaction, lack of production, increased risk and increased compliance issues. My focus will be on processes and how can we improve those. My last thought as I’ve expanded on my campaign platform, is to ensure that what I do as a commissioner, I do legally and not increase the city’s exposure to litigation. If my above ideas are not ethically or legal, then I will not proceed. I will focus on root cause analysis to understand before I suggest a path forward. I want Apopka to progress, to improve, to create and continue our city’s bright future making this the best place for our quality of life.

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