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Wins Elusive For Democrats In District 6

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By MIKE SALINERO

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 10, 2008

TAMPA - Kevin Beckner likes to say that he is the best choice to win the District 6 County Commission seat because his two Democratic opponents in the primary have together lost nine elections.

Beckner, a certified financial planner, has never lost an election - he's never run in one. But he's doing far better in raising campaign money than his more experienced Democratic opponents, political activist Denise Layne and Tampa businessman Joe Redner.

The three face off in the Aug. 26 Democratic primary for the District 6 County Commission seat, an at-large position elected in a countywide vote. The winner will go on to the November general election to face the winner of the two-person Republican primary.

Beckner, the first Democrat to announce in the race, has raised $105,469. Layne has raised $8,595, including a loan of $900 to her campaign. Redner has not raised any money but has loaned his campaign $10,000.

It's somewhat unusual for an incumbent county commissioner to draw three opponents from the opposing party, but the Democrats think incumbent Brian Blair is vulnerable. Beckner said he's talked to Republicans who say they won't vote for Blair if he wins his primary race against Don Kruse.

"They mentioned his incompetence," Beckner said. "Those are not my words; that's what people in the community are saying."

The three Democrats stress similar themes: environmental protection, growth management, better transportation. They all say a grow-at-any-cost mentality among local politicians is to blame for traffic jams, overcrowded schools and vanishing wetlands.

"The quality of life is eroding," Layne said. "The anger is out there."

Layne Touts Experience

Layne, who has lost two previous bids for the county commission, is the most politically experienced of the three Democrats. She became actively involved in 1999 as a lobbyist in Tallahassee for the Sierra Club. She has continued to lobby in Tallahassee every year since on issues such as land use, wetlands protection and water conservation.

Layne's lobbying during the past two years played a key role in defeating legislative efforts to roll back local wetlands protections. She co-founded a local growth management group called Coalition 4 Smart Growth and serves as land-use liaison for the Lutz Civic Association.

Layne said the commission needs her experience because the county faces three important decisions in the coming four years: renewal of Hillsborough's membership in Tampa Bay Water, a wholesale water supplier; development of a seven-county transportation plan by the Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority; and a visioning process that will guide land-use decisions for 50 years.

"I'm on very familiar terms with these issues," Layne said. "So it's a matter of taking this knowledge and taking a leadership role."

Lane said she favors impact fee exception areas to encourage building where roads, water and sewer are already in place. She would limit large changes to comprehensive growth plans to once every two years instead of every year. She opposes expanding the urban service boundary, the area within which builders can tap into county services such as water and sewer.

"We still have 20 years of growth left in our urban service area," Layne said. "That's double what the state mandates."

Redner: Controversial Businessman

This is Joe Redner's eighth run for public office. So far he's 0 for 7. But the outspoken Tampa businessman said people are ready for his straight-talking, no-nonsense approach to leadership.

"When I go to a forum, I know I walk away with the audience," Redner said. "They tell me it's because I have the best ideas and approaches."

Redner said people have misconceptions about him because he owns an exotic dance club, the Mons Venus. If they can get past that, Redner said, they will realize he is a shrewd, self-made millionaire who can bring his business acumen to county government.

"I think not taking advantage of my expertise because of Mons Venus is irrational," Redner said. "Whether there are enough irrational people in Hillsborough County to keep me from being elected is something that's not going to make me do anything or keep me from doing anything."

Redner's adult life has been nothing if not tumultuous. He says he's been arrested dozens of times while testing local ordinances against nude dancing. As a younger man, Redner said, he abused alcohol and drugs and fathered five children with four women, two of whom he married.

Then Redner turned his life around, freeing himself from addiction and becoming a vegan who exercises every day at his gym, Xtreme Fitness in South Tampa.

"Not only was my business doing well, but I discovered I had an intellect," Redner said in explaining the transformation. "My self-esteem started growing."

Redner favors making developers donate land for schools, a practice that is fairly common now.

"The county commission's job is to make sure there are enough schools to educate the kids that development brings and that those schools are accessible to kids," Redner said.

Local governments have failed to protect wetlands and watersheds, Redner said, citing the Cypress Creek Town Center being built in south Pasco County. The mall will destroy 54 acres of wetlands in the Hillsborough River watershed. The answer, he says, is more controls on sprawling growth and higher impact fees on developers.

"One of the things I've proposed is that impact fees accurately reflect the cost of a house," he said. "I don't know why somebody who is already here has to pay the impact of people who come here from up North."

Beckner Says Youth Is Advantage

At 37, Kevin Beckner is the youngest of the commission candidates. He said his youth and inexperience are an advantage over the more politically experienced Layne and Redner. He sells himself as the new kid on the block with fresh ideas and savvy business skills.

"I have not been fighting the commission all these years," he said. "You have to be able to work with your colleagues once you're elected. I think it would be a challenge for Layne or Redner to get anything accomplished."

Beckner said the current commission lacks a vision for where the county should go in coming decades. He said some commissioners fail to focus on quality of life issues, such as livable neighborhoods and affordable housing.

"We rank at the bottom for where young professionals want to work and play," he said. "We have to be able to attract jobs here."

Beckner said he would work with developers to find ways to make housing more affordable, including redeveloping rundown areas. He would offer credits to developers to encourage denser, less costly housing and incentives for green development.

Transportation improvements also should be a priority, Beckner said. He favors investing in mass transit, including a "fully integrated and dependable busing system."

"Because of the investment needed, it makes sense to address it on a regional basis," Beckner said. "We need to have an interconnection with our neighboring counties."

Beckner was born in Michigan City, Ind., 60 miles west of Chicago, and served on the Bloomington, Ind., police force for three and a half years. He once owned a music business, providing DJs for parties and other events.

"I want to make Hillsborough County one of the places where people want to work, live and play," he said. "From there, we talk about how we get to that."

The District 6 commission seat is a four-year term and pays $91,995 annually.

Reporter Mike Salinero can be reached at (813) 259-8303 or msalinero@tampatrib.com.

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