My name is Dan Clermont and I am an enthusiastic candidate for the Sarasota City Commission, District 3.

My wife Yvette and I have 5 grown children and absolutely love Sarasota. I’m running for City Commission because District 3 deserves a Commissioner who will finally address the long-standing issues in our neighborhoods, and most importantly, a Commissioner that will not take our economic challenges lying down. Our working families depend on our local economy persevering and I am up to the challenge.

Once safe, we need leaders that want to bring excitement and energy back to our great city. The dour cloud of obstruction over City Hall has no place in a community struggling to recover. One day, hopefully soon, this pandemic will be behind us and we need to be ready. In doing so we’ll be taking this downturn head-on and in doing so we will leave our community and residents well positioned for continued prosperity.

Three areas to to start:

One. We have to support and address key issues with our cultural assets so that on the other side of this we still recognize what we’ve always been. Whether it’s the Sarasota Orchestra, Selby Gardens or the next generation of the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, we need to be proactive in finding solutions that work, so they don’t go the way of Mote Marine or the Players Theater — right out of town. The arts and cultural institutions are one of the largest employers in the City, not to mention the ancillary small businesses their patrons support. They make us unique to every other beachside town in Florida and we must do better by them.

Two. Turn past consultants and their studies into action. If you don’t put a plan into action it just collects dust. Common sense capital improvements and infrastructure projects will improve traffic congestion and transportation but the time to act is now. We have the County’s Legacy Trail soon coming right through District 3 and we need to make sure each neighborhood has connectivity and access.

Three. We have got to upgrade our parks. From Arlington to Payne to Bobby Jones we need to upgrade and repair these public parks to maximize use for our residents.

Sure, we have to tighten our belts to find the money to weather this storm and pay for some of these improvements, but I am not running to keep gathering clouds and let our community assets further degrade. I’m running to improve our quality of life, foster activity, excitement and sense of community again. I’m running to discuss what we CAN do, not what we can’t.

Looking back I want Sarasota to be seen as a shining example of fiscal responsibility and economic activity in the face of hardship and challenge. A community that protected its environment and assets and one that aggressively helped our businesses and citizens persevere and rebound from the great pandemic of 2020. In sum, I hope to earn your vote for Sarasota City Commission, District 3.

Dan Clermont is a candidate for Sarasota City Commission, District 3.