The United States in 1965 began sending troops to fight against the North Vietnamese and by 1969 young men—boys really—were, based on a lottery system, being drafted straight out of high school, even college. At the time no one under the age of 21 could vote in the democracy they were being sent to die to defend.  But then in March of 1971 the Constitution of the United States of America was amended to allow 18-year-olds the right to vote.  I was a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Tennessee and as quickly as a voter registration line formed in the Student Center I was in it.

“Old enough to fight! Old enough to vote!” was the rallying cry that got me my first voter card, and as I raised my hand swearing to uphold the Constitution that day I knew this change, this 26^thAmendment, had passed not because we on line in that safe place had earned it or maybe even deserved it, but they did. And it is to them, those thousands of young others slogging through the mud of Vietnam, that each time I go to vote I remember to pray a quiet thank you.

Here in the City of Sarasota, our City Commission elections are held not in November with it’s 75-percent turnout but every two years in March. These March elections are uninspiring, nearly invisible. They cost $129,000, and even in a City packed with folks—Baby Boomers—who are survivors of that time when voting cost so much, turnout is rarely above 20 percent, closer to 15 percent.

So, why hold the voting in March? Good question.

Sarasota has for some time been held in thrall to a particular crowd who have managed like junkyard cats hunkered over a piece of stinky fish to fight any change that might undermine their system and that especially includes moving the elections. Savings of a million dollars over 12 years and guaranteed increased turnout falls flat against brilliant arguments such “it’s too hot for candidates to campaign then” or “no one lives here in November.” And then there’s my favorite, ”The Commission elections will be lost at the bottom of the ballot.” Hmmm really?  In November 2012 there were 10 not-all-that exciting City Charter amendments presented at the end of a four-page ballot. Of the 70 percent of city voters who voted that November, 85 percent of them managed to vote all the way to the very last issue on the ballot. No lie, it’s on the public record.

Those who have the power want to keep their power. Some folks may be okay with that, however around 2,000 City voters signed petitions past year to revise the City Charter weren’t. One of the revisions, and by far the easiest sell door–to-door amongst the four changes being suggested, was moving the vote. It's common sense. We were raised voting in November. It’s in the Constitution, just like that other Amendment that gave me and you and the rest of us Boomers the right and responsibility to vote when we were 18.

We used to have the courage to fight for democracy. What happened? I urge you to vote this March for candidates who are not afraid to take a stand for commonsense and progress. Ask the question “Will you support moving the vote?” And then vote for that person who will. 

SRQ Daily Columnist Diana Hamilton, after living 35 years in Sarasota, labels herself a pragmatic optimist with radical humorist tendencies and a new found resistance to ice cream.

I recently took a strong stance against taxpayers footing the bill for one commissioner’s legal fees in the face of her Sunshine Law violation.

Let me clarify: this issue is NOT personal. This is NOT a personal attack on Susan Chapman. It is a question of good public policy, transparency and responsible use of taxpayer funds.

I subscribe fully to the notion that we the people should enjoy full transparency when it comes to seeing our policy-makers deliberate. I believe in Florida’s Sunshine Law, one of the strongest safeguards of transparency in the nation.

The open meetings law is relatively simple and followed by cities and counties all throughout Florida. It applies to meetings, formal and informal, attended by more than one policy-maker from the same deliberative board, at which reasonably foreseeable discussion will occur about an issue that may also appear on that board’s agenda. Those meetings must be publicly noticed, and minutes of that discussion should be taken. That’s all.

We all know the facts by now: in October 2013, two city commissioners met with downtown merchants to discuss the issue of homelessness. I applaud the downtown merchants for trying to be proactive and responsible partners with the community to address this issue. Still, the presence of two city commissioners and several high-level city staffers at this meeting means it is covered by the Sunshine Law.

One commissioner at this October 2013 meeting, Suzanne Atwell, moved quickly to bring closure to questions raised by her attendance: she settled and returned to governing. The other commissioner at the meeting, Susan Chapman, argues to this day and at taxpayer expense that she did nothing wrong. 

I believe the City Commission was correct when it decided back in March 2014 to stop putting good money after bad, and to stop funding Ms. Chapman’s defense. Ms. Chapman has had ample opportunity to settle this case as her colleague chose to. But I strongly disagree with the Commission’s more recent decision, led by my opponent Stan Zimmerman, to start paying those legal costs again. In fact, I question whether my opponent is engaging in some political “back-scratching” by making taxpayers foot the cost of Chapman’s legal fees in this case.

Stan Zimmerman needed Susan Chapman’s support to receive a temporary appointment to the commission. The voters don’t a get chance to decide for themselves who they wanted in District 3 until March 10. Yet, within days of his appointment in November, Stan Zimmerman immediately orchestrated the reauthorization of taxpayer funding for the Chapman legal defense.

This just doesn’t pass the smell test. In fact, it’s outrageous. The cost of these legal fees is already above $108,000, and Stan Zimmerman has indicated he would authorize public expenditures of up to $1 million with little discomfort for Ms. Chapman’s legal defense.

Not only is it so terribly wasteful of the city treasury, it is also an extreme distraction.  We need to be having substantive discussions on matters like economic improvements that include redevelopment, bringing more and better jobs to Sarasota and how to make our neighborhoods safer.   

Matt Wooddall is a candidate for Sarasota City Commission District 3

The Sarasota County Comprehensive Plan guides the county’s decision-making and the wise investments of resources in the unincorporated areas of the county. Sarasota County is beginning an effort to update this important, overarching Plan to reflect changes to our community characteristics and demographics , and, just as importantly, preparing for  how we want to develop and grow. 

The county’s Comprehensive Plan covers much more than just development and growth, however. Planning for a thriving community is just as much about the future of our libraries, educational systems and infrastructure. Each priority fuels the others, and no community can call itself a success unless it carefully considers how each theme can ultimately serve all of its citizens.

Over the coming years, southwest Florida anticipates a continuing influx of new residents and seasonal visitors who will bring with them the need for new services and demand for commercial and residential development. Planning for this growth is a vital part of ensuring a good quality of life for those living and working in Sarasota County.

Because one of Sarasota County’s primary goals is to plan for positive development and redevelopment, February will mark the start of a major update of the Sarasota County Comprehensive Plan. The updates will include:

• Incorporating current demographic data
• Clarifying the plan’s language and making it more understandable
• Illustrating connections between the various Plan priorities
• Increasing attention to the areas inside the “Urban Service Boundary” generally west of Interstate 75
• Encouraging  “infill” and “redevelopment” where appropriate
• Supporting and encouraging safe and healthy neighborhoods

Over the course of the next 18 months, Sarasota County Planning and Development Services staff will facilitate a series of  “cycles” that will address individual themes that focus on the many topics that make up the Sarasota County Comprehensive Plan. Each “cycle” will last approximately eight to nine weeks and your participation can be targeted to aspects of your community you care most about. The update effort kicks off on Feb. 11 with a workshop to introduce the plan and how you input will help shape our future.

After each “cycle” closes, staff from Sarasota County will evaluate the plan’s goals, policies and objectives for that cycle, combine all the public feedback and present it to the Sarasota County Commission and Planning Commission. 

At the end of the process in 2016, staff will use all the feedback gathered to draft a restructured Comprehensive Plan that will convey the community’s desires for our future and how those goals will be accomplished in an easier to understand format.

We need your voices and want to hear your vision for Sarasota County, so we’re asking you to join the effort, starting with the initial kick-off event in February. If you can’t attend a workshop or the kick-off event, there will be many different ways and opportunities to participate. The county will be providing virtual and distance participation via a website that will illustrate each cycle of the update and include a survey section, public meeting announcements, an events calendar and documents pertaining to the update process.  

Thomas Harmer is the Sarasota County Administrator

In 1982, the late scholar James Q. Wilson published "The Broken Windows Theory," that he conceived as a new way to controlling crime. Wilson believed  that order in a neighborhood could be maintained by the prosecution of minor violations which would curtail more severe crime later. This broken windows policing, critics say, leads to police violence against black and brown men. Because of the deaths of an unarmed 18-year-old black male gunned down in Ferguson, Mo., an unarmed black man that died in a police chokehold in Staten Island, N.Y. when he resisted arrest, and a 12-year-old black boy armed with a toy gun who was arbitrarily shot to death by the police  in Cleveland, Ohio, many Americans have finally become aware that they live in a violent culture, at least in the treatment of black and brown men by the police.

What is the cause of this rampant police brutality against men of color? Incidents so uncivilized that the criticism seems justified when one considers that trivial violations led to the violence. Michael Brown was shot to death in Ferguson, Mo. for ignoring a police officer’s command to stop walking in the middle of the street. Eric Gardner died on a Staten Island, N.Y. street protesting his arrest by the police for selling cigarettes without a permit - a misdemeanor.  However, the problem of police violence against black men will not be resolved simply by ignoring the enforcement of petty offenses. There is no acceptable justification for this violent police conduct, although many would like to believe just the opposite, finding mitigating flaws in police rules and procedures. A common target of criticism is the so-called “broken windows” policing policies.

The  futility of that approach, not too long ago, was demonstrated by New York police after a mentally ill man shot and killed two of their fellow officers. During the funeral services for the slain officers, some policemen disrespected the Mayor by turning their backs during his remarks. The officers felt the mayor had shown too much sympathy to protesters of police violence. Mayor Bill de Blasio, the father of a bi-racial son and daughter, once said he, like many other parents of black and brown children, was concerned for the safety of his son should he be confronted by the police.

According to the New York Times, there has been a precipitous decline in the issuance of summonses by the police for public drinking, public urination and parking violations, as well as drug arrests. Nonetheless, there has been no demonstration of a reduction in the conflict between the police and black men.

Residents of urban neighborhoods will not likely feel closer to the police when their quality of life deteriorates because of police recalcitrance. The broken windows strategy works better when there already is a good relationship between the police and the community.

The police are public servants. Citizens with wealth and status in society will not tolerate abusive police behavior. The police understand that, so their conduct is respectful and professional. A major deviation from that standard will result in their dismissal.

The real objective of police reform is to establish that same standard of police conduct in low-income neighborhoods. Community policing is designed to establish an almost collegial relationship between the citizens and the police. The addition of body cameras has been shown to reduce excessive police force.

Americans must now be willing to adopt imaginative programs to end the police victimization of black and brown men.  

Ed James II is the host of Black Almanac

Don’t miss today’s first annual Bradenton Area Riverwalk Regatta featuring Powerboat Superleague Racing.   The event brings an inviting, exciting and engaging roar to the shores of Bradenton and Palmetto with an “All Free” family festival of world-class entertainment and performances guaranteed to delight and thrill audiences of all ages including: Hydrodrag jet ski, concerts, extreme pogo shows, BMX stunt performers, food festival, Kids Zone, Frisbee® dogs, 5K fun run and a fireworks spectacular from America’s “first family of fireworks,” Zambelli. The city’s newest festival originated through Bradenton’s sister-city relationship with Pittsburgh, PA and the world famous Pittsburgh Three Rivers Regatta, the country’s largest inland regatta and top venue on the powerboat racing circuit.  

Bradenton Area Riverwalk Regatta

Running fans,  grab your cowbells and head out the the Sarasota Music Half Marathon and cheer on the racers from the Ringling Bridge or even your driveway! No need to go elsewhere for running entertainment. Sarasota is riding the wave of engaging edurance sports popularity, with the debut of its own music half marathon- and Rockin' Bridge Run 4 Miler on February 8th. Billed as a Sarasota Signature Event, the race and course will start/finish at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall and is designed to involve the community, residents and support local non-profts by showcasing the talent, beauty and history of the city. 

Sarasota Music Half Marathon

Sarasota Opera recently announced its plans for the 2015-2016 fall and winter season, the most climactic in the company’s 56 year history. The season will feature the final two installments of the 28 year Verdi Cycle – The Battle of Legnano and Aida- in a grand spectacle of music, vocal prowess, awe-inspiring choruses, sumptuous scenery, and luxurious costumes. In addition, Sarasota Opera will present Beethoven’s only opera, Fidelio, and Mozart’s Così fan tutte. Sarasota Opera will host a “Verdi Festival” March 14 – 20, 2016, which will include performances of both Verdi operas, Aida and The Battle of Legnano, as well as two concerts dedicated to the music of Verdi. The 2016 season and Verdi Cycle will conclude with Sarasota Opera’s annual Verdi Concert on March 20, 2016. “Through the Verdi Cycle, our audience has discovered that Verdi is a composer worth knowing at almost every level of his development,” says Maestro Victor DeRenzi, artistic director and principal conductor. “All of his works deserve to be performed and they all work best when they are experienced live in a theater. We are proud to be the only company in the world to have performed all his works.”  

Sarasota Opera

Congratulations to the student team of Elizabeth Fox, Diana Han, John McDonald and Josh Newton from Ringling College of Art and Design who brought home a first place win in the 24th Walt Disney Imagineering Imaginations design competition. Their project, “The New Orleans Double Rail” is a symbol of hope for a city that’s greatest challenge is its location below sea level. The lower train uses modern-day projection technology to tell the story of the city of New Orleans by creating a magical and unforgettable sightseeing experience as the guests soar over the city aboard the suspended Double Rail train. Imaginations is a design competition created and sponsored by Walt Disney Imagineering with the purpose of seeking out and nurturing the next generation of diverse Imagineers. Started in 1992, the program has grown to include a separate version sponsored by the Hong Kong Disneyland® Resort. For this year’s Imaginations design competition, students from American universities and colleges were given the following challenge: Take what Disney does best today – from its world-class theme parks, resorts, cruise ships, and other entertainment venues that are globally highly popular with families - and apply it to transportation within a major city. 

Ringling College of Art and Design

Stu Gregory, co-founder of Des Champs, Gregory & Hayes, Inc. and longtime Goodwill supporter and community philanthropist, has donated a special monument in honor of veterans for Goodwill Manasota’s corporate headquarters and international training center in Bradenton. Adorned with the American flag, the monument holds an inscription that reads, “This flag is dedicated to the men and women who protect our liberties, and especially those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in defending our freedom.” “When I was thinking about an inscription for this monument, I thought about Goodwill’s Veterans Services Program. It gives back to the community in a big way – helping those who can’t find jobs because of disabilities or other barriers. The organization helps veterans returning from war to find employment,” said Gregory. “I wanted to honor that commitment while saying ‘thank you’ to our heroes. We can never say thank you enough, and that’s why we dedicated this monument, and the flag, to the Goodwill corporate campus.”   

Goodwill Manasota

The Sarasota Memorial Healthcare Foundation has granted The Suncoast Community Blood Bank in the amount of $75,000 towards the replacement cost of a blood irradiator. Suncoast Blood Bank who provides more than 70 percent of the areas blood supply to Sarasota Memorial Hospital (and other health centers) states that their singular purpose is to collect, test, process, match, store and distribute all the blood products required to serve our community. The Healthcare Foundation is thrilled to be able to continue its relationship with SCBB that began in 1999. Over the years The Healthcare Foundation has given well over $ 500,000 to SCBB. In this most recent grant The Foundation felt that the need directly spoke directly to its mission. “The technology provided by the Raycell MK2 X-Ray Blood Irradiator will make the patient experience that much better”, says CEO & Trustee Alex Quarles about the recent grant. Past grants include underwriting blood drives, plasma exchange equipment, lab equipment, blood drive supplies and various other technological and educational elements. 

Sarasota Memorial Healthcare Foundation, Inc