Fort Lauderdale Commissioner Teel Draws First Challenger !

     Her name is Inger Garcia.
 
    
And she is the first competitor to jump into the race against current District I City Commissioner Christine Teel. At least one other challenger,former Police Chief Bruce Roberts, is expected to follow Garcia’s lead soon.

                                      

    
Garcia is best known on the Galt Ocean Mile, a string of High-Rise condominiums that make up a large voting block in District I. She’s had a standing column about condo law in the The Fort Lauderdale City News, a splashy monthly alternative newspaper that has been known to hit hard and rile feathers, and has a very large distribution in the City. 

     I interviewed Garcia on her 46th birthday, and found her quite effervescent and effusive in her remarks about her candidacy.
 
     Here are some examples:

……..  So Ingrid, why did you decide to run for District I Commissioner?

          I want to help Fort Lauderdale … make a difference…. I’ve spent my whole career helping people, and now I want to fight for the rights of the people! …. This is a job I want!”
      
……..  And what makes you think you can beat the incumbent? 

         ” [she jokes] , my campaign manager hasn’t told me yet! …. but really, lots of people are unhappy with the incumbent. I’ll listen to the people!

……..  Can you give me some examples of how Teel doesn’t listen to the people?

           “She didn’t listen to them when they told her to protect the golf courses from development, she doesn’t listen to them when they tell her to stop the planes from flying over their heads. She [has the wrong ideas] about naming parks.  And she’s not focusing on making Fort Lauderdale green/organic and protected for the families. 

……..  So how will you approach the job differently?

         “First off, I will have an open door policy. I will tell my constituents to come to my house, knock on the door. I want to balance the budget, and pay some City employees a more realistic salary.

……..  Are there any specific employees you are talking about?

         “Well, lets just say that the City Manager is going to have to be able to explain his high salary to the citizens. If they think he deserves it, fine. 

……..  Anything else you want to say to your prospective voters?

        ” Just that I’ve spent the last 20 years helping people achieve their goals. Now I’m ready to help the citizens as a Commissioner”


     So the race is on in District I. Things should began to get very interesting from here on in !
    

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