In the race to fill two seats on the Palm Coast City Council, voters in Palm Coast have one incumbent and three political newcomers to choose from.
In the District 4 race, Bill Lewis survived a bout with shingles and three challengers in the Aug. 26 primary election to make it into a runoff with Republican challenger Steven Nobile. Lewis did very little campaigning leading up to the primary and still managed to get 29 percent of the votes — seven points behind Nobile.
Lewis was first appointed to the City Council in 2008 to fill the seat held by Alan Peterson, who was elected to the Flagler County Board of County Commissioners. Lewis ran unopposed in 2009.
Lewis got off to a slow start this campaign season because of illness, but it appears he is making up for lost time as Election Day gets closer. He's standing behind his vote to support a new City Hall for Palm Coast, something that many have called a waste of money. He's also tried to increase support for the arts in the city despite the economic downturn making it difficult to find funding for arts-related endeavors.
Nobile, a Palm Coast businessman, said he also supports a new, permanent home for city offices. But, he said, the city is not in a good enough economic state to build. It's a moot point now, however, since the current City Council, including Lewis, voted in favor of the project. Ground is expected to be broken Oct. 29 at the construction site at the city's Town Center.
Nobile has also been a vocal critic of the red light cameras. He proposes having the Flagler County Sheriff's Office expand the traffic division and lengthen yellow warning lights at the problem intersections. Nobile also wants to crack down on distracted driving.
In the race for the District 2 seat, Republican Anne-Marie Shaffer and Heidi Shipley, an independent, were the top vote-getters in a three-way race back in August, with six points separating the two candidates. They will replace David Ferguson, who chose not to run for the seat. Ferguson was appointed to the City Council in 2012 to fill the term of Frank Meeker, who ran and won a seat on the County Commission.
Shaffer has said the current city government is full of waste and unaccountability, pointing to the City Hall project. She said the council and city management "are deaf to the people who live in Palm Coast." Shaffer promises to challenge government spending, remove the red light cameras and work to pay down utility debt and lower water rates.
Shipley wants to work at bringing more businesses to Palm Coast by streamlining the permitting process. She also wants to help grow the small businesses that are currently operating in town. Shipley also wants to bring more activities for the younger families that moved to what was once a retirement community. Shipley said she wants the city to take a closer look at how Palm Coast does business by asking, "Are we using Palm Coast contractors when possible?"
Both Shipley and Shaffer are political newcomers. Neither has previously ran for office.