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Jim Burch (Cape Coral District 1)

Return to the concept of citizen input then council input and recommendations and then City Manager implementation.

Story Created: Aug 23, 2007 at 3:41 PM EST

Story Updated: Aug 30, 2007 at 11:20 AM EST

Q: What is your living arrangement (spouse and kids)?
A: Wife-Janet Three children-Zachary 23, Kelsey 20, Joseph 14.
 
Q: How long have you lived in the area that you wish to represent?
A: 14 years.

Q: For candidates running for election: Why are you running for this office.  For candidates running for re-election: Why do you deserve re-election?
A: Cape Coral has been very good to me and my family over these 14 years. I have been a leader in the business community for many years and I would like to lend my experience and expertise to restore the trust in government and allow the citizens the proper respect and attention that they deserve. 

I think that trust has eroded, in part, because our revenue collection and subsequent spending has been based upon greed and not need. By that I mean that we have collected revenue based upon a mill rate that produced far more revenues than we needed during the high property appraisal years of 2003 through 2006. That resulted in a 127% increase in our general fund from 2003 to 2007 in the amount of $71,082,261 to $161,469,301. I question the need for that increase when the population has only increased by 31% during that period.

I have been watching and attending council meetings for a long period of time and I am disturbed and disappointed at the apparent “blind faith” that is given the City Manager and his staff recommendations. I have also been disappointed that during this election year, it appears that council has voted and then changed their mind on votes in short order. We saw that demonstrated on the proposed utility assessment increase from $75 to $85, ordinance 80-07 dealing with the “Golf Club”, the $110 million dollar bond referendum for the Public Safety Building (PSB), and the ordinance calling for contractors to pledge that they would not hire undocumented workers, to name a few. The current council (one of my opponents included as an appointed member) does not seem to have a direction or a sense of what the City of Cape Coral and it’s citizens really need or want.

Q: What is the single most important issue in this election?
A: Restoring trust and enabling the citizens as participants in their City’s future. Quarterly “Town hall type meetings” are a start for council members within their district. Scrutinizing the City Manager and the recommendations that come from his administration may have prevented many of the judgemental errors, cost overruns, inflated budgets and reversals of council decisions that seem to occur on a weekly basis at Council meetings.
 
Q: What sets you apart from other candidates?
A: I am set apart from others in that there are some clear directions that can be taken and more forethought and true conviction can help avoid the embarrassment and appearance of arrogance that these decisions and then reversals of these decisions create. I believe it is clear, that on the issues above, the following positions are valid and are not shared (by initial actions) of the current council member and have not been offered by the other District #1 opponents: 
1. Utility assessment rising from $75 to $85 and ultimately $110 was not a good idea from the beginning. Nothing changed that warranted the initial vote to impose the assessment and it looks like public discord in an election season helped change the vote. Unfortunately, prior to the “change of heart”, notices had already been sent to the citizens that the rate increase had been implemented and that was a $62,000 expenditure that we will not recoup.
2. Ordinance 80-07 concerning the “Golf Club parcel was an “enabling” ordinance that should never have been introduced. It allowed for development that would severely restrict the possibility of maintaining the “Golf Club” parcel as the historic heart of southeast Cape Coral . It should remain a Championship Golf Venue. The ordinance was withdrawn at the council meeting scheduled to hear the second public hearing. The council should be unified in signaling the current ownership that special consideration for development unfavorable to the long range vision of this City will not be entertained. Our council has remained on the sidelines except for this ordinance and, as a result of this ordinance, my opponent has been a facilitator in encouraging the wrong type of development and that is an affront to those living along the course that look out over the deteriorating lands once known as a championship golf course.
3. The $110 million dollar Public Safety Building bond referendum was an intolerable and ill-prepared “experiment” to, either guage public reaction or push an unnecessary and inadequately planned complex on the citizens of this City. Either scenario was supported by a costly public relation campaign prior to the resounding vote of rejection (78% no). We do not need a new holding area for offenders at this time. Let the offenders that are arrested continue to be transported to Lee County facilities by the Sheriff’s Department. We pay for these services. The budget now calls for a $35 million dollar allotment for the next attempt at a Public Safety Building . The numbers being discussed; however, are approximately $50 million dollars. This subject should be put to rest for this year: Cape Coral cannot afford a Public Safety Building at this time.

4. I am not sure what made a vote for the undocumented worker pledge so difficult that two votes were required. I would say you are either for it or against it and that probably wouldn’t change from one week to the next. Apparently, I would be wrong based upon the vote and the reversal thereof the next week. 

5. Ad Valorem taxes are not the answer to future growth. Council should monitor the City manager recommendations of budgetary mill rates, impact fees and assessments far more closely. Council should have a workshop that would review zoning and planning and try to define areas (possibly in the open parts of Cape Coral, Northeast and Northwest, that would be conducive to establishing “enterprise zones” that would encourage compiling larger tracts of land for light industry, technology based and commercial ventures to balance our revenue with a commercial tax base as opposed to Ad Valorem taxes only.

All of the above examples could have been avoided by asking these simple questions:
Does this proposal make sense?
Is it practical?
Can we pay for it?
Is it the right thing to do?

I am sure that the budgets of the past five years have not been managed or monitored as well as they could have been. I believe that the extremely high revenues generated by the over inflated appraisals and consequent mill rate adjustments were not put to their best use and were not monitored by council as they should have. 

I began a Surveying business (Burch Surveying and Mapping, Inc.) in my house in Cape Coral with two employees. Eight years later, we were a company of twenty employees with gross revenues in excess of $1,000,000 per year. Quality service and sound fiscal decisions were responsible for that growth. As a result of that success, I was solicited for acquisition by a major engineering firm of over 400 employees. I made the decision to accept that merger and currently direct significantly larger business operations. I think the abilities I have shown, fiscal responsibility and sound decision-making, in these endeavors will serve the City of Cape Coral well. I also pledge that when issues come before me at the Council meetings, I will ask as many questions as necessary and require as much back-up information as needed in order to make an informed decision about that particular issue. If the issue is not clear, I will ask for a continuance in order to compile and gather the information necessary to make an informed decision. I will not vote for any issue just to move it along and remove from the Agenda Pages.

Thursday, Oct 22 at 9:22 AM David Beiter wrote ...

I like Obama don't like it when your not ID by a party you see the parties believe in different things. Today I received a letter from my union and you were indorsed along with McClain, Bertolini and McGrail. As you know the unions lean on a 85 degree to the left. My question do you agree with the union?

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Monday, Oct 5 at 12:47 PM Anonymous wrote ...

This guy is the man! Lets not let his expertise pass us by.

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