Terry Hotard enters race for mayor against Sheila DeCiccio
The former mayor says he will challenge the current vice mayor in the March election
Oct. 13, 2023
By Beth Kassab
Former Mayor Terry Hotard said he will run against Vice Mayor Sheila DeCiccio for the city’s top elected post, driven to run by controversy over utility boxes that have appeared in the city right-of-way outside the Palmer Avenue property owned by Marc and Sharon Hagle, who are constructing the largest home in Winter Park.
“It’s a quality of life issue,” said Hotard, who served as mayor in the early 2000’s and worked for the company that became Duke Energy before he served as assistant director of Winter Park’s electric utility. “Once those boxes are put in place they will never move.”
He said the green boxes, which house electrical equipment, can fade over time and attract graffiti. He said the city’s own code mandates the boxes be on private property rather than on city-owned land.
A spokeswoman for the city cited a different portion of the code, but said alternatives are being considered for the transformer boxes near the Hagle house, which is expected to be 40,000-square-feet on the shore of Lake Osceola.
“The city is researching a more aesthetically pleasing alternative for these public utility boxes including traffic signal cabinets,” said Clarissa Howard.
Hotard said he enjoyed his time as a city commissioner in the 1990s and then as mayor in the early 2000’s before he went on to serve as assistant director of the city’s electric utility.
“I feel like I have a little bit of gas left in the tank and I have something to offer,” he said of the upcoming race.
DeCiccio announced her candidacy earlier this month and highlighted infrastructure needs as one of her top priorities.
“We’ve made great headway, but there’s still a lot to be done to maintain the heart and charm of the city,” she said shortly after that announcement. “Hurricane Ian laid bare a lot of our problems such as pipes that need maintenance, brick streets that need attention. Infrastructure is the No. 1 issue and we can’t kick this can down the road anymore.”
DeCiccio, an attorney who has lived in Winter Park for more than 40 years, said water basin studies ordered by the current commission along with more bike paths and extending sidewalks will be key for the city’s future.
She had to resign from her commission seat in order to run for mayor. Her resignation will take effect in April 2024, at the time she would take over as mayor if elected to that job. As a result, there is also a contest to fill Seat 2 on the five-seat dais.
There are two challengers for Seat 2: attorney Jason Johnson and Stockton Reeves, who leads the Center for Public Safety, which helps local governments build new police and fire stations.
Reeves said one of his key issues is advocating for police officers and firefighters.
“That’s one of the things that kind of pushed me to do this,” he said, noting he wants to reassess the policies at the police department and fire department to make sure that officers can donate sick time or other benefits to each other in times of need.
Reeves, who has served on a number of city boards and is now vice chairman of the Civil Service Board, grew up in Winter Park and has run for commission before, but was not elected. In 2018, he ran as a Republican against Democrat Anna Eskamani for the Florida House and lost.
In 2020, Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a public reprimand of Reeves after the Ethics Commission ruled that he violated financial disclosure requirements. Reeves said the matter was “the most technical of a technicality.”
Jason Johnson, who works in the Winter Park office of the Byrd Campbell law firm, is a first-time candidate who has lived in Winter Park for 13 years with his wife, Lori, and their daughter. He is chairman of the city’s Board of Adjustments, which rules on homeowner applications for building variances.
“My north star in all of this is to preserve the charm of Winter Park, but I’m also a rule-of-law guy and I recognize that landowners have rights and due process exists,” he told the Voice earlier this month.
Official qualifying for both the mayoral contest and Seat 2 does not end until mid-December.
Questions or comments? Email the editor at WinterParkVoiceEditor@gmail.com
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By: Beth Kassab
No biography available at this time
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No one ever left the Commission and later got voted back on the Commission.
No one.
No one ever ran for City Commission and lost, ran again and won.
No one.
So that means the only viable candidates who have filed are Johnson and DeCiccio.
If the residents want anyone else in those seats they better get busy talking them into filing.
And soon.
VERY soon.
Sorry. You are not correct. Dr. Currie, a professor at Rollins, lost his first city commission election in the early 1980s then ran again and won. We need new leadership in Winter Park as spending is beginning to get out of control.
Peter you misunderstood what “history lesson” said. He said “no one has ever left the commission and been reelected.” That doesn’t mean that people have lost an election and not won on second try. ie Beth Dillaha. That is two different situations.
Actually, you misread the first comment. They also said, “No one ever ran for City Commission and lost, ran again and won.”
You did not read far enough into the first comment.
Orange County didn’t start “counting” Winter Park’s ballots until 2000.
It’s a new world now, Pete.
Government is expensive, but it beats the alternative.
That several are interested in running for office signals a vibrant city. But is a mayoral run in 2024 really the surest, most rapid and most direct way to address “utility boxes” in front of the Hagle house? Is this run really about “utility boxes”? Is it a code enforcement issue? Need more info. Has Mr. Hotard raised this issue before the utility advisory board and the city commission? Those steps seem a more direct route to action.
I’d be happy to communicate with you you regards this and other concerns
Sincerely
Terryhotard@icloud.com
Terry has proven himself to be an effective leader who cares deeply about the Winter Park community. During his previous tenure as mayor in the early 2000s, he demonstrated strong capabilities in listening to citizens, taking decisive action, and maintaining the city’s core values while also pursuing a thoughtful vision for its future. Terry’s past performance and personal qualities make him well-suited to once again serve the city he loves so much. His prior experience as mayor gives him valuable insights into the workings of the local government and the needs of the community. Terry’s dedication, open-mindedness, and forward-thinking nature are assets that will allow him to build on the progress made in recent years while also guiding the city through new challenges ahead. Overall, Terry has shown himself to be the kind of reasonable, compassionate, and competent leader that the City of Winter Park deserves. He has a proven track record of success in this role, and there is every reason to believe he will continue to move the community in a positive direction if elected mayor once again.
Terry Hotard? He seems a nice person, but his reign has been long over and who runs for office to improve utility boxes? I thought he lived at the beach.
Stockton Reeves? I’m not against someone running for office after losing a race – Dillaha did that and won – but his past behavior of strong-arming female political aspirants is very troubling. And wrong.
With that said, residents are always better off when given a choice and politicians are held accountable by presenting their case.
Good luck to DeCiccio and Johnson.
A concern for Utility boxes in front of the largest house in Winter Park?! There are utility boxes along all streets, in front of houses, in CITY rights-of-way. It seems appropriate to me that the house that will consume the most power should have one close by!
C. Skogsberg…
I’d be happy to meet with you and provide you the big picture if you’re interested?
Sincerely TH
Terryhotard@icloud.com
The City is recommending Rollins FAR (floor area ratio) increase from 45% to 60% next year and to 70% in 2025.
Should the City Commission agree to this it will put enormous pressure on future City Commissions to increase FAR everywhere else in Winter Park as well.
No one will accept the notion that Rollins is a special class of property owner that can do as they please with their property, but all the other property owners in town cannot.
Fred Rogers would roll over in his grave if he saw what an inconsiderate neighbor Rollins has become to the residents of Winter Park.
@C. Skogsberg, I totally agree. “Utility Boxes” is a pretty lame reason to run and seems directed to one particular property owner. May of us also have utility boxes in the City right-of-way in our front yards.
Really? These utility boxes can make a nice bench when you need to tighten the laces on your athletic shoes. As a rationale for a mayoral run, this is low level and overblown. The new 5G towers over which we have no real say are far more objectionable. And our brick streets and potholes can take your car out of alignment in 5 seconds or less. Can you say smokescreen?
I don’t know if Mr. Hotard’s intent was to present his platform as a problem he has with a specific individual who is getting a power box outside of their property, but it sounds like a personal conflict with a specific person and this concerns me as it has no place in the city political arena (that is a gripe toward a specific person).