Meet Winter Park City Commission Seat Four candidate Barbara Chandler

Why are you running for Winter Park City Commission Seat Four?

I am running for office because the Winter Park City Commission needs to focus more on what’s good for Winter Park families. We need to strike a better balance between commercial development and our quality of life. City Hall has lost its balance — and it’s hurting our families. I am running to reconnect City Hall with the families that it governs. 

What makes you the best candidate?

I am the only candidate in the race who has looked closely at the way City Hall works. I have proposed a specific set of solutions. Those solutions are in my platform at barbara4wp.com. I have created a detailed platform that identifies barriers to access and representation that are standing between our citizens and City Hall. Winter Park citizens need a commissioner who will stand up for all our neighborhoods.

If elected, what is your No. 1 priority?

Changing the way the city votes to give people a more direct voice at City Hall. We get better representation neighborhood by neighborhood when each of Winter Park’s five voting precincts can elect their own commissioner.

We need to open our city boards to all citizens. Right now, only the mayor can nominate Winter Park board members. Citizens win when all commissioners can nominate. 

City hall meetings should start at 6 p.m. when working people can attend.

The Winter Park Canopy project is taking shape in Martin Luther King Jr. Park. What’s the best way for the city to maintain a balance between the project and preserving the existing park space?

Preserving park space is extremely important. I have met with City Manager Randy Knight and others, and what I have learned is this project is a work in progress.

We need to make sure that the process and City Hall are open to citizen input. Once again, I refer to my platform at barbara4wp.com. I have proposed a new way for the city to do business that includes access for citizens at every level of decision making. If the city follows those suggestions, people in our neighborhoods will be much more a part of the decisions that are made. 

Another issue that has just come up is the closing off of Lyman Avenue. I will be speaking with people at City Hall about that issue. 

We have a specific proposal in our platform that recommends that people who are or will be affected by changes to their neighborhood should have a seat at the table with city staff when these conversations begin.

If that had happened with the library and now with the Lyman Avenue closing proposal, city staff would be more aware of citizens’ feelings from the beginning. And our citizens would have been better informed from the beginning about what the city was planning.

How can Winter Park help the traffic situation along major roads within the city?

Again, we address this issue in our platform at barbara4wp.com. I have met with people at City Hall, and we need to study the problem and meet with FDOT to coordinate traffic within the city. In our platform, there are also simple and inexpensive solutions that can help our neighborhoods with cut-through traffic.

I have also proposed that the city work directly with retail and medical centers to create and finance a shuttle to transport our neighbors — especially our young people and seniors who feel locked in to their neighborhoods by heavy traffic. The last time the city had a shuttle service it paid for tourists visiting the area.

This time, we need to focus on our citizens — not tourists — and ask our retail and medical centers to help pay the bill. 

How much priority would you put on undergrounding power lines over the next three years?

This is a very high priority. It’s a quality-of-life issue. When high winds shut down power to our neighborhoods, it has a major effect on our daily lives. 

Winter Park has held the line on the millage rate over the past several years. Should it be raised, lowered or remain the same? Why?

Compared to other cities in the United States, Winter Park has high property taxes. We need to learn to live within our budget and hold steady on the millage rate whenever possible.

What can the city do to bring more trail connectivity to Winter Park and make it a more bike-friendly community?

In my platform, I have made a specific proposal to increase green space that will be good for families in the long term. Families Come First is the core value of my campaign. We need to make sure use of city property is focused on that priority.

Winter Park is a well-established leader for arts and culture. What more can the city do to support the arts?

It can start with supporting its artists! Cities with the most vibrant art scenes make sure that there are places where artists can live and thrive. Whenever we think about developing a part of our city such as Orange Avenue, we need to think about whom we want living and working there and what it is we want to encourage. Big buildings, high-priced development, more restaurants and more class A office space is not necessarily all that Winter Park should be about. We can make room for everyday people and our artistic community. We should encourage that.