Central Florida Politics’ Lakeland City Elections Endorsements:
- (Mayor) Jim Verplanck
- (At Large) Howard Wiggs
- (Northwest) Phillip Walker
- (Southwest) Michael Dunn
Jim Verplanck is my choice for Mayor
Mr. Verplanck’s commitment to excellence in Lakeland City Government is what has earned him Central Florida Politics endorsement. Jim Verplanck has worked tirelessly for economic development of Lakeland and surrounding areas, which in turn brings jobs at a much-needed time. I believe that Jim Verplanck has the leadership skills needed to carry Lakeland to the next level. This is why Jim Verplanck has won the endorsement of Central Florida Politics.
Howard Wiggs gets nod for At Large Seat 1
Howard Wiggs is committed to serve. This is visible not only from his current elected position but in other areas as well. Howard has either chaired or served on Lakeland Vision, Polk Senior Games, Viste, Ridge League of Cities, Kiwanis, and Rotary just to name a few. I believe that Howard’s commitment to community will assist him in the next term to bring more jobs to the area. Howard Wiggs is a life long resident of Central Florida. Howard Wiggs has earned the endorsement of Central Florida Politics based on his commitment to community!
Phillip Walker earns endorsement
Phillip’s life story, his commitment to small business, his selfless service to the community, and his love of family are reasons why we have chosen to endorse Phillip’s campaign. As a past police officer he understand the need for public safety. I believe the election of Phillip Walker will be a great step forward for the city of Lakeland.
Michel Dunn Gets Endorsement over Don Selvage
The decision to support Michael Dunn was fairly easy. Don Selvage has mentioned several times that his role in Human Resources brings jobs to the area. Anyone that has ever been terminated knows that it also ends jobs as well. Currently we are researching a story linking Don Selvage and his SHR Human Resources LLC to terminations at Summit Holdings where 55 Lakeland Residents just lost their jobs. (More on that later) Both Michael Dunn and Don Selvage are veterans of the United States Marine Corps as am I. My choice for the election is Michael Dunn. Mike is a lifelong resident of Lakeland. Mike’s focus on Lakeland Electric is yet another great reason to support him. I have not heard another candidate speak about ways to fix Lakeland Electric. Mike is already giving suggestions to fix problems. This shows that he has put in the time and research to find amicable solutions to the problems. With this Mike Dunn has earned my endorsement.
October 21st, 2009 at 2:27 pm
Can you clarify during what time period Summitt Holdings was a client of SHR Human Resources LLC? It is my understanding that they have never been a client. If that is indeed the case, then it would be impossible for Don Selvage or his company to have any involvement in the layoffs mentioned as your main reason for not supporting Don. Please provide the documentation supporting the claim that SHR Human Resources LLC had anything to do with the decision of Summit Holdings to lay off fifty-five Lakeland residents. If your claim above is factual, it would certainly influence my decision on who to vote for in this particular race.
October 21st, 2009 at 4:21 pm
The problem lies with getting information from Summit. They will not confirm nor deny that they were/are a client of SHR Human Resources. Currently working on gathering that information. This was not the only reason for not supporting Don. I feel that Mike Dunn would be a better choice. Given his life experience (e.g. running small business, community involvement, public safety endorsements). Don has been in a very structured environment of the USMC. Things out here do not function the way they did in the corps. Don called me this afternoon. When asked about Summit Holdings he stated that they never have been a client of his.
October 21st, 2009 at 7:14 pm
Jim Verplanck? How is he going to carry Lakeland to the next level? He has already been in a leadership role to do this and has done nothing. As chairman of the municipal airport board, he lost 1.7 million dollars of tax payers money in this year alone! Elliott Dorsch is the right choice as he has no agendas and seems to have great business and common sense skills.
October 21st, 2009 at 7:19 pm
From my own personal research I don’t believe Elliot has enough experience. Jim does. Elliot does not serve on any government boards, nor has any experience in dealing with the public with the exception of his family business. Sorry if my endorsement rubbed you the wrong way. However I stand by it and by Mr. Verplanck!
October 21st, 2009 at 10:39 pm
I heard Eliott speak at my neighborhood association and I was very impressed by his background. He grew up in Tampa and then graduated from Princeton University. He spent a significant amount of time oversees studying foreign relations and cultures. He is fluent in 4 languages including French, Spanish, Chinese, and English of course. WHile you say that he only has business experience and no experience with dealing with the public, I think this is a good thing not a bad thing. And don’t businesses deal with the public on a day to day basis as well? I am tired of the good old boys in Lakeland. I know for certain that we don’t need Fields or Verplanck. Dorsch may be ouy guy to finally break up the stale, old man politicis in Lakeland!!!
October 21st, 2009 at 10:54 pm
To Central Florida Politics: Your asinine misunderstanding of Elliott Dorsch begins with the incorrect spelling of his name, which leads me to believe you have likely made an endorsement without researching Elliott’s platform. Let us begin by discussing these so called “leadership skills” that Jim Verplanck possesses. As Mr. Hart mentioned, these “skills” brought in a poorly managed airport that will cost our tax payers 1.7 million dollars this year alone, and many more millions over the years. These “skills” caused Jim Verplanck and Gow Fields to hand the financial reigns of our citizens over to Lakeland Electric, who continue to unfairly pound our bills month after month with no explanation for rising costs. These “skills” paid almost 100,000 dollars to a private company to design a new logo for downtown Lakeland that could have been made if you handed a paint brush to a gorilla. If these are the leadership skills that your publication supports, then your publication lacks credibility.
Last year, Forbes magazine rated the city of Lakeland in the top 10 cities for potential business growth. As start up companies attempt to create their businesses in Lakeland, they are limited to the contractors approved by Verplanck and his good ol’ boy network. As mayor, Elliott will lower these barriers of entry that Verplanck has established. Furthermore, Elliott and his brothers have managed to make their businesses profitable entities, even in time of recession. His understanding of managing a large scale budget is what this city needs right now. Verplanck is the candidate you should vote for if you want your hard earned money to continue being thrown down the drain. If you want responsible, dynamic leadership, then vote for Elliott Dorsch on November 3rd. I suggest you reconsider your endorsement of Jim Verplanck, and perhaps take some time to research Elliott’s platform. It can be conveniently found at http://elliottdorsch.com/Issues.html. I am almost certain you haven’t been there.
October 21st, 2009 at 11:26 pm
I just found out that Dorsch has numerous endorsements including the polk county builders association.
October 22nd, 2009 at 12:40 am
No where in the article did I mention Elliot. So your statement that I misspelled his name is asinine. Maybe in a few years when Elliot has become more of a staple of the community I would reconsider. However at this time I stand by my choice. Jim Verplanck for Mayor of Lakeland!
October 22nd, 2009 at 9:40 am
You just mentioned Elliott. And once again misspelled his name. Could you talk about how you feel about Linder Regional Airport, Lakeland Electric, and the Downtown Logo? Or do you not know?
October 22nd, 2009 at 10:34 am
Oh, and Elliott will donating his salary to the city.
October 22nd, 2009 at 12:09 pm
I think it’s safe to say that all the members of the Elliot Dorsh fan club have chimed in. Show me one thing that the guy has done where he has not received a tax break for his charity work. Has he served in any capacity on any community boards?
I believe that Elliot needs to be more active in the community before running for a post like Mayor. Look at Buddy Fletcher. He is a perfect example of someone that was very active in the community before he was elected.
PS Damien, if I am spelling his name wrong it is not intentional. However you giving me a hard time over the spelling while spelling it wrong yourself is just plain stupid!
October 22nd, 2009 at 2:03 pm
Buddy Fletcher is a good example of someone that was very active before he was elected and a very good example of poor leadership as Mayor. Buddy Fletcher is great at going to events, kissing babies, and cutting ribbons, indeed he is our “Buddy”, but he has never held anyone accountable or made good business decisions with tax payers money. I know for certain that Verplanck is Buddy’s, “buddy”, thus Verplanck will not be getting my vote. Verplanck is just like Buddy – involved in the community maybe but a terrible leader that doesn’t make the right decisions with our money. I don’t know if I agree with Damien on Dorsch but I do know for ceratin JIM VERPLANCK IS NOT THE RIGHT CHOICE! He is old and should stick to sitting on community boards and cutting ribbons with his “buddy” Mayor Fletcher. I am still undecided who will get my vote between Fields and Dorsch but VERPLACK IS A BAD CHOICE!
October 30th, 2009 at 5:15 pm
Thanks for getting me the info I needed. I will be voting for Mister Dorsch for mayor of Lakeland. Jeez, you stand for what we don’t want, same ol’ government. At least Mr. Dorsch will not know all the “connections” coming in. New faces, conservative ideas, that is what I want.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:37 pm
guess one only has to go to city hall a total of 3 times to figure it all out. Good Luck with that vote.
November 2nd, 2009 at 8:37 pm
Yes, the kids fan club are out in force. Elliot has never run anything. He is attempting to buy an election, that is as bad as spending 30 years in government and not doing anything substantial.
I will be voting for Gow Fields for Mayor. I like Jim and I like Elliot, but CFP is right, Elliot has not had enough experience running a business, let alone a city. Jim has had alot of experience, but is part of the problem. Gow Fields has run his own business for years, knows how the city works, and has offered substantive solutions.
Keep up the great work on this site, and to the Elliot fan club, when you comment 40 times, it doesn’t look genuine. He seems like a nice guy, but I don’t care about him donating his salary to the city, I care about putting my city in the hands of an experienced reformer.
November 3rd, 2009 at 12:58 am
Buddy and Jim are to BUDDY BUDDY,pun intended. I wouldn’t vote for Jim Verplunk(on purpose) for Dog Catcher,after he made a statement,that I will give ALL MY TIME to being Mayor this time! What time? Think about it! This guy is a piece of work. Verplunk will more than likely win it,because of the backing he’s getting! These type of election’s are decided behind closed door’s! It’s the GOOD OLE BOY’S ELECTION,not who’s the most qualified for the job! I think a lot more personal back ground checking is in order for all of them! Remember what you did with the hussein,aka Barry election! He becomes president,and he’s not even an AMERICAN! Seems like John would have checked into that lack of a birth certificate before he snowed you people!
November 3rd, 2009 at 9:34 am
Welcome to politics not as usual! I vote for Elliot1 I want to give him a fair chance, He has the education, he is beginning and he needs to start somewhere, here in Lakeland, is a good place to start and show his talent. He is young, has new ideas, this is
America, I believe in people!
November 3rd, 2009 at 5:06 pm
How can you above put possible blame on someone (Don Selvage) for something that you can’t get information on. Doesn’t that mean that you’ve made an uninformed decision and then you’ve pushed it forward into the public presenting it and trying to plant a seed of doubt and rot with your “we are currently researching”? I could research too but that doesn’t mean what I would be saying is true and it’s unfair and biased of you to present it without the information to back it up. You should have left it out. And are you telling me that someone who was in the Marines stayed in Lakeland all his life (Dunn)? Don may have lived in a structured way in the Corps (so did Dunn according to you) but he’s also very fair, intelligent and honest. It’s also not like he got out of the Corps yesterday either, he’s lived life as a “civilian” long enough to know how unstructured it is and he has been able to learn from the way things work and don’t work in other towns, cities and countries. I would see that as an asset – something fresh to be brought in.