Each week through the General Election, The Breeze will ask the candidates for Cape Coral City Council an issue-related question. In the interest of fairness, each candidate is limited to the same amount of space, about 100 words, for their response.<\/p>\n
Cape Coral City Council races are non-partisan races. Council members qualify in their respective districts but are elected at-large. This means all registered city voters may cast a ballot in each race regardless of where they live and the party to which they are affiliated, if any. This year\u2019s General Election, on Nov. 3, features four Cape Coral City Council races: Mayor and the seats for District 1, 4 and 6.<\/p>\n
The candidates below are running for the mayor\u2019s seat on the Cape Coral City Council:<\/p>\n
Question of the Week: Each week through the General Election, The Breeze will ask the candidates for Cape Coral City Council an issue-related question. In the interest of fairness, each candidate is limited to the same amount of space, about 100 words, for their response.<\/p>\n
Cape Coral City Council races are non-partisan races. Council members qualify in their respective districts but are elected at-large. This means all registered city voters may cast a ballot in each race regardless of where they live and the party to which they are affiliated, if any. This year\u2019s General Election, on Nov. 3, features four Cape Coral City Council races: Mayor and the seats for District 1, 4 and 6.<\/p>\n
The candidates below are running for the mayor\u2019s seat on the Cape Coral City Council:<\/p>\n
Question of the Week: Should employee overtime be addressed? Why or why not?<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0 Lisa Cohen-Adkinson<\/p>\n
Yes, but fix\u00a0the\u00a0cause, not just\u00a0the\u00a0number.\u00a0Overtime is a symptom\u00a0of\u00a0understaffing or scheduling inefficiencies, not a reason to shortchange public safety or utility crews. I will not support blanket cuts that put our residents at risk. Following Eisenhower\u2019s model\u00a0of\u00a0proactive management, we must address\u00a0the\u00a0root problem by right-sizing department staffing where city growth demands it. We need a comprehensive departmental review to determine exactly why overtime is being generated. That is smart budgeting, not defunding. Fixing\u00a0the\u00a0underlying structure creates stable local jobs and ensures reliable city services.<\/p>\n
VoteLisa4Mayor.com<\/a><\/p>\n \u2022\u00a0 Richard Erickson<\/p>\n Yes, employee overtime should be addressed through a fresh audit\u00a0of\u00a0hours and costs by department, not blanket cuts. Cape Coral already ran a citywide overtime audit years ago that flagged high hours in police, fire, and utilities, and recent budgets have added positions specifically to reduce overtime. That shows\u00a0the\u00a0issue is real and ongoing. Chronic overtime\u00a0often signals understaffing, but\u00a0the\u00a0math matters. Overtime only adds\u00a0the\u00a0extra half time pay plus taxes. A new hire brings full salary, benefits, and pension costs. If\u00a0the\u00a0extra work is temporary or seasonal, overtime is cheaper. If it\u2019s steady, hiring usually wins long-term. Audit first,\u00a0then decide case by case.<\/p>\n ericksonformayor.com<\/a><\/p>\n \u2022\u00a0 Lisa Cohen-Adkinson<\/p>\n If Amendment 3 passes, we must prioritize needs over wants. Cape Coral needs to get back to the basics: Police, Fire, Roads, infrastructure, stormwater and maintaining what we already own.\u00a0 But that doesn\u2019t mean saying no to everything else, it means thinking outside the box.\u00a0 I call them \u201cVanity Projects.\u201d Want Grandma\u2019s name on a bench?\u00a0 Sell the naming rights for 5, 10, or 20 years.\u00a0 Want to name a section of City Hall or sponsor a community amenity?\u00a0 Let\u2019s create those opportunities.\u00a0 I\u2019m already working with the state and neighboring council members on successful funding strategies.\u00a0 We already have a game plan in the works for Cape Coral.<\/p>\n