commission terminated<\/a> the lease agreement last year.<\/p>\n\u201cHe knows I do my homework,\u201d Rodstrom said of Herbst\u2019s endorsement. \u201cHe knows that I\u2019ll be a financial watchdog.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Fort](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/tfl-l-ftl-homeless-vote-05.jpg\")
Fort Lauderdale Commissioner John Herbst is resigning two years into his four-year term. Two candidates are competing in the Nov. 3 election to replace him: Heather Moraitis and John Rodstrom III. (Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n
Rodstrom acknowledges that his parents have a long history in community service and public service, but says he\u2019s running on his own merit.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want to say I\u2019m trying to escape from their shadow,\u201d Rodstrom said. \u201cBut I\u2019m definitely trying to do this on my own.\u201d<\/p>\n
If elected, Rodstrom promises to follow Herbst\u2019s lead in asking the hard questions.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to be that voice,\u201d he said. \u201cI want to be that devil\u2019s advocate. I want to be that independent thinker.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moraitis shrugged off the fact that her opponent won Herbst\u2019s endorsement.<\/p>\n
\u201cI really don\u2019t need an endorsement honestly,\u201d she said. \u201cI have my own record. I\u2019ve done a lot for our community and when I knock on doors throughout the district people remember that. I\u2019m happy for John (Rodstrom) getting the endorsement. But I\u2019m going to stand on my own record.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moraitis was elected twice without opposition, so her name has never appeared on a ballot. But residents know her well from her time on the commission, she said.<\/p>\n
Moraitis touts that experience as one of the top reasons residents should vote for her.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a homeowner and previous City Commissioner for our district, I know the issues facing the neighborhoods in District 1: Expensive and irregular water bills, too many vacation rentals, homelessness, and lack of park space,\u201d she said. \u201cI know the unique needs in the Galt Ocean Mile Condominium community, and I have worked with the residents on streetscape improvements, beach renourishment, and bringing back county transportation options.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rodstrom argues that Fort Lauderdale has paid a high price for allowing infrastructure problems to become emergencies.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have fallen behind on infrastructure, made questionable deals involving valuable public assets, struggled with traffic and affordability, and too often reacted to problems instead of planning ahead for them,\u201d he said. \u201cOur challenge is making sure that growth doesn\u2019t come at the expense of our neighborhoods, waterways, infrastructure or quality of life. We need to be more disciplined with taxpayer dollars, invest in the basics, protect what makes this city special, and plan for where Fort Lauderdale will be 20 years from now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moraitis backs moving forward with plans for a new City Hall to replace the old one that was damaged beyond repair by a record-breaking flood that hit in April 2023. The project is expected to cost at least $217 million.<\/p>\n
Moraitis says she wants to see costs kept as low as possible.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t need a Taj Mahal,\u201d she said. \u201cWe just need a City Hall that meets the government\u2019s needs. Not too big. I\u2019m definitely not in favor of anything too grand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rodstrom said he would not have backed a plan to build an iconic City Hall that costs more than $200 million. But he is not in favor of tearing up the contract.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve already committed that amount of money,\u201d he said. \u201cI think it will just invite litigation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moraitis backs Florida\u2019s\u00a0Amendment 3, the ballot measure that would increase the homestead exemption for all non-school taxes to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028.<\/p>\n
She believes the resulting budget shortfalls can be managed partly through increasing property values and cost-cutting at City Hall with the help of an outside operational audit.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve received almost $100 million extra in revenue over the past 10 years just based on taxable value going up,\u201d she said. \u201cAs far as what we can cut \u2026 I think it\u2019s time for an outside operational audit, looking at our city, looking at our staffing, and just trying to find cuts. I think that\u2019s the next step.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rodstrom opposes Amendment 3, arguing that it comes with too many unforeseen consequences.<\/p>\n
Rodstrom, a former member of the city\u2019s Budget Advisory Board, says an increase in property values won\u2019t be enough to cover a $17 million shortfall the first year and a nearly $28 million shortfall the next.<\/p>\n
\u201cI do think Fort Lauderdale itself might be able to figure out how to do this with cuts, but there are other cities that won\u2019t,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
If voters reject Amendment 3, he recommends the city still look to provide taxpayer relief by rolling back the tax rate and trimming its budget.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe city\u2019s budget has grown substantially alongside rising property values and increases in non-ad valorem assessments, fees and other charges,\u201d he said. \u201cI believe there are opportunities to find efficiencies before we consider reducing core services or asking residents to pay even more.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rodstrom also recommends the city do a better job of negotiating the best deal on behalf of the taxpayer, especially when it comes to public-private partnerships and public-land agreements.<\/p>\n
\u201cFort Lauderdale has entered public-private partnerships and public land agreements where I believe taxpayers could have received substantially greater value,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen the city leaves revenue on the table, residents ultimately make up the difference.\u201d<\/p>\n
Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com. Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Heather Moraitis and John Rodstrom III, both candidates from well-known political families, are in a highly contested race…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":422212,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[506,2715,28,249,251,250,114,115,99,109],"class_list":["post-422211","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fort-lauderdale","tag-broward-county","tag-elections","tag-florida","tag-fort-lauderdale","tag-fort-lauderdale-headlines","tag-fort-lauderdale-news","tag-latest-headlines","tag-news","tag-politics","tag-social"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/422211","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=422211"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/422211\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/422212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=422211"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=422211"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=422211"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}