How Lake Worth Beach candidates plan to tackle housing, utilities and more
Once one of Palm Beach County's most affordable places, even Lake Worth Beach has become a nightmare for renters and prospective homebuyers. Five City Commission candidates aim in Tuesday's election to tackle the city's cost of living, but with very different ideas on how.
Commissioner Chris McVoy faces challenger Carla Blockson, chairwoman of the city's Community Redevelopment Agency. Commissioner Reinaldo Diaz faces two opponents: Realtor Greg Richter and businessman Anthony Segrich. They offer voters a variety of ideas for tackling expenses, including easing regulations on home construction, embracing solar energy and selling water from the city.
McVoy faces Blockson to represent northwest Lake Worth Beach, District 2. Diaz, Richter and Segrich vie to represent the city's southeast, District 4. McVoy and Diaz are seeking reelection to their second and final consecutive three-year terms. If no candidate wins the majority of votes in the District 4 race, the top two vote-getters face off in a runoff election March 25.
Commissioners can serve a maximum of two consecutive three-year terms. They are paid annual salaries of $24,500. Four commissioners are elected by voters in their districts, while the mayor is elected by voters citywide. The seats for mayor and the other two commissioners are not up for election this year.
Polls will open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday. To find your polling place, visit VotePalmBeach.gov.
McVoy is seeking his second term as commissioner. He is an environmental scientist.
Background: McVoy has worked as a consultant to the U.S. Department of the Interior and at the South Florida Water Management District as a scientist researching the Everglades. He has a doctorate in soil physics from Cornell University. Now he is an environmental scientist with South Florida Engineering and Consulting.
Public service: McVoy previously served as a city commissioner from 2010-17. He is a board member of the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council and Friends of the Everglades.
Cost of living plans: Allow homeowners to build accessory dwelling units, also called 'mother-in-law cottagers' or 'granny flats,' on their properties. Supported citywide housing study, voted to declare 'housing crisis' in the city.
Other priorities: Improve permitting, code enforcement, business inspections and street safety for pedestrians. Seek to build more electric vehicle charging stations. Lift the cap on solar power residents can use, which city officials passed in 2019.
Campaign finances: McVoy had raised $11,472 as of Feb. 21.
Website: votemcvoy.com.
Blockson, who faced McVoy in 2010 and 2021, is seeking for a third time to unseat him. She is chairwoman of the city's Community Redevelopment Agency, which aims to improve blighted parts of town.
Background: Blockson has lived in the city since 1996, when her husband was selected as its fire chief. She has volunteered with civic groups and helped with efforts such as giving high school seniors safe havens to celebrate their graduations.
Public service: Blockson has been chairwoman of the CRA since 2023 and has been a board member since 2021. She was appointed to the City Commission in December 2020 but lost the March 2021 election to McVoy. She is a member of the Electric Utility Advisory Board.
Cost of living plans: Continue supporting CRA's efforts to build more houses and apartments. Since she joined it in 2021, the CRA has built 778 housing units — with 377 more under construction — she says.
Other priorities: Public trust in elected leaders, increase investment in infrastructure, expand the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office Police Athletic League program, have more officers meeting with neighborhood associations.
Campaign finance: Blockson had raised $12,467 as of Feb. 21.
Website: carlab4lwb.com.
Commissioner Diaz is seeking his second term on the City Commission.
Background: Born and raised in Lake Worth Beach, Diaz is a board member of the Everglades Coalition and Florida Wildlife Federation. He founded the nonprofit Lake Worth Waterkeeper, advocating for the Lake Worth Lagoon.
Public Service: Diaz was elected in 2022 to the City Commission.
Cost of living plans: Bring in experts to review the city's land regulations to see what can be changed. Voted to create a rate stabilization fund that uses money set aside to subsidize the city-owned electric utility when fuel costs spike so that those added costs are not passed onto customers.
Other priorities: Review growth management policy regularly. Find a fair agreement with the Wiener Museum of Decorative Arts project (WMODA), a proposed arts museum downtown that would include 110 apartments and a parking garage.
Campaign finance: Diaz had raised $2,550 as of Feb. 21.
Website: diaz4lwb.com.
Richter is a Realtor running to unseat Diaz.
Background: He has lived in Lake Worth Beach for seven years.
Public service: Richter is president of the South Palmway Neighborhood Association.
Cost of living plans: Speed up the permitting process so housing can be built faster. Look into selling water to other municipalities or the county so the costs of running the water utility are shared by more customers than Lake Worth Beach residents.
Other priorities: Keep developing downtown. Build parking garage, apartments with the museum of decorative arts project downtown. Make code enforcement less frustrating for residents and business owners.
Campaign finance: Richter had raised $18,530 as of Feb. 21.
Website: greg4lwb.com.
Segrich is a former tech businessman best known for surviving a shark attack in 2011. He and his wife have since opened a shark-themed short-term vacation rental in Lake Worth Beach.
Background: Segrich, who holds a computer science degree from Boston College, says he has helped companies such as Pepsi and National Semiconductor improve their operations and cut waste.
Cost of living plans: Speed up development when the plan already conforms to what is allowed to be built on its land. Cut redundant building code regulations without sacrificing safety or efficiency. Speed up permitting of construction without sacrificing ecological protections. Limit impact fees, which make developers pay the city for the services the city must provide, such as water, police and firefighting.
Other priorities: Audit the $88 million utility bond project approved in 2022. Bring down residents' utility bills by incentivizing installation and use of solar panels, and capturing and using rainwater to conserve water.
Campaign finance: Segrich had raised $33,480 as of Feb. 21.
Website: segrich4lwb.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: How Lake Worth Beach candidates plan to tackle cost of living
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