God and growth shape issues in Apopka races

Apopka’s mayor race has soaked up most of the attention this election season, but voters in Orange County’s second-largest city also will decide two City Council seats March 11.

One race pits 18-year incumbent commissioner Marilyn Ustler McQueen against challenger Diane Velazquez, a retired New York City police detective making her first run for elected office. The other race seeks to fill the unexpired term of Apopka commissioner Joe Kilsheimer, who was required by law to give up Council Seat 3 when he declared himself a candidate to challenge 19-term Mayor John Land.

The candidates for Kilsheimer’s vacated seat are Linda Laurendeau, 70; Theresa Mott, 43; and Sammy Ruth, 52.

McQueen, 60, a lifelong resident of Apopka, attracted some notoriety last week when she posted a message on Facebook criticizing Velazquez for lacking faith in God. McQueen deleted the social-media posting but did not retreat from her view.

A retired flight attendant, she boasts a long civic resume that includes serving on the Tri-County League of Cities and the Florida League of Cities. She predicts “phenomenal” growth in Apopka in the next 10 years, citing the investment and jobs attached to the Town Center project at U.S. Highway 441 and State Road 436, the proposed Kelly Park Crossing development and the eco-tour-

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See whom the Orlando Sentinel opinion pages editors pick as the best choice for Apopka mayor. ism promise of the Lake Apopka Restoration. “This is a time for strong proven leadership,” said McQueen, who has received the endorsement of the Apopka Area Chamber of Commerce’s political action committee. “There is too much at stake for inexperienced individuals to oversee the massive growth that will soon impact us.”

Velazquez, 56, said she believes Apopka will not improve until the longtime officeholders are removed. “I believe in order to rectify the current status of stagnation in Apopka, new ideas and new leadership are needed as our diverse popu- lation continues to grow,” she said. “I want to represent the many voices of Apopka residents who feel as if they have been disenfranchised by the city.”

Velazquez promised, if elected, to improve communication with residents. “The problem is that just a small group seems to know what’s going on in the city,” she said.

Laurendeau and Ruth both sought a seat on council two years ago.

Laurendeau, who is retired from the telecommunications industry and has volunteered for a number of civic and church groups in Apopka, heads the Apopka Charter Review Committee, which is considering term limits for the city’s elected officials and singledistrict council seats. She said she is concerned about filling the hole in downtown that will be left when Florida Hospital Apopka relocates to a site at Harmon and Ocoee-Apopka roads.

“We want to attract the right businesses and industries to our city so that the jobs will follow,” Laurendeau said, praising projects that are underway or in planning stages such as the Town Center and Kelly Park Crossings. “It’s an exciting time in Apopka ... I want to be part of that. I want to be part of leading that.”

Ruth, a quality-control specialist for a mechanical contracting firm, may be best known in the Apopka area for his involvement with the high school baseball t eam f rom t he mid-1980’s until 2007 and as an assistant coach on the high school’s state championship football team in 2001. He promised to be a voice for the people who would question red-light cameras.

“Rarely is there a dissenting vote or even any discussion of important issues,” said Ruth, who has twice run for office but does not regularly attend council meetings. “I truly love Apopka and want to see it grow and thrive. We’re kind of like a diamond in that chunk of coal.”

Mott did not respond to repeated emails and phone calls seeking information about her candidacy.