Mark Bogen is best choice in contentious District 2 race

Voters should return incumbent Broward County Commissioner Mark Bogen to his District 2 seat.

During his four years on the commission, Bogen, a Coral Springs attorney who specializes in condo law, has responded passionately and effectively to residents’ concerns. Chief among them were issues about road projects, mold at the new courthouse and a lack of detail in the county’s proposed $16 billion, 30-year tax for transportation.

Because there is a write-in candidate in the race, the Aug. 28 election is open only to Democratic Party voters.

Bogen, 58, has a pesky challenger, 32-year-old Ryan Ross, of Coconut Creek. Ross implied during a joint endorsement interview at the Sun Sentinel, which he surreptitiously recorded in violation of Florida law, that Bogen is illegally enriching himself through his legal work representing the Wynmoor condo community.

Bogen is “trying to build a business,” Ross said. “He should be devoting his attention to his county commission job.”

It’s not uncommon for county commissioners to keep their day jobs after winning election. This includes Bogen, who returned fire during the interview.

Bogen said every business arrangement he has with Wynmoor is legal and, in fact, benefits the residents of the community. “I’ve never had a Bar complaint in 35 years,” he added.

In an email to the Sun Sentinel, Jackie Railey, president of Wynmoor Community Council, said allegations that Bogen is doing anything improper in the handling of Wynmoor’s insurance are false. “Our insurance rates are the lowest they have been in many years,” she wrote.

In his questionnaire, Bogen complained that “during the past year, my opponent’s campaign has been making ongoing false and defamatory statements about me.”

During the interview, Bogen acknowledged that he asked his county administrative aide, Ron Lichtman, to serve as president of a company he formed, an arrangement we find troubling because it comes close to mixing public and personal business. Bogen said he got an ethics opinion saying it was permissible. He said he got the opinion from his private attorney, not a government attorney.

In turn, Bogen questioned the accuracy of Ross’ resume and campaign financial disclosure form. The resume says that Ross was “an administrator” when he worked for Florida Atlantic University from 2011 to 2017.

“He’s never been an administrator,” Bogen said. “He has nothing to show for himself. He has no track record.”

Bogen said some of the issues Ross wants to address, such as providing free college education and restoring voting rights for felons who have completed their sentences, are “not at the top of my list.”

In reality, the county commission does not have the power to restore voting rights for felons or eliminate college tuition. These are both state issues.

That said, Bogen has proposed a pilot project that would bridge the tuition gap for local students who receive grants and scholarships, but still can’t afford to attend Broward College. If the private sector can raise a million dollars for this purpose, his plan calls for the county to match it. The commission will consider the proposal later this month.

Like every incumbent, Bogen boasts of the work he’s done the last four years. He notes that he:

Spurred the commission to quickly move workers out of the old county courthouse after they began complaining that mold was making them ill. He said he was warned that his complaints could prompt lawsuits against the county.

Pushed supervisors at Fort LauderdaleHollywood International Airport, which is owned by the county, to pay airport workers a living wage.

Helped kill a state Department of Transportation project to widen the Florida Turnpike in Coconut Creek and Margate. He said widening would have damaged the property values and lifestyle of constituents whose backyards border the Turnpike.

Worked with the DOT to design the Southwest 10th Street Connector Project between Interstate 95 and the Sawgrass Expressway in a way that satisfies most of the Deerfield Beach residents who have opposed the project.

Ross, who left FAU in late 2017 and now teaches history at Coral Springs High School, has lived in Broward County for less than a year.

If elected, he has promised to donate half of the $99,997 commissioner salary to help pay for college or a trade school for Broward County high school graduates until business and government leaders figure out how to finance such a project.

Both candidates agree that transportation is one of the county’s most pressing issues. Bogen voted against putting the penny sales tax hike on the November ballot because he says the plan for spending the $16 billion is too vague and the 30-year life of the tax is too long.

Ross said that raising taxes should be a last resort, but that if the public supports the transportation tax, he would, too.

The write-in candidate is Antwoine Lovett Sr.

Bogen