Suzanne Atwell: Candidate For City Commission

Candidate: Suzanne Atwell

Neighborhood: Bird Key

Moved To Sarasota: 1994

Employment: Clinical Psychologist

Treasurer: John Dowd

Campaign Info: 

• Facebook.com/AtwellForCityCommission
• Twitter.com/Atwell4CityComm
• Suzanneatwell.com/ 

Mayor Suzanne Atwell said she couldn't imagine not running again, and said she needs four more years her momentum in the community

"I'm a commissioner that embraces the community," Atwell told Patch. "We need to sometimes go beyond the scopes of the vote and into the broader community because it can only help you in the long run."

Atwell is the only incumbent in the race after Commissioner Terry Turner decided against running. Before her time on the commission, she was the chair of the City Human Relations Board and has a master's in clinical psychology from Marymount University, and worked in social work and as a counselor at Coastal Behavioral Healthcare and Jewish Family & Children's Services in Sarasota.

For two of Atwell's four years in office, she was selected by the commission to serve as mayor, which in Sarasota's structure of government is the equivalent of being a chairwoman.

But Atwell has taken a proactive approach in being mayor, acting as the face of Sarasota and City Hall. Her experience as a first-term commissioner "clicked," she said, when she became mayor, being front and center at the dais, and having to speak to dozens of groups and dignitaries passing through the city. 

"As every other week went by and I was mayor, I just flowered because with all these responsibilities came amazing invitations that were just overwhelming, and overwhelmingly good," she said. 

Would Atwell want to be see an elected mayor by the citizens?

"I think we're ready. I think we reached a bar, and I know we're small. We're not like Tampa, Austin or Portland.," she said. "… I'm talking about let's look at how we can have a leader that I believe that a lot of the citizens in the community are looking for, whether you agree or not with what they're looking for."

Bringing revenue to the city's coffers has been a challenge of late, and Atwell wants to see momentum in the downtown core continue to take advantage of the city's density.

"Sarasota is ripe for looking at density—live, work, play areas downtown—people living on top of stores and working with developers. How do we make that happen?" Atwell said. "I want to talk about that. I think downtown is exploding with extremely fabulous restaurants—expensive ones and not-so expensive ones—and we're getting the hotel and Louie's on Palm."

To keep downtown vibrant, Atwell wants to see a way for the city to allow portions of the city to allow bands to play an hour or two later, to help correct the city's amplified sound ordinance.

"I'm a support of what [Commissioner Paul Caragiulo] is doing, but it will take some time," she said.

For outside the core, getting the North Trail and Rosemary District kicked into gear needs to be given the attention it deserves, she said.

"We have just the structure of the zoning makes it more difficult. They're working on the North Trail overlay, which could be optional," she said. "… A lot of people I talk to want it all mixed up. They don't want it all Goodwills, all Walmarts—they wanted things like the Yummy House."

Between that and the Marietta Museum of Whimsy, those are the unique things that help draw people in to move and invest in the North Trail, Atwell said.

"You have one of the hottest restaurants on the North Trail. That begets other things," she said.

As the city looks for way to bring in more residents and jobs, Sarasota officials also has to look at how it will work with the city's homeless to point them in the right direction for services.

"I'm a believer in case management for some of the more chronic problems," Atwell said. "A lot of these people, they need the medication management. How do we get the management of their cases aligned so we can stay on top of that? Then again, they have to choose to do that. Some choose not to do anything."

"They know what they're doing. They want to park in front of Mattison's. They don't tend to invade personal space. Some of them don't. They're not breaking any laws," she added.

Some of the support has to come from the State of Florida, which has long ranked low in funding mental health care.

"Guess what, State of Florida? We need money for mental health. Sheriff [Tom] Knight and I talked about this a lot. Put value on our most disenfranchised, because if you don't put value on it from a state level or federal level, what happens you get down to the municipal level and we're struggling to deal with it," she said.

The city has a Homeless Task Force led by the Sarasota Police Department to develop proposals for programs or positions in the city, she said.

Atwell said if elected, she would like to see her department heads be out in the community more, meeting with neighborhoods, whether that be Information Technology or utilities.

"Sometimes it's not just CCNA or the neighborhood associations," she said. "Sometimes maybe they'll go out at a house. [City Manager] Tom [Barwin] and I were at a house on Bird Key, looking at a pipe leak."

Even a human resources director could talk to groups about best practices for hiring and managing staffs, Atwell said. All these suggestions by Atwell were in theory, there isn't anything on the table as far as policy to implement these practices.

"I want them as visible as they can," she said.

And Atwell aims to be just as visible as the department heads if re-elected.

"I want four more years to continue what I think, bringing civility, cooperation and respect for one another on the commission, and I think I have achieved that," Atwell said.

Quick Hits

While on the commission, what was the hardest decision you had to make? 

The Baltimore Orioles/Ed Smith Stadium deal. Commissioner Terry Turner had proposed an amendment to a 30-year contract with the Orioles to add a $1 million cap on the city's responsibility for environmental cleanup at Ed Smith.

Atwell contemplated supporting the amendment, but reversed her decision to approve the contract without the cap. 

"It would have been a deal breaker. I wanted the Orioles here, and the rest is history. I got some emails that were very upsetting, but mostly 'thank you.' We needed to have the Orioles there, and I'm still pleased that the Orioles are there."

What was the best decision the commission has made during your term?

The FPL PACE program franchise fee decision. "I believe that was a financially smart. I'm a steward of our taxpayers' dollars. We are entrusted with your dollars to renew a 30-year franchise fee. I know we had a lot of people who wanted our own utility, but the cost of that would have been enormous."

I also felt very good about the city manager.

Was there a decision on the commission you reconsider?

"No because sometimes you'll change your vote because you won't die on that hill. I never lost a night's sleep. Sometimes I'll vote for it because I know it's going to pass. It's not worth dying on a hill for."

Why should a voter choose Suzanne Atwell?

"I need four more years because I think I've earned it, and four years is not enough. I have a lot more to do, and armed with a great new and improved staff. I've got that background and that experience now. 

A lot of what we're doing now, this regional approach, working with the county, I'm developing relationships by working by being on the Council of Governments  and the Chamber. I have built so many new relationships as commissioner, and particularly as mayor, I want to keep those going as an elected official."