Alan Lowe, Palm Coast Mayor Candidate: The Live Interview

Last Updated: July 25

Alan Lowe is a candidate for Palm Coast Mayor running against John Brady, Donald Greene, incumbent Milissa Holland and Michael Schottey.

Three council seats are also up this year. Councilman Bob Cuff has opted not to run again. Councilman Nick Klufas is running for a second term. And Councilman Jack Howell has resigned, requiring a special election in conjunction with November’s election. So the council will have at least two new faces by November, and possibly four. Between the 2016 and 2018 elections, all five seats turned over.

Lowe, who associates with the local Trump Club, did not respond to any communications nor submit answers to the Live Interview. But he did steal the questions and post them illegally on a social media platform, even though our letter to him with the questions stated specifically that “The Live Interview is copyrighted material.” (Candidates must contact the editor to get permission to repost.) We do not take the thievery lightly, and it does not flatter a candidate running for a position of trust on claims of integrity.

Lowe also made misleading claim–that we’d edit his answers, prompting him to answer them on his own elsewhere so they wouldn’t be edited. The only editing that takes place, again as stated in the cover letter, is “for clarity and redundancy,” not for content (not every candidate is a born writer). And the candidate has not shown himself capable of handling the interview if he is not willing to answer more probing follow-up questions.

Other than Holland, who served on the County Commission six years before her current mayoral term, all four other candidates in the race have not held public office before, though Brady ran for mayor in 2016, getting 15 percent of the vote.

This is a non-partisan, at-large election. That means all registered voters in Palm Coast, regardless of party or non-party affiliation–Democrats, Republicans, independents and others–may cast a ballot for Palm Coast mayor or council. If a candidate for mayor wins 50 percent plus one vote or more in the Aug. 18 primary, then that candidate is the outright winner and mayor, making a runoff unnecessary. But if none of the candidates manages that majority, then the top two candidates with the most votes will go on to contest the Nov. 3 general election.

The Palm Coast mayor and council members serve four years. They’re paid $9,600 a year, $11,400 for the mayor, not including a monthly “telecommunications” allowance.

FlaglerLive submitted identical questions to all candidates, with the understanding that additional questions might be tailored to candidates individually and some follow-up questions may be asked, with all exchanges conducted by email and on the record.  The Live Interview’s aim is to elicit as much candor and transparency as possible. We have asked candidates to refrain from making campaign speeches or make lists of accomplishments. We have also asked candidates to reasonably document any claim or accusation. Undocumented claims are edited out. Answers are also edited for length, redundancy, relevance and, where possible, accuracy. If a candidate does not answer a question or appears to be evading a question, that’s noted.

But it’s ultimately up to the reader to judge the quality and sincerity of a candidate’s answers.

The Questions in Summary: Quick Links

• Basics
• Priorities
• Concerns
• Budget
• Coronavirus
• Taxes
• Aging Palm Coast
• Housing
• Economic development
• Matt Morton
• Council dynamics
• Policing
• Character
• Social media
• Rap sheet

The Basics: Alan Lowe

Place and Date of Birth: Not disclosed.
Current job: Not disclosed.
Party Affiliation: Not disclosed.
Financial Disclosures: Not disclosed.
Resume: Not disclosed.
Website: Not disclosed.

1. What are your top three policy priorities that you pledge will realistically be accomplished by the end of your first term. If they cost money, how do you propose to fund those priorities?

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

2. Cite three issues or concerns that in your view the city is addressing poorly or not at all, and explain how you intend to convince the council to change course.

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

3. The city’s budget, like all local government budgets, will likely face revenue shortfalls in the next two years. How will you make up the lost revenue? Short of new sources of revenue, what areas of the budget are ripe for cuts? Please be specific.

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

4. Evaluate the city’s response to the coronavirus emergency. As of this writing, the city, unlike a growing list of local governments across Florida, has not mandated the use of masks in public places, though it’s in the council’s power to do so. Tell us how you’d vote on a mask mandate, and explain your answer, citing appropriate authorities.

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

5. Palm Coast has the authority to impose a public service tax on your utility bill of up to 10 percent, and a franchise fee on utilities, which would be passed to customers, of up to 10 percent. The money may be spent at the council’s discretion. Many counties and cities around the state partially or fully levy one or both the taxes. Palm Coast considered imposing a 6 percent electric franchise fee and a 2 percent public service tax in 2012, but reversed course in the face of strong public opposition. Either of the new taxes, proponents argue, would diversify the city’s revenue stream. Either could be used to generate revenue that would otherwise have to be generated by property taxes, though the public service tax and the franchise fee are regressive in comparison. Where do you stand on either new tax becoming part of Palm Coast’s taxing structure?

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

6. Just in the last 10 years, Palm Coast has grown by 15,000 people, but it has grown older, with people 65 and older representing nearly 28 percent of the population, up from 23 percent in 2010. That’s a substantial increase, almost all of it as the proportion of school-age children has diminished: the school district’s population has remained at around 13,000 for 10 years. Should Palm Coast encourage that accelerating retirement-community trend? What would you do to ensure that Palm Coast is addressing the needs of its growing elderly population. Alternately, what would you do to reverse the trend, if you’re more interested in broadening the working-age population base?

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

7. Some apartment complexes have gone up in the past two years, but the city still faces an affordable housing shortfall as housing prices have risen steadily. How do you propose to diversify Palm Coast’s housing options? By what criteria would you approve or reject apartment complexes? Would you approve raising the density and height of multi-family, or apartment, structures in select areas of the city zoned for the purpose?

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

8. Everyone talks economic development. Few elected officials do more than talk. How have you been, or how will you be, different, starting with your definition of economic development?

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

9. Evaluate the transition from ex-City Manager Jim Landon to City Manager Matt Morton: what was lost, what was gained, what could have been done better, what has been done better?

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

10. Mayor Milissa Holland, Council member Nick Klufas and to a lesser extent Council member Bob Cuff were elected on promises of change and novel visions four years ago. Evaluate their performance, their successes and shortcomings, and tell us if you think they’ve lived up to their promise. What will you bring to the council that they don’t? If you’re one of the incumbents, evaluate your own successes and shortcomings, with specifics, telling us why you’re better suited to continue than any of your challengers.

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

11. Palm Coast relies on the sheriff for policing. Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of that contract, and tell us what specifically you would change about it. Are some areas of Palm Coast less effectively policed than others? Do you favor an independent police department for the city, now or in the near future? 

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

12. Elected office is no stranger to bluster. Tell us about you as a person: your character, your temperament, your foibles. Tell us who do you admire most in office today among elected officials in Flagler County—the person you’d consider a model of leadership.

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

13. Should you be held to account for what you display on your social media pages any differently than for what you would say anywhere public? Do you have different standards of behavior between the way you’d conduct yourself as an elected official—in a meeting, at an official function—as opposed to on your social media platforms?

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey

 

14. Have you ever been charged with a felony or a misdemeanor anywhere in Flagler, Florida or the United States (other than a speeding ticket), or faced a civil action other than a divorce, but including bankruptcies, or faced any investigative or disciplinary action through a professional board such as the bar or a medical board? If so, please explain, including cases where charges or claims did not lead to conviction or disciplinary action.

Alan Lowe did not answer the question.

See the other candidates’ answers:
John Brady | Don Greene | Milissa Holland | Michael Schottey