Shara Brodsky, Palm Coast City Council District 1 Candidate: The Live Interview

Shara Brodsky is one of four candidates in the Aug. 20 primary election for Palm Coast City Council, District 1. It’s an open seat, as Council member Ed Danko, who is running for a County Commission seat, will resign by November. The candidates who qualified are Kathy Austrino, Brodsky, Ty Miller and Jeffrey Seib.

This is a non-partisan, at-large election. That means all registered voters in Palm Coast–and only Palm Coast–regardless of party or non-party affiliation–Democrats, Republicans, independents and others–may cast a ballot for Palm Coast mayor. If a candidate wins more than 50 percent of the vote, that candidate is elected (or re-elected) mayor. If none of the candidates garner more than a 50 percent majority, the leading two vote-getters move on to a runoff to be decided in the Nov. 5 general election.




The mayor is paid $30,039 a year a year plus a $1,200 car allowance and a $910 communication allowance each year, plus full health care benefits.

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 their claims. 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
• Preparation, character and champions
• Council’s performance
• Goals
• Taxes
• Development
• Arts and culture
• Westward expansion
• Saltwater canals
• City manager
• Policing
• Rap sheet

The Basics: Shara Brodsky

Place and Date of Birth: May 19, 1980.
Current job: Not disclosed.
Party Affiliation: Independent/no party affiliation.
Financial Disclosures: Not disclosed.
Resume: Not disclosed.

1. How have you specifically prepared yourself to be ready to succeed from day one? If you’re an incumbent, what have you learned from your time on the council that has changed your governing method, and in what way? Tell us about the character flaws and unique perspectives you bring to the council. Who do you admire most in office today among elected officials in Flagler County—the person you’d consider a model of leadership? Who in the world at large (beyond Flagler), and among the living, do you consider a role model of political or intellectual leadership?

Shara Brodsky did not answer the question.

See how the other candidates answered:
Kathy Austrino | Ty Miller | Jeffrey Seib

 

2. Give the council a letter grade on its performance in the last two years. Explain with specific examples where it has been lacking and where it has excelled, and what specific experience and qualities you will bring to improve its effectiveness.

Shara Brodsky did not answer the question.

See how the other candidates answered:
Kathy Austrino | Ty Miller | Jeffrey Seib

 

3. What are two goals where you are most aligned with the current council’s “Strategic Action Plan,” two with which you differ, and two you would seek to add, and explain how you intend to convince the council to follow your lead.

Shara Brodsky did not answer the question.

See how the other candidates answered:
Kathy Austrino | Ty Miller | Jeffrey Seib

 

4. Taxes and revenue: Where do you stand on property tax increases, including adopting tax rates that are not at rollback (which amounts to a tax increase under Florida law)? Where do you stand on supporting a countywide increase in the sales tax, on adopting a public service tax, or adopting a utility franchise fee? Short of new sources of revenue, and if you intend to stick to a rolled back tax rate, which nearly limits any growth in the budget, what city programs would you eliminate and what service levels would you reduce to achieve that?

Shara Brodsky did not answer the question.

See how the other candidates answered:
Kathy Austrino | Ty Miller | Jeffrey Seib

 

5. Palm Coast’s population continues to grow rapidly, absorbing most of the net increase of 16,000 people between 2020 and 2022. Evaluate the quality and quantity of development in the last few years. What sort of land use or development would you oppose, if it were to come before the council for approval, and why? What percentage of our housing stock should be single-family houses on traditional lots as opposed to apartments or other multi-family 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?

Shara Brodsky did not answer the question.

See how the other candidates answered:
Kathy Austrino | Ty Miller | Jeffrey Seib

 

6. The City Council created an arts district in Town center in 2020, but the district has been moribund, and more recently may be further elbowed by a planned YMCA on land previously dedicated for an arts center. What role should the city have in facilitating (not creating, to be sure) arts and culture? Is the city doing enough? Would you favor dedicating a permanent source of revenue from the Town Center CRA to the arts, as had been the original intention in 2020?

Shara Brodsky did not answer the question.

See how the other candidates answered:
Kathy Austrino | Ty Miller | Jeffrey Seib

 

7. The West Side, west of U.S. 1, is poised to potentially double Palm Coast’s size, or close to it, with the development of the acreage through which the city secured substantial funding for the connector road from Matanzas Parkway to Palm Coast Parkway. Is the city capable of handling that expansion even as its existing infrastructure—stormwater, roads (think congestion), parks—east of U.S. 1 experiences shortfalls and draws residents’ complaints? How would you balance that expansion with the needs in east Palm Coast—or change infrastructure management?

Shara Brodsky did not answer the question.

See how the other candidates answered:
Kathy Austrino | Ty Miller | Jeffrey Seib

 

8. Palm Coast’s saltwater canals may need dredging. It’s never been done in the 50-year existence of the city and its ITT antecedent. But the canals—like those recreational amenities mentioned above–are limited to a few neighborhoods. If and when it comes to that, who should pay for the dredging, and through what taxing mechanism?

Shara Brodsky did not answer the question.

See how the other candidates answered:
Kathy Austrino | Ty Miller | Jeffrey Seib

 

9. Describe in one paragraph the principal qualities you will seek in the new city manager you will be responsible for hiring, and what expectations you will have from that manager from day one.

Shara Brodsky did not answer the question.

See how the other candidates answered:
Kathy Austrino | Ty Miller | Jeffrey Seib

 

10. Palm Coast relies on the sheriff for policing. Evaluate that relationship as it stands today. What is your analysis of the latest method of hiring what would amount to five additional deputies a year for the next three years, based primarily on call volume, and how would you pay for it? Do you favor an independent police department for the city, now or in the near future? 

Shara Brodsky did not answer the question.

See how the other candidates answered:
Kathy Austrino | Ty Miller | Jeffrey Seib

 

11. 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? Have you ever been demoted? If so, please explain, including cases where charges or claims did not lead to conviction or disciplinary action.

Shara Brodsky did not answer the question.

See how the other candidates answered:
Kathy Austrino | Ty Miller | Jeffrey Seib