Six questions for Manatee County Commission candidate Diana Shoemaker
Democrat is challenging GOP incumbent Kevin Van Ostenbridge in District 3
Diana Shoemaker, a former executive director Manatee County Habitat for Humanity, is running as a Democrat for the District 3 county commission seat now held by first-term incumbent Kevin Van Ostenbridge.
Also running for the District 3 seat, which represents residents of west and central Bradenton, Anna Maria Island and Longboat Key, Snead Island and Terra Ceia, is Talha “Tal” Siddique, who is challenging Van Ostenbridge in the Republican primary on Aug. 20.
So far, Shoemaker is the only Democrat in the race. The general election is Nov. 5, 2024.
Shoemaker kicked off her campaign last month with a rally at G.T. Bray Park.
The Bradenton Journal had a few questions for Shoemaker. Her responses have been lightly edited for clarity and grammar. (Siddique earlier responded to the Journal’s questions. Van Ostenbridge has not responded.)
The Bradenton Journal: Presuming you considered political and personal factors before deciding on whether to enter the race, what’s the one thing that most convinced you to challenge Kevin Van Ostenbridge for the District 3 seat on the Manatee County Commission?
Shoemaker: What propelled me to take this step was watching our current county commission continue to dismiss, ignore and reject the clear and legitimate dissatisfaction, concerns and opposition voiced by their constituency and instead make short-term decisions that ultimately benefit a select few. These decisions jeopardize the long-term economic stability and quality of life for the majority who live in Manatee County.
The Bradenton Journal: Which issues will you emphasize as a candidate and as a commissioner, if you are elected?
My priority will be to listen to and work with the residents in District 3 so that I can effectively represent them. What is clear is that our residents, throughout all of Manatee County, want their representatives to make good decisions that will maintain and ultimately improve the quality of their lives.
To that end, I believe that the role of county commissioner is to consider the entire needs of the county while managing the inevitable changes and growth that comes over time. Making well-informed and thoughtful decisions about long-term development and expansion will allow us to better manage growth while still protecting our wetlands, keeping safety and traffic needs in mind, and making sure we’re building adequate housing for all residents. Focusing on what matters most to the people who live here will help restore the trust and transparency that does not currently exist in our county commission.
The Bradenton Journal: What do you think was the county commission’s biggest mistake since Mr. Van Ostenbridge was elected in 2020?
The largest mistake from this county commission has been the loss of civility, both from the dais and interactions with constituents. In particular, commissioners have insulted and shown disrespect to those who disagree with them, behavior unbecoming from elected officials. It shouldn’t matter what political party you belong to, everyone’s voices should be heard. I plan to listen to all constituents’ opinions and perspectives.
The Bradenton Journal: What would be your priorities when addressing issues related to growth and development in District 3 and countywide?
Shoemaker: We have to make sure we’re developing in a way that makes sense for all our residents in Manatee County. That means not letting development get ahead of the infrastructure needed to support it; that’s how you end up with safety and traffic issues. It means making sure that while we’re developing, we’re not destroying the natural beauty that drew so many of us to Manatee County, and that fuels our tourism economy. We have to protect our wetlands as we develop. We need to look more closely at what affordability means in our community and increase our housing stock accordingly. The economic stability of our community is at stake if we don’t begin to seriously consider how to provide access to housing for all of those needed to sustain a thriving Manatee County.
The Bradenton Journal: How would you address the traffic/parking issues that have caused so much conflict between Mr. Van Ostenbridge and leaders in the city of Holmes Beach? Should the county build a parking garage on Manatee Public Beach over the city’s objections?
Shoemaker: The residents and leadership there are very clear about their opposition to it. The county should not build a parking garage on Holmes Beach. Local officials indicate that it’s not parking that’s an issue on the Island, it’s the traffic. Currently, there are higher priority infrastructure improvements that are needed more than this proposed garage. The role of the county commissioner should be to work alongside the residents and the local leaders to assist them and advocate for them in addressing the traffic issues that impact their community.
The Bradenton Journal: Much of District 3 is adjacent to water – the Gulf of Mexico, the Manatee River, etc. What should the county be doing to mitigate the effects of climate change, such as rising sea levels and more intense hurricanes and tropical storms?
Shoemaker: We have the tremendous opportunity in Manatee County, because we live in such an ecologically diverse and potentially vulnerable area, to proactively educate ourselves and plan for the future. Now is the time for our county commissioners to take every opportunity to listen to the experts, study the current situation and develop plans for mitigating the inevitable impact and changes. We can no longer make short-term decisions on expansion and growth in our community without fully understanding the degree of the risk it will mean for us ecologically and ultimately economically.
For more about Shoemaker’s campaign, visit her website, https://www.electshoemaker.com/
VanOstenbridge is worst of the commissioners - and that is saying a lot. He is rude, pompous, and a corrupt rubber stamp for developers. He makes disrespectful comments to public speakers that take the time to show up and speak at Commission meetings. He is being investigated by the Florida Ethics commission for using taxpayer funds to purchase the private, personal demographic data of over 19K district 3 constituents - including me. All of that information is now publicly available to anyone and includes household wealth, income, Long and Lat coordinates of our homes, charitable and political causes and much more. All you need to know about VanOstenbridge can be learned by reading the smart-ass "apology" letter he wrote after getting caught on video first casing, and then stealing a potted bougainvillea tree from posted private property. That letter should never have been accepted by the court, but at least it remains a record of the kind of rear end hole he is.