Staff Writer

Kissimmee Commission seat 2 – vacated by suspended Commissioner Carlos Irizarry last week – will remain empty until the next commissioner is voted into office, per a commission decision Tuesday.

For his part, Irizarry said he would continue to run for re-election, despite the fact that Gov. Charlie Crist suspended him from office Friday, a day after he was arrested for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Neither the arrest nor the suspension changed his re-election campaign, he said.

“I don't see any difference,” Irizarry told the News-Gazette. “I believe that my experience as a public servant has been proved. My integrity in my decisions on the city level has been proved.”

The remaining commissioners said Tuesday that there weren't enough meetings in the eight weeks before the Aug. 24 election to merit the need for appointing someone to fill seat 2, which is up for election this year.

“In my estimation, I believe that with the four commissioners we have right now, we won't miss a beat in the eight weeks with what we have in front of us,” Commissioner Jerry Gemskie said.

He proposed that the commission forgo the appointment process.

“I'm not sure what is the rush,” Commissioner Art Otero said, in agreement with Gemskie. “Let the people decide on Aug. 24 who we're going to see in seat 2.”

Commissioner Cheryl Grieb said she would prefer the input of five commissioners on the next big issue facing the commission: next year's budget. However, she added that the commission had to take into consideration the time required to appoint a new official.

“If we were to look to fill a seat, then I would look for someone who's not looking to run and who has previous experience, and I have someone in mind,” she said.

Mayor Jim Swan questioned whether appointing someone so quickly was “the right thing to do.”

“There are six or eight or 10 folks who have expressed interest in serving if we do appoint someone. A number of them I would hate to choose over any of the others,” he said.

Instead, Swan said he would request that the commission have interested parties submit applications for the appointment, a process that could take a month to six weeks.

“I'm not sure what the city gains by going through that process,” he said.

Swan said he has “every bit of confidence” that the remaining commissioners could take care of the budget without a fifth commissioner.

Deputy City Manager Mike Steigerwald said after the meeting that the budget process this year would be relatively straight-forward and not very controversial, with staff recommending no tax rate change and no dismissals of city employees. The budget is slated to come to $3.5 million less than it was last year with cuts in spending, positions eliminated through attrition and the city using some of its reserves.

Commissioners voted unanimously to keep seat 2 empty. Shortly after the decision was made, Otero moved one seat over, sliding his nameplate in front of the empty chair previously held by Irizarry so he could hear the rest of the commissioners better.

Irizarry still in the race

Irizarry was arrested for aggravated assault May 27 with a deadly weapon after he argued and threatened his estranged wife with a handgun in the parking lot of an Orange County private school, where he was attending the graduation of his “future granddaughter” with his “future fiancée,” according to Orange County Sheriff's Office reports. The governor suspended Irizarry from office Friday evening, given the third-degree felony charge.

However, Irizarry announced Wednesday morning that he would continue to run for re-election. The first Hispanic to be voted onto the Kissimmee Commission said he didn't believe his arrest made a difference.

“You need to prove to your constituents that you were selected to do a job, and I believe I did that job,” he told the News-Gazette. “I believe I helped to lower the taxes. I believe I helped to build the community. I believe I helped small businesses.”

Irizarry said he was thankful that the commissioners didn't fill his seat even though they had every right to do so. He said he wanted to continue fighting for ordinance changes to help the small businesses and continue working to redevelop Vine Street and promote the downtown.

“I promised to be a full-time commissioner and I did that. I promised to answer my (phone) calls, and I did that. I tried to be a voice in this community, and I think that I did that,” he said.

He wouldn't comment on the specifics of the charge against him but said he didn't believe it would make his re-election any harder.

“As a matter of fact, this makes me more strong as a person and as a human being,” he said. “This is a nightmare, it's time to move on and learn from the experience.”

After his initial hearing Friday, Irizarry posted a $1,500 bail to bond out. The judge ordered that Irizarry could carry no firearms, despite his concealed weapons permit, and ordered no contact with the two female witnesses who reported the parking lot argument, one claiming to have seen a gun in Irizarry's hand. The judge also ordered Irizarry have “no hostile contact” with his wife, who told the judge during the hearing she did not fear her husband.

Irizarry is running for seat 2 against political newcomer Wanda Rentas and John Cortes, who has run for a spot on the commission before without success. If no candidate earns a majority vote in the Aug. 24 election, seat 2 will remain empty until the city runoff election Nov. 2.