New St. Cloud Mayor Chris Robertson and City Councilwoman Jennifer Paul were sworn in the afternoon of the Thursday meeting. Kolby Urban, who was up for re-election this year but did not get a challenger on the ballot, also took the Oath of Office for his second Council term.
Paul’s election made history, as she’s the first African American to sit on the St. Cloud dais. And, with history being made, her extended family and well-wishers attended the swearing in and filled the Council chambers to the max, also a first in at least recent memory.
“Last year when I started this process, I knew it was the right time to take the next step in my community involvement,” Paul said. “I was intent on running this race on the foundation of family roots that have been here for generation and a love of the St. Cloud community I grew up in. As a result, history has been made today after 113 years, and long overdue.”
Paul gave a nod to longtime community activist Dolores McMillon, who helped integrate St. Cloud High School, calling her, “The definition of a trailblazer.”
“We can’t change the past, but we can certainly move forward, to strive to create an inclusive future where no race or culture goes unheard.”
Robertson also ran for mayor in 2020, The son of a former School Board member, he said he looks forward to learning from members like Urban, Ken Gilbert and Shawn Fletcher.
“These guys are awesome, and I look forward to working with them, and I met Jen Paul on the last few weeks on the campaign trail, and she’s a fighter,” the new mayor said. “I look forward to the next four years. We want the citizens to hold us accountable … we work for you, and we will not forget that.”
“I do not take this responsibility lightly,” Urban said. “I look forward to working for you for the next four years.”
Robertson and Paul replace Nathan Blackwell and Linette Matheny. St. Cloud Council members serve four-year terms and are limited to two consecutive terms in office.
“I won’t be running for office again, but I will still be around working and serving in the community,” Blackwell said.
During the meeting, the Council selected Fletcher to serve as deputy mayor through September 2025. The deputy mayor fills in for the mayor in the event the mayor is unavailable.
In other action, the Council held a public hearing and agreed to annex 16.2 acres for Lake Lizzie Residential Development, and approved rezoning 30.38 acres on Nova Road to a low-density residential future land use, which prompted discussion about potential traffic issues that could result.
Resident John Melvin addressed the Council: “The only problem that we’re seeing is there’s going to be just too much going on, too much traffic. Right now, you have a high school being built, you have a bus depot being built (both on Nova about a mile north of U.S. 192). You have, as soon as you turn into Nova Road, a big old apartment complex being built. And we just think that you need to work on the roads, at least put in another lane, so we won’t be stuck trying to get out to go do what we have to do as residents of Wesley Estates.”
Planner John Adams said Nova Road is already being studied for widening.
“Nova Road is currently a framework road in Osceola County. It’s currently under a PD&E study,” he said. “So the county’s already studying widening the road. That study’s supposed to wrap up early next year and then go into a design phase. The design for it is a four-lane divided highway with pedestrian and bike lane access along it. It’s already on the County’s radar. It hasn’t been funded yet, but it’s going through that process to be widened, and that likely would start before any development on this property happens.”
