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Deputy Mayor of Melbourne Paul Alfrey announced in a Facebook post his run for Mayor. His post in its entirety is as follows.

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Why I have chosen to run for Mayor of the City of Melbourne.

During the past several months it has never been more important to have strong business minded leadership in our City. In these challenging times many small businesses are struggling and our residents feel uncertain times. As each day brings a new challenges it also brings another opportunity to make our community better, safer and stronger. 

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As I complete my first term as Vice Mayor I am engaged in Melbourne’s Buy-Local campaign. In an effort to help rebuild Melbourne’s local economy, I along with others have worked tirelessly to reduce regulation to create a pro-businesses environment. As my family celebrates fifty years of owning a small business in the Melbourne area, I understand the needs and challenges of a business and the urgency for a solid economic recovery. 

Community minded leadership is more important than ever in an elected official. I strive everyday to be that leader. Fortunately next week we will open our second dog park built by our community. I brought this concept to our Council which had never been done before. By using community partners, the sweat equity from hundreds of volunteers and recycled materials we built the Pieloch dog parks in Eau Gallie and Melbourne. These dog parks are incredible assets for our community to use.

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 Last year as Hurricane Dorian devastated the Bahamas, I helped form and lead the Brevard’s Relief for the Bahamas. With the amazing efforts of hundreds of volunteers, our business and governmental partners, the Orlando-Melbourne International Airport, Space Coast Association of Realtors and Florida Tech and private pilots we successfully delivered nearly 100,000 pounds of food and supplied by air and sea. Our Brevard’s Relief was one of the first boots on the ground and provided life saving food and medicine to men, women and children in need. Our relief efforts continued for several months and were honorably mentioned in a news conference by our Governor and received a 2019 Space Coast Humanitarian Award from Space Coast Daily.

 I have led the fight for cleaner water for our community. Last year I demanded for cleaner water when residents began reporting water issues. I implemented a town hall with State Officials to ensure our residents voices were heard and questions answered. On a broader scale I began working with our Brevard County Commission to adopt a moratorium on the dumping of BioSolids from South Florida locally. Also pushing for infrastructure upgrades and improvements to the DB Lee and Grant Street Water Reclamation Facilities. These challenges still exist and it is important to have a leader that will work tirelessly to meet our clean water goals. 

I have kept my promise and gone through the budget identifying ways to keep spending in check. During this time more money has been spent on infrastructure including roads and drainage than ever before. During a review I also identified an internal invoice scam that took money from our general fund and diverted it for personal use. After recovering some of the stolen tax dollars I went to Tallahassee to obtain an audit on our City by our State Auditor General. After presenting evidence the Joint Legislative Auditing Committee unanimously approved the audit which is ongoing. Changes by the new administration already includes a City anti-fraud policy and training to all employees. This audit will be made available to the public when it is released within the next few months.

 Most importantly I have made myself available to our residents. My personal cell phone number is available on the City website. I have met our residents to discuss their issues and needs even on weekends and holidays. And besides volunteering hundreds of hours in the community any “take-home” salary from our Council is donated back into our community. It would be my honor to serve you and our City, as your Mayor, and work with you to overcome the challenges that will face us and our families. I humbly ask for your support and vote as Mayor for the City of Melbourne.

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