BARTOW - Politicians, as a rule, pave their campaign trails with promises of things like better roads, lower taxes and greater safety for residents. But when it comes making New Year resolutions, many aren’t quite so bold.
“In the past, when I was younger, I made resolutions and everything went wrong to keep me from living up to them,” said Lake Wales Mayor Gene Fultz, “so I don’t do that anymore. Instead of resolutions, I just have desires.”
Polk County Commissioner George Lindsey said he’s adopted the same perspective.
“In order not to disappoint myself, I don’t make resolutions,” he said. “I don’t always practice what I preach. There is a desire, but there is no will, and I avoid being a hypocrite.”
Newly elected Lakeland City Commissioner Michael Dunn echoed that sentiment.
“I never really make New Year resolutions,” he said. “I see so many people make them and break them that it almost has zero worth. There’s always the one to get in shape, but I try to stay physically fit throughout the year without thinking about it.”
In Mulberry, Mayor George Hatch said he’s given up on the weight-loss pledge.
“I have the personal one, to lose weight,” he said, “but that never seems to work out. I do have a few for the city, though. I really want to see us finish building Lake Whidden Park.”
He also wants to move forward with repairing the water infiltration issues in the city’s sewer lines.
Across the county, Winter Haven City Commissioner Brad Dantlzer said he’s continued his father’s tradition of resolutions made with tongue planted firmly in cheek.
“My dad would say he wanted to stop smoking, but he never smoked,” he said. “My resolutions usually are something funny like that. This year, I think I’d learn a good magic trick.”
In all seriousness, Dantzler said, he hopes to slow down a bit in 2018.
“I want to enjoy the moment more,” he said, “to go outside and look at the moon.”
In Fort Meade, City Commissioner Jim Watts said he, too, is pledging to adopt a better perspective on life in 2018.
“I hope to stay healthy and active, to put more into my community and to be better about helping people in need,” he said. “I’d like to get a little more out of debt, but more importantly, to enjoy every minute of my life as much as I can.”
For Lake Alfred City Commissioner Nancy Daley, 2018 holds a new opportunity to express compassion.
“My resolution would be to be more kind, to listen more and to try to see both sides of things,” she said. “I wonder if I’m being as compassionate as I could be sometimes.”
Like other community leaders, newly elected Winter Haven City Commissioner J.P. Powell has abandoned New Year resolutions for himself, but is quick to offer a resolution to make the city a better place to live.
“I will be sworn in on Jan. 8, so it will start that day – to keep Winter Haven moving forward,” he said.
Likewise, Lindsey said he would pledge to continue the county’s funding commitment for first responders, including fire and emergency medical programs.
“We’ve always had a priority of public safety,” he said, “and we’re focusing on fire and emergency response. We’ve upgraded some of the stations and provided equipment for those services, including additional gear for our firefighters. I’m proud to be a part of that effort.”
In Lake Wales, Fultz said he’d like to see a handful of pending projects come to fruition in 2018, including a truck stop at U.S. 27 and Hunt Brothers Road and a new housing development along Chalet Suzanne Road.
Dunn said he’d like to see the Lakeland Commission increase communication with its residents.
“I’d like to see us keep the level of communication we have in the communities at the same level that it is when we’re campaigning,” he said. “We should be doing that all the time, and I’d like to see that happen.”
Suzie Schottelkotte can be reached at suzie.schottelkotte@theledger.com or 863-533-9070. Follow her on Twitter @southpolkscene.