Former Ranch CDD supervisor to run for commission seat

LAKEWOOD RANCH — Watercrest Kathleen Grant isn’t your typical retiree.

At 65, she still takes piano lessons to challenge herself, and makes sure to exercise every day, for example.

But Grant, who moved to the area from Florida in 2004, has added another challenge to her agenda.

Grant has filed to run against incumbent Vanessa Baugh for the Manatee County District 5 Commission seat, which represents Lakewood Ranch and the bulk of the East County area. She joins Thomas Batchelor, who announced his candidacy last month, and she is working to secure 413 signatures required to have her name added to the November 2016 ballot.

“The last couple of years has been a growth explosion,” said Grant, who worked in finance before becoming a tax attorney. “It seems our county commission is reactive, rather than proactive. A lot of the residents are frustrated, I think, by the feeling of a lack of voice. A lot of people have been complaining, like me, for change. You can complain, or you can do something about it. I just decided I’m going to put my hat in the ring.”

Grant has been in retirement for more than a decade, although she stays busy reading, practicing piano, playing bridge and engaging in other activities. Since moving into the Watercrest community in 2006, she’s served on the condo association’s board, although it’s not a role she currently occupies, and also served as a Lakewood Ranch Community Development District 2 supervisor from 2007 to March 2014, at which time she resigned to handle family affairs following the death of her mother.

Grant said her feelings a decade ago, when she expressed concerns about the extension of Honore Avenue as a University Park resident, were the same as when she fought approvals for Homes by Towne to build a seven-level, 80-unit condo complex on Lakewood Ranch Main Street last year.

“I had a sense that outcomes are predetermined,” Grant said, adding she felt like commissioners did not understand her concerns about traffic from the Homes by Towne project. “It was like we were talking to a brick wall. The lack of responsiveness was kind of the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

Grant believes the biggest issues facing the area are traffic and development. She recognizes that growth funds infrastructure, but thinks there is a better way of ensuring roadway improvements coincide with development.

“I’m all for development, but I think part of the problem is the general economy. We had a real bust and then all the sudden, we had growth. How can we do development in a way that makes sense for the community and the developer? What’s being done right and what’s being done wrong?”

Grant said she’s on a big learning curve and is working now to educate herself on the county’s policies and processes, as well as its budget and priorities. She also wants to learn if East County is “getting its fair share of services,” because she suspects the answer is “No.” She’s a little nervous, but confident in her abilities.

“I’ve never done this before,” Grant said, adding her mother had always encouraged her to run for public office, or something similar. “I’m ready for the next challenge. I like to get things done.”

Contact Pam Eubanks at [email protected].