City commissioners decided change isn’t always a good thing last week when they voted to keep all aspects of city leadership the same.
Rick Lott was unanimously selected to once again reign as Plant City’s mayor. Commissioner Mike Sparkman nominated Lott to once again have the spot, Vice Mayor Nate Kilton seconded the proposal and all commissioners voted in agreement.
“It’s such an honor to serve this community and to sit on this board and I am absolutely honored to be chosen to perform in this capacity,” Lott said. “I love this position, I love having the opportunity and when you give me a vote like that, it gives me the confidence to move forward and have the confidence that when I do work on representing you with everything that I do, I’m doing to represent you. I think that we have something really special, that we work as a team, as a family and we debate our issues, we work toward our issues, but we always find a way to come together for the good of our city. I’ve never seen an organization work the way we do here.”
Joking that he was ready to get back to work, Lott encouraged City Manager Bill McDaniel to call him 10 times a day if needed.
Lott then turned and asked Vice Mayor Nate Kilton if he would be interested in serving in the same capacity once again. Kilton agreed and since Lott selects his vice mayor, no vote was needed.
Kilton congratulated Lott on his reappointment and shared his respect for him.
“I think that people don’t realize the amount effort that you put into the position,” Kilton said. “You treat it really as a full time job and we are very well served by the work that you do and there’s a lot that you do that you never take credit for because that’s your character. I think we all have a tremendous amount of respect for that so I’m very confident in the hands that we’re in with you so thank you for taking that on again.”
The meeting also addressed the designation of representatives to various organizational assignments. The Council of Governments, Metropolitan Planning Organization, Plant City Economic Development Corporation, Ridge League of Cities, Tampa Bay Regional Council and the Tourist Development Council all were up for potential reshuffling.
However, Lott simply asked if anyone wanted to drop out of an assignment. No one at the dais was itching to move so they unanimously voted to remain in their current roles.
A full list of the boards and the representatives that fill each position is available online at plantcityobserver.com.
Many of the commissioners have been on the boards representing Plant City for years and have developed deep connections with their fellow representatives.
“Congratulations, you might break my record, so you’re the most served time as mayor,” Commissioner Mike Sparkman said. “As a note, as we’ve all said, you’ve just done a fantastic job. You put a lot of time and energy, it takes time to do the things, to do the jobs you’re doing. Also I’d like to congratulate the Vice Mayor that’s stepped right into your boots when it was necessary if you’re out of town or something like that. So I’m looking forward to having another great year with you guys.”
