I find it very rare and extremely refreshing to have a government official whose only agenda is to help his community in any way possible. We are extremely blessed to have a man like Jeff Hmara be our voice on the Royal Palm Beach Village Council. He has brought his experience, honesty, intelligence, leadership and management expertise, and his true love for his community to his position as a councilman.
Constituents are always complaining that our council doesn’t listen to them. I know for a fact that Jeff listens to and hears every word. I watched him do his due diligence when investigating the possibility of a RaceTrac gas station coming to Royal Palm Beach. I asked him what his opinion was. He told me he couldn’t have an opinion. He said he had to listen to what the community wanted, and he had to take the time to study the laws and guidelines pertaining to this new business coming here before he could determine how he’d vote. And that’s exactly what he did.
Thanks to Jeff’s efforts, there were many changes made and many requirements put upon RaceTrac before the commercial project was approved. I believe we all owe him a big thank you for the work he did on the FEMA flood maps issue for our community. Thanks to his vast experience in his previous professional positions, he was able to lead the effort to sit down with FEMA and prove that the plans they were working with were outdated and had to be redrawn. Thanks to Jeff, many of our homeowners are no longer in jeopardy of wrongly being forced to purchase high-priced flood insurance because of outdated maps.
Jeff Hmara is a realist and knows that the majority of Royal Palm Beach residents don’t and never will attend village meetings. But in an effort to keep us all informed, he started an e-mail blast outlining all topics and projects happening in the village. He provides insight to their progress, the stated pros and cons of each project, and a timeline for action on said projects. We, as residents, have the ability to stay informed of what our local government is planning for the future of our community via these e-mails.
Sometimes Jeff Hmara’s honesty and knowledge is seen by others as a hindrance or unwanted obstacle to their own agenda. As a Royal Palm Beach resident, I find it refreshing and know that our common good is being defended and protected. We know that Jeff is on top of all issues affecting Royal Palm Beach. We can trust him to listen, be honest, and to do his very best to help the council arrive at good, solid decisions from which all of its residents can benefit.
Donna A. Broder, Royal Palm Beach
