After winning 40.03 percent of the vote in the six-way primary for Indian Trail Improvement District Seat 2 in August, candidate Richard Vassalotti II said a lot of hard work and listening to the “heartbeat” of the community paid off for him.
Now he faces incumbent Supervisor Keith Jordano, who finished second in the primary, during the Nov. 5 general election.
This week, Vassalotti, a retired captain with Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue, said he believes he’s “in a really good place.”
“My message is out there. People trust me, and they should,” he said.
However, at least some are questioning that trustworthiness, pointing to an Oct. 31, 1996, arrest alleging grand theft ($730) and engaging in a scheme to defraud the Village of Wellington related to hours worked as a pool lifeguard.
Vassalotti said this week, “I never conspired to defraud anyone. Nothing could be further from the truth.”
He was not suspended by PBCFR, nor did he plead guilty to any charge. However, he did make restitution and entered a pretrial intervention program.
Vassalotti said he did nothing wrong and that the incident “made me a better person dealing with financial situations. I’m grateful for the lessons learned.”
Since then, he said he has handled finances for his shift at his firehouse and for many fundraisers and there has never been an issue.
In fact, he noted that he has been endorsed by the Police Benevolent Association, the Professional Firefighters and Paramedics of Palm Beach County, and the Fraternal Order of Police.
Vassalotti also said he is not involved in the aggressively negative fliers, mailers and social media attacks on Jordano and Seat 4 incumbent Supervisor Betty Argue by a Tallahassee-based political action committee.
“I have nothing to do with that,” he said. “I have not slammed people who ran against me. I’ve shook hundreds of hands… and it’s clear the residents want a change.”
Visit www.electrichardvassalotti.com to learn more.
IN HIS OWN WORDS
Why are you running for the ITID board?
I love The Acreage and want what’s best for our residents. What initially started my journey to run for this board was the unfortunate and untimely death nine years ago of a high school senior who tragically lost her life in a vehicle crash at 120th and Tangerine Blvd. We have a serious traffic problem in The Acreage. I know how to fix these issues, and I’m absolutely determined to do so. However, making our roads safer will require someone who possesses knowledge of the issues at hand and is a strong leader who knows how to work cooperatively with Palm Beach County government.
What special qualifications do you have for the office?
My 29 years living in The Acreage and 15 years as a captain with PBCFR directly serving The Acreage have taught me so much about our community. ITID’s main purpose is to maintain and improve drainage, roads and parks. [In terms of drainage,] when Tropical Storm Isaac dumped 18 inches of rain on our area in 2012, I was on duty almost 120 straight hours cooperatively working with various agencies and our residents in the floodwaters. The lessons I learned during that event would prove invaluable as a board member for ITID if such an event were to occur again. [Safer roads are] my No. 1 priority. Making them safer will be something I will continually strive for. [As for parks,] the continual upkeep of all our parks is of extreme importance to me.
What do you see as the biggest challenge facing ITID?
Defending the borders of The Acreage from potential annexation, widespread development around us, tremendous traffic congestion, and the continual [need to push for] the State Road 7 extension.
With the influx of new development, how would you protect the residents from significant increases for road maintenance and safety concerns caused by cut-through traffic?
I will make sure that the county continually provides proper maintenance for the major through roads they own. I will work diligently with all county commissioners and traffic engineers to bring awareness to the dangers of ITID roads, help to make them safer… [which] in turn will help reduce taxes.
Do you support building, paving and expanding 60th Street North as a thoroughfare road from Seminole Pratt Whitney Road to State Road 7?
I do support improving 60th… If constructed appropriately, 60th will be vital for traffic relief, the safety of our residents and also help keep traffic off our interior roads.
Do you feel it is important to maintain ITID’s agricultural/residential/equestrian lifestyle? What steps would you take to do so?
There are signs when driving into our neighborhood that state “Welcome To The Acreage, A Rural Equestrian Community.” I wholeheartedly believe this and will continue to strive for what’s best for our community.
