by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
Last week, City Council member Lad Daniels became the first to officially enter the race for Council vice president. Since then, Lynette Self has entered the race and there figures to be others.
No matter how many enter the fray that will be decided in April, Daniels plans to campaign for votes based on three issues: economic disparity across Jacksonville, health care and work force development. While health care is a common theme among politicians these days, it’s not surprising Daniels will focus on two work force-related issues. Daniels owns Daniels & Associates, Inc. and is president of the First Coast Manufacturers Association.
Being an at-large Council member has been, according to Daniels, the single biggest factor in his education about Jacksonville. Despite being here for the last 30 years, Daniels said he only thought he knew Jacksonville and its needs. His at-large status has forced him to become familiar with all areas of town, which has resulted in Daniels’ enlightenment.
“I’m very concerned about economic disparity,” said Daniels. “I want the Manufacturers Association to see what we can do to broaden our economic base and create more jobs. I want to reduce the economic disparity in Jacksonville.”
Health care is a close second on Daniels’ list of priorities should he get the vice presidential nod.
“All of us are concerned about health care and the ability to get it and afford it,” said Daniels. “There are health care issues in the legislature, but I’m concerned about that as an issue
locally.“
Daniels is worried that resources like Shands Jacksonville are overburdened by the number of patients they see annually. He’s also concerned that too many people in Jacksonville don’t seek proper medical treatment, not because they can’t afford it, but because they are unaware of the resources available.
“I’d like to see us make more effective use of the area’s health clinics and use more of the full-service facilities,” said Daniels. “We have a pretty good array of facilities in the community, but they are not being totally utilized.”
While he doesn’t have a specific plan formulated yet regarding health care improvements in Jacksonville, Daniels does feel that bettering the local health care system can only be a good omen for the rest of the country. Jacksonville may not ever be considered the model for health care reform, but Daniels feels if Jacksonville can show it can be done, other communities will follow suit.
“I think every community in the country is addressing this,” said Daniels. “All of them have the same problems.”
The businessman in Daniels is what prompts his third major area of concern. Daniels is worried that the average worker in Jacksonville is not prepared for the inevitable technological advances. He calls it work force development, and it concerns the already established worker as opposed to the recent college graduates.
“We have got to do something to train people to fit into the work world not for tomorrow, but for today. We need to improve their computer skills and increase the education level of the existing work force,” said Daniels. “I’m concerned about the 25-45 year-olds in the work force that have good jobs, but don’t have the skills to move up or transfer to another job.”
Daniels came to Jacksonville in 1972 after spending 10 years as what he calls a “corporate nomad.” The Norfolk, Va. native spent the first 10 years of his professional life renting moving vans.
“From 1962 until 1972, I was in Cincinnati, Boston, Winston-Salem, Atlanta and Miami,” said Daniels, who earned a bachelor’s degree from North Carolina State University and a master’s degree in business administration from Harvard. “I had a chance to come to Jacksonville with The Charter Company and get back into real estate, which is what I wanted to do.”
Like many of his colleagues, Daniels was elected to Council in 1999 after running at the urging of family and friends. He and his wife, Carol, had seen their two children grow up and leave home and Daniels realized that he finally had the time to pursue his political interests.
“I had thought about it for some time,” he said. “I realized I wanted to give something back to the community and people had urged me to run. My kids were grown and Carol and I were kind of empty-nesters. I decided it was a good time to run.”
Daniels believes that the timing is right to seek an officer position on Council. In addition to his professional endeavors, Daniels has also served as chairman of The Players Championship, president of the Mandarin Rotary, an advisor to the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission, former chairman of the Land Use & Zoning Committee and is the president-elect of JCCI as well as a host of other authoritative positions.
“I believe my leadership skills will help Council move forward,” said Daniels, adding that he hopes he can parlay winning the vice presidency into the Council president job in 2003-04.
“There’s no guarantee in life,” said Daniels of ascending to president should he win the vice president’s race. “When you get in, you hope your colleagues that supported you for vice president recognize your talents and support you the following year. You hope to prove yourself.
“I hope I can live up to the standards of this Council and we have set some high standards.”