Lake Mary Commissioner George Duryea — one of the longest serving elected officials in the state — faces a challenge from Kristina Renteria, an accountant, in the city’s Nov. 7 election.
Early voting will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday, at the Supervisor of Elections office, 1500 E. Airport Blvd., Sanford. On Election Day, ballots can be cast between 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Lake Mary City Hall, 100 N. Country Club Road.
In Lake Mary’s other political contest, Commissioner Justin York was elected to a new term after not drawing an opposing candidate.
Duryea, an accountant, was first elected to the Lake Mary commission in 1987. He did not respond to several requests to talk about his reelection campaign and does not have a political website.
Renteria, the owner of a small business, also did not return several requests to comment on her campaign. She did, however, conduct an interview with the Orlando Sentinel’s editorial board.
According to her campaign website, Renteria wants Lake Mary to assure its residents that its drinking water is safe by conducting “aggressive testing” following a recent Sentinel investigative series “Toxic Secret,” which detailed how the forever chemical 1,4-dioxane seeped into the area’s water supply.
The likely source of the contamination was a manufacturing plant on Rinehart Road that eventually closed down. Lake Mary two years ago opened a $40-million state-of-the-art water-treatment plant that rids drinking water of 1,4-dioxane. The plant was paid for by Siemens, one of the operators of the plant, in an agreement with the city of Lake Mary.
Renteria proposes that the city detail in its monthly water bills to customers all the chemicals in its drinking water.
“When I get my water bill, I want to know what’s in it,” she said to the Sentinel’s editorial board.
Renteria also proposes the city request funding from the U.S. Department of Environmental Protection and the Florida Department of Health to provide water filters and cancer screenings to residents because of the 1,4-dioxane contamination.
On her website, Renteria advocates for better transparency regarding the city’s finances. But she does not provide any other details.
She also wants the city impose term limits for commissioners, but she did not say for how many years.
“[Duryea] has been a commissioner since 1987,” Renteria said to the Sentinel’s editorial board. It seems “you get into City Hall, and you stay there for life.”
Lake Mary commissioners are elected citywide and serve two-year terms. They each earn $8,700 a year.
Over the past three decades, the city has seen its population soar more than threefold from about 5,000 residents in 1990 to about 17,000 residents in 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Lake Mary also has experienced a growth boom along Rinehart Road. Orlando Health is the anchor tenant for the Lake Mary Wellness and Technology Park. It includes a future hospital, medical office complex, new hotel, apartments and assisted living center.
“I want controlled development,” Renteria said.
mcomas@orlandosentinel.com
