Williamson plans to 'listen more, talk less, dream bigger'

Editor’s Note: This continues the Santa Rosa Press Gazette's ongoing series on Santa Rosa County candidates running in the Aug. 28, 2018, primary election and Nov. 6, 2018, general election.

Tell us about yourself. 

I’m a Florida native, growing up in the small town of Seminole. My wife Amie and I, both Florida State graduates, moved to Navarre in March of 2003 and have called Santa Rosa County home ever since. We have owned and operated a small business in Navarre since 2005. This Valentine's Day, Amie and I will celebrate 19 years of marriage. Our daughter, Annabelle, and our son, Hilton, attend Navarre schools and we are all active at Community Life United Methodist Church. 

Why are you running for commissioner? 

Four years ago, while campaigning throughout our county and knocking on thousands of doors, I had the life-changing experience of listening to the concerns, frustrations and ideas shared by citizens from all walks of life. They told me they were sick and tired of business as usual from local government. They felt no one was listening to them, like they didn’t have a voice in how their money was spent. They wanted new ideas, new leadership and new blood.

I took their message to heart and have worked every day to be their voice and help deliver their vision for what local government should be. I am running for re-election to continue being that voice and to stand up for all those who gave me the opportunity to serve. 

What do you want to accomplish if re-elected? 

(I want) to listen more, talk less, dream bigger and continue working every day to deliver the results citizens expect and deserve from their elected officials. Together, we are creating a shared vision of what our county can become and I believe our similarities are so much greater than our differences.

Proactively seeking opinions and ideas from Santa Rosa County residents is the foundation for every decision I make as your public servant. In my three years as District 4 commissioner, I have averaged at least one town hall-style meeting per month, including the creation of an annual countywide listening tour. I have read, sent and responded to more than 29,000 emails, answered thousands of calls, given countless media interviews and regularly post video and written updates on social media.

What started as a campaign, door to door and front porch to front porch, has become unprecedented, open and transparent communication from our District 4 commissioner. In District 4, we have conducted surveys, begun a District 4 master plan and keep looking for new and creative ways to make sure the voice of the people is being heard before decisions are made and money spent, not after.

Because of these efforts, your voice and your ideas have become my to-do list. I believe we want to accomplish many of the same things during the next four years. We all want a safer community and to trust our money is being spent wisely by elected leaders who are more concerned with the next generation instead of their next election.

We want to keep taxes low and government small. We support existing businesses while simultaneously creating an environment that will attract the job creators of tomorrow. We want responsible, planned development that delivers the recreation amenities and infrastructure our growing county needs. We want to preserve and protect our natural resources in a fiscally responsible way. And, we want to defend what our late friend, Sen. [Greg] Evers, called our "Panhandle values."

We have made great strides in the last few years and there is still much work to be done. Our future is bright. We are headed in the right direction and I look forward to seeing what we will accomplish together in the next four years.

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Williamson plans to 'listen more, talk less, dream bigger'