Published On: Mon, Mar 8th, 2021

Meet Brian Stenberg, candidate for Boca Raton City Council Seat D

By: Mamie Barnhardt

Brian Stenberg, a candidate for Boca Raton City Council Seat D, knows Boca Raton. As a native Floridian, University of Florida alumnus, Boca Raton resident for almost 30 years, and certified property manager, Stenberg has the passion for our city and professional know-how to address key issues facing us in upcoming years.

Although he has never held office in municipal government, the Seat D candidate understands the workings of local government. Stenberg is a former Leadership Boca participant, and remarked in his candidate interview with the Boca Raton Tribune that running for public office is something that has been of interest to him for a while, saying that as his children got older he “…started to build the momentum toward running and saw an opportunity this year.” He is one of the 31 individuals that applied to fill the recent Seat C vacancy.  

 Additionally, Stenberg is no stranger to leadership, serving our community, and addressing what he sees as local issues as they come up.

“There was talk about rebuilding the school which was on Southwest 12th avenue….and part of that talk was to put that school over in Sugar Sand Park…” explained to the Tribune. When he realized the negative impact of removing the school from the neighborhood, he put together a community meeting which resulted in a long campaign including presence at city meetings, school board meetings and beach and park district meetings. The school board eventually decided to keep the school at the original site.

Stenberg, a partner at a local company which manages and develops medical office buildings, brings his professional experience to the campaign by making city spending as commercial properties’ assessed values decrease one of his three primary issues, according to his response to the Sun-Sentinel’s candidate questionnaire.

“I expect that growing vacancy in commercial properties will result in significant assessed value reductions in the next few years. Value reductions will reduce real estate tax revenue to the City. Taxpayers…will not and cannot tolerate taxes to make up for what is lost to lower commercial property values,” asserted Stenberg.

Stenberg says if elected, he will promote public safety, clean water, and well-managed infrastructure as spending priorities.

His second key campaign issue, the one common between all candidates, addresses recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Stenberg’s response to the Sentinel questionnaire, he believes “we have to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19, support our businesses and residents during this time and ensure Boca Raton continues to be the world-class city we all love…”

Stenberg’s third key issue is ensuring that the city council votes for an appropriate replacement for current City Manager Leif Ahnell after he retires.

If elected, Stenberg asserts he will listen to issues encompassing every facet of the city, not just downtown. “I feel like there are a lot of neighborhoods in Boca Raton that could benefit from having city leadership come through and sit down…and talk about their vision for their neighborhood,” states Stenberg. He explains in the Tribune interview that it is important to have people work both amongst themselves and with the city government to address problems and understands that it is critical to have “somebody in city hall listening…to concerns.”

Finally, Stenberg points out that “when you are living in a city and the city is spending your money you can see where it goes.” Stenberg has enough experience to turn ideas into plans, but still takes time to address as many questions as he can. “I enjoy the opportunity…to campaign and hopefully serve at a much deeper level,” he said. 

Watch his complete interview below:

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