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Resident at Large: Rich Popovic
• Not afraid to speak his mind
Saturday,
January 3, 2009
Rich Popovic attends just about every Margate City Commission meeting. Each time, he takes advantage of the three minutes every resident is entitled to speak about how the City of Margate is run. He often addresses the commission in an unpleasant way, lambasting elected officials for what he refers to as their ineptness, poor oversight, haphazard policy making and overall lack of integrity in the political process.
Commissioners sometimes thrash back at Popovic and come just short of having him removed from city meetings.
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Rich Popovic has lived in Margate for more than 20 years and has run for City Commission six times. Some say he continues to lose to incumbents – not because he’s not qualified to be commissioner, but rather because of his sometimes overbearing radical demeanor.
Others say it’s the benefits of incumbency that give Popovic’s opponents the advantage. Incumbents can more easily raise campaign funds, they typically get the support of local police and fire unions, have established ‘name recognition’ and enter the political race with a presumed 11 percent lead in voter share over their challenger, says political analyst, Patrick Basham, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute’s Center for Representative Government.
An example is acting Margate Mayor, Arthur Bross, who raised more than $23,000 during his last campaign – ten times that of his opponents in 2008 – mostly collected from area developers, the unions, Waste Management and attorney firm Ruden McCloskey, lawyers who frequently bring clients before city officials in Margate.
Popovic is convinced that over the years, Margate government has grown lazy, corrupt and one-sided in their approach to the needs of residents. He insists that budgetary problems in Margate stem from over-inflated administrative salaries and are exacerbated by the misappropriation of taxpayer dollars.
Considering that the combined salaries of Margate’s city attorney and city manager alone fall short of half a million dollars, Popovic may not be too far off base.
“Most people are afraid to come up here and say anything for fear of being thrown under a bus,” Popovic told commissioners at a recent city meeting.
The former commission candidate and professional house painter may be right. Of the thousands of Margate taxpayers all of whom are entitled to three minutes of speak at the beginning of every commission meeting twice monthly; only two or three residents show up regularly to either voice their approval or disapproval of how the city is run, or to provide input that might benefit city business.
“Everybody’s too chicken to say anything,” Popovic said, “It’s why things are the way they are. We’ve got no money for parks, no new ideas and the highest property taxes in the county. It’s like we’re the doormat for Broward County.”
Newbies who attend Margate city commission meetings often don’t know what to make of Popovic. He’s so outspoken and candid it’s tough to decipher as a first timer whether he’s crazy or brilliant. Margate lobbyist Jack Tobin, Popovic’s nemesis, can be seen telling residents in City Chambers that Popovic is out of his mind and not to listen, referring to Popovic as an _ _ _ hole, this in exchange for Popovic rattling Tobin’s world by oftentimes standing between him and the private deals he nurtures with select commissioners.
Popovic said that when Margate’s newest Commissioner, David McLean, was elected in 2004, he thought McLean would be the one to turn the city around, but since, “has just become a tool for Jack,” Popovic said. “Doing whatever Tobin needs him to do.”
McLean has lashed out at Popovic on more than one occasion at city meetings: Once when Popovic criticized McLean and other commissioners for their unprofessionalism in eating during meetings and speaking with their mouths full, and again for constantly criticizing the actions of elected officials without offering up alternative solutions to the problems he speaks to.
Commissioner Talerico has condemned Popovic for what the commissioner refers to as Popovic’s baseless accusations regarding the taking of ‘graft,’ and Commissioner Varsallone has asked police, on more than one occassion, to throw Popovic out of a meeting for being disruptive. Recently, Mayor Bross acted to remove Popovic for speaking out of turn.
At first glance, it appears that those in the audience of commission meetings dismiss Popovic’s comments as rhetoric, but a closer look reveals that everyone is indeed listening to what the long-time Margate resident has to say.
Why?
Because in the spirit of the First Amendment, Popovic has the guts to speak out about government, and people admire that.
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Margate residents are entitled to address city officials for up to three minutes at the beginning of city commission meetings which take place twice monthly at City Hall. Find the schedule on the Margate website. Topics are limited to city business only and you must arrive a few minutes early to fill out the 'yellow card' located at the entrance to meeting chambers. Once you fill out the card, hand it to the City Clerk in the back of chambers and to the left of the dais.
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