Hanns seeks his old commission seat

District

Brent Woronoff Associate Editor

Former Flagler County Commissioner George Hanns has announced that he will run again for the District 5 Commission seat in 2024.

Hanns served on the commission for 24 years, from 1992 to 2016. Before that, he served on the Palm Coast Service District Advisory Board for two years before Palm Coast was incorporated. He served as County Commission chair in 2009-10 and 2013-14.

Hanns lost his seat to Don-

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ald O’Brien in 2016. O’Brien announced he will not seek re-election to the commission next year in order to run for the open District 19 Florida House of Representatives seat, as House Speaker Paul Renner will be finishing his final term.

Hanns, 76, a retired builder, said he has been volunteering, primarily as a tour guide at Princess Place Preserve, where the covered bridge on site is named in his honor.

“I have so much energy. I just wanted to throw my hat in the ring again,” he said.

Hanns cites several projects he helped bring to fruition during his years as a commissioner, including the Princess Place Preserve, Flagler County’s artificial reefs, the Florida Agricultural Museum, the Flagler County Youth Center and roller rink and the establishment of parks and nature trails.

“I’ve always been mindful of doing positive things that will help the majority of the

“This program gives students an opportunity to quickly learn new skills in a high-demand field and helps address the challenges to our transportation and supply chain issues,” DSC President Dr. Tom LoBasso said.

The first class of eight students starts April 10 at DSC’s Advanced Technology College, and is already full. The college plans to start a new class every week and train 200 drivers annually. The four-week, 160-hour program consists of one week of classroom time and three weeks in a truck.

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Kistemaker Business Law Group and Erum Kistemaker people,” he said.

Hanns, who had been a Democrat throughout his tenure on the commission, will run as a Republican.

“I’ve never been active in politics,” he said. “I’ve always voted for Republicans or Democrats, whoever I believe in, and I still do that. I changed parties two years ago. I just couldn’t see any connection with my thought process with the Democratic party and all that was going on.” have hired Sydney Russell as a legal assistant. The Palm Coast local is a UCF student pursuing her bachelor’s degree in legal studies, with a minor in human services. She is applying to law schools and looking forward to pursuing her legal career. Kistemaker Business Law Group’s former legal assistant, Rima Suleiman, is now an attorney with the firm. “We are so fortunate to have found such a dedicated team member and quick learner in Sydney. It has given us a great opportunity to continue to grow the business,” Kistemaker said.

“Additionally, the training and teaching process is really exciting for us, and we have found so many strong future attorneys throughout the years.”