FLORENCE, Ky. — The retail center of northern Kentucky, the city of Florence, will have a new mayor for the first time in a long time. Current Mayor Diane Whalen is not seeking re-election after 24 years in office, instead opting for retirement.
There is much common ground, and also much different, in how mayoral candidates Dr. Julie Metzger Aubuchon and Duane Froelicher are each approaching their run for the office.
Starting with the similarities, both were born and bred in the city they’re racing to be mayor of.
“I’m a lifelong resident of Florence,” Metzger Aubuchon said.
“Grew up in the city of Florence,” said her opponent, Froelicher. “It’s hard to believe that mom and dad first bought the house in 1976. We’ve been here for 46 years.”
Beyond both being natives, they both have backgrounds in business, are close with their families and have both served on Florence City Council.
Metzger Aubuchon, the city’s current vice mayor, has been a council member since 1999. The optometrist has her eyes set on a different seat in the council chambers, however. It’s the one Whalen has occupied for more than two decades. Whalen’s father and former Florence Mayor, “Hop” Ewing, is the person responsible for the “Florence Y’all” phrase on the city’s iconic water tower.
The person who takes Whalen’s seat will also attempt to fill some metaphorical shoes, which Metzger Aubuchon acknowledged are quite big.
“They are, but I’m ready. I’m prepared. I have leadership experience within the city. But I have a broad leadership base from my interactions with other community groups,” she said. “As a member of city council for quite some time now, I’ve been able to serve the citizens here in Florence. And with Mayor Whalen retiring, I feel like it’s a great opportunity for me to utilize my leadership experience.”
Froelicher served on the city council for six years.
Like his opponent, Froelicher has extensive leadership experience. He’s president and owner of the financial planning firm Walden Advisors, where he works with small business owners and individuals to make sure they have the assets they need for retirement.
He was also president of the Florence Rotary Club, and has been highly involved with Honor Flight.
Metzger Aubuchon’s list of credentials is also long.
She’s the owner of Metzger Eye Care, which is in its 65th year of continuous operation. Aubuchon followed in her father’s footsteps as an optometrist.
She’s also served as the United States Junior Chamber National President, a member of the Northern Kentucky Health Department Board and has been highly involved with other non-profit groups.
Both candidates say they plan to put great focus on the city’s budget.
“I think experience matters. I think I’m intimately involved with the history of the city of Florence. I understand our budgeting process. I understand our city operations,” Metzger Aubuchon said.
She listed adequate funding for the city’s police and fire departments and fixing up city roads in need of maintenance as budget items high on her priority list. That also includes building relationships with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet to address traffic concerns in the city.
Metzger Aubuchon said she plans to take a fiscally conservative approach, and largely follow the model set by Mayor Whalen. She said the city needs to maintain healthy reserves to weather economic impacts like a major pandemic. She says she has a unique perspective on the needs of the small business community, given her experience as a business owner.
The budget is also where some of the key differences between the candidates come into play, as Froelicher’s approach is less status quo.
“I really studied the budget. The city has an extremely large surplus. As we know, everything’s going up, and it’s time to cut taxes,” he said.
That’s the tagline you’ll see on his campaign signs: “I’m lowering your taxes.”
Froelicher said the city can stand to lower homeowners taxes, and insurance premium taxes, which he said have an “extremely high” rate of six percent, and can be “cut in half, easily,” in addition to payroll taxes.
“We have one of the highest payroll taxes in northern Kentucky, and that can be easily cut,” he said. “When I was on council, I would bring it up to the mayor, and the mayor would not budge on it. And now that she’s retiring, it’s time for reform. It’s time for a change within the city.”
Workforce development and parks and recreation are also top priorities for Froelicher.
“All our companies I’ve talked with, they can’t find employees. So we need to make sure we work with the chamber of commerce, and how do we attract and retain good employees?” he said. “My opponent voted to demolish our swimming pool. In the future, we want to expand the pool, and make sure that’s a viable option for all citizens of the city of Florence.”
Despite Froelicher’s claim, Metzger Aubuchon said she has never voted to demolish the Florence Aquatic Center.
During a June 2021 city council meeting, Metzger Aubuchon voted ‘yes,’ as did the rest of her fellow council members, to approve the city’s budget, which did not include funding for the aquatic center at the time. The pool had been closed since 2019 due to the pandemic.
The following month, during a July 2021 city council meeting, Metzger Aubuchon made a motion to abandon the previous timeline established to demolish the pool, to instead survey Florence residents.
During a January 2022 council meeting, Metzger Aubuchon voted to amend the city’s budget to include funding the aquatic center for one year.
Metzger Aubuchon sent the following statement after the intial publishing of this story:
“Since the pool's inception, I have recognized the pool as a valuable asset. Any claim that I sought to board up, permanently close, or demolish the Florence Aquatic center is inaccurate. Instead of closing it, I worked to build consensus among the council. I made the motion that the Florence Aquatic Center would open for the season and not be demolished. Any statement that implies that I am opposed to recreation opportunities, including the pool, is a misrepresentation, and should be considered false.
My priority is for meeting the needs of our residents in a way that makes the best use of tax-payer money. I am committed to looking at every way our city generates revenues and taxes, as well as every way our city spends money. I am committed to making cuts in taxes and spending, when indicated, while still maintaining the level of services that our residents and businesses have come to expect.
This is keeping with my stance that we invest in our community's infrastructure and services as I did when I voted to fund additional police officers, a new firehouse on the east side of town, sidewalks on Weaver Road, and a new park at Main and Shelby Streets.”
The decision on whether to reopen the Florence Aquatic Center, or demolish it, was divisive for many Florence residents. The previously mentioned survey showed they were split almost right down the middle.
While the pool ultimately stayed open, its financial and political implications will bear out for years to come. Those are challenges both candidates say they’re ready to take on.
“I really want my son to be as proud of Florence as I am. And I want to be the type of leader that represents the city extremely well, and makes my family proud. Because this is my hometown, and I have a passion for this community. And I feel like this is the time for a new generation of leaders to step up. And I think that I am that next generation to lead the city in a positive direction, and continue all the progress that we’ve made,” Aubuchon said.
That passion is, again, something both candidates claim to have. However, while the water tower may say “Florence Y’all,” there will only be one new mayor.
To learn more about both Metzger Aubuchon and Froelicher, visit their campaign websites.
EDITOR’S NOTE:
A previously published version of this article failed to verify Froelicher’s claim that Metzger Aubuchon voted to demolish the Florence Aquatic Center. Metzger Aubuchon was not asked about this claim before initial publishing, which she has since stated is false. This version includes Metzger Aubuchon’s recent history of voting on the funding of the aquatic center, and a statement in response to Froelicher’s claim. In light of this information, the line in the previous article: “The decision on whether to reopen the Florence Aquatic Center, or demolish it, was divisive not just for the city’s mayoral candidates, but for many Florence residents.” has been changed to “The decision on whether to reopen the Florence Aquatic Center, or demolish it, was divisive for many Florence residents.”
Spectrum News 1 has asked Froelicher for a response to Metzger Aubuchon’s statement. He has not responded to that request.