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Cape Coral council appoints seven juniors, three seniors and a two-year youth council adviser
Summary
The Cape Coral City Council appointed seven students to junior positions on the Youth Council, three students to senior positions and named former councilor Tom Hayden as a two-year adviser. The council voted 7–1 to confirm the seven juniors after addressing school-representation rules.
The Cape Coral City Council on May 7 appointed seven juniors and three seniors to the Cape Coral Youth Council and named Tom Hayden as the council’s two-year adviser.
Council members voted to appoint seven junior members — Jennifer Turo, Zachary Justin, Megan Jacks, Bernice Sanchez, Landon Jackson, Ally Busey and Camilla Vargas — after a tally that required resolving a tie and ensuring representation among the city’s high schools. The motion to appoint those seven passed on a roll call of 7–1 (Lehman opposed). The council then approved three senior appointments — Manzo Perez, Saint Germain and Zapato Vasquez — by unanimous vote.
The discussion before the junior appointments focused on geographic and school balance. Council members repeatedly said their goal was to include representation from Cape Coral High, Oasis and other schools; council members reviewed vote totals and noted that selecting one candidate over another would affect a school’s representation. After counting the ballots and resolving which tied candidates would fill the final seat, a motion was made and seconded to appoint the seven juniors and the council called the roll (Kilraane: yes; Lastra: yes; Lehman: no; Long: aye; Steinke: aye; Donnell: aye; Gunter: aye; Kaduk: aye).
Council members then moved to confirm the three senior appointees. The motion to appoint Manzo Perez, Saint Germain and Zapato Vasquez to the senior positions — with terms expiring May 1, 2026 — passed unanimously (8–0) on roll call.
Separately, the council appointed former councilor Tom Hayden to serve as the youth council adviser for a two-year term beginning May 1. City staff noted the proposed ordinance before council sets adviser terms at two years and provides a proration mechanism if appointments occur after May 1. The adviser appointment passed 8–0 on roll call.
The appointments follow the council’s recent revision of youth council composition and appointment procedures; staff said deferral agreements and term lengths were spelled out in the ordinance introduced to formalize the changes.
