Tavares council votes to pursue referendum language to switch council terms to four years

The Tavares City Council voted unanimously March 4 to direct city staff to prepare ballot language for a charter referendum that would move council terms from two years to four and to plan an informational campaign before the vote.

Council members debated the idea for more than an hour, weighing continuity and institutional knowledge against the potential savings from eliminating off-year municipal elections. Council member Doug Cohen presented the proposal’s structure, saying council seats would shift to four-year terms with a limit of two consecutive terms for council members and an increase of the mayor’s term to two years. "It would save us approximately in 2 years somewhere in the neighborhood of $80,000," Cohen said, later noting a separate figure "right around $40,000" as the cost to fund a municipal election.

Other members offered mixed views. Council member Sandy, who said staff researched service records back to 1932, described herself as "on the fence" about term limits but supportive of the four‑year term for cost reasons. Mr. Price noted that most Lake County cities already use four-year terms and cited an estimated $50,000 annual saving from removing off‑year elections.

Resident Gary Santoro told the council the issue had failed at the ballot previously because voters feared perceived power grabs, and urged the council to emphasize dollars-and-cents messaging and education if the measure moves forward. "If we hit the point about dollars and cents that is costing the city … it could be 1 person or 2 people. It's outrageous," Santoro said during public comment.

City staff outlined the timeline and procedural steps: staff will provide draft ballot language for council review (the city attorney would prepare the official language), with a proposed first reading on April 1 and second reading on April 15; the clerk would transmit language to the supervisor of elections by Aug. 16 for the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot. Staff estimated ballot printing costs "under $10,000" depending on length, advertising roughly $4,000, and suggested a placeholder of about $14,000 from reserves to cover costs while noting that final numbers may be lower.

The motion to bring back refined language and materials for voter information passed 5-0. Council instructed staff to return with formal ballot wording at the next meeting and to prepare neutral, factual materials explaining the measure and estimated costs.