Lakeland swears in Guy LaLonde as its newest commissioner from the Northwest District
LAKELAND — Guy LaLonde Jr. was sworn in as Lakeland's newest commissioner representing the Northwest District on Monday morning.
LaLonde signed his oath of office Monday alongside Commissioners Chad McLeod and Bill Read in the commission chambers at City Hall before family and friends.
"I'm just excited to be here. It's a great first day and great to have family here," LaLonde said. "I really want to thank the citizens of Lakeland for trusting me with your vote. There's a lot of good work to do and I'm really excited to represent the Northwest District. It's a beautiful, rich, vibrant neighborhood.
LaLonde will serve a four-year term in office after beating Interim Commissioner Sam Simmons in the Dec. 5 runoff election. Simmons was appointed in October 2022 to fill the remainder of former Commissioner Phillip Walker's term.
"I'm very grateful to Dr. Simmons. He ran a very hard race and lots of big shoes to follow," LaLonde said.
Simmons sent a Dec. 27 email to Lakeland's City Clerk Kelly Koos noting that he was resigning from the position effective Dec. 30, a day before his term officially ended. It allowed Simmons to avoid filling out the state's controversial new Form 6 requirements, forcing elected city officials to submit more detailed financial disclosure forms in 2024.
"I just avoided the paperwork," he told The Ledger. "If I needed to, I wouldn’t have been opposed to it. I just went out and resigned a day earlier."
Mayor Bill Mutz joked with LaLonde that the "worst part is over," meaning the campaigning. McLeod, who was re-elected to his second term in the At-Large seat, offered insight to his new colleague on his "experience" campaigning.
"When I went to meetings and met with people in the community, it was a great experience to meet with people to share why it was that I was running for another term and why we want to hold these seats to lead this city," McLeod said. "I hope it not only made me a stronger candidate but a stronger commissioner coming into a second term having had to go out in the community and campaign."
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Commissioner Bill Read was re-elected to his third term in city office without a challenger. As the most senior member of the commission, he offered advice to LaLonde.
"When you are out and you’re with the city, it’s a never-ending issue," he said. "Invariably, people will come up and speak with you on a regular basis. It’s unique, as you get to see the problems they have and issues of importance to them."
Commissioner Stephanie Madden was unanimously chosen as Mayor Pro Tem, calling order and running meetings when Mutz is not present. She will take over this responsibility from Commissioner Sara Roberts McCarley, who has held the position for the past three years.
Sara-Megan Walsh can be reached at swalsh@theledger.com or 863-802-7545.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Guy LaLonde takes Northwest District seat on Lakeland commission
