ORANGE PARK – Longtime resident and U.S., Air Force veteran Kenny Radwanski has filed to run for Seat 1 on the Orange Park Town Council.

Radwanski will join a race that already includes incumbent Doug Benefield, appointed last August following the resignation of councilman Eddie Henley. The Municipal Super Tuesday election will be on April 11.

While the veteran might not have any experience as an elected government official, Radwanski has been keeping a trained eye on town affairs since 2001.

Radwanski is a regular figure for residents, officials and town employees at many town functions. The veteran has participated in the following meetings for the last 22 years.

These include Town Council sessions and other meetings crucial to the town’s very lifeblood, such as the Pension Board, Public Works, Environmental Quality Board, Economic Development Council, Public Works, Planning and Zoning and Culture and Recreation Department meetings.

He put his dedication to the town like this: 

“If I’m in a wheelchair on oxygen, I will still be at these meetings to hear and listen. I’ve always stood up and will always stand up for all residents, all the time.”

The veteran believes that the town government is trying its best but still falling short of meeting the needs of residents.

Town management and town government are trying, but they’re not trying hard enough,” Radwanski said.

Radwanski is running on several issues. Still, a critical point of focus for the veteran is his position on using ARPA monies, which were awarded to the town and state as part of the American Rescue Plan Act following the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We have spent money on many things, and town management has found out that we could have received homeland security, state and federal money without using those funds,” Radwanski said.

The candidate also said that he is also committed to improving infrastructure.

“When we get four-to-seven inches of rain in the town, a lot of roads are blocked off from flooding, drainage and infrastructure. The silt is backed up into slews, creeks, and brooks and needs to be cleaned out again. I don’t think that they have been cleaned out in four-to-five years. I’m hoping to get the town on some sort of schedule to clean these ditches and slews that flood homes every time we have a big storm, hurricane, or just a lot of rain,” Radwanski said.

Radwanski’s message to the community is complete with a giant green billboard, which voters can see when they’re heading east on Kingsley Avenue.

It says, “Vote Kenny Radwanski: A Voice For All Residents.” The sign is at the parking lot between Dubo’s Roofing and the railroad tracks.

His final message to voters was this: “I’m not a politician, but I would be the first Radwanski from here to Poland to be one. But I’m not here for politics. I’m here to make a difference.”