Three interested in vacant N. Naples Fire District seat

Those three Collier residents are interested in filling the vacant seat left by Fire Commissioner Steve Milligan, who resigned from the North Naples Fire District Nov. 1.

Pelican Bay homeowner Peggy Hanson, retired New York firefighter Keith Monzillo and local lawyer and one-time politician Michael Volpe have expressed their desire to serve as commissioner of the district.

Milligan, who served on the district board for seven years, recently moved to Sebring in Central Florida, where he accepted a job as head of security at an assisted-living facility.

During his time as fire commissioner, Milligan was a staunch supporter of former Fire Chief James Tobin, who left the taxpayer-funded department with a $215,000 severance package.

Milligan was among three fire commissioners who were targeted for ouster by the Collier Republican Party. The local GOP criticized Milligan along with Commissioners Ed Maguire and Henry Hamel, saying the trio failed to supervise Tobin during the chief's five-year tenure.

In the last two years of Tobin's tenure, he was accused of using district credit cards for personal use, ordering his assistant to do his college course work, and retaliating and discriminating against and harassing members of the firefighters' union.

Milligan's seat is up for re-election in 2004. In the meantime, the remaining four fire commissioners can appoint someone to complete the remainder of Milligan's term. Whoever is appointed to the Fire District, however, would have to run for office in next year's regular election.

Now Hanson, Monzillo and Volpe are hoping to get a shot at being a fire commissioner. North Naples fire commissioners are elected for a four-year term and paid $500 per month or $6,000 a year.

The Fire District said it plans to appoint a commissioner to Milligan's seat in January. The newcomer would begin his or her term effective Feb. 1.

Hanson, a widow, is president of the Pelican Bay Women's League and committee member of the Center for Assisted Living Innovation and Housing.

A retiree who has lived in North Naples 15 years, Hanson said she has the time and commitment to serve her district in the wake of the continuing controversy. She has been involved with the district's Community Emergency Response Team, or CERT, a group of citizen volunteers trained to assist firefighters and paramedics during disaster situations.

Now Hanson, 68, is ready to serve the taxpayers of North Naples. She is quick to point out that despite the lingering troubles in the Fire District, the firefighters remain focused and professional. For the past year, the district has been at the center of an investigation by the FBI and the Collier Sheriff's Economic Crimes Unit.

"I started going to the commission meetings after reading all the articles in the Daily News and I felt bad because the firemen are very brave, dedicated and courageous people," Hanson said. "They deserve to have a well-run department; one that is efficiently and fiscally sound."

Hanson believes she is the person for the job.

"I've been a people person all my life," she said.

Of how she would handle the public scrutiny and continuing controversy in the district, Hanson said: "It's a stressful situation but I think I'm a level-headed person. I've done things politically before and I've been able to sit back and look at all the different angles."

Another candidate to fill the commission seat is Monzillo, a 20-year veteran firefighter from New York.

Monzillo said he initially applied to the North Naples Fire District when the agency was looking to hire a public information officer.

Tobin, who was chief at the time, hired Jerry Sanford, another retired New York firefighter, to fill that position instead.

Monzillo works at Legends, a golf club community in Fort Myers. If appointed to the Fire District, Monzillo vows to follow his personal life philosophy.

"In life, you are what you pursue," said Monzillo, 47. "If you're going to do something, get involved."

After serving the Big Apple for two decades, Monzillo said he's eager to "start giving back to the community."

And he says he is prepared. He is ready to take on the challenges of being a North Naples fire commissioner. He is also geared up to defend the firefighters.

"Nothing that has been reported in the paper should be viewed as a reflection on the firefighters in the department," Monzillo said. "It's got to be known and made pretty plain that the firefighters go to work every day and have not been involved in the reported corruption of the system."

When it comes to running the Fire District, he said, the job belongs to one person: Fire Chief James Webb.

"Chief Webb would put out the directives as to what he wants," said Monzillo, whose past experience includes teaching at New York State Fire Academy, New York City Police Academy and FBI Academy.

Volpe, a Naples lawyer with past political experience, is another contender for the post.

Volpe was elected to the County Commission in 1988. Prior to that, he served as an elected fire commissioner from 1984-88 with the Golden Gate Fire District. He also was the attorney for the Marco Island Fire District, before Marco was incorporated.

"As a result of these experiences, I believe I have a good understanding and appreciation of the duties and responsibilities of a commissioner of an independent fire control and rescue district," Volpe wrote in a letter to the fire district.

He could not be reached for comment.