Frank Attkisson

Frank C. Attkisson (November 2, 1955 – April 6, 2017) was a Florida politician. He served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2000 to 2008 and as the mayor of Kissimmee, Florida from 1996 to 2000. Attkisson was a former County Commissioner for Osceola County, Florida, having been defeated in 2014.

Not to be confused with Frank Atkinson.
Frank Attkisson
Member of the Osceola County Commission
from the 4th district
In office
2010–2014
Preceded byKen Smith[1]
Succeeded byCheryl Grieb[2]
Member of the Florida House of Representatives
from the 79th district
In office
2000–2008
Preceded byIrlo Bronson
Succeeded byMike Horner
Mayor of Kissimmee
In office
1996–2000
Preceded byJohn Pollet
Succeeded byGeorge Gant
Personal details
Born(1955-11-02)November 2, 1955[3]
St. Petersburg, Florida, US
DiedApril 6, 2017(2017-04-06) (aged 61)
St. Cloud, Florida, US
Political partyRepublican
SpouseJuda Attkisson
Children3
Alma materPolk Community College (AA)
Florida Southern College (BS)
ProfessionBusinessman[3]

Early life and education

Attkisson was born in St. Petersburg, Florida. Before graduating from Winter Haven High School in 1973, Attkisson served as the Florida state president of National FFA Organization. Attkisson earned an associate degree from Polk Community College in 1976 and a B.S. in Business Management from Florida Southern College in 1977. Attkisson began his career working for then-Governor Bob Graham in Tallahassee, Florida.

Career

After serving on the Kissimmee Planning Advisory Board, Attkisson was appointed to the Kissimmee City Commission to fill the vacancy left by mayor Bruce Van Meter resigning from the city commission in order to run for state representative.[4] He resigned in 1992 to run for the Florida House of Representative seat held by Irlo Bronson, but Bronson won 55 percent of the vote.[5] Attkisson returned to various positions serving the city of Kissimmee until 1996, when he was elected mayor.[6]

Attkisson ran for the Florida House of Representatives seat held by Irlo Bronson once more in 2000, but this time Bronson was not incumbent due to term limits. Attkisson narrowly won over Democrat Donna Hart.[7] He was reelected in 2002, 2004,and 2006. During his tenure in the Florida House, he was noted for his involvement in "Terri's Law" on the Terri Schiavo case and standardizing the minimum amount of acreage required for property owners to have the opportunity to attain the yearly agricultural tax break offered by the state. He was a member of the Education K-20, Education Appropriations, Local Government & Veterans Affairs, Business Regulation, Telecommunications, and the Finance and Tax Committees, and chaired the Education Innovation subcommittee and the Government Efficiency & Accountability Council (2006–2008).

In 2010 Attkisson was elected to the Osceola County Commission and in 2012 was elected as the chairman of the board. Attkisson ran for reelection in 2014.

Personal life

Attkisson married in September 1979. He and his wife Juda had three children: Laura, Ben, and Chris.[3]

While riding his bicycle, Attkisson was struck from behind by a motorist[8] on the evening of April 6, 2017 in St. Cloud, Florida at Kissimmee Park Road (Route 525) near Lake Tohopekaliga Road.[9][10] He was 61 years old.[10][8]

References
  1. "Osceola news-gazette".
  2. "El Osceola Star - Edition 1116 - November 07 - 13, 2014".
  3. "Representative Frank Attkisson". MyFloridaHouse.gov. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
  4. Hill, Jenise Griffin (1990-10-04). "Van Meter's slot going to Attkisson". Orlando Sentinel. p. 1. [Attkisson] was appointed to fill a seat that will be vacated when Mayor Bruce Van Meter steps down... Vice Mayor John Pollet will move into the mayor's seat and Attkisson will replace Pollet as the Seat 2 representative.
  5. Mitchell, Peter (1992-11-04). "State House; Shepard edges Rep. McEwan, Couch leading Rep. Stone". Orlando Sentinel. p. A12. In District 79, Democratic state Rep. Irlo "Bud" Bronson of Kissimmee beat back Republican challenger Frank Attkisson, winning 55 percent of the vote.
  6. Bouma, Katherine (1996-11-08). "A fresh start is bright hope in Kissimmee". Orlando Sentinel. p. 1. Mayor-elect Frank Attkisson also was a known quantity because of his former service on the board.
  7. Mercer, Pamela (2000-11-09). "Attkisson squeaks by opponent". Orlando Sentinel. p. D4.
  8. "Troopers: Former Florida Politician Dies in Bike Crash". U.S. News & World Report. St. Cloud, Florida. Associated Press. April 7, 2017. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
  9. "Former Kissimmee mayor Frank Attkisson struck, killed while riding bike". WKMG. April 6, 2017. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
  10. Weiner, Jeff; Medel, Shana; Hayes, Christal (April 7, 2017). "Ex-Osceola County chairman Frank Attkisson dies after being struck on bike". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
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