After nearly 10 years on the St. Petersburg City Council, Brandi Gabbard has her eyes set on becoming mayor.
The election is on Aug. 18, but if no candidate wins a majority, there will be a runoff on Nov. 3.
Gabbard is facing off against incumbent Mayor Ken Welch, former Shore Acres Association president Kevin Batdorf; former St. Petersburg fire Chief Jim Large; previous mayoral candidate Paul Congemi; and former president of the NAACP St. Petersburg branch Maria Scruggs.
ALSO READ: St. Petersburg mayor on his focus to fulfill a promise to the Historic Gas Plant District and more
Former governor and congressman Charlie Crist is also expected to run, but has yet to file the paperwork.
On "Florida Matters Live & Local," Gabbard explained why she's running to lead the city, her focus on public safety, affordability and other topics.
"We need a mayor who has a vision for our city that is going to protect everyday people — that is going to keep our city viable and sustainable for generations to come, and keep it livable and affordable for the people who are here today."Brandi Gabbard, St. Petersburg mayoral candidate
Why are you running for mayor?
I believe that our city is at a crossroads. We have vulnerabilities that we have yet to address, and we have great opportunity in front of us. We need a mayor who has a vision for our city that is going to protect everyday people — that is going to keep our city viable and sustainable for generations to come, and keep it livable and affordable for the people who are here today.
How would city hall be different under your leadership?
I certainly have always led with the residents top of mind, and I believe that our government needs to be accessible to the people that we serve. We need to be transparent in our actions, and that is exactly the kind of leadership that I plan on bringing — working together with people to create the best policy that affects their lives, and that is the leader I am committed to being.
Let's talk about your platform. Two of the things you want to address are public safety and housing. In January, the St. Pete police chief reported the lowest number of homicides in 60 years, also lower youth crime rates. Is there more that they could be doing, though, to make things safer?
We're certainly trending in a better direction, but when you speak to people within our communities, they are certainly asking for the government to continue to be more responsive — to continue to make sure that we're keeping our communities safer.
And it doesn't just always look like policing either. I am an advocate for our Complete Streets plan, and that would help to make it more friendly for pedestrians and bicyclists and all road users, and that is also a public safety issue. Potholes are certainly something that we have to continue to work on, making sure that our roadways are clear, that they are easy to navigate and that all road users can be safe when they are out on our streets.
St. Pete is building affordable housing. The Skyway Marina District opened some affordable units in January. Work is underway. Also, on the Fairfield Avenue apartments. Is the city doing enough?
I'm very proud to say that in my time on city council, myself and my city council colleagues have done incredible work in the affordable housing space.
"We need to be bolder, and we need to make sure that we are really looking to incentivize affordable housing across all demographics, specifically our senior housing."Brandi Gabbard, St. Petersburg mayoral candidate
This is an issue that I came to city hall to champion, and the Fairfield apartments are a great example of that. That's legislation that I passed back in 2021 to take advantage of some state issues that we were the first in the state to actually do. And because of that, that project is moving forward. But we need to do more.
We need to be bolder, and we need to make sure that we are really looking to incentivize affordable housing across all demographics, specifically our senior housing. So yes, we have a long way to go, and the work has just begun.
How do you pay for that if you want to put in more affordable housing?
There's certainly some financial limitations that we have to work within, but we have many different coffers of which we can pull from to be able to produce and incentivize affordable housing.
One of the benefits of having nine years on city council is that city council approves the budget. We are very instrumental in creating the budget, and I know the budget very, very well, and will be able to work with our team to make sure that every single dollar and every single resource is going to the needs that affect the people the most.
You were successful in getting redevelopment plans for the Historic Gas Plant District paused until next summer. Why was that important?
So again, listening to the residents that we serve, there is a large constituency that wants to make sure that this opportunity that we have in front of us, that we are being the best stewards of that land that we can possibly be.
Everything changed after the hurricanes of 2024 for our city, and no one who lives in our city is looking at the city the same way. The government should not be looking at it the same either. We should be looking at this land as an opportunity. We should be doing the comprehensive work to inform us of what the right path forward is. Should we even be selling all of this land?
Mayor Ken Welch says the work's been done. "Let's get on with it." You don't think that's right?
There has been a lot of work done, and I've lived through a lot of that work, right? But what I believe today matters the most is that we can take the work that has been done, but we can also incorporate our current community's concerns, and we can look at a comprehensive plan that really sets forward a path for our city to redevelop this land in the most responsible way possible.
We've needed to pause. We need to really look and see if even selling all of this land to one master plan developer is the best path forward. I'm not convinced that it is.
Another big story for St. Pete in the last few years is the aftermath of the 2024 hurricane season. We've had three big storms pummel the city. The city sewer system failed. Since then, St. Pete has pumped about $70 million into upgrading the system. Is that enough?
Absolutely not. I represent a district that lies completely within the coastal high hazard. Every single neighborhood that I represent was affected by either hurricanes Idalia (in 2023), Helene or Milton. I can tell you I know firsthand, including the damage I sustained to my own home, what residents are going through every single day.
We have a $700 million stormwater plan that we do not have the funding to be able to actually implement. We have got to find creative ways to fund these projects, and we have to do it sooner rather than later.
Resiliency is at the top of my platform because I believe in a coastal community resiliency has to be interwoven in everything that we do, and we will continue to fight to be a viable and sustainable city as long as we can in the face of the extreme weather that we're seeing.
You can listen to the full interview in the media player above. This story was compiled from an interview by Matthew Peddie for "Florida Matters Live & Local." You can listen to the full episode here.
