Ever an interesting political environment, the 2017 St. Pete Beach mayors race is proving to be no exception. When Mayor Maria Lowe resigned last summer to join her husband and son on their move to Normandy, the commission selected frequent commission critic Deborah Schechner, out of a field of ten applicants. One of the conditions of her selection was her promise that she would not run for the Mayor’s position in March, as it would give her an unfair advantage to run as an incumbant. Melinda Pletcher, whose vote for Schechner gave her the appointment, said she never would have voted for her had she remembered she had sued the city, especially since the suit was still active. Mayor Schechner has not commented on her broken promise to the commission.
Alan Johnson is the thinking voter’s choice for mayor. A retired engineer who spent 35 years at General Electric. Al has been active as Chairman of the city’s Finance and Budget Review Committee and previously served on the city’s Recreation Advisory Committee. Although this is Al’s first attempt at an elected position in the city, he has been a longtime volunteer and supporter of many city functions. He was founder along with his late wife Wendy Johnson of Motion Sports Management and the St. Pete Beach Classic Race which brings out 2,000+ runners and more than 200 community volunteers each January. Works hand in hand with Sheriffs, city hoteliers, particularly the Sirata resort. If anyone can understand the city’s economic challenges, continue to help mend the rift that exists between some residents and redevelopment interests to help propel the community forward, it’s Al Johnson.
A third candidate, John-Michael Fleig, is another frequent vocal attendee at city commission meetings. Founder and partner of the Baywaters Inn and the Rita-Terese property Management Agency, Fleig says he has the “pulse of the overall public” in the city, and that his property management experience has taught him the importance of planning. He has not run for office in St. Pete Beach before, but was a republican candidate in the 2nd Congressional District of Maryland in 1990, 1994 & 1998. He withdrew after pleading guilty in a plea bargain to being an accessory after the fact to murder, according to 1997-98 articles from the Baltimore Sun that are available online. Fleig also was announced as a 2014 Republican candidate seeking to represent the 13th Congressional District of Florida but did not qualify to run in the special election by the November 19, 2013 filing deadline.
A press release dated Dec. 24th, from politicalspitfir@aol.com, attributed to Fleig mostly assailed Mayor Schechner for her broken promise to the commission. While he complains she shouldn’t be allowed to run because ‘rules are rules’, it is not clear whether Fleig has even read the rules in the candidate’s handbook that he had to swear he read and understood when he registered to run for office. Neither his recent “Press Release” nor a flyer left at our door about his campaign included the necessary political small print, absence of which is grounds for fines or worse if a complaint were filed.
District 2 Commissioner Rick Falkenstein & District 4 Commissioner Melinda Pletcher retained their seats unopposed.
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Christine Anne Brown and Linda Bailey are running for Gulfport Council Seat for Ward 2. Ward 4 is more competitive with 4 contenders: Bobby L. Reynolds, Michael Fridovich Richard Fried and Ernest Stone. Treasure Island candidate registration was open until January 4th, so details in that race were not available at press time. More on the local races in the February issue. PN