First 90 Days:
Fix the Basics.
Restore Accountability.
Build a Stronger St. Petersburg.
The first 90 days of my administration will focus on restoring confidence and trust in city government by fixing infrastructure, strengthening public safety, improving fiscal accountability, and ensuring future growth matches our city’s infrastructure capacity. Every initiative will include measurable goals, public reporting, and accountability.
First 30 Days – Take Immediate Action
Infrastructure
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Complete a comprehensive citywide assessment of roads, stormwater, sewer, water, and flooding vulnerabilities.
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Publish the Top 10 Infrastructure Risks requiring immediate attention.
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Require a status report on every major capital improvement project.
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Launch an Aggressive Pothole Repair Initiative focused on the city’s highest-priority streets.
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Publish road repair schedules and establish measurable goals for reducing pothole response times and repair backlogs.
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Create an easier way for residents to report potholes and track repair progress online.
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Conduct a top-to-bottom operational review of the Permitting Department and implement immediate improvements to reduce unnecessary delays while maintaining public safety.
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Conduct a comprehensive review of water utility billing practices and customer service issues to improve accuracy and restore public confidence.
Fiscal Responsibility & Accountability
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Conduct a comprehensive review of the city’s budget, reserves, debt obligations, CRA balances, and major contracts.
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Temporarily pause new discretionary spending not related to public safety, infrastructure, or essential city services until the financial review is completed.
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Begin a zero-based review of discretionary spending to identify savings and eliminate inefficiencies.
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Conduct a citywide review of departmental staffing levels, organizational structure, and exempt management salaries to ensure resources are aligned with service needs and taxpayer expectations.
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Propose beginning the process of sunsetting the In Town CRA. The area has largely achieved its original purpose, and returning those tax dollars to the general tax base will help fund citywide priorities such as infrastructure.
Smart Development
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Convene a Smart Development Task Force including neighborhood leaders, business leaders, planners, the Chamber of Commerce, the Downtown Partnership, and development professionals.
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Review pending large-scale development projects and evaluate their impacts on infrastructure, traffic, utilities, and neighborhood quality of life.
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Ask the City Council to adopt a 90-day moratorium on approvals for new luxury condominium projects while the city completes a comprehensive Infrastructure Capacity and Smart Growth Review to ensure roads, water, sewer, stormwater systems, public safety, and other essential infrastructure can support future growth.
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Conduct a comprehensive review of impact fees to ensure new development pays its fair share for infrastructure improvements.
Public Safety
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Meet with Police, Fire Rescue, and Emergency Management leadership.
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Review staffing levels, response times, succession planning, emergency communications, and hurricane preparedness.
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Meet with mayors of Florida’s largest cities to strengthen mutual aid partnerships and regional disaster response coordination.
Homelessness
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Review the city’s current policies, partnerships, and effectiveness in addressing homelessness and behavioral health challenges.
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Ensure compliance and enforcement with the most current state and federal laws.
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Meet with nonprofit providers, faith-based groups, law enforcement, county partners, veteran’s groups, and neighborhood/business leaders to find out what is working and what is not.
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Identify gaps, duplication, and areas where tax dollars are not producing measurable results.
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Monitor testing and clinical trials of the promising mental health and substance abuse drug Ibogaine, being fast tracked by the Food and Drug Administration.
Transparency & Customer Service
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Launch a Mayor’s Accountability Portal that publicly tracks city projects, infrastructure improvements, department performance, and key financial metrics.
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Establish customer service standards and response-time goals for resident requests across city departments.
Arts and Culture
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Conduct review of City’s arts and cultural programs, grants, and funding.
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Meet with local artists, art organizations, museums, and cultural institutions to identify both opportunities and challenges
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Evaluate how the investments in the arts contribute to the economy, tourism, neighborhood revitalization and our quality of life.
Days 31–60 – Develop the Plan
Infrastructure
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Present a prioritized infrastructure investment plan based on objective needs and risk assessments.
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Identify projects that can begin immediately within the current budget.
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Develop funding recommendations utilizing grants, eligible CRA resources, and existing revenues before seeking additional taxpayer funding.
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Establish clear timelines for infrastructure projects and publicly report progress so residents know what to expect.
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Modernize the permitting process by streamlining reviews, reducing unnecessary delays, and improving customer service while maintaining public safety standards.
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Hold city departments accountable for timely permit reviews by establishing measurable performance standards, response-time goals, and regular public reporting.
Smart Development
Deliver recommendations for new Smart Development Standards, including:
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Infrastructure capacity requirements.
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Traffic impact analysis.
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Water and sewer capacity reviews.
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Workforce housing incentives.
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Office and employment center preservation.
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Greater neighborhood input on major redevelopment projects.
Fiscal Responsibility & Accountability
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Publish recommendations identifying budget efficiencies, cost savings, and long-term financial sustainability.
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Complete performance reviews of every city department.
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Evaluate appropriate public-private partnerships that improve services while protecting taxpayers.
Neighborhood Engagement
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Hold meetings in every City Council district to hear neighborhood priorities directly from residents.
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Publish a Neighborhood Priorities Report summarizing concerns and proposed actions.
Homelessness
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Establish a response strategy for homelessness that defines roles, timelines, and accountability.
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Ensure goals are measurable on shelter placement, treatment referrals, public space safety, and long-term stability.
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Strengthen all partnerships if possible.
Storm Resilience
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Present a realistic resilience strategy focused on flooding mitigation, stormwater improvements, hurricane preparedness, and disaster recovery.
Arts and Culture
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Develop or refine Arts and Cultural Economic Development Strategy to support and strengthen the city’s reputation as a destination.
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Ensure coordination exists between the arts organizations, tourism partners, and the business community.
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Look for opportunities for more public- private partnerships and private investments in the arts.
Days 61–90 – Begin Delivering
Infrastructure
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Launch the first phase of high-priority infrastructure projects.
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Publish project timelines, measurable goals, and regular progress updates.
Smart Development
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Introduce policy changes that prioritize infrastructure-first planning and responsible growth.
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Establish a transparent process for evaluating major redevelopment proposals.
Public Safety
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Implement operational improvements identified during the first 60 days to strengthen emergency response and city preparedness.
Homelessness
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Present a homelessness Action Plan:
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Accountability
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Compassion Treatment
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Shelter access
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Safe public spaces
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Place reporting on the Mayor's Accountability Portal of resources used, improvements made and results.
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Implement targeted solutions for the chronically homeless, mental health, substance abuse, and repeat users of emergency services.
Fiscal Responsibility & Accountability
Release a public report detailing:
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Current city finances.
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Debt obligations.
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Infrastructure backlog.
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Department performance.
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Budget savings identified.
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Long-term financial priorities.
Transparency
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Publish the first quarterly Accountability Report showing progress toward every First 90 Days commitment.
Arts and Culture
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Present strategic plan with measurable goals for Arts and Culture.
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Ensure that funding is transparent, accountable, and provides community and economic benefit.
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Increase neighborhood art programming and public art in support of local businesses and tourism.
Day 90: Report to the Community
Deliver a State of the City Address outlining:
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What was accomplished.
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What challenges were identified.
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The measurable goals established.
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The roadmap for the next four years.
My administration will be measured not by promises made, but by results delivered. Every resident will be able to see our progress, hold us accountable, and know their city government is focused on the basics that matter most.