Naples City Councilman Ted Blankenship filed to run for the Naples mayoral seat, which likely raises the field to three and vacates a council seat.
A kickoff for Blankenship was hosted in Baker Park, and a video was released characterizing him as a conservative who wants to change the city’s direction. Among his concerns are rising taxes—he was one of two opponents of a Council decision to raise property taxes from 1.15 mills to 1.17 mills.
His video also complains about bureaucrats controlling the economy and wrecking property values, a complaint Blankenship shares with another candidate for the office, Gary Price. Both had their homes damaged by floods during Hurricane Ian, and Blankenship said that three weeks after the storm, Council was asked to pass new regulations that would decrease the size of what could be rebuilt.
“Some people who were elderly, or who didn’t have insurance or for whatever reason were not going to rebuild, they didn’t know what they could do. They’d have to take a huge haircut on what they could get for their property,” he said.
The proposed new regulations were defeated, but then returned in January for a second round of public outcry, followed by a second defeat.
“But I’ve heard they’re going to try to bring them back again,” he said. “I think we need to listen to the people.”
Other concerns from Blankenship include an understaffed and underfunded police department and that the city allows the drag show of Naples PRIDEFest to take place on city property, either at the bandshell or in the Norris Center, during the annual LGBTQ-friendly event. However, the show is being scheduled to move to a private venue, which Blankenship said he was unaware of but was happy to know.
Blankenship is a certified public accountant. His City Council biography says he is chief financial officer of three companies in the technology, education and business services industries, and he is a former partner with PricewaterhouseCoopers.
He is serving his first term on Council, but he cannot run to retain his seat if he is running for mayor.
Blankenship is not the only candidate in the race. Former Vice Mayor Gary Price, a former three-term councilman, has formally filed for the position. He too has criticized what he sees as shifting sands for building regulations, which he says changed allowable rebuilding sizes for him and other residents after Hurricane Ian. Price said he also wants to bring down the high rate of city employee turnover.
Current Mayor Teresa Heitmann has said she will run for her seat again but had not filed as of Monday.
Potential candidates have until Jan. 8 to arrange an interview to determine whether they meet qualifications for the office. The deadline for filing as a candidate is Jan. 19.
The election itself is March 19 next year.
