A recent neighborhood-themed candidates’ debate should have been a walk in one of St. Petersburg’s pristine parks for Mayor Bill Foster, a City Hall veteran who knows the grassroots activists and their issues.
Instead it dissolved quickly into a spat between Foster and Council of Neighborhood Associations chief Kurt Donley, as mayoral challenger Rick Kriseman politely looked on.
• Why did Foster stop sending a code enforcement supervisor to neighborhood meetings?
• How can compliance officers respond to nuisance properties when they carry caseloads of 300 or more?
• Why isn’t Foster more engaged with city neighborhoods?
Foster did not try to answer the questions but shot back that the neighborhood council wasn’t attending quarterly City Hall meetings with him, either. Touché!
Suddenly the microphones failed.
The sound system seemed to collapse under the tension. Foster stood up from his chair at the Sunshine Center, and declared to the audience that he did not need his voice amplified.
“I’m a screamer,” he bellowed.
Everyone in the auditorium was silent. No one seemed sure if Foster was serious. Kriseman continued to sit politely on stage in his folding chair. He looked as uncomfortable as everyone felt.
Donley was the first to speak, warning Foster that his remark might be used in a media sound bite. Startled, Foster turned and sat back down.
The incident passed, the mics were revived, and the candidates’ forum took place. But the terse exchange seemed to underscore the challenge that Foster faces to re-election.
In a race where the candidates’ platforms often are defined by nuances, the incumbent should have the edge. Not so for Foster. After a decade on the St. Petersburg Council and four years as mayor, Foster finds himself embroiled in the toughest election of his career.
The biggest threat to winning a second term is not his sincere, stick-to-the-issues opponent. Nor is it the local economy, which is starting to rebound but has yet to bolster Foster’s campaign. Foster’s problem is Bill Foster. He can’t seem to get out of his own way.
The St. Pete attorney may be the most un-political politician to lead the city in many years.
“Bill is a loner, and I think that ends up hurting him,” said Council Chair Karl Nurse. “When you get elected mayor, you need to have somebody who has your back and someone you can say anything to. If he has someone, I am not aware of who it is.”
Foster’s single-minded focus on the budget for four years has helped to keep taxes down in hard times. But the austerity did not win many friends. Cuts decimated Meals on Wheels, hobbled neighborhood improvements, and marginalized special interest groups.
Now that property values and revenues are on the rise, Foster’s tightfisted budgeting seems draconian, with a growing number of residents arguing that it is hurting the city’s vitality and future.
As St. Petersburg emerges from the recession, personality seems to be driving the mayor’s election in Florida’s fourth-largest city. Kriseman — a former City Councilor and Democratic state lawmaker — is not only polling ahead of the mayor, but most everyone seems to like him.
“Bill Foster did a good job leading this city out of the recession,” said Council member Charlie Gerdes. “I just think Rick Kriseman will do better moving the city forward. I have told the mayor that.” Gerdes recalled meeting Kriseman when the two ran against each other in the Democratic primary for a state House seat in 2006. Both are attorneys and West St. Pete residents. Gerdes lost, but gained admiration for Kriseman as a fair opponent.
“The St. Pete Times even wrote about how positive our race was. It was held up as an example,” Gerdes said. Under the headline, “In House District 53, a polite Democratic primary,” the article noted that there were no attacks in their political competition.
“When Rick disagrees, he is respectful and not condescending. It’s a real strength,” Gerdes said.
Former Gov. Charlie Crist also focused on Kriseman’s likability when he recently endorsed him for mayor. Crist did not talk about jobs or the economy but about ”my friend, Rick.”
“He cares about the people of St. Petersburg,” said Crist, adding that the city is “better off” with Kriseman.
Indeed, Kriseman and Foster have very distinctive styles, with Kriseman making a “listening tour” the underpinning of his campaign.
Kriseman’s politically correct campaign slogan of “listen, learn and lead” has prompted some criticism that he is not doing enough to detail plans for the city. But the vision he offers to focus on neighborhoods, improve city services and emphasize small businesses seems to resonate with voters and local leaders.
By contrast, Foster has been more like a CEO, making the tough decisions without necessarily doing the consensus-building that some might expect. But even CEOs must answer to boards and stockholders.
In recent months, the City Council has been in near revolt, with six of the eight members endorsing Kriseman. The remaining two declined to support either candidate.
At Council meetings, Foster’s dialogues often sound like paterfamilias lectures, which irritate some members. When asked why most members endorsed his opponent, Foster accused the Council of having “an insatiable hunger to spend your taxpayer dollars.”
But others see it differently. “Whoever is in charge needs to communicate where we’re trying to go and provide clear direction with the people he manages on how to get there,” Nurse said. “But none of that ever gets done.”
Gerdes said that Foster has a hard time saying no to people who come to him with ideas. He unintentionally may give the impression that he agrees, when it may be just the opposite. The result is distrust and confusion.
“There’s a whipsaw effect,” said Nurse.
“Bill Foster says one thing and then does something completely different,” said Council member Wengay Newton.
Transparency and communication could have smoothed the planning process for redeveloping the Pier, which the mayor shuttered in May without a viable replacement.
Likewise, Foster failed to disclose problems with Sweetbay in Midtown, after company officials said they warned him a year in advance of the store closing.
At the neighborhood council debate at the Sunshine Center, Kriseman criticized the mayor for not first informing the Council about his ideas to hire an economic developer for Midtown and organize a citizens’ panel to improve relations between the city and the black communities.
“The Council was caught by surprise,” he said. “They knew nothing about it.”
He urged teamwork, not just for the Council but for the city as a whole.
Foster and Kriseman then were invited to ask the other one a question to end the debate.
Foster asked Kriseman why he disagreed with the police pursuit policy. Kriseman said the policy was not necessarily wrong, but how it was being applied on the streets needed to be addressed. He said he worried about the safety of officers as well as members of the public.
Then Kriseman was asked to question Foster. He paused and said, “I think we’ve covered just about everything tonight. I have respect for my opponent and want to thank everyone for being here.”
With Foster showing vulnerability, Kriseman could have delivered a blow that voters and the mayor would not soon forget. But he demurred.
As people filed out of the Sunshine Center, Foster walked with a companion who had an armload of “Foster for Mayor” yard signs. The mayor seemed eager to go. He drove away before the parking lot had cleared.
Thirty minutes later, an economy car idled in front of the darkened center, its headlights illuminating Kriseman, who lingered to talk with a resident. Several other people had followed him out and waited for their turn with the candidate.
Kriseman was in no rush to leave.
This article appears in Oct 31 – Nov 6, 2013.