Fort Myers Beach recall committee on King, Woodson submits petitions
The committee to recall Town of Fort Myers Beach councilmembers John King and Karen Woodson announced today that they had collected enough signatures for the first step of a recall.
Former Fort Myers Beach Councilmember Bill Veach, who is one of two former councilmembers leading the recall effort, said the petitions were submitted today to the Town of Fort Myers Beach Clerk’s Office to be delivered to the Lee County Supervisor of Elections.
Veach said there are 3,370 registered voters in the town, which meant the signatures of 337 voters in the town were required on the petitions to recall King and Woodson. Veach said volunteers were able to collect more than 450 signatures on petitions to recall both King and Woodson.
Veach said the collection of signatures was during a difficult time of year when many of the town’s year-round and seasonal residents leave the island to head north.
“We started this when (most) people had gone or were leaving,” Veach said.
“We did not take this task lightly and understood that we were undertaking this when many voters are still displaced due to Hurricane Ian or had already left for the season,” Veach said. “Those that answered the door overwhelmingly supported the petition drive.”
Once the signatures and petitions are verified by the Lee County Supervisor of Elections, King and Woodson will have five days to respond with a rebuttal of 200 words that will go on a new round of petitions the committees will need to collect for the recall. The second set of petitions will require signatures from 15% of the registered voters of the Town of Fort Myers Beach. If those signatures are verified, King and Woodson would either have to resign within five days or a new election would be held for their seats before the end of the year. If they resign, the current town council could appoint replacements to fill their seats through the end of their terms in November of 2026.
The petitions to recall King and Woodson allege that they received unreported gifts, including an allegation that they received gifts of meals from developers seeking approvals from the town council for projects in town during private meetings. Veach has accused Woodson of accepting an unreported gift from Moss Marina to remove a boat from her property after Hurricane Ian. King and Woodson are also accused of violating the Sunshine Law by allegedly discussing the replacement of former town attorney John Herin in 2023. King is also alleged to have violated the town charter for having interfered with a former town manager’s handling of one of the town’s planning consultants.
A recent letter to residents seeking their signatures on the petition focused on the issue of councilmembers meeting behind closed doors, something that current councilmembers have been public about as something that still continues including recent meetings over the Arches Bayfront hotel project with the developer and their planning consultant.
Veach said Friday he believes “there is a whole lot of stuff going on behind closed doors. It seems when councilmembers meet they have already made up their mind.”
In the letter, the committee headed by Veach and former Mayor Ray Murphy, said meetings behind closed doors between individual councilmembers and developers has “created a process where developers negotiate behind closed doors and councilors enter a quasi-judicial land use hearing with a strong bias.”
King has denied the allegations against him regarding the gift taking or communicating with Woodson over Herin, though he has acknowledged speaking with former Town Manager Keith Wilkins in 2023 to look into one of the town’s planning consultants and how he interacted with the town council. That planner later stopped presenting to the town council. King has said the planning consultant is expected to present again to the town council.
Veach said the proceedings are not a criminal trial. “This is not a criminal proceeding,” he said.
King and Woodson could not be immediately reached for comment on the collection of signatures.
King and Woodson were elected to four-year terms in November of 2022 in the wake of Hurricane Ian, defeating Murphy and candidate Patrick Romcoe, after former Councilmember Rexann Hosafros elected not to seek another term.
Fort Myers Beach Observer Editor Nathan Mayberg can be reached at NMayberg@breezenewspapers.com.