Two candidates declare for recall election
Two candidates have filed to run in the Nov. 4 special recall election.
Tom Brady, who heads Protect FMB, has announced his candidacy for the Town of Fort Myers Beach Council in the upcoming recall election, along with Rebecca Link, a school technology consultant who was appointed by the town to the CDBG-DR Advisory Committee for the Lee Board of County Commissioners to assist with funding for the town after Hurricane Ian. The qualifying period officially began Tuesday and runs through Monday, Sept. 22 at noon.
Brady and Link are seeking to succeed councilmembers John King and Karen Woodson in the Nov. 4 election where Fort Myers Beach voters will on one ballot to decide whether to recall King and Woodson and if they want Brady and Link to succeed them (or if any other candidates file).
Both Brady and Link lost their homes in Hurricane Ian. Brady completed the rebuild on his home this summer while Link is in the middle of rebuilding her home.
Both say they believe in the future of the island and stress the protection of residential neighborhoods, something they are worried is being intruded on.
Brady has led Protect FMB, which is currently involved in a legal challenge to the Town of Fort Myers Beach Council’s vote to approve the controversial Seagate condo tower project. That case is currently being heard in Lee County Circuit Court Court.
“After thoughtful consideration–and with the support of my wife, Sally, along with encouragement from many Fort Myers Beach residents, both those who signed the recall and those who did not – am running for Town Council,” Brady said.
“My goal is to restore honesty, integrity, and community to Fort Myers Beach. As we approach a recall election, voters deserve real choices and responsible leadership that puts residents on a more than equal footing with other island stakeholders,” Brady said.
Brady spent his career working in information technology after serving in the U.S. Army. He has resided on Fort Myers Beach since 2018 after living in different locations around the country and as far as Tokyo, Japan. His employers have included former presidential candidate Ross Perot, whom he said briefly but didn’t know personally.
Brady said he didn’t expect to run for office but was motivated by the Seagate development and concerns about development issues in town.
He said he wants the town to have a more “strict adherence to the comprehensive plan and land development code.”
Brady said he would take a “much stricter view” of the town’s zoning regulations.
“When push comes to shove, I think residents come first. I think we have put residents on the back burner,” Brady said. “If tie goes to the runner between business interests and residents, I would choose the runner as the residents.”
Both Brady and Link expressed concerns about the growth of vacation rental properties across their neighborhoods in recent years as the town’s demographics have changes. They said they support considerations that might limit the shorter-term rentals.
Link said she was spurred to run by the Arches Bayfront hotel project that was approved at Moss Marina, expressing reservations for the impact it would have on the local neighborhood there.
Both Brady and Link declined to comment specifically on the recall allegations that King and Woodson are facing.