Tracey Gore, Mayor of Fort Myers Beach, FL
Tracey Gore, Mayor of Fort Myers Beach, has always been active in her community but never thought she had a future in government.
Prior to becoming mayor, “I came home one day and was bombarded by residents asking me to run for town council,” Gore said. The residents came to her for help because they felt that their voice wasn’t represented in local government and they believed in Gore though at the time, she didn’t have any interest in holding office at all.
Tracey has spent much of her life volunteering with her family and friends in the Fort Myers Beach community. She was Beach School PTO president for several years and a volunteer for the Fourth of July Fireworks Committee for 23 years with her family. She also spent the past several years volunteering for the Fort Myers Beach Lion’s Foundation as its Shrimp Festival Queen Pageant Coordinator, and the Fort Myers Beach Kids Foundation raising funds for island families in need.
Gore majored in communications and minored in marketing with a concentration in public relations. Gore had also completed internships at the state attorney’s office while attending FGCU where she networked and learned a lot. Gore’s decision to attend FGCU was because she wanted to stay close to her home and continue to be active in her community. Gore graduated from FGCU on the President’s List.
Using the research skills taught to her at Florida Gulf Coast University along with her comprehensive knowledge of land development codes, the residents of her home town of Fort Myers Beach felt she could make an impact and accurately represent their voice.
Gore doesn’t especially like politics but understands that being an elected official is a huge responsibility. She doesn’t enjoy seeing her community at odds with each other and always strives to make a difference and help anyone she can even though most decisions are controversial.
“People think once you’re a public official you are no longer a human being … I enjoy it but I do not like the nastiness that comes from some,” Gore said.
Gore hopes that future council members will stay the course of protecting the island but understands that as new people and developers move in, the vision of the town could change. Fort Myers Beach will always be a vacation destination because of what the island has to offer but Gore believes the residents are the most important and are top priority. Gore’s favorite time is “off season when it’s just us and the Lee County locals.”
At the town meeting where Gore was voted in as mayor, conflict among the residents erupted.
Shortly after the nominations for Mayor and Vice Mayor concluded, the floor was opened for public comment where residents applauded and boo another resident. I was interested to see how the now Mayor Tracey Gore would handle the conflict her first second on the job.
Amy Lowry, a 17-year resident in Fort Myers Beach, discussed her future for the town. Lowry said that the council voted based on their own agendas as well as the minority. She says that the majority is being ignored on behalf of the residents and that if the city council doesn’t “step it up or step down,” the community will hold them accountable and vote them out.
Lowry said that most of the council members were elected because they opposed the new development at the time and insists that, since then, the council have furthered their own agendas. Lowry said she speaks on the behalf of the residents of Fort Myers Beach.
After Lowry’s public comment, the residents began to cheer and boo. Mayor Tracey Gore said, “We do not applaud or boo; everyone should be able to stand up and speak without feeling threatened.” Gore also stated that booing is against town policy.
Dan Hendrickson, a resident and rental property owner, spoke about “aggressive tactics” from special interest groups with “deep pockets” that threaten the relationship between the town council and staff. Hendrickson said that this has been a disturbing trend for years now and that this should upset other residents and business owners. This includes “targeting town council employees and residents” and deliberate bullying, Hendrickson said. “Promotional and distorted information” has been used to persuade residents to align with the interests of the special interest groups, Hendrickson said. Hendrickson doesn’t believe the town council and town manager is being treated fairly and this doesn’t accurately reflect well of the spirit of the island. Hendrickson assured the council that they have full support from all residents and trusts they will make the right decisions based on the collective wisdom of the council as a whole.
“There’s a lot that happens that nobody knows about” in response to the residents, Anita Cereceda, a council member, said. Cereceda acknowledged that the agenda was in fact pushed back but it was due to a St. Patrick’s Day event which received a big turn out and positive feedback from the community. Cereceda was seemingly speaking up for Mayor Gore.
The meeting continued to the approval of the agenda and before the adjournment of the meeting the floor was opened back up for public comment which was declined.
I was nervous to meet Vice Mayor Gore for the first time in person after that fiery 6-hour meeting. We had previously only communicated through email. I thought that she wouldn’t remember me if I introduced myself as that guy from the email so I introduced myself as William Ward, the journalism student at Florida Gulf Coast University. Gore, although seemingly disgruntled at first, looked at me in my eyes and gave me a huge smile and a firm political handshake that was especially calming.
