Brandi Gabbard is officially kicking off her campaign for mayor of St. Petersburg, entering a growing field at what she’s calling a turning point for the city.
The District 2 City Council member, who filed her candidacy paperwork earlier this month, will host her campaign kickoff April 7 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at 15th St. Farm.
According to the event announcement, it’s less a traditional, political rally and more of a community gathering, with an evening under the stars focused on conversation about where the city goes next.
“We’re trading the typical political rally for something more meaningful,” her campaign said in a prepared statement. “We’ll be talking about a vision for St. Pete that puts people first, tackles our biggest challenges with experience and delivers results with the stamina this city deserves.”
That approach is expected to carry into the makeup of the event itself.
“At our kickoff event next week, I am so proud to be joined by a diverse group of supporters who represent the heartbeat of this community,” Gabbard told Poliverse in a follow-up interview. “You’ll see local small business owners, advocates for environmental resilience and neighborhood leaders who have been in the trenches with me for years.”
Setting, according to Gabbard, is part of that message: “We’re gathering at a local urban farm because it represents exactly what I want for our city: innovation, sustainability, and deep roots in the community. It’s about people coming together to build something that lasts.”
Gabbard is propping her campaign viability on nearly a decade of serving City Council, positioning her candidacy around process and long-term planning, particularly when it comes to a hot-button topic: redevelopment, i.e., the Historic Gas Plant.
The future of the Historic Gas Plant District remains one of the biggest questions in the race following the collapse of the Rays Hines deal.
Gabbard said her approach centers on the collaborative, solution-oriented framework: “This work is built on my record of convening diverse stakeholders to ensure residents remain at the heart of the Gas Plant redevelopment.”
Part of that would include creating a standing layer of oversight. “I am committed to establishing a Community Accountability Advisory Committee. This body will remain involved throughout the project’s lifespan, ensuring consistent oversight and accountability for both the city and developers at every stage.”
She is also putting an emphasis on the city’s permitting process, which she said needs to catch up with the pace of growth and the realities of building in a coastal city.
“Building up safely means evolving our processes to match the speed and complexity of our city’s growth,” Gabbard told Poliverse. “We will fast-track permitting by removing outdated red tape and getting the government out of the way, allowing residents and small businesses to build better and faster.”
“By streamlining these workflows, we ensure that every new project meets the infrastructure and flood mitigation standards our future demands, making our neighborhoods stronger and more secure,” she added
Affordability is expected to remain central in the race, and Gabbard is tying that conversation to both housing policy and long-term economic growth.
“Affordability is not just about isolated programs; it’s about creating a city where the people who power our economy can afford to build a life,” she said. “We must prioritize stabilizing our neighborhoods through expanded rehabilitation and down-payment assistance while ensuring that every major redevelopment project includes workforce housing as a must have, not an afterthought.”
She also pointed to attracting higher wage industries tied to coastal resilience and disaster mitigation as part of a broader strategy to keep residents in the city.
Gabbard joins incumbent Mayor Ken Welch and several other candidates, including Maria Scruggs, Jim Large, Paul Congemi and Kevin Batdorf, in the race.