{"id":223698,"date":"2026-04-08T18:19:22","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T18:19:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/223698\/"},"modified":"2026-04-08T18:19:22","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T18:19:22","slug":"entrepreneur-gary-hartfield-enters-race-to-be-tampas-next-mayor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/223698\/","title":{"rendered":"Entrepreneur Gary Hartfield enters race to be Tampa\u2019s next mayor"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AGary Hartfield at Kiley Amphitheater in Tampa, Florida. Credit: Campaign photo \/ garyhartfield.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Tampa\u2019s mayoral race is already up to its neck in candidates thanks to nine people who\u2019ve filed and two expected to join the bid to succeed term-limited Mayor Jane Castor.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The latest to join is Gary Hartfield<\/a>, author and founder of Serenity Village Insurance & Consulting. And for Hartfield, running for mayor is \u201cjust the next level\u201d up in his philanthropy.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The 55-year-old DeFuniak Springs native and \u201cserial entrepreneur\u201d told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that filing on March 28 wasn\u2019t a spur-of-the-moment decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a deliberate and intentional plan to find ways to give back to my community,\u201d Hartfield said.<\/p>\n

He sees Tampa at a \u201cpivot-and-inflection point,\u201d and the city has to be mindful of its next steps\u2014and of its current issues.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think what is most important to understand is that we have to focus on building better before we build bigger,\u201d Hartfield added. \u201cContinuing to build downtown with infrastructure issues as they are is not a smart plan.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hartfield told CL that the city has to plan development and elevation throughout North, East and West Tampa\u2014not just downtown\u2014and if it doesn\u2019t, issues like transportation and stormwater runoff will \u201cbecome further exacerbated.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hartfield also said affordability is essential to Tampa\u2019s opportunities and growth. For him, that includes being a sustainable destination for the city\u2019s talent pool.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have world-class universities with the University of Tampa, University of South Florida, St. Leo and others,\u201d Hartfield said. \u201cWe have a tremendous amount of talent. However, they can\u2019t afford to live in the city. We are number one, in the country, in foreclosures.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hartfield said those foreclosures \u201care not happening as an anomaly,\u201d and affordable living has been an issue in Tampa for a while.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to think about affordability as a larger issue, and that is going to be seamless throughout my campaign and my tenure as mayor,\u201d Hartfield said. \u201cAffordability here in Tampa and Tampa Bay will be first and foremost as we continue to train and develop the best workforce in the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hartfield was also founder of the Tampa Organization of Black Affairs\u2019 Leadership Institute and the All Hart Foundation, a public charity. And he believes his experience not only proves his ability to lead but to start \u201cfrom the ground up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hartfield sits on numerous boards, from the St. Joseph\u2019s-Baptist Health Board of Trustees and Clinical Excellence Board to Moffitt Cancer Center\u2019s George Edgecomb Society and the Ray of Hope Foundation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He was formerly vice chairperson of the Hillsborough Transit Authority before he resigned due to residency issues, according to WFTS<\/a>. Serving in that capacity for the HART board required Hartfield to live in unincorporated Hillsborough County, but he was renting a place in Tampa.<\/p>\n

Hartfield said his involvement in various nonprofits and foundations is a \u201cpattern,\u201d one that he wants to honor throughout his tenure as mayor.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe boards that I serve on are the most vulnerable and or the most needy,\u201d Hartfield told CL. \u201cIn doing so, I\u2019m able to help provide a resource to them. If they\u2019re elderly, if they\u2019re intellectually or developmentally disabled, we provide a resource to them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hartfield said he also wants to focus on building generational wealth, an initiative he believes is \u201cnovel\u201d in his campaign. He plans to achieve that through partnerships with businesses like Suncoast Credit Union which might provide financial literacy and entrepreneurial resources to the community.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And Hartfield believes that while affordability isn\u2019t an anomaly in Tampa, he is.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am a founder of multimillion dollar organizations that have employed hundreds of individuals,\u201d Hartfield claimed. \u201cAnd what makes me unique and what makes me different is that no other candidate in the pool has that skill set.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Hartfield said that even with a distinguished campaign profile, he thinks \u201cthere is room for all the candidates that bring forth something positive to the city,\u201d and he looks forward to a race that\u2019s \u201cfocused on the issues, not partisan or destructive politics.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope that this campaign is positive and that everyone looks to serve the city and we keep all of the negativity that is weighing down our country, our state and our local communities away from this campaign,\u201d Hartfield said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hartfield launched his political committee, Innovate Tampa, last July. The committee has raised $68,647 to date.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Eight other candidates are officially in the race including Tampa City Councilwoman Lynn Hurtak<\/a>, Urban designer and USF assistant dean Taryn Sabia<\/a>, Tampa food influencer Anthony Gilbert, entrepreneur Alan Henderson<\/a>, paralegal Tres Rodman<\/a>. Former Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn\u2014backed by buku PAC money<\/a>\u2014is expected to announce his candidacy, too.<\/p>\n

Pitch in to help make the Tampa Bay Journalism Project a success.<\/a><\/p>\n

Subscribe to Creative Loafing newsletters.<\/a><\/p>\n

Follow us:\u00a0Google News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0NewsBreak<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Reddit<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Facebook\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0BlueSky<\/a><\/p>\n

UPDATED 04\/04\/26 1:34 p.m. Updated to make clear that Hartfield would like to partner with businesses like Suncoast Credit Union, but not exclusively.<\/p>\n

This article appears in Apr. 02 \u2013 08, 2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n

\t