St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch and former Florida Gov. and U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist faced off Oct. 13 in the only televised debate ahead of the Nov. 3 election.<\/p>\n
No defining moment emerged in the anticipated showdown hosted by Bay News 9 and moderated by anchor Holly Gregory. Both camps declared victory soon after in news releases.<\/p>\n
Welch, looking to gain ground after finishing a distant second to Crist in the August primary, has said he was eager to debate his challenger. But he largely stuck to themes he has repeated on the stump, knocking Crist for splitting his most recent years between St. Petersburg and Minnesota and second guessing actions taken while he was away. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s easy to speak after the fact [as a] Monday morning quarterback,\u201d Welch said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I may, you were here, and you weren\u2019t here,\u201d Crist retorted in one of the sharper exchanges of the evening.<\/p>\n
Welch argued that he has led the city through \u201csome of the most challenging times\u201d and has continued the city\u2019s progress. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think you need to elect someone who\u2019s done the work, who\u2019s been here for the work, who\u2019s not coming in after the fact with what they would have done, but elect someone who\u2019s been here for the fight, that helped this city recover from five hurricanes,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Crist began by stating his endorsements from all four past living mayors, Republican and Democrat, and three City Council members because they back his vision for the city. Two of those former mayors endorsed Welch in 2021. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve done so because of my vision and my plan for the future of our beautiful city,\u201d Crist said.<\/p>\n
Differences on storm preparedness<\/p>\n
In 2024\u2019s pair of hurricanes, Welch took the city\u2019s sewage plants offline to prevent further damage. Several neighborhoods flooded for the first time.<\/p>\n
To address that, Welch is championing an additional property tax that would pay for bonds to accelerate a $2.7-billion priority list of water, stormwater and sewage improvement projects. Voters will decide on that measure in a referendum.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not going to kick the can down the road like previous administrations have done,\u201d Welch said. \u201cThe realities of our weather demand that to be a resilient city, we have to make those investments now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Crist said he will vote no on the additional tax, also on the ballot.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe last thing I want to do is burden you with a bond that has more debt on the city of St. Petersburg than we have right now,\u201d Crist said. \u201cWe need to live within our means.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Suncoast Sierra Club endorsed that referendum with reservations. The group has asked for a citizen oversight committee on the money raised and to include nature-based solutions to stave off the effects of climate change.<\/p>\n
Welch said he was supportive of those measures. However, City Council member Richie Floyd took action to begin those discussions to make those requests a reality.<\/p>\n
Can St. Pete keep the Rays around?<\/p>\n
As the Rays got ready for a playoff game in a fixed-up Tropicana Field, brought offline for a year after Hurricane Milton ripped off its roof in 2024, both candidates were asked about the city\u2019s future with the team and the 86 acres around the stadium.<\/p>\n
Crist said he\u2019d convene a blue-ribbon panel to review all bids submitted, including Welch\u2019s pick of the pitch submitted by Black Investment Partners. He said he\u2019d like to have a sizable park, an idea paraded by former mayor Rick Baker.<\/p>\n
Crist called it a tragedy if the Rays end up leaving St. Petersburg after the team\u2019s contract at the Trop expires at the end of the 2028 season. He recalled the effort to bring a Major League Baseball team to a sleepier St. Petersburg more than 30 years ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo many people put so much sweat equity into making this happen,\u201d he said. \u201cTo not try everything possible to have them stay here is almost unconscionable to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Welch said the site has been studied enough. He said he wants to move forward with a \u201cbetter, more impactful agreement\u201d than the one his administration brokered with the Rays under prior ownership. He took credit for fixing up the Trop on time and under budget even after prior Rays leadership at first objected, though the city is contractually obligated to make repairs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe goal is not to pay any price to keep baseball here,\u201d Welch said.<\/p>\n
Crist has said he would seek to keep the Rays in St. Petersburg long term, which Welch dismissed.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo say that we have a shot now with baseball as they\u2019re signing contracts in Hillsborough is just not realistic,\u201d Welch said.<\/p>\n
Crist hones stance on property taxes<\/p>\n
Crist came out against a statewide ballot question to raise the property tax exemption on owner-occupied homes, calling it \u201ca sledgehammer to cities and counties.\u201d He previously expressed uncertainty about where he stood.<\/p>\n
Crist said he plans to cut $15 million in property taxes and will look at city employees making more than $150,000 a year.<\/p>\n
Welch accused Crist of not doing his homework. He said Crist\u2019s plan would \u201cbleed all our leadership\u201d and would still require the city to find another $11 million to cut.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019ll be just as harmful to the city,\u201d Welch said.<\/p>\n
What about Childs Park odors?<\/p>\n
Both candidates were asked if there was anything the city can do to get to the bottom of a lingering smell in the Childs Park neighborhood. Installed air monitors found that air pollutants exceeded health thresholds.<\/p>\n
Welch called it a decades-long problem.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf it was an easy solution between the county, the city and the state, we would have solved it by now,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n