Photo by Johnny Vitale
Gulfport voters will elect two new city council members in the March municipal election, and The Gabber Newspaper is helping you get to know the candidates.
Each week until Election Day, we ask Ward I candidates Joe Guenther and Jennifer Daunch, along with Ward III candidates Jennifer Webb and Keri Nelson, a new question.
Here’s what they had to say this week.
This week’s question:
Small businesses play a major role in Gulfport’s economy and tax base. A healthy business community can help stabilize city revenue and reduce pressure to raise property taxes.
As a council member, how would you help attract new businesses to Gulfport, and how would you support existing businesses once they are here?
Photo by Trei Johnson
Ward I:
Joe Guenther
Small businesses are the backbone of Gulfport’s economy and tax base. Having owned and operated a small business here for more than 30 years, I understand the challenges firsthand. I’ve also worked with the city numerous times through co-op advertising programs, so I know how important partnership and communication are. As a council member, I would focus on making the city predictable and easy to work with by streamlining permitting and reducing unnecessary red tape. Supporting both new and existing businesses with reliable infrastructure and open dialogue helps stabilize revenue, create jobs, and reduce pressure on property taxes.
Jennifer Daunch
The city should be the front line in welcoming and encouraging success by working alongside our chambers and collectives to offer workshops, mentorship, and business navigation similar to programs offered through the St. Pete Greenhouse. Streamlining the permitting process so delays and communication issues don’t stall new businesses before they open. We also need to proactively check in with businesses across the entire city, especially long-standing businesses outside downtown that often feel overlooked. Pedestrian infrastructure and safety enhancements would better connect our neighborhoods. Encouraging more overnight lodging options so visitors can stay longer and fully experience Gulfport as a destination. Growth is not always about bigger. It is about businesses being supported and feeling connected.
[read more below]
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Photo courtesy of Jennifer Webb and Keri Nelson
Ward III:
Jennifer Webb
As Treasurer of the Gulfport Merchants Chamber, I’ve seen our business community rally after the hurricanes — but resilience isn’t a strategy. We need to clarify code and ordinance requirements upfront so entrepreneurs can focus on building, not navigating bureaucracy. We must partner with Gulfport Merchants Chamber, Fusion 49, and the Midtown Business Collective to develop our corridors along 49th and 22nd, and slow traffic so storefronts actually get seen. Finally, we must connect Tangerine’s growth to Beach Boulevard by developing live-where-you-create condos that turn our neighborhoods into a connected residential retail network. Gulfport needs connected action, based in bold vision.
Keri Nelson
We can continue to partner with groups like the Gulfport Merchants Chamber and Midtown Business Collective by hosting and promoting weekly markets, art shows, and community events. The library can also offer free workshops to help entrepreneurs with marketing, bookkeeping, and starting their businesses. After the business opens, we can help increase foot traffic by offering shuttle services to commercial areas on Gulfport Boulevard, 49th and 58th Streets for residents who don’t drive. In the downtown area, the city should move forward with a traffic and parking study and ensure sidewalks are maintained for safe pedestrian mobility.
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