So I just read “Darden’s St. Pete Strong” plan, and it sounds lovely. Unfortunately that’s not enough. I expect every candidate to share an appealing plan or vision or our fair city. Not to pick on Darden specifically, but what we really need from a candidate is a clear explainantion of exactly what they’re going to do and how they are going to get it done. Everything on her list will require some combination of resources, time, funding, and most importantly: collaboration and consensus with staff, council, citizens, and businesses. If you can’t tell me how you are going to muster and marshal the above items, it’s nothing more than platitudes.

Hopefully the voters will demand this level of detail from every candidate.

I like and respect Ms. Rice, but I'd have to agree with the posters above. There is very little substance on her website. This election is likely to be a referendum on the Pier & Rays; perhaps start by outlining in detail positions/goals on both issues?

Not sure how tuned in either of you are to what's been happening in the St. Petersburg community over the past year or so, but Darden was instrumental in a project called The Peoples Budget Review. It was an experiment in direct democracy in which community leaders and average citizens took to the streets to hear the citizens thoughts on the city's budget process. So often, candidates and citizens disregard the budget during the campaign season, leaving our discourse to hot button issues like the pier and police station. Darden volunteered multiple hours each week, dedicated to creating a process that could harness the best ideas of the citizens, and use their shared voice as a means to influence government.

Isn't this the type of leadership we need in the face of disconnected & out of touch representation?

Certainly nothing wrong with reaching out to the people- and a good way to ensure some votes. But it still does not address the most significant questions voters should have: How is the candidate going to get things done? Making grand vision statements and talking directly to the people are a great start, but do nothing to tell me how the candidate is going to perform the hardest and most significant element of the job: coordinating the funding, resources, staff, and council to actually make things happen.

The annual budget process, is the process in which the city sets tax rates, collects resources, analyzes the success or failures of departments and programs, coordinates funds, and identifies staff members responsible for desired changes.

If you do not believe your representation is doing their job, you are absolutely correct. The budget process has gone on year after year without any real outreach or genuine effort to engage the citizens. The budget is the most important vote our council members have each year, because it covers everything from vision and policy, to staff and resources. My point was that Darden understands that. She knows budgets are moral documents and should be a primary concern for any citizen claiming to live in a representative democracy.

I encourage you to tune into the Peoples Budget Review, as I am convinced a process that empowers everyday people to make decisions for their own community is exactly what we hope our candidates can provide.