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Inauguration November 21 for Lee County Commissioners
Nov 21, 2006 Inauguration November 21 for Lee County Commissioners On Tuesday, November 21, 2006 at 8:30 AM, Lee County Commissioners Brian Bigelow, Tammy Hall and Frank Mann will take the oath of office during an inauguration ceremony in the Commission Chambers on the second floor of the Old Lee County Courthouse ( 2120 Main Street, downtown Ft. Myers. ) An ensemble from the Cypress Lake Center of the Arts will supply the musical entertainment. The ceremony will be followed by a 9 AM reception in the Courthouse lobby on the first floor. The weekly Board meeting will begin at its usual 9:30 AM starting time. The public is invited to attend all inauguration activities and the Board meeting. BIOGRAPHIES BRIAN BIGELOW Brian was born in Lee Memorial Hospital on November 30th, 1963 to Linda taught mathematics at Fort Myers High School in the 1960's and 70's and moved to Tampa in 1979, acquiring a Master's Degree at University of South Florida and then spending twenty years working as a computer programmer for GTE Data Services. Charlie served as a city judge in Fort Myers and a land use attorney in Lee County. In addition to other ancestral public servants before Brian, Charlie also served as District 2 Lee County Commissioner between 1986 and 1989. In Brian's mind, the most personally rewarding accomplishment of Charlie's leadership was making possible the funding to purchase Flint Pen Strand, the largest portion of the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed (C.R.E.W.) Brian's brother, Chuck lives in College Park, Georgia with his wife Patricia. Their step-sister, Jennifer Melinda Bigelow (born to Frieda Jean Hicks Bigelow) lives in San Jose, California with her fianc, Bill. Brian is an alumnus of Fort Myers High School (1982) and the University of Florida (1989). The first ten years of his career were in the construction and development industry, becoming an urban land planner in 1997. The most rewarding work of Brian's life was when he chose to live with and care for his 83 year old paternal grandmother in 2000. Mabel Norton Bigelow, a native of Punta Gorda, Florida entered hospice care on Christmas Day, 2003 and died in Brian's arms four days later. Brian considers her his own personal lifelong hero and dedicates his inauguration to office in her memory. Brian's primary concerns for Lee County are: 2. Our explosive growth is being mismanaged which is leading to unbridled urban sprawl; this threatens Lee County's quality of life. 3. Our skyrocketing taxes are the result of uncontrolled spending and inadequate budgetary goals; this threatens the affordability of Lee County. TAMMY HALL Commissioner Tammy Hall is proud to begin her second term as Lee County Commissioner for District 4. She is the first woman to be re-elected to the Board of County Commissioners. Ms. Hall moved to Southwest Florida with her family in 1978 from Eagle River Wisconsin. She began her career in the resort/real estate industry working for a local resort developer. Having gained a comprehensive understanding of the area's growth opportunities, she continued her career with a large architectural/engineering firm as their Director of Marketing. Due to her passion for community service and her involvement in the original Master Plan of downtown Fort Myers, Ms. Hall was recruited to work for the Fort Myers Downtown Redevelopment Agency in 1988. In 1992 she was hired as the Assistant Director for the Department of Tourism & Marketing for the City of Fort Myers. In 1994, Ms. Hall left government employment and began her own marketing consulting firm of Hall & Company. Her clients have included local businesses and non-profit organizations, as well as clients in the regional and international markets. Commissioner Hall was first elected to the Lee County Commission in 2004. Before being elected to the Board, Ms. Hall was a member of the Fort Myers City Council from 2000 – 2004. She established herself as a compelling leader championing the formulation and implementation of a new downtown Fort Myers revitalization plan. She also took a leadership role in developing a strong economic and financial structure to bring back fiscal responsibility and balance to city government. Ms. Hall currently serves as Chairwoman of the Lee County Board of County Commissioners (first woman to ever serve as chair in Lee County's history), the Lee County Port Authority, and the Lee County Tourist Development County. Tammy also represents the Board as liaison to the Sheriff's Department, Horizon Council, Veterans Affairs, Caloosahatchee/St. Lucie Legislative Advisory Board, Regional Stewardship Alliance, Florida Association of Counties Finance, Transportation & Administration Committee and serves as a member of the Southwest Florida Expressway Authority & Metropolitan Planning Organization. Much of Ms. Hall's career has been devoted to giving back to the community. She has served and participated on several non-profit and charitable boards throughout the county. She currently is a member of the Cape Coral Chamber of Commerce, North Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce, Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce, Cape Coral Republic Women's Club, BUPAC and Downtown Fort Myers Property Owners. Ms. Hall is grateful to the residents of Lee County for this opportunity to serve as their County Commissioner. She welcomes the opportunity to work with her fellow Board members, county staff and the residents of Lee County to ensure the integrity of our neighborhoods and to protect our quality of life. FRANK MANN Frank Mann, a lifelong resident of Lee County, began his political career in 1974 with his election to the Florida House of Representatives. Mr. Mann served 8 years in the House. In 1982, he was elected to a four term in the Florida Senate. During those years he represented most of Lee, Charlotte and Collier Counties. In 1991, he was appointed by Florida Governor Lawton Chiles to the South Florida Water Management District Board where he served for two years. Governor Chiles again called upon him, this time to fill the unexpired term in District 4 during 1993 – 94 on the Lee County Board of County Commissioners. From 1996 – 98, Mr. Mann answered Governor Chile's call to finish the last 2 years of an open position on the Lee Memorial Hospital Board. In 2002 he won the Republican primary for State Senate over four opponents with a margin of 12 percentage points. In the legislature, Mr. Mann served ten years on the Natural Resources Committee, working actively for the preservation of Upper Captiva Island, Cayo Costa Island and Lovers Key in Lee County. He was active in the creation of the Environmentally Endangered Lands Program, which led to the purchase of 40,000 acres of sensitive lands in the Fakahatchee Strand in Collier County. While he was serving in the legislature, US 41 was four-laned from Punta Gorda to Naples, I-75 was completed from Tampa to Naples, the four-laning of SR80 was begun and the first four year university -- University of South Florida Branch Campus -- was opened in Lee County. Mr. Mann served as chairman of both the budget committees on Transportation and Education during his Florida State Legislature days. After his service in the legislature, he served for 17 years as chief spokesman and advocate for the Association for Retarded Citizens of Florida in the state capital. Recently, he has served for four years as a special consultant on Governmental Affairs for the Realtor Association of Greater Fort Myers, working primarily on Affordable Housing issues. In 1967, he founded the Mann Webb Insurance Agency 1967. He has a BA degree from Vanderbilt University in Tennessee. In June, he and his wife Mary Lee, celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary. They have two sons, both practicing attorneys in Fort Myers. Now semi-retired, Mr. and Mrs. Mann live among citrus groves in Eastern Lee County, happily spoiling their four grandchildren. |