7 Qualify to Vie for 2 City Council Seats

It looks like we're in for an interesting local election.

The New Port Richey city clerk announced Tuesday that seven people have qualified to run for a city council seat in the upcoming April 9 municipal election. There are two seats up for grabs in that election.

The qualified candidates are:

• Bob Langford

Langford has served more than one term as a city council member, according to city records. His first term started in 2003. He served as deputy mayor during part of that term. He is currently in another multi-year term that ends in April.

He previously said he wasn't running for election, but he announced last week that he changed his mind and was seeking another term. 

“I just want to be part of the city turning around,” he said.

• Michael J. Malterer

Michael Malterer, 24,  would be a newcomer to the council. He is an operations manager for Penske Truck Leasing.

Malterer wants to see the city revise its permitting process for businesses and is a staunch opponent of the city’s red light cameras.  Other issues he wants to address include the former Community Hospital property and the Hacienda Hotel. 

"If elected, I would be an advocate for putting the Hacienda back into the private sector's hands," he said in a previous interview. "I think it would be great to see a bed and breakfast or some sort of mix use like that run there. I think keeping it on the city's books any longer than we absolutely have to is a mistake."

• Ginny Miller

Ginny is a former councilwoman who is looking to return to a seat on the council. She served several council terms. Her first term started in 1998. Then she served terms last decade. Her most recent term was from 2009-2012. She did not run for re-election in 2012, but she is running in this election.

Miller, who teaches math at Gulf Middle, says she’s been monitoring what’s been going on with the city Council during her break. She is concerned about downtown emphasis at the expense of neighborhood work.

“I’ve been impatient with the pace of neighborhood work,” she said in a previous interview.

• Rose Mohr

Rose Mohr is an owner of The Market Off Main in New Port Richey and vice chair of the city’s Environmental committee.

She has said she thinks she can bring a fresh view on the issues facing business owners in the city.

Asked her reason for considering a run, she said in a past interview “The main reason for me is just being a business owner in the downtown.”

• Jeffery Starkey

Jeff Starkey, 38, says he was born and raised in the city.  Two years ago, he moved back into a home that is in the same neighborhood he grew up in. He owns Great Florida Insurance, an independent insurance company. His father, John Starkey, owned a national insurance company on Main Street.

“”I just want to make New Port Richey a better place,” he said.

Starkey has said he has concerns about New Port Richey’s downtown area.

Jeff Starkey is not related to Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey.

Starkey has two young children, a boy named Dylan and a girl named Madison.

“I want them to be proud of New Port Richey like I am,” he said.

• Jonathan Tietz

Jon Tietz, 24, is a freelancer videographer and New Port Richey native. He graduated from the University of Florida in 2012.

Tietz’s main focus is police and public safety. He expressed concerns recently about crime in his neighborhood.

• Chopper Davis

The Tampa Bay Times reported that Davis is a former owner of Jilly's bar in downtown New Port Richey.  He is is "also known for organizing charity benefits and his past work for the Center for Independence, which provides services to people who are developmentally disabled," according to the Times.

Find out a little bit more info on most of them in our article from last week.